iPhone vs Android: For The Average User
I recently switched to the iPhone XR from the first generation Moto Z Force. This is my first iPhone and I’ve had it for about 6 months now so I felt like I needed to write about it because the difference from using Android phones for my entire life is huge!
Anyone who goes to buy a new phone is faced with the tough decision: iPhone or Android?
The decision becomes even more difficult if you go into Verizon, US Cellular, or whichever retailer you use because a lot of the times those salesmen are paid to sell certain phones and products.
After all, for them, bigger sales = bigger commissions. My brother works at US Cellular so I know how this goes.
So how are you even supposed to believe the salesman? I’m not saying salesmen are bad people or aren’t knowledgeable. I’m just saying they might not always have your best interest in mind.
Phones are expensive products! Move slow in your decision process and don’t just jump at the first phone that you hear good things about because the last thing you want is to be stuck with a phone that you hate.
Hopefully this article can help you think about whether iPhone or Android is better for you!
Hardware and Design: iPhone Is Best
The very first thing that I notice about using any Apple device is that I can feel the quality of the hardware and the design is undeniably elegant.
User Interface
Any new phone these days will have a fast user interface but one issue I’ve experienced with Android phones over the years is that I noticed a gradual drop in the user interface functionality over time. So far (6 months) my iPhone user interface feels just as fast and functional as when I first switched over.
The Back and Home Buttons
My iPhone XR also does not have a home button like other iPhones and Androids and of course doesn’t have the back button that I got so used to using with my Android phones.
If you’ve ever switched over to iPhone from Android you probably noticed a learning curve that you didn’t expect to have. It definitely took some time for me to get used to the new interface but I found that the iPhone and especially the XR model has an incredibly well built interface.
Apple managed to finally get rid of the home button and utilize the entire screen space of the phone. The “home button” for the XR is just a swipe up from the bottom of the screen feature that works elegantly.
Storage: iPhone Is Best
As with most things, Apple tries to manage all of the services for their products and storage is another one of those things. Apple offers iCloud storage at the following monthly prices:
The best part about iCloud storage is that it’s on the cloud so you can access your files from your phone, iPad, iPod (if anyone still even has one of these), Mac, or PC.
Over time a monthly payment could end up costing you more in total than buying extra storage for an Android phone but lets take a look at what some extra storage would cost for Android.
The micro SD card that I bought for my Moto Z Force was a SanDisk 128GB memory card with an adapter for just $20.00 on Amazon which I found was more than enough storage for all of my photos and videos. 128GB was more than sufficient to shoot some videos for a few days and then I would just unload them onto a HardDrive.
If you do the math you could figure that using the microSD card would save you money over the course of a year and especially if you’re using the same card for a couple of years. Obviously you don’t have the cloud functionality that iCloud provides but if that’s not something that you absolutely need then you don’t need to worry about it.
Music: Tie
I’ve used both and Apple Music for my music and I’m currently still using Apple music just to get a feel for the platform. This statement is completely just my opinion but I would say that Spotify is the best music platform in the industry.
Apple Music has more paid subscribers than Spotify but Spotify still rains as the supreme platform and offers a free tier that’s supported by ads and has a much larger active user base.
But the main point here is that Spotify is available for both iPhone and Android so I think if you don’t just WANT Apple Music, Spotify is the way to go. Again, just my opinion.
Messaging: iPhone Wins
I absolutely hated being that guy that couldn’t be in iMessage group chats with my friends.
I know that for some people this might not be a big deal but seamlessly connecting with people and especially groups of people is important for me. Most of my friends and colleagues have iPhones and use iMessage for group chats so it just made the most sense for me.
Also, I’m obsessed with Game Pigeon. If you haven’t heard of it, Game Pigeon is an iMessage extension that allows you to play games with your friends through the messenger. This is a super fun way to connect and have some competitive fun with your friends.
I’ve had probably 10 Android phones before getting my iPhone so I’ve used a ton of Android messaging apps over the years. None of them have been up to par with iMessage.
Battery Life & Charging: Android Wins
Androids phones have been ahead of the game with battery life and charging speeds.
The majority of new Androids have a USB-C charging port which is the new standard for charging and moving around data.
Even with the latest line of iPhone X, Apple still uses the lightning cable which is the proprietary standard that Apple charges licensing fees for. It’s without a doubt inferior to USB-C.
For me personally though, since the majority of my friends have iPhones, I’m always either able to use someone else’s charger if I’m in need of some juice and also I’m able to help a friend out if need be.
Apple also still has not made any major improvements to battery life. My new iPhoneXR does have the best battery life of any iPhone at a reported 25hrs usage time which I’ve found lasts me about a full day and a half typically and I’m a heavy user.
However, 25hrs usage time pales in comparison to the reported 40hrs usage time of Samsung’s new Galaxy S10+.
Best In Class: Comparing The iPhoneXR To The Samsung Galaxy S10+
Obviously if you’re on a plan through your provider, you can trade in your current phone for whichever new phone you want to go ahead and pay off a portion of the new one. Buying a phone for a monthly payment is also a smart idea if you’re looking to build your credit score.
Let’s take a look at the comparison.
The iPhone XR
I just have to leave a plug here for the iPhone XR which is what I’m currently using because IT IS THE BEST PHONE THAT I HAVE EVER HAD, by far!
This phone has the longest battery life, fastest performance, most advanced LCD screen, and most durable glass of any iPhone ever. The camera is also just ridiculously good. The 12MP rear camera is unbelievable and I would argue that the front camera is the best on the market (you Android users know how bad front cameras can be).
You can pick up a brand new iPhone XR for around $750.00 depending on your provider but you can always pick up pre-owned one from Amazon and save yourself over $100.00. Amazon also offers a Rewards Visa Signature Credit card which is a great option that allows you to pay on a monthly plan and to also build credit.
You can get the iPhone 8 for just slightly less than the XR but I would highly recommend paying the extra $25.00-$50.00 for the XR just because it’s a newer and much better phone.
The Samsung Galaxy S10+
This phone is arguably the best Android smartphone on the market. Again, depending on your provider and whether you’re doing a trade-in, the retail price will be different.
Through Verizon (my provider), the Samsung Galaxy S10+ retails for $999.99 which is $250.00 more than the iPhone XR.
Again, I always recommend that people consider buying pre-owned renewed phones to save some money. I think it’s easy to get caught up in the glam of getting a brand new phone but if you think about it practically then you can save yourself a lot of cash.
The best offer I found on Amazon for a renewed Samsung Galaxy S10+ with 128GB of memory goes for $810.00 which obviously is almost $200.00 less than retail. I think an extra $200.00 in your pocket sounds pretty nice.
Spec Comparison
Again, I would argue that these two phones are best in class for iPhone and Android so here’s a brief comparison of the specs.
I think as far as pricing goes, you get a better phone for your money with the iPhoneXR.
Originally published at https://austinhoward.tech on June 15, 2019.
