8 Things That You Will Notice When You Shift from Windows Phone to Android

Change is always difficult and when you have to change or adapt to a different technology, it is all the more challenging. We are all generally creatures of routine and most of us are not very enthusiastic to rock the boat. I was more adventurous 3 years back when I changed to a Windows Phone and the first month was pretty tough. But after using it for more than 2 years now and after experiencing two huge updates, I am quite happy I undertook that change. Now I have switched back to Android and the adventurous streak in me resurfaced to have me go back to it. But these changes have lent a new perspective to my learning about these operating systems and I am sharing what I miss about the Windows OS in this post for the benefit and learning of die hard Android users. a) The Windows Phone does suffer from lack of many of the apps associated with Android. But that is only superficial. There are unofficial apps available for use that is better than the official ones and in greater variety. You thus have a wider choice. b) The way in which you can customize a Windows Phone with regard to the background colors and accent hues is much better. The personal experience resulting out of such customization is a far enhanced one. You can make the OS look truly different. c) The built in battery saver that is available in the Windows Phone is a blessing when you cannot get a charger immediately. When you activate it, you get to save precious battery power as it disengages some of the battery-guzzling features automatically. You can also now select the apps you would want to run even when the Battery Save option has been activated. d) Volume controls is another user friendly feature in the Windows 8.1 Phone. You now get the numerical value for the volume you have set within Media Apps. This allows you to adjust volume as you want for ringer as well as for notifications. e) Smoothness of operation distinguishes the Windows Phone from Android, despite the Android having made strides in the last few versions. Fast smooth scrolling with virtually no hanging or lag is the hallmark of a Windows Phone. f) Dedicated camera buttons make for easier handling and operation of the camera on a smart phone. Microsoft has made this mandatory and this feature is useful as it would allow you to use the camera even when the phone is not in operation or locked. The physical camera button is a very handy Windows Phone utility. g) The multitasking screen on the Windows Phone presents a much nicer appearance as you can see full screenshots of apps and the working is also faster. At times, the multitasking on the Android does not quickly open up. Having mentioned it, this may be a personal preference and views can vary. h) The app list is another Windows Phone feature that you are likely to miss on an Android. The apps are structured alphabetically and you can also navigate to another one on the list quite easily. The impending Android L launch is expected to smoothen out a lot of these things.