CLASH OF THE TITANS: IOS 7 V/S ANDROID 4.3 (YOU MAY FIND THE SAME REVIEW IN THE ANDROID VS iOS CATEGORY..DON’T WORRY, THEY HAVE BEEN POSTED BY THE SAME PERSON)
Thinking of which phone to buy in Diwali? The much awaited iphone stocked with IOS or the Samsung, Google etc. powered android? Don’t worry, you have come to the right place...This is part one of the review...The whole review has not been written by me...for making it a detailed one, I have borrowed material from an authentic source.....Don’t worry, this is an unbiased review..I have left it on you to decide after the review on which operating system you should invest your money on....(I wanted it to make a 3 part review but apparently MouthShut doesn’t allow that...so sorry, if the review was long..but take it like that that it is very detailed)
One of the most heated "debates" within the wireless industry is the one between iOS and Android fans. In case it isn’t obvious, I’ve put "debate" in quotes, because it’s much more of a flame war, rather than a civilized debate, but anyway, you get the point. So here I am, not trying to start yet another flame war, but wanting to make it easy for users to find out what the meaningful differences between iOS 7 and Android 4.3 are. And without further ado, let’s dive straight into it.
LOCK AND HOME SCREENS
The lock screen (if enabled) is the very first thing a user sees upon turning their smartphone on, which is why its flawless execution is of utmost importance. And it is hard to decide which one is better – the one on iOS 7 or on Android 4.3, but I am pretty sure they both leave room for improvement. The iOS 7 lock screen is minimalist, providing instant access to the camera, the control center, or the pending notifications. However, it would have been better if one could slide either way to unlock it; only a swipe to the right takes you to the home screen. The Android 4.3 lock screen is flexible when it comes to customization, with its widgets and all, and it doesn’t matter which way you swipe to unlock it. However, the selection of widgets one can place there isn’t as broad as we wish it was. Overall, both lock screens are great, although they could have been better.
QUICK CONTROLS AND NOTIFICATIONS
Control Center adds functionality that iOS sorely needed. Simply put, swiping up from the bottom of an iOS 7 home screen brings up a list of toggle buttons for turning things like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on and off, controlling music playback, adjusting the screen’s brightness, even using the camera’s LED as a flashlight. But Control Center isn’t really a groundbreaking feature. Options like these have been available on custom Android UIs for a long time, and the stock Android 4.3 interface has many of them as well out of the box, located in a menu accessible from the notification bar. Furthermore, control center might be triggered accidentally if one is scrolling on a page or trying to launch the camera from its lock screen shortcut, located in the lower right-hand corner.
A noteworthy advantage for iOS 7 versus Android is that both the Notification Center and the Control Center can be accessed from any screen, even when they are hidden. Yup, even if you’re playing a game or watching a movie. However, a double-slide is required in order to do that, which prevents the user from accidentally pulling out either of them. In Android, the notification panel is often not visible if a full-screen application is running, which renders it inaccessible.
CUSTOMIZATION FEATURES
When it comes to customization, Android is still king with its widgets, live wallpapers, and custom launchers. Tons of them are available for download from the Play Store for anyone bored of their Android device’s interface. However, Apple has done some progress and is now catching up, without making things too complicated for iOS 7 users. The latest version of the platform features the so-called parallax effect, which shifts the background image depending on the angle, at which the handset is being held. That creates an illusion of depth and the effect is really nice in our opinion – pretty, yet unobtrusive.
In addition, we have Apple’s dynamic wallpapers (yup, they are just like Android’s live wallpapers) – these can be set on both the home and the lock screens. Unfortunately, all you get out of the box is a single dynamic wallpaper in several different colors, and the wallpaper is suspiciously similar to Android’s stock Phase Beam live wallpaper. I hope that someday, more dynamic wallpapers will be released for iOS 7, but this could be just wishful thinking.
DIALER AND CONTACTS
Yup, people still use their phones to talk to people. On iOS 7, the Phone app is pretty much all you need to call someone as it lists your contacts, your recent calls, and your favorites. Of course, a keypad is available as well for manual phone number input. **What’s great about iOS 7 is that it lets the one block certain contacts, thus preventing them from calling, texting, or even initiating a FaceTime conversation with the user.
Android’s Phone app is very similar, but it has one notable advantage over its iOS counterpart, namely that it displays a photo of each contact as you scroll down the list, while the iPhone’s contacts app shows a contact’s image only if you tap on them to view detailed information, or if that particular contact is in your favorites.*
ON-SCREEN KEYBOARD
Typing on a mobile device quickly and efficiently is often a matter of getting used to its on-screen keyboard’s size and layout. With iOS 7 and the iPhone, in particular, we can easily type texts using a single thumb because the phone’s width is optimal for the purpose. The Google Nexus 4, running Android 4.3, is wider and is therefore more comfortable to use with two thumbs rather than one, and that is usually valid for any Android device with a screen of 4.5-inches and above. Overall, both virtual keyboards are pretty nice. International users can rest assured that both support a wide variety of input languages. Yet perhaps Android has a slight advantage in this category with its dedicated smiley key and the option to enter text using the swiping method.
