I Switched From Android To iPhone 6S: Here’s Everything You Need To Know

Last updated on December 12th, 2016

I finally switched to an iPhone as my daily driver instead of an Android smartphone. Well, that’s pretty much it, and I like both of them now. But, switching from Android to iPhone indeed calls for a whole new experience.

So, how was my experience after the “switch“?

If I ask you to switch from Android to iPhone, what questions would usually come to your mind?

Should you switch to an iPhone as your daily driver? Is iPhone worth the price? Will you be able to perform the same tasks that you always did with your Android? What problems would you face after switching from Android to iPhone?

You must be thinking about some of the similar questions if you’re planning to get an iPhone.

Fret not, you’ll be getting the answers to all your questions. In this article, I’ll tell you about my experience of switching from Android to iPhone.

Besides, I’ll highlight all the advantages and disadvantages of switching to an iPhone or staying with Android.

Thoughts Before Getting an iPhone

Well, you can get an Android flagship device at a lower price (not considering Google’s Pixel) compared to an iPhone.

So, what do I do? What factors should I look for to convince me switching to an iPhone or help me decide to stay with an Android?

If you’re a general smartphone user who simply plans to use a budget device for basic needs (making calls, using social networking applications, watching videos & playing games); iPhone isn’t a good choice.

If you just dream to own an Apple product (iPhone), just for the brand and all you end up doing is making calls and watching videos; you could do the same with Android as well. So, if that’s the case, it won’t matter much whether you go for an iPhone or keep using your Android device.

On the other side, if you are a power Android user who looks for a great camera, awesome performance, and regular software updates, the iPhone could be one of the viable solutions.

So, finally, I convinced myself to get an iPhone considering my personal preferences. And, that I had to experience a new mobile operating system.

After Unboxing the iPhone 6S

I ordered the iPhone 6S (Space Grey, 64 GB) through Flipkart for 49,999 INR. So, that’s a lot of money ( was excited!).

After unboxing the iPhone 6S, the excitement was at a higher pitch. I took my first SIM and snapped it into the iPhone 6S, powered it ON and successfully did the setup.

Everything about the device felt good except for the screen size. Typically, Android smartphones offer a lot bigger display screen (5 – 6.2 inches). So, when compared to the average size of an Android phone, the iPhone 6S could have offered a bigger display screen size (5 inches instead of 4.7 inches).

However, moments later, I was quite comfortable with the form factor of the device which seemed practical for a variety of reasons (easy to carry and comfortable for single-handed use).

OK! I’m all set! What next? Specifications? Why does an iPhone offer a much lower set of specifications? Let’s find out whether the specifications matter while one switches from Android to iPhone.

Do Specifications Make A Difference?

If you look at the specifications of an Android flagship device and compare it to an iPhone, you would mostly prefer getting an Android device. For instance, you get 6 Gigs of RAM with the One Plus 3 and a mere 2 Gigs of RAM with the iPhone 6S.

But, when you look at the big picture, specifications does not point at a great performing device, but the real performance depends on the software-level optimization and integration with the hardware, which Google Pixel does better than other Android smartphones right now.

Never compare smartphones simply on the basis of specifications!

While the specifications look good on paper but how the device performs matters. If you’re still confused, you can take a look at the video below comparing the speed of an iPhone 6S with the OnePlus 3 (Credits: PhoneBuff)

Note: Speed tests aren’t accurate. Each device comes baked in with different animation settings and transition effects. So, you should not consider looking at how fast the app “launches” rather it would be useful to look at how fast it performs on each device.

As you may have observed, the OnePlus 3 being a lot cheaper solution seems to be a compelling option on paper with a greater capacity of keeping apps running in the background but how does the iPhone 6S still keep up with just 2 Gigs of RAM?

So, I urge to end spec wars!

You could argue for the OnePlus 3 offering a higher display resolution which possibly takes more time to process.

However, all we care are the real life performance tests, where the iPhone 6S takes the lead and it does not look like 2 Gigs of RAM is something not suitable for even a power user.

Well, the specifications do help in knowing about the smartphone’s capability, but it’s not how always what we imagine it to be. So, one has to be careful!

Now comes the most important part of the experience after I switched from Android to iPhone – Software & Performance.

Software & Performance

Note: This isn’t a full iOS vs. Android comparison but merely covers the experience of the switch.

So, now there’s no more a clean home screen. All I observe is a bunch of icons on my home screen making it look messy (as compared to my previous experience with Android).

If you’re not someone who could live with it, you shouldn’t get the iPhone.

The user interface is impressive except for the home screen. I feel that iOS should bring in more flexibility and customizability to the homescreen. Also, in the course of my usage of the device, I observed some annoying (precisely illogical) restrictions with iOS. You’ll get to know about them as you read on.

