Why iPhone and not Android?

[baba]

Through my job I've had a free Blackberry and service for years. This may soon change and I'll be looking for a new phone. I have an iPod Touch so I'm familiar with some of the iPhone features, but am not familiar at all with the many phones running Android software. Two big comparisons I hear are that Android based phones are much more customizable but more apps are available for the iPhone.

What should I know about the advantages/disadvantages of each before I pull the trigger? Also, do Android phones have bloated synching software like iPhones?

Sell me...

[EricF]

I had a Motorola Droid X that I really liked. The level of customization on the screens is better than the iPhone, and the larger screen was appreciated. However, putting music from iTunes on my Droid X was cumbersome and irritating.

When my Droid X died, I repaced it with a HTC Rezound. It was a nice phone, but the size of it was never comfortable in my hand, and I loading music was never successful.

I returned the Rezound and got an iPhone 4S. I'm happy as hell with it. Although I can't customize the screens as much, I don't find that to be a big deal. I thought I was going to be bugged by the smaller screen size, but I'm not at all. The iPhone interface seems much more intuitive and efficient. The iPhone camera is probably the best phone-camera available. A big thing for me is having my phone and music in one device.

[canadian_man_44]

iPhones are returned with an actual defect 0.02% of the time. The closest device to that is Blackberrys at 5%. Everything else just gets worse from there. That would be enough for me to chose the iPhone.
Just for reference, I do Tech Support on all Cellular devices for one of the biggest Cellular providers in Canada so I see them all with all the troubles.

[i_got_a_mohawk]

Originally Posted by canadian_man_44

iPhones are returned with an actual defect 0.02% of the time. The closest device to that is Blackberrys at 5%. Everything else just gets worse from there. That would be enough for me to chose the iPhone.
Just for reference, I do Tech Support on all Cellular devices for one of the biggest Cellular providers in Canada so I see them all with all the troubles.

I think they may be fibbing a bit about that figure. Either that or my friends are really unlucky.

I know 3 people who have had to get iPhones replaced (1x 3S, 2x 4) because the phone bricked itself (there are actually another couple that needed them replaced, but that was from dropping them and cracking the screen, so I'm not counting that, could happen with any phone).

I couldn't afford an iPhone and went with an HTC Sensation XE. Not had any real problems, my only complaint would be that the latest update moved about a number of the settings controls so they were trickier to find, but not catastrophic.

Go with what you feel works better for you and for what feels better in hand. I'm not a huge fan of Apple and was pretty disappointed with the iPod touch that I got when my old mp3 player died, though I did consider the iPhone (so many people using it, there has to be a reason).

[MJ5150]

If there was one device for Android, then I suspect you would see numbers like the iPhone for defects.

I like having a physical keyboard, and I like rooting my Droid3, so I'm an Android fan. No hate or dislike for Apple. We have more Apple devices in our home than Windows and Android combined.

Part of it for me is I am slightly turned off by Apple in general with the iPhone....we're making one model, two colors, and we'll decide what carriers can have it. No thanks, but I do like your iPad, iMac, and Air.

I think you need more technical skills to operate an Android than iPhone, and you need to be careful what model you choose. Many carriers are rushing devices to market that would benefit from more r&d.

-Mike

[XtreO]

Android has lots more apps thorugh appstore than iPhone does, as they don't censor the content nearly as much. Android phones are also much more customizable than an iPhone like you said. You can pretty much find a widget for anything.

Doing simple tasks like changing screen brightness and turning on bluethooth therefore takes a lot less time.

But it should also be said that the gained utility and customizable solutions comes at a price. That is the simplicity and elegance of the iPhone interface. My mom had a droid, then went over to iPhone and she 'gets' that phone much easier. If you are semicompetent with electronic devices, it shouldn't be a problem though. But you will have to sit down for an hour and 'get to know' an Android. You won't have to do that with an iPhone.

[iamlowsound]

Wait until the new one comes out, it will have a bigger screen. I have zero complaints about my iPhone 4.

lowsound

[Lee H]

I live in the mountains. AT&T is our best choice for service, so we were kind of screwed when the IPhone came out, and was primarily for verizon.
The droid worked better with the service available, so that is what we got used to

[Klopp18]

I find androids messy and confusing. I like apples neatness to their phones. It's so simple. I don't think I can change to another phone after I got my iPhone. Don't androids get virus's too?

[canadian_man_44]

Originally Posted by i_got_a_mohawk

I think they may be fibbing a bit about that figure. Either that or my friends are really unlucky.

I know 3 people who have had to get iPhones replaced (1x 3S, 2x 4) because the phone bricked itself (there are actually another couple that needed them replaced, but that was from dropping them and cracking the screen, so I'm not counting that, could happen with any phone).

