The Impossible Debate: iPhone vs Android

Welcome to the definitive iPhone versus Android video. It's a debate that has been ongoing for years, with many people becoming so entrenched on one side that they never want to flip to the other side. But today, we're going to break down this impossible debate into seven meaningful categories, and provide a system, or rubric, to help you figure out which platform is right for you.

Breaking Down the Categories

Category Number One: Customization

If you see an icon and get excited, then you probably love customization too. Digging into the settings and messing around with the home screen and lock screen, tweaking things and behavior to make the device absolutely perfect for you, it's a hobby all on its own. In 2023, iOS 17 and Android 14 may seem close, but the more you look into it, the more you realize that Apple's restrictions limit what you can do with customization. Even with the new lock screen update, which adds features like changing clock fonts and colors, and adding widgets to the home screen, many iPhone setups still just look the same. On the other hand, Android offers way more freedom when it comes to customization. You can change the theme of the OS, matching the color of your wallpaper thanks to Material You, or use icon packs and custom widget sizes.

Category Number Two: Features

Straight up which one can do more stuff is a category that has been a hot debate at the forefront of iOS versus Android conversations. Both platforms have launched with missing features, but especially the iPhone. Many people always hear about features that are "missing" from one platform or the other. But in reality, both iOS and Android offer a wide range of features that can enhance your user experience.

Category Number Three: Price

The price of an iPhone versus Android device is another factor to consider when deciding which platform is right for you. The cost of ownership can vary significantly depending on the device and carrier you choose. Some carriers may offer more competitive pricing, while others may charge more for similar plans.

Category Number Four: Security

When it comes to security, both iOS and Android have their strengths and weaknesses. iOS has a reputation for being highly secure, thanks to its closed ecosystem and strict app review process. On the other hand, Android offers more flexibility when it comes to customization, which can sometimes lead to security vulnerabilities. However, many modern Android devices come with advanced security features that help protect against threats.

Category Number Five: Performance

When it comes to performance, both iOS and Android offer fast and responsive devices. The iPhone's A-series chips are known for their power efficiency and speed, while the latest Android flagship devices feature powerful processors from Qualcomm and Samsung. However, the performance difference between the two platforms is not always noticeable to the average user.

Category Number Six: Ecosystem

The ecosystem of a smartphone can play a significant role in your decision-making process. iOS has a seamless integration with other Apple devices and services, such as Macs, iPads, and Apple Watches. On the other hand, Android offers more flexibility when it comes to compatibility with third-party apps and services.

Category Number Seven: Overall User Experience

Finally, we have the overall user experience of both platforms. Both iOS and Android offer intuitive interfaces that make it easy to navigate and use your device. However, some users may prefer the simplicity and ease of use of an iPhone, while others may enjoy the customization options available on an Android device.

