I really want to love iOS.

[MisterAlexEsq]

I apologize for what a short novel this post ended up being... tl;dr - I'm a long-time stock Android user who's recently returned to iOS, and while I like ver.15 (a lot), I'm still struggling to give up also carrying my Pixel phone. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

My last iPhone was, I believe an iPhone 3G. I got a secondhand Nexus 4 as my first Android phone and have been using Nexus phones and their ilk (Nokia Android One, Pixel #a) for the past 8 or 9 years. I haven't been oblivious to changes and improvements in iOS, but my initial reason for sticking with the Nexus 4 was pretty much that I could do more with my stock Android phone than I could do even with my jailbroken iPhone. I still think that's an accurate statement, but the number and significance of those things are diminished to the point that there's not much that jailbreaking adds that I'd consider it worth the tradeoffs vs staying on unmodified iOS.

I've now been using an iPhone SE2 for the past two months (since I got my wife the 13 Mini and popped my SIM into her old phone to take for a test drive). I have to say that I have really gotten used to it and would absolutely love to stay with an iPhone the next time I upgrade... there are just some sticking points that I'm having trouble overcoming. If anyone has helpful ideas, I'd love to hear them. ?

Text Entry... This is the biggest one (probably because it's such a constantly used function of the phone) and is the one thing that, if fixed, would be enough to sweep everything else under the rug. Keep in mind I am unaccustomed to this interface's behavior and am speaking from the point of view of nearly a decade of swyping and editing on Android. That said, I constantly feel like the text entry box is actively fighting against me. It does not trust me to tap and place my cursor wherever I want; it must snap to a word edge. And if it's against a word, I cannot tap to instead move the cursor to an adjacent word. Pressing and holding to move the cursor is an exercise in frustration as well, as I often either don't have enough screen space to get it to move as far as I want up the text field, or it will go into a never-ending scroll to the beginning/end. Tapping to bring up the select/copy/paste context menu is also a frustration as there is just enough of a pause to make me think I need to tap again, and then I end up dismissing it as it appears instead.
I'll stop there to summarize that text entry has simply seemed far more responsive and intuitive on Android than on iOS. And I apologize if my frustration came across as at all heated since I really am trying to explain as objectively as I can. It's just that almost everything about how iOS handles text entry is opposite of how I'd expect.
Yes, I installed Gboard (thanks to anyone who'd have suggested that tip); it's just not the keyboard that's the problem.

Volume Control... This one's not as big a deal but still seems like such a barebones implementation for such a mature OS. I'm used to having more granularity (separate volume for media, notifications/ringers, call volume, and alarms) as well as quick and easy access to controlling the different volume settings. On my current phone, there are two volume settings, but the volume buttons can only be configured to control or even access one of them. Period. Since I have the buttons controlling ringer volume, the only way to change media volume is if media is actively playing. Which is just silly—simple example being if I know the media volume is set high and want to lower it before starting a YouTube video...

Icon Placement... I feel like this has to be some kind of legacy stubbornness, because I recall installing "blank app" icons from Cydia to adjust the layout way back on my old iPhone. So yeah, I know I don't need to say a lot about this. It's not a huge deal, especially since I'm on an SE that doesn't have a giant display, but on my (only slightly) larger Pixel 3a, I was very intentional about putting my icons/folders at the bottom since that's where it's easiest to reach with my thumb.

Camera Software... It's no secret that Google has done an outstanding job regarding image processing even with camera sensors that aren't super impressive. Apple has great cameras on their latest phones, and it would be phenomenal if they could invest in closing the gap on the software image processing side. Photos are, after all, the only thing about my phone that will stick around indefinitely once I inevitably replace the phone, itself. I still carry my Pixel as a camera since it takes photos that are as good as (or even better than) my wife's brand new iPhone, particularly in low light.

There are other minor issues here and there that I honestly don't even think worth bringing up. Like I said, if text entry were more intuitive, I would simply adjust to the rest and be delighted. On the flipside, there are some things I really love about the iPhone.

