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In which I try an Android and miss my iPhone miserably.

I’m sure you all know by now of my love for Ting Wireless.   The $21/month bill for two iPhones is a little bit hard to beat.

But joining up with Ting does take some cash up front if you want a nice smart phone.   You’re not locked into a contract with a high monthly bill, but the tradeoff is that you do have to pay for the phone instead of getting a “free” one.

(Which is obviously not free any more than breakfast at a hotel is free!)

Ting droid vs iphone

A little while ago, Ting emailed me to see if I’d like to give a an Android phone a trial run, since the upfront cost of Androids is less than iPhones and they thought you guys would be interested in reading a review.

So, a Nexus black arrived at my house, and I gave it a shot.

Now, do keep in mind that this is the only Android phone I’ve ever tried and also that I’m an awfully new smartphone user (I got my first one in January!).   So, if you want a very technical Smarty Mcksmarty pants review, this is not the place.

Upsides

How about I go over the good first?

The Nexus has a beautiful display, a lovely large screen, and the camera is pretty awesome.

This means that Instagram is pretty fun to use on the Nexus.

Which, you know, is very important.

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The battery life is good and the touch screen was every bit as responsive as the iPhone’s.

Downsides

You guys. Navigating this phone seem way more confusing to me than navigating the iPhone.

I don’t think I’m particularly stupid about technology, and I’m also not a huge Apple nerd (I use a Windows desktop!), but geezy peasy, the Google phone is not nearly as intuitive as the iPhone.

When I got my iPhone, I’d never used a smartphone before in my life, but I quickly understood how to find, install, and open things.   And let’s just say that such was not the case with the Nexus.

Friends of mine tell me that if a Android is your first phone, it’s a lot easier to adjust to it than if you’ve had an iPhone first, and I can imagine that being the case.

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Also (and this is probably going to sound really paranoid), I wasn’t a huge fan of how everything on the phone was tied to Google.   It made me feel slightly uncomfortable in the way that Facebook makes me feel uncomfortable.

I’m not sure that made sense.

So to further confuse things, I’ll compare the phones to social media.

(Ha.)

I don’t like how Facebook goes with you all over the internet if you don’t sign out.   It’s a little creepy.

So I sign out of my account the moment I’m finished with my news feed.

Twitter and Instagram don’t follow me around and I like them better for their simplicity and the ease of controlling what is publicly shared.

The Google phone to me felt a little like always being signed into Facebook, whereas the iPhone feels more like Twitter or Instagram.

I know not everyone feels that way, and I know Apple is certainly collecting my data (as I’m sure Twitter and Instagram are), but there you have it.

Navigation and Google-centric-ness aside, the other major downside to the Android is that I was without my beloved iMessage.

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iMessage allows me to send free text messages over wifi to other Apple users, and it’s part of what helps me to keep my Ting bill so crazy low.

If your friends and family have Androids, this wouldn’t be a big deal, but most of the people I text have iPhones, which means I can do lots of completely free texting.

This makes me happy.

Price Comparison

Ting recommends that you buy a Nexus right from Google and then get a Sim card.

The phone will run you $350 and then you’ll just need a $10 Sim card.

This is definitely cheaper than a NEW iPhone.

But Mr. FG and I didn’t buy new iPhones, and we didn’t buy the latest and greatest.   We’ve both got refurbished iPhone 4S’s, and we’re completely happy with them.

You can get a used iPhone 4s from Ting for a mere $160, or you can do like we did and buy a refurbished one from Amazon for around $250.

(at the time we bought our phones, Ting didn’t carry iPhones.)

So, the way we did it, our iPhones actually were cheaper than the Nexus.   But if you’re deadset on getting a brand new phone, a Android will be a less expensive option than an iPhone.

  Zee bottom line

If you’re used to a Android and you really want a new phone rather than a refurb, then the Nexus could be a great money-saving option for you.

But if you’re new to the world of smartphones and want something super easy, get yourself an iPhone.

(Don’t forget, if you’re a recent grad, you can get a free Optimus Elite phone until July 14th. Just click the link at the top of the page to get all the details.)

Regardless of the phone you choose, though, I wholeheartedly recommend Ting’s wireless service, and I think you should click on over to their savings calculator to find out how much you could save on your phone bill.

