Search the Internet and you’ll find countless links (“About 107,000,000”) describing the different features and functions offered by iOS 5 and Android 4.0 (ICS – Ice Cream Sandwich), the latest versions of the top mobile operating systems. Even your humble blogger highlighted some of the key features of ICS in a post late last year.
In a lot of ways, the two iOS 5 and Android 4.0 are mirror images of each other, with a lot more in common than most people think. And, as they develop, you’ll likely see one OS gain attention with a particularly cool feature that the other OS quickly follows up with to match or surpass the other. Being able to use the camera from the locked position of your device is a good example of this.
Yet with all their similarities, a few major philosophical differences tend to push people firmly into one camp or the other. While you really can’t pick an objective winner, you can decide which of these two great operating systems best fits your personality, based on what you value most in your tablet experience.
Answer the 10 questions below to see if you’d be more productive with iOS 5 or Android 4.0. It’s important, because the full functionality of these operating systems will be coming soon to a tablet near you:
1. Are you a control freak?
a. I just want a simple interface that’s easy to use
b. I want to customize everything to make it really my own
2. Do you like being the boss?
a. Having a voice assistant makes me feel accomplished
b. If you want something done right—do it yourself
3. Are you a do-it-yourselfer?
a. I prefer a controlled selection of apps
b. I want it all—a controlled app store and the ability to design custom apps, too
4. Are you a speed demon?
a. Normal Internet speed is fine with me
b. I can’t connect fast enough—and I want embedded mobile broadband
5. Are you a social butterfly?
a. Twitter is my main reason for being
b. I want it all—Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn—at my fingertips
6. How risk averse are you?
a. I’m comfortable with my password
b. Unless you’re my identical twin, I don’t want you in my tablet
7. Are you 100% loyal?
a. I like using one brand and backing up my systems in a single pre-set cloud service
b. I like to play the field—I want to be able to use a mix of devices from different manufacturers—and access all of my data in a cloud service I choose.
8. Are you a penny pincher?
a. If I’m being productive, I don’t care how much data costs
b. I need to monitor my data usage and get alerts when I’m near my limit
9. How good are your manners?
a. It’s important to send thank-you cards to clients and colleagues
b. I’ll just shoot them an email
10. Are you good at sharing?
a. Yes, but not my data
b. Instant file transfer is awesome
So, how’d you do? If you answered “a” to most of the questions, chances are you prefer Apple’s iOS 5. If the majority of your answers were “b”, then it’s a safe bet that you’d enjoy Ice Cream Sandwich. Let us know how you did, and what features you like best about each OS.
