I love my Motorola Droid X. It really is a great phone but it can’t even hold a candle to the latest and greatest Android-powered phones like the Galaxy Nexus or Galaxy S II. That said, even if my Droid X is an older phone I’d still choose it over the newest iPhone every single time. Here are ten reasons why I think Android makes for a much better phone than iOS.
- Android OS is available on dozens if not hundreds of phones. With iOS you only get to pick from five.
- Android devices support removable memory so you can add more capacity for media and documents. If you want to upgrade the memory in an iPhone you have to buy a new one.
- Android devices are Plug and Play. You can attach them to any computer via USB and move photos, mp3s, and other files back and forth. To do the same with an iPhone you need iTunes. And an iTunes account.
- Android devices support Adobe Flash, which is all over the Internet. iPhones do not.
- Android supports wireless 4G LTE speeds of up to 15Mbps. iPhones still crawl at 2Mbps 3G speeds.
- Android phones (can) have bigger screens. My Motorola Droid X has a 4.3″ screen but iPhones are only 3.5″.
- Android is now shipped on phones that support NFC and “tap and pay”. No NFC on iPhones yet.
- Android offers several keyboard choices, including Swype and physical keyboards with actual buttons. The iPhone only offers the stock touch screen.
- Android supports multiple app stores and will let you install any app you want. Apple only allows you to install Apple-approved apps from the App Store onto an iPhone.
- Android has more cool features. Some models include 3D cameras, slide-out keyboards, and HDMI out. iPhones are just iPhones.
And there you have my anti-Apple rant. I realize Android is an operating system and iPhone is a class of hardware but the variety of hardware available with the Android OS is a large part of Android’s success. What do you think? Or maybe you like a little bit of both phones, like Steve Wozniak? Let us know in the comments below or check out next week’s article, Ten Reasons the iPhone is Better than Android Phones!
Just the fact that any Apple hardware demands crappy iTunes (which means I MUST run Windoze or Apple) and an Orwellian user agreement is reason enough for me to steer clear of Apple now days.
Unfortunately, they mutated from the hacker-driven company they once were into every bit as “corporate” as IBM and Microsoft.
Greg, I can’t say I disagree with you but aside from the platform neutrality of their web-based offerings is requiring a Google account really that much better than requiring an iTunes account?
Don’t you think Google an Apple are moving in similar directions? Why else would Steve Jobs want to burn every last cent Apple has to destroy Google?
You forgot about being able to remove the battery from my Android phone and replace it with another, should I chose to, and without having to take it apart or to an Apple fanboy store for one of their iGeeks to mess with.
Actually, it seems that android phones are moving away from that capability. Droid 4, for example, doesn’t have a removable battery.
Gene, right you are. Excellent point!
I remember Logitech dropping Google TV in November of last year but I hadn’t noticed that Sony was picking up the pieces and continuing development. Again, good catch!
You also forgot widgets! And notification lights!
Right you are, William. Good catch!
But, with an iPhone you get…
um…
With an iPhone you can…
uhh…
Yeah. You didn’t think anyone was going to offer a rebuttle, did you Phil? Well, at least an intelligent one I mean.
Well Tom… I’ve gotten all sorts of comments on both my articles about the iPhone / Android debate. The more the merrier!
Thanks for reading.
Phil
Variety is the spice of life, especially when you get someone (me) who misspelled ‘rebuttal’.
It’s ok. Sometimes those little red squiggly lines are hard to see 🙂
Never knew that picking up a phone was such a hard decision. iphone 5 or Galaxy S3?
Nice Work Phil!
Thanks! I take my beatings from some readers on the iPhone > Android forum but overall I’d still rather have a ‘Droid any day 🙂
You forgot the FM radio and Infrared (IrDA).