Why get an iPhone? What am I missing.

[No5tromo]

I have owned Xperia Z3, Z3+ , Z5, Galaxy S6, HTC one M9, and Nexus 5 ( I had to, while developing our app for both ecosystems etc ) and while they were a fun "new toy" tech diversion for me, I was never compelled to move away from iPhone for more than a day.

I would often use Xperia in the rain in Tokyo on trips, especially on the serious wet rain days, and I spend a good amount of time in Japan during the rainy season, but once the sunshine came out the sim was switched back into the iPhone and it was always a relief to go back to it.

For me it's the simplicity...the "feeling" of the OS...

plus:

1.) no annoying android back button,
2.) I am more comfortable with the iPhone email app, how it feels like the email app on my mac, and how new replies float to the top...
For some reason the Gmail app likes to burry important replies deep down where I'd never find them and I run my business on email, so that won't do.
Are there work-arounds? I'm sure there are but despite hour long tech advice from lots of android pals,
my emails still ended up buried.
3.) oh man, that BACK button!
4.) You have to turn android off no matter what if there's something else going on around you, because when you look back down, apps are moved around, missing, or I accidentally did XTZ operation. On iPhone I can look up and the gremlins don't take over.
5.) The camera. Galaxy cameras are ok. I'm an artist, my eye prefers iPhone's camera.
6.) The apple store and all that comes along with it, from Tokyo to NYC to a small town, the Apple store.
7.) iMessage: My entire family is on there and its free worldwide.
8.) iCloud photo sharing .. I take a photo of my kids, press one button, and 11 family members see the pic within seconds. No extra steps, no having to log into something each time... just take a pic, press the rainbow flower share thing and from Japan and Korea to LA and NYC we are all sharing.
Yes, I realize there's a zillion other ways to share. I tried to get my inlaws and great grandmother in her 90s on Google+, drop box, etc etc ... not going to happen. iPhone, we are all on and all happy.

9.) This is a new one... The PRICE! I like to carry 2 iPhones at all times because if I drop mine, I need a replacement within seconds so I can run my business. So the new SE at $400 is amazing and the perfect backup ( for me ).

As for the hype? Where is there hype from Apple?
I see rappers pouring booze on the Samsungs, Iron Man on HTC... uh, nobody marketing Xperia, and then Apple has an annual stage announcement where an old executive comes out and weeks later there's lines around the block for days. Is that hype? Or do they just kick butt at making things people really like.

So that's just me.
Others will 100% disagree.

Those guys on Droid Life love to talk smack vs apple, so I guess it's like a Sega vs Nintendo blast processing thing for them? Not sure. I guess that's fun for young people? Like a sports team thing?

Android has always felt more like PC Engine / Turbo graft 16 to me... Looks awesome, but once I get one home, eh I want my Super Famicom back.

1) I personally find the back button a good idea. The left-to-right gesture that Apple offers as an alternative is optional for apps and developers use it in different ways (eg some use to show the menu) which makes it often very confusing.

2) No complaints about the mail app, it's very good

3) We covered the back button

4) I haven't used Android that much to confirm, so I'll take your word for it

5) I've already covered how disappointing the 6s camera is compared to the much cheaper Huawei Ascend P8

6) Apple stores are present in areas that count as big markets and/or are affluent. Where I live we have "autorised resellers" which is a washed-out experience and the support is no-where near as good.

7) iMessage unlike viber, whatsapp and fb messenger is an Apple exclusive feature which makes it almost useless to me since not everyone in my contacts is using an iPhone

8) Correct me if I'm wrong but iCloud Photo sharing is only available to those having an iCloud account, so it's the same case as iMessage. I personally share photos via social media and dropbox.

9) The price is probably the biggest issue for me. All of a sudden I feel like I'm paying premium and getting the exact same as someone who chooses budget electronics. The camera comparison to Huawei did it for me, a phone that cost 1/3 pissed all over my iPhone 6s' camera. All the rest "exclusive-to-iPhone" features have equivalent free versions that are more likely to take over (if they haven't already) and will make Apple features obsolete in a few years since they are not exclusive to those who can/are willing to pay premium.
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You're spreading the cost of your iPhone over 4 years? Wow!