I'm not talking Apple's numbers, although they are very similar to ours.
On a day to day basis, I take anywhere from 40 to 60 calls a day pretty evenly spread out over all devices. Most calls are generally just because stupid people buy smartphones. Some of them are legitimate issues. Few are unfix-able issues.
I've done one swap for a defective iPhone this month. Just this week I've done 5 swaps on Androids and had 3 Androids that the customers refused to swap because they didn't want that type of device anymore due to ongoing issues with the software. I've also swapped out a few defective Blackberrys.
My personal numbers speak volumes to me at least....without even factoring in the spreadsheets that are available to all employees in regards to all devices swapped out and the reason for it.

[Richenbacher]

I used to have an LG Optimus and I hated it. It was slow and the apps always force-closed. But I do stress that it was certainly a cheaper android phone and perhaps not a fair representation of the system. I managed to get an iPhone 3GS off a mate who was getting an upgrade for an incredible £90 which I'm typing on right now. It's great, everything's super fast and easy to use. One thing I must mention- like you I had an iPod touch beforehand and I found the iPhone to be a massive upgrade from it- so much faster, just generally better.
IMHO, iPhone is your best bet.

[Marial]

Check out a Samsung Galaxy Droid and compare side by side to an iPhone. Proceed to purchasing whichever you like best.

Personally, I miss the days when phones were just phones, but I'm a Luddite and miss rotary dial...

[etoncrow]

Originally Posted by Lee H

I live in the mountains. AT&T is our best choice for service, so we were kind of screwed when the IPhone came out, and was primarily for verizon.
The droid worked better with the service available, so that is what we got used to

+1 yep

[VanillaThundah]

It's a diff'rent strokes thing in some ways. In regards to the better record for defective iPhones, it's a LOT easier to maintain high QC when a company manufactures only one phone product...but the downside is that if you don't like the iPhone, you are SOL.

I chose the HTC Droid Incredible (the first one) when I purchased a smart phone. I like the customizable pages, larger variety of free apps, and the ability to add in a larger SD card for additional storage. To put music on I just take the microSD card out, put it in my PC's card reader slot, copy/paste my music into the folder on the card and boom...done =)

[fenderphil]

I have had android phones since the first tmobile G1..

I'm about to switch to an Iphone after almost 5 years due to the frequent OS upgrades that always make my devices slower and more frustrating.

There's not enough 'controls' for the droid softwares..

[Pilgrim]

We use a lot of Android phones at my university. They perform well, there are more apps than you can ever use, and tons of apps DON'T cost anything. I also have observed that the HTC phones we use are more sensitive than the iPhones a couple of people have - we get reception in places their iPhones don't.

I run a technology unit and I'm very happy with the Android system.

[keiththebassist]

I have the iphone 4 and love it. It's faaaarrrr more user friendly than it's competitors. So if you're not super savvy with all the high tech junk it's the way to go. That's been IMO the biggest reason that Apple is worth more than some entire countries economies: Because they now how to make things simple so that non tech people can still do high tech things...

[baba]

Originally Posted by keiththebassist

I have the iphone 4 and love it. It's faaaarrrr more user friendly than it's competitors. So if you're not super savvy with all the high tech junk it's the way to go. That's been IMO the biggest reason that Apple is worth more than some entire countries economies: Because they now how to make things simple so that non tech people can still do high tech things...

Well, here's the thing. I am very technical, and my day job is in the IT/telecom industry. I really don't need to tinker for the sake of tinkering. I just need my phone to be user friendly.

That said, iPhone seems like the best bet, but with an iPhone am I missing anything other than being able to configure my interface to look different and be organized differently? I often hear that Android is more flexible, but I've never heard anyone articulate what this flexibility translates to on a daily use basis. I need phone, internet, quality pics, apps, and email.

[Kwesi]

I love Android but I'll be damned if I haven't had a rocky relationship with my phone over the past year or so. I had to take it back to the Verizon store maybe 3 times before things were cleared up and I ended being the one to fix the issues anyway (with various apps).

My brother had to have his phone replaced THREE TIMES within a month for various issues that weren't his fault in the least. His latest phone developed issues too but it's out of warranty so were just waiting for an upgrade.

When Androids work, they're fantastic, when they're at anything less than 100% it will be VERY obvious. I really do miss when my phone would just work no matter what but I like having the conveniences of a smartphone so I'm thinking that if the iPhone 5 impresses me, they'll get my money when I get a new phone.

Pro-tip: don't drop cash on a new phone just yet. The iPhone 5 is likely to be right around the corner (probably aroudn August-ish) and I'm betting it will be 4G.

[colcifer]

Originally Posted by baba

Well, here's the thing. I am very technical, and my day job is in the IT/telecom industry. I really don't need to tinker for the sake of tinkering. I just need my phone to be user friendly.

That said, iPhone seems like the best bet, but with an iPhone am I missing anything other than being able to configure my interface to look different and be organized differently? I often hear that Android is more flexible, but I've never heard anyone articulate what this flexibility translates to on a daily use basis. I need phone, internet, quality pics, apps, and email.

Go into a store and try a few different phones. See for yourself.