iOS 5 to copy Android, Touchwiz?

[Dulanic]

my friend blows through 3 batteries a day on his evo. you're not alone.

I believe the EVO is so bad mostly due to screen size. It's a price we pay for that large of a screen. I can easily make a day with my epic, but if I have the display on for an hour it easily uses 95% of the power used. I can only imagine with a large LCD vs a 4" AMOLED. A large part of why the iphone can get longer usage is the smaller screen size also. My old ass 3.2" WinMo phone got awsome battery life, again tiny screen so it doesn't use near the power for the display.

 

[gorcorps]

I don't care who takes features from who. Competition is a good thing all around. With one market leader they're allowed to stagnate without many decent upgrades in UI, but Apple and Android are forcing each other to improve consistently.

I like it, regardless of which platform you use.

 

[NikolaeVarius]

All of Android music apps(save MixZing, as far as I can tell), even Google Music, have the same failing:

Fuck you media scanner, fuck you.

Gasp, I wonder what this is





Power Amp also happens to be the best player on the Market too. Everything you could ever want.

 

[Dulanic]

Gasp, I wonder what this is

Power Amp also happens to be the best player on the Market too. Everything you could ever want.

I agree that's an easy method, but for those who use other or multiple players, .nomedia is semi permanent and simple. I use google music now and power amp also.

This isn't to say this isn't a fault in android, it is. It should be made simpler to do, but it is relatively easily fixable.

 

[Doboji]

Ok... look I'm a big time Android fan, but lets be real here guys. The iPhone is better in terms of battery life. You get more life with less effort than you do on any Android phone.

Do we really have to argue that we're as good or better on EVERY feature in order to feel ok with our platform selection?

There are plenty of reasons to prefer Android... battery life isn't one of them.

 

[Red Storm]

Ok... look I'm a big time Android fan, but lets be real here guys. The iPhone is better in terms of battery life. You get more life with less effort than you do on any Android phone.

Do we really have to argue that we're as good or better on EVERY feature in order to feel ok with our platform selection?

There are plenty of reasons to prefer Android... battery life isn't one of them.

I specifically remember getting better battery life on my Droid X than any other smartphone I've ever owned, and that includes the 3 different iPhones (3G, 3GS, 4).

 

[Deeko]

Come on guys, enough with the battery screen shots. Yes - it is possible to squeeze good battery life out of an Android phone now and then, and certainly some get better battery than others. However, it is a simple fact that the iPhone 4 does better there. It just does.

 

[Red Storm]

Come on guys, enough with the battery screen shots. Yes - it is possible to squeeze good battery life out of an Android phone now and then, and certainly some get better battery than others. However, it is a simple fact that the iPhone 4 does better there. It just does.

Simple fact?

As far as I know, the iPhone's better battery life comes from web browsing comparisons... but how often do you browse the web on your phone? There's a reason why apps are made, they provide quick access to the specific services you used to have to search for in the browser. Every day there's less and less reason to use your smartphone's web browser to check/get things done.

I had overall better battery life with my Droid X than I did with my iPhone 4. That's one of the nice things about Android, it's not just one single handset. There's a large variety that let's you pick and choose the one you like best.

 

[Dulanic]

Come on guys, enough with the battery screen shots. Yes - it is possible to squeeze good battery life out of an Android phone now and then, and certainly some get better battery than others. However, it is a simple fact that the iPhone 4 does better there. It just does.

I still stand behind that most of the battery differences we see is largely due to screen size. A 4.3" screen is going to eat a LOT more power a 3.5" screen. There is no denying that almost every android device out there has a larger screen out there. People seem to just say iPhone > Android in battery, that may or may not be true and no one has really tested 100% apples to apples comparison using the phone the exact same way. However, it is common sense the larger screen is going to eat a lot more power.

