Android 4.2 Jelly Bean vs Apple iOS 6
Ten years back in 2002, many wouldn’t have dreamt of Apple iOS or Google Android OS, let alone how advance an operating system on a mobile platform could be. But right now, we have approached a juncture where we would compare two operating systems hand in hand like we used to do back in the early 2000s for PC operating systems. Five years back, many would wonder what Google Android is while a considerable portion would know what Apple iPhone is. But right now, almost every kid in the world knows what these two means to them. That is just how much technology has reached them. These two arch rivals have gotten to a juncture where they are on par with each other and desperately trying to overtake the other over the mobile operating system war. Let us compare two of the most new editions of these two arch rivals on a paper and see how it goes.
Android 4.2 Jelly Bean Review
Android OS v4.2 was released by Google on the 29th of October at their event. It is a practical combination of ICS and Honeycomb for tablets. The major difference we found out can be summed up with the Lock screen, camera app, gesture typing and multi user availability. We will look at these features in depth to understand what they offer in Layman’s terms.
One of the most important features introduced with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean is the multi user capability. This is only available for tablets which enable a single tablet to be used among your family very easily. It lets you have your own space with all the customization you need starting from the lock screen to applications and games. It even lets you have your own top scores in the games. The best thing is that you don’t really have to log in and log off; instead you can simply and seamlessly switch, which is just great. A new keyboard has been introduced that can make use of gesture typing. Thanks to the advancements of Android dictionaries, now the typing app can offer you suggestions for your next word in the sentence which enables you to type the whole sentence using a selection of words offered by the app. The speech to text ability is also improved, and it is available offline as well unlike the Apple’s Siri.
Android 4.2 offers a new immersive experience with the camera by offering Photo Sphere. It’s a 360 degree photo stitching of what you have snapped, and you can view these immersive spheres from the smartphone as well as share them on Google + or add them in Google Maps. The camera app has been made more responsive, and it starts super quick, as well. Google has added a component called Daydream for idling people where they display useful information when idling. It can get information from Google current and many more sources. Google Now is also alive than ever making your life easy for you before you even think about making it easy. It now has the ability to indicate photogenic spots nearby and to track packages easily.
The notification system is at the core of Android. With Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, notifications are fluid than ever. You have expandable and resizable notifications all in one place. The widgets are also improved, and now they automatically resize depending on the components added to a screen. Interactive widgets are expected to be facilitated more in this operating system, as well. Google hasn’t forgotten to improve the accessibility options, as well. Now the screen can be magnified using three tap gestures and visually impaired users can now interact with the fully zoomed screen, as well, such as typing when zoomed in. The gesture mode enables seamless navigation through the smartphone for blind users along with the speech output.
You can simply beam photos and videos with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean on your smartphone. It’s easier than ever and more simple and elegant too. Google Search component has also been updated, and overall, the operating system has become faster and smoother. The transitions are silky, and an absolute pleasure to experience while the touch responses are more reactive and uniform. It also allows you to wirelessly stream your screen to any wireless display which is a cool feature to have. Right now, Android 4.2 Jelly Bean is available in Nexus 4, Nexus 7, and Nexus 10. We are hoping that the other manufacturers will also release their updates soon.
Apple iOS 6 Review
As we discussed before, iOS has been the main inspiration for the other OSs to improve their appearance in the eyes of the users. Hence it is needless to say that iOS 6 carries the same charisma in impressive looks. Besides that, let us look what Apple has brought to the plate with the new iOS 6 that differs from iOS 5.
iOS 6 has improved the phone application significantly. It is now more user friendly and versatile. Combined with Siri, the possibilities to this are endless. It also enables you to reject calls more easily with a pre-composed message and a ‘don’t-disturb’ mode. They have also introduced something similar to Google Wallet. iOS 6 Passbook lets you keep e-tickets in your mobile phone. These may range from musical events to airline tickets. There is this particularly interesting feature related to airline tickets. If you have an e-ticket in your Passbook, it would automatically alert you once the departure gate was announced or changed. Of course, this means a lot of collaboration from the ticketing / airline firm as well, but it’s a nifty feature to have. As opposed to the version before, iOS 6 enables you to use facetime over 3G, which is great.
A major attraction in the smartphone is its browser. iOS 6 has added a brand new Safari application which introduces a lot of enhancements. iOS mail is also improved, and it has a separate VIP mailbox. Once you define the VIP list, their mails would appear in a dedicated mailbox on your lock screen which is a cool feature to have. An apparent improvement can be seen with Siri, the famous digital personal assistant. iOS 6 integrates Siri with the vehicles on their steering wheel using the new Eyes Free feature. Leading vendors like Jaguar, Land Rover, BMW, Mercedes, and Toyota have agreed to support Apple on this endeavor which would be a welcome addition in your car. Further it also has integrated Siri to the new iPad, as well.
Facebook is the world’s largest social media network, and any smartphone nowadays concentrates largely on how to integrate more and seamlessly with Facebook. They specifically boast on integrating Facebook events with your iCalendar, and that is a cool concept. Twitter integration has also been improved as per official preview of Apple. Apple has also come up with their own Maps application which still needs improvement on coverage. Conceptually, it can act as either a satellite navigation system or a turn by turn navigation map. Maps application can also be controlled using Siri, and it has new Flyover 3D views of major cities. This has become one of the main ambassadors for iOS 6. In fact, let us look at the maps application in depth. Apple investing in their own Geographic Information System is an aggressive step against relying on Google. However, right now, Apple Maps application is going to lack information about the traffic conditions and some other user generated data vectors that Google has collected and established over the years. For instance, you lose Street View and instead get the 3D Flyover View as the compensation. Apple was conscious enough to provide turn by turn navigation with voice instructions with iOS 6, but if you intend to take public transport, the routing is done with third party applications, unlike the Google Maps. However, don’t expect too much right now because the 3D Flyover feature is only available to major cities in USA only.
A Brief Comparison Between Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and Apple iOS 6
• Android 4.2 features a better enhanced Personal Digital Assistant while Apple has improved their Personal Digital Assistant Siri.
• Android 4.2 offers a more fluid camera application that features Photo Sphere while Apple iOS 6 has also added some enhancements to their camera application.
• Android 4.2 enables a single device to be used by many users providing the ability to create user accounts while Apple iOS 6 doesn’t offer a feature like that.
• Android 4.2 introduces improved versions of Google Search, Google Now, and Daydream while Apple iOS 6 has delegated their store to a set of different applications.
• Android 4.2 offers a versatile notification bar with the ability to offer vivid notifications and dynamic content while Apple iOS 6 introduces notifications in the Lock Screen.
• Android 4.2 offers a smarter keyboard and gesture typing and comes with built-in browser Google Chrome which offers unified search and URL feed while Apple iOS 6 offers Safari browser that has a ‘read it later’ function.
Conclusion
There are certain elements that can be objectively compared, but if we are going to compare two operating systems, they would never count for an objective comparison. A Comparison between two operating systems would be always subjective. This is because there’s no apparent guideline to decide which is better. For instance, a down right UNIX fan would love an operating system that only has terminal and no GUI, and it may be best for him; on the contrary, it would be just dreadful for a Windows enthusiast who has enjoyed working with GUIs all the time. Hence I won’t try an objective comparison here, and I certainly don’t want to give out a subjective conclusion either. So my advice is to simply take both operating systems for a ride and pick one you prefer the most. If this is a few years back, Apple iOS would have been the choice for the most, but right now, Android OS is on par with iOS at most sectors and the remaining sectors are based on user’s preference. Hence writing this conclusion in your own way on your own preference is the only option you have.