Find My. My wife and I had been using Google's location sharing since we were engaged, but I've found that the Find My location sharing has been far more accurate and timely. Granted, this could simply be a matter of both of us using the location service that's native to our device. If she were to get a Pixel phone, I would not be surprised to see improved performance in the other direction. Still, the Find My app is nice and every bit as intuitive as Google's solution.
(I definitely take issue with the lack of sharing for AirTags, though.)

Apple Watch. I have been using the iPhone for just over two months, but I've only been wearing my wife's hand-me-down Apple Watch 3 for about a month, and already I don't like the thought of going without it. It's been such a surprising game changer, and I recently played with some Android watches at Best Buy but none really struck me as good replacements for the Apple Watch.

Apple Maps. I haven't been impressed with the search side of Apple Maps—more often than I'd like, it has had no idea what I was looking for, so I instead asked it for something that I knew was nearby. However, I just have to say I really like the actual navigation more than on Google Maps. Including stop signs and lights (e.g. "Go through this light and at the next one, turn left") makes for far more natural directions as I would give if I were guiding someone from the passenger seat. It's just a really nice touch.

Security? I know Apple has had some missteps regarding user privacy protection, but they've still done far more to convince me of the security of their platform than Google has—kind of the opposite on that side, to be honest. As much as I like some of the things I can do outside of the Play Store, I'd be fine moving into the Walled Garden. I can always use my Pixel for sideloaded utilities and such, after all.

 

[hg.wells]

With regards to your text entry point and the cursor placement. Hold your finger on the space bar to easily move the cursor.

 

[MisterAlexEsq]

With regards to your text entry point and the cursor placement. Hold your finger on the space bar to easily move the cursor.

I've tried the spacebar trick, but that does not work, unfortunately. It still only acts as a left-right slider. I don't know if it's because I'm on an older model iPhone that doesn't do the 3D Touch, but to be honest, I shouldn't have to upgrade for a "feature" as basic as cursor placement. ?

 

[tbayrgs]

I apologize for what a short novel this post ended up being... tl;dr - I'm a long-time stock Android user who's recently returned to iOS, and while I like ver.15 (a lot), I'm still struggling to give up also carrying my Pixel phone. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

My last iPhone was, I believe an iPhone 3G. I got a secondhand Nexus 4 as my first Android phone and have been using Nexus phones and their ilk (Nokia Android One, Pixel #a) for the past 8 or 9 years. I haven't been oblivious to changes and improvements in iOS, but my initial reason for sticking with the Nexus 4 was pretty much that I could do more with my stock Android phone than I could do even with my jailbroken iPhone. I still think that's an accurate statement, but the number and significance of those things are diminished to the point that there's not much that jailbreaking adds that I'd consider it worth the tradeoffs vs staying on unmodified iOS.

I've now been using an iPhone SE2 for the past two months (since I got my wife the 13 Mini and popped my SIM into her old phone to take for a test drive). I have to say that I have really gotten used to it and would absolutely love to stay with an iPhone the next time I upgrade... there are just some sticking points that I'm having trouble overcoming. If anyone has helpful ideas, I'd love to hear them. ?

Text Entry... This is the biggest one (probably because it's such a constantly used function of the phone) and is the one thing that, if fixed, would be enough to sweep everything else under the rug. Keep in mind I am unaccustomed to this interface's behavior and am speaking from the point of view of nearly a decade of swyping and editing on Android. That said, I constantly feel like the text entry box is actively fighting against me. It does not trust me to tap and place my cursor wherever I want; it must snap to a word edge. And if it's against a word, I cannot tap to instead move the cursor to an adjacent word. Pressing and holding to move the cursor is an exercise in frustration as well, as I often either don't have enough screen space to get it to move as far as I want up the text field, or it will go into a never-ending scroll to the beginning/end. Tapping to bring up the select/copy/paste context menu is also a frustration as there is just enough of a pause to make me think I need to tap again, and then I end up dismissing it as it appears instead.
I'll stop there to summarize that text entry has simply seemed far more responsive and intuitive on Android than on iOS. And I apologize if my frustration came across as at all heated since I really am trying to explain as objectively as I can. It's just that almost everything about how iOS handles text entry is opposite of how I'd expect.
Yes, I installed Gboard (thanks to anyone who'd have suggested that tip); it's just not the keyboard that's the problem.

