iPhone users, don't you find the single button very limiting?

[BoberFett]

I miss the menu button from android, it's better having a button than having a bar on the screen with a "settings" button in almost every app. Android is getting rid of it too tho which is stupid to me, if you're going to have a row of buttons having a menu/settings button seems like a no brainer to me. I can kind of understand why they've removed it though, most people I've met don't seem to grasp the concept that the menu buttonw ill show you options and settings for the app you're currently in, it's like contextual buttons are too much for people to handle.

Yeah, I like Androids buttons as well. Physical, if possible. I hate the move to soft touch buttons, they're a pain in the ass to operate with one hand.



And yes, the other hand is busy fapping...

 

[Red Storm]

Yeah, I like Androids buttons as well. Physical, if possible. I hate the move to soft touch buttons, they're a pain in the ass to operate with one hand.



And yes, the other hand is busy fapping...

I read that in Nick Offerman's voice and couldn't help but LOL.

 

[Ns1]

Uh no, Android does a pretty good job of closing background processes in order to free up memory as needed.

But you're right that iOS is probably the same way and there's no benefit to using a "task killer," just as those apps on Android are useless (or detrimental).

LOLOLOLOLOL

after having an android device for 3 days there is no fucking way this is true. I am constantly actively managing my tasks or else the system gets bogged down to shit.

 

[ControlD]

LOLOLOLOLOL

after having an android device for 3 days there is no fucking way this is true. I am constantly actively managing my tasks or else the system gets bogged down to shit.

that has prtty much been my experience with iOS as well. I know people say that "backgrounded" apps are not taking up memory but I just don't find that to be the case. With my original iPad I have seen my available memory get down to critical (less than 10MB) free space to the point that I cannot properly launch some memory intensize apps (Netflix seems to be a good example). If I kill all of the backgrounded apps my available memory magically goes way up. I am still running an older version of iOS (would rather have to kill apps than lose my jailbreak) so perhaps this has been fixed over time.

 

[Ns1]

that has prtty much been my experience with iOS as well. I know people say that "backgrounded" apps are not taking up memory but I just don't find that to be the case. With my original iPad I have seen my available memory get down to critical (less than 10MB) free space to the point that I cannot properly launch some memory intensize apps (Netflix seems to be a good example). If I kill all of the backgrounded apps my available memory magically goes way up. I am still running an older version of iOS (would rather have to kill apps than lose my jailbreak) so perhaps this has been fixed over time.

The iPad1 is a serious dog these days. I'm not surprised =P

I don't know how these specs are underpowered, but it is.

"1.2GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, and a 7-inch, 1024 x 600, AMOLED touchscreen"

don't get me wrong, I like the 7" form factor and customization, but there's a lot of WTF so far.

 

[Spineshank]

I like having one button. I also use Activator from Cydia to do other things with it which makes it better imo.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

To answer your question, no. To further elaborate, more buttons to do what?

 

[pm]

I used an iPhone for about 3 years, and I've been using Android for about 6 months.

When I first switched to Android, I kept hitting the top for power (on the SGS "power-on" is on the side) and I kept trying to push the home button without looking. It took about a month for my brain to finally retrain away from the home button.

And now whenever I use my daughter's iPhone, I keep looking for the "back" button from Android.

I still miss the "silent" switch on the iPhone on Android. I have a notification toggle to do it, but it's nice not to have to unlock the phone to put it in silent mode.

But as far as missing anything... I don't think it's matter of "missing" anything. I think it's just what you are used to using. If all you have is a home button, you get used to it. And when you are Android you get used to the buttons on that. And it's hard to switch back and forth because you've trained your brain to do a certain sequence and you have to relearn it.

I also have to say that I've never killed a task on any iOS device that I've ever owned... including my original iPad. I'm not even sure how to. And I've rarely killed tasks on my Android device - pretty much only when they lock up ("Good Mail for Enterprise" is the main culprit). I find the built-in memory management for both to be fine.

 

[AstroManLuca]

LOLOLOLOLOL

after having an android device for 3 days there is no fucking way this is true. I am constantly actively managing my tasks or else the system gets bogged down to shit.

I'm not lying. My phone does just fine and I never actively kill apps unless there's one that has crashed or something (which rarely happens, and when it does, it usually closes itself without needing input from me).

Sounds like you got a bad phone.

 

[AstroManLuca]

To answer your question, no. To further elaborate, more buttons to do what?

Having a back button allows you to remove the back button from apps, meaning more space devoted to the app itself. Same with a menu button to replace a settings button within the app.

Too bad Android is moving away from this; I quite like the setup because it lets you have elegant full-screen apps instead of needing bars along the top or bottom (or both) of apps.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

Having a back button allows you to remove the back button from apps, meaning more space devoted to the app itself. Same with a menu button to replace a settings button within the app.

So you would rather have the back button and menu button taking up space on the bottom of the screen, than in the app UI?

 

[dguy6789]

So you would rather have the back button and menu button taking up space on the bottom of the screen, than in the app UI?

Are you somehow suggesting that the empty black space next to the big button on the bottom of the iPhone is somehow a better use of space than the alternatives? Impressive.

 

[Ns1]

Sounds like you got a bad phone.

I got a brand new shiny samsung galaxy tab 7.0 2

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

Are you somehow suggesting that the empty black space next to the big button on the bottom of the iPhone is somehow a better use of space than the alternatives? Impressive.

I was more talking about this. http://developer.android.com/sdk/android-4.0-highlights.html

 

[sswingle]

I don't know which is dumber, the lack of buttons, or the fact that you seriously thought that iPhone users would agree with you.