Why not? It's interest-free and I can settle up whenever I choose, in the meanwhile I only need to pay 18€/month and my contract-free carrier expense is another 10€/month and I get a full pack 1.25GB/400mins/Spotify premium and other perks.

 

[willmtaylor]

...At NO Time have I stated I trust Google with privacy. Apparently that's escaped you.

What I have stated is that the Google Ecosystem is an excellent one, with greater usefulness and relevance than Apple's system....

They're mutually dependent (trust and use). One cannot use the products/services of a company--of a tech company especially--without trusting them. This, of course, doesn't mean that you'll entrust them with your first born and keep all of your personal documents and data with them without question, but trust is implied.

Therefore, when you state:

...I'm no longer locked in an Apple only environment.

Google Ecosystem includes: Calendar, Contacts, Chrome, Gmail, Bookmarks, Maps, Photos, Hangouts, Groups, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, Drawings, Sites, Translate and so much more. Best of all, I currently enjoy using my personal Google ecosystem on my iPhone, iPad and Macs as well as my Android and Windows platforms.

The Google Ecosystem with its amazing Google Now Intelligent Assistant is so robust....

...then you trust them. You've entrusted a billion-dollar advertising agency (the income from their ads makes up 90% of their profits) with your personal details, photos, schedule, contacts end. Period.

(SOURCE: http://marketingland.com/alphabet-g...-billion-mobile-search-revenues-strong-148303)

 

[throAU]

So in short my history with iPhone is this: In 2005 I got my first Apple product, an iPod nano (that led me to having a super organised iTunes music library and later became a reason to consider iPhone over Android). In 2008 however I opted for a Blackberry Bold instead of an iPhone 3G which turned out to be a huge mistake corrected in 2010 when I got an iPhone 3GS and stopped using iPods all along. Since then I've got a 4s and a few months ago I got a 6s (in 48 instalments, no contract). Despite being on a relatively low budget I value my mobile phones a lot and am willing to pay good money to get a good device.

So a few days ago a friend of mine bought a Huawei Ascend P8 for 1/3 of the price I bought my iPhone 6S and it came down to comparing our phones and him asking me to show him what my phone can do more or do better. Not only did I struggle to find anything essential to show him but his phone's camera features and picture quality would crap all over 6s.

So can someone please prove to me that I am not a big fool for falling for Apple's hype and what exactly justifies the X3 more money I spent? Mind you I no longer use iTunes and opt for streaming apps.

Apple works best if you have the rest of the stuff in the Apple ecosystem.

Ask your mate how promptly he gets security updates, how easy it is to get repairs, etc.

How fast things open, and the spec of the hardware is a tiny part of what the iPhone (or any apple device) is about. It's the post sale service and support and seamless integration with other products.

 

[bandrews]

Can you at least give me an example of what kind of needs can an iPhone meet that a cheaper Android device can't?

Customer service.

 

[willmtaylor]

Apple works best if you have the rest of the stuff in the Apple ecosystem.

Ask your mate how promptly he gets security updates, how easy it is to get repairs, etc.

How fast things open, and the spec of the hardware is a tiny part of what the iPhone (or any apple device) is about. It's the post sale service and support and seamless integration with other products.

Customer service.

Yeah, these things have been mentioned by myself and others throughout the thread, but the Thread Starter didn't bother responding to those comments; he only replied to the comments he thought he had good retorts to.

 

[throAU]

Yeah, these things have been mentioned by myself and others throughout the thread, but the Thread Starter didn't bother responding to those comments; he only replied to the comments he thought he had good retorts to.

Yeah well i guess some people don't value those things or think they are free.

You get what you pay for generally.

 

[Channan]

Why not? It's interest-free and I can settle up whenever I choose, in the meanwhile I only need to pay 18€/month and my contract-free carrier expense is another 10€/month and I get a full pack 1.25GB/400mins/Spotify premium and other perks.

