Mobile OSs After the latest issues with Apple and iOS, are you staying or ... ?

[Feyl]

I'm mad about Apple far too many times lately but I'm staying with Apple for now. If I wasn't using GarageBand so much I would already replaced my Macs with something that runs Linux. Due to huge privacy concerns I started using more open sourced software and apps like Signal, Firefox, etc.. I also stopped using iCloud and Apple Music and bought a NAS. As a result I'm being less and less invested into the Apple ecosystem, so it won't be a big problem or time waster when I decide to get rid off some of my Apple devices.

To be honest Apple's apps are not that great anyway. I don't miss anything by not using their software and I'm bug free. In the far future I can see myself using only iPhone and other devices from different brands.

 

[nickdalzell1]

The only Apple products I'm using now are my iPad, iPod touch, and MacBook Pro.

I tried to find a Samsung Galaxy Player used, to replace the iPod, but no dice. They're just gone and that means there's no replacement for a small, wifi enabled MP3 player. Not even a micro 4" tablet exists.

Nothing currently replaces my Mac yet. Nothing within reason or with a retina style display. HP's Spectre has less specs but costs as much as a new M1 Mac and I can't justify the price. I am slowly finding decent Android tablets to replace the iPad but there's some things the iPad does better still, like scrolling. The lag of scrolling behavior on Android still annoys me too much.

I'm trying hard not to get back into consumerist spending since there's enough e-waste and resources extracted from the planet as it is, but my Fire TV Stick while streaming well is so laggy that it bugs the living heck out of me. The 'new Fire TV Experience' they added is resource heavy and I'm really struggling to avoid going back to the Apple TV 4K. I tried to install alternative launchers on the Fire Stick but none work with Fire OS 5. Shows stream fine but the UI interaction lag is awful. I'm spoiled by the animations and smoothness of the ATV.

 

[sjsharksfan12]

I'm trying hard not to get back into consumerist spending since there's enough e-waste and resources extracted from the planet as it is, but my Fire TV Stick while streaming well is so laggy that it bugs the living heck out of me. The 'new Fire TV Experience' they added is resource heavy and I'm really struggling to avoid going back to the Apple TV 4K. I tried to install alternative launchers on the Fire Stick but none work with Fire OS 5. Shows stream fine but the UI interaction lag is awful. I'm spoiled by the animations and smoothness of the ATV.

This is my least favorite thing about the Firestick. It takes so long to load. With Apple TV, it pretty much starts right away. I wish ATV would add browser capabilities though so I can use it when I travel.

 

[Heat_Fan89]

I'm trying hard not to get back into consumerist spending since there's enough e-waste and resources extracted from the planet as it is, but my Fire TV Stick while streaming well is so laggy that it bugs the living heck out of me. The 'new Fire TV Experience' they added is resource heavy and I'm really struggling to avoid going back to the Apple TV 4K. I tried to install alternative launchers on the Fire Stick but none work with Fire OS 5. Shows stream fine but the UI interaction lag is awful. I'm spoiled by the animations and smoothness of the ATV.

The new Google Chromecast solves all of the above. I think Google has a BF deal coming up to knock $10 off so it's basically $39. I've been using the Chromecast instead of my 2015 ATV and the Chromecast supports 4K.

 

[Vegastouch]

This is my least favorite thing about the Firestick. It takes so long to load. With Apple TV, it pretty much starts right away. I wish ATV would add browser capabilities though so I can use it when I travel.

Dont use the stick then, they are cheap versions. Get a fire cube. They load alot faster and are nicer. Probably still significantly less than Apple TV box.
I have three 4k FireTV boxes that are older than the Cubes.
The Cubes replaced them and they load pretty good.

Could also be because of slower internet. I don't have the fastest package but it a middle package and loads and streams well. I don't have cable. Just internet.

 

[cuzo]

Only then stopping me right now is the airpods and apple watch, ios is just erribke beyond belief. No multitasking nothing stays active in the background the home screen is just awful poor space management.

I'm getting to my breaking point I just don't like losing money but I'm ready to go back.

I'm listening to a podcast in apple podcast, browse reddit and play a YouTube video in the browser, close the browser and apple podcast **** off not longer in the background had tk reopen it and play it again.

The iPhone is good, great keyboard and face I'd is nice but the software is really bad and I'm getting tired.

 

[Tig Bitties]

I've tried to like iOS but just can't, it feels stuck in 2010, a very frustratingly bad OS to force myself to get comfortable with, and I can't.

Stock Android all the way.

But Android 12 isn't perfect by any means, it needs some patching and updates to iron out the bugs. It's probably a few months away from being really good, or Android 12.1

But for iOS, I don't own any other Apple products; never owned an iPad tablet, and don't plan on ever needing or getting any tablet. iWatch never or any smartwatch. MAC computer, nope I build custom Gaming PC's for myself and family. Apple and iOS offer nothing to me.

I do wish we had a third alternative though.

But I do think Apple could make iOS good, but would need some major revisions and huge overhaul.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Oh if only it were stuck in 2010 when it looked and felt more...shall we say, natural. Not this flat rehash of early 90s UI design.

