It has gotten to the point, where staying with the iPhone is no longer simply a preference. Every single day I do things on my phone that are either impossible on Android, or dramatically better on the iPhone. It has become part of what I expect from a phone. It's much more a quality of life issue than a feature-bullet-list issue to be honest.
At this point, I couldn't switch to Android if I wanted to...
I'll go through my last week of usage, and maybe someone here can tell me if my conclusions are off-base, and I would be just fine on a competitor's device.
I've made a list, and I think it makes the most sense to categorize the apps and go through them one by one:
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My mornings aren't fun, I'm not a morning person by any stretch of the imagination. I use an app called MotionX Sleep to wake me up. Unlike other apps, MotionX Sleep does not need to be run in the foreground in order to track my sleep cycle. Here's an example of the output:
The app is actually a full replacement of the Jawbone Up I used to use, which was iOS only, but without the hardware issues. It tracks my steps throughout the day, and can nudge me when it detects I've been sitting still for too long. While cool, I don't use those last two features.
The other morning app I use is Place Clock. I've configured this app to set off a series of alarms if it detects I'm oversleeping for work. The alarms will go off at the predetermined times, only if I am still at home. I've also programmed a few alarms to detect when I've taken my lunch break, and go off after I've been gone for 30 minutes, a reminder to get back to work
----------
At work I use a few apps to help my productivity, most notably AudioNote. I constantly find myself in long meetings with 100 things to write down, and 15 tasks assigned to me. AudioNote records my meetings, and syncs them with my written notes. When going back through my notes, I click on something I wrote down, and the app plays back what was being said at that time. Makes it much easier to decipher my notes and remember exactly what I need to do.
For quick tasks I need to perform throughout the day, I use Clear. It's by far the easiest and quickest task application I've found, and the only one in the AppStore that satisfied my girlfriend's requirements in a task app. I have multiple projects, with multiple tasks within each project, and I can see the completed tasks crossed out at the bottom of each list.
For more long-term tasks, that require lots of notes, I use Pocket Informant. It syncs with my iPad and my online Toodledo account. This is the first app I open up at work, as it intelligently combines my tasks and my work-calendar. Oh yea, iOS seamlessly links with the work calendar system, VPN and Wifi. I remember some Android co-workers having trouble with that, don't think they were able to do it.
Lastly, I've programmed some Prowl integration with our ticketing system. Whenever something is assigned to me, or something is added to the case, I immediately get a pop-up on my iPhone and iPad, informing me of the update. I can either dismiss the pop-up, or click the OK button, which will automatically launch Safari and load the referring case. I can't tell you how cool it is to hear the phone ring in the other room, know it's for you, and a few seconds later see your phone and tablet alarm go off, automatically linking you to the case.
I am also an active trader of the financial markets, I use Prowl to alert me of certain conditions in the market. I've set different alerts for different situations, and have marked some as URGENT, so it wakes me up even if it's during a time I've scheduled the Prowl app to not give me alerts. This ability is invaluable for a trader who has a day-job.
----------
On Monday I started watching a Youtube video of a Starcraft game-cast (Yes – I am a nerd) at work during the walk home for lunch. Upon arriving at home, I pushed one button and the video switched from my phone, to my HDTV via wireless Airplay. When my break ended, I pushed a button switching the feed back to my phone, and continued back to work.
On Tuesday I put my bluetooth headphones on, pushed a button and said “Play Iris”. Siri proceeded to look through my 64gig harddrive, looking for a song named Iris. When it didn't find it, it then searched through all of my songs from my home computer (matched by iTunes Match), to see if I've ever had that song. It found the song in my iCloud account and started streaming it to my headphones. Within a few seconds of saying “Play Iris”, it was playing.