No, I think that's neat. We don't get an option for anywhere near that long here.

 

[willmtaylor]

No, I think that's neat. We don't get an option for anywhere near that long here.

Yup. American carriers completely have us by the balls. I guess that's what we get for living in a freakishly large country.

 

[throAU]

You're an IT guy. Sounds like Android is your new "oh, look, something shiny and cool". Go play with it. See if it meets your needs. There are a lot of reasons why Android (the OS) isn't a good for for my digital lifestyle, regardless of the price-point, physical build quality, or one-off tweaks that each manufacturer seem to put on it.

Personally, I don't need my phone to look and feel amazing. I mean, it'd be great if it always did, but there's a much larger list of criteria that I need it to meet first. In other words, switching to a phone that looks/feels amazing but can't easily do what I need it to do would be pointless for me. This may be a poor argument to you, but it's the basis for what I look for an a phone for me.

If you're not that invested in the ecosystem, it'll be an easy swap for you. Give it a shot. Worse case, you don't like it, sell it and get another iPhone. This isn't hard.

Yup

I'm also an IT type. I've tried android on several occasions and yes there are pros and cons but the big cons for me on android were

- UI needlessly complex
- build quality of the device (samsung S5, HTC One, various others) sub par
- lack of updates to fix security problems
- VPN connectivity problems (in the past)
- UI scaling problems
- OS bugs (on the HTC one)
- needless crapware in the OS - i don't want a million different options for mail, calendar, etc. i just want decent apps that do the job. the Samsung devices ship with 2 of everything almost (samsung version and google version) last i tried
- higher vulnerability to malware

The Pros were mostly things I don't care about - UI customization (waste of time, don't care what it looks like, the iPhone UI works), side loading apps (i jailbroke an iPhone to see if there was anything i really cared about i was missing out on, there wasn't really) so for me the iPhone is a no brainer.

YMMV, but as a higher level IT guy I've got more important things to be playing with than customising the UI of my phone.

 

[No5tromo]

Yeah, these things have been mentioned by myself and others throughout the thread, but the Thread Starter didn't bother responding to those comments; he only replied to the comments he thought he had good retorts to.

Why get an iPhone? What am I missing.

Read Number 6 on the list. Honestly I don't have the time to answer to each post individually, and I'm not here to diss Apple either, if I agree with something I vote it up, and I've already voted up quite a few replies that make good points about iPhone pros.

 

[bearda]

Three big reasons I use an iPhone/iOS over an Android device

- Availability of support. If I have a hardware issue I can make an appointment at the Apple Store 20 minute away and be up and running within a day. My experience with Samsung support when I owned an S4 was less than stellar, and my Nexus support experience was pretty terrible. Really only applies is you're near an Apple store.
- S/MIME support. I use encrypted email regularly, and Google natively has NO S/MIME support in Android. A couple OEMs have added S/MIME support in their own mail clients, but it's fragile at best. There are third-party Android applications with varying levels of support, but it's definitely not a well-integrated feature.
- Security updates. Apple is pretty good about pushing out updates for major security issue quickly. Heck, they're pretty good about pushing out updates for minor security updates (reading contacts if the screen is locked, etc). The Android security patch program is a step in the right direction, but unless you have a currently supported flagship phone you're SOL. Yes, the Nexuses, Galaxy S6, S7, and Priv get (more or less) new patches. Anything that isn't considered flagship from the major manufacturers is vulnerable from the time you purchase it and the smaller OEMs don't even bother.

Granted, my reasons probably don't apply to most of the people here but to me it's worth the price difference.

 

[willmtaylor]

Why get an iPhone? What am I missing.

Read Number 6 on the list. Honestly I don't have the time to answer to each post individually, and I'm not here to diss Apple either, if I agree with something I vote it up, and I've already voted up quite a few replies that make good points about iPhone pros.

