Quoting TheMadMartian:

Quote:

Doesn't Apple reserve the right to deny apps? 

Yep, which is eactly what I want to happen. Apple rejects, not denies, apps for a number of reasons. Buggy, poor design, inconsistent user interface, and a variety of other reasons. Developers are always allowed to fix them, except in a couple of cases where the apps either stole copyright material, or performed malicious actions or performed actions without user approval.

I like the idea that there is a gatekeeper for apps that rejects poorly designed or executed apps. Browsing Cydia shows how much crap gets though if nobody is performing this function.

Quoting johnd:

Quote:
With no experience of owning either an iOS or Android phone, you have decided that Android is more "open" than iOS, but can provide no logical reasons for this position.

I know people who use both.  With Android you can:
1. Purchase phones from different manufacturers.
2. Have a choice of carriers (in the U.S.)
3. Don't have any one vendor controlling the apps you can use.

With Apple you have one brand of phone, one carrier, and one app store.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out which of the two is more "open".  (This is not an endorsement of either technology.)

Quote:
But you're the one acting like a zealot, pushing the "open is better" barrow.

I'm not pushing it at all, I'm just disputing your claim that Apple is "open".

As you say, there are advantages to not being "open", and Apple has gone down that path.

---------------

Atleast overhere in The Netherlands, Europe, very recently we are offered the chance to select our own carrier. I guess the three biggest providers offer the iPhone(s).

One app store is not entirely true I think, as us Europeans do not get all the apps that are in the U.S. app store. But I'm not entirely sure about this, I saw only once that I could not download an app.

I look at it this way:

- Apple: you're stuck with one hardware manufacturer and one software shop everything has to go through. That may limit choice but the upside is it ensures stability and a universal system where every app works on every machine

- Android: more choice, variations on the OS and anyone and their cast can make an app for it. The downside is that this diversity can cause instability issues and you lose the universal nature of it

Both have their ups and downs and it all boils down to what you prefer and what you want to do with it. In many ways I think Android is like linux and the i-devices are more like Mac/Windows

Quoting scotthm:

Quote:
Quoting Mark Harrison:

Quote:
I like one brand of phone.  It's a fantastic piece of hardware.  I wouldn't want anything else....

I like one app store....

OK.  I have no objections.  Proprietary isn't worse than "open", it's just not "open".

---------------

Not being OPEN isn't a BAD thing., and the whole Android is OPEN is a complete LIE!  It's more open then ios, but so what.  Does google tell everyone what they are working on with Android?  NO.  Is there a Community of outside people working on Android also like with Linux?  NO.  Can you just install the latest version of Android onto your Android phone?  NO.  So where is the open???    So far it looks just like what Apple and Microsoft does with their OS also. It's CLOSED.  If anything Apple is more open in that they at least will continue to update their older Hardware to the latest OS.  With Android, your Begging your different phone Carriers.  Even if the phone is only a few months old. 

So Android is NOT OPEN!!!  What does that leave?  Well Your on many different phone Carriers, sure, but so is Apple out of the U.S. and if rumors are true, then Verison also shortly in the U.S.  So that leaves Stores.  Is 10 stores with the SAME programs with a whole lot of Garbage better then 1 store only yet garbage free?  My choice is the 1 store.

Now I'm glad Android is around, it's Competition, and that's a good thing.  It makes Apple try all that much harder to hold onto what they have.  Apple doesn't need to have a huge market share to make money.  Apple charges more for the hardware and sells less, while others hope or flood the market and make a very slim margin of profit.  This is where they give you a phone for FREE or a BOGO program on the more expensive Android phones.  None of that with the Iphone.

