mobile devices Android, Windows, Or iOS: What do you prefer for phones?

[Denim&Venöm 16,654]

One of the biggest decisions in regards to buying a smart phone is what operating system is it running on. So which do you take into consideration when buying a new or used smart phone or mobile device? 

Do you buy an Apple iOS? Did you go for android? Subscribed to a windows operated phone? Or do you support an more independent system? 

[Scrubbed user 3,415]

Is there really someone still using a Windows phone? I also can't wait for Apple to "invent" wireless charging. Or have an "innovative" AMOLED display. Or to have the "courage" to not have a physical home button.

[Princess_Bellalatanya 1,052]

Ios for me ,its simple and easy to use

[Celtore 2,769]

In terms of purely the operating system, I feel like Windows has the best offering. I really like the tile and app aesthetics, Cortana is leagues ahead of Google Now (currently use it on android) and I also really like the colour customization options. And plus, as a developer who really likes C#, I'd sooner be developing for Windows Phone with C# than developing for Android in Java. The only reason I use android is because of the app support; if there was a compatibility layer Microsoft offered or a well supported emulator, I'd jump right back to a Windows Phone.

Edited May 7, 2017 by Celtore

[PoisonClaw 8,153]

Android, on account of every phone I've ever owned has been Android.

[Jeric 46,836]

4 minutes ago, Celtore said:

In terms of purely the operating system, I feel like Windows has the best offering. I really like the tile and app aesthetics, Cortana is leagues ahead of Google Now (currently use it on android) and I also really like the colour customization options. And plus, as a developer who really likes C#, I'd sooner be developing for Windows Phone with C# than developing for Android in Java. The only reason I use android is because of the app support; if there was a compatibility layer Microsoft offered or a well supported emulator, I'd jump right back to a Windows Phone.

I have to agree that development in a Windows environment is easier in some cases. C# is a godsend to those who were lost in the depths of C++. 

As far as the end user experience, both have pros and cons that have been argued about for years. For me it's about the UX and how the hardware and os are married. After going back between both Android and iOS for years I can say this 

It depends on what I'm using the phone for, and it is basically a tie. 

[Paianis 488]

Android comes out on top due to its ubiquity, there's not much sense to be made by venturing to smaller ecosystems and in general, the devices offer the user a reasonable amount of freedom in terms of unlocked bootloaders and such.

If you want a small phone however, no one does it better than Apple (iPhone SE) unfortunately, all the Android options are either cheaply made, have low-res displays, have poor internals or have poor support from the custom ROM community.

[J-115 29]

I've always had Android phones and I've always liked them. I have a Galaxy S7 now and I couldn't be happier with it. Not upgrading to the S8 anytime soon, though, because I got the S7 recently.

I've got the Gear VR for it and I've got to say that using a cinema app in VR (my favorite is Pigasus Streaming Theater) is a pretty awesome way to experience episodes of MLP. The resolution of the Galaxy S7's display is higher than that used by the real VR headsets for PC's so the video looks somewhat better than it would on there. That said, I'm pretty sure it's still only ~720p per eye, so videophiles would still be better off ignoring 2D video in VR until 4K appears in phone displays (which may take a while, given that the ONLY benefit to 4K on such a small display would be for VR apps) or higher resolutions on future generations of the Rift and Vive.

I also have experience with the cheap headsets they sell at Walmart and the like and they're useful for playing PC games in VR via Trinus, since Trinus isn't available as a Gear VR app. Not nearly as comfortable and a lot more cheaply made, though.

[zerox 1,050]

android phones. iphones are too expensive, windows phones are mostly a joke.

[LunarShadow 397]

Android master race all the way. I bought my Galaxy Note 4 when it first came out back in October 2014 and i am still using it to this day and plan to for many more years. Over that time period i have had the pleasure of experiencing the freedom of Android and i have come to adore this operating system in all its glory. By far android is all i will use. 

[Derplight Sperkle 1,013]

I've preferred to use iPhones.