I don't like ChromeCast since it has no UI. It depends on you using your phone to tell it to do things, or the Google Assistant, which, sadly, like Siri, can't start a show where you left off, but rather from season 1, episode one, every single time.

ATV would be nice if it just laid off nagging me constantly about updates. I don't believe in updates. For a few months, I had blocked the Apple servers at the router, but they must have circumvented it since it interrupts shows or during pause events or when sitting at the home screen I'm pestered about tvOS 14 being available (never updated it past 13) I worry I'll accidentally hit the install button by mistake, and yes, before you ask, the 'automatically keep Apple TV Up to date' option is turned off.

At least the Fire TV Stick notifies me about an update to an app, ONCE, and never bothers me again when I tell it to 'launch about updating'. So far, only a couple of apps have done that--the Apple TV app being one, but it only does it once, and never again.

 

[sjsharksfan12]

Dont use the stick then, they are cheap versions. Get a fire cube. They load alot faster and are nicer. Probably still significantly less than Apple TV box.
I have three 4k FireTV boxes that are older than the Cubes.
The Cubes replaced them and they load pretty good.

Could also be because of slower internet. I don't have the fastest package but it a middle package and loads and streams well. I don't have cable. Just internet.

I only use the stick when I'm traveling. At home I use the Apple TV 4K.

 

[nickdalzell1]

If anyone knows how to permenantly block ATV updates, for keeps, let me know. I miss the fluid UI but being nagged to death about updates is a deal breaker.

 

[alphasports]

If anyone knows how to permenantly block ATV updates, for keeps, let me know. I miss the fluid UI but being nagged to death about updates is a deal breaker.

Haha yes get an ATV gen 1 (or 2?) like I still run...hasn't had available updates for years, works like a champ with no pestering. Only 720p but looks awesome on my LG 50", maybe I'm not picky but I'm in pro sports broadcast bizz (tv graphics for stats etc) so I think I have a decent eye

 

[UltraInstinct]

I don't like ChromeCast since it has no UI. It depends on you using your phone to tell it to do things, or the Google Assistant, which, sadly, like Siri, can't start a show where you left off, but rather from season 1, episode one, every single time.

You're thinking of the old one, the new one that came out a while ago has a UI and nothing to do with your phone, I have 2 of them.

https://store.google.com/gb/product/chromecast_google_tv?hl=en-GB

 

[MajorFubar]

Maybe I've only ever used crap cheap Android phones but whenever I have to use one I can't want to get back to iOS where things work as I expect them to. The Files app is a dream, I can access just about every file on my main iMac anywhere in the world, Music works fine, Photos does everything I need it to.

Sure after every update there are the occasional bugs, but they tend to be minor (for me) and are quickly squashed. Other than Android obviously being offered across much wider range of devices, I honestly can't think of one benefit that moving to Android would give me which in turn wouldn't be negated by losing some aspect of the functionality I currently now take for granted in iOS.

Maybe if I wasn't quite so much tied into the Apple ecosystem with my computer and other devices it would be less of an issue. So I'm very happy at the moment.

 

[nickdalzell1]

You're thinking of the old one, the new one that came out a while ago has a UI and nothing to do with your phone, I have 2 of them.

https://store.google.com/gb/product/chromecast_google_tv?hl=en-GB

I bought the darned dongle in 2019. It's not that old. But all it shows when idle is a screensaver like thing with rather nice photos, the weather and the time. Much like an over-sized Google Nest Hub. Only way that I know of to play say Netflix on it is to have the Netflix app on my phone, and hit the screen cast icon up top. That and other services requires multiple redundant apps on the phone, taking up phone space, just to cast video to the device. Very impractical. The only other way is to use the Assistant on a Nest Hub, but they still haven't fixed the bug where it starts each series from season 1, episode one, even if I was still on season 6 or so.

Also doesn't work with any content from the Apple TV app, since, well, there ain't none for Android, and the iOS version doesn't seem compatible. Since I'm trying hard to avoid buying anything new anymore aside food and necessities, the idea of buying yet another in a long line of Google's disappointing items goes right against that.

Your link goes to where you can buy a smart TV with Google's service built in. Pretty much Google TV, and I've been down that road before. Their older Google TV Service ended up forgotten garbage much like anything else they do. Stuck on Android 3.0 Honeycomb and all apps eventually ceasing to work on it. Thing had major wifi issues too. I already got perfectly good TVs that I have zero intention of replacing.

As for buying a Gen 1 Apple TV, that thing didn't even support apps or the internet much. It was kinda like a Zune, only good for playing local network media at best, with the wifi being gimped just like one on a Zune. No access whatsoever to say, Netflix or Hulu or Amazon.

A Gen 2 didn't even have the app store and that was the first ATV I ever bought, and promptly returned since it had less app support built in than the Google TV above.

I hate how many updates Apple gives out, making peace of mind of never worrying about another UI change never happen. Although cutting support for Android 3.0 and then gimping just about every app built into the Google TV I once had was bad, at least while the wifi worked, Netflix and Prime still worked. But I do wish Apple would just respect my choice and leave me alone. I mean they put a 'don't update automatically' button in there, why not just leave me alone?