The Winner: A Systematic Approach

Since one winner doesn't automatically apply to every human on earth, we're going to provide a systematic approach to help you figure out which platform is right for you. By considering these seven categories and using our rubric to evaluate each feature, you can make an informed decision about whether the iPhone or Android is right for you.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en(upbeat music)♪ Ooh ♪- All right, welcome tothe definitive iPhoneversus Android video.It's the impossible debate, right?In a lot of ways, people just getso entrenched on one sidethat they never wannaflip to the other side.To each their own.You hear that all the time,but I have a solution.So here's how we're gonna do this.So I'm gonna break this down intoseven actually meaningful categories,so it's an odd number, so therehas to be a winner, no tie,but since we're notpsychos and we know thatone winner doesn't automatically applyto every human on earth,I'm actually gonna give you a system,a rubric to help figure outthe real winner for yourself.You'll see what I mean. Let's get into it.So, all right.Category number one. Customization.Basically, if you see thisicon and you get excited,then you probably love customization too.So, digging into the settingsand messing around with thehome screen and the lock screenand tweaking things and behaviorsto make the deviceabsolutely perfect for you,I mean, it's a hobby all on its own.Now, at first in 2023, itmight actually seem likeiOS 17 and Android 14are pretty close, right?I mean, let's be real.iOS just added a bunchof really good featuresthat are very well done.The new lock screen updategives you the abilityto change all these clock fonts and colorsand put various super usefulwidgets on your lock screenand then save a bunch ofdifferent lock screen setupsfor different situationsand different focus modes,and then widgets were alsoadded to the home screenless than two years ago as well,so that unlocked a ton of customizationof home screen setups displayingglanceable information,but the more you look into it,the more you realize it'snot actually that close,and a lot of this really justcomes down to the fact thatApple, they do keep addingall these abilities,but you're always restricted todoing it the Apple way, the correct way,and so that's why a lot of iPhone setupsstill just kind of look the same.Like, even if you justtake stock Android 14from the Google Pixel,which isn't even the mostcustomizable version of Android,there's still way morethat you can change,from the colors of the theme of the OSmatching the color of yourwallpaper thanks to Material Youto icon packs, custom widget sizes.I mean, Android will just kind oflet you do whatever you want.On the iPhone,you can't expand a widgetto any size you want.You can't put an appjust on the right side of yourhome screen for reachability.You literally can't even place an appwherever you want on the home screen.It must be the next up inthe grid of Apple's choosing.You can't change the grid's size.You can't change the icon sizes.I mean, it just takes awhole bunch of extra workand a Siri Shortcuts hackjust to use a custom icon.Just basic stuff.Now, I think the otherside of that coin isyou can make a truly ugly,horrible Android setup,where you can't really mess upan iPhone home screen that much.So, while you can definitely argue thatiOS does it prettier,the winner for most customization,that would be Android.So, then category numbertwo, features, all right?Just straight up whichone can do more stuff.This has been one of the hottest debatesat the forefront of iOS versus Androidconversations you always hear,mostly because bothplatforms, at some level,launched missing features,but especially the iPhone.Like, you'd always hear,\"Wow, can you believe the iPhonecan't even set wallpapers?\"And then it was, \"Canyou believe the iPhoneis just now getting copyand paste, seriously?\"And then it's, \"Wow, it's crazy that iOSis just getting widgetsnow a decade later.\"But, hey, now, it's 2023 andthey're both very complete,and even in the ways that they're not,they're copying each other all the time.You always see a new keynotewith new stuff on Android,and you're like, that came from iOS,and then you'll see stufffrom the iPhone keynoteand be like, that came from Android,but there's even some new stuff nowthat the iPhone has that Android doesn't.A pretty good one recently is focus modes,which gives you super highcontrol over notificationsin various different situationswith your apps and your contacts.There are also a lot of privacy features,things like Hide My Email with iCloud Plusand iCloud Private Relay.You could even argue thatDynamic Island on the Pro iPhoneis a feature if you want to,but, I mean, I just couldn'tbecause only a smallhandful of apps support it,but it's something pretty cool and unique,which is more and more rare than everin the smartphone world.At this point, though,neither OS is really missingany gigantic features anymore.They've both matured up to this levelwhere they're their own character.They both do a lot of stuff,but I still am gonna have to give the edgeto Android in this onejust because there areso many little, like,tweaky, like little OS-level features,just little things that youcan tweak and change on Androidthat still just are not on the iPhone.So I'm talking likebattery management featuresto customized charging speedsor set manual charge limitsto preserve battery life.There's also an actualfile management systemso you can drag and drop thingsonto your phone into certainfolders if you want to.There's gaming-specificfeatures like game modes,the ability to dial up and downyour screen's refreshrate whenever you want to.Independent volume controlsfor phone calls and ringtones and alarms.Also, reverse wirelesscharging comes up a lotfor charging wireless earbudswithout breaking out a separate cable.Really, just, it comes downto the benefit of Androidis having so much feature choice.That's kind of the point,and this also bleeds into hardware too.So, even if the feature you wantis a huge camera with no notch,then you have to get anAndroid phone, right?So, if the feature is a superfast charging or a 10x cameraor USB Type-C,as of right now, it'sgotta be an Android phone.So, even though they bothoffer all of the basic featuresand they appear to copyeach other all the timeon little added stuff,the winner here, again,is definitely