I started using iPhone X, doesn't feel half as bad as I expected.

by Anam Ahmed

This post is still a work in progress.

There's a common trend that If you use Android, you must hate iPhones; or otherwise. Many people follow it as if it was one of the fundamental rules of thermodynamics, breaking them will break the universe. I'm afraid it's not the case for me and it shouldn't be for you as well.

iPhones had always been out of my reach since the beginning of humanity. I simply can't afford to buy one or justify the amount of money to be spent on it. Recently, I had to get an iPhone for a research project, and since then I'm using it as a daily driver. It's been a couple of weeks already. I think now I can share my experience in this blog. I'm sure that many of the true "Fanboys" will read this post, I will only discuss the things I wish were different in each of the platforms, and I really have nothing against any of the platforms.

The iPhone I'm using is iPhone X 256 GB version.

Let's start with my android journey:

When Android came out, I was a student studying Computer Science. My first introduction with the platform was using Android Emulator. It was an instant match. The next few years, android phones got cheaper and I bought many android devices. I recently made a list on facebook:

It's been six years since I bought my first Android phone.The open nature, Built on linux and easy to modify android is lovable. I installed custom Rom, Rooted devices, did ton of hacking, made my own rom, and what not. Android, in one way, is (was) freedom. And throughout these years, I gathered my fair share of frustrations as well. They were never dealbreakers, but I always thought things could have been better.And guess what, most of them are not related to android directly. Here are few of the significant ones:

Irregular Updates: Android devices don't age well. This has nothing to do with the platform itself. Most of the manufacturers create android phones to be a happy experience for just around one year. During that time, they push regular updates, Fixes bugs and gives amazing support. After a year, a new batch of product comes and the manufacturers forget about the old devices. Some manufacturers like OnePlus provide regular software update for three years or more. but as the model gets older, the updates get delayed. But as the nature of android, Most of the devices are kept alive and updated by the community which is awesome.

Slower Updates: To add with the previous point, Software update experience is sad in Android. Only Google devices get latest version on the first day. No matter how expensive your device is, you have to wait for the manufacturer to roll out updates for you. The technical reason behind it is very solid and relatable. But from an end-user's perspective it's sad. I remember asking for an ETA on the official forum of one of my devices only to replied by people saying asking for ETA is a bad manner. Dude Seriously! I paid for the product, providing software update isn't a charity.

Google Play: Google play is my biggest frustration. As a developer I really appreciated google's easier policies. But as an end user, whenever I open google play, I always see a bunch of useless application. To add insult to injury, Google play isn't strict about counterfeit applications. Just search for messenger in google play and you'll end up with many similar looking application. They share almost identical icon and name. If you are not careful enough, you'll end up installing the counterfeit one and harm your privacy.

Messenger App Confusion

Default SMS APP: Every other application on Android wants to be my default SMS application. They ask once, They ask twice, and some ask daily. Some of the applications also wants to be my default dialer. Why on earth would I want to receive my SMS in facebook messenger! I feel like dealing with extremely flammable substance while dealing with those application, The instructions are very easy to ignore and accidentally change the SMS application or the dialer.

Invasive Ads: Some android Applications are very aggressive about ads. Sometimes, full screen ads pop up while I was using a different application. I had to trash many application including ShareIt for this reason.

Most of these can be avoided by being careful. But as an end user, I don't want to spend that time on my phone. They are annoying too.

After Starting to use iOS device:

I am not an Android fanboy, but I always preferred android over iOS. Mainly because iPhones are expensive and I can't justify the amount of money spent for such a device. But as I mentioned earlier, I got my hands on the new iPhone X. My android frustrations were not there. Devices get updates on the first day, older devices get update for years, App Store, lacks a lot of applications, but due to it's strict policies, has less junk. No app wants to be my default SMS/Dialer App, simply because they can't. And there's a strict ads policy. There are some small things I liked about iOS. They are:

  1. The true tone display is awesome. No matter what lighting I'm in, the screen looks good.
  2. The taptic Engine is awesome. I never thought I'd be impressed by a device's vibration capability 😂 but once you get used to the taptic engine, you'll notice the motor spinning in every other device.
  3. Small features like, raising the phone lowers the ringer volume and vibration, Permission system, Built-in Emoji keyboard feels great, some user experiences are wonderful if you are already in the cage called the Ecosystem

With that being said, there are a few things that I really wish were different in iOS:

  1. Face ID: Face ID is disgusting. It's only good if you are sitting or standing. I always found it less user-friendly than classic fingerprints.
  2. The charger provided with iPhone is the worst. It takes forever to charge an iPhone with that charger. I usually charge my iPhone from my mac or use my iPad charger. iPhones do support quick charge. I wonder what kept apple from providing a quick charge capable charger in the box.
  3. iPhone is expensive. iPhone X is super expensive. I'm really not sure if my next phone would be an iPhone again. Biggest reason being my inability to afford one.
  4. Crazy Gestures: The gesture based navigation is really good, but there's no way to operate the phone with 100% of gestures. And many gestures act differently in application. For example: if you are in a facebook post, swiping right will take you back. If you are in any of the main sections: Swiping right will open the camera. wth!
  5. No Call Recording. iOS doesn't have call recording, the workarounds for recording calls aren't convenient or cheap. But I have mixed feeling about Android call recording. It doesn't require too much of special permission to do something as sensitive as recording voice calls in Android. I wish this feature was built-in in all platforms.

My wife is currently using my OnePlus 6. I often miss the device and it's awesome camera. But I also enjoy clutter-less nature of the iPhone.

I will add more experiences in this post, not that it matters for you anyways. Thanks for reading 🤞🏼