My Iphone 4 works GREAT.  It just Works. It's very Reliable so I can always count on it.  Installing Apps on it is a SNAP and just works.  Is it perfect, of course not, what is?  It does pretty much anything I can think of.  When they say 'There's a App for that', it's true!!!    Just a few of the apps for example I use all the time are, Cnet News, Engaget, TMZ, ESPN SportsCenter, IGN, Gizmodo, Gamestop, Fox News, AVSForums, Netflix, IMDB(Internet Movie Database), Fandango, Redbox, PlayOn, Slingplayer, Pandora, Slacker, SiriusXM,  Kindle, Google, Bing, Google Earth, Ask.com, Amazon, yelp, and on and on and I haven't even gotten into the games I have.  Some being Guitar Hero, Rock Band Reloaded (just came out),  Topple2, Star Wars Trench Run, Tiger Woods, Aqua Moto 2, Trainyard, Gwars:Touch, Colorbind, Fieldrunners, Cut the Rope, and on and on.  I have a bunch of different Tower games that I can spends HOURS and HOURS playing.  I haven't even mention getting the newest BLOGS I'm signed up for sent to my Iphone when I plug into my PC which is nice.  There is is just so much you can DO.    A large percentage of what I have was FREE, or really CHEAP.  like 99 cents.  i find SALES for great games all the time  like 80% off or even FREE for a day.    Best of all, any apps that are updated I can have sent to me Automatically for FREE, since I have a bunch, rarely a day goes by I don't have at least 1 update, hell today I had 9 different App update.  A single update all and that's it!

Right now I like Apples Iphone Closed System.  It works!  It's also my first Apple Product EVER.

I too was once a fan of windows mobile.  There were lots of applications out there (mind you, they were in the $10-$20 range).  There was an active community developing custom roms that were optimized for speed and what-not.  The problem was, nothing was stable.  I was always 'jacking' with my phone, messing it up, constantly having to backup because I wanted to flash with the latest rom somebody had cooked up.  I'll admit that it was more friendly with respect to receiving and manipulating files and documents.... but, that was a pretty minimal advantage.  I haven't purchased any of the stronger MS Office compatible apps, so that might even be a moot point.

In the end, the iPhone just 'freakin' works.  It rarely crashes, has all the apps I want, and does what it's supposed to do:  Be a phone with the added functionality of being able to surf when necessary and install and run my desired applications.

Oh, I did find one app-gap the other day (did I just coin a new phrase?).  I wanted something to measure vibrational frequencies.  I couldn't find anything good for that.

Russ

[edit]  I just searched again and found 'vibration'.  It appears to do exactly what I needed.

I'm glad you are amused.  It's nice to know something productive came from trolling and getting the Apple fanboys all riled up.  Because beside your amusement, I see nothing else constructive here.

Some people like bananas.  Some like oranges.  I don't see why the orange people can't leave the banana people alone.  Or better yet, learn to enjoy both.

Quoting johnd:

Quote:
Quoting leaff:

Quote:
Sorry again I thought Google owned Android. It is clear that Android with its open platform will probably win the race but I feel I have benefited from Apples closed system as I wouldn't feel comfortable mistakenly downloading a rogue app that has access to my cell phone. Once again Apple will probably loose in the end due to its closed mentality.

Just to clear up some misconceptions:

Android is not a phone. You cannot buy Android. All you can buy are various implementations of Android by various phone makers on various hardware platforms. Saying "I'm buying an Android phone" is the equivalent of saying "I'm buying an internal combustion engine car".

Android may be open, but there is currently no "open" implementation of Android on any phone. All are closed systems. Try to update your Android-based phone to the lastest version of Android. Without going though lots of hoops, you are dependent on when the carrier (not even the hardware maker) decides (if ever) to make it availiable to you.

Apple is actually a more "open" system than Android, as it is controlled by the hardware maker, rather than the carrier. For instance, I don't have to wait for Telstra to approve my iPhone software update and then give it to me. In Apple's world, carriers are forced to keep up with the latest software version. In the Android world, carriers can stop you getting the update if they feel they need to sell you a new phone to improve their bottom line.

I realize Android isn't a phone and Google isn't a phone manufacturer. That will be its advantage ultimately. Like Microsoft many machines (smartphones) will have the same OS.

I don't have an Android run phone but everytime someone tries to sell me one the open OS is always their strongest selling point. Now your telling me that the carrier controls the apps on your phone. OMG that is scary. My open Android envy has just left my body. I didn't realize this was the case, wait till I get a hold of my Android user friends They owe me one for keeping this detail from me. Thanks for clearing that up. I didn't realize the carrier could control this. How do you get an app to your phone? Does every carrier have an equivalent to iTunes? Please expalin if you can.