When I got home, I pushed one button and the song feed switched from my headphones, over to my surround sound system. Everything was seamless. I don't even have to think about when I left work and if I've been gone for too long, Place Clock handles that for me
----------
This is one of those make-or-break categories. I can't always have my DSLR with me, so I need the camera that's always with me to be something I'd want to use. As a result, there are a few apps I cannot be without.
iCloud – All of my photos automatically backed up to the cloud, and my last 1000 photos syned to my computer and iPad is amazing.
HDR Photo Camera – This app takes three photos in under a second, each at different exposure levels. I can either choose the one I like best, or use an HDR processing app to merge them together. I like this app better than others, because it also takes a normally exposed photo. That way if the HDR photos are too extreme to be usable, you'll still have the normal photo to use
All HDR apps I've tried on all platforms have been too slow, taking a long time to both process the scene, take the photos, then finish it up so I can take more shots. This app is in a class of it's own.
Make sure to click on the gear on the bottom right -> Advanced Settings -> Low Light Bracketing -> ON, for the best results.
Slow Shutter Cam – Low light photography almost isn't worth it without this app, it's that good. Last weekend I was at a romantic dim-lit restaurant with the girlfriend, and was able to hand-hold a long shutter-speed photo of us, without using the flash. If the flash is needed, we could have used it, but the natural-light scene really captured the mood of the restaurant. Even if one of us moved during the shot, the app gives you a slider so I can move to a point of the exposure where we weren't moving, and save the shot.
Pro HDR – iCameraHDR – The two best HDR apps I've seen anywhere. I've yet to see HDR processing done easier, or better than in these two apps.
AutoStitch – The same app I've been using for years on the Desktop, now has a mobile app. Autostitch can output your Panorama at up to 18 magapixels, more than enough for the 20x30 prints I've made
360 Panorama – Creates a 3D virtual photo that lets the user pan around the photo. Combined with the Gyroscope, it's errie how realistic it is. Definitely conveys the feeling that you're *in* the picture.
iPhoto – The best mobile photo editor. As if that weren't enough, it lets you create awesome online photo journals to share, here's a sample:
https://www.icloud.com/journals/sample/
BigLens – This is the app that really changed how I look at mobile photography. It lets you easily add Depth of Field to a photo, as if it were taken with an expensive DSLR.
645 PRO – The closest thing to RAW photography you're going to see on a mobile device (uncompressed TIFF)
FilterStorm – The best implementation of layers I've seen on a mobile device.
Other photography apps I couldn't do without – NightCap, Snapseed, PhotoForge2, ColorSplash, Photogene2, Retouch, LensLight, LensFlare, AntiCrop, Rays, Light, GroupShot, AutoPainter, Hipstamatic, Instagram, ChromaCam, PicFrame, Fast Camera, Mozaikr
Here are some of my shots...
Original (normal Camera app)
Added DOF
Cropped
A friend sent me a photo:
I removed the tree for fun (10 second job) and added DOF
Another one I worked on:
Original
I added DOF and some sunrays through the window:
Here are some from well known iPhoneographer Souichi Furusho:
Here are some links to his galleries:
http://www.eyeem.com/u/3725
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sfurusho/
And a link for other inspiring iPhone shots:
http://www.iphoneography.com/journal/tag/through-the-lens-of-an-iphone
----------
At this point, I couldn't switch to Android if I wanted to...
I'll go through my last week of usage, and maybe someone here can tell me if my conclusions are off-base, and I would be just fine on a competitor's device.
I've made a list, and I think it makes the most sense to categorize the apps and go through them one by one:
----------
MORNING
My mornings aren't fun, I'm not a morning person by any stretch of the imagination. I use an app called MotionX Sleep to wake me up. Unlike other apps, MotionX Sleep does not need to be run in the foreground in order to track my sleep cycle. Here's an example of the output:

