Android user thinking about switching to iphone, thoughts?

[pete6032]

I have never used a iPhone before, nor do I own any Apple products. I'm thinking about retiring my Moto X4 and switching to an iPhone, particularly because my entire family uses them and it would be nice to have iMessage and it seems like the iPhone call quality is much better than my current phone. Has anyone here made the switch and do you have an opinion on which you prefer, Android or iPhone? I used to be so enthusiastic about Android because I could root the phone, install ROMs, install an Adblocker, get a customized keyboard etc., but now I don't do any of those things. I don't use my phone for anything more than calls, texting, and web surfing 90% of the time. I play a few board games on my Android, but nothing graphic intensive. I take the occasional picture but camera quality isn't that big of a deal for me. Seems like an entry-level iPhone might be a better option for me if I plan to buy a device and hold onto it for a few years. Thoughts?

 

[repoman0]

install an Adblocker

Safari on iOS has adblocker support for what it’s worth. I use Adguard and Firefox Focus and together they kill pretty much everything.

 

[fralexandr]

I use both, my work phone is an Iphone 6 and my personal phone has always been Android. I've historically used the HTC m8 and Galaxy S7 & S20 FE. As I'm primarily a Windows user, I find Android to be more intuitive. For example on my android phone if I want to attach something in an email, I would create a message and attach it with the dedicated attach button in the email client. If I wanted to do that on Iphone, I would create a message click a < button in the keyboard interface where it displays suggested words and then attach it.

A budget Iphone is a good option, but It does take time to figure out Apple's UI. My dad made the switch from a Galaxy S7 to an Iphone SE 2020 because my mom wanted him to, and he was pretty frustrated for the first few weeks.

 

[mikeymikec]

My Moto G5's phone call sound quality is significantly worse than the Nokia 8.3 I replaced it with.

 

[manly]

I have never used a iPhone before, nor do I own any Apple products. I'm thinking about retiring my Moto X4 and switching to an iPhone, particularly because my entire family uses them and it would be nice to have iMessage and it seems like the iPhone call quality is much better than my current phone. Has anyone here made the switch and do you have an opinion on which you prefer, Android or iPhone? I used to be so enthusiastic about Android because I could root the phone, install ROMs, install an Adblocker, get a customized keyboard etc., but now I don't do any of those things. I don't use my phone for anything more than calls, texting, and web surfing 90% of the time. I play a few board games on my Android, but nothing graphic intensive. I take the occasional picture but camera quality isn't that big of a deal for me. Seems like an entry-level iPhone might be a better option for me if I plan to buy a device and hold onto it for a few years. Thoughts?

An iPhone is highly likely to get about 6 years of software updates (from original date of release). Heck, Apple is still updating a few devices from 2013. It seems that most consumers don't care about updates, but 0-day exploits do exist. If a smartphone is the most important computing device you use, wouldn't you want to keep it secure over time? Arguably the next best thing about iPhone is that Apple silicon is excellent, and is likely to hold up well over those 6 years of updates.

The main con is value, as you tend to pay a lot for a flagship iPhone. Still, it's not all bad as you can get a small-screen iPhone SE for $400 or a mid-range iPhone 13 for $700. If you amortize the price over 6 years of use, you'll find you aren't really spending a lot more than you'd spend on a new Android device every 3 to 4 years. If you want the small iPhone SE, I believe the rumors are they will be refreshing it in 2022.

I've been using Android for nearly a decade, and decided to stick with Samsung back in March. They'll update for 4 years, so I won't have to think about it for a while.

Edit:
Apple just released a security update for ancient devices:

Apple Releases iOS 12.5.5 Update for Older iPhones With Fix for Zero-Day Exploit

Apple today released an iOS 12.5.5 update for older iPhones and iPads that are not able to run the current version of iOS, iOS 15. The update can...

www.macrumors.com

 

[MrSquished]

I just look at an iPhones homescreen and it's just an inferior nasty interface that completely hampers the user.

I'll be getting a Google pixel 6 pro. 5 years of updates. Fuck that apple noise. Respectable product. Just not for anybody that wants to tinker in the slightest.