MULTITASKING AND SUPPORT FOR MULTIPLE USERS
Well, we have nothing to complain about really when it comes to both platforms’ implementation of multitasking. Switching between apps on both iOS 7 and Android 4.3 is pretty straightforward. Apple’s mobile OS now provides app preview windows, unlike in previous version where the apps were listed only with their icon. Multitasking on Android is also executed well, with recent apps listed vertically along with a screenshot of their last state.
One of Android 4.3’s significant advantages over iOS 7 is that it allows multiple user accounts to be set on the same Android tablet. That allows one, for example, to share their Android tablet with friends and family without them having access to other users’ personal stuff.
SIRI V/S GOOGLE NOW
Both iOS 7 and Android 4.3 offer intelligent assistance provided by Siri and Google Now respectively. The former recognizes commands spoken in every-day language, so you can ask it to set your alarm clock, a reminder, or even send a text message to a specific contact, or get you driving directions. Moreover, Siri can search the web via Bing, look up things on Wikipedia, or check what’s trending on Twitter. Don’t speak English? No worries! Siri recognizes input in French or German as well.
Google Now is a little bit different. It is also capable of interpreting accurately your voice commands, but in addition, it attempts to provide the user with relevant information exactly when they need it. For example, driving directions will appear if it is the end of the work day. If you just looked up some place on Google Maps, Google Now will show you how to get there when triggered. If you have a plane trip coming, it will provide you with up-to-date details about your flight. And if you’re in a different country, Google Now lists places of interest, currency exchange rates, and other useful information.
All in all, both Siri and Google Now are great additions complementing the overall user experience and can come in handy in all kinds of situations.
MAPS
There was a time when Apple Maps was ridiculed for its shortcomings, but things have changed since then. The fact of the matter is that Apple’s maps application is now more reliable and has all the features one would expect out of a proper app of this kind but there is still room for improvement. It can give you adequate directions depending on whether you’re driving, walking, or using public transportation. Locations can be quickly shared with others or bookmarked for future use. Same features can be found on Google Maps as well. While neither solutions will provide you with true offline navigation in a way that Nokia’s maps would, both Apple Maps and Google Maps can cache map data in order to navigate you without relying on internet connectivity.Yet, I feel, at least for now, Google maps are better in terms of trust-ability and it being older.(and better)....
CAMERA UI (User interface)
The stock camera interface on Android 4.3 leaves something to be desired. For people who aren’t familiar with its arrangement, the UI can be confusing and frustrating to use. We assume that Google has tried to simplify its use by making all knobs and switches available at a tap’s distance, but that’s clearly not a solution all users would be comfortable with. The iOS 7 camera interface, on the other hand, is simple and intuitive. Even a newbie can get the hang of it in no time. The newly added filters make the experience even more enjoyable.
MULTIMEDIA
When it comes to multimedia playback, Android 4.3 does not care how you load your music or videos onto the device. The user is free to hook the smartphone or tablet to a computer and just copy and paste their media onto it folder by folder. Of course, one also has the option to purchase songs or movies via Google Play. With iOS 7, however, you don’t quite have as much freedom. The iTunes application is what you must install onto your computer and use to transfer music or video onto the iOS device. Not that it’s too bad of a solution, especially when doing so helps to keep your music organized, but some might find the limitation annoying.
CONCLUSION
It is pretty hard, if not impossible, to say whether iOS 7 or Android 4.3 is better. That would be like saying that bananas are better than oranges, or vice-versa. The fact of the matter is that both operating systems are pretty well made. And perhaps we won’t be wrong if we say that the two are in their best state to date, although we can’t be sure whether the new look of iOS will appeal to all long-time fans of the platform. Sure, it might be limited when it comes to customization, but it is well polished and crafted with lots of attention to detail. And let us not forget that iOS excels when it comes to availability of high-quality applications for download. On the other hand, people who are into tweaks and modifications and combining and syncing technology, those who like the feeling of having more control over their smartphone would be better off with Android.It is still a full-fledged contemporary operating system loaded with useful features. Moreover, Google’s Play Store tends to be richer in free applications, even though their quality sometimes lags behind that of the software made for iOS.
YOU CAN ALSO READ MY REVIEWS ON BOOKS: DA VINCI CODE, GOD FATHER, 2 STATES, THE ALCHEMIST, ONE NIGHT AT THE CALL CENTER, CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY ETC...