[Electronics-Talk] Android Cellphones: Are They Worth It

Fri Mar 25 14:59:29 UTC 2016

Christopher, 
Thank you for your unbiased review. I truly appreciate this. 

Sharonda
Sent from my mobile device; please excuse any mistakes 

> On Mar 25, 2016, at 7:53 AM, Jim Barbour via Electronics-Talk <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Like I said, some will want to debate this :-)
> 
> I agree totally that it may be worth putting up with a degraded excess ability experience in order to get some features of an android phone, whether they be  an sd card reader, keyboard, cheaper price, etc.
> 
> It is also true that many of the gestures in talkback are different than those in IOS.  Having said all that, I still believe that voiceover has a level of polish, consistency, and hardware integration that make it a superior user experience over an android phone.
> 
> Jim 
> 
> Written While on the Move
> 
>> On Mar 25, 2016, at 7:34 AM, Christopher Chaltain via Electronics-Talk <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> 
>> IMHO, the Android phones are very accessible, but whether you'll consider it just as accessible as an iPhone depends on two things. First, each phone has their strengths and weaknesses. Talk Back doesn't have some of the more advanced features that you'll get with VoiceOver. By more advanced, I'm talking about things like hierarchical navigation, cutting and pasting text and so on. The roter in VoiceOver also gives you pretty direct access to quite a few special features and quick configurations in VoiceOver. I should also say that Talk Back is always changing and getting better, so my experience with Talk Back from even a few months ago may not still be true today. If these features aren't important to you and how you use your phone then you might find an Android phone perfectly acceptable.
>> 
>> Second, Android and Talk Back will just flat work differently from IOS and VoiceOver. Even though you may be able to do the same thing in both you may not find it just as accessible because you prefer or are used to the way the iPhone does things.
>> 
>> One more point, there are things you can do in Android that you can't do in IOS which have nothing to do with accessibility, and these may be important enough to you to put up with some accessibility short comings. I'm thinking of things like you can choose your own default launcher, email client, web browser and so on in Android. In IOS you can't change these defaults from the Apple products. You have widgets in Android, so you can get to more information by just exploring the screen without having to open up an app. You can also get Android phones in form factors which include things like an SD card slot and a removable battery.
>> 
>> Specifically regarding a high end Samsung phone, that's what I'd go after if I were to get an Android phone and I wasn't worried about the cost. Some people call it bloatware, but Samsung phones come with some additional software that may improve the experience for a blind user such as it's own OCR software and it's own screen reader. Samsung's screen reader is based on Talk Back but Samsung has added some features to it, some making it more like VoiceOver, such as the triple click of the home button. You can always install Talk Back from the Play Store, so you're not missing out on anything and just have another screen reading option.
>> 
>> I'd suggest looking around for some reviews of the Android phones. I think AFB had one not too long ago of the S6 and Samsung's screen reader. You could also check out the return policy when you grab an S7, and if it doesn't work out, you could always return it and end up with an iPhone. You may need to pay a restocking fee though, which is why you should check out the return policy before going down that route.
>> 
>>> On 25/03/16 07:43, Matthew Chao via Electronics-Talk wrote:
>>> I want a genuinely different but very accessible phone.  I have two
>>> iPhones on my family account, and need a different phone for myself, as
>>> my older Nokia phones won't be usable on AT&T's network as of May 13.  I
>>> just want to make sure that the S7 is as accessible as the iPhone.  If
>>> not, then that issue's a deal breaker. Thanks.--Matthew Chao
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>>> On 3/24/2016 10:38 PM, Christopher Chaltain via Electronics-Talk wrote:
>>>> Given what an S7 costs, if you're just going to turn it into an iPhone
>>>> then I'd think you'd might as well just get an iPhone. Personally, I
>>>> like choice, and I wouldn't get an Android phone just to turn it into
>>>> an iPhone.
>>>> 
>>>> I have a Nexus 7 tablet, which isn't a high end smart phone, but I
>>>> find Android usable and I prefer it over my iPhone for some tasks. I
>>>> couldn't possibly tell another person if it's worth the price or not
>>>> though.
>>>> 
>>>> The mailing list I'd recommend for Android phones is vi-android. You
>>>> can subscribe to it using the following instructions:
>>>> 
>>>> To unsubscribe from the list send an email to
>>>> vi-android-request at freelists.org with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject
>>>> field (new users, use 'subscribe' to subscribe)
>>>> 
>>>>> On 24/03/16 21:24, Jude DaShiell via Electronics-Talk wrote:
>>>>> They will be when the definitive guide to turning an iPhone into an
>>>>> Android phone gets published on the internet.  As things stand, a guide
>>>>> to turning an android phone into an iPhone already exists.
>>>>> 
>>>>>> On Thu, 24 Mar 2016, Matthew Chao via Electronics-Talk wrote:
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> Date: Thu, 24 Mar 2016 16:29:21
>>>>>> From: Matthew Chao via Electronics-Talk <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>>>>> Reply-To: mattchao at verizon.net,
>>>>>>   Discussion of accessible home electronics and appliances
>>>>>>   <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>>>>> To: Discussion of accessible home electronics and appliances
>>>>>>   <electronics-talk at nfbnet.org>
>>>>>> Cc: Matthew Chao <mattchao at verizon.net>
>>>>>> Subject: [Electronics-Talk] Android Cellphones: Are They Worth It
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> Hi, Folks.  I'm thinking of getting a Galaxy S7, and see that it's
>>>>>> accessible.  Two basic questions:
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> 1.  Has anyone used the newer Android phones, and if so, are they
>>>>>> worth the investment?
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> 2.  Are there forums or liststervs for users of these phones with
>>>>>> emphasis on blind useres?
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> Thanks in advance for any help or info you might have.--Matthew Chao
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> 
>>>>>> 
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>>> 
>>> 
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>> 
>> -- 
>> Christopher (CJ)
>> chaltain at Gmail
>> 
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