Size. As long as my iPhone mini is working, I’ll keep it. My next phone will probably be a Fairphone though. Gotta deal with the vendor lock in somehow, but maybe my mini will survive long enough for the EU efforts to have shown some results? One can dream.
After exclusively using android for 10 years I switched to an iPhone. Only regret is not doing it sooner.
Yeah, I got tired of being the product. It used to be Google phones were significantly cheaper, that’s just not nearly as much a thing anymore.
Then you have to take the additional steps of finding privacy focused roms etc… It just wasn’t worth the savings to me. There’s things about Android I miss, but the fact that my phone is good for years and years is such a game changer.
I have been gradually transitioning over to proton for additional privacy and I’ve basically completely divorced myself from Google at this point.
Work issues Apple phones, I have no choice in professional life short of finding another job.
My six year old iPhone still receives software updates
Good to hear, but I don’t think I will have a phone for as long as six years, because for one thing the battery probably will have become unusable by then - they can only be charged so many times.
You know you can replace the battery, right? Like, 10 minutes with some basic repair knowledge and you can have it done. I usually do a battery replacement on my iPhone ever 2 years just because it will inevitably slow down and the battery life becomes unusable.
No way. You need more than 10 minutes and way more than “basic” repair knowledge.
Iphones are by design extremely hard to repair.
Proprietary screws, glued in components (which needs to be removed and reapplied) and battery management components which need to be resoldered to the new battery so that the phone accepts it.
Its been a while since i have repaired an iphone but i doubt its gotten better.
If you can do it in 10 minutes I will gove you 10 bucks though.
I’m a former sysadmin (10 years) with 1 year spent working as cellphone repair prior to that. I could bang out batteries all day long for replacing. It’s not rocket science.
Save your money. $10 doesn’t even cover my morning coffee.
You misrepresent the time, tools and knowledge needed to do those repairs.
“10 minutes and some basic repair knowledge” is still misleading even if you are a former sysadmin of 10 years.
Enjoy your overpriced coffee!
And that’s boring plus ruining the sealing
As an android user, I looked at the phone list for iOS 18, and I was jealous.
But updates for what? You gain very little from security because nobody is targeting you and no new major features, so what’s it really worth? Maybe I’m wrong about my perception of those things though… I’ve used 2 androids for around 8 years each no problem.
Updates to secure the operating systems are worth it. Apple has a fantastic track record of supporting the older phones. It shows they’ve really planned ahead and thought about the entire lifecycle of their device. They will also accept your old phone after its life is complete and responsibly recycle it.
Correct. You are wrong about your perception.
You gain very little from security because nobody is targeting you…
It’s not about being targeted, it’s about being caught in the big fishing net that scammers are throwing. You don’t have to be targeted to have security concerns.
If a phone isn’t receiving regular security updates, I won’t use it. My Pixel 5a just got replaced because it’s coming up on end of support. My new Pixel has 7 years of support, so I feel a lot better about keeping it longer.
My Pixel 4a has LineageOS on it, and is installing an update from two days ago right now.
Fair, but I meant updates from the original manufacturer.
It is unfortunate that manufacturers, Google, and app makers have all engaged in behaviors that make running a third-party OS less viable for most people.
Sure, the general OS is getting security updates but hardware-specific updates have stopped.
That’s true, but hardware drivers are a much smaller attack surface area.
Google and Samsung now provide updates for 7 years, and Fairphone provides updates for 8 years.
From what I can tell, Apple doesn’t promise a set number of years for updates. The iPhone x got about 5 years of updates before support was dropped, but Apple will occasionally give security updates to older devices if they’re severe enough.
With Fairphone 5, they guarantee at least 8 years of software updates but they will actually try 10 years! [1]
And Apple was recently forced to disclose their software support commitment in the UK due to regulations. Apple guarantees at least 5 years of software updates, which is less than Google, Samsung, and Fairphone. Apple is no longer the leader in software support! [2]
I went from an iPhone 7 to an iPhone 13 . I had replaced the battery on the iPhone 7 already, it still was getting updates but physically the charge port started wearing out and the NFC stopped working .
Was a good run, phone was super reliable needed no tweaking to work.
I have also been using iPhones since the iPhone 3G. Long before it existed on Android it was very easy to movie everything from your old phone to the new one, first via iTunes desktop then later via iCloud.
Family sharing for apps and family backups pooled in iCloud is also very convenient.
This is why I made the switch from android to iPhone too
It’s mostly that apple products are a pain to use with non apple ones. They even have a proprietary image format so something as simple as bulk copying your photos over can be a pain (each has to be manually exported through the GUI).
HEIC is not proprietary.