Volume Control... This one's not as big a deal but still seems like such a barebones implementation for such a mature OS. I'm used to having more granularity (separate volume for media, notifications/ringers, call volume, and alarms) as well as quick and easy access to controlling the different volume settings. On my current phone, there are two volume settings, but the volume buttons can only be configured to control or even access one of them. Period. Since I have the buttons controlling ringer volume, the only way to change media volume is if media is actively playing. Which is just silly—simple example being if I know the media volume is set high and want to lower it before starting a YouTube video...

Icon Placement... I feel like this has to be some kind of legacy stubbornness, because I recall installing "blank app" icons from Cydia to adjust the layout way back on my old iPhone. So yeah, I know I don't need to say a lot about this. It's not a huge deal, especially since I'm on an SE that doesn't have a giant display, but on my (only slightly) larger Pixel 3a, I was very intentional about putting my icons/folders at the bottom since that's where it's easiest to reach with my thumb.

Camera Software... It's no secret that Google has done an outstanding job regarding image processing even with camera sensors that aren't super impressive. Apple has great cameras on their latest phones, and it would be phenomenal if they could invest in closing the gap on the software image processing side. Photos are, after all, the only thing about my phone that will stick around indefinitely once I inevitably replace the phone, itself. I still carry my Pixel as a camera since it takes photos that are as good as (or even better than) my wife's brand new iPhone, particularly in low light.

There are other minor issues here and there that I honestly don't even think worth bringing up. Like I said, if text entry were more intuitive, I would simply adjust to the rest and be delighted. On the flipside, there are some things I really love about the iPhone.

Find My. My wife and I had been using Google's location sharing since we were engaged, but I've found that the Find My location sharing has been far more accurate and timely. Granted, this could simply be a matter of both of us using the location service that's native to our device. If she were to get a Pixel phone, I would not be surprised to see improved performance in the other direction. Still, the Find My app is nice and every bit as intuitive as Google's solution.
(I definitely take issue with the lack of sharing for AirTags, though.)

Apple Watch. I have been using the iPhone for just over two months, but I've only been wearing my wife's hand-me-down Apple Watch 3 for about a month, and already I don't like the thought of going without it. It's been such a surprising game changer, and I recently played with some Android watches at Best Buy but none really struck me as good replacements for the Apple Watch.

Apple Maps. I haven't been impressed with the search side of Apple Maps—more often than I'd like, it has had no idea what I was looking for, so I instead asked it for something that I knew was nearby. However, I just have to say I really like the actual navigation more than on Google Maps. Including stop signs and lights (e.g. "Go through this light and at the next one, turn left") makes for far more natural directions as I would give if I were guiding someone from the passenger seat. It's just a really nice touch.

Security? I know Apple has had some missteps regarding user privacy protection, but they've still done far more to convince me of the security of their platform than Google has—kind of the opposite on that side, to be honest. As much as I like some of the things I can do outside of the Play Store, I'd be fine moving into the Walled Garden. I can always use my Pixel for sideloaded utilities and such, after all.

Your very first statement usually applies to me in reverse—longtime iPhone user who often loves many things about the latest Pixel device but just cannot seem to let go of my iPhone.

Your sticking points are all pretty common sticking points for many. I’ve used iPhones since the first and I’ve been hoping for better home screen management in regards to icon placement since I first tried a Galaxy Nexus so many years ago.

My family all uses Apple devices so Find My is invaluable in my life. I can quickly see where my family members are, where there devices are and where my own stuff is (especially useful with AirTags now as well). This would be one of the major sticking points for me to leave an iPhone behind entirely. The second problem area would be the Apple Watch. It is genuinely the one device that i couldn’t leave behind. I’m a heavy user and no other smartwatch comes close to replacing all of the functionality I use on my Apple Watch. It really is the primary tether to the Apple ecosystem for me.

 

[tlab]

I've tried the spacebar trick, but that does not work, unfortunately. It still only acts as a left-right slider. I don't know if it's because I'm on an older model iPhone that doesn't do the 3D Touch, but to be honest, I shouldn't have to upgrade for a "feature" as basic as cursor placement. ?

