Is there any Android-based mobile phone that can compete with the iPhone?

instead of presenting a certain technology or approach, my idea with this post is to get some discussion and feedback about ios vs. android.

let me first start by saying it’s not meant as a pissing contest about which is best, or the ridiculous notion that there can be only one mobile os to rule them all. i’m rather after your personal experience and perspective.

me and i os

the reason i want to talk about this is that i’ve personally gotten tired of ios and some aspects surrounding it. however, i believe there are many upsides and positives about it too, so i want to hear about your views and takes on it. i’m about to buy a new mobile phone and i want to make the best thought-through decision i can.

good parts about i phone and i os

let’s take the iphone first. it’s a beautiful and sleek device that, in my opinion, doesn’t have many shortcomings. great responsiveness to touch, scrolling momentum, swipes etc. sure, we can discuss the antenna thing or similar, but all devices have their flaws, bugs and not-so-good parts. with ios, i’d say the advantages are:

• beautiful design.
• great ux.
• very good consistency between all apps.
• easy settings.

bad parts about i phone and i os

there are some things that can drive me crazy about the ios eco-system, and they are:

• apple’s total control over approved apps and what i can install on my device.
• the completely annoying tie-in to itunes, and as soon as i need to do anything major, i have to connect (with a cable !) to the computer i want an independent device!
• i’m not allowed to do certain things, like sharing 3g connection as wifi hotspot etc. i don’t want to jailbreak just to get basic functionality.
• upgrades to ios where older versions of the phone lacks new features, not for technical reasons, but just because apple don’t want to give them to me.
• apple’s lack of openness in its processes.

good parts about android

naturally, the upsides of android are:

• open (one can always talk about google and its strategies, but i’d claim it’s pretty open).
• i can install any app i want, and also apps with behavior that would generally be banned by apple for ios.
• developers can create and share apps in any fashion they like to.
• i can install any web browser i want to!

bad parts about android

ands the bad parts, as far as i know, are:

• touch events, frame rates and general user experience not as smooth as on an iphone.
• too much diversity in app user experience (someone called it the new windows…).
• all different mobile phone providers offer their own on-top user interface, which makes installs and upgrades different from device to device.

what are your thoughts?

have i missed anything? don’t you agree on something of the above? is there any current, or upcoming, mobile phone based on android that is, both hardware-wise and software-wise, as good as the iphone?

talk to me!

from http://robertnyman.com/2010/11/25/is-there-any-android-based-mobile-phone-that-can-compete-with-the-iphone/