Android vs Windows Phone - A Definitive List of Pros and Cons
For two and a half years I have been testing mobile phone operating systems (Android and Windows Phone), mainly because these two mobile platforms are (generally) affordable and are ubiquitous on lower end/budget phones.
I have never bothered with iOS as it's too expensive and I have never understood why a basic mobile operating system should be so restrictive and expensive - My first encounter with iOS didn't even match my Nokia (Symbian) smartphone of the time, and iOS simply hasn't evolved enough to convince me that it's simplistic but clunky interface is worth tying myself in to the iOS ecosystem.
First things first - I loved Android when it first came out, but I have never liked the poor battery life and requirement for ever increasing amounts of memory needed to run the OS.
Back in 2012 I got a Samsung Galaxy S3, which was the best smartphone of its day. One year later, the battery life was struggling to last more than eight hours and there was some lag evident.
I tried a Windows Phone (Nokia Lumia 610) which was slow, but reliable.
Since then, I have been continually swapping between Windows Phones (8, 8.1 and Windows 10 Mobile) and Android phones running 4.4, 5 and 5.1
Throughout this time I have learned a lot about the pros and cons of both Windows Phone and Android.
I have written this list of pros and cons for both operating systems because every "Windows Phone vs Android" review simply breaks things down into what each OS looks like, with a brief mention of how Windows Phone and Android perform.
My lists break down the benefits and disadvantages of Windows Phones and Android phones. It doesn't matter which version of each OS you are running, as the list applies to all versions.
Windows Phone - Advantages:
Windows Phone works well as a "phone" - Calls and texts are simple. It's easy to block contacts and the native SMS app works well.
Windows Phone works well as a "phone" - Calls and texts are simple. It's easy to block contacts and the native SMS app works well.
Live Tiles - Each one is basically a widget which gives you updates such as calendar events, email details, etc.
WiFi - You can leave WiFi on all of the time without reducing battery life too much, and it's very easy to connect to public WiFi networks.
NO LAG - Windows Phones don't lag, even the cheapest phones are very nippy.
Battery life is excellent.
The cameras are usually pretty good.
You can customise the colours and Live Tile colours quickly and easily.
Windows Phone - Disadvantages:
Outlook email and calendar apps are pretty poor.
Windows Maps is very inaccurate, missing location information and freezes when navigating.
Apps are generally very poor, and there are very few alternatives to the stock apps.
Cortana doesn't notify you of anything, so not much use as a personal assistant. And the Live Tile doesn't display any information.
The keyboard is really poor. Autocorrect is horrifically random.
Voice recognition is really, really bad!
Cortana search is awful, and search results are filled with sponsored adverts.
Bing is nowhere near as good as Google Search.
The Edge browser struggles to display websites correctly and often crashes.
You're stuck with Groove Music for syncing your music, which is expensive and poor.
Photo syncing? You're stuck with OneDrive. Other apps are passable, though there is Dropbox.
Microsoft apps ask for ratings continuously.
Apps force close regularly.
Quiet Hours often doesn't turn on or off.
The Action Centre notifications are unactionable.
Microsoft app support is nil.
Word/Excel, etc. are slow to open.
You currently can't buy Windows Phones any more now that Microsoft have stopped production and no other manufacturer wants to risk losing money on a dying OS.
Android - Advantages:
Everything syncs, even if you use alternative platforms, there are apps available.
The apps are good quality.
Google Maps is brilliant and navigation is excellent.
Voice search is fantastic.
Alarms and Silent Hours work really well.
Google Keyboard is brilliant.
Loads of phones available at all different price brackets.
Android - Disadvantages:
Lag is a problem, even on high-spec phones.
Apps are quite large, needing more storage space.
I've yet to find a SMS app which works really well.
The dialler (phone) app isn't intuitive, but it's good.
Want on the spot calendar visibility? You need a big calendar widget.
Want to see what the weather forecast is at a glance? You also need a widget for this.
Android phones can be much more expensive.
Notifications are key to functionality as there are no icon notifications.
Battery life is usually pretty awful.
WiFi and Bluetooth need turning on/off to conserve battery life.
You currently need at least 2GB of ROM and 16GB of RAM to have a half decent Android experience.
