Not everyone cares about the iPhone vs. Android debate. There is a very good chance that most people have no idea what that’s referencing. But with few exceptions, everyone who has a smartphone is either on team iPhone or team Android, whether they know it or not.
We have very little choice in the matter. Ecosystem lock-in means that with the reliance on a single product or service, your decision is made for you. If you want an Apple Watch, you can only get the most out of it by pairing it to an iPhone. Were you interested in those cool earbuds that can do live language translation Google just recently announced? You will need a Google Pixel 2.
While the two platforms have many similarities. iOS enjoys the lion’s share of mindshare. It’s not even close, despite the fact that worldwide market share belongs to Android. So if not raw sales numbers, what is it that makes the iPhone worthy of so much attention?
What is the real difference between iPhone and Android? However you categorized the differences between the platforms in 2008, there is a good chance you were wrong. Here is a look at the real differences, and why it turned out that way:
Ecosystem
The iPhone ecosystem is so strong, you were able to buy iPhone 8 cases before the iPhone 8 was officially on sale. No iPhone has ever had a shortage of cases, screen protectors, bumpers, holsters, and other ways to protect, carry and display it. If such a device exists at all, it exists for the iPhone.
iPhone accessories go well beyond cases. You can also purchase camera lenses, microphones, battery packs, headphones, and speakers specifically designed and marketed for the iPhone. No single device in the Android universe comes anywhere close to the accessory market afforded to the iPhone and its users.
It goes well beyond hardware. Almost 6 years ago, Google’s Eric Schmidt insisted that apps would be made for Android first, reversing the trend of apps being made first or exclusively for iOS. If anything, the iOS-first trend has accelerated.
Performance
One would suspect that Android would at least have the advantage in performance. After all, Android phone makers are the OEMs who make the components that go into the phones. But Apple makes the whole widget from software to hardware design. They don’t buy off-the-shelf parts. And when it comes to CPUs and GPUs, Apple controls every detail.
That control has given them a performance lead that increases every year. Don’t bother looking at the specs on paper. What matters is real-world performance. And Apple’s phones from the previous year usually far outperform the competition’s newest offering in real-world tests. The difference is even more dramatic in synthetic benchmarks if that sort of thing matters to you.
Apple’s silicon team is to the industry, the tail that wags the dog. Beyond any single component, Apple optimizes every bit of the software and hardware to complement every other part and the whole in ways that produce performance you can feel. It’s not just theoretical. The iPhone is simply the most performant smartphone on the market.
Security
If mobile security matters to you, then what you want is an iPhone. Because Apple controls the whole widget, they can manage security in ways that Android cannot. The top android OEM sells a phone with face unlock that can be fooled with a simple image on the screen of another phone.
Apple cannot be as casual about security concerns. They are transitioning from a system with a 50,000 to 1 chance of being tricked, to one with a million to 1 chance. Recent reports show 97% of all mobile malware is on the Android platform. This is the nature of an open system used by the majority of people. But no matter the reason, iOS has a definite security advantage.
Ecosystem, performance, and security are seldom disputed as iPhone advantages. The iPhone does not stack up so well when considering variety, price, and customizability. You will have to decide which set of advantages is worth your time and money. There are good reasons why most of the smartphone using world uses an Android phone.