And it has nothing to do with being an Apple fanboy
History is full of great brand rivalries:
Nike vs Adidas
BMW vs Mercedes
Coke vs Pepsi
McDonald vs Burger King
Marvel vs DC
Airbus vs Boeing
Mac vs PC
But possibly none has generated so much debate and internet traffic than iOS vs Android.
In the interest of transparency, I have an iPhone, iPad, Macbook Pro and Apple Watch, but am not a fanboy. I have tried all different variants of each of those devices and there are clear reasons why I have always come back to Apple. I am also realistic and open enough to say that in the future if Windows and Android became more attractive I would switch to those.
Ultimately I am just a tech fan and want the best devices, regardless of brand. I have written some other articles based on my experience with Apple devices and you can get a better idea where I am coming from by reading those:
However, as things stand, there is no real comparison between iOS and Android. Both offer nice features and cool tricks, but there are three main reasons why iOS is still the clear winner for me.
Device support
My number one reason that iOS is better than Android is very simple.
Apple supports their devices with software updates far longer than Android phone-makers do. Out of all the possible arguments that can be made of iOS being better than Android, this one is grounded in solid, objective facts.
If we take a look at the current version of iOS (13), it is supported on the following devices:
iPhone 6S and 6S Plus
iPhone SE
iPhone 7 and 7 Plus
iPhone 8 and 8 Plus
iPhone X
iPhone XS, XS Max and XR
iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max
iPod Touch seventh generation
iPad Pro 12.9in first and second generation
iPad Pro 10.5in
iPad Pro 9.7in
iPad Pro 11in
iPad Air 2
iPad Air 3
iPad fifth generation
iPad sixth generation
iPad seventh generation
iPad Mini 4
What is impressive about that list is not the number of devices supported, but rather the number of generations of the device.
Bringing up the rear for the iPhone lineup is the 6s and 6s Plus which were launched in September 2015. Just to put that into context with Apple’s main Android-based competitor, in 2015 Samsung was launching the Galaxy S6 family. And even if you give Samsung the benefit of the doubt for having a slightly earlier launch cycle (April vs September), in April 2016 they launched the S7.
The latest supported versions of Android for both those devices are:
Galaxy S6 = Android 7 (Nougat)
Galaxy S7 = Android 8 (Oreo)
And to help put that in context, the latest 2020 phones from Samsung, the Galaxy S20 family, are supporting Android 10.
So taking S7 as the most generous example, if you owned one of those, then you would be at best two generations behind the latest version of Android. While all the while knowing that your iOS buddies who bought their iPhone 6s over six months before you are still running the latest version of iOS 13.
As I said at the start, this is by far and away the number one reason why iOS is better than Android. Knowing that when you buy a phone that you are going to get at least four or five years of operating system upgrades versus two from the best competitor, is a major factor that cannot be ignored.
Of course, it is important to note that the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus don’t have the hardware to support all of the features of iOS 13, but the same is true for the Samsung phones and most other Android-based manufacturers.
Hardware and Software integration
Although many Android-based manufacturers have come a long way since the *bloatware *riddled devices of years gone by, nothing has yet to come close to the tight integration of iOS with iPhone and iPad devices.
As I mentioned in the previous section, iOS devices are generally supported for at least twice as long as their Android counterparts, but it is more complex than that.
Apple iOS devices are still running smoothly on five-year-old hardware, which is much more than can be said for many Android devices after even 18 months.
The airtight connection that Apple has between hardware and software, means that everything is optimised to run smoothly. Now there well may be a few camera tricks going on to help older CPUs and GPUs out. But no-one really cares if the animations are slightly tweaked as long as it looks and feels as good as it did on the day you took it out of the box for the first time.
It is important also to mention that there are some not so clever tricks going on, like the infamous *performance management feature *that was uncovered, allowing iPhone CPUs to be throttled in order to save battery on old devices.
But even then, it was Apple’s handling of the situation that was off target, rather than the feature itself being the villain. For in fact in many ways it makes perfect sense to help assist older batteries and devices through their golden years. Ultimately, if for 99% of users the devices performs its daily duties well, then what is the problem?
PR disasters aside, daily use of an iPhone 6s running iOS 13 is still perfectly pleasant, enjoyable and most importantly, a reliable experience. Apple devices have a comforting steady feel to them. Nothing is too fast or too jarring, you just press something with your finger and it opens just the same way on the first time or one-hundredth time.
Whereas, taking an Android-based device, even one running flagship hardware, never feels as smooth. There is always a sense of inconsistency in animation, transition, opening, closing, and general navigation that hints to the fact that the software wasn’t born purely to run on the hardware in your hand and is trying to please too many masters. (And for the record I am including Google Pixel devices in that category too.)
Android devices continue each year to push the boundaries of hardware with bleeding-edge CPU, GPU, RAM and screen resolution, but it never quite comes together to produce a finished feeling device.
I don’t make that comment from the view of a lifetime Apple fanboy either. I have been tempted over to Android by various Galaxy Note, Huawei and Google devices, but after a few months, I have always begun to regret it, when either software or hardware has begun to let me down. On more than one occasion, have I taken a financial hit and traded in a newer Android device for an older iOS one.
I also don’t have my vision coloured by always running the latest iOS device. As of April 2020 when I am writing this piece, I am still the proud owner of a matt black iPhone 7 Plus, running iOS 13 and looking forward to running iOS 14!
Apps are better on iOS
Out of the three, this opinion is possibly the one which is going to cause the most discussion. Google Play Store is not that half baked, underpopulated marketplace that it once was. There are just as many of top apps in both iOS App Store and Google Play store, with each having its own platform exclusives.
But you don’t have to scrape too far below the surface and flagship apps of the Google Play store for the quality level to drop off considerably.
Apple sometimes gets a bad name for how strict and fussy they are with the apps that make it onto the iOS App Store. But that approach leads to one very important outcome, better quality, better performing, safer and securer apps.
During my aforementioned stints as an Android owner and iOS owner, I have downloaded hundreds of apps on both platforms from mainstream developers and less well known, or even hobby developers. The clear and overwhelming impression I get is that it is easier to get something published on the Google Play store because the overall quality is not as good.
More crashes, glitches, failed installs, bloatware, adware, freemium, etc.
The apps on the iOS App store just have a more polished feel to them and are easier to use, more reliable and ultimately useful.
From what I can see from the underlying coding tools and APIs for iOS are easier to work with and more powerful, which leads to better apps. Also, Android is favoured more by hobbyists and bedroom hackers, so they are more likely to produce independent apps that doesn’t always come with the same standard of testing or quality control.
So there you have it, my 3 tops reasons why iOS is still better than Android. I have tried to be as fair as possible, while still clearly stating my opinion.
Thanks for reading!