Why I Switched Back to iPhone
▼ Summary
– Switching phones, especially between iPhone and Android, is a multi-day process involving technical setup, app downloads, and reconfiguring personal settings.
– The author tested several Android phones, including flip, foldable, and keyboard models, but found each had significant software or hardware drawbacks.
– The Fairphone 6 featured a compelling “Moments” slider for a minimalist mode, but it was not fully compatible with US networks like Verizon.
– The Google Pixel 10 Pro was the favorite Android device, praised for its hardware and superior operating system features like Gemini and notification management.
– Despite Android’s OS advantages, the author returned to iPhone because the App Store offers a significantly better selection and quality of apps, which are the phone’s primary function.
Switching phones is a week-long ordeal, not an afternoon task. The technical transfer of an eSIM can be simple or maddeningly complex, followed by days of downloading apps, tweaking settings, and reconnecting every Bluetooth device and service. I know this process intimately, having spent the last few months changing devices nearly every week. Tired of my iPhone 16, I embarked on a personal Tour de Android. My background as a former phone reviewer gave me a unique advantage: I could request test units from manufacturers to see if any new device or concept could win me over.
The journey ended predictably. I recently walked into an Apple Store and bought an iPhone 17. The reason, ultimately, came down to apps.
My testing began with high hopes for the Motorola Razr Ultra. I’m a believer in the flip phone form factor, and the hardware impressed me. The closed, square shape felt great, and I enjoyed using the outer screen like a tiny walkie-talkie with Google Gemini. However, the software experience was frustrating. Neither Motorola nor Google has fully optimized Android for folding displays. The outer screen often just shrinks full apps awkwardly, with keyboards obscuring the text you’re trying to see. Constant permission prompts for the external display and a clunky widget system made the experience feel unfinished, despite days of tweaking.
I encountered the opposite problem with a foldable, the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold. Here, the hardware was the hurdle. The device felt bulky and wasn’t easy to open one-handed. Foldables still involve compromises on durability, battery life, and camera quality, all for a staggering price. While the large inner screen was excellent for videos, the sacrifices were too great.
I briefly revisited the past with the Unihertz Titan 2, a modern phone with a physical keyboard. It was a nostalgic return to BlackBerry days, but I quickly realized I type faster on a touchscreen. The phone’s sheer size was also impractical.
A standout surprise was the Fairphone Gen 6. Its killer feature was a physical slider switch activating “Moments” mode, which transforms the phone into a minimalist device running only a handful of preselected apps. It was a brilliant, focused experience. Sadly, the phone isn’t fully optimized for U. S. networks, ruling it out.
My final and most compelling test was the Google Pixel 10 Pro. It is, without doubt, my favorite Android phone ever. It’s beautifully built with a superb camera, and I appreciated having both fingerprint and face unlock. More importantly, using it confirmed a growing belief: Android is a better operating system than iOS. Google Gemini is a genuinely useful voice assistant, unlike Siri. Android handles notifications intelligently, drastically reducing pointless buzzes. I received far fewer spam calls, the autocorrect is superior, and the system offers logical, customizable control over everything from the home screen to the app tray.
For the pure out-of-the-box experience, I would have chosen the Pixel. But phones are not just operating systems; they are app delivery machines. This is where Android falters and Apple dominates. The Apple App Store is in a different league. Many of my daily essential apps, from Puzzmo to Mimestream, either don’t exist on Android or are inferior web app versions. The ecosystem of polished, handcrafted apps from small developers thrives on iOS but is largely absent on the Play Store.
While Android allows apps more system-level freedom, enabling powerful tools like Tasker or better integration with devices like my Pebble watch, this advantage is niche. For the core software people use daily, iOS apps are simply better. The reasons are complex,a more fragmented hardware ecosystem, developer preferences, and spending habits,but the result is undeniable.
So I returned, undergoing another convoluted eSIM transfer to get an iPhone 17. I’m not celebrating. I’m back to an overactive notification center, a frustrating home screen layout system, and Siri’s incompetence. But my phone’s primary job is to run apps. All of my apps are here on the iPhone, and they all work flawlessly. Until that fundamental reality changes, it’s where I’ll stay.
(Source: The Verge)
