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icecream sandwich and iOS 5 killer features comparison

I am tired of many of iOS’s issues (lack of flexibility, screensize) and want to get the new Nexus. However, there are many Key features of iOS that I use extensively. I’m looking for some informative insight on Android’s offering.
1.***** Airplay – wireless music/youtube w/e directly from my iPhone. I have no idea what android have in this department
2.***** Music – I use a Mac and I would like to keep itunes. Is there a easy way to sync? Especially wirelessly
3.***** Facetime – is there an equally simple solution? My long D gf uses iOS, so im looking for cross platform here.
4.***** Facebook – iOS facebook sucks, how far along is android now, app, integration etc?
5.***** Notes – syncs automatically with my Mac, I can access it offline after it synced. I tried evernote before but I don’t think it works offline.
Any exclusive ICS features that are used extensively?
Thanks

bennyx8903 said:
I am tired of many of iOS’s issues (lack of flexibility, screensize) and want to get the new Nexus. However, there are many Key features of iOS that I use extensively. I’m looking for some informative insight on Android’s offering.
1.***** Airplay – wireless music/youtube w/e directly from my iPhone. I have no idea what android have in this department
2.***** Music – I use a Mac and I would like to keep itunes. Is there a easy way to sync? Especially wirelessly
3.***** Facetime – is there an equally simple solution? My long D gf uses iOS, so im looking for cross platform here.
4.***** Facebook – iOS facebook sucks, how far along is android now, app, integration etc?
5.***** Notes – syncs automatically with my Mac, I can access it offline after it synced. I tried evernote before but I don’t think it works offline.
Any exclusive ICS features that are used extensively?
Thanks
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Hey,
1. no idea, sorry
2. There are a few programs that manage sync with iTunes on a mac. Doubletwist (the paid version features wireless sync) might be a good solution for this: http://doubletwist.com/
3. What about Skype? =) I think iOS also has video call functionality https://market.android.com/details?id=com.skype.raider
4. Well facebook for Android also sucks :/ I'd go with the mobile website instead.
5. I'd say evernote is the way to go. It also works offline, at least on mobile.

1. Google music beta stores your music online .
Sent from my HTC Sensation Z710e using XDA App

Apple has a way of trapping you in their exclusive ecosystem of software and accessories. You can find alternative, open solutions, but you may have to purchase new accessories.
If I understand correctly, Airplay is an Apple proprietary solution. I know that DoubleTwist has an Airplay plugin, but I would imagine it only supports playing back audio, not YouTube, etc.
DLNA is the alternative, but is standardized and widely supported.

bennyx8903 said:
I am tired of many of iOS’s issues (lack of flexibility, screensize) and want to get the new Nexus. However, there are many Key features of iOS that I use extensively. I’m looking for some informative insight on Android’s offering.
1.***** Airplay – wireless music/youtube w/e directly from my iPhone. I have no idea what android have in this department
2.***** Music – I use a Mac and I would like to keep itunes. Is there a easy way to sync? Especially wirelessly
3.***** Facetime – is there an equally simple solution? My long D gf uses iOS, so im looking for cross platform here.
4.***** Facebook – iOS facebook sucks, how far along is android now, app, integration etc?
5.***** Notes – syncs automatically with my Mac, I can access it offline after it synced. I tried evernote before but I don’t think it works offline.
Any exclusive ICS features that are used extensively?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1 Airplay....There are applications in the Android Market that can handle this.
2 Music-Doubletwist and Airsync - both provided by the same company. They also sync with iTunes.
3 Factime - I use Gtalk application It works on WiFI as well as 3G/4G and hence you can always be in touch with your gf....lol
4 Notes- Gdocs...it syncs with Google and also Google DOcs which not only syncs your notes but all your docs.
5 Google music is very good since it stores all your music in cloud and also gives you flexibility to download, transfer or play from the cloud while on the move.

1. Nothing really like airplay
2. You can use itunes to organise your music and just drag and drip songs onto your sd card.
3. I use the Skype app for video calls
4. The Facebook app is terrible for Android but is integrated well into the os with full contact sync and sharing photos to facebook straight from the app.
5. There are so many great note taking apps on the Android Market there will definately be something you will like
The great thing about Android is that if you don't like the stock Android apps you can always find better alternatives to them on the market.

[Q] Video Streaming?

One thing i really miss from my time spent with iPhone is airplay, used it everyday.
Since jumping on to WP7 i have searched hi & low for a streaming solution and haven`t found one yet.
So my question, is there any video/music streaming option for Mac to WP7 out there?