Lightning cable? Also dumb

 

[Commodus]

I have never used a iPhone before, nor do I own any Apple products. I'm thinking about retiring my Moto X4 and switching to an iPhone, particularly because my entire family uses them and it would be nice to have iMessage and it seems like the iPhone call quality is much better than my current phone. Has anyone here made the switch and do you have an opinion on which you prefer, Android or iPhone? I used to be so enthusiastic about Android because I could root the phone, install ROMs, install an Adblocker, get a customized keyboard etc., but now I don't do any of those things. I don't use my phone for anything more than calls, texting, and web surfing 90% of the time. I play a few board games on my Android, but nothing graphic intensive. I take the occasional picture but camera quality isn't that big of a deal for me. Seems like an entry-level iPhone might be a better option for me if I plan to buy a device and hold onto it for a few years. Thoughts?

I've used both platforms extensively, and I'm content to rely on an iPhone. If you really want one to join in iMessage and FaceTime chats, then it already makes sense — communicating with your family is more important than other bells and whistles.

Your situation also reminds me of something I once heard about the difference between platforms: Android is for people who like to do things to their phones, iOS is for people who like to do things with their phones. Customizability is great... but it also means you're spending hours getting your phone "just so" or troubleshooting odd firmware/software problems. At a certain point in your life that effort just isn't feasible or worthwhile, particularly when you're raising a young family.

If you do get an iPhone, I'd recommend at least an iPhone 11, and preferably a 12 or newer. The iPhone SE has good performance and a solid camera, but you probably wouldn't be happy with the battery life. That and the SE's design is clearly on the way out.

 

[fralexandr]

I dislike how all of the newer phones make it harder to turn off the phone... The physical button is now an on/assistant button and the only way to turn it off is with multiple buttons.

Restart your iPhone - Apple Support

Learn how to turn your iPhone off, then back on.

support.apple.com

The SE is the last iphone to make it simple.
On my s20fe it defaulted to bixby and there's a setting to make the power button either start bixby or display the shutdown menu....

I find it annoying that there's still no dedicated number row on the stock ios keyboard.

One thing I was impressed with on my iphone was apple carplay ran smoothly on the iphone 6 but android auto on my s7 which had superior hardware was clunky and laggy.

 

[Emma34]

I have never used a iPhone before, nor do I own any Apple products. I'm thinking about retiring my Moto X4 and switching to an iPhone, particularly because my entire family uses them and it would be nice to have iMessage and it seems like the iPhone call quality is much better than my current phone. Has anyone here made the switch and do you have an opinion on which you prefer, Android or iPhone? I used to be so enthusiastic about Android because I could root the phone, install ROMs, install an Adblocker, get a customized keyboard etc., but now I don't do any of those things. I don't use my phone for anything more than calls, texting, and web surfing 90% of the time. I play a few board games on my Android, but nothing graphic intensive. I take the occasional picture but camera quality isn't that big of a deal for me. Seems like an entry-level iPhone might be a better option for me if I plan to buy a device and hold onto it for a few years. Thoughts?

Hi, yeah no doubt in saying that iPhone is better than Android Phones because the features of iPhone can't beat other phones but somehow Android apps or features are also good and easy to use as compared to iPhone but if you want to change your phone for enjoying games on iPhone so, you can changed it.

 

[MrSquished]

btw I too used to root and do all sorts of stuff to my Android phones. Haven't in years. I do just like the Google Pixel naked android, using Nova Launcher just to dress it up. Just being able to customize the homescreens and the better notifications and being able to use the same USBC cable I use to charge other electronics is enough to keep me in the Android ecosystem.

 

[ch33zw1z]

I've been using both for a long time now, and I'm really starting to like the iphone more. I'm also considering switching my personal Android phone to iphone, probsy a 13.

I find the iphone more user friendly in general. I also find the charging port to me more sturdy than the USB c port on my Droid.

Accessories are easier to get as well, I really like OtterBox stuff and with droid you gotta double check and really confirm your android will be supported

 

[DaaQ]

The main thing for me is the top pull down screen. I use it so much I usually had to hand a customer their iPhone back to them and ask them to get to the wifi screen.

 

[Commodus]

The main thing for me is the top pull down screen. I use it so much I usually had to hand a customer their iPhone back to them and ask them to get to the wifi screen.

Not too difficult... on modern iPhones, just swipe down from the upper right (where the battery/signal indicators are) and you'll go right to Control Center. You can quickly toggle WiFi there, including a press-and-hold for more options.

 

[DaaQ]

Not too difficult... on modern iPhones, just swipe down from the upper right (where the battery/signal indicators are) and you'll go right to Control Center. You can quickly toggle WiFi there, including a press-and-hold for more options.