Select the photos you want -> Save to Files (will convert to JPG) or Export Unmodified Originals (will stay HEIC)
As someone who used to make apps, but run Android myself, here are the things I usually hear
- App quality tends to be worse on Android
- I have a MacBook, airpods, and Apple watch
- I don’t know if a good Android phone that has the same camera quality and longevity as an iPhone
The subtle reason is also status. People feel rich/different with an iPhone
- I have had a lot of bad experiences with paid iOS apps, very little with free apps on Android - and even if so, there are dozens of FOSS alternatives
- Even worse
- Depends on which phone you choose; my 200€ Moto does have a pretty bad camera, but pretty good specs overall
I considered the jump to iPhone and did some testing on one of my kids iPhones. The common apps were essentially identical to my android, but the weird thing is free apps on iPhone all seem to just captive webpages or some other crap quality thing. You have to pay for good apps on iPhone. On android the free stuff is consistently better. Just my experience.
Apple def doesn’t have the status symbol effect that it used to.
It’s still there for some other Apple products, especially outside the US. I went to a generic electronics shop to buy some headphones and mentioned they’re for my new MacBook, and the worker replied “Congratulations”
Then everyone clapped
c/nothingeverhappens
Basically it’s habit. I’ve been on the iPhone since the “3G” (2008), which also has brought me to many other Apple products.
I absolutely hate the interface. The apps just feel cheap. So do the phones
I absolutely hate the interface.
Huh? At least it can be changed.
But no matter how you change it, the overall experience in Android is inconsistent and sub par. Little things like flickering between switching apps or janky animation when the keyboard shows up is what causes poor Android experience.
Customisability is the bane of clean and consistent UI.
I trust Apple more than Google. May be misplaced faith, but that’s the primary reason.
Using Google services is not a strict requirement to run Android. There are whole online communities around unGoogled Android.
I’ve long considered making this switch from iPhone to an ungoogled Android device. What always bothered me is still basically having to install proprietary apps from a Play Store adjacent source. Like the Aurora store is basically just the Play Store logged under someone else’s account. I know you can side load but that’d be a pain to maintain updates. Wish there was like a Flathub-like store on Android I could use instead.
Its called F-Droid
There’s no proprietary apps on F-Droid. It doesn’t even have Signal which is open source.
I’m not sure what’s your pain point then? With Aurora you can install and automatically update proprietary apps. You can use anonymous accounts so you are not officially logged in (does this still work?). If you want FOSS, then fdroid. There’s more updating tools such as unobtanium, but seems what you want is Aurora.
I’d just like to be completely free of Google’s app distribution infrastructure if possible. I’ll have to look into unobtanium. I haven’t heard of that one previously.
Google s is the largest, but not the only one. Amazon, Samsung and some OEMs have their own app stores too.
There are alson sites that archive and distribute apks, like Apkmirror.
I have a tablet logged to nothing (as in no account, not the OEM) and all my apps come from fdroid, obtanium or apkmirror.
It started as an experiment, and honestly it’s (for me) not a big hurdle, but an app store would make things easier, that’s for sure.
It is
Apple has always at least kept your data semi-private from everyone except them. It’s not perfect and it’s still putting way too much trust in Apple, but it’s preferable to Google selling your data to the highest bidder at will.
Ya, android only makes sense if you degoogle.
Same here, try to de-google my life while sitting comfortably in the Apple ecosystem as the happy hypocrite that I am. But the ecosystem is also the main reason to stay, not that it is hard to get out, but it is just a vastly superior experience if you don’t want to spend unlimited hours to customize every goddamn setting. Also, the ecosystem’s main feature ‘continuity’ is unmatched on other systems.
- Cross-device integration/the Apple ecosystem. I use a Mac for my userland computing, and the ease with which it works together with my phone is a killer feature. Also in this category is integration with my family’s Apple devices.
- The software ecosystem. Apple’s first party apps and services are really nice across the board, and once again the ecosystem integration is the single biggest reason I use an iPhone. (the user facing apps, at least–Xcode and everything related to it are hot trash).
- Purely subjective, but Android is ugly to me. The hardware, the OS(es), and the apps just look bad to my eye. The iPhone looks and feels nice in a way that I haven’t experienced in an Android product.
- I don’t trust Google and I can’t be bothered to spend any time configuring my phone. I spend too much of my life installing shit and tinkering with config already; I want a phone that just works out of the box.
Pretty much the same for me. I try to do zero business with Google. I tried android several times and it just felt like a rough draft of a real product.
Never trust Google. But do you trust Apple?
More than Google tbh
That’s my take. I really dislike Google. I avoid using anything Google. I am not saying apple is perfect but they are not Google
Yes. For sure. People downvote you, but you are correct.
I switched from Google after talking to a data engineer who was lamenting how little data he could get from iPhone users compared to Google. Google gave him everything. I work for a company that buys advertising data from Google. We don’t from Apple.
