Michael S (already5chosen.delete@this.yahoo.com) on December 9, 2014 12:14 pm wrote:
> Maynard Handley (name99.delete@this.name99.org) on December 9, 2014 11:52 am wrote:
> > Michael S (already5chosen.delete@this.yahoo.com) on December 9, 2014 11:38 am wrote:
> > > Maynard Handley (name99.delete@this.name99.org) on December 9, 2014 10:53 am wrote:
> > > > anon (anon.delete@this.anon.com) on December 9, 2014 1:02 am wrote:
> > > > > Gabriele Svelto (gabriele.svelto.delete@this.gmail.com) on December 8, 2014 7:39 pm wrote:
> > > > > > Brett (ggtgp.delete@this.yahoo.com) on December 8, 2014 1:14 pm wrote:
> > > > > > > I am shocked and amazed at how little traction cheap Windows and Android tablets have compared to iPads.
> > > > > >
> > > > > > I am one of the unlucky owners of 2021 Nexus 7 tablet which I recently upgraded to Android 5.0
> > > > > > Lollipop. The resulting device is barely usable, it's plagued with slow-downs and sometimes locks
> > > > > > up for up to a minute before responding to a command. I've also got a 4th generation iPad which
> > > > > > similarly went through a couple of major updates and while it has weaker hardware (at least
> > > > > > on paper) than the Nexus 7, it is still remarkably smooth and pleasant to use.
> > > > >
> > > > > Didn't iDevices have widespread problems after the recent big iOS upgrade?
> > > >
> > > > I've no interest in RWT becoming yet another site for Android vs Apple bashing.
> > > > I would simply point out that the methodology being engaged in here ("I have a bad
> > > > anecdote about Android", "That's nothing, I've HEARD some bad anecdote about iOS")
> > > > is not one that's going to lead to any particular enlightenment regarding either
> > > > - why people buy more iPads than the alternatives
> > > > - whether mobile devices are (or are going to in the near future) making good use of multiple cores.
> > > >
> > > > If anecdotes are the order of the day, let me throw in
> > > > - I had an iPad 3 (the first retina version, released March 2012). Upgraded to iOS 8 it was perfectly
> > > > usable for what I used it for (movies and PDF reading) but obviously speed deficient.
> > > >
> > > > - My brother (worked at Google on Android when Android was
> > > > not yet public, so rather more of a fan, and rather
> > > > more knowledgeable than your average man on the street) has the same Nexus 2012 we are talking about and
> > > > considers it useless for pretty much anything after Lollipop, substantially more so than my iPad 3.
> > > >
> > > > - This past week I bought a cheapo Samsung tablet as a trial for a friend who runs a hotel/restaurant
> > > > with software that can have the waiters taking orders on Android tablets. (Note clear if this will be
> > > > a win, but it saves a trip to the kitchen to communicate the
> > > > order and MAY [who knows?] prevent misunderstandings
> > > > through bad writing. The software CLAIMS [again who knows how well it will work?] to have mechanisms to
> > > > allow order modifications like "hold the tomato from my salad, and dressing on the side".)
> > > >
> > > > The point is --- this seems to me basically a replay of the Windows movie. For (a certain class
> > > > of simplistic) business purposes (where the tablet is targeted at doing one and only one job, and
> > > > will probably never be updated) Android seems to make more sense than iOS --- why buy a Coach bag
> > > > to carry the potatoes from the field to the tractor? --- and those writing this type of software
> > > > already seem to have bought into this outcome. I expect Apple is quite OK with this as well.
> > > >
> > > > I suspect that, in time, as business learns how to fully exploit tablets for these
> > > > sorts of simple tasks (and how this is best done is not obvious, vide the caveats
> > > > in my waiter description) we'll see Android tablet sales overtake iPad sales.
> > > > [Of course as long as the Windows tablet offering is a thoroughbred racehorse
> > > > costing even more than the iPad, this market is utterly irrelevant to them.]
> > > >
> > > > - I own both an iPad Air 2 (I was planning to buy one anyway,
> > > > iOS 8 on the old iPad 3 had nothing to do with
> > > > it, and that old iPad has been handed down to Mom) and an iPhone
> > > > 6. To me both feel equally snappy and ridiculously
> > > > smooth; but my friend's iPhone6+ has the occasional stutter.
> > > > Which certainly suggests that Apple under provisioned
> > > > GPU for the 6+ but, unfortunately, does not really enlighten
> > > > us as to whether the third iPad CPU is valuable
> > > > or not, at least for my purposes. The phone feels as fast
> > > > as the tablet, BUT of course, and for obvious reasons,
> > > > it's on the tablet not the phone that I open more complex web pages and PDFs.
> > > > Web browsing and PDF viewing both don't have a great record of being parallelizable. BUT
> > > > = when browsing, I tend to click links so that the page opens in a background tab ---
> > > > and that does not compromise scrollability in the foreground tab (unlike the iPad3)
> > > > - my PDF reader renders the next page into a cache while I am reading the current
> > > > page, and again that does not compromise interaction with the current page.
> > > > So perhaps that's where the 3rd CPU is useful --- for retaining this type of snappiness where you have,
> > > > in brief spikes, one CPU handling UI on the main thread (a concept both Android and iOS still seem unable
> > > > to get away from), a second CPU handling OS type stuff, whether it's network or moving data to the GPU,
> > > > and a third CPU handling a large background task that is likely to be of value soon?
> > > >
> > >
> > > Three questions:
> > > 1. Are not Android tablets outselling (in units, not sure about $$$) iPads by wide margin right now?
> > > 2. Is not it a bit strange to claim that Windows tablets are "costing even more than the iPad" in
> > > a subthread that started with example of lo-res, lo-flash, but dirt cheap Windows tablet?
> > > 3. If you wanted cheap Android Tablet why did you pick Samsung?
> > > Is not Samsung known to be the weakest in the "cheap" category?
> >
> > (3) Not interested in fighting about this. Go argue monophysitism vs miaphysitism with someone who cares.
> >
>
> I didn't get you sarcasm.
> Samsung is a leader category of premium Android tablets. If you look for affordable, but
> well built Android tablet then Samsung does not look like an obvious choice. In fact, I'd
> think about Nexus7 that was mentioned here several times as a first choice. And if the price
> is more important than quality of build then the choice will be different yet.

My point is that when people start these types of arguments they are purely theological, and vastly more so than "iOS vs Android". I'm simply not interested in the minutiae of exactly why person A believes Samsung tablets are vastly superior to Nexus while person B says they're both awful, the one true Android tablet is made by LG, and I'm UTTERLY uninterested in being forced to justify why I balanced features in this way to someone else who would balance them in a different way.

> > (2) I had no idea these devices even existed. Apparently no-one else does either. Given the software I was
> > discussing (which runs the desktop part on PCs), the people
> > writing the software are either unaware of these
> > devices or consider them for some reason incapable of doing the job acceptably. Maybe that will change?
>
> Or, may be, they know how small market share Windows have and because of it they are afraid to
> invest in Windows client development. At least, in their place, if my business model is selling
> software, I will be afraid. Less so if business model is selling integrated solutions.
>
> >
> > (1) The premise of the thread was that iPads are, today, outselling competitors. If you want
> > to dispute that premise, provide numbers and take it up with those who provided the premise.
>
> first google hit
> http://www.statista.com/statistics/273268/worldwide-tablet-sales-by-operating-system-since-2nd-quarter-2010/

That's a nice link. Thanks.