 

[WelshBloke]

I still stand behind that most of the battery differences we see is largely due to screen size. A 4.3" screen is going to eat a LOT more power a 3.5" screen. There is no denying that almost every android device out there has a larger screen out there. People seem to just say iPhone > Android in battery, that may or may not be true and no one has really tested 100% apples to apples comparison using the phone the exact same way. However, it is common sense the larger screen is going to eat a lot more power.

Yeah, I used to have an HTC Touch 3g (winmo smartphone) with a 2.8 inch screen. That phone used to run for ages.

My wife still uses it for email now and I think she just charges it up every few days.

 

[Deeko]

Simple fact?

As far as I know, the iPhone's better battery life comes from web browsing comparisons... but how often do you browse the web on your phone? There's a reason why apps are made, they provide quick access to the specific services you used to have to search for in the browser. Every day there's less and less reason to use your smartphone's web browser to check/get things done.

I had overall better battery life with my Droid X than I did with my iPhone 4. That's one of the nice things about Android, it's not just one single handset. There's a large variety that let's you pick and choose the one you like best.

I'm not going to argue with you about your anecdote, that would be a waste of everyone's time, but that doesn't mean that pretty much every reviewer has found that the iPhone 4 gets better battery life than its contemporaries.

Also, for the record, I browse on my phone(s) all the time. The times the Droid X competes battery-wise are times the screen is off...comparing things like talk time, or wifi hotspot time. If you compared, say, video battery life, or tweetdeck battery life, I doubt you're going to see anything drastically different than the browsing results.

I still stand behind that most of the battery differences we see is largely due to screen size. A 4.3" screen is going to eat a LOT more power a 3.5" screen. There is no denying that almost every android device out there has a larger screen out there. People seem to just say iPhone > Android in battery, that may or may not be true and no one has really tested 100% apples to apples comparison using the phone the exact same way. However, it is common sense the larger screen is going to eat a lot more power.

Absolutely, the screen size makes a difference, which is why I said iPhone 4 specifically, not iOS. However, take the G2 or Droid - their screens are still bigger, but not THAT much bigger.

 

[hanoverphist]

Droid X is really the only Android phone with good battery life, its also the only phone to beat the iPhone 4 in 3G talk time.

Other than talk time however....the iPhone4 beats all smartphones in all scenarios in battery life tests.

that picture isnt really indicative of all droidX also. mine will last me most days, but as a stock X user ill see the display at 40 to 50% always. nothing is ever higher on battery use than the display. even when im on the phone for hours with tech support.

also, how did you change the stock battery icon to the one in the pic? i like that. mine isnt rooted at this point (since the gb update) and is dead stock.

 

[akugami]

Speculation but maybe part of the reason iPhones have good battery life is the OS and hardware is aggressive in underclocking the processor and powering down what isn't being used. Similar to how Powerbooks have great battery life...if you're running MacOS. If you drop Windows in it, battery life takes a huge dive.

This type of aggressive management likely isn't economical for companies like HTC who replaces their hardware seemingly every few months and have multiple models coming out frequently. Apple can devote this type of work since they usually replace their hardware only once a year.

 

[Ns1]

As far as I know, the iPhone's better battery life comes from web browsing comparisons... but how often do you browse the web on your phone? .

wat? hours upon hours a day.

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

Realistically, they've all copied positive elements from each other - when one platform does something innovative, its copied by the rest eventually - and in turn, that platform copies from them.

The only difference is, Apple will take others peoples ideas and claim them as their own. If someone copies Apple, Apple tries to sue.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

The only difference is, Apple will take others peoples ideas and claim them as their own. If someone copies Apple, Apple tries to sue.

Uhhh. The whole thing with Samsung is that it was pretty much marketed as a Android iPhone.

 

[foghorn67]

I'm not going to argue with you about your anecdote, that would be a waste of everyone's time, but that doesn't mean that pretty much every reviewer has found that the iPhone 4 gets better battery life than its contemporaries.

Also, for the record, I browse on my phone(s) all the time. The times the Droid X competes battery-wise are times the screen is off...comparing things like talk time, or wifi hotspot time. If you compared, say, video battery life, or tweetdeck battery life, I doubt you're going to see anything drastically different than the browsing results.



