Material Design was starting to grow on me, but there were too many things that required too many taps/swipes to get to.
What's frustrating is that Google really can do nice software when they try. They just don't seem to try very often.
It's clear that a boatload of usability work went into Google Now, because that whole thing is slicker than snot. Ditto for Inbox.
Presumably those usability people were down the pub when the calendar was being designed. The camera app wants to be the Nokia Camera app so hard it hurts, but it so isn't. The settings are still all over the place - sound is particularly bad for being smeared out across the settings in ways that are technically correct (the best kind of correct!) but which are user-hostile if the use case is "OH MY GOD WILL THIS PHONE EVER SHUT THE FUCK UP?". You turn off app sounds here. You turn off keyboard sounds there. You turn off notification sounds over here. You have to go into the FB messenger app to get it to STFU because it doesn't (seem to) respect the system-wide notification thinger.
Reloading a page in Chrome is a swipe up to get the menu/address thing to appear, a tap on the three dots, and a tap. Seriously?
Android is a lot better than it used to be, of that there is no doubt. But stacked up directly against WP 8.1? For me, the only advantage it's got is first-mover advantage, IMHO. MS dropped the mobile ball in spectacular style, and Android has exploited that to the max.
What's frustrating is that Google really can do nice software when they try. They just don't seem to try very often.
It's clear that a boatload of usability work went into Google Now, because that whole thing is slicker than snot. Ditto for Inbox.
Presumably those usability people were down the pub when the calendar was being designed. The camera app wants to be the Nokia Camera app so hard it hurts, but it so isn't. The settings are still all over the place - sound is particularly bad for being smeared out across the settings in ways that are technically correct (the best kind of correct!) but which are user-hostile if the use case is "OH MY GOD WILL THIS PHONE EVER SHUT THE FUCK UP?". You turn off app sounds here. You turn off keyboard sounds there. You turn off notification sounds over here. You have to go into the FB messenger app to get it to STFU because it doesn't (seem to) respect the system-wide notification thinger.
Reloading a page in Chrome is a swipe up to get the menu/address thing to appear, a tap on the three dots, and a tap. Seriously?
Android is a lot better than it used to be, of that there is no doubt. But stacked up directly against WP 8.1? For me, the only advantage it's got is first-mover advantage, IMHO. MS dropped the mobile ball in spectacular style, and Android has exploited that to the max.