Hey, I'm not denying the merits of cherry-picking. They're why lazy kids do it in basketball and the off-sides rule exist in soccer.

I read it previously. My point still stands.

 

[maxsix]

They're mutually dependent (trust and use). One cannot use the products/services of a company--of a tech company especially--without trusting them. This, of course, doesn't mean that you'll entrust them with your first born and keep all of your personal documents and data with them without question, but trust is implied.

Therefore, when you state:


...then you trust them. You've entrusted a billion-dollar advertising agency (the income from their ads makes up 90% of their profits) with your personal details, photos, schedule, contacts end. Period.

(SOURCE: http://marketingland.com/alphabet-g...-billion-mobile-search-revenues-strong-148303)

Assuming you know how I use my tech gear, and how much of my data I do or do not... put into my Cloud Based Internet connected world is sheer narcissism. Steve Jobs was quick to assume he was a superior human, carefully pandering to hero worshippers, it worked for him.

My carefully configured, dedicated, stand alone personal server with its eight terabyte NAS, isn't even connected to the Internet. No chance of compromise, completely secure, it represents an investment of time, money and other resources the vast majority of people today are unwilling to invest.

That said you do seem to have a burning desire to assume you know all about others business. A very revealing reflection of your intent.

 

[No5tromo]

Hey, I'm not denying the merits of cherry-picking. They're why lazy kids do it in basketball and the off-sides rule exist in soccer.

I read it previously. My point still stands.

Your problem might be that you are taking your favourite brand too seriously then, I get it, your are passionate about Apple and you want a full-on debate but you picked the wrong guy.

 

[lparsons21]

I see that some mention iMessage as being Apple only. And of course, that's true, but I use it for messaging to anyone in my contacts list regardless of what phone they use. It seamlessly texts to either the Apple ecosystem natively or SMS depending on what is at the other end.

I've got an iPhone 6+ and a Nexus 5X. Really like both of them for differing reasons. The iPhone because it just works with no real need to fiddle much to get things going. The 5X because I can twiddle with it a lot. And of course, being a Google phone and not some other Android phone means it will stay more up to date longer.

You can do most things that FaceTime and iMessage do with Google's Hangouts, and Hangouts has the benefit of being available cross-platform with the exception of the Windows Phone, but it is less elegant IMO, and it is twitchy at times.

For instance, on my iPhone, when it rings so does my iPad and MacBook. With Hangouts on the same devices it is supposed to and sometimes does, but that 'sometimes' when it doesn't is damned irritating.

 

[No5tromo]

I see that some mention iMessage as being Apple only. And of course, that's true, but I use it for messaging to anyone in my contacts list regardless of what phone they use. It seamlessly texts to either the Apple ecosystem natively or SMS depending on what is at the other end.

I've got an iPhone 6+ and a Nexus 5X. Really like both of them for differing reasons. The iPhone because it just works with no real need to fiddle much to get things going. The 5X because I can twiddle with it a lot. And of course, being a Google phone and not some other Android phone means it will stay more up to date longer.

You can do most things that FaceTime and iMessage do with Google's Hangouts, and Hangouts has the benefit of being available cross-platform with the exception of the Windows Phone, but it is less elegant IMO, and it is twitchy at times.

For instance, on my iPhone, when it rings so does my iPad and MacBook. With Hangouts on the same devices it is supposed to and sometimes does, but that 'sometimes' when it doesn't is damned irritating.

Maybe my mistake was not asking myself "why do I need an iPhone". You see I don't care about the ecosystem, iMessage, iCloud picture sharing etc cause I simply don't use these features, I'm always pro cross-platform and I will use whichever service is more popular in my region (e.g. viber for messaging and dropbox for file sharing). I have no trouble finding simple ways to sync across my devices that run different OS's. My main reasoning behind picking Apple was the consistent updates and lack of cacophony present in Android where countless of different devices run the OS, but a couple of hand-ons have me convinced otherwirse. Android is not nearly as bad as I thought it would be, trying S7 edge for the first time had me wondering "why does everything seem and feel so nicer when I just paid for what is supposed to be the most premium phone in the market?"

