He asks, in a FOSS community.
Why should I downgrade?
Apple’s stuff is:
- Locked down hard, meaning you get completely vendor-locked-in, and you can’t install alternative OS (there is none I think) or even apps from different sources without voiding warranty or using unsupported, unreliable hacks like jailbreaks for specific models.
- Privacy-invading. Sure, not as bad as proprietary Android distros, but still far from privacy-respecting
- Account-bound. Everything is tied to your Apple account. To even set up or use the product you need an account.
- As proprietary and closed source as it gets
- Ridiculously overpriced, so very low value for the money
- The company is known for its anti-competitive and monopolistic, even mafia-style behavior (e.g. when insisting on their 30% cut for all apps, insisting that apps use the in-app-purchasing system and not allowing “subscriptions from outside of Apple’s ecosystem”, stuff like that. If app developers don’t comply with ridiculous rules, they get their apps taken down, and since the AppStore is the only source for apps, this means they have 100% control and can kill any app which they don’t like or which they perceive as competition for Apple’s own apps.
Use GrapheneOS. It’s a secure, fully privacy-respecting open source distro of Android (based on the open source Android) without any Google services/apps by default, but with full Android app compatibility.
All this, plus the UI is outdated. It looks like it’s from the 1990s.
What’s stopping you from switching to iPhone?
My lack of desire to switch to iPhone.
Sideloading apps, tons more choices (price range, design, manufacturer, specs), ‘more’ control, used to Android environment
This is the biggest reason for me. Though I rarely look further than F-Droid for anything.
I don’t really pay attention to apple news but didn’t the EU force them to allow sideloading a little bit after the whole usbc thing
Until that happened, I’ll hold on my doubts
I don’t like paying more for less, and I am devoutly opposed to the Apple design aesthetic.
How do you do that with your display name?
On topic, I agree. My wife has an iphone and I really don’t enjoy the ux at all.
Yeah
Used an iPhone very long ago as my daily driver (I think the iPhone 4… the neon green one) until I discovered android.
I switched because Had so much more choices and that you weren’t locked down. If you have an iPhone you have to use Apple’s services no matter what. Want to uninstall safari, because it is a really awful browser? Well you can’t. Want privacy? No that’s not possible (I know what Apple advertises but just because an iPhone is built to be privacy-friendly doesn’t mean that services from Apple are privacy-friendly. And how will you prove that an iPhone could be considered privacy-friendly anyway?)
What also triggers me: with newer iPhones you do not have a universal backup option thingy. If you use your Phone with your right hand it is really annoying to constantly reach for the upper left corner to go back. On android: You can decide what gesture to use to go back. You can use three buttons or swiping gestures etc.
As other users mentioned, with android you have lots of choices. I for example have a Fairphone 4. I can replace my display myself without needing to pay extra for Apple Care. My Brother has a folding phone, I hate it, but there is the option.
Another great factor is customization. Apple does a great job, Android just does it better in some ways. “How?” You might ask, well, you can choose what launcher you want to use. You can choose what icons you like, and you even can choose an alternative App Store like F-Droid. And you can even choose the whole OS, like Lineage OS and Graphene OS. I for example use Kvaesitsio as a launcher, I mean look how beautiful it looks.
Picture from my Launcher, Kvaesitsio
I am so goddamn bad at using the apple UX
I feel like an old man using an iPhone when a family member hands me once and asks me to fix something
There’s no reason for me to switch. It would be going to a worse product in my opinion. I only use phones that can run lineageOS or another custom rom on it now, and have been doing so for the past 6 or so years.
I don’t like how restrictive the apple ecosystem is. I have an ipad because the android equivalents just weren’t doing the job, but use android and linux for my daily drivers. I feel like the adblockers aren’t effective, and I can’t sideload apps.
Yeah me too. What I expect from my iPad is less demanding than what I expect of my phone. All I wanted from my iPad was draw, read comics, and watch videos. But, experience even just finding a calculator app that wasn’t trying to sign me up for a subscription was terrible. Then the file system experience was bad to use with a device that wasn’t a Mac. Then finding Foss apps was a pain. So as a pure media consumption device that will get long term updates I love the iPad, but as a phone it’s a no. At least until side loading arrives, and if an f-droid quality Foss option is offered too.
I don’t want to switch to something that costs more and that I like less?
The lack of consistently in how Apple devices work, as hey truly feel like a black box where anything beyond basic functionality is held back from the user.
Not having any restricts placed on me as to what software I can install on my devices. Seriously, not allowing sideloading is ridiculous in 2023.
All the reasons I switched to Android.
Customization, file structure, sideloading apps, etc.
Lack of customization, lack of options, lack of compatibility.
With iPhones you choose from iPhone 1, 2, 3, or 4. They’re all the same, and frankly they all suck. They’re overpriced and the charger always breaks.
Moronically overpriced hyped product which misguides humanity into capitalism and surveillance
The lack of LDAC bluetooth and native FLAC playback support is a deal breaker for me.
