"Forget Android: the iPhone Is a Better Phone for Hacking", etc

[AntiThesis]

And the fact remains that rooting is far more fraught on Android than it ought to be because of carrier discretions.

Yeah, this is a problem that crops up all the time and it does suck - it's getting better though. Quite a few manufacturers are now starting to get onboard with the bigger release people like Cyanogen and making things easier for them. It's not ideal yet but it's kinda getting there. Custom Rom builders are also getting quite nice, I played with a very nice GUI based flasher the other day.

in the end it's hardly any more open TO THE USER than iOS.

Personally, I feel the opposite is true. Android is so far open that it starts to seem closed. Because you can literally do anything you want (up to and including bricking your phone), it's almost as if there's too much freedom. People like to have a little bit of control, some end that they can't go past. I mean, I've bricked my phone many times (I even had to make my own USB jig to unbrick it which was... not the most pleasant experience of my life) but I knew what I was doing - the average user doesn't.

I did find the stock roms limiting but at least you could change more than you can on the stock iOS devices. Settings and whatnot. It's just... not enough for me.

[Elimentals]

I appreciate all of those points. But it's not just about changing the look. I want the features of the latest version of Android which is actually very nice - to me nicer in many aspects than iOS 5. The only way to get those was to root. Not to mention that any of the decent Android modding tools simply require rooting. Titanium backup for instance. And the fact remains that rooting is far more fraught on Android than it ought to be because of carrier discretions.

I get that but to be honest we only have ourselves to blame. When Google wanted to give us truly open phones nobody was buying. Remember back when the 1st Nexus came out? You could get it off Google with no restrictions whatsoever. No one was buying, so Google had to go make a deal with the devil(Verizon) who insisted that phones needed to be locked and have the ability to install bloat in order to sponsor the sales. If we back then bought em off google who know what the world would have looked like now.

No I get the point of open - it's just that in Android the term open must be so carefully ring-fenced with 'open does not mean this this and this even though you might wish it did' that in the end it's hardly any more open TO THE USER than iOS.

See above about Nexus,

Lucky the future looks like we might get back to the range of unlocked phones as Google once again started selling the Nexus directly from within Google Play and what is even better is that the next Nexus range will include phones from more than one OEM.

See http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...27s+News+US%29

Also OEM's come to the party now:
http://htcdev.com/bootloader
http://unlockbootloader.sonymobile.com/
http://developer.motorola.com/products/software/

[Quey_Quick]

I dont find it that difficult to root hey.

Copy a file and click a button. Search for one click root solutions, they work a treat.

[ghoti]

My ipad is a piece of crud to hack. Really now. So spammy. If I have to fill in one more captcha to get a download link that doesnt work I am going to freak. My android is much simpler.

[cerebus]

Yeah, this is a problem that crops up all the time and it does suck - it's getting better though. Quite a few manufacturers are now starting to get onboard with the bigger release people like Cyanogen and making things easier for them. It's not ideal yet but it's kinda getting there. Custom Rom builders are also getting quite nice, I played with a very nice GUI based flasher the other day.

It's getting there... but in another sense it is far from getting there, since the fragmentation issue is just increasing.

Personally, I feel the opposite is true. Android is so far open that it starts to seem closed. Because you can literally do anything you want (up to and including bricking your phone), it's almost as if there's too much freedom. People like to have a little bit of control, some end that they can't go past. I mean, I've bricked my phone many times (I even had to make my own USB jig to unbrick it which was... not the most pleasant experience of my life) but I knew what I was doing - the average user doesn't.

Yeah.. look it's true that you can do what you want so long as you can get CWM onto it. But in truth I was doing all that back in the WM5 days - flashing roms, bricking, unbricking. It's not that much fun. It's nicer to just have the right software in the first place, and be able to modify it to an unlimited extent. The article's point is, modding is just more enjoyable on iOS because all you need to do is jailbreak (5 minutes, 1-click), and then search in Cydia to your heart's content.

I get that but to be honest we only have ourselves to blame.

Why can't we just blame the ones who made the software? That's a very silly argument. We didn't create the situation.

See above about Nexus,

I don't have a Nexus. In my whole life I've met 1 person who does have a Nexus. It's a brilliant phone but it's very atypical and niche.

[Elimentals]

Why can't we just blame the ones who made the software? That's a very silly argument. We didn't create the situation.

