Thinking of moving back to android

[alarmguy]

I agree. It's almost like arguing which brand of gas to use. These are commodities these days.
Now, if we still had Blackberry and the tiled Windows phone, there would be some variety in the market.

Sadly that is gone and we have the usual two camps arguing the virtues of their so called choice.

^^^
Choice is good isn't it?
Windows, Android, Apple
Something for everyone, Ive had them all in one form or another.
Including a Windows phone and Windows music player both a marketplace failure though.
Decades of Windows computers but never again.

Arguing? No but not even close to brands of gasoline. Unless you are experienced enough using multiple devices running each operating system to make that determination which most aren't

 

[KrisZ]

^^^
Choice is good isn't it?
Windows, Android, Apple
Something for everyone, Ive had them all in one form or another.
Including a Windows phone and Windows music player both a marketplace failure though.
Decades of Windows computers but never again.

Arguing? No but not even close to brands of gasoline. Unless you are experienced enough using multiple devices running each operating system to make that determination which most aren't

My point is that we have an illusion of choice. Having to choose between two, pretty much the same systems, is not really choice. What's even more interesting is seeing people passionately argue for/against said "choices", when in the grand scheme of things, it's all the same, doesn't matter what you choose.

Edit:
This guy summed it up brilliantly

 

[alarmguy]

My point is that we have an illusion of choice. Having to choose between two, pretty much the same systems, is not really choice. What's even more interesting is seeing people passionately argue for/against said "choices", when in the grand scheme of things, it's all the same, doesn't matter what you choose.

Edit:
This guy summed it up brilliantly

I don’t see myself as arguing “for”
I just mention how I use it which the guy in the video doesn’t bring up.
George Carlin is certainly missed!!!!!!

 

[dishdude]

I assume you are saying if you are using a Chrome laptop and desktop? If so that is great for Chrome lovers.

So let's say, you log onto your banking site from your desktop or your laptop, your password auto populates no matter what device you are on and then the second authorization code in a text message to your cell phone autopopulates with that authorization code on your desktop or laptop?

That would be one example of Apple integration.
Also Google/Android does not offer free satellite texting. The cell phone carriers have to offer it for you to get it. Last I knew T-Mobile was onboard and Verizon just joined. You also need a satellite capable phone so pick carefully because it's not automatic you will get it with Android. IN fact until they catch up it will be rare and some Android phones never.
All iPhone 14 and above have it built in.

Automatic Crash detection and fall detection is on all Apple devices as well (talking about iPhones 14s and later) along with emergency transmissions. In the Android world any number of phones may have it but very few that can transmit via satellite.

BTW- I am not selling Apple products, whatever makes one happy. However no one can deny the seamless integration among Apple products with each other along with a complete array of services that work right out of the box.. If that doesnt matter it's all good, however it's what makes Apple who they are.
No doubt Android tries to keep up but it's impossible among hundreds of different models of phones and dozens of different makers.

Yes, text messages sync on my laptop and the OTP comes to the laptop. Yes, satellite emergency calling is free - the phone doesn't even need to be activated with a carrier. Yes it has car crash detection. Pixel watches have fall detection.

It sure sounds like you're selling them!

 

[tblt44]

I like Android, my wife kids and grandchild all have apple.

 

[alarmguy]

Yes, text messages sync on my laptop and the OTP comes to the laptop. Yes, satellite emergency calling is free - the phone doesn't even need to be activated with a carrier. Yes it has car crash detection. Pixel watches have fall detection.

It sure sounds like you're selling them!

No I am not. Just being honest with ourselves.
Apple products do all these things and works with my system of desktop, laptop and iPhone.

Android does not. Android phones do not have satellite emergency calling or the whole slew of integrated features that Apple offers.

Now with that said, in this thread we are singling out SPECIFIC brands and models of Android phones that do offer similar services. My point is, generically using the word Android to say it competes on the same level as Apple is not even close in the use I mention.