Thank you for this, it is very frustrating to try and help someone when you know what you need to do but don't know how to get there. I have never owned an iPhone or iPad, and my only experience with it is other people's devices. Trying to find where they put the settings app at. Seriously thanks.

Do you know what model this stops working on? I would assume earlier than 11 or maybe 9?

 

[Commodus]

Thank you for this, it is very frustrating to try and help someone when you know what you need to do but don't know how to get there. I have never owned an iPhone or iPad, and my only experience with it is other people's devices. Trying to find where they put the settings app at. Seriously thanks.

Welcome. If you need more than quick access, there's also the Settings app itself (it's a gray icon with gears on it).

 

[spdfreak]

Honestly, a lot of times it is the little "pebble in your shoe" stuff that drives you crazy with a device. I got the new Pixel 6 for 99.00 from T-mobile on a promo and it is nice but coming from my LG G6 with the dedicated fingerprint reader on the back, the phone is annoying as hell. The FP reader in the screen is slow and usually take at least a coupe of tries. Android 12 is nice and has a lot of features that the P6 does well. Having voicemail automatically transcribed as a text is really nice... I think you will also invest a fair amount of time and effort changing platforms and getting everything set up although maybe not too bad if you stay on the same carrier.

 

[killster1]

Honestly, a lot of times it is the little "pebble in your shoe" stuff that drives you crazy with a device. I got the new Pixel 6 for 99.00 from T-mobile on a promo and it is nice but coming from my LG G6 with the dedicated fingerprint reader on the back, the phone is annoying as hell. The FP reader in the screen is slow and usually take at least a coupe of tries. Android 12 is nice and has a lot of features that the P6 does well. Having voicemail automatically transcribed as a text is really nice... I think you will also invest a fair amount of time and effort changing platforms and getting everything set up although maybe not too bad if you stay on the same carrier.

everyone has said the fingerprint reader is OK /good on the pixel 6 that i have heard but maybe they have not come from the backside one like you, i really loved the backside scanner on my 9 plus as it worked every time and was natural to touch as i picked up the phone, the ones on the glass require the glass screen protector to have a circle cut out and are terrible to look at for me and hardly work so i have done away with using it, (but on my next day off i thought about programing my same finger 4 times in attempt to be able to use it )



as far as iphone, i could use one if they gave me a easy way to transfer the files onto it like a SD card i don't know how many times i have slapped some movies on a sd card before a trip, of course i could use a secondary device with said SD card.

second issue is that iphone usually is behind in technology like blutooth or wireless charging etc, samsung will have it for 3 years before iphone usually bang for buck goes to samsung for me. does iphone have wireless charge sharing yet?

edit it looks like iphone 12 has reverse wireless charging!!!

 

[MrSquished]

I'm actually really impressed with the in screen FPS. It's working almost flawlessly for me. Sometimes it's so close to being as fast as the rear FPS of the Pixel 5. Definitely still slower but like just a hair slower. Sometimes it is like half a second slower. I'm already used to just holding it down until I feel the haptics tell me it's unlocked. It's been like a 98% success rate accuracy wise so far. That was my biggest worry. I don't know why some people are having lots of issues with it. I don't use a screen protector.

The battery life so far is good enough. It's not great though. We'll see after adaptive battery does its thing and if they fix the lock screen refreshing at 120hz. It seems the 10hz refresh rate to save battery is broken right now. With Google, expect a couple patches in the first few months to fix things. It's part of the price of admission to Google hardware. They should really expand their hardware team, it's just so small compared to Apple and Samsung - obviously their sales are a pittance compared to those companies in the phone hardware space, but they should put a bit more into it it feels like so they can put out a more polished product at launch.

Android 12 feels a bit more restrictive than 11, it's almost like they are going towards an iOS in just SOME ways. I use Nova Launcher anyway, so I'm really happy with how the phone sets up as I have very fine control over it. But like now you can't tap the time to launch the clock app, or the date to launch the calendar app. They are taking away functionality in some small ways. Silly.

 

[Commodus]

as far as iphone, i could use one if they gave me a easy way to transfer the files onto it like a SD card i don't know how many times i have slapped some movies on a sd card before a trip, of course i could use a secondary device with said SD card.

second issue is that iphone usually is behind in technology like blutooth or wireless charging etc, samsung will have it for 3 years before iphone usually bang for buck goes to samsung for me. does iphone have wireless charge sharing yet?

edit it looks like iphone 12 has reverse wireless charging!!!