 

[throAU]

"why does everything seems and feels so nicer when I just paid for what is supposed to be the most premium phone in the market?"

get back to us in 6-12 months.

 

[rui no onna]

You're spreading the cost of your iPhone over 4 years? Wow!

As long as battery keeps up, a 4-year old iPhone isn't so bad nowadays. We used an unlocked, out of contract iPhone 5 and 5c when we went overseas on vacation. The devices were quite responsive and the A6 CPU has held up remarkably well (have Reduce Motion enabled).

Why iPhone (or iOS devices in general)? For me, physical presence and very good customer service/warranty support. A couple years ago, I would've said excellent but I think Apple has slipped a little in that regard.

I also find full backup and restore via iTunes very convenient. I can upgrade iOS devices and have the new device set-up exactly the way my old one was (complete with email, passwords, app settings, etc) with no additional work on my part. Meanwhile, Android's backup and restore leaves a lot to be desired.

 

[lparsons21]

Android is not nearly as bad as I thought it would be, trying S7 edge for the first time had me wondering "why does everything seems and feels so nicer when I just paid for what is supposed to be the most premium phone in the market?"

Android is far from horrible, that's for sure. The problem is lack of any real consistency and the feel of apps that seem not quite complete on Android. IOW, they work, but something just feels unfinished.
I love the ability to move things around on the screen instead of the grid iOS has us locked to. On my Android phone I have my home screen a bit sparse and have my 5 favorite contacts on that home screen. Very handy.
But if you want to be in the Android world, one problem that raises its head is phone/tablet. For the most part the apps are made for phone and will work with tablet, but are very obviously not taking advantage of it. Not so in the iOS world.
Personally I can use whichever phone I happen to have at hand, but prefer iPhone because I have a bit of Apple gear also.

 

[Channan]

As long as battery keeps up, a 4-year old iPhone isn't so bad nowadays. We used an unlocked, out of contract iPhone 5 and 5c when we went overseas on vacation. The devices were quite responsive and the A6 CPU has held up remarkably well (have Reduce Motion enabled).

Why iPhone (or iOS devices in general)? For me, physical presence and very good customer service/warranty support. A couple years ago, I would've said excellent but I think Apple has slipped a little in that regard.

I also find full backup and restore via iTunes very convenient. I can upgrade iOS devices and have the new device set-up exactly the way my old one was (complete with email, passwords, app settings, etc) with no additional work on my part. Meanwhile, Android's backup and restore leaves a lot to be desired.

Google now backs up app data as well. Obviously if you switch to a different OEM's Android device, your device won't restore exactly the same as your previous phone, since skins from different OEMs are different, but your apps and app data will restore just fine as long as the developer of that app doesn't opt out of backing up their app's data.

I switched from a Moto X Pure Edition to a Galaxy S7 Edge a few weeks ago and, after applying a Material theme from the Theme Store, my Galaxy S7 Edge is almost exactly like my Moto X was. My launcher put all the apps and the only widget I have back where they were on my old phone, all of my apps were downloaded, and all of my app data was restored.

It used to suck, because restoring meant starting over in almost every app, but that's not the case anymore. There just isn't an official option to restore it from your computer so you don't need an Internet connection, but I like that I was able to do it all over LTE since I have unlimited data, which is something iOS won't allow you to do.

 

[willmtaylor]

Assuming you know how I use my tech gear, and how much of my data I do or do not... put into my Cloud Based Internet connected world is sheer narcissism. Steve Jobs was quick to assume he was a superior human, carefully pandering to hero worshippers, it worked for him.

My carefully configured, dedicated, stand alone personal server with its eight terabyte NAS, isn't even connected to the Internet. No chance of compromise, completely secure, it represents an investment of time, money and other resources the vast majority of people today are unwilling to invest.

That said you do seem to have a burning desire to assume you know all about others business. A very revealing reflection of your intent.

