Why I'm Never Buying an iPhone Again: A Switch to Android for Value and Freedom

My smartphone journey began in 2016 with an iPhone 5S which served as my primary driver until late 2020. Between then and now, I dabbled with an iPhone 6S and an iPhone 11 but I am currently using a Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro (running Android 13) which I picked up in 2022.

This post isn't a tech review or a standard "iPhone vs Android" breakdown. Rather it is a testament to why I, like many others, made the switch to Android forever and then never looked back. Please read this simply as a reflection of my personal preferences and the reasoning behind my choices.

"Free as in Beer"

When I purchase an electronic device, I operate under a simple premise: I'm paying for the hardware, the software and the right to call that product mine. To me ownership is non-negotiable. Yet for years Apple has consistently placed me in a position where that ownership feels like a mere suggestion.

Every mobile device Apple produces, from the iPhone to the iPad runs on a locked-down version of iOS. It's not possible to tinker with, customization is out of the question and replacing it with an alternative choice is impossible. Apple goes to extreme lengths to distance the user from their own hardware even locking down the filesystem under the guise of "security".

While I'm aware that some Android manufacturers are beginning to tread a similar path, I've yet to see one as restrictive as Apple's total lockout of the filesystem. There's a fundamental difference between a "secure" device and a "sealed" one.

On a side note, there's significant speculation regarding Google's potential shift away from the Android Open Source Project (AOSP) at the time of writing this article. For now these are simply speculations and I suspect the initial community backlash may have forced them to reconsider such a drastic move.

Of course, the deep dive into sideloading, rooting and installing custom ROMs outside the Google Play Store is a rabbit hole for another day hence I'll reserve the topic for a future post.

Ultimately the gist is this: If I spend my hard-earned money on a device, I expect full access to it and not "half portions" served with a side of restrictive Terms and Conditions. The complete lack of freedom and choice within the Apple ecosystem is the primary reason I continue to look elsewhere.

F-Tier Value for Money

iPhones are famouus for high prices and underwhelming features. People don't buy them for the value but they buy them for the "bling". I'm never driven my materialism and I'm a frugal person who wants electronics which simply works and serves my requirements. My checklist is simple:

1. A screen faster than 60Hz.
2. A battery larger than 5000mAh
3. At least 256 GB of storage capacity (+1 if it is expandable with an SD card).

For Apple, these basic specs are locked behind a massive paywall. For example, the iPhone 17 Pro (256GB) costs over ?1,34,900 in India (which roughly converts to $1500+). I can get everything I need from an Android for a third of that price. Today's Apple is a lifestyle brand and not a utility one. As long as that's their business model, I'm out and I'll never be their target customer.

Apple's Unethical Consumer Practices

Between poor work ethics and ignoring what customers actually want. Apple's shady tactics aren't exactly a secret. You'll find plenty of horror stories on Reddit and YouTube if you look for them.

I felt this personally back when I had an iPhone 5S. Apple's "performance management" updates basically killed my battery life piece by piece. There is actually a whole Wikipedia page dedicated to this, called "Batterygate". Of course, they denied their wrongdoings initially until lawsuits forced them to admit the truth.

It felt like Apple was trying to force me into buying a newer, pricier phone. Now I'm left with several iPhones with dead batteries which are nearly impossible to fix because Apple "digitally signs" their parts to prevent third-party repairs.

I'm tired of seeing these devices turn into e-waste in the corner of my house. I don't want to be part of the pollution anymore hence I'll probably not look at an iPhone ever again until they fix these problems.

In Shorts: Why I'm Moving On

After nearly a decade in the Apple ecosystem, I've realised my values no longer align with their "lifestyle brand" philosophy. I'm a frugal user who values freedom, utility and ownership. These three requirements are increasingly sidelined by Apple's premium paywalls and locked-down software. Tranistioning to Android wasn't just a tech switch but a choice to stop paying for "status" and start paying for value the device provides to me.