I've had a better experience with the iPhone over the old Droid phones I started with. The iPad also helped me choose the iPhone over the latest Android devices (though I won't discount the Samsungs). 

[Kyoshi Frost Wolf 40,410]

I recently switched from a Windows Phone to Android though I still use my old phone for different media purposes. After using the Android phone for a little while, I personally still prefer the Windows Phone OS overall. The main issue I have with Android and this is pretty big; You can't transfer apps to the SD card at all, despite the phone saying you can. Apparently this depends on the phone you get, which is rubbish on its own, but the fact that the phone says the app is on external storage while it still shows on internal storage is double rubbish. The Windows Phone makes it very easy to use an SD card, just pop it in and you can then have all media and apps download to there by default. No way to do that on Android which makes no sense whatsoever. Such a shame too because the Google Play store is vastly larger yet I have no real memory to use for it, since I have only 8GB of on-board memory. Made a post about this on an Android community forum and it seems the hardcore fanboys of the OS will defend it to the death, despite this obvious, glaring flaw.

[cmarston1 5,952]

I have only really had Androids and they have served me just fine.

[-Nobody- 514]

Android. I used to be a big iOS fan, but I switched to Android, and love it. There's a little bit more you can do with it, but to be honest, the gap between iOS and Android isn't huge for me. I could use either one and be happy.

I actually had a Windows Phone once. I loved it, but there was almost no app support, and it's pretty much dead now. Which is a shame, since there was so much potential for it.

[EpicEnergy 22,216]

I prefer Android, not for any reason really aside from it being reliable.

[The Kaeya Simp 13,983]

i prefer android
but I find that's just more due to the fact that pretty much everything has died apart from iOS, Android, and KaiOS (which I haven't tried)

I find there's a lot of quality variation between the different forms of android
like I find Pixel/Android One devices buggy as fuck, and really unreliable as a result, and so I'd advise anyone to stay away
Samsungs don't tend to get that many updates, but samsung refine it better, I've rarely had any bugs on my S8+, and it was on the version that came with it, after a forced christmas update it's been without bugs

[zerox 1,050]

I see that I posted here a few years ago. Still an android user. btw I'm on my 3rd android phone since 2014.

[TheRockARooster 47,691]

I have an iPhone, I’ve always liked iOS as it’s more simple.

[baba_booey 4,299]

For phones I generally prefer Android due to just feeling more “utilitarian” overall, although I gotta say I bought an iPad a couple years ago for college and I can’t say I’ve found an Android tablet nearly as good.

[The Kaeya Simp 13,983]

On 2021-04-25 at 9:15 AM, The Hawks Simp said:

i prefer android
but I find that's just more due to the fact that pretty much everything has died apart from iOS, Android, and KaiOS (which I haven't tried)

I find there's a lot of quality variation between the different forms of android
like I find Pixel/Android One devices buggy as fuck, and really unreliable as a result, and so I'd advise anyone to stay away
Samsungs don't tend to get that many updates, but samsung refine it better, I've rarely had any bugs on my S8+, and it was on the version that came with it, after a forced christmas update it's been without bugs

this still stands

[DixonTheAdversary 1,631]

I've only ever used Android for phones. I have used IOS on an iPad, but don't really care for it.

[Early Sunsets 2,106]

Android. I've never liked Apples's OS (mobile or desktop) or their device designs. Not my thing.

[Northern Star 1,023]

When I was first looking at a smart phone, I was quite interested in the Windows ones...then came the news of the discontinuance and I went to android.

iOS was fine on an Ipod touch but...a pain to use at the same time if that's a way to say it. I don't regret it but Android just seems so much more open.

Edited July 12, 2021 by TheGleaner

[Splashee 28,538]

I am quite used to work on Android now. But I don't have much of a problem with iOS. I like both!

[Magpie 621]

I personally own an android because it's cheaper. I use both Android and iOS frequently at work though, considering I do software QA (which includes mobile) and I don't mind either one.