Hey Android users, help me out!

[volcaniclastic]

Okay. I'm an iPhone user. I have just made the switch, and I kinda hate it so far. (Juni, my OPO came in the mail! It's gigantic!)

Help me love Android.

What are your favourite apps, how do you like your phone set-up, what tips and tricks do I need to know?

What makes you love your Android device?

I just bought the Oneplus One. It's a 5.5" screen, which is a full two inches bigger than my iPhone 4s. I can't text with one hand anymore, and this is strange. It took me all morning to figure out how to shut off predictive text. I only just loaded some music to my phone, but I'm not a fan of the google music player. It's got a 13MP camera, which is craaaaaaaaaaazy compared to my iPhone's 4MP camera, and I'm pretty stoked on that. But so far, I'm all "Ah! It's not like my iPhone! Where do I find this thing?! How do I shut this off?! Why is there a light flashing at me? Where did my notifications go?"

Steeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep learning curve. *hiss*

[anunitu]

Re: Hey Android users, help me out!

These "New" changes seem to be the hallmark of the changing tech...It is like going from windows to Linux,and in some cases even more structures of layout.

What I always have an issue with is documentation for things. It used to be when you got a computer with say windows(Or old days MsDOS) it came with a LOT of documentation.

The new win7 computer my Daughter bought me had zero documentation so I had to just mess with it till I got an understanding of how it is different from my old OS.

I am used to windows using it for a LONG time,but win7 took me a while to figure how things had changed. So in my mind I am thinking what is it like for someone that never used windows before in any form. So you went from apples layout to a total different one with Android and it can be hard with the learning curve with no real detailed docs to go with.

[thalassa]

Re: Hey Android users, help me out!

Does it come with an instruction manual?

Because....every Android phone is different. I totally can't use my husband's phone, and he hate's mine, but they are both Android.

Pretty much most of the apps are the same (its in companies best interest to make them for both), and you can pick them up from Amazon's app store or Google Play--I generally get Google stuff only when Amazon doesn't have it, because then I can also have it on my kindle.

Honestly, its just a learning curve--it takes me a week or so every time I change phone models.

[Willow]

Re: Hey Android users, help me out!

It took me a few days to figure out how to make/take calls on my phone, and a few months for everything else (and I haven't even touched some functions because I simply prefer to do that stuff on a real keyboard on a pc).

Just spend some time with it is the best advice I can give. If you really get stuck, bring it to a storefront that provides your coverage plan and ask them to help out. Good luck.

[Jembru]

Re: Hey Android users, help me out!

I can't begin to express how much I sympathise with you V. I hate technology generally, and whenever I have to start using something new, it can take me weeks or sometimes even months to get used to it. The PC I'm currently using, was given to me 2 years ago on my birthday, and it was only last year that I finally started to use it as my main computer, and only because my ancient laptop couldn't be updated to a newer version of windows and skype stopped supporting the version I was using last year.

I'm about to get a new mobile too, and will probably go for another android. I hated my last phone and I'm sure I'll hate this new one, whichever I get. I just don't like smartphones generally. They always try to do more than they're capable of. I would love a phone that just did a few things well, than lots of pointless sh*t badly.

The apps I use probably won't interest many besides me (and are all available for iphone anyway, albeit for a price).

-Zombie Run: this is an exercise game. You set the difficulty and the point you're trying to reach and then using the GPS zombies are placed on the map. You then have to run around the streets avoiding zombies. Great if you have someone to do it with. It's hard to sprint and look at the screen, so you often just have to check where the zombies are, get your head down and run for your life. The phone vibrates when you're killed so you know if you made it past a cluster alive. It's so much fun, although you do look mad to passers by when you're stuck waiting for a light to change yelling 'omg their going to get us!'

-My Fitness Pal: I don't use it anymore, because well.. you know.. but I loved how easy it was to track my calories with this app. It was really motivating.

-Ankidroid: a flashcard app for helping you to memorise things.

-Moon phase calendar: Not that someone who works nights has any excuse not to know what phase the moon is in, but this helps me to plan witchy things in advance. Of course, I could just use the web browser for how often I actually need to use this app.

Hope you manage to make peace with your phone soon.

[Hawkfeathers]

Re: Hey Android users, help me out!

My first couple of cell phones, and my first PC, came with manuals I jokingly referred to as "The Old Testament" because they were BIG BOOKS! The PC I bought last year came with a set-up diagram and that's about it. This stuff is supposed to be "intuitive", and I guess it is, for someone, somewhere....LOL

[volcaniclastic]

Re: Hey Android users, help me out!