 

[BMox81]

I bought the darned dongle in 2019. It's not that old. But all it shows when idle is a screensaver like thing with rather nice photos, the weather and the time. Much like an over-sized Google Nest Hub. Only way that I know of to play say Netflix on it is to have the Netflix app on my phone, and hit the screen cast icon up top. That and other services requires multiple redundant apps on the phone, taking up phone space, just to cast video to the device. Very impractical. The only other way is to use the Assistant on a Nest Hub, but they still haven't fixed the bug where it starts each series from season 1, episode one, even if I was still on season 6 or so.

Also doesn't work with any content from the Apple TV app, since, well, there ain't none for Android, and the iOS version doesn't seem compatible. Since I'm trying hard to avoid buying anything new anymore aside food and necessities, the idea of buying yet another in a long line of Google's disappointing items goes right against that.

Your link goes to where you can buy a smart TV with Google's service built in. Pretty much Google TV, and I've been down that road before. Their older Google TV Service ended up forgotten garbage much like anything else they do. Stuck on Android 3.0 Honeycomb and all apps eventually ceasing to work on it. Thing had major wifi issues too. I already got perfectly good TVs that I have zero intention of replacing.

As for buying a Gen 1 Apple TV, that thing didn't even support apps or the internet much. It was kinda like a Zune, only good for playing local network media at best, with the wifi being gimped just like one on a Zune. No access whatsoever to say, Netflix or Hulu or Amazon.

A Gen 2 didn't even have the app store and that was the first ATV I ever bought, and promptly returned since it had less app support built in than the Google TV above.

I hate how many updates Apple gives out, making peace of mind of never worrying about another UI change never happen. Although cutting support for Android 3.0 and then gimping just about every app built into the Google TV I once had was bad, at least while the wifi worked, Netflix and Prime still worked. But I do wish Apple would just respect my choice and leave me alone. I mean they put a 'don't update automatically' button in there, why not just leave me alone?

The link takes you to the new Chromecast which yes, runs Google TV. Great little device, albeit with shockingly low storage.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Yeah, it's a smaller version of the Vizio Google TV Box I had that got severely gimped less than a year later. I have no real need to repeat it again. Plus, Google is worse about updates and by that I mean they do so automatically, with no control whatsoever over them. You had to take your updates and like them! That's how it was with a Chromebook anyway.

What part of 'I don't believe in updates' doesn't register to OEMs and devs these days? What's so wrong with just leaving me happy with what I got and giving me the choice?

The Fire TV Stick gives me that choice. Just a shame it trades it with severe lag. However, confidence knowing no single app it runs will ever demand "You must update [app name] in order to continue using it" is well worth the lag I guess. I know of no other device that can run what I need it to run exists that will respect my choice never to update.

If Google didn't kill each product they make shortly after you get used to it, I'd probably give them another chance. I am of the mindset that a TV should last at least 20 years, kitchen appliances should outlive the owners, and computers, phones, and any other internet-based gadgets should at least last 10-15 years. Another benefit if avoiding updates is not worrying about obsolescence. Your device will never slow down if you never update a single thing. If an app just ups and refuses to run, a benefit of Android is being able to find multiple alternatives that will. When I was enjoying my Galaxy SII for a while, there were still a myriad apps from its era that still functioned, from weather radar, to music streaming, to web browsing. Open source software really never gets obsolete. For myself, obsolete is a subjective term, for when a device can no longer live up to the expectations of its owner. For me, that means it would have to stop running what I need it to run. Core services must work, that means SMS, phone, local music playback, gallery, camera, web browser and email must work. When those stop working that's when it's time to consider upgrading.

I stopped using the SII and keep it as a backup because I do depend on two modern apps it can't run, Walmart and Kroger Pay. Ironically, you CAN make NFC and Google Pay work on an SII, but my Amex card flags every NFC transaction as 'fraud' and declines, despite it being a supported card on Google (and Samsung) Pay.

 

[UltraInstinct]

The link takes you to the new Chromecast which yes, runs Google TV. Great little device, albeit with shockingly low storage.

View attachment 1913833

It also runs Apple TV stuff, I watch ATV+ and my bought movies on it all the time.

 

[nickdalzell1]

Oh of course. the Apple TV app exists on Fire TV Stick as well. Both run Android, the Fire TV stick running an AOSP build and Google running their own (likely Pixel-derived?) build.

There's even an ATV app for Tizen-based Samsung TVs. But for mine it doesn't work correctly. It logged in and browses fine, but clicking on any show or movie just loads and says 'can't play this content' with no reason behind the error or code to look up. A lot of the apps on my Samsung TV seem broken, as Prime Video, while playing most stuff, a lot of stuff I purchased (Season 1 of Stargate:Universe for example) say 'this video is unavailable' but play fine on the same Prime Video app on my Fire TV Stick.

 

[RecentlyConverted]

I have gone to e/os for my phone and Elementary OS, for my computer.

Both OS are very Applesque, so whilst there is a learning process, its not a big shock.

Its great to have the freedom to use the hardware you bought as you see fit, not how Apple will allow you to use it.

Also the enhanced privacy is reassuring.