Android.Now, number three is ease of use.Now, ease of use is veryvaluable to a lot of people,like a lot of people, and thething about ease of use isit often basically hasan inverse relationshipwith customization and a ton of features,'cause there's this delicate balancing actyou have to do of having flexibility,giving flexibility to the user,but not overwhelming themwith a ton of buttons and settings,and this is really where the iPhone excelsand has excelled for yearsas a high priority for sure,even in the most fundamental ways.The home screen on the iPhonehas had up to four icons in the dockon every iPhone since the beginning,and the phone icon has always been greenand always been on the leftevery single time for 17 years.The iPhone's camera app,we've all seen that stayfundamentally the samewith the viewfinder and the sliding modes.It's been like that for years,and that kind of tucksaway a lot of the settingsinto a separate settings appand it can feel likeit's missing features,but, honestly, it's still the easiestand most straightforwardfor most people to use.It's like they hate changingthings for no good reason.The calculator has basicallybeen unchanged for years.Now, there's also downsides to that,like Siri has basically been ignoredsince it was introduced, but, still, like,Apple moves the call endbutton by like 200 pixelsto the middle of the screenand people freak out about it.Sometimes, it feels likeAndroid versions willjust move stuff aroundjust kind of to try it and forthe sake of changing things,and sometimes it works,sometimes it doesn't.They'll move it back,and that's interestingand exciting sometimes,but that does hurt just usercontinuity and ease of use.Maybe not for you watching this video,but just think for the average person,like for your five closest friends.Think about how they use their phone.Yeah, then throw on top of that,there's basically never any bloatwareloaded onto the iPhone ever,and then customer service isbasically always better for an iPhonebecause Apple stores are everywhereand Apple controls that entire experience,for better or for worse,so they get to do greatwork with customers.So it's just for peoplewho are not enthusiastswho just wanna get the thingand not think about it anymore,they pretty much alwaysgo with the iPhone.So ease of use is acheckbox for the iPhone.By the way, if you're enjoyingthis video, get subscribed.Why not? It's free.All right, so we gotta talk about updates.So number four is support.So this is something that I would classifyas kind of underrated,just because I don't think enough peoplebuy their new phone thatthey plan on having for yearswith this in mind.I think having the latestand greatest updates,software, and securitypatches as quick as possibleand as long as possibleshould be a priority,but it usually isn't for people.Either way, it's kind of amixed bag across the board.In Android world, somecompanies make no promisesor they kind of break their promises.Some have short promises andsome will actually extend outto promising three to fouryears of software updates.Weirdly, Samsung right nowis the undisputed king ofAndroid software updates,with some rumors of maybeGoogle catching back up,but Samsung announced in 2019that all devices in 2019 or laterwill get four years of security updatesand some flagships will even get five,but none of them reallycome close to the iPhone.When iOS 17 comes out this fall,every iPhone back tothe iPhone 10R from 2018is officially supported andgonna get the latest version.That's five majorsoftware version updates.I don't think there are anyAndroid phones from 2018that are gonna get thelatest version of Android 14when it comes out.So this one easily goesto the vertically-integrated Apple phonewith the Apple software all day.So, now, my number five category is apps.This one is actually kind of fascinating.So, obviously, we have our standard,like our apps that weall use every single dayon our phones that we're used to,but then sometimes it's funjust sort of popping aroundin the respective app stores,discovering new things, finding fun apps,and, at this point, theyare both flourishing.There's millions of apps now.There's over three and a half million appsin the Google Play Store,and over a million and ahalf in Apple's App Store,which if you just stop there,looks like a win for Android,but quality over quantity, my friends.Quality over quantity.Basically, every major app isavailable for both platforms,which means there are manymore, you know, niche appsor relatively unknownpossible diamonds in the roughon the Google Play Store,sure, but the difference iswhen you actually talk to these developersand observe the cycle of, like,how they get made and howthese apps get updated,the truth is so many ofthem are prioritizing iOS,and, really, it's purely for efficiency.Think about it.If you just have to updateone version of your appand it works with all thenewest iPhones instantlyand works perfectly for millions of peoplewho all have basicallythe same aspect ratio,of course you'd do it, flip that switch,but, with Android,there are naturallymany more complexities.There are a bunch of different devicesthat all have different aspect ratiosand different pixel densitiesand different featuresupport and even foldables,and it's like it's a lot more workto get all of those users up to datewith the same level of optimization.It's a lot of different switches to flip,so a lot of 'em just don'tgo through all of thator they take way longer to.So the number of titles is one thing,but is it the same Instagramapp on both iPhone and Android?Is it the same Threads app on each one?As someone who's beencarrying and using both phonesand often using thesame app on both phones,I have a firsthand experienceof knowing that, often,even with some of Google's own apps,the updates are prioritized on the iPhone.They come first to the iPhonebefore they come to Android.I wish that wasn't true.I wish they were just aseasy to do one or the other,but that's just the truth of it.So the slight app advantage isgonna go to the iPhone here,and interestingly enough,this also appliesgenerally to accessories.Again, same reason, same efficiency,but that's a win for the iPhone.So then, category number six,I'm gonna go a little moresubjective with this one,but I still think itmatters, which is excitement.Which one is more interesting or excitingin the moment to you?Now, honestly, I get pretty excitedfor a lot of differentnew tech