Android L Vs Ios 8 How Samsung, Sony, HTC, LG and Motorola Killed the Iphone 6
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LATEST SMARTPHONE, TABLET AND APP REVIEWS ANDROID ISSUE 08 ADVISOR Android L vs iOS 8 How Samsung, Sony, HTC, LG and Motorola killed the iPhone 6 BEST NEW TABLETS FOR ADULTS AND KIDS Welcome... t’s that time of year when Apple launches its new tablets and smartphones – and now smartwatches I– in an attempt to claw back market share from Android. Is it going to work? Not a chance. Because while Apple is busy catching up with Android, Google is on to bigger and better things. Such as Android L. We’ll take an early look at the di erences between Android L and iOS 8 overleaf. Samsung is Google’s best-known hardware partner – the number of Android phones, tablets and smartwatches it sells is frankly crazy. But at least you can guarantee there is something for every budget and every type of person; the same isn’t true for Apple’s line-up. We pit the best of Apple against the best of Samsung from page 28, and discuss which manufacturer you should look to when buying your next mobile device on page 12. Of course, there’s really no need for all these petty Android vs iOS, and Samsung vs Apple, arguments. We’re not in the playground now. And the fact is competition will only ever be a positive thing for consumers (read our thoughts on page 20). But if you want competition you’ve got it: there is so much great new tech out there right now – from tablets and phones to smartwatches and accessories. It’s a great time to be an Android fan. As always, we hope you’ve enjoyed this issue of Android Advisor. Feel free to send us your feedback via facebook.com/AndroidAdvisorUK or email [email protected]. 2 ANDROID ADVISOR • ISSUE 8 avaxhm.com Android Advisor Issue 8.indd 2 10/10/2014 12:45 Android L vs iOS 8 We see how the latest version of Android performs against its newly updated rival, iOS 8 Availability The fi nal version of iOS 8 launched in September, while the fi nished Android L is expected any day now. You don’t have to wait that long to check out Google’s new o ering, however – if you’re running a Nexus 5 or 7 you can get the developer preview. To run iOS 8 you’ll need an iPhone 4s or later, or iPad 2, iPad mini or later; for Android L you’ll need a Google Nexus 5 or Nexus 7 to get the developer preview, and it will roll out to other devices soon. ISSUE 8 • ANDROID ADVISOR 3 Android Advisor Issue 8.indd 3 10/10/2014 12:45 Design The design of iOS 8 is mostly unchanged from that of iOS 7, which is no surprise as it was iOS 7 that brought the major design changes. iOS 8 has that ‘fl at’ design, ditching all signs of skeuomorphism for minimalism. This year, it’s Android’s turn for a bit of a design shake-up. Google has introduced a new ‘Material Design’ look for Android, which has also been o ered to developers for use in their Android apps. Android L brings more depth to the operating system’s appearance using shadows, and also 4 ANDROID ADVISOR • ISSUE 8 Android Advisor Issue 8.indd 4 10/10/2014 12:45 automatically generates little patches of colour based on the content being displayed. Additionally, there are new animations and touch feedback, so the overall look and feel is both smooth and responsive. Notifi cations In Android L, you’ll fi nd new, enhanced notifi cations. You’ll be able to get see them on your lock screen, and they’ll be automatically listed in priority order. Swipe them away to dismiss them, or you can double tap to open them in the relevant app. Similarly, notifi cations have improved in iOS 8. They’re now interactive, so you’ll be able to reply to text messages, accept calendar invitations, snooze reminders and even Like Facebook statuses you’ve been tagged in – all without having to leave your current app. You can already swipe them to automatically go to the relevant app, but you can’t yet swipe to dismiss them (that’s new). Lock screen As mentioned above, Android L brings a new lockscreen to its devices. As well as being able to see notifi cations, you’ll also be able to swipe up to unlock, right to launch the dialler or left to launch the camera. In iOS 8, the lockscreen is as it was before. Simply slide right to unlock it or upward to access the camera. There’s no quick way to access the dialler. Multitasking Multitasking in iOS 7 was already pretty good, but Apple has