[handsofsteel]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

Voted for Android only. Simple reason - I find iPhones insanely expensive.

The day when iPhone come down to reasonable pricing, I don't mind switching between both options. Also, I'll not be spending big money on the latest Android flagships as well.

My current phone is a Samsung Galaxy M30S bought last year for a paltry sum of 15k. Comes with a gigantic (and works in the real world) 6000 MAh battery, an excellent AMOLED screen, two above average cameras (Surely not flagship quality, especially the wide angle camera sensor!) and a very usable spec sheet - 6 GB RAM, 128 GB storage etc.

Over the last year of usage - haven't felt anything else needed in my smartphone.

Add to the fact that I can't even dream of using an I phone on my bike (ram mounts or whatever). I'll forever be paranoid of hitting that bum p
Android it is!!

[Ibanez_70]

I currently use both and love both. If I had to choose one I would definitely choose an android. Problem with android is there are so many options out there in the market and too many options actually make things complicated for people.

So if you're looking for a reliable phone for the next 4-5 years and prefer using phone for long term I would definitely recommend IOS. You get all the benchmark specs with exellent camera, stability ,etc. And if you use any other apple products, IOS is the way to go.


Although some apps such as Instagram simply run better on IOS. They are precise to touch inputs, instagram camera is better on IOS, have a few additional features too. And if you're a musician GarageBand helps you a lot. If you even want to record a 1 minute vocal part, recording it through GarageBand would still give you some Studio effects with compression, Reverb,etc instead of the simple voice recorders out there.

But if you're the type of person who likes to get the most out of your phone, customize everything, frequently transfer photos/files from phone to your PC, install apps that are not on play store or AppStore (IOS) android is the way to go.

You want a phone with good display there's Samsung. You want the best camera you have the pixel. You want the best performance you have OnePlus. You have an option for everything compared to Apple where you get what Apple wants you to get.

[vibbs]

I am not a phone enthusiast. But have been with Android since begining.

Infact for last so many years it has been One plus (dare I say) specifically. I bought the one plus one during the times when you needed an invitation to buy it. Then bought one plus five when that was launched. In between bought a one plus three for my wife.

All the phones are still working. One plus five was bought three years back and is still my primary phone.

I don't really see the reason for moving to a brand that costs double compared to what I pay now no matter how much better the UI and experience is. There is only so much incremental value after a point.

[extreme_torque]

Apple makes money by selling hardware, Google makes money by selling..... fill in the blanks yourself. I think the best Android phone I ever used was the Google Nexus 5. It was the perfect device for the perfect price. Ever since google devices have started becoming more and more expensive for no reason what so ever and their software support isnt great either. You may get 3 OS release updates if you are lucky but then the hardware would have given up by then. They dont have physical stores either and their support is terrible. I have gotten nothing but exemplary support from Apple and I use most of their products now - Homepod, iPhone, iPad Pro, Apple Watch, iMac and MacBook Pro.

Have gotten into Samsung hype train thrice only to regret and come back to iPhone. The first one was the Galaxy S2 which in the days of 3.5mm jack and IEM's was absolutely terrible at playing any sort of music (hissing electrical disturbance sound everytime CPU did anything) and that is after you could forgive touchwiz of the piece of $hit software it was, went back to iPhone 3GS and used it peacefully for 3 years without issues, next was the Galaxy S4 which cracked its screen when I slipped from my pocked in a bus, barely a foot drop and the bus floor isnt rock hard either and touchwiz was a $hit show again, went back to iPhone 4S and used it for 3 years again without issues, the next was the Galaxy Note 5 whose headline feature, the so called S-Pen didnt work properly and when I went back to Samsung, they checked every display devices on the floor exhibited the same issue and therefore per them it wasnt as issue, again went back to iPhone 6S which ran like new the day I sold it after using it for 3.5 years. Never ever again.

Here is the S-Pen issue —>

https://youtu.be/XN41nE1lWGI

[arijitkanrar]

My first android phone was the Samsung Galaxy 3 i5801 (Not the S3) bought in 2011 after actually enjoying the Nokia feature and semi smart phones.
Those days we used to have hot-headed discussions on the Android vs iOS topic because at that time everything in life started as an emotion before it became a thought (its the other way now).
Anyway, since then I've always been on Androids.
I've seen the Android OS change and morph over the years and become what it is today.
It went from a powerful but clunky UI (which got the job done) to a slick modern system without losing most of its core USPs.
Currently I'm on my OP6T running the latest OxygenOS build and I can say its one of the best UIs if you like speed and customization.
I think nothing beats Android when it comes to customization. You can truly make your phone yours by the way of launchers, widgets, default apps etc.
Then there is the generic nature of app integration in Android which I think iOS still doesn't have any equivalent for. For e.g. when I say I want to share an image, the system shows me every app that can work with an image. I find then incredibly useful.

