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Having worked as a mobile app developer primarily on iOS, I quickly learned that many Android fans has an unhealthy obsession with Apple bordering on mental dis

Having worked as a mobile app developer primarily on iOS, I quickly learned that many Android fans has an unhealthy obsession with Apple bordering on mental disorder. My Android developer co-worker has to use every opportunity given to rant about how superior Android was and how terrible iPhone was. Not to mention how downright evil Apple was.

apecat 6y ago
I've noticed the same thing. I admittedly do have an obsession with ranting about Android, but I find that there are fewer reasons to rant than five years ago. So I rant less. As the Android platform has improved over the years, I find that the main reason I don't want people around me to use Android is the ridiculously short product lifecycle of many Android phones, and the risk of non-techies using unpatched devices. I honestly think Apple's recent 5-6 years is unsustainable, but the three-year(?!) promise that seems to be a best case for Android is just obscene. Someone at work said it's partially due to SoC manufacturers not providing drivers for new Android kernels for very long, but I might have misunderstood.
- whynotminot 6y ago
  This to me is perhaps the primary reason I view Android as simply irresponsible as an ecosystem. The average lifespan of their phones is kind of sad. Most people keep their iPhones for many, many years. But if you try to do that on the Android side you're putting up with a lot of hardware pains or putting yourself at risk using a device that's no longer getting security patches. Totally understand that people have different cosmetic preferences in operating system, or even philosophically just prefer the Android approach. But it's this fundamental disposability of Android that seems so wrong in comparison to how Apple dutifully designs their phones for long haul support.
  - apecat 6y ago
    And last time Greenpeace did a checkup of this, it seemed like it was only Fairphone and Apple that even had attempted to work on their processes to limit the environmental impact of their products. It's really hilarious, especially considering the limited user serviceability of Apple products https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/reports/greener-electronics-2017/ https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/reports/greener-electronics-2... iPhones have actual resell value, too. I switched to iPhone in 2012 after I got super annoyed about the poor quality of and lack of software support my HTC Desire Z was receiving. Since then, every phone I've had, has served out its full 5 or 6 year lifecycle with family members. I generally switch iPhones every two years, and as of late, the only reason I do it is to prevent family members from ending up with garbage Androids. From iPhone 6s forward, I feel that the 'useful lifespan' of these products for someone who wants something snappy, has only increased. Here in Finland, one can buy phones from carriers unsubsidized, but with years of interest-free installment. After two years, the market price of my old phone is pretty close to the remainder of my installment.
ls65536 6y ago
> many Android fans has an unhealthy obsession with Apple bordering on mental disorder I've also found many Apple fans have an unhealthy obsession with Apple bordering on mental disorder, but my anecdote is about as pointless as yours here. There are also plenty of people in both "camps" who just want a device to go about their business and, as is their choice, don't care much beyond "what costs less" (however they might define that), or what their friends/family use or recommend, or maybe just what fits a very specific use case of theirs. I've used both types of devices, and there are some things Apple/iOS does better and some things Google/Android does better, and certainly some things neither does well. The specifics of that will always be a subject of disagreement depending on who you ask.
- mrtksn 6y ago
  Apple fans tend to be fanboys, Android fans tend to be hateboys too. I find the hate part to be very unhealthy. Seriously annoying people, they wouldn't just defend their camp, they would just be evangelists of Andoroid, they are also on a quest to bring down anything else. They even branch between themselves and have fractions of purists, Samsungers, xiaomiens ands so on and they will constantly try to bring down each another too.
  - arvinsim 6y ago
    This is patently false. Apple fanboys also go to great lengths to demean users of other platforms. Case in point: Your labeling of users of other platforms.
perryizgr8 6y ago
As an android user, I hate that iPhone users put up with insane bs that Apple does. They normalize abusive behavior and that spreads to the Android ecosystem too. Which hurts me. Case in point: headphone jacks
- andrekandre 6y ago
  its annoying and anti-consumer (imo) to remove things like headphone jacks (especially when there is plenty internal space left for one) but it seems what your really angry at isnt apple per-se but market behaviors and competition (where companies rush to imitate the market leader) this happens (for better or worse) all over the place, with fast-food, cars, fashion, electronics etc
tjpnz 6y ago
I'm an Android user but also have an iPhone for work purposes. There's nothing I find particularly delightful about either platform and I can't fathom what would motivate someone to be an Android or Apple fanboy. The reason I've stuck with Android has got very little to do with the software.

