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Android can be beautiful

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Re: Android can be beautiful

#151

Post by rahoulb »

jrockway wrote: post #76
mtgx wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wish Google would force manufacturers to stop using the 320x240 resolution. The browsing experience is very poor on such a resolution, unless you're using Opera Mini perhaps, and I imagine it's hard for developers to refit their apps for such a small resolution, too, as even menu text will take a lot of space on that resolution. I also wish they mandated everyone has at least 512 MB of RAM in their phones, and at l…

I kind of doubt that users of low-end phones know what Android is or know what they're missing. It's not like they're downgrading from an iPhone, they're probably upgrading from a feature phone. And even the worst Android phone is much nicer than that. Eventually they will upgrade to a nice Android phone, and will enjoy the enhanced user experience. But cost does matter to some people, and although browsing at 320x24…

> they're probably upgrading from a feature phone. And even the worst Android phone is much nicer than that.

I would disagree - I've heard quite a few non-technical people say they are never getting another android because they are so frustrated by their gingerbread/froyo handsets. They envy the iPhone simply because they never hear people swearing at them (whereas their phones prompt a tirade of profanity)

Re: Android can be beautiful

#152

Post by maatanin »

mtgx wrote: post #70
Adirael wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is there a way to see how the fragmentation (most important for me: screen size) is at this moment? I've got a low end android phone (Galaxy Mini) which works well but I can't install a lot of stuff (Path comes to mind) because of screen resolution. I think the mobile OS market is going to end looking somewhat similar to the PC OS market, but changing Windows for Android. The market share race is impossible for Apple…

I wish Google would force manufacturers to stop using the 320x240 resolution. The browsing experience is very poor on such a resolution, unless you're using Opera Mini perhaps, and I imagine it's hard for developers to refit their apps for such a small resolution, too, as even menu text will take a lot of space on that resolution. I also wish they mandated everyone has at least 512 MB of RAM in their phones, and at l…

At the moment, there are no new android phones with 320x240.

Re: Android can be beautiful

#153

Post by bulatb »

Adirael wrote: post #55
cs702 wrote: post #47

Android is no longer an ugly-duckling platform trying to catch up with iOS, but a beautiful platform that truly rivals iOS in all important ways -- and now surpasses it in terms of market share. However, mobile app developers have only recently begun to transition from "we need an app for Android too, quick!" to "we need great apps for both Android and iOS," so it will take a little while for all those ugly, hastily-…

Is there a way to see how the fragmentation (most important for me: screen size) is at this moment? I've got a low end android phone (Galaxy Mini) which works well but I can't install a lot of stuff (Path comes to mind) because of screen resolution. I think the mobile OS market is going to end looking somewhat similar to the PC OS market, but changing Windows for Android. The market share race is impossible for Apple…

Maybe something like this? http://opensignalmaps.com/reports/fragmentation.php

Re: Android can be beautiful

#154

Post by manmal »

mrich wrote: post #69
darkstalker wrote: post #28

It's already known that since ICS Android is prettier and more functional than iOS.

This. I cannot help but think "old-fashioned" when seeing an iOS UI. It is smooth and functional, but it looks a bit from the seventies.

I have never seen a UI from the seventies, but I imagine them being more DOS-y. Yes, the design has not received any major upgrades for 5 years now, but this also makes users "feel at home". I once switched from my iPhone 1 to an HTC Desire because I wanted a fresh look - but boy did I wish my iPhone back after some weeks.

I'm now both an iOS & Android dev and designer (and owning quite some devices from both sides), but I'll choose an iPhone anytime over iOS. There is no Android experience. There is only a Galaxy Nexus experience, an S3 experience,... But there IS an iPhone experience, and I know that my phone won't restart on me when I want to show my ticket to the train conductor.

Re: Android can be beautiful

#155

Post by creativityhurts »

estel wrote: post #119
creativityhurts wrote: post #56

It can be beautiful on the large-screen top models like Nexus S, S2, S3 and so on that are owned by geeks, not on the LG Optimus-ish and other low-quality phones that regular people buy. On my Samsung Galaxy S Mini not so much, for example I couldn't install Path because the screen is too small.

