I still go to the top right corner of the device to lock the screen, and the lock screen key for the Samsung Galaxy Note II (SGN2) is on the right edge of the device, towards the top, but across from the volume controls on the left edge, which is a problem for me. I end up adjusting the volume when I am trying to lock the screen, and I end up locking the screen when I want to adjust the volume. This is my main annoyance at the moment.
Android is a different animal, it wants and needs a lot more attention, but then you can make it do what you want rather than having to "think differently" as I found I had to do in order to use IOS. Android is simply a different approach to conceptualizing the matrix of entrances and exits to your information on the device.
I miss Vine, which is an IOS application only. I was just starting to use it on my iPhone. Look it up, it's fun.
The comparison I drew between the discussion concerning "quality" in "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" is still very apt. Android for me, at least when setting it up, is an organic give-and-take between what my options are and how I can conceive of things working. On IOS, you can set it up this way or that, but the only real issues are preferences. Do you like things to look like this or that? In Android, it's more of a pathway. I decide how I want to get to where I"m going as I find out how to hack my path. In IOS, it was more you can take this path or that one and the decision is which do you prefer?
I have until Friday to return the device and go back to square one. That's not going to happen. I know that now.
I don't like the camera as much on the SGN2 as I did on the iPhone. The pictures aren't as good. Not much else to say about it. You can't win them all.
I really, really, really miss the ability to pause my music playback through my earbuds via the switch/microphone on the Apple ear buds. The Apple ear bud microphone/switch does not work with the SGN2 (I'm shocked), but the microphone itself does. If anyone reading this knows of a set of earbuds that offer this functionality with the SGN2, I'd like to know about it. I may have to go bluetooth. At least the music does stop when you pull the earphone plug, that's an acceptable fail-safe for me for now, but if I can't devise a way stop or lower the volume of the music in my earbuds without having to touch the device itself, that's going to suck. I really like that in the iPhone. A lot.
I also liked the "feel" of the iPhone more. It feels better made, like it would last longer. I like this quality in my technical equipment, and I've sort of made a resolution to stop buying stuff that doesn't give me this impression (as an anti-consumerist thing), but the truth is I am only going to use this device for the next two years. It *should* be sort of disposable. I am going to dispose of it.
The only other irritation with the SGN2 is that the lock screen doesn't always lock when I hit the button. This never happened with the iPhone. I don't know if it is me or the device (yet).
More later.
The other risk I am taking technically is I am about to discontinue my home broadband service and rely completely upon a mobile hotspot from Verizon. The salesperson at the Verizon store pointed out to me that if I made some changes to the account I could get a 4G MiFi device and share the minutes with my SGN2 for what I was paying for my iPhone alone.
This makes my cell phone essentially free, because my broadband Internet service costs the same amount of money monthly. I have been testing it this week, and while the service is slower (to be fair, I have the top tier of Internet service from my cable company) it is fast enough. So, when I turn off Broadband my cell phone effectively becomes free. Bonus!
