I recently wrote an article; I Strongly Prefer Android, So Why did I Pre-order an iPhone?
It’s a bit long-form – so here’s a more consumable list of reasons current, steadfast Android users might consider buying an iPhone 6:
I can’t be the only Android user who’s almost had a panic attack trying to use an Apple keyboard in the past few years… (I’m exaggerating, but not by much). No gesture typing? No long press for numbers and characters? No choice in the matter whatsoever?
That’s all about to change, and I think opening up to third party keyboards is the single most influential change Apple could have made towards bringing in Android users.
A very close second is the new, larger screens. The smallest one is about the size of my Nexus 5, which makes the current iPhone model look like a phone for ants. This is roughly the form factor most people seem to want, regardless of make. Sure it foregoes a little bit of thumb/screen accessibility, and sure Steve Jobs is probably rolling in his grave, but it seems to be a sacrifice users are willing to make for more screen real estate.
I’d say good on Apple for adapting here, but they really just had to do this to remain relevant.
And then there’s the 5.5. The one that caught my eye. I was going to get a big ridiculous phablet as my next phone regardless, and the iPhone 6+ is one indeed, but it seems more manageable than it’s Android contemporaries. I just hope they put a monster battery in there.
Few would argue that Apple packs a killer shooter into it’s phones. This isn’t anything new, and while some Android phones do have excellent cameras, they either completely overshadow the device’s other functionality, or simply aren’t as well-rounded as the iSight.
Google’s suite of communication and productivity tools are really good (Hangouts, Drive, Gmail, etc.), and having them work persistently across devices is wonderful. Frankly Apple’s iCloud, iMessage, and iOffice (or whatever) never really seemed appealing to me. Too flaky, limited, and lame (respectively).
I don’t really know enough about how Apple is implementing these new ‘Continuity’ features, but they sound in a lot of ways like a decent answer to what Google currently does so well. Better late than never.
We talked about it in keyboards and screen sizes. Apple is relinquishing some of their seemingly unshakable paradigms, and turning iOS into a more open-minded platform.
Slowly but surely we will see greater ability for customization, and more leeway for developers to do cool things.
I haven’t spent much time in Apple’s App Store in recent years, but I know the Google Play Store has really matured. There’s still plenty of garbage in there, but the interface is great, downloads are fast, there’s a timed refund window, and you can do it all from your web browser.
An app store is really only as good as its apps though. And while Android has developed a very respectable catalogue indeed, Apple is still the first place (and sometimes only place) the best developers go to.
Every Android user has a handful of apps they’re patiently waiting for their version of.
Know what you’ll also find in the App Store? Quite a few of the things that you love on your Android. Gmail, Hangouts, Drive, Chrome…
So apps-wise, you can get Google on an iPhone – but not Apple on an Android. That made sense. Shut up.
Apple can make tech stick like no one else. Even Google hasn’t been able to get mobile payments off the ground… But Apple is about to put potential sales in the pocket of millions of shoppers, and retail has been made aware.
Also, and I don’t usually knock Google (shh.. they’re listening), I’d kinda rather Apple win this one anyway. They’re in the business of selling products. Google is in the business of getting all the data, which doesn’t exactly pair well with my most sensitive assets.
Like paying for things, this is nothing new to the industry. Like Apple Pay, they’re probably going to do it really well, and their influence will lead to mass adoption. Maybe even Canada will get it.
Last but not least, Apple makes great products. They have access to the best designers, engineers, and fabrication techniques, and it shows. For as long as I’ve been an Android faithful, I’ve had daydreams of running Android on some larger version of an iPhone…
Well, maybe Apple has finally made the iPhone 6 just Android-y enough for that to come true!