I've been an iPhone user for over half dozen years now, around the fourth dimension the iPhone 4 came out I switched from a BlackBerry Curve after growing tired of RIM'south stagnant platform and constantly having to force reboot the damn matter by removing its bombardment. Most of my friends were even so heavy BBM users and that was a major platform lock-in, every bit cross-platform messaging clients like WhatsApp weren't nevertheless mainstream.

With the rise of apps however, switching didn't feel much of a gamble. It was clear that modern telephone platforms like iOS (then named iPhone OS) and Android were the way of the future -- information technology just happened to be the instance at the fourth dimension that Apple had a vastly superior app catalog, and in my opinion a ameliorate overall user experience, as well every bit a superb hardware bundle.

I use my smartphone a lot but I'yard not a frequent upgrader. Since 2010 I just upgraded once to the iPhone 5s in late 2013 and now halfway into 2016 it was time for another upgrade.

Up until recently I had simply used Android for minutes at a time and never as my daily commuter. Just hearing how Google's smartphone platform had evolved so significantly since I first became an iPhone user, both in terms of software and hardware, I decided it was time to give it a try. Having my part peers, some of whom are also Mac users, insist to give Android a endeavor helped me accept the plunge.

For what information technology's worth, I started the temporary switch for the purpose of writing an commodity most it, using Google'due south mobile operating organisation with fresh eyes coming from an iPhone. But as it turns out, a few weeks later on I'thou not just switching short term, my new phone is the Google Nexus 6P and I intend to keep it until my next upgrade.

In 2010 I also switched from Windows to Mac and have since bought a few other iDevices which should only make things more interesting, every bit I'll be stepping away from the comfort of living under a unified ecosystem. Read on for my experiences thus far.

The Switch

I didn't only woke upwards one twenty-four hour period wanting to ditch my iPhone just there were a couple of things that prompted me to await elsewhere for my next telephone upgrade. The first one was battery life and fast charging. Sure, the Nexus 6P I ultimately settled with is non the best device to be making this argument, as information technology'southward slightly outclassed by the iPhone 6s in our tests -- but then again, the Nexus 6P is ~$200 cheaper and can get a quick bombardment boost much faster than Apple tree's iPhone.

The other thing I actually dislike about iPhones is how Apple still gives you a painfully inadequate 16GB of internal storage in its base of operations $650 model, hoping to extract an actress $100 from your wallet to upgrade to 64GB. And then instead of dropping up of $750 on a new iPhone I contemplated getting a bully phone for a lot less while nonetheless getting a good 32GB of internal storage to brainstorm with.

Other than that I had no major gripes with the iPhone's software or annihilation functioning related.

So off I went with my new Google Nexus 6P. In terms of design and build quality I didn't feel like this was a pace downwards at all from Apple'southward renowned level of craftmanship and attention to particular. The Huawei-made Nexus 6P features premium materials on the front and back, with the metal chassis delivering an excellent look and experience comparable to anything Apple would build.

Coming from the 4.0-inch iPhone 5s it's taken me a while to adjust to the plus-sized 6P. One handed utilize is likewise awkward and I often discover myself accidentally touching the screen with the base of my palm when trying to reach something on the other end. The actress existent estate is appreciated too, so in that location's a scrap of a trade off there, but perhaps for my next upgrade I'll look for something closer to 5 inches.

I won't bother drawing comparisons between the hardware inside the Nexus 6P and my former iPhone given the obvious differences coming ii years apart. Suffice to say it'due south been a nice upgrade across the lath with a beautiful AMOLED display, excellent camera, larger bombardment, more storage and a very capable -- not range-toppping -- SoC providing smooth performance in full general app usage.

The fingerprint reader, which has become an essential feature for me, is likewise extremely fast and accurate. Its positioning on the back feels natural and easy to achieve when holding the telephone -- though there are times when I miss the front end-facing sensor of the iPhone to be able to quickly bank check something without having to pick it up from the desk. Information technology's a small-scale annoyance.

You can read TechSpot's total review of the Google Nexus 6P hither.

The Android Experience

Switching smartphone platforms shouldn't be too complicated. First you lot transfer your data from the old phone to the new one, so yous install your favorite apps or their equivalents, and finally you spend some time customizing the settings, habitation screen layout, then on.

For the most part things went smoothly as most of the things I wanted to keep were backed upwardly in the cloud. Notwithstanding I did hit a snag when attempting to transfer my WhatsApp chat history, which was important to me as I wanted to save some business-related chats with customers. Turns out WhatsApp for iPhone backs up exclusively to iCloud, while WhatsApp for Android backs up exclusively to Google Drive, and there's no official way of porting 1 over to the other without a third party app.

Several hours and a Bootcamp partition later to exist able to run the required Windows-but migration tool, I was ready to start downloading all my favorite apps or finding replacements for them.