Does it come with an instruction manual?

Hilariously, no. Also, I didn't know you could get apps on the kindle...

-Zombie Run: this is an exercise game. You set the difficulty and the point you're trying to reach and then using the GPS zombies are placed on the map. You then have to run around the streets avoiding zombies. Great if you have someone to do it with. It's hard to sprint and look at the screen, so you often just have to check where the zombies are, get your head down and run for your life. The phone vibrates when you're killed so you know if you made it past a cluster alive. It's so much fun, although you do look mad to passers by when you're stuck waiting for a light to change yelling 'omg their going to get us!'

-My Fitness Pal: I don't use it anymore, because well.. you know.. but I loved how easy it was to track my calories with this app. It was really motivating.

-Ankidroid: a flashcard app for helping you to memorise things.

-Moon phase calendar: Not that someone who works nights has any excuse not to know what phase the moon is in, but this helps me to plan witchy things in advance. Of course, I could just use the web browser for how often I actually need to use this app.

Hope you manage to make peace with your phone soon.

Thanks, Jem! You know, with computers, hand me any PC and I've got it figured out in seconds. But I just don't understand Apple computers, and apparently, I don't understand Android phones, haha. I'm slowly getting used to it, although it still feels like a cookie sheet. Google Keep is kinda neat - it's a note taking app that syncs to your email account. Now, I'm not a fan of anything syncing to anything, because I'm a weird privacy nazi on the internet (except when I'm not), but I had to write up some notes for the pride meeting yesterday, and I wrote them on google keep on my computer, synced them to my phone, and had my notes at the meeting with me. And that was kinda neat.

I don't use MFP - but I do use Livestrong MyPlate. I like it better. And I had Zombies, Run! for my iPhone. It was kinda neat, but I have a preference for old school interval training. I've never tried the anki thing, though I've heard nothing but good things about the method - I've been trying to learn spanish with Duolingo, but I haven't touched it in a month or two.

My first couple of cell phones, and my first PC, came with manuals I jokingly referred to as "The Old Testament" because they were BIG BOOKS! The PC I bought last year came with a set-up diagram and that's about it. This stuff is supposed to be "intuitive", and I guess it is, for someone, somewhere....LOL

It's funny, because this is exactly how Apple aims to design its products. The iPhone actually IS intuitive for me - it took me very little time when I first got it to figure it out. Stuff moved the way you would expect, it lived where you would expect, etc. But the move FROM iPhone to Android...man. The number of times I swipe left or right in a day, only to find out it doesn't do anything on my phone...it's crazy. It's like my fingers need to learn a new language.

(I, however, do NOT find Apple computers intuitive. Why would anyone want to buy a computer that you can't program on? That you can't alter? Blows my mind.)

[Hawkfeathers]

Re: Hey Android users, help me out!

^^^^See, I know nothing of programming. I hear about "rooted" devices and I have no idea what that is. I don't know what people mean when they say Windows version whatever was better or worse. 8.1 is different but once I learned where to click for what, it was all good.

I use that free Open Office stuff for my documents and record keeping, and it's been just fine! I would never pay for Word/Excel, etc., when I have the same thing free!

What am I missing out on?

[thalassa]

Re: Hey Android users, help me out!

I use google drive for everything...

For apps on my phone, I have the kindle app, amazon music (because I have tons of amazon stuff), Monterey Aquarium's Seafood watch app, facebook and instagram, wordpress (I have a slideout keyboard on my phone, so I do a bit of rough draft blogging from my phone while we are out and about), Google maps (for directioning while driving), a bank account app from my bank, Luna Solaria for sunset/rise and moon phase, PBS video (because I love me some PBS), Birdland (game app for Chickadee) and where's my water (game app for Sharkbait), a tide app for tidal information (essential around here because of tidal flooding anytime it rains, plus for timing trips to the beach), what'sapp (just to bug you from time to time), lose it! (a food tracking and fitness app), Duolingo, and a couple of field guide apps.

On my kindle, I have the same apps, plus more kids educational apps (their favorite is toca labs, which I think is fun too) and a few game apps (donut maker, angry birds star wars, fruit ninja--which we also have on the xbox with kinect) and some interactive storybooks (Dr Seuss, etc), a bar tending app, netflix, mahjong, plus the real reason for a kindle (the fire--mine is still a 1st generation, Hubby has a 2nd generation because we can't have electronics with cameras at work).