It's easier to transfer files with that Files app, but that's more for accessing cloud files and managing on-device downloads than anything. I think Apple isn't fussed over things like SD cards or transferring local media as it believes the ideal is streaming your collection.

The iPhone doesn't quite have reverse wireless charging. It exists to power the MagSafe battery pack if it's attached. So there's some kind of capability, but you can't exactly recharge your AirPods yet.

 

[killster1]

It's easier to transfer files with that Files app, but that's more for accessing cloud files and managing on-device downloads than anything. I think Apple isn't fussed over things like SD cards or transferring local media as it believes the ideal is streaming your collection.

The iPhone doesn't quite have reverse wireless charging. It exists to power the MagSafe battery pack if it's attached. So there's some kind of capability, but you can't exactly recharge your AirPods yet.

thnx for the reply, i just did a quick google search so im not even sure what a magsafe battery pack is the case the airpods go into? (i have airpods pro but they dont work with features on my samsung so that would be another reason to go apple i guess)

as far as streaming .. ummm its impossible to stream if there is no signal so its really not even a thing for me (also my entire family and loved ones are on 8gb verizon redpocket plans so who wants to spend $$ To stream a movie you own alreadY)

 

[killster1]

I'm actually really impressed with the in screen FPS. It's working almost flawlessly for me. Sometimes it's so close to being as fast as the rear FPS of the Pixel 5. Definitely still slower but like just a hair slower. Sometimes it is like half a second slower. I'm already used to just holding it down until I feel the haptics tell me it's unlocked. It's been like a 98% success rate accuracy wise so far. That was my biggest worry. I don't know why some people are having lots of issues with it. I don't use a screen protector.

The battery life so far is good enough. It's not great though. We'll see after adaptive battery does its thing and if they fix the lock screen refreshing at 120hz. It seems the 10hz refresh rate to save battery is broken right now. With Google, expect a couple patches in the first few months to fix things. It's part of the price of admission to Google hardware. They should really expand their hardware team, it's just so small compared to Apple and Samsung - obviously their sales are a pittance compared to those companies in the phone hardware space, but they should put a bit more into it it feels like so they can put out a more polished product at launch.

Android 12 feels a bit more restrictive than 11, it's almost like they are going towards an iOS in just SOME ways. I use Nova Launcher anyway, so I'm really happy with how the phone sets up as I have very fine control over it. But like now you can't tap the time to launch the clock app, or the date to launch the calendar app. They are taking away functionality in some small ways. Silly.

what's funny is you don't mention this talk is about the pixel 6 (i just assume it is since you mention pixel 5), but the thread is about getting a iphone not using a screen protector doesn't count then as that is not a option for so many of us. (i cant stand scratches on the screen)

didnt know you could tap the time or date sounds like a feature i missed (but almost never change the time or calendar )

 

[MrSquished]

what's funny is you don't mention this talk is about the pixel 6 (i just assume it is since you mention pixel 5), but the thread is about getting a iphone not using a screen protector doesn't count then as that is not a option for so many of us. (i cant stand scratches on the screen)

didnt know you could tap the time or date sounds like a feature i missed (but almost never change the time or calendar )

I thought I was in the 6/6 pro thread

Clerical error

This is what happens when you have 20 tabs open

 

[spdfreak]

I set the phone to stay unlocked when I am at home- which is most of the time. That is a decent work around for the FP reader issue. I guess I can try adding my thumb a few more times and see if it helps. Right now, it is hit or miss- reads it fine one time and requires 4 times the next.

 

[spdfreak]

I thought I was in the 6/6 pro thread

Clerical error

This is what happens when you have 20 tabs open

Haha, me too... I need to pay better attention!

 

[Commodus]

thnx for the reply, i just did a quick google search so im not even sure what a magsafe battery pack is the case the airpods go into? (i have airpods pro but they dont work with features on my samsung so that would be another reason to go apple i guess)

as far as streaming .. ummm its impossible to stream if there is no signal so its really not even a thing for me (also my entire family and loved ones are on 8gb verizon redpocket plans so who wants to spend $$ To stream a movie you own alreadY)

The MagSafe battery pack is a wireless external battery for the iPhone 12/13 — you just slap it on the back and it keeps your phone running longer. The reverse charging starts when the iPhone is plugged in to make sure the external pack is topped up.

You can store music and videos offline for some streaming services, so that mitigates the need to always be online. But it is a bit of a hassle to remember to save an album/series/movie before you head out.