Once you have pressed on the spacebar for long enough to enter cursor mode, you can move it up, down, left and right (you can move your finger anywhere within the keyboard area). 3D Touch isn’t necessary (apple discontinued yet feature a few generations ago).

Also if you long press where you want to place the cursor, a magnifying circle appears and you can move the cursor around that way.

 

[MisterAlexEsq]

Once you have pressed on the spacebar for long enough to enter cursor mode, you can move it up, down, left and right (you can move your finger anywhere within the keyboard area). 3D Touch isn’t necessary (apple discontinued yet feature a few generations ago).

Also if you long press where you want to place the cursor, a magnifying circle appears and you can move the cursor around that way.

No, I mean it really doesn't. Holding on the spacebar and then moving around over the now-blank keyboard area... it still only scrolls the left and right.

As for the long press and then slide within the text, that works about the same as on Android, too, except that the magnification pop-out likes to sometimes disappear which means I have to see "around" my finger to where the little cursor line is... and also it's easy to think that I'm placing it somewhere in the bottom line but actually end up dropping it at the end.

 

[Jason2000]

Your very first statement usually applies to me in reverse—longtime iPhone user who often loves many things about the latest Pixel device but just cannot seem to let go of my iPhone.

Your sticking points are all pretty common sticking points for many. I’ve used iPhones since the first and I’ve been hoping for better home screen management in regards to icon placement since I first tried a Galaxy Nexus so many years ago.

My family all uses Apple devices so Find My is invaluable in my life. I can quickly see where my family members are, where there devices are and where my own stuff is (especially useful with AirTags now as well). This would be one of the major sticking points for me to leave an iPhone behind entirely. The second problem area would be the Apple Watch. It is genuinely the one device that i couldn’t leave behind. I’m a heavy user and no other smartwatch comes close to replacing all of the functionality I use on my Apple Watch. It really is the primary tether to the Apple ecosystem for me.

This is exactly me. I buy a Pixel every year and every year I end up returning it and sticking with my iPhone. And Find My is a must have for me too. Google Maps Location Sharing is a joke compared to Find My. Most of the time it tells me my wife/son is offline or it just will not update. I absolutely love with iOS 15 how you get live updates. I can follow a family member in real time. That is so cool.

 

[MBAir2010]

I cannot type anting on an iPad without getting the @Symbol between words since 2017.
sometimes 5 of those appear in a 10 word sentence.
 will never fix this, as in extending the space bar.

nope, i aints buying a $400 ipadcoverkeyboardpros!

 

[Jason2000]

I cannot type anting on an iPad without getting the @Symbol between words since 2017.
sometimes 5 of those appear in a 10 word sentence.
 will never fix this, as in extending the space bar.

nope, i aints buying a $400 ipadcoverkeyboardpros!

Use a 3rd party keyboard like Gboard.

 

[MBAir2010]

Use a 3rd party keyboard like Gboard.

thanks for the tip, i will look into and report later!

Sidney Crosby is our hero, still!

 

[The Game 161]

One thing that makes things impossible to ever leave iphone Has always been the Apple Watch

 

[ian87w]

1. iOS keyboard: I agree that typing experience on iOS can be better. I feel that the old school of magnifying glass while press and holding the cursor on older version of iOS actually to be better. I'm not sure why Apple removed that feature. The next best thing is holding the space bar to move the cursor, but that's less intuitive on a full touch screen interface like the iPhone.

2. Volume control: Not sure about the issue. I can simply go to control center to lower the volume before starting media playback.

3. Camera software: iOS' camera UI is arguably the best, to the point that pretty much all Android OEMs copied it to a certain extend. Processing is relative, but Apple seems to rely on the hardware's ISP for processing, while Google relies more on the OS/camera software. I'm not a pixel peeper, and to me, pretty much any modern smartphone's camera is good enough, with iPhones have a slight advantage for video. I do like Android OEMs putting more value into their camera app, eg. Samsung's Director's view, Xiaomi's vlog templates. Wish Apple copied those things.

