I think you have to expect that neither platform is perfect and can't be both or take all the advantages of 1 and not have any shortcomings. I realized this week after switching to the Note 8, all the nice Apple features but once you switch back to Apple, you'll miss all the Android features. I do switch out my phones a lot too (by that I mean update to the latest and greatest- in the past have been the iPhones) lol but I am sticking to the note 8 for a while because it has all the features that I want. However, it is not perfect and has it's shortcoming for sure that is something we just have to deal with.
That's my exact problem. If you gave me the option to choose, it comes down to valuing software vs hardware. I think software is more important to me now a days because hardware differences are becoming more negligible.
I know an A11 processor w/ 3gb RAM will work as well for me as a 835 processor w/4gb RAM. My ideal phone would have an OLED screen, an awesome camera, minimal bezels w/ high resolution, quick charging, some form of USB Type C, wireless charging, facial recognition, NFC payments, water resistance, 64gb + internal storage, Band 66 LTE.
I like iOS' continuity, iMessage, FaceTime, fast updates, years of support, watchOS, faster app updates. Android's features are much better (PIP, multi-window), Google is hardware agnostic, the file system is better, customization is great, ringtones are easier to change, SD card support exists, stronger hardware.
Android annoys me with more inconsistencies because some OEMs don't offer timely updates or fast security patches, Google updates its apps faster on iOS, too many messaging apps and nothing like iMessage available, you cannot reply to texts from the lock screen without unlocking the device, standby battery life isn't as good as iOS.
iOS has its issues since iOS 11 is buggy, iOS 12 will be like Snowleopard instead of adding new much needed UI changes and multi-tasking features, it's the same UI since iOS 7, the notification system is clunky, no predictive dialing, no Night Mode, no AOD, no theming, the file system is eh, an over-reliance on iTunes, etc.
With what I want, I have to wait for the best deal possible w/ an S9+ trade in deal, Pixel 2 XL or Pixel 3/3XL deal, iPhone X 2017 or iPhone 2018 trade up promo.
T-Mobile will probably have a deal around Black Friday for the S9+ or iPhone X. I wouldn't mind a trade up deal where they give me half the iPhone 2018 LCD model off with a trade in of the 8+. T-Mobile always gives 50% back in a prepaid MasterCard for those buying Pixels each year.
I think waiting is my best bet because Apple shows off iOS 12 at WWDC, Google I/O after that, iPhone 2018 unveilings + 2017 clearance, Pixel 3/3XL unveiling, then Black-Friday. Plenty of time.
Samsung could easily win me over with clean software, strong reviews, and no major issues. However, the recent reddit post sharing Pixel 2's Oreo vs S8 Oreo is alarming because the heat map test flared up for Samsung and was minimal for the Pixel 2. People will say the smoothest experience will always be pure Android. Plus pure Android will have the latest updates and most optimized performance.