iOS vs Android vs Windows

Society has transitioned into a post-PC era. More people are choosing mobile platforms to perform a variety of tasks than ever before. This year, there are an estimated 1.5 billion smartphones on the planet. These phones are capable of mobile banking, social media and of course, the inevitable game of Candy Crush Saga…among other things.

In addition to a host of productivity apps, all of these platforms have become excellent gaming solutions. Almost everyday, average people with little to no programming experience are creating best-selling mobile games. You can learn more about creating your own profitable games in Introduction to Mobile Game Development.

There is a lot of hype when it comes to which mobile OS is the best. It’s no secret that Apple started the mobile smartphone movement and truly opened the gates for a full migration away from the PC. In recent years, however, Apple has been forced to step aside as the popularity of the Android OS has really come into its own and taken the world by storm.

In fact, current estimates report that the Android OS commands approximately a 73% market share in the mobile OS arena. Despite the increasing popularity of Android, is it the right choice for you?

In this article, each of the three major mobile operating systems is evaluated from both a user and a development standpoint. As important as the user experience has become, any mobile OS is only as good as the developers that work to create new and innovative capabilities for a particular platform.

iOS

Apple created the first truly innovative mobile OS when it introduced the first iPhone in 2007. Since that time, the world has been literally transformed into a post-PC era society expecting to live at the speed of information.

iOS was the first smartphone to offer downloadable applications (or apps) and the platform continues to foster the best application development environment of any mobile OS. Apps have allowed users to customize the user experience in ways never imagined prior to the release of this groundbreaking mobile OS.

In 2010, Apple once again turned the tables with the introduction of the iPad – a device that has experienced increased popularity each successive year since its release. iPads can be found in use as learning tools in classrooms around the world, but the tablet is just as comfortable in the corporate environment.

New Features

The recent release of iOS 7 has brought a new level of usability to this mobile platform. Many new features are reminiscent of many Android features that were noticeably lacking in previous iOS releases.

For example, the notification bar has been improved and offers new levels of customization. Another useful utility bar known as the Control Center was also added – allowing users to quickly toggle important features by simply sliding from the bottom of the screen in an upward direction.

On Apple’s newest release, the iPhone 5S, a fingerprint scanner has been added for extra security. Although many users still prefer the traditional passcode lock screen, this feature is well beyond any security features available in other platforms in terms of ease-of-use and overall security.

Another new feature that has been met with warm regard is the layering effect Apple was able to achieve with the latest iOS release. The multi-tasking capabilities of iOS 7 far exceed anything available in previous iOS releases and rival the effectiveness of similar techniques used by Android. Specifically, the task list accessed by double-tapping the Home button allows users to quickly switch between open applications while offering an easy way to close applications no longer being used in an effort to conserve memory and battery life.

Speaking of battery life…the battery life displayed by iOS 7 devices represents a marked improvement over iOS 6. Apple devices have always been known for exceptional battery life (especially when compared to early generation Android devices), but iOS 6 offered users subpar battery life. Fortunately, Apple has addressed this issue in its newest release and brings the iPhone/iPad back to center stage in the battery life arena.

User Experience

The iPhone is famous for offering a unified user experience that is easy to navigate for most users. The design is so simple that it has become common to see toddlers successfully navigating through menus. Although this degree of simplicity may seem counterproductive, it is for this reason that iOS has become the operating system of choice for many users worldwide.

iOS is compatible with many devices including the iPad and OS X products. Users with experience using any of these platforms should have no problem transitioning to the iPhone operating system.

Another strength of iOS is seamless integration with iTunes. This free software product is available for both Windows and Mac and allows iPhone users to manage practically every aspect of the phone quickly and easily.

Everything from software updates to automated data backups can be managed effectively using the iTunes interface. Content can be purchased via iTunes and consumed on the iPhone at a later time thanks to iCloud technology. All iOS users are given 5GB of iCloud storage for free and additional storage is available for a nominal annual fee.

The Apple App Store currently has over 750,000 applications available for download. The average app cost for the iPhone is $3.18 ($4.44 for iPad). iOS continues to have the highest number of compatible apps available despite losing market share to Android.

This is due to compatibility issues experienced across various Android devices. This topic is discussed in more detail in the Android sub-section of this article.

