(ThyBlackMan.com) I’ve used Android since I got my first smartphone. I never really desired an iPhone and Apple’s handsets aren’t just out of reach financially. Now, there are services I really like on iOS such as Apple Music—which I’ll say is probably the best music streaming service out there. However, there are two main reasons I’ve just never gotten an iPhone as my main smartphone.
I’m Not A Fan of Hype
Apple has always been great at hyping its products. It does a far better job than Google at promotion. Which is a shame because not only could Google do broadcast advertising, billboards, and so on, the company has its own widely used platforms to advertise on. Regardless, Apple still dominates the brand recognition game.
Of course, that doesn’t translate in units moved with their OS. Apple keeps a tight fist on iOS and limits it just to their devices whereas everyone else and their mama’s devices are run by Android. That OS controls the user share because every other mobile manufacturer is running their phones and tablets with Android.
Unless you count that short period when Microsoft had their own smartphones…that no one really developed on. I mean, it got to where Windows Phone wasn’t included in some apps’ advertisements. Why bother if barely anyone had a Windows Phone, anyway?
Note, that was as slander-free as possible on the Windows Phone. That’s the best I’ve got on it.
I’m someone who doesn’t respond well to hype and will stubbornly go out of my way not to acknowledge or deal with the hype. Products that run on iOS tend to get a lot of shine from consumers when in reality, most of these smartphones by all manufacturers are incremental improvements over last year’s release.
But dueling over Android vs. IOS makes folks happy, so…
ROM Flashing and Modding on Android
This was one of the big selling points for me about Android. I like attempting to mod devices—changing the operating system or even the hardware to allow it to do more than it was permitted out the box. Android is an operating system made for developers and it allows for that level of freedom.
When I successfully flashed my first custom ROM on Android, it was with an old Samsung Galaxy Exhibit back in 2013. Note, I said “successfully.” There were attempts with whatever Android variation HTC used to run with on its early MyTouch phones that left me scratching my head.
There were several near bricks on the HTC and a few on that Galaxy Exhibit. That was part of the fun of testing out what was so special about these custom ROMs other Android users worked on. How did they make my phone faster? Why is this function unusable if I install this custom ROM? What do I do when I get this error? Why is this method of flashing so much different from this for ROMs released around the same time on the same phone model?
There were just so many questions that came out of modding and flashing and Android gives you the freedom to test it out. I will say that because iOS is a fortress of security and just works as its supposed to without any head-scratching issues, it just more stable than Android on average.
If you don’t install any apps or outside apps, Android will work for you well and with little incident but that’s a boring phone. That’s a phone strictly “No child, I don’t have games on my phone and you can’t watch YouTube” business phone.
However, I like having that back up Android phone to just experiment on and see what features can be unlocked and what might render a phone brick. That’s just me, someone who has always been Android.
Staff Writer; M. Swift
This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.