Moving to the dark side
About a month ago I made the decision to move from my iPhone and the safe space of iOS to explore Android for the first time.
My old iPhone was nearing the end of its life (as Apple products tend to abruptly after a few years) but the newly released iPhone 7 wasn’t doing it for me. Instead it was Google’s Pixel that caught my eye; all the looks of the iPhone but with an improved camera and battery.
Here’s just a few thoughts 1 month in to my Android adventure
“We’re not so different you and I(OS)”
Android, or at least this version of Google’s OS, really isn’t all that different from iOS. The Pixel uses Android 7.1 Nougat, which marks the first time Google have had full control of both the phone and operating system, and it shows.
Its beautifully smooth and polished interface makes navigation very easy for anyone coming over from iOS. You’ve still got the home screen with swipeable pages for other apps (which you can group), as well as 5 key apps along the bottom of the screen, similar to the iPhone.
All the apps I use most frequently (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Gmail, WhatsApp, Spotify…) have very little difference on Android to their iOS counterparts so you barely notice the change.
Not only that, but to make things even simpler, Google provide a little adaptor so you can plug your iPhone straight into your Pixel to sync messages and contacts. Doesn’t get much easier than that.
It can keep going all night…
Like most iPhone users I found myself constantly looking for a plug or lugging around an external battery as about half way through the day it’d need charging. The Pixel can easily make it through a full day (or more) with fairly heavy use on the commute without needing to be charged.
When you do finally need to charge it, it’ll do it in no time at all. Google claim you can get 7 hours use from 15 minutes charging — I haven’t tested the accuracy of that, but it certainly charges quickly and drains slowly.
Snap happy
The camera is just as good as Google bragged it was. On the left is a shot taken in the dark at f/2.0, 1/33 and at ISO766. It’s definitely impressive. Well exposed, sharp, the colours are good and the noise is minimal.
Shutter lag isn’t an issue and thanks to the ‘unlimited’ photo storage offered through Google’s cloud you can keep snapping all day and night.
Not only is the quality good, the camera is packed full of features like Google’s photo sphere tech for 360 photos (example) and slow motion video recording without having to download extra apps.
Overall
I’m still only a month in to life with an Android (potential sitcom title?) but I’m very much a convert. The Pixel certainly makes the jump less scary by meeting iPhone users in the middle and making it all very intuitive, no matter your OS preference. I appreciate it’s not the fairest of comparisons given I don’t own an iPhone 7 and the 5c was always going to feel inferior to this, but I still honestly believe that if you’re an iPhone user sick of your battery draining after 5 minutes, or want an actual headphone port, then you should definitely check the Pixel out.
I’m still not quite used to not having a physical ‘home’ button on the phone but I’m sure I’ll get used to that with time. The same goes for using a larger screen where my palms keep catching the screen as I reach a thumb over to the other side. Speaking of fingers and thumbs, the fingerprint scanner on the back is a great feature. It feels very natural when holding it, but as some have pointed out, when it’s on a flat surface you do end up just typing in the password out of laziness.
The operating system is the closest Android have ever come to the simplistic, clean design of iOS, which when combined with the Pixel’s sexier-than-iPhone looks are a winner. Who knows, maybe this’ll be the phone that converts me to Android permanently…