Either way, the absence of compatibility issues and a strong development community give Apple a distinct advantage in terms of application development and availability. As a general rule, popular new apps debut in the Apple App Store and move to Android after successfully proving marketability in the iOS arena.

Android

A product of the Open Handset Alliance, Android was first introduced to the public in 2007. You may recall that this was the same year Apple unveiled the first iPhone for commercial production. Android, Inc. was a Google-backed company that was ultimately acquired by the search giant in 2005.

The Open Handset Alliance is a large group consisting of many mobile service providers around the world, handset manufacturers and of course, Google, Inc.

Unlike iOS or Windows, Android is a completely open-source mobile operating system based on a Linux kernel and released under the Apache license. The code is freely available and can be modified by wireless handset manufacturers as needed to create custom mobile solutions.

Some of the largest distributors of Android-powered handsets include Samsung, HTC and LG. There are many other companies also relying on Android to create mobile phone and tablet solutions under a variety of brand names (many created and manufactured in China).

Although Android started as an alternative mobile OS targeting the smartphone market specifically, the lineup has expanded to include a full assortment of tablets and laptop-type devices. Android has certainly grown to show its versatility across various hardware configurations thanks to significant advancements in both the Android framework and mobile processors including the QualComm SnapDragon series and the Samsung Exynos chipset.

One of the features that has always set Android apart from fierce competitor Apple is the use of interactive widgets on the Android homescreen. Users can install widgets for their favorite applications allowing them to interact directly from the homescreen of the device. This is a feature that is still not available in even the newest iterations of iOS.

In more recent versions of Android, widgets are even available on the lockscreen of the device – a feature that has yet to be matched by any other mobile platform including Windows Phone and iOS.

At the time of this writing, the Google Play Store has approximately 700,000 applications available. The average price per application comes in slightly lower than Apple at $3.06. Although these numbers seem relatively close, it’s worth noting that many of the apps that cost money to download in the Apple App Store are free via Google Play.

In Apple’s defense, Google developers rely very heavily on advertising revenue generated during app use. This compensation model is just starting to gain momentum in the iOS development world.

Another useful new feature is the improved Email application. Although Gmail has taken off as one of the best mobile email clients available, the default Android Email client has left much to be desired in recent years. Fortunately, these deficiencies are a thing of the past in Android 4.4. The new interface borrows many excellent features from the popular Gmail client and vastly improves the functionality of the Email client overall.

One of the biggest complaints among Android users is compatibility issues among various devices. It is not uncommon for a user to have some favorite apps that are simply not compatible with a new device they may purchase. This is due to the relatively non-uniform standards that make up the Android world. Since Android is free to use, handset manufacturers are able to use the powerful mobile platform with less-than-ideal hardware combinations.

In Google’s defense, a certification process has been instituted that tests all Android-powered devices prior to public release. This prevents manufacturers from cutting corners and helps to cultivate a more uniform experience for users.

Unfortunately, there are still numerous compatibility issues. As Google adds new features to the OS, developers try to maximize the power of these new APIs. This often means that devices quickly become outdated and are incapable of processing many new applications.

Although this can lead to a frustrating user experience, Google’s new Android version seeks to eliminate some of these inconsistencies. Of course, the “spin” put on Android by each manufacturer still plays an integral role in this process, but Kit Kat shows real promise as a truly unifying operating system for Google and the Open Handset Alliance.

New Features

Android’s latest release, 4.4 Kit Kat, offers a noticeably more uniform experience across devices with different hardware/screen size combinations and a host of new features designed to implement outside services more smoothly.

The newest Android version provides many new features aimed to improve the user experience. Although this version is only available on select devices (until early 2014), the initial impression from users has been entirely positive.

The lock screen has been improved to accommodate even more customization. The new lock screen even allows users to use widgets from corporate email accounts – important for Enterprise-level security concerns and previously lacking from other enterprise security-related patches.

The status bar, Google Search integration and Google Now have all been improved in 4.4. The default photo editor has also been improved and guarantees user photos will not degrade using this new release. Even though the Google photo editor has always been decent, it is not competitive with many of the third party editors readily available in the Google Play Store…until now.

