[citation][nom]jimmysmitty[/nom]We can look at each device in many terms. If we look at price, most Android phones are about $100-$200 with a 2 year contract, some are even free. The iPhone 4 starts at $199 for the 16Gb version and $299 for the 32GB version. The Droid X is $199 with a 2 year contract, has 8GB on on-board memory with a preinstalled 16Gb microSDHC card which is expandable to 32GB, the iPhone has no expansion capabilities at all so if you go with the 16GB, you can't change that at all.Features. This is important. Mainly because there are all kinds of people out there and not everyone needs the larger screen or high MP camera. Android comes in all sizes and flavors. The iPhone is just one size, technically two flavors (internal storage size). Open. Its not hard to say really. Those who pay attention to apple and what Apple does normally will know that Apple is a control freak. If Apple could, everyone would use the iPhone only or their hardware only. Ever notice how hard and expensive it is to try to upgrade a Macs hardware? or even build your own mac (near impossible). Android is a bit more open but I would say less open than MS and Windows is and not nearly as open as Unix/Linux.Still there are a slew of things easily done on Android that aren't on iOS. Rooting is much simpler than jail breaking a iPhone. On a side note, I guess the term "rooting" came because it grants access to the root of the OS which is normally a Linux term (root folder/drive). Moving on, most phones can be rooted by installing a rooting app and running it. After that its easy to pretty much do whatever you want including flashing a custom made ROM over the standard Google one. Apple tries to keep jail breaking impossible and for a while even bricked jail broken iPhones. As said before, control freaks.Overall I don't see much in this. The largest group of people in Verizon have Android and are very happy with it. The group that cares about the iPhone on Verizon are iPhone owners who want a choice of carriers or one with a better 3G network for their use.I for one still to this day laugh at people who buy Apple products. Mainly because they are blinded by flashy marketing easily. Then again the masses are normally controlled like that.[/citation]
While I see some of your points I disagree with some of them. Yes, if you want to control your hardware and be able to take it apart easily then Apple is not going to be the best choice for you. If you want to be able to tune the OS to your hearts content...then Apple is not going to be the best choice for you.
Many would say that the iPhone is easier to use than Android. While that is definitely subjective, I tend to agree. Some people, however, don't want the easiest phone to use, they'll happily give some ease-of-use up to gain more customization. This is where Android shines. Another aspect where I think Android shines is in choice of hardware.
Many people want an easy to use, feature-rich phone. They don't care about customization outside of being able to purchase apps. While some people love all the choices you get with the Android problem many see it as a confusing mess. For some people, too much choice is not the best thing. Especially in something like a mobile phone. Us more technical folks may like all that choice. My 74 year-old retired mother does not. She just wants an easy to use device. The cost differential of an iPhone over an Android device is not enough to be important to her. …and really doesn’t offer a lot of room to be confusing. That’s a win for A LOT of people. Many people love the industrial design and build quality of the iPhone. Its not perfect, but many would agree its built well enough and is easy enough to use that a typical 4th grader can pick it up and use it with little or no assistance. The iPhone is simple, easy to use, well built, and looks good. That's all A LOT of people are seeking.
I had an Evo 4G. Nice phone with some really neat features. I took an iPhone 4 back to get it. The screen wasn't as nice to me as the iPhone 4...bigger, but not as high-resolution, not as bright and colorful (and it was noticeable...to me). I found myself missing my iPhone, which made me mad. I wanted my Evo to be as simple to use as my iPhone, I wanted to like my Evo more! ...but for me the iPhone was just simple with enough customization to make me happy. …so I returned to it. …and I’m ashamed.
Every time I look at my iPhone 4 I think, “Wow, that’s a great looking, easy to use device.” …and I’m ashamed. I love my iPhone 4. My wife loves hers. ...and I'm ashamed.