these days,and, actually, because there's onlylike one or two newiPhone drops every year,it's actually very easyto get hype built up for the new iPhone,but it's definitely adifferent type of excitementwith the massive variety ofnew innovations and thingsthat come to Android phones all the time.Like, if you just areinterested in folding phones,well, there's more Androidreleases than ever for that.Want a gaming phone? There'sgonna be an Android for that.Do you want a headphone jack?Do you want a compact phone?Do you want the world's fastest charging?Do you want some interestingnew unique designsor materials or texturesor experimental features?Like, that is the world of Android,and if you think about it,seriously think about this,most of the interesting excitementaround every new iPhonelaunch, the question really is,is this new iPhone goingto get a new featurethat's been in Android phones for years?Like, are we finally gonnaget USB-C on an iPhone?Are we finally gonna getfast charging on an iPhone?Are we finally gonna get a 5x camera?And so just for that novelty reason alone,the excitement category,that's definitely gotta go to Android.So that brings us to my last category,number seven, ecosystem.We've heard this word before, ecosystem.So, okay, say what you want,but there are a lot of peoplewho will not buy a phoneif it doesn't have iMessageor FaceTime, whatever it is,and Apple has weaponized thisand built walls around thisand closed it off as much as possible.Technically, you can join aFaceTime from an Android phone,but you can't start one.So I made an entire videojust about Apple's ecosystem.Hate it or love it, it isimportant to some people.Now, the thing isApple is not the onlyone with an ecosystem.Like, look at Samsung for example.Apple happens to build bigger wallsaround keeping peopleinto their ecosystem,but Samsung has a lot ofequivalents to all the same pieces.Like, you could get aSamsung Galaxy S flagshipand you could quickly and easilyconnect your GalaxyBuds just like AirPods.You put on your Galaxy watchwith a lot of the samefeatures as the Apple watch.You tether to a Samsung Tabjust for entertainment purposes,like an iPad, but thenyou get a Galaxy Book Prowith cellular internet sharingand wireless Quick Share,just like a MacBook Pro with AirDrop.You see where I'm going? Itjust keeps going and going.I'm sure Samsung iseventually gonna come outwith their smart speakerto match the home pod.It's totally, totallycoming, but on paper,the idea is they aresurprisingly congruent.So, the way I see it, atthe time of this recording,'cause this could change verysoon in the next couple weeks,but the main advantagesof Samsung's ecosystemwould be things like one USB-Cacross literally everything,so you can use one chargingcable for all of your stuff.Two, they make moredifferent versions of devicesthat fit into the ecosystem.Like, there are a ton of different phonesand a bunch of different watchesand different headphonesand laptops, et cetera,so there's more flexibilityand hardware choice.Classic Android, plus Samsungalso makes other stuffthat connects, likedishwashers and refrigerators,but then the advantagesof Apple's ecosystem,not just in the US, but especially here,are, first of all, easeof use and seamlessness.Like, it is genuinely crazy how goodsome of the continuity stuffis in Apple's ecosystem.Like, something like Continuity Camerais so sick every time.You just push one buttonto use a super high qualityiPhone camera as your webcam.It works very, very well,but then the popularityfactor, especially in the US,makes things like FaceTime and iMessageand the Find My Network super strong.So I can make a whole video on this.I could put up thestrengths and weaknessesand put up just these twoecosystems up against each other,but, as of right now,they're both very strong,and I'm gonna give theslight edge to Apple's,just because, one, I'm in the USand that advantage is strong,but, two, just because of the seamlessnessand how well things are integratedand the continuity features are unreal.So, if we tally these all up here,you can see that the objective winner,in four out of the sevencategories that I made up,is the iPhone, but putyour pitchforks down.Guess what?As you've probably picked upfrom the beginning of this video,there is no objective winnerto a decision as personal as this oneand when the options are this close.You probably already know,if you've been watching my videos,you know I main an Android phonemost of the time alongside an iPhone,but my main phone and mymain customized setupsare on the Android phone, so what gives?Like, picking one de factowinner kind of suggests thatthe one winner is best for everyone,but we already know that there'ssome people who literallydon't care about some featuresthat some others would saythey can't live without.So I've devised a very basic systemto help you pick your winner for yourself,and it's really quite simple.All you have to dois put these seven categoriesin order of importance to youand then rate each one of themlet's say on a scale from one to five.So give them a one to five point ratingbased on how much you care about it.So, here, for me, I care the most aboutcustomization and features.Then I care a lot about apps,and excitement and updatesare decently important,but then in my daily driver,ease of use and ecosystemaren't that big of a deal.I've got a mixed bag.So then I just give theamount of points earnedto each winner of that category.So the winner for me is clearly Android,but, hey, for you,maybe you care a lot aboutecosystem and maybe nothing else.I'm sure you know someone like this.Then the iPhone will clearlybe calling your name,or if you're the type who wantsall the features andexcitement in the world,well, then Android probablyis what's in your pocket.You might even have your owncategory you could add inthat's heavily weighted.I kind of see it like buying a car.Like maybe Cool Factoris in there. Have at it.It turns out buying a phoneis one of the most personaldecisions you make.I've said this before, but, like,it's the thing you spent your money onand you carry everywhere you go,and so that's why peopleget so worked up aboutthis side versus that side,but, at the end of the day,the winner, not to be cheesy, is us,because they're competingagainst each other to get betterto hopefully win you over, andthat's the way it should be.Thanks for watching.Catch you in the next one.Peace.(upbeat music)♪ Ooh ♪\n"