I read in many places that Android phones like the LG G3 are better but I’m afraid – how hard will it be? How better will my day-to-day existence be?
Without knowing what you do with you phone it’s hard to say. I switched and didn’t notice a thing, but I never relied much on the Apple infrastructure.
“Better” may be too strong a word. Functionally, a modern iPhone and a high-end Android phone are basically equivalent and cost about the same.
Pluses:
- You have a wider choice of models on Android, some having larger screens.
Minuses:
- Accessories for an Android phone are a bit harder to find, because there are so many different models.
- Similarly, your car audio system will pair (via Bluetooth) with any smartphone, but if you use your phone as an iPod in the car (connecting it via USB), an Android probably won’t work.
But these are minor points.
As Telemark hinted, the cost of switching depends on your level of investment in the Apple infrastructure. Any apps or content you bought from Apple will not transfer over to an Android phone, your iCloud e-mail may not work, etc.
Yes, what do you do with your phone?
Do you like iTunes? Android has nothing like it, which is a good thing to me.
Do you want to move any file you want to/from your phone? Android makes it easy, Apple not as much.
Are you invested in the whole Apple environment; Macs, iMessage, etc? For a unified environment Android uses GMail, Google Calendar, etc. However there are numerous third-party alternatives for all basic services.
Do you like playing the latest and greatest games, seems like Android lags behind a bit on some games being available.
Do you like to customize the appearance/layout/sounds on your phone? You would be in heaven with Android, basically everything can be changed.
I switched to an Android phone (Samsung Galaxy S5) two months ago, after five years of various iPhones. Speaking only for myself, I’ve loved it.
PROS:
- Huge screen, thin body. My wife’s iPhone 5 feels like a Snickers bar in comparison. Reading is so pleasant on this phone that it’s essentially retired my Kindle Fire.
- Every app I’ve downloaded has been free.
- I already used mostly Google based services (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Google Calendar, Blogger, etc.), so it was a super easy fit.
I tried using an Android phone for about 6 months and nobody had any idea what I was talking about. I never would’ve thought the auto-correction would’ve made a noticeable difference but it did.
Lots of people commented on being pleasantly surprised I was now making sure my text messages and e-mails were at least comprehensible. The truth is I don’t really care if my messages are comprehensible, but apparently with iPhone they usually are - not so on Android.
The biggest selling point for me is the micro sd card slot most androids have. I can fit every song i own on one.
Also i like that they use regular old usb cables which most of us have many of just lying around.
Why would you make more typos on Android? Android has auto-correction and it works pretty well out of the box on all phone I’ve tried. And don’t you read over what you’ve typed before you send it?
Android also makes it easy to change to other keyboards that have different features or layouts. The iOS keyboard is ok, but the biggest annoyance for me now that I’m used to Android is that the iOS keyboard doesn’t change to lowercase when I’m typing lowercase.
I jumped from an iPhone 4 to a Note 3.
Android pros:
Drag/drop/manage files any way you want. SD Card, network drive, cloud, USB…no restrictions.
Very flexible interface tweaks, skins, mods to your home screens, icons, folders.
A much larger app library. Can share apps across multiple devices without re-purchasing them.
Many more sizes and form factors of phones and tablets available.
Relatively easy to root the device to get rid of unwanted phone carrier and advertising apps.
Better value–non-Apple manufacturers have leapfrogged with better performance and features for lower cost.
Android cons:
Many apps with invasive permissions and bloated advertising, takes a bit more time to research before buying an app. Otherwise, it’s too easy to turn your phone into a spam-ware mess.
Short hardware lifecycle–older iPhones remain functional far longer in a changing tech world. Old Android phones and versions are ignored by app developers, get used to trash-canning your phone every couple of years.
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The only accessory this is an issue with is a case because phone model A is different shape/layout than model B. Except for one old Sony PHD (Push Here, Dummy) camera, every electronic device in my house is either micro or mini USB, including my Nikon DSLRs. With two charging cables & two ends (wall & cig lighter), I can charge anything anywhere (except for that one Sony camera that I still use occasionally because it’s pocket sized & is better than a cell phone camera.)
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My car has both Bluetooth audio & a male-to-male headphone input jack. I can play audio either of those two ways.
With Android phones you can get extra batteries rather cheap and they can be swapped quickly and easily.
Convince me to switch to Android and give up my iPhone
Switch to Android and give up your iPhone or I’ll steal your family in the night.
Um, OK.
Depends on the phone. There are plenty of Android phones with non-removable batteries. If this is important to someone they’re pretty much stuck with Samsung. Not that that’s a horrible thing.
I would say more Android phones have removable batteries than not. Not just Samsung by any means.
I really think right now is the wrong time to make this choice. The biggest Android pluses are wider handset choice, more customizability on the stock OS and better interoperability of apps.
However, the reason I say right now is the wrong time to make this choice is that we are a mere 3 weeks from the annoucement of the next iPhone and iOS 8. Normally this wouldn’t be a big deal, but the new iPhone is almost certain to have a 4.7" screen, with a 5.5" model also available either at the same time or shortly thereafter…so no more Android screen advantage (for the most part).
The biggest one is that iOS 8 is added the vast majority of the big things that Android currently does better. They’re adding inter-app operability at the OS level, opening widgets up to developers (only in the notification center, but still), adding actionable notifications without opening the app, adding third party keyboards and even more. It’s a HUGE OS update and takes the majority of the remaining Android advantages and brings them to the iPhone. In addition, you get the overall better app ecosystem (Android’s is very good, but most of the big developers develop for iOS first and then port to Android or develop independently for Android second) better phone security and much better customer support, especially on the hardware level. (Your iPhone breaks, you can walk into an Apple store and you will almost always walk out with a fixed or brand new device…vs. having to send the phone off and wait for a replacement or dealing with your carrier store with an Android handset.)
However, there are still some Android advantages, and you definitely have more choice. There are some awesome Android phones. However, never have the two platforms been more similar in capabilities than they will be in a month when iOS 8 drops and the new iPhones come out…it really becomes a personal preference at that point, more than either platform being notably better than the other.
This is not an Android pro. You’ve always been able to share apps across multiple iOS devices without repurchasing them. If your itunes account is signed in on that device, you can download any app you’ve purchased to that device, even most of the time between iPhone and iPad apps (unless the iPad app is specifically different and separately priced).
And with iOS 8, you won’t even have to have the same iTunes account signed it…you can specify family members and merge accounts to share app purchases between accounts in the same family, so your kid can have his own account and he can still get the app you bought for your phone for free, not to mention you can approve your kids’ app purchases on your card so they don’t rack up big bills.
I’d wait 'til they release iPhone6 before deciding
Bub seems to be a Mac Panther
I took bup’s post as a lighthearted attempt to do exactly what the OP requested. 
I would encourage the OP to head to a store and play with the Android phones, see if their interface is something you like right away or not.
And at this point, I would also wait for that iPhone 6 announcement to come out before making any decisions you may regret. I waited for two months when the iPhone 5 was close to releasing. I was so disappointed I went out the next day and bought a GS2, and got GS4 after that. Haven’t regretted those decisions one bit. But I hated iTunes with a passion and didn’t have any other Apple products. If you’re used to the Apple ecosystem, the 6 might be worth waiting for if it’s coming out in a couple of months. I’d wait for the announcement to decide.