Absolutely, the screen size makes a difference, which is why I said iPhone 4 specifically, not iOS. However, take the G2 or Droid - their screens are still bigger, but not THAT much bigger.

That, and most people leave their iPhones on auto brightness, which is like 30% max. Horribly dim. I bet that saves juice too.

 

[zoiks]

I'm sorry. :hmm:

That's awesome!

 

[poofyhairguy]

Speculation but maybe part of the reason iPhones have good battery life is the OS and hardware is aggressive in underclocking the processor and powering down what isn't being used.

I have always thought it was because iOS does most of its interface and GUI on the GPU, while Android uses its less efficient CPU for those tasks. A better and more efficient compositing system is one of the big reasons real OSX is such a battery sipper. I guess there is a way to find out- how does WM7 do on battery?

With that said, you can ruin iPhone battery life. My biggest iFriend was telling me yesterday he was happy about the notification change in iOS 5 because he claimed a recent jailbreak (which he mostly did to get better notifications) was eating his iPhone 4 battery- like he would get less than one day on a charge.

The iStuff works great if you stay inside the iBox. Once you step outside that, it is a free-for-all like Android. The difference is that many Android defaults are ridiculous (like any phone that comes with live wallpaper).

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

I have always thought it was because iOS does most of its interface and GUI on the GPU, while Android uses its less efficient CPU for those tasks. A better and more efficient compositing system is one of the big reasons real OSX is such a battery sipper. I guess there is a way to find out- how does WM7 do on battery?

With that said, you can ruin iPhone battery life. My biggest iFriend was telling me yesterday he was happy about the notification change in iOS 5 because he claimed a recent jailbreak (which he mostly did to get better notifications) was eating his iPhone 4 battery- like he would get less than one day on a charge.

The iStuff works great if you stay inside the iBox. Once you step outside that, it is a free-for-all like Android. The difference is that many Android defaults are ridiculous (like any phone that comes with live wallpaper).

It's also since Apple has control of the hardware and software, they can be more aggressive with optimizing battery.

 

[s44]

Speculation but maybe part of the reason iPhones have good battery life is the OS and hardware is aggressive in underclocking the processor and powering down what isn't being used. Similar to how Powerbooks have great battery life...if you're running MacOS. If you drop Windows in it, battery life takes a huge dive.

Not a big difference. You can change the clock speed governor on any rooted Android.

Two things about the iPhone 4: it's underclocked, and iOS just doesn't let you do the stuff that would drain battery fast.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

Not a big difference. You can change the clock speed governor on any rooted Android.

Two things about the iPhone 4: it's underclocked, and iOS just doesn't let you do the stuff that would drain battery fast.

Right. It doesn't let you do anything that would drain the battery fast. Like play a game or watch Netflix over 3G. Doesn't let you do any of those.

 

[s44]

Battery tests compare browsing and general use, not marathon sessions of Plants v Zombies.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

Battery tests compare browsing and general use, not marathon sessions of Plants v Zombies.

It also compares video playing. In all cases, iPhone wins out in battery life.

 

[Doboji]

Can we please stop obsessing over battery life? That factor alone does not make either platform superior or inferior.

Android has plenty of factors where it beats iPhone hands down:

1. Price... both the handsets themselves are cheaper... but so is TCO... cheaper apps, more free apps, cheaper to upgrade storage, battery and even accessories are cheaper.

2. Physical hardware choice... Physical keyboard? no physical keyboard? 3 inch screen? 4 inch? 4.3, 4.5, 5 inch? Super Amoled, qHD, etc etc

3. Software customization... without rooting or jailbreaking...

4. File management... I'd sure like to store my Bangbros collection in a different directory than Finding Nemo... but unfortunately iOS doesn't help me with that.

Notifications was one of the advantages... and will continue to be an advantage until iOS 5 comes out.

Plenty more too... but Battery life doesn't make the list. Sorry.