In our regular interaction with colleagues, I've used the current iOS devices and for some reason, I found it difficult to use. Can't really put a finger on it but I found it did require more mental capacity to actually use the phone. Mostly because I was used to Android. Even a simple task like browsing the photo gallery was very confusing.

Then there are some OEM specific customization which can be useful. For e.g. I love the OnePlus quick launch feature which takes me to an app immediately after unlock. I've set this for the usual payment apps to quickly make a payment.

Talking about the ecosystem, I've not personally experienced Apple ecosystem but I've seen others using it and frankly I find no difference between Google Apps and Apple ecosystem. Both offer the same services with the same level of integration.

So it's Android all the way for me!

[dipdawiz]

Android - Since inception of early generation of Android phone. Started using Android 1.6 Donut in Sony Xperia X10. Accustomed to the ecosystem - Contacts, Calendar, Gmail, Maps, Drive, Photos. Even I invested in some paid apps. Also I like the enormous configuration option available in Android. And in the last 5-6 years Android has been smooth enough in flagship mobiles. Using Samsung Galaxy S9 for two years and it's as good an experience as one can get.

Never used Apple iPhone, due to its price. Used an iPad mini, so know the feel of iOS and its smooth and clean experience. But the price never justified it. People talk about privacy and all, it might be tough to steal data from Apple, but now Android is also quite capable. And when signed up with FB, Amazon and Google (whichever phone it is) your privacy is already gone. Battery backup is one thing Apple excels even with a smaller battery.

[ohaak]

iOS is more secure, helps with maintaining privacy and applications are better scrutinised. Google's ecosystem is trying to catch up, but there are too many rotten eggs in the basket. Longevity of device is better with Apple. Take the Pixel 4. It is now dead in the water with Pixel 5 coming up. My iPhone SE is running great with replaced battery for years now. If you want a solution that is dependable for these parameters, Apple's ecosystem is a better choice.

Affordability is a problem with Apple.

One real annoyance with Android is that the new AI based camera apps do automatic touch up for people's faces in photos. In some phones like the OnePlus, you cannot turn it off. You can try different camera apps, but nothing does the job properly. I personally prefer a camera capture reality. All the editing can happen afterwards. Advertising more megapixels without fixing the lens and sensor and depending on software to make it up is annoying.

[freakmuzik]

Voted for iOS. Switched over to an iPhone three years back after having used an iPad since 2013.

To be fair, the previous android phones were ones around 10k - 15k and not high end ones. The phones started slowing down after a year or so and then I had to keep clearing stuff often. I loved the audio quality of apple even in the old iPad. Being a musician, it matters so much to me. I bought an iPhone SE 64GB version in 2017 for a great price and three years down, it's still great despite multiple falls and rough usage. Maybe in another year, I will change the battery. I haven't updated my software beyond iOS 12 fearing it might be a burden for the older hardware and I wish to keep the speed of my phone intact. Only negative is I can't download Twitter and maybe a few other apps anymore.

My sister bought an Android phone around 20k recently and the audio quality is no where as good as the Apple. She takes my phone to record stuff :P .

I also use a Macbook Pro (another expensive but mostly stable, user friendly, powerful product) and the seamless nature in which they operate is incredible. I don't like spending a fortune on phones but would like to go the SE route. It's always got the latest stuff in an old package and packs quite a punch (like the Skoda Rapid TSi).

PS. - The iPhone SE 1 with the 5s body has spoilt me so much that I don't ever want to use bigger phones. It's so handy, fits in every damn pocket and even without a phone case, it's a breeze to use. I sincerely wish someone launches phones as small as that hereafter too. I feel phones are becoming Phablets and TVs these days.

[arijitkanrar]

Originally Posted by ohaak

One real annoyance with Android is that the new AI based camera apps do automatic touch up for people's faces in photos. In some phones like the OnePlus, you cannot turn it off. You can try different camera apps, but nothing does the job properly. I personally prefer a camera capture reality. All the editing can happen afterwards. Advertising more megapixels without fixing the lens and sensor and depending on software to make it up is annoying.

