Almost as soon as the iOS-Android rivalry began there were guides, think pieces, and other talk about users switching between one and the other. I think Samsung’s entire smartphone advertising strategy has been about people switching to their phones from iPhones — how their phones get new features before Apple copies them. I’ve always had a problem with these messages, and it’s with how they almost always focus on hardware and operating systems to the exclusion of the software that runs on them.
Basically, I never really thought about switching because of how much iOS software I’ve paid for over the years that wouldn’t come with me if I left that ecosystem. Recently though I sat down and took stock of all those apps and what such a transition might actually cost me. I found that the difficulty is really dependent on what you’re using your device for and what kind of apps that entails. Continue reading