The iPhone vs. Android: What's the Big Difference?

May 18, 2010, By Phil Dotree 177 comments

The smartphone has become the Swiss Army knife of the 21st century: endlessly useful, cool, and a necessary tool that every man should carry. The difference is that smart phones carry a hefty cost, and they're not all designed equally well.

Two of the most popular smartphones are the ubiquitous Apple iPhone and its new challenger, Google's Android platform. Here's a look at how the two phone giants stack up.

Usability

First, we need to be clear about something. There's no official "Android" phone, just as there's no official "Windows" computer. Android is simply the name for Google's mobile operating system, and as such, it's somewhat difficult to compare the iPhone to Android without being biased. Many functions of the iPhone seem to work more intuitively than those on Android phones, but that's mainly because the iPhone and its operating system were designed to work together, while Android was designed to be used on a variety of phones made by a variety of manufacturers.

Therefore, if you're looking for that "wow, cool!" factor, you're probably going to be more impressed with what the iPhone has to offer. Every function of the iPhone seems to work effortlessly, with intuitive touch-screen controls that have made it the weapon of choice for countless hipsters in coffee shops everywhere. However, most of what the iPhone offers is available on Android phones. You want the web? The Android phones can get you there. You want a touch screen? Android phones have that, too. In fact, the best Android phone currently available, the Nexus One, feels completely natural.

The big difference is that the iPhone is a single device, while Android is a software platform. That makes a straight comparison difficult but not impossible; it's like comparing Macs to PCs, as many bloggers have noted. Apple carefully controls everything available on its iPhone. Google's Android, on the other hand, offers its adherents something else: freedom to do whatever you'd like with your phone.