Discussion on:

Poll: When asked, what smartphone platform do you recommend?

Windows 8 phone on its way!

It all depends on the person to me. If you are a Mac User or are not used to technology I would definitely recommend the iPhone. If you like to tweak and make it your own, I would definitely recommend Android. If you are an average user who just wants a phone that works and is compatible with all your other devices, I would suggest Windows Phone 8. I would never recommend RIM to anyone... Never.

My brother and daughter are not tweakers and have some difficulty with the Android phone at times.

I entirely agree with ha(k3r40rl1f3. iPhone for Mom and one sister, Android for me and two other sisters, and Windows Phone for my step-dad. No smart phone for my dad, he is a trac-fone guy.

I work at a PolyTechnic. The largest percentage of students and faculty use Androids. There are always exceptions like the Mac fanboys, a handful of IT students who still love anything that says Windows, and some staff in the business office who can't imagine anything other than RIM after 10+ years.

I personally use an Android and will for the foreseeable future. Heck I even develop for Android in my spare time.

But frankly when my parents asked what I recommended, I said iPhone. It's just too stupid proof not to. Since I'm going to be the person they call when they can't figure something out, I want to minimize or eliminate those calls as much as possible. iPhone simply is the best for that.

Now for any tech-savvy person I whole-heartily recommend the Android. It's just too much fun to mess with and there's more you can do with it. I make fun of my IT co-workers who have iPhones. They obviously need training wheels to use a phone.

"Now for any tech-savvy person I whole-heartily recommend the Android. It's just too much fun to mess with" - because you *always have to mess with it*

I have had a droid for about 6 months now & I hate it. I *really* *really* wish I had sprung the extra $10 a month and gone for the iPhone, because that's what the Galaxy SII is: a wannabe iPhone.

It's slower. MUCH slower. It's more complicated. I can never find the settings I want. It has trouble - no, it *FREAKIN ALWAYS* has trouble connecting to WiFi networks. The desktop software takes FIVE MINUTES just to open, and about another 8 minutes to synchronise. THIRTEEN MINUTES TO GET MY calendar synched! Are you kidding! And in the half year I've had it, I've had to factory-default the phone 4 times to get it to even synch at all, because it would periodically just get stuck partway through the process.

Every software upgrade is a *huge* download. Every synch is a *huge* palaver. Oh, and calendar entries made on the phone don't get synched back to Outlook.

Anybody worked out I don't like Android?

Four years and a couple of phones ago, when I had an STC S710 (Windows 6 or 7 mobile, I don't recall) it used to sync in SECONDS. Make a change in the calendar, wait a little while, see the little wheelie-thing go whirly-whirly, synched. Android? Manual process. Wait 8 minutes. Only works one way. Bah. But I'm on contract, the only way to upgrade is make a huge cash payment and get out of the obligation. Sucks.

"it *FREAKIN ALWAYS* has trouble connecting to WiFi networks. The desktop software takes FIVE MINUTES just to open, and about another 8 minutes to synchronise. THIRTEEN MINUTES TO GET MY calendar synched! Are you kidding! And in the half year I've had it, I've had to factory-default the phone 4 times to get it to even synch at all, because it would periodically just get stuck partway through the process."

Something is wrong with that particular phone. Hardware problem, or maybe software miss configuration, but something is definitely wrong with your phone. I don't personally use a Galaxy SII (except for testing and debugging) but two colleagues do. None have reported any issues with WiFi or syncing and they are very happy with their Galaxy SII, or so they say. From limited personal experience, on this WiFi network the Galaxy SII always connects and connects fast. Oh, and it is also speedy.

"Anybody worked out I don't like Android?"

I worked out you don't like your phone and you blame it on Android. As it ever occurred to you that you may be blaming the wrong thing.

Regards.

I have factory defaulted the phone (4 times, as I mentioned)

I have reinstalled the software 3 times

I have upgraded the phone's firmware to the latest version

...what's left to blame? It seems (by admission from one of the call centre techs) to have a problem with the volume of my calendar data. Blackberry, iPhone, and Windows phones don't in my experience have any such issue.

...what's left to blame?

I was using a windows phone for a long time and would never want to change but MS took too long to upgrade themself so I've decided to move to Android. I am using a Galaxy Note and lot of my other friends are using SGSII, all are happy including myself and didn't face any big troubles...I think its either your particular phone or ?

Seriously, did it not occur to you that the hardware may have problems?

Calendar data, whatever the amount and whatever any call centre "techs" say, do not cause WiFi issues but WiFi issues can and very likely will cause syncing problems.

Like someone else wrote on another comment, insist on getting the phone fixed (or replaced), especially if it still is on warranty or contract.

The iPhone is the only phone where the manufacturer has total control over the software. (A fluke. Apple insisted, and Cingular was in such bad shape they were forced to agree.) For every other phone, the carrier makes the final determination of what version, features, patches, and mandatory software ships with the phone. And often customized hardware, as well. Lots of bugs, no incentive for the carrier to fix, since it won't make them any more money from you.
And don't hold your breath waiting for that upgrade to ICS. You'll need a new phone for that.

That's what I tried telling them - it's the hardware. Not interested. "Reinstall the software, sir". OK, done that, now what? "The developers are working on the issue, sir."

Incidentally, the WiFi issue I may have exaggerated a tad - it's not that bad, it does give problems from time to time, but it's unlikely to be the cause of my sync issues since the phone can only be properly synchronised using USB.