At present, I have 45+ apps installed on my iPhone 6S, but I don’t see a difference in performance of the device. In contrast, if you do the same with your Android device, you will observe slowing down of the device (except for the cases when you force stop the applications and manage the processes manually)

Here’s, yet another recommended speed test video to get a better idea of real life performance differences between the Nexus 6P and the iPhone 6S Plus. (Credits – PhoneBuff)

So, if you are ready to compromise Android’s flexibility and customizability, iPhone would prove to be a better device regarding performance and battery life (at least in my case).

Battery Life

As per the specifications, an iPhone comes packed with a battery with lower energy capacity. In contrast, an Android smartphone offers a much larger battery. So, who’s the winner here?

Well, we can’t directly give the edge to an iPhone because there are a lot of different Android smartphones (thousands of varieties!) to compare. So, we’ll refer to an example for a better conclusion.

For instance, the Google Pixel XL packs a 3450 mAh battery and at the same time the iPhone 7 Plus packs a 2900 mAh battery. An ordinary user may think of the Pixel XL as the better choice, but in spite of having a less battery capacity, the iPhone 7 Plus still keeps up with the Pixel XL giving an equivalently good battery life.

You can refer to the battery life test videos below (Credits: TechRadar)

Software Updates

Let’s face it, most of the Android smartphones do not get the latest software update as soon as it launches.

So, only if you are a Nexus user or a Pixel user, you would get Android updates directly from Google to your device for two years (from the release date) and a total of 3 years for security upgrades.

In contrast, you’ll get a much longer time frame of getting software updates such as the iPhone 5 received the iOS 10 update (that’s about four years term of getting software updates!).

So, if you’re someone who does not care about being with Android or iOS but simply getting software updates for a longer time, then the iPhone should be an excellent choice.

After-Sales Support

Usually, a tech reviewer does not consider the after-sales support quality when rating a product, but in the real world, that’s a selling point too.

Well, Google knows it well, and that’s why it lets you access a 24×7 support service with the Google Pixel. Unquestionably, the support service offered by Google should be perfect!

However, if you’re getting an Android device not manufactured by Google, the after-sales support quality would be uncertain. Personally, I found Apple’s support service tp be more consistent and responsive (compared to Moto’s Indian support service).

In a nutshell, you have to be careful (do a bit of research) when expecting a quality support for an Android device. But, if you go for an iPhone, the support quality would remain consistent (better than most Android OEMs).

Pros (Reasons to Switch from Android to iPhone)

• Faster Performance
• Better RAM management
• Long term software updates
• 3D Touch
• Extensive Touch ID Integration
• Better Standby Battery Life (As per my usage)
• Exclusive Music Making Applications (Highly recommended!)
• No Bloatware
• Some applications debut first on iOS (Prisma, for example)
• Live Photos
• A lot Faster and Reliable After-Sales Support
• Family Sharing feature

Cons of Switching to an iPhone (Reasons to Stay With  Android)

• Lack of customizability compared to Android (Icon Packs & Launcher)
• Lacks certain app functionalities (LastPass and Evernote aren’t that convenient to use as compared to Android & you’ll not be able to change the quality of the video on YouTube when on mobile data!)
• You get a 100 MB of download limit when you try downloading a larger app / game from the app store using the cellular data connection.Unless there’s an incremental download available for the app, it may not download until you connect to Wi-Fi.The developer gets the ability to choose whether to provide an incremental download to that item or not, so you might find it annoying if you like utilizing your mobile data all the time.
• You can’t view the source code of a website. So, “view-source:https://www.websitename.com” won’t work on your iPhone. You need to bookmark it and add a javascript to check out the source code of a website.In either case, you need to download an app (View Source) to enable the extension to view source quickly. So, there’s a way, but not convenient.
• You get a lower-res display: The 720p-res display in the iPhone 6S is also capable enough to produce vibrant colors providing a great user experience but compared to individual AMOLED displays, it falls behind.
• Back Button: It’s weird, but you might face difficulties when navigating back in an app. Unless there’s an app-specific back button offered by the developer, you don’t have any option except to go back to the home screen.
• File Manager: Long story short, the iPhone does not offer you powerful file manager applications as the Android has (Solid Explorer, ES File Manager, and so on)
• No Multi-Window Support (as of now)

Final Thoughts

I am euphoric with the iPhone 6S as my daily driver. Of course, I do miss a lot of exciting stuff on iOS over Android. But, if you are a tech-savvy user, you should not have any problems adapting to the new mobile operating system (iOS).

If you’re not a power user and confused with a lot of stuff before making the switch, I’ll suggest staying with Android for the time being. Hence, take your time before making the switch.

I hope that my experience would surely help you decide what you need to do. Still confused? Let me know in the comments below, and we’ll talk!

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