Has anyone successfully switched from iOS to Android?

[onlyCOpunk]

I'm getting pretty annoyed with the fact that the iPhone4 has been out for 2 months here, and no one can still get their hands on them due to stock shortages, so I've been eyeing up Android phones.

The more I read, the more I like, the only problem is that since using iPods and iPhones since they were created I've pumped a fair amount of money into the iTunes store, and I use my iPhone to listen to music on a daily basis.

So I'm posing this question, has anyone switched from iPhone to Android and not had any regrets? And if so, what solutions did you come up as far as iTunes goes since Android phones can't play music purchased from iTunes?

 

[zerocool84]

Well both have their ups and downs but if you really want something why would you settle for something else?

 

[rudeguy]

Huh? Why can't Android phones play iTunes music?

 

[MrX8503]

I would just do your own research in what you would lose/gain with the transition. About how much have you invested in the AppStore? I find it hard to believe that you can't get an iPhone if you really wanted one.

 

[tdawg]

I went from a 3G to a Nexus One with little complaint. I missed two apps at first: One Stop Away and Mint, but they both found their way to Android, so I'm all set.

The media handling of Android is definitely more basic than the ipod software, but it gets the job done and you can replace the stock ones with many alternatives in the market. At first I missed autosyncing my music and movies, but ultimately it's more preferable to me to be able to just drag and drop media to the phone, giving me the option to transfer media and files to my phone from any computer with a usb connection or share full songs and videos with friends.

 

[Bateluer]

Just curious, where does the OP live? iPhone 4s are in stock in most places I've seen, B&M and online.

 

[TheStu]

Huh? Why can't Android phones play iTunes music?

Older purchased iTunes music was DRMed, and only Apple products could play them. A couple of years ago Apple rolled out iTunesPlus, which at first was more expensive but then went back to normal pricing. iTunesPlus is DRM free and a higher bit rate.

OP, depending on how much music we are talking about here, one alternative is to upgrade all the tracks to iTunes Plus.

Bateluer, his location says Sydney... so Australia I would guess.

 

[QueBert]

If your music's the non DRMed stuff there's an Android app called iSyncer which allows you to sync your phone with iTunes. It's suppose to be really good.

 

[rudeguy]

If your music's the non DRMed stuff there's an Android app called iSyncer which allows you to sync your phone with iTunes. It's suppose to be really good.

DoubleTwist sync's with iTunes too and works awesome.

 

[Lotheron]

I'm too tied into my iPhone/att plan to switch. They allowed 3GS users that were eligible for upgrade anytime in 2010 to upgrade as soon as it came out, so I did.

I've used android, and while I love the idea of the OS, I hate the implementation as it is amongst the various vendors. I prefer Apples single focus approach, honestly. Yeah, there are differences between the generations of hardware, but the software is almost identical across the iOS line.

 

[QueBert]

DoubleTwist sync's with iTunes too and works awesome.

DoubleTwist is a slow, buggy beta program. Also unless they updated it recently it doesn't sync back to iTunes. iSyncer will sync playcount back to iTunes and works flawlessly with smart playlists. DT is free, but I couldn't see myself using it until they get all the bugs and crashing worked out.

 

[randomlinh]

DoubleTwist sync's with iTunes too and works awesome.

awesome is relative. I found it to be a POS. And I was just trying to use it as a media player.

 

[rudeguy]

awesome is relative. I found it to be a POS. And I was just trying to use it as a media player.

The android app isn't anything special at all. I prefer the stock music player to doubletwist.

I use the desktop app to download podcasts and sync my phone. I know that it asks me if I want to sync my iTunes and Windows Media content as well. I've never used those 2 options since I don't use either of those products.

The did a pretty massive update on it about a month ago. Its still not fast but its better. It also supports all the new Android phones.

Its a very viable FREE option. I understand that not everyone will like it, but I do.

 

[onlyCOpunk]

So what about backing up the phone? In everything I've read about Android, I haven't seen anything regarding if it backs up your phones data like iTunes will and keep the most recent backups on file in case something happen?

I'm just trying to wrap my head around the idea of getting used to a totally new platform after using Apple for so long.

And yes, iPhone4's are still very hard to get here, there's like a 3-4 week wait if you're lucky enough to get on a waiting list, or if you get up at 5am everyday and queue up at the Apple store for their weekly shipment.

 

[preslove]

So what about backing up the phone? In everything I've read about Android, I haven't seen anything regarding if it backs up your phones data like iTunes will and keep the most recent backups on file in case something happen?

I'm just trying to wrap my head around the idea of getting used to a totally new platform after using Apple for so long.

And yes, iPhone4's are still very hard to get here, there's like a 3-4 week wait if you're lucky enough to get on a waiting list, or if you get up at 5am everyday and queue up at the Apple store for their weekly shipment.

Are you not in the US?

Is there a way to back up your iPhone contacts to gmail? The cool thing about android is that your gmail contacts are integrated into your phone's.

 

[MJinZ]

I've resorted to manually creating playlists on my Droid.

 

[s44]

Contacts, emails, and anything else Google are automatically synced to the cloud. Apps can be reinstalled from your Google account via the market, or you can (and probably should) use Titanium Backup to back up both apps and all your user data to your SD card. If you're messing with custom ROMs, ROM Manager and Clockwork will back up and restore (or even load in) those images.

 

[rudeguy]

Contacts, emails, and anything else Google are automatically synced to the cloud. Apps can be reinstalled from your Google account via the market, or you can (and probably should) use Titanium Backup to back up both apps and all your user data. If you're messing with custom ROMs, ROM Manager and Clockwork will back up and restore (or even load in) those images.