The app is actually a full replacement of the Jawbone Up I used to use, which was iOS only, but without the hardware issues. It tracks my steps throughout the day, and can nudge me when it detects I've been sitting still for too long. While cool, I don't use those last two features.
The other morning app I use is Place Clock. I've configured this app to set off a series of alarms if it detects I'm oversleeping for work. The alarms will go off at the predetermined times, only if I am still at home. I've also programmed a few alarms to detect when I've taken my lunch break, and go off after I've been gone for 30 minutes, a reminder to get back to work
----------
WORK
At work I use a few apps to help my productivity, most notably AudioNote. I constantly find myself in long meetings with 100 things to write down, and 15 tasks assigned to me. AudioNote records my meetings, and syncs them with my written notes. When going back through my notes, I click on something I wrote down, and the app plays back what was being said at that time. Makes it much easier to decipher my notes and remember exactly what I need to do.
For quick tasks I need to perform throughout the day, I use Clear. It's by far the easiest and quickest task application I've found, and the only one in the AppStore that satisfied my girlfriend's requirements in a task app. I have multiple projects, with multiple tasks within each project, and I can see the completed tasks crossed out at the bottom of each list.
For more long-term tasks, that require lots of notes, I use Pocket Informant. It syncs with my iPad and my online Toodledo account. This is the first app I open up at work, as it intelligently combines my tasks and my work-calendar. Oh yea, iOS seamlessly links with the work calendar system, VPN and Wifi. I remember some Android co-workers having trouble with that, don't think they were able to do it.
Lastly, I've programmed some Prowl integration with our ticketing system. Whenever something is assigned to me, or something is added to the case, I immediately get a pop-up on my iPhone and iPad, informing me of the update. I can either dismiss the pop-up, or click the OK button, which will automatically launch Safari and load the referring case. I can't tell you how cool it is to hear the phone ring in the other room, know it's for you, and a few seconds later see your phone and tablet alarm go off, automatically linking you to the case.
I am also an active trader of the financial markets, I use Prowl to alert me of certain conditions in the market. I've set different alerts for different situations, and have marked some as URGENT, so it wakes me up even if it's during a time I've scheduled the Prowl app to not give me alerts. This ability is invaluable for a trader who has a day-job.
----------
LUNCH
On Monday I started watching a Youtube video of a Starcraft game-cast (Yes – I am a nerd) at work during the walk home for lunch. Upon arriving at home, I pushed one button and the video switched from my phone, to my HDTV via wireless Airplay. When my break ended, I pushed a button switching the feed back to my phone, and continued back to work.
On Tuesday I put my bluetooth headphones on, pushed a button and said “Play Iris”. Siri proceeded to look through my 64gig harddrive, looking for a song named Iris. When it didn't find it, it then searched through all of my songs from my home computer (matched by iTunes Match), to see if I've ever had that song. It found the song in my iCloud account and started streaming it to my headphones. Within a few seconds of saying “Play Iris”, it was playing.
When I got home, I pushed one button and the song feed switched from my headphones, over to my surround sound system. Everything was seamless. I don't even have to think about when I left work and if I've been gone for too long, Place Clock handles that for me
----------
PHOTOGRAPHY
This is one of those make-or-break categories. I can't always have my DSLR with me, so I need the camera that's always with me to be something I'd want to use. As a result, there are a few apps I cannot be without.
iCloud – All of my photos automatically backed up to the cloud, and my last 1000 photos syned to my computer and iPad is amazing.
HDR Photo Camera – This app takes three photos in under a second, each at different exposure levels. I can either choose the one I like best, or use an HDR processing app to merge them together. I like this app better than others, because it also takes a normally exposed photo. That way if the HDR photos are too extreme to be usable, you'll still have the normal photo to use
Make sure to click on the gear on the bottom right -> Advanced Settings -> Low Light Bracketing -> ON, for the best results.
Slow Shutter Cam – Low light photography almost isn't worth it without this app, it's that good. Last weekend I was at a romantic dim-lit restaurant with the girlfriend, and was able to hand-hold a long shutter-speed photo of us, without using the flash. If the flash is needed, we could have used it, but the natural-light scene really captured the mood of the restaurant. Even if one of us moved during the shot, the app gives you a slider so I can move to a point of the exposure where we weren't moving, and save the shot.
Pro HDR – iCameraHDR – The two best HDR apps I've seen anywhere. I've yet to see HDR processing done easier, or better than in these two apps.
AutoStitch – The same app I've been using for years on the Desktop, now has a mobile app. Autostitch can output your Panorama at up to 18 magapixels, more than enough for the 20x30 prints I've made
360 Panorama – Creates a 3D virtual photo that lets the user pan around the photo. Combined with the Gyroscope, it's errie how realistic it is. Definitely conveys the feeling that you're *in* the picture.
iPhoto – The best mobile photo editor. As if that weren't enough, it lets you create awesome online photo journals to share, here's a sample:
https://www.icloud.com/journals/sample/
BigLens – This is the app that really changed how I look at mobile photography. It lets you easily add Depth of Field to a photo, as if it were taken with an expensive DSLR.
645 PRO – The closest thing to RAW photography you're going to see on a mobile device (uncompressed TIFF)
FilterStorm – The best implementation of layers I've seen on a mobile device.
Other photography apps I couldn't do without – NightCap, Snapseed, PhotoForge2, ColorSplash, Photogene2, Retouch, LensLight, LensFlare, AntiCrop, Rays, Light, GroupShot, AutoPainter, Hipstamatic, Instagram, ChromaCam, PicFrame, Fast Camera, Mozaikr
Here are some of my shots...
Original (normal Camera app)

Added DOF

Cropped

A friend sent me a photo:

I removed the tree for fun (10 second job) and added DOF

Another one I worked on:
Original

I added DOF and some sunrays through the window:

Here are some from well known iPhoneographer Souichi Furusho:

Here are some links to his galleries:
http://www.eyeem.com/u/3725
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sfurusho/
And a link for other inspiring iPhone shots:
http://www.iphoneography.com/journal/tag/through-the-lens-of-an-iphone
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