That might actually be worth developing. Bear in mind that WP7 users who run OS X PCs are going to be an extremely niche market, though. There are two ways that I can see to do it, though:
* Write a WP7 app that acts as a client for a current streaming service on OS X / iTunes. Make sure the stream can be decoded on the phone and that the service recognizes the app, but neither should be too hard (WP7 already recognizes most of Apple's codecs).
* Write a WP7 app that acts as a client to a dedicated media server app. Write that dedicated media server app, for OS X and possibly other platforms. The server would take care of ensuring WP7 compatibility. You'd need Apple dev tools (which is expensive, for somebody who currently owns no Apple hardware) and knowledge of writing good server code, though.

For HTC phones, you can download "Connected Media" from the HTC section of marketplace. Although not the greatest player, it does allow you to play non-DRM music and videos stored in your library (no streaming) to DLNA receivers. I use it to play to my Linksys Extender of my Media Center every once in a while.

@spokanedj: I think the OP is looking for the other direction, streaming files from the PC (Mac, in this case) to the phone. I'm guessing the goal is working around the limited storage on the phone for people with a really big media library.

I enjoy watching tv-shows when laying in bed, so yes im only interested in streaming.
I saw on https://www.emitapp.com/ that wp7 app coming soon.
I used emit on android, it wasnt perfect but i did the job

Surface Music App

My Windows 8 phone supports podcasts in the music app however there is no option for this on the surface.
I thought the windows 8 lineup all supported the same abilities within the built in apps.

ogar1978 said:
My Windows 8 phone supports podcasts in the music app however there is no option for this on the surface.
I thought the windows 8 lineup all supported the same abilities within the built in apps.
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I'm sure there's an update in the works for the Phone app so that parity can be maintained (I believe that the Phone only supports podcasts in the US - can anyone confirm/contradict that?)

Win8 != WP8. Despite name confusion and MS claims of deeper integration, the two OSes have nothing to do with one another from a functional standpoint. From a technological standpoint, there are some similarities, but there are also many differences. For example, Win8 and Windows RT are unable to run WP7 apps, even though WP8 can.

I was deeply disappointed in the music app overall. Painfully slow, doesn't share to the Xbox or homeshare. Super annoying. Wp7 Zune is the fastest music app I've ever used aside from WMP. Just wish they would update with an overhaul.

C-Lang said:
I was deeply disappointed in the music app overall. Painfully slow, doesn't share to the Xbox or homeshare. Super annoying. Wp7 Zune is the fastest music app I've ever used aside from WMP. Just wish they would update with an overhaul.
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I wish they would get rid of all the online options and let me see my music library as the primary view.

guitar1969 said:
I wish they would get rid of all the online options and let me see my music library as the primary view.
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You can a little bit. Go into settings, preferences, startup. You can't change search though.

Playing Flac

Any ideas? I presume this would need an app.
Tim

My entire music collection is in FLAC format so if Windows RT cannot play it - at all - then that is a problem for me. Windows 8 Pro on the desktop doesn't properly play it(wthout additional third party filters or apps etc.) so I'm not expecting Windows RT to play nice.
Let's hope some good Windows RT apps come out soon for this purpose. My Android tablets and smartphones all play FLAC using the built in apps I just kindof expected it to be there.

Although popular in the Linux space (which Android is built on), FLAC gets relatively little attention from the commercial OS vendors. You *could* transcode it to WMA-Lossless if you don't mind storing each song twice, I guess...
Implementing an app to decode and play FLAC would be fairly easy, aside from the hassle of implementing a decent media player UI (not trivial, even for developers that supposedly know how to do GUIs). Better would be to just implement an installable codec, but I'm not sure if that's even possible on RT and it might not work in Store apps even on Win8.

[Q] APP enabling an Android to control an iPad?

Hello all,
I've read a number of threads that dance around this topic/question but none that answer it.
Is there an App that will enable an Android smart phone to remotely control/advance a Powerpoint Presentation on an iPad via Wi-Fi or Blue Tooth?
...without jailbreaking the iPad?
FYI: I've come across a thread post offering this solution (enterpriseios website) but don't know if it'll work and would prefer not to try.
"If you jailbreak the device you are trying to control, yes. There is an app in Cydia called Veency that is a VNC server for iOS. You can then use Screen Sharing on the Mac, or one of the many free VNC clients (such as UltraVNC or TightVNC) on a Windows machine to view and control the target iOS device. You can even view/control the iOS device FROM another iOS device with a remote desktop app like Jump."