I don't assume how you personally use your hardware/software, and it's not outrageous to assume a user uses a company's services the way in which they are designed and intended. This isn't narcism; it's a common sense deduction. I can't help if you're threatened by my statements of fact and are suffering from psychological projection.

Your setup sounds sweet. I wish I had the savvy to set something like that up. Sadly, I run into problems when setting up new wireless routers.

I make no such assumptions, but feel free to refer to my psychological projecting statement from earlier here. I make observations and state facts. I seek clarity and truth, whereas you patrol the forums seeking any and every opportunity to stir up enmity. Not sure why I keep feeding you, actually. Maybe I just don't like bullies.
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Your problem might be that you are taking your favourite brand too seriously then, I get it, your are passionate about Apple and you want a full-on debate but you picked the wrong guy,.

I'm not a stockholder. I'm a user who appreciates good technology. I made points, to help address your question, which you ignored, and others made points which you attacked.

I never wanted a debate. I didn't start a purposefully reactionary thread, and then proceed to attack all of those who replied to me while ignoring those who actually tried to help and gave civil and product feedback. That would be you, stud. Best of luck.

 

[Savor]

OP, you are probably seeing the light especially when it comes to price. An epiphany that didn't hit me until about 2012-2013 about the limitations with iOS and the minor better abilities with iPhone's overrated and overpriced hardware. I have been using Viber since 2012 which replaced everything from FB Messenger, WhatsApp, and Talkatone (VOIP for Google Voice), so I don't need iMessages which has limited reach because it isn't cross-platform. And last I check, there is like about 80% Android users out there.

I remember having a Nexus One and iPhone 4 at the same time. I kept reading about how amazing the cam was on the iP4 and was great in low light when all I got were yellowish shots. When I compared photos on both phones on my computer, I was shocked to see that the Nexus One was better! Don't simply judge it based the quality of photos by looking at their display. Even the video recording, the sound was much louder on the Nexus when I heard it on the computer.

I think paying for flagship phones is starting to look like a waste of money for a better camera. All phones at whatever platform has become homogenized. OP, if you can't find any real reasons to pay extra for Apple and hate organizing your media with iTunes like me, find another smartphone that suits you. I am kinda surprised the Huawei P8 outclassed your 6s but then I remembered my Nexus One. Don't always believe all the hype that you read. This was no different during the pre-iPhone era when Apple tried selling us an mp3 player for $300-$500 when there were other better alternatives like Creative, Cowon, and Archos that were cheaper, iTunes-less drag and drop, longer battery life, and could play many different formats.

 

[s15119]

Right...

Indeed.
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Pick a fight?! I really don't have that much free time. Damn people have really become oversensitive nowadays. "boohoo someone pointed out that the brand I'm obsessed about is not doing everything right". Get over it. Btw I've been given great answers indeed and some lame ones especially at the beginning to which point I replied that the arguments were poor.

Yawn. Now with the insults.

 

[cynics]

There is a massive disconnect between Android and a desktop OS that keeps me from keeping an Android device. All the stuff Android "can do so much better" is usually because it doesn't have a dedicated desktop OS to back it up.

Everything I did on Android when attempting to use it with a computer became a chore. Wired connection was mandatory for nearly everything. I feel I went years with wireless sync and wireless file transfers (or just automatic transfers like Photos just "appear") then thrust back into the dark ages of digging through junk drawers looking for USB cables.

This is more subjective but Android feels superficial while iOS feels to have more depth. I realize that sounds strange but when I'm scrolling around in Android to me feels like I'm not the one scrolling, like I'm just coincidentally moving my thumb in the same direction the screen is going. Weird right?

I won't deny Android has a lot of great features and can do a lot of useful things the iPhone can't, however its just not for me. If anything I think I would get a Windows Phone and Windows desktop if I couldn't have an iPhone.

 

[Danoc]

It's a platform. You buy a platform. Hardware and accessories, software and apps, services and physical stores.

No hassle. I also find that Apple has great accessibility tools that just work and aren't ugly.