However some specific brands and models of those brands do compete with Apple such as Pixel and some Samsung products as an example. Still for me it would be a work around to bring together my Apple Watch, iPhone and start integrating everything they do with a Windows Desktop and Windows laptop.

Im not selling anything, I am using a system that works for me. I take full advantage of the features of all 4 Apple Products that I use. Watch, Laptop, Desktop and iPhone.

(im only using bold to highlight my point) However I have no interest going back into the Windows world after being in it for close to two decades and would never even consider Android laptop and desktop. Choice is good for all of us.

If you think I am selling Apple I am not sure why but maybe this will explain in my next post, why I am so happy with its products. I'll post it as soon as I remove my personal information.

 

[alarmguy]

@dishdude
I kept experiencing waking up at night with a racing heart beat for months on end. Also at times during the day. Constant ECGs/EKGs would mostly show normal function at the cardiologist. This was ongoing a long time.

PVCs first noticed by an NP who listened to my heart and then ran an EKG (aka ECG) that was back around 2019 (just guessing. Told no big deal many of us have intermittent PVCs However go to a cardiologist can get checked out. stress test ordered, stress test showed more PVCs but not too concerning. However with me suggesting it I wanted an angiogram, the gold standard. Showed plaque all over near my heart but at low levels, all great. Discomfort at night continued to get worse. Dec 2021 wife got me an Apple Watch 7. Starting the next month, every time I felt discomfort at night I had the watch do an ECG.

(cutting this short) finally upon printing out the ECGs from my watch and getting yet another appt with a cardo NP, she hooked me up to a Halter monitor for 48 hours. Wow. came back with I forgot ...10,000 PVCs and a short term (I forgot the name, not good)
Longer story short, 2 heart specialists one a Electrophysiologist combed through about 24 ECGs I printed out from my watch.
He thought it was fantastic, took his time, even with some kind of ruler I guess confirming the watch graph.

Longer story short, I got a cardiac ablation, where they go up into the heart with wires and burned the area where there is a short circuit. Left the hospital the same day. Here is the day of the procedure and day after, recorded from my watch. Im just explaining as a person, maybe one can see why I like being in the Apple system, even though I wish all devices worked together because honestly I love technology and would love to make a change to my phone for fun. BTW- the ECG function was reviewed because Apple submitted it to the FDA as a one lead ECG device and the FDA gave them a green light. This was before any others.

Before cardiac ablation (look at date and time) Its a disaster should be no downward spikes.

Morning after ablation

Anyway, all this info went from my watch, to my phone to my desktop and even now, allowed me to easily (mostly) convert and reduce my personal info.

PS one morning before the procedure I also woke up (since I wear the watch to bed, it alerted me(

and then when going into my phone

Anyway, another long post but only way I can describe how the system works for me. (I got another *LOL* too!)

 

[alarmguy]

So, the second week of Jan 2025 I started on the Cancer drug Orgovyx. I Finished in second week of July 2025
I read it could affect heart function, I checked my watch and there it is. Starting within 4 weeks of six months of treatment.
Im just pointing out, that if used as a tool, technology is amazing. My two posts prove this to be true. I am sure other devices will do much the same, however when entering the Apple world it was just "there" Watch reports to my phone seamlessly and from there I can print the same on my desktop. I am sure google and Samsung devices might do the same, however by no means do all hundreds of different kinds of Android devices do the same. Once my cardiologist heard I was on Orgovyx, they moved up my appointment and first scheduled a heart echogram 3rd week of Sept. Last Echo showed my heart (thanks to early intervention as posted in the post above this one) as my heart EF score 61 which is as perfect as someone 40 years younger than me.

@KrisZ
CLEARLY GEORGE CARLIN WAS BEHIND THE TIMES

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

Once I left the Apple cult and found out what Android can do, Im never going back.

 

[dishdude]

No I am not. Just being honest with ourselves.
Apple products do all these things and works with my system of desktop, laptop and iPhone.

Android does not. Android phones do not have satellite emergency calling or the whole slew of integrated features that Apple offers.

Someone forgot to tell my Android it can't do all these things. Enjoying that Apple flavored Kool-Aid?

 

[Brons2]

Probably faster than the S23 I'm using now.

ain't no way, the hardware itself is eons faster and I had an S3 and an S4, I had to root those things with hacker roms just to make them usable.

 

[Brons2]

Someone forgot to tell my Android it can't do all these things. Enjoying that Apple flavored Kool-Aid?

Satellite connectivity on cell phones is a gimmick, whether Apple or Android. Running the UI and apps makes it too battery hungry to really rely on it when you are way off the beaten path.

I've had a Spot tracker for years, there are other similar devices available. If you're going somewhere that you might get into trouble, a cell phone is not always the best option. My Spot will last days on a single set of (replaceable) AA batteries. And you can press the button to summon help pretty much anywhere in the world.

 

[Kira]

This thread pulls me in several directions.
1) alarmguy: A 30 year old acquaintance had your experience (post #27). His cardiac ablation was 4 days ago.
"His watch picked it up", is what friends are saying. My wife's ears perked up. She had mentioned getting new phones before this.
However, proficient at linking devices I am not.
Are there monitoring fees for the ECGs?

2)

No doubt Android tries to keep up but it's impossible among hundreds of different models of phones and dozens of different makers.

^^Does this relate to the Lynux system? This came from an Apple proponent claiming superiority. Are the differences substantive?
Streamlined is good, no?

3) Does Apple have superior build quality? I've heard this.

4) Same quality for the "Apple Watch" ?

5) Should I feel stupid for buying a HP Envy 3 years ago? ..the e key is sticking (ha-ha)

I'm lightheartedly kidding about this stuff. While I appreciate the tech completely, it still hits me like consumer goods.

 

[alarmguy]

This thread pulls me in several directions.
1) alarmguy: A 30 year old acquaintance had your experience (post #27). His cardiac ablation was 4 days ago.
"His watch picked it up", is what friends are saying. My wife's ears perked up. She had mentioned getting new phones before this.
However, proficient at linking devices I am not.
Are there monitoring fees for the ECGs?

2)
^^Does this relate to the Lynux system? This came from an Apple proponent claiming superiority. Are the differences substantive?
Streamlined is good, no?

3) Does Apple have superior build quality? I've heard this.

4) Same quality for the "Apple Watch" ?

5) Should I feel stupid for buying a HP Envy 3 years ago? ..the e key is sticking (ha-ha)

I'm lightheartedly kidding about this stuff. While I appreciate the tech completely, it still hits me like consumer goods.

I want to answer all your questions but will be tied up for the next day. I will try to get to this by Friday. Saturday I am going to Duke for a Prostate Cancer Conference \>

There are no fees associated with using your Apple Watch unless you also want the watch with the Cell Unit and separate phone number. I have no need for that but that would be for your cell phone carrier to charge not apple.

The Apple Watch reports all information to your iPhone along with the watch screen.There is no charge for any of it.
As far as your friend I can't answer. Apple Watch will detect A-Fib however in my case I would do manual ECG readings for PVCs. whenever I felt discomfort I turned on the watch ECG function which records an ECG and it gets saved to your iPhone from you iPhone you can send it to your doctors (messaging) or print it out. I did both. I did get a low heart rate warning waking up one morning.

The watch can and will track your sleep, routinely check your heart rate while you sleep, respiration rate, body temperature and all kinds of stuff. You can then go through the watch app menus on your iPhone to see whatever information you may want to see. The amount of information is stupid, so much of it. Since I love electronics and trying to live healthy this is for me. Even when I play pickleball. I tell the watch I am playing, it records my heart rate constantly every few minutes and draws a graph when I am done.

You do not have to link anything per se' Yes you do link, the iPhone and watch are stupid simple and does everything for you.

Here is a primer. I would never be able to list what must be hundreds of criteria you can have the watch report through your iPhone.
https://apelostudio.com/apple-watch-health-features/

AS far as durability no sense for me to go into that! You can read reviews. For example I go swimming with my Apple Watch but it's not a dive watch *LOL* also my iPhone 15 is water resistant to 18 feet for 30 minutes. Something I would not do but stuff happens.