Throughout my experience using various Android devices and my current iPhone 7+, one thing I find is that although Android wins in terms of flexibility and customizability of the minute things (eg. changing themes/icons), iOS is more consistent and can actually be powerful (provided developers utilizing the proper APIs. Eg camera apps are better on iOS). But of course, iOS depends entirely on Apple, while Android can have various interpretations from the various OEMs. As such, Android is still my daily driver.

 

[cuzo]

Use a 3rd party keyboard like Gboard.

Ghosts is terrible on iOS imo.

They had a deal on a s20+ for 450 on eBay but I passed, phone is too narrow for my taste. Gonna save up for that 21 ultra and try it out.

I don’t need the Apple Watch like that and want to see how android Sync’s to windows for text messages and calls.

 

[darkus]

A lot of this stuff just takes a few weeks to get used to and you won’t think about it again. I have to use both iPhones and android phones through the day and the first time I started using the android is was weird as hell (coming from years of iOS usage). But after a few weeks android became totally natural and I use both phones equally well and without a second thought.

 

[Awesomesince86]

Every couple of years I get an iPhone and try it out for a while because I love new tech. But the past few years, I can't stomach iOS. Mostly due to how much better Android handles notifications. Until Apple improves that, I can't make the switch.

I'm set with the Pixel 6 for the foreseeable future. My next jump will either be to the Fold 4 or the next iPhone (if they resolve some of the issues I have with iOS).

 

[Heat_Fan89]

Every couple of years I get an iPhone and try it out for a while because I love new tech. But the past few years, I can't stomach iOS. Mostly due to how much better Android handles notifications. Until Apple improves that, I can't make the switch.

I'm set with the Pixel 6 for the foreseeable future. My next jump will either be to the Fold 4 or the next iPhone (if they resolve some of the issues I have with iOS).

I have never owned an iPhone but would love too but can't for a different reason...Google Call Screener. That is a game changer for me and as the call screener launches you can see in a transcript what the caller is calling about. If they hang up, I consider it a spam call. It filters out 95% of the BS Spam calls. I don't think Apple has anything like that. Besides that I like both iOS and Android especially Android 12.

This year I scored a Galaxy Tab S7+ with a free pair of Galaxy Buds 2 for $376 during their BF Event. I purchased the Pixel 6 this year but I may trade in one of my older phones or tablet for a Zen 4 next year. Those have me intrigued.

 

[cuzo]

I have never owned an iPhone but would love too but can't for a different reason...Google Call Screener. That is a game changer for me and as the call screener launches you can see in a transcript what the caller is calling about. If they hang up, I consider it a spam call. It filters out 95% of the BS Spam calls. I don't think Apple has anything like that. Besides that I like both iOS and Android especially Android 12.

This year I scored a Galaxy Tab S7+ with a free pair of Galaxy Buds 2 for $376 during their BF Event. I purchased the Pixel 6 this year but I may trade in one of my older phones or tablet for a Zen 4 next year. Those have me intrigued.

Toni form is 5 bucks a month for iOS that’s what I use

 

[Heat_Fan89]

Toni form is 5 bucks a month for iOS that’s what I use

Ah, I didn't know that however GCS is built into the OS. I'm just waiting for Apple to include that into iOS.

 

[Cryates]

I've had precisely one spam call in two weeks that Google did not preemptively catch. The feature rules for sure.

 

[Jason2000]

Ghosts is terrible on iOS imo.

They had a deal on a s20+ for 450 on eBay but I passed, phone is too narrow for my taste. Gonna save up for that 21 ultra and try it out.

I don’t need the Apple Watch like that and want to see how android Sync’s to windows for text messages and calls.

I don't use it myself. Just thought I would offer a suggestion. I have zero issues with the iOS default keyboard. Love my Apple Watch but its not for everyone. I can't comment on Android messages and Windows. I use an iPhone so my OS of choice is MacOS. I have a Windows 11 machine but rarely use it. Love my M1 MacBook Air.

 

[Tig Bitties]

Apple builds and designs beautiful smartphones for sure. Top notch hardware, amazing displays, excellent battery life, but it falls big time in the Operating System area, iOS just sucks and feels stuck in 2010. Maybe eventually iOS will be good, but that seems years away, with the glacial slow pace on which Apple updates their OS with much needed revisions or features.