Maybe they are both bad, but it’s not nearly equivalent.
Locked down bootloaders. If it’s not my device, I’m going for the prettiest walled garden. I was with Android from Droid X until Galaxy S8; not being able to flash my own ROM on the S8 was the reason I left for an iPhone.
I also don’t want to have to sysadmin my mom’s Android phone that was constantly having bullshit apps installed. Apple’s walled garden makes my life as family sysadmin significantly easier.
As a former sysadmin and MDM specialist I stay(ed) loyal to Apple because MDM quickly makes you realize what a cluster android is. Some phones allow for certain lockdowns in one profile while other Android OS’ wouldn’t be able to recognize it. Knox was attempting to do something akin to iOS for MDM, but even still it was missing a ton of features.
That seems like a concern for the IT department of a large organization, but not something end users should care about.
It’s troubling seeing the amount of brands moving from freely unlockable, to waiting periods with registration, to all-out blocking unlocking. I am happy I double checked the unlock status before purchases an ASUS Zenfone last year right before they took their unlocking servers offline with just a marketing promise they would be back (they never came back online, & they paid out a lawsuit this years already over it).
So first, I will say that the phrase “stopping me from switching” kind of implies that I’m looking to switch but can’t.
I used to have android between the iPhone 4s and the iPhone X. Back then, there were significant features that I wanted that I couldn’t get from iOS. Tho now there isn’t much that android has that I don’t feel I have access to that is significant .
As for what keeps me around and happy with iPhone is
- I’m in software engineering and I have always been mac person. I know windows has had the Linux subsystem for a long time now but it feels like a new feature and clunkier than max being freebsd based. My current job forces me to use windows, and I hate it but it’s been 4 years, so I’ve adjusted. That said, the Mac/iPhone/iPad interoperability is great
- I love my Apple Watch. I’m sure Android wearable have gotten better but the integration feels complete and well supported. I don’t have to worry about my phone getting updated and my watch stopping working
- The find my network is pretty great. I know there are other solutions but airtags are great. All of my devices also have seamless location tracking and sharing out of the box.
- I pay for the TB of iCloud storage (it’s outrageously priced but I’m used to it now). It’s great to have all my devices able to just all be using it. Latest addition to my icloud usage was using the Logitech Circleview doorbell and camera. It saves directly to icloud. I don’t have to worry about storage and I also don’t have to worry about the company sharing my footage with cops cause the data is stored in my icloud drive.
- it’s not flawless nor perfect but knowing that there is app review before something gets published makes me feel better about the entire ecosystem. Kind of like how a bouncer at a bar let’s ya know that when you go inside, the riffraff had to at least sneak in
- apple pay works great for me
- having all my devices made by the same company is a pro for me but I know others might see it as a con. But my Mac, iPad, iPhone, Apple Watch, Apple TV, HomePods, AirPods, etc all just being from apple means I have less to keep up with. I don’t have to worry about a matrix of who makes what and when it’s gonna get updated or dropped
- resell/trade in value is great cause old devices have such a long life due to software updates
- my shit just works and I’m happy
- I know it might be contraversal but I trust Apple. Be it them having a pretty good record on user privacy, or them not allowing bloatware cause of user experience, or them not cramming AI into shit the same way everyone else did (even with the upcoming IOS, their implementation seems well thought out and conservative
- backups and transferring to new devices has been completely painless (which I do suprisingly often)
Over the years, I’ve gone from being a major tech enthusiast to now not wanting to have to futz around when I’m not on the clock. I still like getting tech and adding it to my home, but I don’t get in the weeds anymore. I just want my shit to work. I want my stuff to just work for my family.
I dunno, tweaking and futzing used to be important to me. But now confidence and simplicity matter more to me now
- Live Photos. I love having a little video attached to every photo. I wish high end mirrorless cameras would do this.
- I can use my phone without and Google products. Apple Maps is especially useful. YouTube and Google Voice are my last two I haven’t ditched. yt-dlp and PeerTube with help, and I’m looking into VOIP providers.
- Android has motion photos, which i think is on by default and is more or less the same as live photos.
- This is just a coincidence, I know Apple maps is good these days, but just the other day my friend was using Apple maps to guide us and it hallucinated a restaurant wholesale. Like, this location for this restaurant has never existed as far as we can tell.
Apple Maps and Google maps seem about the same to me. But I can use Apple Maps without Google. I installed but haven’t given Organic Maps a fair shot yet.
Live Photos! They’re like the portraits in Harry Potter
Girls judge you harsher if they see that green bubble
Should be a plus as that would be an instant red flag.
Gen z spotted?
I think (hope) it’s sarcasm
My job.