 

[QueBert]

LOLOLOLOLOL

after having an android device for 3 days there is no fucking way this is true. I am constantly actively managing my tasks or else the system gets bogged down to shit.

you shoulda got a HTC One X, it has 5 second auto kill for multitasking. Makes for a shitty multitasking experience, but it sure makes for a fast phone

 

[AstroManLuca]

So you would rather have the back button and menu button taking up space on the bottom of the screen, than in the app UI?

No, the back and menu buttons on Android phones are not on the screen at all, they're below it. So they take up zero screen space. Like dguy said, it would be like adding an extra button on either side of the iPhone's home button - doesn't intrude onto the screen at all, right now there's just a blank space there on the iPhone.

I think it's unfortunate that Android phones are moving away from this. But on the other hand I guess they are paving the way for future phones that will have screens so large there won't be any room for buttons.

 

[bearxor]

Don't like it. It relies on the screen for menu interactions which pop open when selecting a part of the touchscreen depending on the app.
I miss the menu button. Also the back button.
The 3-4 button layout maximizes the screen real estate by not needing on screen menus.

Exactly. I noticed it way more when I moved to WP7, for the most part the apps on that don't have any wasted space up at the top for navigation, its just all swipe and if you need a settings menu or back button you use the hard buttons. So even though iPhone's dpi is crazy big, it doesn't help when the smallest smartphone screen on the market has to put in gigantic Back buttons at the top of every app.

Personally my problem with the iPhone is that the single button means you have to put all the settings and stuff on the screen, you can't hide them behind an off-screen button or behind a long-press gesture like you can in Android. As a result, the already-small screen loses a little bit more precious space.

How will a larger screen on an iPhone solve this problem? It would still be the same resolution, so the button itself will be bigger.

 

[Red Storm]

No, the back and menu buttons on Android phones are not on the screen at all, they're below it. So they take up zero screen space. Like dguy said, it would be like adding an extra button on either side of the iPhone's home button - doesn't intrude onto the screen at all, right now there's just a blank space there on the iPhone.

I think it's unfortunate that Android phones are moving away from this. But on the other hand I guess they are paving the way for future phones that will have screens so large there won't be any room for buttons.

The advantage of software buttons is that it allows you to make the bezel smaller and make the screen larger, all without having the make the phone any bigger. And when watching videos, the buttons go away and you get even more screen space for media consumption.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

Also think about this, wouldn't you want the buttons to only be there when it is needed? Not always there even if it's not implemented or not needed?

 

[AstroManLuca]

The advantage of software buttons is that it allows you to make the bezel smaller and make the screen larger, all without having the make the phone any bigger. And when watching videos, the buttons go away and you get even more screen space for media consumption.

True, and that's probably why Android is moving away from them.

The current iPhone has a huge top and bottom bezel though. Maybe the next iPhone with a larger screen will change the design a bit and reduce the size of the bezel top and bottom.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

I was more talking about this. http://developer.android.com/sdk/android-4.0-highlights.html

Would u rather have them take up on screen space where it could be used for other functions, or next to the dead space adjacent to the home button?

 

[bearxor]

The advantage of software buttons is that it allows you to make the bezel smaller and make the screen larger, all without having the make the phone any bigger. And when watching videos, the buttons go away and you get even more screen space for media consumption.

True, and that's probably why Android is moving away from them.

The current iPhone has a huge top and bottom bezel though. Maybe the next iPhone with a larger screen will change the design a bit and reduce the size of the bezel top and bottom.

I don't think the side bezel's can get much smaller. Looking at the iPhone, SGS3, One X, SGN, they all looke close enough in width. There needs to be room for the screen to be secured, the casing to fit, etc, etc.

Now the bottom bezel is, I believe, fixed about as small as it can be while the iPhone still uses a physical home button. There's not a LOT of space you could take away from there without bringing the concern that a press of the physical button might cause contact with the bottom of the touch screen. There may be SOME space that could be trimmed there, but nothing significant.

Here's the issue with the top bezel. That room is needed for Apple to accomplish the design they want. If you haven't noticed, Android phones with really small top bezels have extruded tops. Look at all the new phones. The One X has a huge bump at the top for the camera. The SGN has not quite as large a bump in the backplate, but it's still there. The SGS3 has a large extrusion that pulls the camera out. The Droid RAZR just puts a huge hump there.

Apple chooses (so far, at least) to keep the phone uniform. So although that large bezel isn't necessary to house the front camera and the speaker, it is necessary to give the much larger rear camera room to sit flush against the backplate of the phone.

Now, I suppose Apple could decide to go a different direction in the future. But, if they choose to keep the phone uniform in shape, that bezel is staying. On top, of that, it's quite possibly the most recognizable phone front on the planet. You can draw an outline drawing of a iPhone and people are almost going to instantly recognize it. If you were to draw an outline drawing of <insert hot android of the month here>, it's not as instantly recognizable by the general population.

 

[TheStu]

After using Windows Phone for a year, I really got used to the back button. That and the home button was all I really needed. The hardware search button (once you get used to the fact that it essentially is only there to launch Bing) I can live without, but the back button was handy.

As for the software buttons on ICS devices... i can't say that I see the point. Sure, they are gone when the phone is off, leaving the front totally bare, but past that, they aren't context aware. Which means that they don't alter function (from what I have read) based on apps, they don't change appearance based on whether they can be used at the time or what they will do. The only advantage that I can see them having is the aforementioned absence when the screen is off, and the fact that they can re-orient.

 

[notposting]

I think pm hit pretty close, in that when you find something that works for you, you will adapt and get used to it.

Personally, I like my WP with Back, Start, and Search. Back is pretty self explanatory, but a long press also brings up the multitasking app selection. Start button takes you the home screen. Long press brings up voice commands. Search takes you to Bing search from any app. If they added universal device search it would be awesome. As is, incorporating Local Scout, Visual search and Audio search is great.

When I play with my wife's iPod Touch I desperately want a back button.