Stock Android on the Pixel FTW.

 

[Heat_Fan89]

Apple builds and designs beautiful smartphones for sure. Top notch hardware, amazing displays, excellent battery life, but it falls big time in the Operating System area, iOS just sucks and feels stuck in 2010. Maybe eventually iOS will be good, but that seems years away, with the glacial slow pace on which Apple updates their OS with much needed revisions or features.

Stock Android on the Pixel FTW.

I have never owned an iPhone but I have several iPad’s and I like iOS which now has become iPadOS. The one advantage people like to tout regarding iOS are the updates. IMO, that’s overblown as both Android and iOS have been on par.

Apple likes to update their core Apps with firmware updates while Android does it via the Play Store. Now Google is committed to at least 3 OS updates plus 2 years of security updates. Besides that you add Play Store updates for several more years after that.

Security is another feature touted by those who use iOS and iPadOS. I have also found that as either FUD or overblown. In the years I have used Android and iOS/iPadOS I have NEVER encountered a security problem well past the devices no longer getting any updates. The same applies to people I know as well. However I tend to stick with the devices Core Apps or any Official add-on Apps made for those devices. IOW, I stay away from downloading tons of third party apps.

 

[Jason2000]

Apple builds and designs beautiful smartphones for sure. Top notch hardware, amazing displays, excellent battery life, but it falls big time in the Operating System area, iOS just sucks and feels stuck in 2010. Maybe eventually iOS will be good, but that seems years away, with the glacial slow pace on which Apple updates their OS with much needed revisions or features.

Stock Android on the Pixel FTW.

I don't get comments like "fails big time" as you stated. How does iOS fail big time ? Is it because it doesn't have a fun new cartoon looking interface ? 99% of the time I am using a smartphone I am using an app and in my experience a lot of the apps for iOS are better than their Android counterpart. I have yet to find an app or function on Android that is so great that it makes iOS a big time failure. Sure there are some fun customization options on Android but again this does not make iOS fail big time. I could not care less about being able to customize thinks like my home screen. Again, apps are what I use a smartphone for.

Apple may not be as exciting as Google but they are consistent and reliable. The way all of their operating systems work together is second to none. Google may move faster but it is so all over the place. You never know from year to year whether the apps/services that you rely on will be there. I don't have that concern with Apple.

Use what works best for you but don't make blanket statements like fails big time. That is just not true. Maybe it fails big time for you personally but not for everyone.

 

[Ludatyk]

Use what works best for you but don't make blanket statements like fails big time. That is just not true. Maybe it fails big time for you personally but not for everyone.

Whether you agree or disagree with their thoughts, it’s their thoughts… but I don’t think it’s a manner of it being true or false. They feel as though iOS slow pace attributes to it falling short to Android, which you agree that customization isn’t what iOS is known for.

I like Android over iOS mainly for it’s multitasking aspect… customization isn’t as high on my list, but I do like the assortment of ways I can go about designing my HomeScreen.

The way all of their operating systems work together is second to none. Google may move faster but it is so all over the place. You never know from year to year whether the apps/services that you rely on will be there. I don't have that concern with Apple.

In regards to Apple Ecosystem… definitely agree with you, from the standpoint of Macs, iPads, iPhone and Apple Watch.. it’s second to none. But when we get in this war of my platform is better than your platform, it’s as you stated above its a personal choice. But Google is reliable when it comes to apps/services that I use regularly… Google Drive, Keep, Google Search and Google Home.

 

[ian87w]

Apple builds and designs beautiful smartphones for sure. Top notch hardware, amazing displays, excellent battery life, but it falls big time in the Operating System area, iOS just sucks and feels stuck in 2010. Maybe eventually iOS will be good, but that seems years away, with the glacial slow pace on which Apple updates their OS with much needed revisions or features.

Stock Android on the Pixel FTW.

Even stock Android is pale in comparison to the features on other OEMs (sans Google specific features).
I’d take Samsung OneUI anytime over stock Android. Features like call recordings and twin apps have been standard on OneUI, MiUI, and pretty much every OEM skins for years.