I will give you MHO on the matter and I am sure other zealots will follow with their versions and then you can make a goodly informed decision.
There are really only two smart phone choices of the many. Apple’s iPhone or everyone else’s Android by Google.
Apple, the first modern such phone, had to find a partner to believe in the risk, and take the loss. These phones are worth $700 but sold for a fraction, because the phone carrier want’s the contract. ATT has Apple under exclusive contract until the end of the year.
Google, which just invented their Droid OS is much nearer and a copy cat, who all the other phone companies jumped on to emulate Apple’s success.
Thus you can get Droid on about any kind of phone with many different screen sizes and lots of different options.
That is both good and bad. Good in that it has far more choices and is totally open for anyone to make any kind of app.
Bad, in that it is totally insecure and multiple thousands of bad apps, spy-ware and viruses are out there just like for PC.
Apple is closed. You only get approved apps, and they limit things like no Porn and no Voice over IP, and tethering. You can “break” or “Hack” the iphone and make it do those things, but risk your warranty.
But, being a closed system, like Mac, there is no viruses, no spy-ware, no bad apps to worry about.
Droid also, having just the OS and any one can make a phone for it, means not all apps work the same. Some may be only for phones with a certain screen or features or buttons.
Apple’s iPhone and the iOS is made by Apple for Apple and thus all the millions of apps all work the same for everyone all the time.
Apple also has tens of thousands more apps than Droid.
Droid phones are typically made by the lowest cost vendor and are plastic. Screens have been known to break off, or the touch screens just stop working.
iPhone is made of metal and high tempered glass. There are videos of iphones being run over by 18 wheel semi trucks and still working when picked up.
All cell phones have issues when you hold them certain ways which can increase the risk of dropped calls. Apple seems to be worse at dropping calls. It may or may not be due to design issues or the ATT network. The debate continues.
The iPhone screen is nearly DOUBLE the pixels of the best Droid phones and as much as 4 times better than the cheap droid phones.
Droid does not yet sync with Outlook or your exchange server. You have to have a gmail and google calendar account to sync.
iPhone fully supports exchange, direct push mail and other features syncing with your network.
I am an iPhone user and a Mac enthusiast.
I hope this was helpful!
VERY helpful, Rachel, thanks! Also thanks to Buddah! I know just enough about these things to be dangerous lol
I was leaning towards iPhone due to my tendency towards “name” brands for electronics and being ATT customer already. Plus, I’ve been pretty happy with my iPod.
I must thank you, deeply and seriously, for putting that at the top of your post. You saved me so much time by stamping "fanboy" upon your own forehead for me, so I can go on and forget the rest of your post. Thank goodness for the "Page Down" key (an invention, apparently, of MS. Those keys aren't on this Mac).
Thank God for AT&T for giving BetaMax, ooops, I mean Apple a chance.
BZZT. WRONG. Look at the HTC TyTN, or the Motorola A1000, or the Qtek S100. All have all of the features of the iPhone, and predated the iPhone by years. Apple may have made it look pretty to some, but the "first modern such phone" predated the iPhone by several years.
But, being a closed system, like Mac, there is no viruses, no spy-ware, no bad apps to worry about.
BZZT. WRONG. The iOS (meaning iPhone, iPad, iPod devices) have a HUGE security hole where you can ROOT the device by just visiting a website. The entire device is compromised by visiting a malicious website - you can lose everything, have everything copied.
You even knew about this gaping monstrosity of a security hole and still come here peddling your lies about security!
All cell phones have issues when you hold them certain ways which can increase the risk of dropped calls. Apple seems to be worse at dropping calls. It may or may not be due to design issues or the ATT network. The debate continues.
BZZT. WRONG AGAIN. Third strike, you're clearly out of your league here... Even Apple confirmed it's from the design by their offering of rubber bumpers to solve the problem. It's not the fact your hand covers the antenna; it's the fact your hand can TOUCH the bare antenna metal. It's been independently proven by Consumer Reports, Ars Technical, PAConsultants, and many more. BAD DESIGN, not "network issues".
Go spread your lies and FUD somewhere else...
If closed no virus ...
And if Open then Viruses....
So how do you explain..Windows ...closed and lots of viruses...
Open like BSD and Linux ....very little viruses?