The eternal battle between iPhone and Android

This week, I mentioned on X that I was seriously considering the possibility of switching to an iPhone for my next device.

And I quickly felt how people took sides to either praise or attack my stance. It's quite curious how people defend such trivial positions as if they were a personal attack. But that's a topic for another time.

The reasons, though I didn't mention them there, are several:

Device lifespan. An iPhone gets updated for 7 years and, generally, remains usable throughout those 7 years, with maybe a battery change in between.

In my case, as a content creator, I've heard from many people that the quality offered by the iPhone when recording content for social media (stories, reels, shorts...) is much higher because the apps are better optimized.

Today, almost my entire ecosystem is Apple: I have a Mac and an iPad, and I'm curious to see what it's like to add an element I use as frequently as a phone.

The only Android devices that seem competitive to me are the Pixels, and I haven't had a good experience with them. I gave up on Samsung a while ago, but I've heard good things about their phones.

I've been considering how the speed at which technologies are advancing is causing our impact on the planet to increase, and changing phones every 2-3 years seems insane to me.

That's why, in this other post, my criticism was more towards companies that force (or strongly encourage) you to change devices so often.

Especially a company like Google, which controls both the software and hardware, should be capable of creating devices that last much longer. If they don't, it's simply because they don't want to.

But why do I care so much about this? Because the best way to not produce more waste is to buy second-hand. iPhones, being durable for many years, have a huge second-hand market, and the devices don't lose value as quickly over time.

I can buy a second-hand phone today that's already two years old and sell it in 3 years at a still reasonable price, and the phone will still sell because it has 2 more years of updates.

This greatly reduces the need to buy a new phone. Who would buy a two-year-old phone knowing it will never get updated again? No one.

But one thing I didn't know when I wrote those posts was that it had already leaked that the Pixel 8 would have 7 years of support, putting it on par with iPhones. And that's what they eventually announced last Thursday.

This is an impressive step forward that will put significant pressure on the market. As Thomas Künneth said, Fairphone had been doing this for years (along with many other things that most companies still need to catch up on), but Fairphone doesn't make much noise and doesn't really pressure other companies.

Now, it remains to be seen how the Pixel 8 ages. It's great to have 7 years of software updates, but the hardware has to last that journey. And that's something they still have to prove.

You might be wondering, "So what are you going to do now, Antonio? Pixel 8 or some iPhone?"

Most likely, I'll still go for the iPhone (probably 13 or 13 mini).

Firstly, because my main goal was to buy second-hand, and secondly because I want to personally experience if the other points I mentioned hold true or not.

By then, we'll know if the Pixel 8's hardware is robust enough to create a significant secondary market, and if it can handle updates for a considerable time.

If that's the case, maybe it's time to come back. Or maybe I'll go crazy and pre-order the Pixel 8 tomorrow. Who knows 😂

In any case, if you're still around, I'll keep you updated.

Best regards!

Antonio

This week, I mentioned on X that I was seriously considering the possibility of switching to an iPhone for my next device.

And I quickly felt how people took sides to either praise or attack my stance. It's quite curious how people defend such trivial positions as if they were a personal attack. But that's a topic for another time.

The reasons, though I didn't mention them there, are several:

• Device lifespan. An iPhone gets updated for 7 years and, generally, remains usable throughout those 7 years, with maybe a battery change in between.

• In my case, as a content creator, I've heard from many people that the quality offered by the iPhone when recording content for social media (stories, reels, shorts...) is much higher because the apps are better optimized.

• Today, almost my entire ecosystem is Apple: I have a Mac and an iPad, and I'm curious to see what it's like to add an element I use as frequently as a phone.

• The only Android devices that seem competitive to me are the Pixels, and I haven't had a good experience with them. I gave up on Samsung a while ago, but I've heard good things about their phones.

I've been considering how the speed at which technologies are advancing is causing our impact on the planet to increase, and changing phones every 2-3 years seems insane to me.

That's why, in this other post, my criticism was more towards companies that force (or strongly encourage) you to change devices so often.

Especially a company like Google, which controls both the software and hardware, should be capable of creating devices that last much longer. If they don't, it's simply because they don't want to.

But why do I care so much about this? Because the best way to not produce more waste is to buy second-hand. iPhones, being durable for many years, have a huge second-hand market, and the devices don't lose value as quickly over time.

I can buy a second-hand phone today that's already two years old and sell it in 3 years at a still reasonable price, and the phone will still sell because it has 2 more years of updates.

This greatly reduces the need to buy a new phone. Who would buy a two-year-old phone knowing it will never get updated again? No one.

But one thing I didn't know when I wrote those posts was that it had already leaked that the Pixel 8 would have 7 years of support, putting it on par with iPhones. And that's what they eventually announced last Thursday.

This is an impressive step forward that will put significant pressure on the market. As Thomas Künneth said, Fairphone had been doing this for years (along with many other things that most companies still need to catch up on), but Fairphone doesn't make much noise and doesn't really pressure other companies.

Now, it remains to be seen how the Pixel 8 ages. It's great to have 7 years of software updates, but the hardware has to last that journey. And that's something they still have to prove.

You might be wondering, "So what are you going to do now, Antonio? Pixel 8 or some iPhone?"

Most likely, I'll still go for the iPhone (probably 13 or 13 mini).

Firstly, because my main goal was to buy second-hand, and secondly because I want to personally experience if the other points I mentioned hold true or not.

By then, we'll know if the Pixel 8's hardware is robust enough to create a significant secondary market, and if it can handle updates for a considerable time.

If that's the case, maybe it's time to come back. Or maybe I'll go crazy and pre-order the Pixel 8 tomorrow. Who knows 😂

In any case, if you're still around, I'll keep you updated.

Best regards!
Antonio