So exactly how many times have you changed the Handset?

Resetting a faulty NB to Defaults or reloading Windows doesn't fix a faulty WiFi Device in a NB so why would you think that it would in a Phone?

If something doesn't work as you expect it to return it for repairs and be very specific about what you are experiencing. If it doesn't work when it is returned demand a new one to replace the unrepairable one that they supplied you. If the replacement one doesn't work demand a Replacement phone of a different Make Model from your Telco which is whom I presume you got the phone from to begin with.

13 Minutes to get a working WiFi Connection even on the most Secure Network which I very much doubt you have there is not Acceptable and in anyones language points to a device that is Unserviceable and there for unsalable under Consumer Protection Laws.

Col

...not WiFi connection, and it's 13 minutes for (a) the software to recognise the handset, and then (b) synchronise.

You can't synchronise the Samsung phone using WiFi, unless you use the incredibly (even more) laborious process of three-way synching with Google, and potentially suffer the consequences of having your entire contact list stored on the Evil Empire's servers.

And like I said, the WiFi connection is not that much of an issue. I just happened to mention it first because it was top of mind, but what really got my back up in the first place, and put me in such a foul mood over this phone, was the inability to sync my calendar as easily and quickly as a BB or Windows or iPhone does. It's a long-winded palaver, and the calendar sync only works from Outlook to the phone, not in the other direction (which kinda nullifies the point of having a smart phone in the first place, doesn't it).

It's still a Hardware Issue and it's the Makers Responsibility to either fix or replace.

Don't bother with Call Centres go directly to the Makers Service Agents and ask politely for a solution.

If they are unable to provide one go to the Phone's supplier and say you want a replacement either a different Model or Make & Model that actually works. Consumer Protection laws are there for a reason and while I worked as a Companies Service Agent I was always peeved off by the Poor Service that the Customers got till they hit me who fixed their problems. If there is a design Issue with the Phone the Service Agent is the only place to bother with not a Call Centre who most likely is controlled by the Phone Company who supplied the Phone not the Makers Service Agents/Division.

I've been responsible for several Model Recalls for things a lot more expensive than a $100.00 to manufacture handsets. The devices that I used to work with where high end cars and there was never an issue with a Model Recall over a Safety/Saleability issue. One report that I wrote for a Coroner ever resulted in Federal Laws changes as no make or model car meet existing Local Laws here. A little thing like the Bonnet being narrower than the Front Windscreen, so in a heavy front end collision the bonnet had the ability to enter the cockpit through the glass killing people. Just look at any car they mostly all still suffer for this issue but their way around it is to reclassify the Front Screen as a Structial Member which in most cases will deflect the Bonnet over the roof. While that is true its not always what happens.

If you still get no satisfaction, then you get the Legal people Involved and start with the Consumer Protection Agencies in your area, but realistically all you want is another handset that works.

Col

If a person wants phone that is a full-fledged pocket computer, I recommend Android. If a person wants a phone that does phone calls and maybe a couple of other things, I recommend Windows Phone.

If they want a tablet, I recommend Kindle Fire if they want to do mostly read/watch/listen, iPad if they want more than that.

I like the openness of it. The lack of openness with the iPhone and iPad is exactly why I wouldn't recommend those. It's also one of the problems I have with some of the proprietary Android interfaces like the Kindle Fire. I think usability wise, the Android is just as easy to use. I think the argument that Apple has more in its store and what is in the Google market. Have you ever tried wade through the Google market? There are more than enough apps there to keep you busy for years.

... though that recommendation can and will change if the situation warrants it, such as network inaccessibility. This doesn't mean I won't recommend Android or the Windows phones because some people simply need something with a different form factor--like hardware keys. One brand I don't recommend however, is any of the Blackberry phones because I've watched even people who are used to their Blackberrys have problems simply accessing the dialer or other apps which should be a simply one-click process. Why, for instance, should you have to enter your password when the phone is ringing and you simply want to answer it?

For those who say the Win8 phones will take over the market, please keep in mind that Win8 first has to overcome years of bad rep from the earlier WinMob versions that were anything but stable. I'm not saying it's bad, but I really don't see it having a significant effect on the market when WP7 still hasn't stopped Microsoft's mobile slide.

Android? It's a techie's OS crippled by far too much hardware variance for fully stable use by consumers. More and more I'm watching people complain about Android--mostly because of the hardware issues. I'm not saying Android is bad, but it has totally been screwed by simply having too many cooks in the kitchen.

As such, I recommend an OS based on the person's needs and available capabilities. Since most of my clients are consumers, I consider the iPhone the best, if not the cheapest, choice available.

Yours is the first response I've read that mentions the importance of network accessibility. It doesn't matter what you buy if you can't get the provider's signal in your area. We can't get AT&T in or around where I work.

Regarding BB, while I don't use one, I've set up a few dozen at work over the last several years. I've never seen one come out of the box requiring a password to answer a call. That sounds like something the user set up.

I support the Blackberries at my company. You can require a password to unlock and not require one to answer a ring. What you can't do is dial a number except an emergency number without unlocking it. That is an annoyance.

... have figured out how to answer the phone without entering her password. She uses it all the time for work and complains loudly about the hoops she has to jump through just to access the phone--much less any of the apps on it.

That said, she does like the apps available and it does look good (imagery, not form factor) and wishes it were as easy to use as her iPhone.