Switching to iOS from Android (and back... and back again)

2020-09-20 

I have been an Android "fan boy" for around 8 years now - and we had some good times.

• Nexus 6
• Pixel phones
• Pixel C tablet
• Google acquired Motorola

And.... then some not-so-good times

• Nexus 6p battery issue when it was cold (phone would shutdown around 38% - fun)
• Google decides to stop making tablets
• Pixel Slate <<< I think *this* may have been the final straw

Using computers (at least) 8 hours a day, I probably have a different set of expectations than most "casual" users.  And I may be a bit unique even in my own cohort of IT-geeks.  I buy in to the "ecosystem" - when I was using Android devices, I was also running Linux as my primary driver.  Over time, you discover the small tweaks and advantages of having all of your gear running similar/same OS.  Which, is what prompted me to create this post - I want to keep track of some of the things I miss.

Things I'll miss from Android

• "OK Google" - I believe iOS has an implementation, but it is certainly not as clean as booting your Pixel phone and having that functionality available.  (I may discover how to replicate this on my iPhone)
• Nest integration - I suppose this is just an extension of the "OK Google" bullet point (above)
• messages integration with the browser <<< This is a BIG one for me.
  
• messages, in general - so far, I am not liking how Apple handles SMS and messaging.  Time will tell.
• saving photos to "Google Photos" with no bullshit involved.
  

Things I am not liking about Apple thus far:

• I don't want to use your overpriced services Apple.  Apple Music, NO.  iCloud, NO.  It sucks how Apple seems to think you want all of your stuff not only "in the cloud" but in *their* cloud.  
• Jesus F'n Tap Dancing Christ - what the hell is HEIC, and why is it now my DEFAULT for pics?
  
• You can't align apps in a specific place on the screen - WTAF?  They all snap up to the top.

2021-08-15
Almost a year later, I am trying the switch again (apparently I did not care to document when I fell  back to Android since last September).

Apple Maps
while the imaging of the app is pretty great, the app and interface is kind of shit.  You can't "add stops", you can't preplan a route with multiple stops.

App Store 
Some apps only seem to allow auth via the IOS App Store - (i.e. I can't download an app I have already f*cking paid for and use an email, or Google ID, to login to the app)  This may not be an IOS/Apple thing, but still kind of sucks.

Bluetooth UI
You can't rename your Bluetooth connections in IOS - really?  Issue - I have a Jeep (Uconnect) and a Ram Truck (Uconnect) and if I rent a car (Uconnect) - and if I want to delete/remove some of the Bluetooth connections that I will never use (like the rental car) it is a crap shoot whether I am deleting the right one.  It's bullshit that you cannot rename your Bluetooth connections.

TL; DR:  Apple IOS is rad, it's sexy and polished and highly/tightly integrated with "all things" related to your online existence - and I pretty much hate it.