All major apps and services are readily available on the Google Play Store with similar quality and functionality to their iOS counterparts. That's not ever the case for apps from smaller developers and niche services where iOS still has an border, but the difference in app quality was not a factor most of the time, and I was usually able to observe something I was happy with -- from a third party Twitter client (Talon), to an IP camera viewer (OWLR), a replacement for my Apple TV remote (CiderTV) and a few others. The but niche app that comes to listen that I haven't institute a replacement for and I'yard really, actually missing it is a keyboard app called KeyReply for paragraph-long quick preset replies.

As y'all would wait Android integrates much better with Google services than iOS, but the company has washed such a skillful chore bringing its apps to iOS that I didn't initially feel I was missing out on anything of import. That said, the integrated Google search bar on the dwelling house screen makes looking upwardly stuff online a little fleck faster and more than convenient than on an iPhone. I still oft find myself manually launching Chrome to perform a search out of forcefulness of habit from my iPhone days, however.

Alternatively you can utilize phonation search which works like on both platforms, though Google Now seems a little more proficient than Siri at recognizing oral communication both in English and Spanish. This may or may not exist important to you lot depending on how you search. Until voice assistants get much smarter, I by and large use them for simple commands like setting up reminders, or calling someone.

Google Now is also more flexible and therefore more useful in that information technology integrates with several third political party apps -- for example, you tin enquire information technology to text someone using a item messaging app. This is something that Apple plans to address with the next version of iOS this fall.

Another major advantage of Android is being able to pick whatever default app you prefer instead of forcing its beginning party apps on you similar Apple does. It might seem a little abrasive at first but once you've taught Android your preferred apps for different file types you won't accept to deal with information technology once again.

Where Android wins hands down is in the way it displays notifications and lets you interact with them. This has been one of my favorite things about switching to Android. As Tim noted in his Android to iPhone analogue to this article, you lot can only interact with notification snippets on iOS immeditly afterward they arrive, there'south no interactivity inside the center itself aside from simply opening the associated app.

On Android I can respond to notifications with quick actions when I'chiliad ready -- archiving an email, marker a task as washed, etc. Once again this is an area where Apple tree is supposed to be communicable up in iOS 10, though I've still to try out the betas. Likewise, I similar how past default Android doesn't add badges to app icons with pending notifications, instead opting for a pocket-sized icon atop the screen. Information technology makes things feel less chaotic.

Like to iOS's Command Center, Android'south quick settings panel is accessed by swiping downwardly from the top of the screen, except information technology requires two swipes instead of one. This minor annoyance is kickoff by the ability to practise more in less taps and also to customize quick settings toggles.

Indeed customization is a large part of the entreatment of Android and I experience like I'm just scratching the surface after my start month with the platform. I don't care much about visual customizations but I do like existence able to tweak the user experience.

For instance, I don't observe much value in irresolute default icons and find nigh widgets ugly and abrasive, but beingness able to place icons wherever I want has turned out to be an unexpected blessing coming from an iPhone. Using just the lower rows for apps on the chief domicile screen helps keeping apps inside accomplish in one-handed use. Also, the app drawer means I don't need to take several screens filled with icons for apps I rarely ever employ.

I still find the occasional quirk here and there and I feel the whole user interface and user experience is a little more than consistent in iOS than Android. Sometimes I've found that in certain apps that I'thou able to dismiss a photo with a swipe up or down but non so with a video or other type of media. And unlike apps handle these gestures and interactions in different means which can be a chip disruptive. I've also encountered a few rare occasions where some apps cause Android'south soft buttons dissappear altogether and I have to lock/unlock the telephone to brand them surface again.

Also in that location are some picayune things I depend on regularly that are either better on iOS or missing altogether on Android. From password managers like 1Password that require you to switch keyboards on Android in order to use them, to something equally uncomplicated every bit a system-wide scroll to superlative gesture, and of grade, given I also have a MacBook I'm missing out on a bunch of platform specific services and Continuity features that work natively under the iOS + macOS ecosystem.

But in general both Android and iOS are very mature operating systems at this indicate and equally a result there are non a lot of things that you can do with one and not with the other -- they only have their ain ways of doing things.

Then, would I recommend Android to long fourth dimension iPhone users?

If you feel iOS is not flexible enough or want decently spec'd phone with a more affordable price tag, Android has plenty to offer -- but be prepared to practice some work. Switching platforms volition require some time to adjust and with Android since there'south so much yous can customize, y'all might terminate up spending a few hours messing with information technology to make it work the manner you want it to. That'south non a bad thing necessarily but coming from iOS the onboarding experience might seem a lilliputian less straightforward.

Apple is very practiced at locking yous into their platform, notwithstanding. If you're already heavily invested in Apple's ecosystem then it makes sense that you'd adopt a device that matches the experience that you're used to. With the iPhone you become a consequent user experience across the board, timely software updates, which will e'er work seamlessly with the hardware because Apple tree makes both.

I will exist sticking with the Nexus 6P despite the fact that I am invested in Apple'southward ecosystem because at the cease of the mean solar day it's an excellent smartphone and does everything I demand it to do today. Whether I'll exist sticking with Android permanently -- well, that's something I'll find out when my next update is due.