User Experience

The unique user experience that can be achieved using Android has not been duplicated on any other mobile OS. From its early days, Android offered users the option of adding widgets to the home screen. Most popular applications include a widget as part of the installation package. Users can drag-and-drop these widgets anywhere on the home screen for a quick and seamless app interaction without any complicated procedures.

Part of the uphill battle Android has faced comes as a result of the platform’s desire to bridge the gap between a mobile OS (like iOS) and a traditional Windows PC. While Google developers have a done a pretty good job achieving this goal, the cost is a user interface that isn’t quite as polished. The result can sometimes feel like a “techies playground” that is not suitable for the novice user.

In response to this common complaint, many Android handset manufacturers have created a simplified version of the UI that hides many of complex settings from inexperienced users. Samsung calls this feature “Easy Mode;” other manufacturers have similar names for this feature. This definitely represents a step in the right direction for Android; however, it is simply not as easy to use as iOS or even Windows devices.

Windows

Microsoft has been a PC powerhouse for years, but the success of the company has never truly expanded into the mobile OS market (not for lack of trying however). Even before iOS and Android stormed onto the scene, Windows was unsuccessfully competing against the likes of BlackBerry and Palm OS.

Despite the spotted history of the mobile Windows OS, the company reinvented the idea of cross-platform compatibility with the release of Windows Phone 8 late last year. Coming on the heels of the official Windows 8 PC release, the new mobile platform is designed to offer users a seamless transition from the desktop environment.

In addition to releasing many solid phone models manufactured by HTC and Nokia (primarily), Microsoft also introduced a new line of tablets featuring the updated software. In theory, a user can access their important files anywhere thanks to the cross-platform capabilities of Windows 8.

Thanks to cloud computing, most mobile users have options for accessing important files on the go. That said, Windows has an advantage. It’s no secret that most corporate environments rely on Microsoft Office products for daily operations and the Microsoft marketing team has certainly capitalized on this fact since its release.

If you want an excellent overview of using this unique platform, check out the Windows 8 for Dummies Training Video. Although this course focuses primarily on the desktop version of Windows 8, the mobile version is very similar and the interoperability between mobile and desktop versions is one of Windows 8’s strong points.

New Features

Whether its courtesy of a cloud solution such as Office 365 or standard remote access policies, users with a Windows OS device have instant access to important documents. If Microsoft did anything right in Windows Phone 8 it was the smooth integration with existing Microsoft products.

Other new features include quad core processor support, Data Sense (data usage monitoring), an improved keyboard and a powerful camera app. Out of the box the platform boasts as many features as either iOS or Android. As always, however, the success is in the implementation.

There are a few problems with the Windows OS including the lack of a dedicated developer community and lackluster social media integration. Microsoft has simply failed to create any real confidence in these products from a development standpoint. With less than a 5% market share worldwide, it becomes difficult to convince a development team to step away from iOS or Android; even for a moment.

Social media integration fails to meet the expectations that have been set by competitive platforms; although Microsoft did do a good job of improving the overall social experience with improvements to its proprietary products. One such improvement is called “Rooms” – an app thats allows you to share calendars, photo albums and group message chats with other users included in that Room.

Unfortunately, users are not usually quick to adopt proprietary solutions such as Rooms quickly. The preference seems to be for cross-platform compatible solutions; ones that quickly adapt to users that change phones with regularity (a group that is increasingly significant in numbers).

You can learn about many other new features in Microsoft Windows 8.

User Experience

The new Windows OS design is based on “Tiles.” These Tiles are customizable and contain information about everything from local weather to social media alerts to text messaging. Although not quite as advanced as the widget system used in Android, these tiles do update in real time and provide helpful, at-a-glance information.

For novice smartphone users, the interface is very easy to use (especially due to the Tiles); albeit not very intuitive. For instance, an average smartphone user might understand the concept of swiping from side to side to access the Settings option, but a novice may not. Granted, every smartphone has a learning curve, but iOS definitely beats out Windows in terms of ease-of-use across all skill levels.

Setting up an email account can be difficult as well. While integration with Outlook and other Microsoft solutions is seamless, users might have difficulty doing something as simple as setting up a POP3 email account. Where Apple has successfully “trapped” users in their world, Microsoft has much to learn as far as creating a complete mobile user experience within its own Microsoft-inspired world.

BY;SONIKA SANDESH REVANKAR

SU160179