apecat 6y ago

I've noticed the same thing. I admittedly do have an obsession with ranting about Android, but I find that there are fewer reasons to rant than five years ago. So I rant less. As the Android platform has improved over the years, I find that the main reason I don't want people around me to use Android is the ridiculously short product lifecycle of many Android phones, and the risk of non-techies using unpatched devices. I honestly think Apple's recent 5-6 years is unsustainable, but the three-year(?!) promise that seems to be a best case for Android is just obscene. Someone at work said it's partially due to SoC manufacturers not providing drivers for new Android kernels for very long, but I might have misunderstood.

whynotminot 6y ago
This to me is perhaps the primary reason I view Android as simply irresponsible as an ecosystem. The average lifespan of their phones is kind of sad. Most people keep their iPhones for many, many years. But if you try to do that on the Android side you're putting up with a lot of hardware pains or putting yourself at risk using a device that's no longer getting security patches. Totally understand that people have different cosmetic preferences in operating system, or even philosophically just prefer the Android approach. But it's this fundamental disposability of Android that seems so wrong in comparison to how Apple dutifully designs their phones for long haul support.
- apecat 6y ago
  And last time Greenpeace did a checkup of this, it seemed like it was only Fairphone and Apple that even had attempted to work on their processes to limit the environmental impact of their products. It's really hilarious, especially considering the limited user serviceability of Apple products https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/reports/greener-electronics-2017/ https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/reports/greener-electronics-2... iPhones have actual resell value, too. I switched to iPhone in 2012 after I got super annoyed about the poor quality of and lack of software support my HTC Desire Z was receiving. Since then, every phone I've had, has served out its full 5 or 6 year lifecycle with family members. I generally switch iPhones every two years, and as of late, the only reason I do it is to prevent family members from ending up with garbage Androids. From iPhone 6s forward, I feel that the 'useful lifespan' of these products for someone who wants something snappy, has only increased. Here in Finland, one can buy phones from carriers unsubsidized, but with years of interest-free installment. After two years, the market price of my old phone is pretty close to the remainder of my installment.

ls65536 6y ago

> many Android fans has an unhealthy obsession with Apple bordering on mental disorder I've also found many Apple fans have an unhealthy obsession with Apple bordering on mental disorder, but my anecdote is about as pointless as yours here. There are also plenty of people in both "camps" who just want a device to go about their business and, as is their choice, don't care much beyond "what costs less" (however they might define that), or what their friends/family use or recommend, or maybe just what fits a very specific use case of theirs. I've used both types of devices, and there are some things Apple/iOS does better and some things Google/Android does better, and certainly some things neither does well. The specifics of that will always be a subject of disagreement depending on who you ask.

mrtksn 6y ago
Apple fans tend to be fanboys, Android fans tend to be hateboys too. I find the hate part to be very unhealthy. Seriously annoying people, they wouldn't just defend their camp, they would just be evangelists of Andoroid, they are also on a quest to bring down anything else. They even branch between themselves and have fractions of purists, Samsungers, xiaomiens ands so on and they will constantly try to bring down each another too.
- arvinsim 6y ago
  This is patently false. Apple fanboys also go to great lengths to demean users of other platforms. Case in point: Your labeling of users of other platforms.

perryizgr8 6y ago

As an android user, I hate that iPhone users put up with insane bs that Apple does. They normalize abusive behavior and that spreads to the Android ecosystem too. Which hurts me. Case in point: headphone jacks

andrekandre 6y ago
its annoying and anti-consumer (imo) to remove things like headphone jacks (especially when there is plenty internal space left for one) but it seems what your really angry at isnt apple per-se but market behaviors and competition (where companies rush to imitate the market leader) this happens (for better or worse) all over the place, with fast-food, cars, fashion, electronics etc

tjpnz 6y ago

I'm an Android user but also have an iPhone for work purposes. There's nothing I find particularly delightful about either platform and I can't fathom what would motivate someone to be an Android or Apple fanboy. The reason I've stuck with Android has got very little to do with the software.