Greenster said:
Hello all,
I've read a number of threads that dance around this topic/question but none that answer it.
Is there an App that will enable an Android smart phone to remotely control/advance a Powerpoint Presentation on an iPad via Wi-Fi or Blue Tooth?
...without jailbreaking the iPad?
FYI: I've come across a thread post offering this solution (enterpriseios website) but don't know if it'll work and would prefer not to try.
"If you jailbreak the device you are trying to control, yes. There is an app in Cydia called Veency that is a VNC server for iOS. You can then use Screen Sharing on the Mac, or one of the many free VNC clients (such as UltraVNC or TightVNC) on a Windows machine to view and control the target iOS device. You can even view/control the iOS device FROM another iOS device with a remote desktop app like Jump."
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Click to collapse
I know how to control your iPads media with your android device :
Developed by BOJA, iRemote iTunes WMP is an app that allows you to control your iTunes library using an Android smartphone. It works over both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and we found it to be the simplest and easiest to set up among the handful of apps available.
To get started, you will need to install the Android app on your phone along with a server app which you have to install on your Windows-based PC. Once the server is running on your computer, open up iRemote on your Android device to get started.
iRemote is a free WiFi and Bluetooth remote for iTunes and Windows Media Player WMP on Windows (XP,Vista,Win7)
Remote control iTunes and WMP on your Windows desktop, laptop, notbok or tablet. Plug in Apple AirPort Express to any speaker in the house and get the ultimate iTunes remote control sound system.
Enjoy the gourgouse [sic] UI and rich feature set of this inovating [sic] remote control. iRemote iTunes and WMP is the only dedicated iTunes and WMP remote control supporting both WiFi and Bluetooth connections.
No user settings required! Simple out of the box support connecting over WiFi and Bluetooth.
We have tested the app on our Samsung Galaxy S II unit and can confirm that it works as advertised. While it does do what it says, it looks spectacularly ugly in the process. I’m not saying this because I’m some sort of UI snob, but I do appreciate a user-interface which, at least, doesn’t make you look away in disgust.
Another issue we had with the app is how much of a dent it makes on the battery. In our limited testing (which didn’t last more than an hour), we found our phone’s battery going down faster than usual. Opening up Settings > About > Battery usage proved our suspicions to be true:
Still, it is certainly worth a try if you’re in the market for a remote app for your iTunes library. We couldn’t find a better alternative, but if you know of one, please let us know! We’d love to cover it!
There are two versions available: the Free one comes with ads, does not allow you to search your library for that one song and it also does not allow users to play a song by browsing artists or albums. The paid version, which costs $3.00, obviously lifts these limitations.

Clarification?
Problem. I don't think this answers my Q.
I'm looking for an APP to remote control "media" on an iPad (iOS) with an Android ...not iTunes media on a windows based PC.
Streetryders_2000 said:
I know how to control your iPads media with your android device :
Developed by BOJA, iRemote iTunes WMP is an app that allows you to control your iTunes library using an Android smartphone. It works over both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and we found it to be the simplest and easiest to set up among the handful of apps available.
To get started, you will need to install the Android app on your phone along with a server app which you have to install on your Windows-based PC. Once the server is running on your computer, open up iRemote on your Android device to get started.
iRemote is a free WiFi and Bluetooth remote for iTunes and Windows Media Player WMP on Windows (XP,Vista,Win7)
Remote control iTunes and WMP on your Windows desktop, laptop, notbok or tablet. Plug in Apple AirPort Express to any speaker in the house and get the ultimate iTunes remote control sound system.
Enjoy the gourgouse [sic] UI and rich feature set of this inovating [sic] remote control. iRemote iTunes and WMP is the only dedicated iTunes and WMP remote control supporting both WiFi and Bluetooth connections.
No user settings required! Simple out of the box support connecting over WiFi and Bluetooth.
We have tested the app on our Samsung Galaxy S II unit and can confirm that it works as advertised. While it does do what it says, it looks spectacularly ugly in the process. I’m not saying this because I’m some sort of UI snob, but I do appreciate a user-interface which, at least, doesn’t make you look away in disgust.
Another issue we had with the app is how much of a dent it makes on the battery. In our limited testing (which didn’t last more than an hour), we found our phone’s battery going down faster than usual. Opening up Settings > About > Battery usage proved our suspicions to be true:
Still, it is certainly worth a try if you’re in the market for a remote app for your iTunes library. We couldn’t find a better alternative, but if you know of one, please let us know! We’d love to cover it!
There are two versions available: the Free one comes with ads, does not allow you to search your library for that one song and it also does not allow users to play a song by browsing artists or albums. The paid version, which costs $3.00, obviously lifts these limitations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse