Soldato
- Joined
- 17 Aug 2003
- Posts
- 20,160
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Hmm. so people are either millenials, women, mugs or pixel owners.
intersting thoughts.
intersting thoughts.
Google reportedly planning mid-March release for Android P Developer Preview
- Thread starter V_R
- Start date
I used to be the same, hated any android phone that wasn't by google due to crap skins, bloat, slow updates and not getting certain updates at all for some phones but ever since the pixel came, the google phones have just been very poor:
- far too expensive for what they are (more so at launch)
- stock android doesn't have the same appeal these days as there haven't been any big/must have features since the days of ICS, JB etc. and even then, it seems like some OEMs are ahead as they usually have the features before google add them to their stock version and plus any big features that google do bring to stock android, they eventually release them to every phone or make it available via the play store i.e. google now/assistant and so on
- the theme choice they are going for, everything white......
I really wanted a pixel 2 but the package overall was just shocking:
- far too dear for what it you are/were getting
- too many issues with the xl 2 (plus too big for me) and the pixel 2, well, those bezels.... enough said (that and pricing again)
The only big advantages for myself of those 2 phones over others at the time of release was the camera and stock android/updates.
I went with the GS 8 as it seemed like the only complete/best all round package, the best screen, big screen with small form body, very good camera, water proofing, wireless charging, decent speaker for a single firing one, gorgeous design and for a decent/cheaper price than most other phones.
The bloat is damn annoying but once disabled or hidden, it's not so bad, as they say, out of sight, out of mind, that and a lot of samsung's tweaks are very nice i.e. the theme engine, some of their apps such as the calendar and phone/dialer app are good and a lot of the smart tweaks/gestures, which personally I find useful especially screen calibration control.
So far mine is holding up well with speed/smoothness, a few slow downs every now and then but nothing that ruins the device, supposedly oreo has improved responsiveness/speed further.
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What a load....
Thats like saying if I change the exhaust on my BMW to a custom built one, I'm not driving a BMW.
All everyone talks about on here is updates, updates, updates. So what if I have to wait 6 months for an update, what difference does it make if the handset is working.
Every single one of these updates brings promises of the latest and greatest battery life but turns out to hardly make any difference, MarshMallow to Nougat to Oreo made zero usability changes to me and I'd say the same applies to 90% of the paying public.
Honestly I've ceased caring, the Pixel devices are too expensive, period, the quality control is diabolical and there are still some basics they can't do as well as other 'lesser' devices such as video. Also some of the additions the 3rd parties make to Android are genuinely useful.
With the Pixel pricing and these latest UI changes its clear Google want to either be Apple or deliver iOS like software.......no thanks.
Us folk that hate that look and way of doing things will need the 3rd party manufacturers to deliver a different experience that doesn't blow your eyeballs out everytime you turn on the screen just because the kids love white.
I assume you're referring to the state of the UI in the first developer preview. What I will say from previous experience is that the UI can and does change between each iteration of the preview/beta program so I wouldn't see it's current state as fixed in stone. As for when phones do get updates, the headline features in each release may not be as noticeable when running non-stock as handset manufacturers may have implemented them differently or simply taken them out. You only really appreciate the changes on stock because they're not wrapped up in touchwiz or similar.
Personally I would agree that the average user really shouldn't be as bothered about the speed of updates as the changes are more behind the scenes these days and most of what you might be waiting for can be done with other apps (like the rotating YouTube when others stay portrait for example)
Also TouchWiz isn't too bad. As has been said, some of their stuff is actually very good, like their camera app.
All this from a Pixel XL and then Pixel 2 XL owner. I was tempted to give the GS9+ a go.
One thing I have more of an appreciation for is this 'developer preview' really is important for developers. For 8.0 I didn't really pay much attention. It didn't seem like much was changing, but then it hit and broke most of my apps as notifications were done very differently behind the scenes.
Definitely I'll be wanting to use P as soon as possible, even if it's just in the emulator.
Also TouchWiz isn't too bad. As has been said, some of their stuff is actually very good, like their camera app.
All this from a Pixel XL and then Pixel 2 XL owner. I was tempted to give the GS9+ a go.
One thing I have more of an appreciation for is this 'developer preview' really is important for developers. For 8.0 I didn't really pay much attention. It didn't seem like much was changing, but then it hit and broke most of my apps as notifications were done very differently behind the scenes.
Definitely I'll be wanting to use P as soon as possible, even if it's just in the emulator.
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