I don't have a Nexus. In my whole life I've met 1 person who does have a Nexus. It's a brilliant phone but it's very atypical and niche.

LOL you have to laugh at that contradiction.

We have to blame ourselves cause we don't let our money speak. If more people bought Nexus phones the OEM's would have had a better intensive to sell unlocked phones instead of locking em for OEM's. After all they just doing what everyone does, following the money.

[cerebus]

LOL you have to laugh at that contradiction.

We have to blame ourselves cause we don't let our money speak. If more people bought Nexus phones the OEM's would have had a better intensive to sell unlocked phones instead of locking em for OEM's. After all they just doing what everyone does, following the money.

I did what the majority of people on earth do which is went with what my carriers had available on a subsidized contract at a monthly price that I could afford. I did not have r8000 to drop on a phone so that I could breathe the untainted air of pure Android. If Google had negotiated with real carriers in this country to stock the Nexus it would be a different story - but even then I'm not a premium handset kind of guy. I have a Galaxy S which is fine but aging. It's what I can afford. So yes it's Google's failure for thinking they could have their cake and eat it.

[bwana]

My ipad is a piece of crud to hack. Really now. So spammy. If I have to fill in one more captcha to get a download link that doesnt work I am going to freak. My android is much simpler.

Absinthe is quick, painless, and captcha free.

[cerebus]

Absinthe is quick, painless, and captcha free.

I think he means the agony of downloading cracked apps from Installous. Which you know... is totally different for Android.

[Elimentals]

I think he means the agony of downloading cracked apps from Installous. Which you know... is totally different for Android.

It is, here I find iOS wins hands down. Piracy on iPhone is sooooooooo much easier than on Android.

Installious is all you need to get pirated games on iOS.

On Android I have to Google, search forums and whatnot till I get an apk that actually downloads and is not met with (Content removed) banner, copy onto my device and hope it plays, if it doesn't the whole process start afresh.

[cerebus]

It is, here I find iOS wins hands down. Piracy on iPhone is sooooooooo much easier than on Android.

Installious is all you need to get pirated games on iOS.

On Android I have to Google, search forums and whatnot till I get an apk that actually downloads and is not met with (Content removed) banner, copy onto my device and hope it plays, if it doesn't the whole process start afresh.

Which is kind of ironic since the Play Store whips the App store, esp in this country.

[Maverick Jester]

Its a great phone, love the screen and it feels solid, I have no issues recommending it to normal people. Only things that drove me up the wall was the Facebook integration(I dont have facebook) lack of Firewall/Monitor and DND options.

I think my only issue is that I got so use to MIUI that I can not use a phone without it.

That's true, once you go MIUI, it's very hard to go back to anything else. But thanks for the feedback.

[xumwun]

It is, here I find iOS wins hands down. Piracy on iPhone is sooooooooo much easier than on Android.

Installious is all you need to get pirated games on iOS.

On Android I have to Google, search forums and whatnot till I get an apk that actually downloads and is not met with (Content removed) banner, copy onto my device and hope it plays, if it doesn't the whole process start afresh.

Really?
Go on Pirate Bay.
Dowload apk.
Install.

[bwana]

I think he means the agony of downloading cracked apps from Installous. Which you know... is totally different for Android.

Fair enough I guess - I pay for my apps so I'm not in a position to comment on the hoops people are made to jump through yo get their content for free.

[ClintX]

You can connect PS3 Controllers, HDMI onto TV have DLNA or AirPlay support right out of the box. Hell I can connect and control my Canon camera with USB cable or us a USB thumb drive or even play movies off my 2 TB USB drive so its not about functionality.

Please note this is not trolling and not an attempt to derail this thread so I'll say this and then disappear. Please do not bother responding otherwise we are likely to derail this and I don't want to upset a moderator.

I honestly stated in another thread that I enjoy discussing/arguing about different OSs as it helps me learn about them. I really do look out for reasons to eventually move across from Symbian to another OS (partly because I'll eventually have no choice) but very few are ever shown.

For example now, when someone says things like this I honestly question whether Android is truly as superior to Symbian as some believe. It is my understanding that the new Symbians can do most of this. I know USB-on-the-go was first released on the N8 (allowing you to plug in and use thumb drives, use a mouse etc) as well as the HDMi output. And the 808 will have DLNA support. All right out of the box.

But anyway, as you were.