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No removable battery, no headphone jack, no SD card expansion, increased difficulty installing apps not in the official store.. Apples ecosystem is a gilded gh

No removable battery, no headphone jack, no SD card expansion, increased difficulty installing apps not in the official store.. Apples ecosystem is a gilded ghetto

omarforgotpwd 9y ago
Security on most mobile devices other than those by Apple is a joke. I understand wanting features that aren’t there, but for me these things are very small and easy to work around relative to the benefits iOS provides: namely that the software is generally advanced and high quality.
- drdaeman 9y ago
  So is security on Apple devices, e.g. just recent https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/3/21/17147572/apple-siri-reads-iphone-lock-screen-notifications https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/3/21/17147572/a... Remembering that macOS bug with empty password root access, I'd say that Apple security QC had degraded a lot.
  - el_cid 9y ago
    There are blunders - but the difference is that there is a lot of scrutiny on iOS and macOS compared to other more niche options. But I guess security through obscurity is not too bad. Apple did benefit from it for many years.
  - iaml 9y ago
    Indeed they have. Apple also agreed there is a problem, and they are apparently trying to fix it. Better answer to the problem than I expected, honestly.
  - omarforgotpwd 9y ago
    True, those bugs are worrying. But I still feel iOS and macOS are the most secure choice because: 1. This incredibly obscure bug (in the sense that I'm surprised someone was able to find this) was found relatively quickly 2. After it was found a fix was developed and tested quickly 3. Once that fix passed QA my devices received a software update over the air and the problem was solved. One of the big problem with other mobile OSs is that the OS updates are often going through the carrier or device manufacturer and it takes time or you don't get it at all. I don't expect a device that's perfectly secure. I'm sure there are hundreds if not thousands of undiscovered vulnerabilities on the device I'm using to type this to you right now. But that's not the whole picture on security.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
doyoulikeworms 9y ago
Aside from android being easier to root, don’t the top-tier android phones have all of the other problems too? Genuine question.
- SXX 9y ago
  Is there any reason you need exactly these "top tier" devices? For under $200 there is well-built Xiaomi devices with 3-4GB RAM, powerful CPU and everything except for removable battery. Of course you should never use firmware from Chinese company, but it's true for 98% of other Android devices too and LineageOS + microG work great on these phones.
  - TeMPOraL 9y ago
    Because mobile phones are complex beasts hardware- and software-wise, and going top tier makes it much more likely you'll have a fast device for years, that works with whatever random idiosyncratic software and hardware you throw at it. Like, e.g., last year my SO was changing phones, and we didn't have much budget left, so we went with then-recommended Huawei P8 Lite. Almost good enough, except it seems to have its Bluetooth stack broken in a very specific way that renders her Pebble almost useless. Oh, and every other day, it randomly drains battery very fast. It's those kinds of things you generally don't have to deal with when you go with higher-end devices.
    - SXX 9y ago
      Might be I was just lucky with few devices I owned over last 5 years, but I only got problems with them after putting them in some insane conditions like living in Asia with constant overheating, sand and sea all around. Though I only ever used Cyanogenmod / LineageOS and specifically was looking for older, but tested devices that work well with custom firmware. Also when it's $160 device I don't need to worry about randomly died battery because I can always get new phone.
  - doyoulikeworms 9y ago
    No, not really. I'm personally an iPhone user, but my wife has a really nice Android phone. I like top tier phones even though they're more expensive. That said, I didn't want to spend so much (or wait) for an iPhone X, so I updated my iPhone 6 to an iPhone 8.
spacehome 9y ago
> no headphone jack I thought that would be a big deal when I purchased my iPhone 8, but using the AirPods, I've never once felt the urge to plug in wired headphones. Wireless headphones really are better.

No removable battery, no headphone jack, no SD card expansion, increased difficulty installing apps not in the official store.. Apples ecosystem is a gilded ghetto

omarforgotpwd 9y ago

Security on most mobile devices other than those by Apple is a joke. I understand wanting features that aren’t there, but for me these things are very small and easy to work around relative to the benefits iOS provides: namely that the software is generally advanced and high quality.

drdaeman 9y ago
So is security on Apple devices, e.g. just recent https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/3/21/17147572/apple-siri-reads-iphone-lock-screen-notifications https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/3/21/17147572/a... Remembering that macOS bug with empty password root access, I'd say that Apple security QC had degraded a lot.
- el_cid 9y ago
  There are blunders - but the difference is that there is a lot of scrutiny on iOS and macOS compared to other more niche options. But I guess security through obscurity is not too bad. Apple did benefit from it for many years.
- iaml 9y ago
  Indeed they have. Apple also agreed there is a problem, and they are apparently trying to fix it. Better answer to the problem than I expected, honestly.
- omarforgotpwd 9y ago
  True, those bugs are worrying. But I still feel iOS and macOS are the most secure choice because: 1. This incredibly obscure bug (in the sense that I'm surprised someone was able to find this) was found relatively quickly 2. After it was found a fix was developed and tested quickly 3. Once that fix passed QA my devices received a software update over the air and the problem was solved. One of the big problem with other mobile OSs is that the OS updates are often going through the carrier or device manufacturer and it takes time or you don't get it at all. I don't expect a device that's perfectly secure. I'm sure there are hundreds if not thousands of undiscovered vulnerabilities on the device I'm using to type this to you right now. But that's not the whole picture on security.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

doyoulikeworms 9y ago

Aside from android being easier to root, don’t the top-tier android phones have all of the other problems too? Genuine question.

SXX 9y ago
Is there any reason you need exactly these "top tier" devices? For under $200 there is well-built Xiaomi devices with 3-4GB RAM, powerful CPU and everything except for removable battery. Of course you should never use firmware from Chinese company, but it's true for 98% of other Android devices too and LineageOS + microG work great on these phones.
- TeMPOraL 9y ago
  Because mobile phones are complex beasts hardware- and software-wise, and going top tier makes it much more likely you'll have a fast device for years, that works with whatever random idiosyncratic software and hardware you throw at it. Like, e.g., last year my SO was changing phones, and we didn't have much budget left, so we went with then-recommended Huawei P8 Lite. Almost good enough, except it seems to have its Bluetooth stack broken in a very specific way that renders her Pebble almost useless. Oh, and every other day, it randomly drains battery very fast. It's those kinds of things you generally don't have to deal with when you go with higher-end devices.
  - SXX 9y ago
    Might be I was just lucky with few devices I owned over last 5 years, but I only got problems with them after putting them in some insane conditions like living in Asia with constant overheating, sand and sea all around. Though I only ever used Cyanogenmod / LineageOS and specifically was looking for older, but tested devices that work well with custom firmware. Also when it's $160 device I don't need to worry about randomly died battery because I can always get new phone.
- doyoulikeworms 9y ago
  No, not really. I'm personally an iPhone user, but my wife has a really nice Android phone. I like top tier phones even though they're more expensive. That said, I didn't want to spend so much (or wait) for an iPhone X, so I updated my iPhone 6 to an iPhone 8.

spacehome 9y ago

> no headphone jack I thought that would be a big deal when I purchased my iPhone 8, but using the AirPods, I've never once felt the urge to plug in wired headphones. Wireless headphones really are better.