6 reasons I won’t be switching to an iPhone anytime soon
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Key Takeaways
- iCloud and Continuity provide seamless syncing and copying and pasting across devices.
- Apple Stores offer an easy shopping and repair experience with expert advice.
- AppleCare+ offers subsidized repair costs and significantly reduced downtime.
I’ve been an iPhone user for a long time — not as long as the original iPhone, but still. My first smartphone was an iPhone 4S. I was in middle school, so imagine how excited I was to try Siri. Funnily enough, being Canadian, I didn’t realize this feature was only available in the US at the time. Imagine my disappointment holding down the home button only for Siri to say, “Sorry, this feature is not yet available in your area.” Thank you, Tim.
Since my iPhone 4S, I’ve had every iPhone 5, 5S, 6, 6 Plus (don’t ask me why I bought a bigger phone after three months), 7 Plus, X (it’s called ten, don’ t @ me), XS Max, 11 Pro Max, 12 Pro Max, 13 Pro (yes, I went down in size), 14 Pro, and now I’m using the 15 Pro. For me, having the latest iPhone is a luxury, but I plan and budget every year. I usually give my current phone to my mom and sell, trade, or keep her current phone as a test device so nothing goes to waste.
Yes, I am a fan of apples, lamb, or whatever you want to call me. I enjoy using the company’s products and am lucky to be able to do a job with that passion. However, any of my past writing also shows that I don’t mind criticizing the company where it’s due (look at the App Store ads). This piece is not a sales pitch to “convince” you to switch from Android or upgrade to the new iPhone. I covet my girlfriend’s Google Pixel and its cool ‘Use it for me’ feature, and I’m curious to try a privacy-focused version of Android like GrapheneOS.
Instead, I’m just looking to share five reasons why I continue to love not only my iPhone but the entire Apple ecosystem and why I don’t see them going anywhere anytime soon.
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iCloud continuity
A simple Apple ecosystem
iCloud and Continuity are great examples of how Apple’s ecosystem is unmatched by anything else on the market. Some call it a walled garden; I consider it simple. With iCloud, all my notes, reminders, calendars, and more are nearby—synced seamlessly between my other Apple devices. iCloud Drive is my favorite feature as it allows me to start an article on my iPhone when an idea strikes, upload it to my iPad Pro, where I can focus, and finish it on my Mac, where publishing is easy.
Likewise, Continuity makes copying and pasting magical, helping me copy something from my iPhone and paste it on my Mac or any other combination of my devices. AirDrop is another important feature that speeds up file sharing between my devices. Yes, there are other solutions on the market that try to emulate these features with Windows and Android, but they are almost as seamless as iCloud and Continuity. I’m very excited about the iPhone screen mirror that comes in iOS 18 and macOS 15 as a private way to access my iPhone wirelessly.
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Apple Stores
There are more than 500 of them around the world
I haven’t been happy with the Apple Store experience lately. So much so that I hope to write a piece about it. Still, as a former Apple Store employee, I find it hard not to walk into one place and feel the energy in the air. I’ll be the first to admit that you have Apple Store PTSD when you automatically start dealing with products when you walk in. However, Apple’s 500+ Apple Stores, as well as thousands of dealers and repair partners, create an unparalleled network for easy shopping and repair.
A few months ago, I went on vacation to Montreal. Knowing that we were going to a place with an Apple store, I decided to fix the back glass of my iPhone while we ate lunch. So, like a regular at an Apple store, I booked an appointment in advance. There’s something to be said about booking an appointment through an app and getting things fixed in less than two hours — all the while the repairs are tracked and I can use my AppleCare+.
Similarly, the shopping experience at an Apple Store, while not what it used to be, makes it a great place to get expert advice and take online orders. Yes, finding an employee and figuring out where to pay is confusing, but Apple employees are some of the most knowledgeable salespeople you’ll meet at a consumer electronics store.
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AppleCare+
It’s all about express replacement
For some, AppleCare+ is a scam. For some, it’s a necessary part of the Apple shopping experience. I don’t buy AppleCare+ at all. I’ll take my chances with Apple TV and HomePods. However, my basic expensive devices, like my iPad Pro, iPhone, MacBook, Apple Watch, and soon the Apple Vision Pro, all get it automatically. The decision on whether to get AppleCare+ or any extended warranty is your risk tolerance. However, the one feature that draws me to AppleCare+ over the cost of subsidized repairs is the obvious replacement.
Express replacement is when Apple sends you a replacement device before you return the faulty one. To do this, one must call Apple Support, request one, and hold it on a credit card for the cost of not returning the replacement device. Otherwise, there is no additional fee for this service. What makes express replacement express is how replacement devices appear within 1-2 business days, hopefully reducing your downtime. My nearest Apple store is an hour away and they don’t always have a mobile iPad or the right iPhone part in stock. Express Replacement makes it easy to find replacements for disabled and damaged devices.
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Video
iPhones are the best
It’s hard for me to put it into words because I’m not a professional videographer, but iPhones are great for video capture. While there are endless debates about which device takes the best photo, I believe there is little competition when it comes to video capture. The combination of hardware and software allows iPhones to be the industry’s leading video capture devices. Apple has hundreds of engineers working on the camera alone, and the video people are doing great work. It’s the simplicity of just being able to take your iPhone and record great videos without needing to make any fiddly adjustments that has given the device such a great video reputation. Of course, there are plenty of third-party apps available in the App Store for people who want that level of control — and that’s great. However, for many of its users, Apple has hit the right note for excellent video. No additional configuration is required.
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Privacy
What happens on your iPhone stays on your iPhone
Privacy and security are areas where Apple tries to differentiate itself from Android and Windows. Android and Windows are not insecure operating systems, but the nature of iOS, a privacy-oriented, closed-source OS with no sideloading of the application, has helped improve the iPhone’s image. Compared to Windows, iPhones have no ads, and unlike Android, Apple does everything possible to limit data collection and process operations on the device instead of the cloud. iPhones are perfect; they still collect data, but this self-limiting approach is one of the reasons Siri isn’t as good as Google Assistant, yet it’s more reliable.
Permissions information and location sharing are some examples of this. Many location apps are scams, charge money or sell user data. Sometimes both. Meanwhile, Apple has Find My, a way for friends and family to share their location without Apple seeing that data. Even though the privacy consent prompt may be annoying, it provides an important service of guarding against malicious applications that obtain personal data. Apple also has Advanced Data Protection to put the last encryption on your iCloud data, something, as far as I know, Google does not offer, which means that all personal files can be viewed by the search giant. These are just a few of the ways iPhones work as privacy-preserving alternatives to Android devices.
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Design
Apple is still the king of design
Pocket-lint
Say what you will about Apple, but if one thing remains true, the company can design great products. I’m not just talking about hardware but software, too. The services are a little iffy, I’ll admit. But everything, from the unboxing experience to the device features to the iOS to the running apps, the experience is unmatched. Competitors like Google and Samsung continue to try to imitate Apple’s design language. I wouldn’t blame them for doing so. However, even with the best hardware, Samsung’s version of Android is limited. Even with Google’s clean install of Android, there are still apps of poor quality. Apple isn’t perfect. I’ll be the first to admit it. However, despite the departure of Johnny Ive, the company’s design team continues to be the guiding light, the ethos, of high-quality design. I will never pass up the premium feel of my iPhone in my hand.
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