I'm not sure it's safe to say that the S2 and S3 are mainly owned by geeks. Samsung have done a good job at targeting a similar demographic to the iPhone with those devices.

They're among the most expensive Android devices and that's why I assumed they mostly owned by passionate users. My geek friends who are not on the Apple side of things have Nexus and S2/3 and the rest of the people I know who just wanted a not so expensive smartphone settled with Desire or Magic and so on.

Re: Android can be beautiful

#156

Post by unkoman »

ionforce wrote: post #108
ajross wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a digression, but there's more truth to this than the snark would indicate. Five years ago, this was a site for hackers building companies, and the emphasis was clearly on the "building" part. It rapidly took over from similar spots (/r/programming, slashdot) as the center of consciousness for web-focused developer discussion. Now, it's entirely preoccupied with the "companies" part -- what platforms to target,…

I would love to find a community for programming-related issues void of all the startup nonsense. Any ideas?

4chan is pretty good. for real.

Re: Android can be beautiful

#157

Post by nchlswu »

eyevariety wrote: post #80
rimantas wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> like the big dogs are prioritizing Android Who are those big dogs? Google? :) Microsoft? :)) Apple? :)))

I meant the big app developers. Its a throwaway comment for sure. I was just trying to encourage the original idea of the post while taking out its legs by pointing out how most of these don't look as good as they do on iOS.

your original comment says one thing (prioritization of Android) then another (how a lot of Android apps repurpose iOS designs).

Are you saying there's a general appreciation for Android, so it's higher priority nowadays?... or are you saying Android is actually being prioritized over iOS? The latter would be surprising imo.

Re: Android can be beautiful

#158

Post by morsch »

maatanin wrote: post #152
mtgx wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wish Google would force manufacturers to stop using the 320x240 resolution. The browsing experience is very poor on such a resolution, unless you're using Opera Mini perhaps, and I imagine it's hard for developers to refit their apps for such a small resolution, too, as even menu text will take a lot of space on that resolution. I also wish they mandated everyone has at least 512 MB of RAM in their phones, and at l…

At the moment, there are no new android phones with 320x240.

I don't think that's true. Here are two recent/upcoming Android 4 devices with 320x240:

Samsung Galaxy Chat B5330 http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_chat_b5330-4866.php

ZTE Style Q http://www.gsmarena.com/zte_style_q-4602.php

A couple of more devices which are reportedly coming soon: http://goo.gl/F411K

These are cheap phones, though I imagine you'd get a much better deal if you spent the same amount of money on a used Android phone.

Re: Android can be beautiful

#159

Post by omgsean »

jrockway wrote: post #76
mtgx wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wish Google would force manufacturers to stop using the 320x240 resolution. The browsing experience is very poor on such a resolution, unless you're using Opera Mini perhaps, and I imagine it's hard for developers to refit their apps for such a small resolution, too, as even menu text will take a lot of space on that resolution. I also wish they mandated everyone has at least 512 MB of RAM in their phones, and at l…

I kind of doubt that users of low-end phones know what Android is or know what they're missing. It's not like they're downgrading from an iPhone, they're probably upgrading from a feature phone. And even the worst Android phone is much nicer than that. Eventually they will upgrade to a nice Android phone, and will enjoy the enhanced user experience. But cost does matter to some people, and although browsing at 320x24…

>Eventually they will upgrade to a nice Android phone

Anecdotally I know people who had cheap Android phones and then upgraded to an iPhone because their experience with Android was terrible.

That being said I don't really think it's Google's job to protect Samsung's future profits from being eaten into by people's poor experience with a crappy LG phone. It's just one more case where Apple's total control model is beneficial to them.

Re: Android can be beautiful

#160

Post by natep »

ChrisArchitect wrote: post #87

another similar Android app design blog http://www.holoeverywhere.com/

Was going to post this, since it goes into more detail about each app, and limits itself to apps that follow the Holo guidelines, rather than just 'beautiful' ones (for those that want a more 'consistent' experience). I'm now subscribed to both.
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