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Apple just lost an iPhone customer (or 4)..

3 points by PythonDeveloper ↗ HN
A week or two ago, the power button popped off my iPhone, and yesterday the volume button (on the side of the phone) disappeared. I'm guessing some form of iLeprosy hit my phone...

Like many, I decided that when parts started falling off my iPhone 3gs, I would get a new phone. My wife and daughter have the iPhone 4, and it sure is a fine looking piece of equipment. So nice that I figured it's what I would get.

That is, until I laid my hands on an HTC One X for the first time.

Oh. My. Freaking. God.

More info here: http://www.htc.com/www/smartphones/htc-one-x/

Review here: http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/02/htc-one-x-review/

Monstrous 4.7" screen, Beats Audio, Android 4.0 ICS... Dual core 1.5Ghz processors (Quad core in some versions), 4G speed that is TRULY unreal, 5-device wifi hotspot, tethering via USB (although with the hotspot, why would I need that?), dual cameras, continuous auto-focus... and on and on..

Maybe it's just me, but when I put the iPhone 4 next to the HTC One X, the iPhone looks like a sad little piece of Soviet cold-war hardware from the 1950's.

I just can't see buying another Apple phone when HTC and others are so very far ahead of the game. Android 4.0 is incredible, and the depth of apps for it is obscene compared to the iPhone, almost to the point of annoyance.

I will admit, there was some comfort in only having one or two different apps to choose from on the iPhone versus the 127 different mileage tracking apps on Android, but it's a hardship I think I can cope with.

So this is it. So long Apple. You've annoyed this developer with your stupid app censorship (err, I mean "approval" process) and over-priced, under-powered hardware for the last time.

When my family's iPhone contracts expire, I assure you they will be getting some form of Android phone. Perhaps even an improved version of the One X, if improvement is even possible..

I urge all you other Apple fan-persons to check out the HTC One X at Best Buy, AT&T store, Target, or any other outlet before everyone realizes how incredible this thing is and the supply dries up.

:)

6 comments

[ 4.7 ms ] story [ 22.1 ms ] thread
jwatters3
(In reference to screen size) I'm not an iPhone owner yet, but the only thing that is keeping me from buying one is the screen size. If iPhone 5 doesn't grow larger, i'm guessing a lot more people will switch to Android devices.

But then again, I can't imagine iPhone 5 not having a larger screen, since the New iPad has a really large retina display. 4.5-5 inches should be simple.

PythonDeveloper
Agreed. It's not just about the screen size though. The iPhone keeps you lock-stepped in a fixed user interface that you really have zero control over.

Android, and especially versions 4.0+, allow virtually unlimited customization of the entire phone experience. This includes themes, gizmos & gadgets (like 10+ different styles of clocks), etc., etc.

It's the difference between the old flip phones and the iPhone when it first came out, but the advantage is to Android this time.

Apple's got a looooooong way to go to catch up, IMHO.

lscott3
As far as the customization aspect I think that is two different markets. A person like me doesn't necessarily want to customize all the way down to which kernel the device is running. I like how stupid simple it is, open up app store, buy app, use app, get off.

Which neither scenario is wrong its just two different markets and both companies know that, IMO.

PythonDeveloper
In complete agreement. I'm not advocating that such customization is better, clearly it opens up support issues that Apple will not have.

I'm simply saying that it's refreshing for me to have the option to customize and personalize, rather than have the same phone as everyone else, save for the color of the aftermarket case that surrounds the phone.

I did like that the iPhone worked, worked well, and almost never crashed. I didn't like that Apple decided what apps I got to run based on their business whimsy.