I want a customizable phone that is not stuck in a walled-garden. Plus I do not use Apple products.
Android
DROID DOES
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In no particular order
- File management works like a charm
- USB-C and fast charging
- Customizations
- Custom ROMs
- Privacy (getting a Pixel soon for GrapheneOS)
- Easier to repair
- More efficient (takes less steps to do stuff)
- Looks better
- Sideloading
- More choices for phones
Sideloading is the big one. I was considering an iPad before getting Xiaomi tablet (even though it costs roughly the same), but sideloading is game changer.
- YouTube Vanced
- Emulators
- Stremio and torrents
Along the lines of sideloading: proper adblock
I was reminded ads exist after I bought an iPad for school (sadly the notetaking experience is truly unrivaled). Adblock only works on Safari and whether it'll work properly is another roll of the dice.
- File management is noice, the ability to plug in a USB C usb is very clutch.
- I swear a lot more apps on iOS are subscription based than on Android.
- A lot more open source apps.
- Modded apps.
- I can easily connect my phone to my laptop and copy actual files.
- Sideloading.
- Choice.
#2 I am a developer, the reason for this is that publishing an app in App Store is not free unlike in Android where it's a one time payment.
I used it initially, because I hated Apple and their proprietary stuff and have stayed ever since. I liked androids more universal approach. SD cards, usb, etc.
Having the ability to add an SD card is great
Was great
If you use any app other than what Apple provides, you become a second class citizen on your own phone.
Third party apps simply don't integrate with iOS nicely unless Apple allows it. Even though you can choose a web browser, it has to use Safari's underlying code base.
I'm on a Pixel 7. A lot of people say it's like Google's iPhone, but I can use Firefox as my browser natively. Adblocking actually works, too. I can choose any app as a default for whatever. Lots of FOSS! Google doesn't own my Pixel the same way Apple owns the iPhone.
Sideloading apps is the main reason. I couldn't use a phone without Adblock.
iPhones are also just way more expensive and the few times i've tried them the UX just sucked so much, form over function.
- iOS is very restricted compared to Android.
- iPhones overpriced like crazy for what you get.
- GrapheneOS
I may be one of the last hangers-on for this issue, but: my Android phone has a headphone port! That was non-negotiable for me last time I got a new phone. Earbuds do not stay in my ears, are super uncomfortable, and I don't want to charge a wireless headset or mess with an adapter all the time. I have cheap wired headphones for going out and about that I don't lose when they fall out because the wire catches them, and really nice wired headphones at home that are much better quality than wireless ones. My car also has a 3.5 mm hookup that sounds a lot better than Bluetooth audio.
Besides that: Having more customization and control. Firefox + adblockers and other extensions. ReVanced for YouTube. Easier access to the phone's storage and files. Being able to block ads adds so much quality of life.
Revanced and Fdroid. Plus, I can use real third party browsers. And sideloading. And getting access to the file system. And having tons of vendors to choose from.
It's more open and you're not confined to how Apple thinks your phone should look like.
GrapheneOS, other custom OSes, ability to hack/mod/repair.
Apple is one of the most scummy and anti-consumer companies in the world, they won't ever get a dollar from me or any endorsement.
Iphone is incredibly expensive. IOs seems much more restrictive than Android. There's a bigger offer of different phones and manufactures in Android. Most people in my country use Android.
I prefer the freedom to choose between multiple phone manufacturers, and am not tethered to a closed environment.
To feel that YOU are the one really owning your phone.
iOS is always over-protective and doesn't allow sideloading. Whenever I use an iPhone I feel like I'm using a phone lent by a parent to some child.
There's not equivalent F-droid for iPhone, and almost all apps on Appstore contain ads.
I dislike Apple alot, stupidly Expensive, more than they devices worth, very restrictive on what you can do with them (treat their customers as kids) and their monopoly.
There is also a wide variety of Android phones with different price ranges, and features (like my beloved headphone jacks), wider customisation and a somewhat better repaiability sometimes.
I could post why I do not like Apple, but that isn't why I prefer Android.
I like how there are a ton of options on Android. I can control what hardware I have, from an ultrabudget $100 phone to a $2000 foldable flagship. I can choose how I control my device, I can choose how my device looks. All of these things add up to letting me have the best experience.
I also like how you can install custom ROMs on many devices. This allows even more options in terms of personal control.
Mainly that there are really solid midrange android phones nowadays. I just can't justify the iPhone pricetag.
- Camera roll folder for images.
- Notification system isn't a teenagers messy room.
- Red button to decline call, not a neantherdal's action to lock the phone...
- File management
- Apps are a lot more capable.
- Full customization to my needs.
- I'm not locked in to using the phone exactly how someone else decided I should.
The price, a burning hatred for apple, and I can switch over to something else like graphine os. I haven't done that yet but I plan to when I get a new phone though!
