AT&T enticed me with a free Galaxy S23 if I trade in any older Galaxy series phone. So, I found one on eBay for $40 and traded it in for a new Galaxy S23. I put my SIM in the new phone and committed to using it for the next month. And now, I’m having trouble trying to convince myself to move back to my trusty iPhone 13 Pro.

I’ve been an iPhone user since the iPhone 6 when Apple finally came out with a suitably larger screen. I’ve since added an iPad (latest model), multiple series of Apple Watches, the Apple TV 4K (latest model), and a couple of M1 Macs and a couple of HomePods to my iCloud hardware list. But this one free Android phone has me questioning my previous choices for the following reasons.

1. Although it really doesn’t affect me, I am still bothered by the fact that Apple has deliberately chosen to use like 18 different screw types and sizes in their hardware, all in an effort to thwart customers from repairing hardware they’ve purchased.
2. Going further with the first reason, Apple has added serialization of hardware parts and even added false error messages to the OS if you replace like-for-like pieces.
3. Although Siri is helpful on a hardware level, she’s often downright useless when asking general questions. If I had a dollar for every time, she’s told me “You can ask again from your iPhone…”
4. Something I learned recently after powering off my iPhone is if I ask Siri via my HomePods for the time or to confirm “who am I” she responds just fine, but she refuses to add anything to my shopping list if my iPhone is powered off. I know Siri on the HomePods is still connected to the internet because she can tell me about the weather for the day. This odd reliance on a smartphone to perform simple tasks is something my Google Nest speakers don’t suffer from.
5. Google Assistant is actually part of the Google alarm clock on Android. This means, when the alarm goes off in the morning, I can have Google Assistant automatically set the thermostat, turn off the bedroom fan, set the headboard lights to 10%, and then tell me the current weather, and go over the first few items on today’s calendar. I’d have to muck about in iOS Shortcuts hoping to cobble together the right ingredients to get this working on an iPhone.
6. When watching Apple TV, I’ll ask Siri on the HomePods to pause or unpause what’s playing on the TV. She often does exactly that, but sometimes she remarks “Nothing is playing” or she’ll start playing music “Okay - here’s a station just for you” instead of unpausing what’s on TV.
7. iCloud syncing takes WAY too long to upload or coordinate photos and videos. Four items often take 30 minutes on the iPhone-to-iCloud sync, yet on the same iPhone, Google Photos is already completed.
8. Google Bard is already making inroads on Android. It’s very handy to get an A.I. summary of a website generated (when I want it). We keep hearing about Apple’s A.I. purchases, but their approach is so cautious, I’m afraid they’ll be way behind when Siri finally gets an upgrade.
9. Folding phones - where are they, Apple?
10. The application sharing of Android with Windows 11 (I also have a couple of Windows 11 PCs) is actually better than iOS with MacOS. Phone Link gives me access to every application installed on my S23 while on MacOS, I can only run apps that have been designed to (also) work on the desktop. I can text, share pictures, access Google Assistant, and run all my S23 applications right from the Windows 11 desktop.
11. Apple is (incredibly) caving to years-long pressure (and embarrassment) to finally adopt RCS for non-iMessage texts. This removes a pretty big barrier for many people who would otherwise never switch from an iPhone. For the most part though, I notice I really don’t miss iMessage or even FaceTime.
12. Will I miss Apple’s in-store support? I can tell you I’ve never had to bring in my iPhone for any hardware repairs and I know enough about the software and how to research problems on my own that I’ve never needed help from an Apple Genius. I suppose I’ll be just fine with Samsung support - if I ever need it.