Android Vs. iPhone

Which one is better: iPhone or Android? This is the million dollar question many consumers ask themselves before making a smartphone purchase. As updates are made on either side of the aisle, the competition continues to grow stronger between these two industry leaders. Both systems have die hard defenders and valid arguments for either, so if you are in the market for a new phone in the coming year, how do you decide? To help make your decision a little easier, we've outlined a few points to keep in mind before making your next smartphone purchase in 2015.

• Open / Closed Source- A good question to ask yourself: Is your priority security or versatility? Because Apple has a closed development environment, they are safeguarded from malware and viruses (Much like that of Global Reach’s coding environment—had to mention it!). Android’s open source system allows for many developers to work on the system, giving users more customization ability. Keep in mind, however, that too much customization can also lead to poor battery life, bugs, and slower operation overall.
   
• App Availability- Typically apps are developed for iOS before they are developed for Android. Because of this, iOS users typically have access to newly released apps before they are made available to Android users. On the flip side, Android devices offer more variety in available applications, though the quality may be hindered due to the open source environment. Open source systems allow developers of varying skill sets to create and develop apps, so while you may have a larger selection of apps to choose from, the quality, too, will vary. Often times iOS users will need to buy an application that Android users can find for free.
   
• Support- Apple has always had a reputation for having a solid support team that is very helpful and knowledgeable of the iOS system. This is due to the uniformity of their product across the board. This is one big advantage to iOS users. On the other hand, Android users will have to either go through the phone manufacturer or the phone carrier to resolve any technical issues that may arise. So depending on the carrier and the phone manufacturer, the quality of customer support is hit or miss for Android users.
   
• Personalization- One huge difference users will notice between Androids and iPhones will be the ability to personalize your phone. Two identical Android phones can have completely different user interfaces from one to another. As mentioned earlier, this is due to the open source system Android runs on allowing for much customization of the phone. iPhones look almost identical across the board. Because of this, the learning curve for new users is minimal.