Not sure why you think it cannot be switched off?
Here is the camera UI on my OnePlus. You can see I've highlighted the options to choose the level of face retouching. I have it off as just like you I prefer the camera captures reality.

[shishir333]

Well, I have used both extensively and I would choose android any day, here are the reasons

iPhones are unnecessarily expensive, you get the same features, same (or better) camera, better hardware at half the price in android ecosystem. Think about it, they are selling LCD phones even today at 50K+ and people are crazy about those. If you were to compare those with a 120 hz LED display in the android ecosystem at the same price point, they are no match.

On the software side, most of the time they implement features that were present in androids almost 4-5 years ago. They give that feature some fancy name and all the fanboys go gaga about it. They recently introduced widgets as their biggest new feature!

Now my experience (problems faced), I had iphone 5s, 6s and 8 because I use macbook pro for work (which I believe is a much better product from apple) and thought of using the phones to get into the ecosystem.
The first time I took the phone to a sea shore (moisture), the touch started behaving weird (I know a lot of iphone users who mentioned this), the phone stopped charging. Then it was deep discharged and not turning on. Took it to apple care, they asked exorbitantly high amount to replace the battery, got it charged from outside.
On 6s, it stopped charging, again apple care, again high charges as the charging port is not working and the motherboard has to be replaced. Not a single phone without any problems and finally switched to OP7
And dont even talk about the quality of their pathetic lightning cables.

Androids has so many things miles ahead of apple; talk about siri vs google assistant, their maps vs google maps, connectivity to other devices, customisation per your needs, plethora of hardware accessories at low price ...etc.

And to all the people calling security or bugs an issue, I am yet to encounter any bugs on my most recent android phone (tell me what bugs you encountered). Also enlighten me with security issues you found on android. (remember the iCloud leak?)

[kotirajendra]

iOS = apple hardware. skin in the game.
android = Hardware quality, durability, reliability is not upto mark.

[embee]

Apple iPhone (iOS) for me!
I have been an Apple user and remained in the ecosystem since iPhone 3gs days.

[kamilharis]

Android since 9 years. It helped me in trying out various brands too by staying in the same OS. hTC ChaCha , Lenovo S820 , Asus Zenfone Laser , Xiaomi Mi A1 and currently on my Honor Play. I began using smart bands too and found it convenient.

Whenever I see iOS users I feel like they are having some kind of limitations here and there. But after-all that is what its vouched for. One thing that keeps me away from new iPhones is its bulky nature.

[rakesh_r]

Using both, Iphone and two tablets (Lenovo Yoga for entertainment and Samsung Tab A as a Kindle e-reader). I will be sticking to IPhones for the simple reason, they last. The current one am using is a 7 plus which has been serving me since 2017. Moreover my organisation supports iOS more. Waiting for the 12 to come out. Yes they are expensive but cant help it.

[The Rationalist]

I have been using Android from 2009 and iOS from 2013. I use both for phones and for tablet have an iPad mini and pro. With regard to phones, the Android has better looking models and great UI, only thing is the bloatware we have to tolerate with some manufacturers. I was using Nokia to avoid that, but now they don’t have good phones and have changed to Oneplus. It’s too early to judge about Oxygen OS, but the phone is very good hardware wise. Coming to iPhone, the system is very stable, but UI isn’t that great to be honest. Even price to price they can’t match Android by a long mile. I like Pages, Numbers more than the corresponding ones in Android. And I love the concept of e-SIM, which is such a boon for those using dual SIMS.

Coming to tablets, there is nothing that can come close to iPads, my 5 year old mini and 3 year old Pro are still touchwood, while I had to give up on Nexus tablets in 2-3 years and the experience was not great. About laptop, I can’t comment as I haven’t used Macbook or Chromebook yet. Same regarding Apple watch or Wear OS. I can't go on charging another device on a daily basis and so using a cheap Smart watch (don't know whether that qualifies as a smart watch). Will be looking to buy a Macbook and Smartwatch from either of these in the future if they can get to 7 day battery life. So for me Android or iOS both will do and will depend on the use case scenario. For someone who values privacy and things, iOS should be the choice. With Facebook entering through backdoor into our lives, with iOS 14 I hope we can see some changes. As far ecosystem and products, Samsung or for that matter even Google doesn't have such brilliantly integrated products that Apple have.