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So, I’m curious where you guys stand on the Android/iPhone divide.   Talk to me!

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Ting sent me a Nexus for review purposes but this post was not sponsored in any other way.   I signed up for Ting’s affiliate program because I am a happy customer.   This post contains those affiliate links, which, as always, support this blog at no extra cost to you.  

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Mark

Monday 14th of July 2014

I've used an iPhone 4 S for about a year and a half on Verizon. Then when to Ting and got the Galaxy S III. I loved the fact that I'M in control how as to how the phone works and not someone else's software tells me how I can't use my phone. I was able to put a larger battery on the back of my S III making it last 3-5 days with a 5300 MAH battery which is 5 X larger than the iPhone 5 S and add a SD card for just music giving me 30 GB on top of my already big 16 GB for the phone itself. I guess you could say I get bored and want to change things and not keep it boring. I hope that what ever you go with makes you happy and works for you that's really all that matters in life. I also hated how Apple did away with Google Maps that really sent me over the edge. Apple Maps is right about 1/4 of the time. Where as Google Maps is right about 9/10 and if it's wrong that 10th time you can let Google know and if you are right they'll change it in the app?! Amazing they listen to people who use their stuff. Vers Apple if it's wrong you'll have to hope that while your using the app they notice people aren't getting the results they want and might update it. Our whole family uses Android and were always using Google Hangouts the iMessage equivalent.

Kristen

Monday 14th of July 2014

Huh. My husband has the google maps app on his iphone and it works great!

Kim

Monday 14th of July 2014

First, let me say that I'm not normally an earlier adapter to new technology. Case in point, we have no flat screen televisions in our home because the old type still work fine. In the fall of '09 I had driven a 100 miles for a work related situation to find out when I get there that the office had moved even though the mapquest maps said differently. I got a smartphone the same week.

I'm an Android girl and an HTC girl. I got my first smartphone in November 2009, an HTC Eris. It was replaced with a Rezound which I used until May when I got my HTC One M8. This phone is so intuitive and a dream to use. I love how customizable Android OS is. I have a Samsung tablet that I use instead of a laptop. I use my phone to research when I'm out buying for reselling on Amazon so it prevents me from making purchases that would not be a prudent business decision.

My two sons, 19&17 both have IPhones (5&5S) that they paid for and my husband has a Samsung Galaxy 5 as a work phone. I prefer my HTC over any of their phones. I finally decided it's like apples and oranges- they are both good, just different and we all prefer one over the other.

Laura D.

Monday 14th of July 2014

I was a droid x2 user about 3.5 years ago when I got my first smart phone. Before I entered the smart phone world, my husband and I were debating what to go with, droid or ios operating systems... there was so much hype about the x2 that we got that for me, and the iphone 4 (the latest at the time) for him. Man, do I wish I had gotten an iphone. Over time (after about a year), the x2 got VERY glitchy and would malfunction terribly, while my husband's iphone, the same age, was doing great, and had zero issues. I have an iphone now and would never go back. I used to kind of snub "apple users" but now am one of them!

FanD

Sunday 13th of July 2014

I read your article and as an iPhone fan, I couldn't agree more. However, I suggest you install the "WhatsApp" app --> it's just like iMessage, BUT you can contact ANYONE with it for free, using your WiFi. I mean, any of your Android- or BlackBerry-equipped friends or family wherever they are in the world. Isn't this awesome? And you can make group conversations as well, such as a group of girlfriends you like to see, so it makes setting a dinner date or choosing a "group" birthday present SO much easier. Of course, WhatsApp is free and no, I was not sponsored by WhatsApp to write you this comment :) Thanks for your blog, which I read regularly, full of good tips :)

Newbie

Friday 11th of July 2014

I got my first smartphone in late 2011 - an LG. I liked it well enough for over a year - until I got an iPhone, 2nd hand. Wow. I'll never go back. My dad tried LG (liked), Blackberry (liked, but too few apps), Samsung (detested as battery life was terrible), and then an iPhone. He loved it the first day. He'll never go back, and he got my Mom an iPhone, too. All were purchased 2nd hand, for a fraction of what a new one costs.

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