I dont want to get caught up saying Apple is the epitome of durability and its competition is not. There are thousands of products out there both good and bad. For sure Apple is in the good category. I never had an issue with past android or windows phones either.

I know to some I sound serious, I too am easy going I think some take offense just because I have devices that work perfect for my lifestyle which is not for everyone or even the majority! *LOL*

I think I answered everything! You can message me if I missed anything or replying here.

 

[andrew_j]

I’d recommend apple for tracking especially if she has an apple phone. It’s integrated down to the messages showing her location. Also a few AirTags shared do wonders. Wife uses it with her mother who is starting to have cognitive deficit's.

The bridge exists across platforms exists but afterthought.

If you both had Android different story. However I would not force another platform , personally platform preference is like arguing if Chocalate or Vanilla ice cream tastes better.

Good luck .

 

[OVERKILL]

Once I left the Apple cult and found out what Android can do, Im never going back.

Both are "cults", no one ecosystem has a monopoly on the fervent users so invested in the product that they feel it necessary to endlessly promote it whenever the opportunity presents.

I've owned pretty much every major brand of smartphone going right back to the Blackberry and Palm era. I've run rooted android with aftermarket OS's like Cyanogenmod, ran Windows Phone, early iPhone, Blackberry 10 (RIM's spin on Android) and of course "pure" android on google Nexus (now Pixel). I'm currently using an iPhone 16 Pro Max and my last several phones have been Apple because they just "work". They are to the smartphone world what everyone claims Toyota is to the automotive one.

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

Both are "cults", no one ecosystem has a monopoly on the fervent users so invested in the product that they feel it necessary to endlessly promote it whenever the opportunity presents.

I've owned pretty much every major brand of smartphone going right back to the Blackberry and Palm era. I've run rooted android with aftermarket OS's like Cyanogenmod, ran Windows Phone, early iPhone, Blackberry 10 (RIM's spin on Android) and of course "pure" android on google Nexus (now Pixel). I'm currently using an iPhone 16 Pro Max and my last several phones have been Apple because they just "work". They are to the smartphone world what everyone claims Toyota is to the automotive one.

Whatever works. I've had more problems with Apple products than Android but its a survey sample size of 1.

 

[OVERKILL]

Whatever works. I've had more problems with Apple products than Android but its a survey sample size of 1.

Even if I ignore my corporate experience where we are ~98% Apple at this point (but only about 2% Apple on the computer side of things), between my wife, my kids and myself, we've owned around 100 Apple devices at this point and the experience has generally been good. We've also owned quite a few android devices and what drives me nuts about them is the short duration of support for OS upgrades when compared to an iPhone or iPad, which, comparatively, receive updates for a much longer period of time. Now Pixel devices (formerly Nexus) are more comparable to Apple in this department, but Samsung is absolutely awful, as are many other brands.

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

Even if I ignore my corporate experience where we are ~98% Apple at this point (but only about 2% Apple on the computer side of things), between my wife, my kids and myself, we've owned around 100 Apple devices at this point and the experience has generally been good. We've also owned quite a few android devices and what drives me nuts about them is the short duration of support for OS upgrades when compared to an iPhone or iPad, which, comparatively, receive updates for a much longer period of time. Now Pixel devices (formerly Nexus) are more comparable to Apple in this department, but Samsung is absolutely awful, as are many other brands.

Guess I havent had Android long enough because I had that exact same complaint about Apple and them obsoleting devices through updates or lack of.

 

[Arc]

ain't no way, the hardware itself is eons faster and I had an S3 and an S4, I had to root those things with hacker roms just to make them usable.

The old models were never slowed down like the new ones. The old s4 is faster than what I am using now. Plus I can't even change my battery now. Did you hear how android is going to pre approve all apps now? There goes fdroid and the other sites. Bummer.