Yep. Titanium is your friend. There are also paid apps that will backup all your info. I have never found one that worked the way I thought it should though.

If you aren't going to be running custom ROM's, you won't need to worry too much about backup/restore. I get bored very easy though, so I end up wiping/restoring my phone at least 10x a week. Heck...I did it twice at work today because I was bored. Google sync's all my contact info and Titanium backs up all my app info. I can go from a clean wipe to fully restored within 10 minutes.

If you do get into custom ROM's, all recoveries include Nandroid backup. That's more of what you are looking for. Its basically an image of your phone. Just select the backup you want and wait for it to restore. Everything is back just the way you left it.

 

[AstroManLuca]

I personally love the AppBrain Market Sync app. Especially since I don't have Froyo yet. It really just keeps track of what you have installed and syncs that with your Google account. You can also remotely queue up apps to install or uninstall by going to appbrain.com on a computer.


....I guess it makes more sense if you just use it. It doesn't make backups of your apps, it just syncs your list of installed apps.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

So you are thinking of going to Android because you can't order the iPhone on the Apple website and get it within 5-7 business days?

 

[vbuggy]

One of the biggest issues with Android is the media handling. If doubletwist worked acceptably at the time, I wouldn't have gotten rid of the Droid. The problem with Android fan types is that they'll also tell you 'oh get this, it's fantastic' and you find out more often than not that it's some barely-beta piece of crap. I'll be needing another Android handset to run/test specific apps soon, but I'm not expecting it to be a 'daily', mainly due to weaknesses in the messaging and media handling.

I think the hardcore nerd calls of 'we don't need no media management' mainly because you don't need all that much in the form of tools to get your meagre collection of Anime soundtracks on there is hurting Android as a viable adoption platform for many people.

I do however have high hopes for Windows Phone 7. It seems to be exactly what the doctor ordered for anyone fed up of iTunes for starters. But of course it's not actually out yet, and from what I've seen it's an iPhone-killer for me but not necessarily for everyone else.

The iPhone 4 is probably the first iPhone I can actually say has acceptable reception (as long as it's cased - and due to the fragile nature of any Apple tech, I automatically case any iPhone), so I'm not feeling particularly gypped in that area. Appswise its unbeatable, and in terms of general function and OS fit & finish, it's still ahead of Android overall.

I currently roll with two Nokias (Symbian + Maemo) and an iPhone, One of the Nokias will be replaced by Windows Phone 7, and I will be probably dropping the iPhone after a while to be replaced by likely another Windows Phone.

I do need to buy an Android phone in the next couple of months, but unless things have dramatically improved from the 2.1 timeframe, I don't see me carrying it as even a tertiary handset - and it will be purely for dev/eval use, along with the iPhone 4 when it has been dropped from my regular carry.

 

[MJinZ]

One of the biggest issues with Android is the media handling. If doubletwist worked acceptably at the time, I wouldn't have gotten rid of the Droid. The problem with Android fan types is that they'll also tell you 'oh get this, it's fantastic' and you find out more often than not that it's some barely-beta piece of crap. I'll be needing another Android handset to run/test specific apps soon, but I'm not expecting it to be a 'daily', mainly due to weaknesses in the messaging and media handling.

I think the hardcore nerd calls of 'we don't need no media management' mainly because you don't need all that much in the form of tools to get your meagre collection of Anime soundtracks on there is hurting Android as a viable adoption platform for many people.

I do however have high hopes for Windows Phone 7. It seems to be exactly what the doctor ordered for anyone fed up of iTunes for starters. But of course it's not actually out yet, and from what I've seen it's an iPhone-killer for me but not necessarily for everyone else.

The iPhone 4 is probably the first iPhone I can actually say has acceptable reception (as long as it's cased - and due to the fragile nature of any Apple tech, I automatically case any iPhone), so I'm not feeling particularly gypped in that area. Appswise its unbeatable, and in terms of general function and OS fit & finish, it's still ahead of Android overall.

I currently roll with two Nokias (Symbian + Maemo) and an iPhone, One of the Nokias will be replaced by Windows Phone 7, and I will be probably dropping the iPhone after a while to be replaced by likely another Windows Phone.

I do need to buy an Android phone in the next couple of months, but unless things have dramatically improved from the 2.1 timeframe, I don't see me carrying it as even a tertiary handset - and it will be purely for dev/eval use, along with the iPhone 4 when it has been dropped from my regular carry.

Yea, Android is kind of annoying. Slow and buggy and in beta stage.

But it kind of manages to get things done in a reasonable fashion.

Largely because it relies heavily on Google software excellence, like free GPS navigation.

The other aspects are fairly ass-poor in my 2.2 Droid. Slow call answering, dialing, slow this slow that.

It's annoying but it is still does things in the end.

I do not want another Iphone because it would be a lot more annoying.

 

[onlyCOpunk]

Media handling is a huge issue for me, so maybe it's something i should really investigate. Androids haven't really saturated the market yet here so I don't know anyone that actually had one to ask about it.

The reception issue with iPhone isn't an issue here. We've had 3G for about 7 years now nationwide as a standard, and our mobile networks are much stronger then ATT from the reports that I've heard.

 

[robphelan]

iSyncr has a small following but the dev is AWESOME in responding to bugs/questions... i'd give it a shot. he also puts out a wifi synchronization (1.99 i think) so you can sync at home via wifi.