taken it a step further by adding ISSUE 8 • ANDROID ADVISOR 5 Android Advisor Issue 8.indd 5 10/10/2014 12:45 recent and favourite contacts to the screen when you double click the home button to access the multitasking menu. These contacts appear in a handy list along the top of your screen, to allow you to quickly call, text or get in touch via FaceTime. Android L brings multitasking to a new level for its users, too. Now, open apps will appear as cards in a carousel, which you can browse through by sliding up or down on the screen. To close a particular app, simply swipe the card to the left or right. What’s cool (and it’s something that iOS can’t do yet) is some apps will show multiple cards 6 ANDROID ADVISOR • ISSUE 8 Android Advisor Issue 8.indd 6 10/10/2014 12:45 depending on how you’re using them. For example, if you’ve got multiple tabs open in Chrome, you’ll see each of them as an individual card on the multitasking screen. Security Google has introduced a new personal unlocking feature that will enable users to unlock their smartphone or tablet without entering their passcode, but only when they’re close enough to a device such as an Android Wear smartwatch. Apple has its Touch ID fi ngerprint sensor, which is built-in to the home button of the iPhone 5s. In iOS 7, it was only able to unlock the device or be used instead of entering Apple ID details, but this will be opened up to third-party developers with iOS 8 – so users will be able to use their fi ngerprint to access other apps such as banking applications. The wealth of new security features in both Android L and iOS 8 won’t be available to everybody, of course. If you don’t own an iPhone 5s or an Android Wear smartwatch, you won’t be able to use them. Battery life We don’t yet know exactly how Android L and iOS 8 will a ect the battery life of the devices they’re running on, but both let you identify how individual apps are draining power, and to make improvements based on their consumption. Android L has an additional battery saving mode, which iOS 8 doesn’t. Google claims that the new battery-saving mode bundled with Android L will give the Nexus 5 about 90 minutes more battery life. ISSUE 8 • ANDROID ADVISOR 7 Android Advisor Issue 8.indd 7 10/10/2014 12:45 New developer features Both Google and Apple have added some new tools for developers that could mean lots of exciting new abilities will arrive on Android and iOS devices soon. It’s particularly surprising that Apple has opened up iOS to developers – as it’s a company that has always been known for its closed nature. Apple has introduced what it calls Extensibility, which basically means that apps in iOS will be able to ‘talk to each other’ like never before. For example, using Action extensions, Safari could gain a Bing translate feature, taking advantage of the Bing app’s capabilities. Or, Safari could gain a Pin button for Pinterest users if that app is installed. The possibilities here are endless, and extremely exciting for iOS users and developers. Another element of Apple’s extensions is ‘Today extensions’ which are actually widgets that can be chosen to appear in the Today view in iOS 8’s Notifi cation Centre. Android has had home screen widgets for a long time, so Apple is bringing itself in line with its biggest rival with this feature. Widgets and other extensions are much more restricted in iOS 8 8 ANDROID ADVISOR • ISSUE 8 Android Advisor Issue 8.indd 8 10/10/2014 12:46 compared to those in Android, though. Apple is keen to keep its OS secure and, historically, didn’t allow developers to release apps that were just widgets or keyboards. For the fi rst time, iOS 8 allows users to install third-party keyboards. Google has added several new features in Android L for developers, such as direct links to apps from Google searches carried out using Chrome (something that’s already been available for a while, but only for a select bunch of developers). Apple used last year’s iOS 7 to fi rst introduce 64- bit compatibility to the operating system, and that continues with iOS 8. For Google, however, Android L represents the fi rst time the operating system has been compatible with 64-bit devices. We expect to see many more smartphones and tablets with 64-bit chips to emerge in the coming year. This should mean speedier and smoother performance, and a big power boost for Android devices.