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I can sideload apps. These apps are usually either obscure but useful or FOSS and designed for the user rather than for money.
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Even the apps officially on the Google Play Store are more powerful, such as emulators and an app using an advanced algorithm to change the speed and pitch of music while having it still sound high-quality. And of course, a file manager is a must-have.
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The ability to have Firefox+uBlock origin is a must-have for web browsing.
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More powerful in automation tools. I didn't care too much about this until I found it extremely useful for work.
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More hardware variety. I hate that you can't get a headphone jack on an iPhone and that the storage markups are absurd. Here I am with a $300 phone with a good performance, 256GB internal storage, a headphone jack, and a MicroSD slot. Bonus: The iPhone notch is incredibly ugly and the way Android does notches and punch holes is way better.
Unfortunately, we are beholden to greedy Google that actively is nerfing Android. Android 11 made it harder to access files, Android 12 replaced the WiFi and mobile toggles an incredibly poorly-designed internet toggle, and Android 14 is gonna restrict sideloading of older apps (which generally use less storage and are more optimized).
I dont mind using iphone over android, it's just that Apple make it so damn hard to build an app for iOS (require Xcode on macOS only) and not allow sideloading app, like hello? I'm the one who own the phone here. So I stick with android, and think anybody who like to tinker with their setup and is a little tech savy should not use Iphone. Thanks for coming to my TED talk
I also like IOS due to stability (I have an Ipad Mini) but I need some things firat before switching.
- Tachiyomi (Manga Reader)
- Ad free youtube aka Revanced
- Desk mode for playing TFT on a Monitor
- Sideloading unavailable regionally locked apps
- Emulators
- The flexibility to easily run things such as Termux (from F-Droid or similar) - who doesn’t love a proper shell complete with the ability to install Python, tmux, sshd, etc right on their phone!
- Way superior notifications compared to iOS.
- Out of the box notifications is better (ability to customise notification tones per-app and even per-type/channel if the app exposes them) compared to generic notification tones on iOS (unless there’s an in-app setting).
- The notification icons in the status bar. On iOS I either have to look at my notification panel or lock-screen, or permit pop ups (which I hate for privacy reasons when sitting with other people).
- Cool 3rd-party apps such as AODNotify, which bring back notification LED type effects on AMOLED screens (but also, real, bright RGB notification LEDs on Sony phones and older Samsungs)
- Also Always on Display on AMOLED or Motorola’s Moto Display with gestures on IPS phones
- An actual choice of browsers. Firefox on Android actually IS a different browser to Chrome and the others. On iOS, they’re not much more than UI shells over the top of a shared browser engine.
- Things like text selection actually work. Every time I try to select or correct a URL in Safari for iOS I feel like throwing the device across the room.
Bad things - stupid bugs. The number of phones I’ve had with issues around notification tones not playing or being cut off (e.g. Moto Z2 Play) or stupid hardware decisions (no physical proximity sensor on Galaxy A51). Also, Bitwarden works way better on iOS - I always seem to have issues with Bitwarden’s integration in GBoard, and needing to use the legacy draw-over approach (but the fact Bitwarden can DO that on Android, is a win). Whereas on iOS, it feels far better integrated into the OS, replacing the standard password manager.
How configurable and customizing can be achieved. Even if you like IOS GUI, you can perfectly install a launcher in android which looks like one and you're done. Try to do that on an actual iphone device, good luck bucko.
btw, sideload is A MUST for today's standards, and since we're talking about open source and all, almost all of my apps are open source, so yeah.
Long live AOSP
I want my app icons close to the bottom of the screen where my hands are and not at the top of the screen just because Apple demands it. Also I can have ad free apps like ReVanced
it is more flexible,
more poweruser friendly,
way more open and free,
and most importantly:
iphone is very expensive
It's more open and not locked down to proprietary software.
It seems like any time I consider giving iOS a chance, I hear about some basic thing where I'm like "Wait, it can't do that?" So until that stops happening, I'm sticking with Android.
1/3 the price
Customization and the app drawer. Any time I have to use my wife's iphone I can't stand how many folders are all over the place to house the apps. Baffling design. I have a custom launcher which means I also set up gestures to open certain apps. Swipe up for Discord, down for fantasy hockey, two finger counterclockwise turn for Goodreads, two finger down swipe for Roku remote, etc. I also have custom icon packs.
- Not an iPhone
- Linux-based
- Can install apps from external sources.
- I can customize many aspects
- I can root it and run more advanced software, customize it further, and debloat/remove unwanted builtin apps (unlocked phones only)
With LineageOS + microg I have a cheap phone that performs really well and the battery lasts for multiple days. Had a jailbroken iphone before switching to Android but have never even thougt about going back.
I am a fan of blue bubbles :)
I like being able to customize it, I like being able to develop or at least modify apps for it since I am a Java/Kotlin developer, I prefer the more open ecosystem, etc.