I bought my first smartphone back in September of 2010, I got a 32GB iPhone 4 and I thought that I would never, ever, change phone (at least for something other than another iPhone); however, last January, after much thought, I decided to make the jump and try out Android. I got the Galaxy Nexus, which I believed was the best option out there since it was the only phone running Ice Cream Sandwich at the time and I really liked the stock Android UI. Well about a year later, Im thinking of going back to the simpler, yet more refined, iOS. In my opinion the overall UI seems a lot better and much more intuitive.
Apps:
There are many things to love about iOS but surely theres nothing in it that is still as ahead of the competition as the App Store. The app selection on iOS is insanely great and, with it being a controlled community, all the apps are guaranteed to work and offer good UIs. I think we can see for many apps that they are just better for iOS than they are for Android. An example would be the Facebook app that is sometimes really laggy on my Galaxy Nexus while on iOS it is as smooth as butter. The great advantage iOS had over its competitors is the fact that it only has 1 device (2 if you count different screen sizes with the iPhone 5) and therefore all the apps are designed specifically for a certain screen size and a certain hardware, and not like on Android where there are hundreds of different devices, with different screen sizes. Also, weve noticed with many apps, such as Instagram, that apps are often released on the App Store before being recoded for Android and the Play Store.
Services:
While Apples closed system may seem limiting, once youre in it, its really nice and everything works pretty much seamlessly. One great feature about iOS, since iOS 5, is iMessage and while many may say that there are many, cross-platform, alternatives such as WhatsApp, none of them integrate with the OS as well as iMessage does on iOS; the fact that the service is integrated directly into the Messaging app means that you dont even have to think about using the service as Steve used to say it just does the right thing. Another service Apple provides to all iOS users is iCloud that allows users to keep everything in sync with all their devices. iCloud works perfectly, however, also Android has its type of iCloud that uses Googles Gmail, Contacts and Calendars, and, with all honesty, Gmail is much better than iCloud mail. Thankfully Google Sync can be set-up on iOS as well.
Build quality and performance:
When it comes to build quality nothing really even comes close to the outstanding build quality of Apple products. Many Android phones are still made with plastic backs that, while less prone to damage and, if they do damage, a lot less expensive to replace, give the phone a sense of cheapness and short lifespan. Another thing I dont like about Android phones is that, while they often run on more powerful chipsets, the phone itself doesnt give the sense of high performance due to the fact that the Android OS itself is often laggy (this was partially fixed with Project Butter in Jelly Bean 4.1). The battery life, on many Android phones, is quite bad as well (an example is my Galaxy Nexus) and I often struggle getting through a day with regular usage (data on with emails going in and out and syncing occurring in the background, regular Facebook and Twitter refreshes, about 30 minutes of calling plus browsing and texting both on WhatsApp and through standard SMS). I really didnt notice any such issue with my iPhone 4 and I also used it to listen to music while commuting (2+ hours a day) and sometimes also watching movies.
One More Thing:
A last thing I love about iOS is the fact that it just works, and, after reading Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson, I think that is really what Steve was going for. By controlling the user experience and by building the software and the hardware together, we end up with a product that just works, and I think that really is reflected in all Apple products, not just the iPhone.
Conclusion:
In conclusion I think I might be switching back to iOS quite soon, unless Google surprises me with a major Android overhaul (which is unlikely due to the recent release of Jelly Bean 4.2). The choice you make comes down to personal preference and, while Android has many great features such as great notifications, the ability to customize the phone how youd like and quick settings in the Notification Bar, I think iOS will satisfy my needs better than Android.
What do you guys think? Do you think these are good reasons? What do you use? Why? Do you think I missed an important point for or against iOS?
Please let me know!
Pietro
Apps:
There are many things to love about iOS but surely theres nothing in it that is still as ahead of the competition as the App Store. The app selection on iOS is insanely great and, with it being a controlled community, all the apps are guaranteed to work and offer good UIs. I think we can see for many apps that they are just better for iOS than they are for Android. An example would be the Facebook app that is sometimes really laggy on my Galaxy Nexus while on iOS it is as smooth as butter. The great advantage iOS had over its competitors is the fact that it only has 1 device (2 if you count different screen sizes with the iPhone 5) and therefore all the apps are designed specifically for a certain screen size and a certain hardware, and not like on Android where there are hundreds of different devices, with different screen sizes. Also, weve noticed with many apps, such as Instagram, that apps are often released on the App Store before being recoded for Android and the Play Store.
Services:
While Apples closed system may seem limiting, once youre in it, its really nice and everything works pretty much seamlessly. One great feature about iOS, since iOS 5, is iMessage and while many may say that there are many, cross-platform, alternatives such as WhatsApp, none of them integrate with the OS as well as iMessage does on iOS; the fact that the service is integrated directly into the Messaging app means that you dont even have to think about using the service as Steve used to say it just does the right thing. Another service Apple provides to all iOS users is iCloud that allows users to keep everything in sync with all their devices. iCloud works perfectly, however, also Android has its type of iCloud that uses Googles Gmail, Contacts and Calendars, and, with all honesty, Gmail is much better than iCloud mail. Thankfully Google Sync can be set-up on iOS as well.
Build quality and performance:
When it comes to build quality nothing really even comes close to the outstanding build quality of Apple products. Many Android phones are still made with plastic backs that, while less prone to damage and, if they do damage, a lot less expensive to replace, give the phone a sense of cheapness and short lifespan. Another thing I dont like about Android phones is that, while they often run on more powerful chipsets, the phone itself doesnt give the sense of high performance due to the fact that the Android OS itself is often laggy (this was partially fixed with Project Butter in Jelly Bean 4.1). The battery life, on many Android phones, is quite bad as well (an example is my Galaxy Nexus) and I often struggle getting through a day with regular usage (data on with emails going in and out and syncing occurring in the background, regular Facebook and Twitter refreshes, about 30 minutes of calling plus browsing and texting both on WhatsApp and through standard SMS). I really didnt notice any such issue with my iPhone 4 and I also used it to listen to music while commuting (2+ hours a day) and sometimes also watching movies.
One More Thing:
A last thing I love about iOS is the fact that it just works, and, after reading Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson, I think that is really what Steve was going for. By controlling the user experience and by building the software and the hardware together, we end up with a product that just works, and I think that really is reflected in all Apple products, not just the iPhone.
Conclusion:
In conclusion I think I might be switching back to iOS quite soon, unless Google surprises me with a major Android overhaul (which is unlikely due to the recent release of Jelly Bean 4.2). The choice you make comes down to personal preference and, while Android has many great features such as great notifications, the ability to customize the phone how youd like and quick settings in the Notification Bar, I think iOS will satisfy my needs better than Android.
What do you guys think? Do you think these are good reasons? What do you use? Why? Do you think I missed an important point for or against iOS?
Please let me know!
Pietro
