Should I get an iPhone? Question from an BlackBerry user.

[Wybrem]

Hello,

As you may or may not know, Whatsapp and Facebook are dropping support for BlackBerry10. This means that I need a new device. Now I REALLY REALLY REALLY hate Android, but I'm not sure about iPhone either. I'd go for Windows Phone, but it's full of bugs and again lack of apps. While it is clear to me that iOS is the superior platform, there's a few things holding me back. And I'm rather new to Apple, so maybe someone could help me with:

-Security. That's right, can I encrypt all my data on the iPhone for instance. How often are there security issues, according to the internet 800+ in the last 8 years compared to BlackBerry's 12 and Android's 250. But I honestly cannot believe that Android is in any way shape or form more secure than iOS.
-Privacy. Does the Apple App Store respect my privacy and enables me to refuses some app permissions such as location tracking?
-Obsolete. How long do app api's last here, I switch phones every 2 years, I don't want to be left out on new app updates within that time.
-Service. How is costumer service. Just received a full refund from BlackBerry two of my devices couldn't update anymore after 2+ years.

These may sound dumb but:
-How does one backup his photo/videos from his iPhone to his computer, do you absolutely need itunes? I hate itunes.
-Is there a place to get all your notifications? e.g. from 5 email addresses and whatsapp and everything just mixed (like BlackBerry HUB).
-Are there Google apps available like Google Photo's for instance.
-Is there an ADBLOCK. If there is one thing that makes a OS/System cheap it's ads, I don't care if they're in 3rd party apps, I don't want to see them, ever.

Last but not least, will the iPhone 7 look a bit more modern (borderless etc) let's be honest the iPhone never won prizes for being beautiful.

 

[metllicamilitia]

Hello,

As you may or may not know, Whatsapp and Facebook are dropping support for BlackBerry10. This means that I need a new device. Now I REALLY REALLY REALLY hate Android, but I'm not sure about iPhone either. I'd go for Windows Phone, but it's full of bugs and again lack of apps. While it is clear to me that iOS is the superior platform, there's a few things holding me back. And I'm rather new to Apple, so maybe someone could help me with:

-Security. That's right, can I encrypt all my data on the iPhone for instance. How often are there security issues, according to the internet 800+ in the last 8 years compared to BlackBerry's 12 and Android's 250. But I honestly cannot believe that Android is in any way shape or form more secure than iOS.
-Privacy. Does the Apple App Store respect my privacy and enables me to refuses some app permissions such as location tracking?
-Obsolete. How long do app api's last here, I switch phones every 2 years, I don't want to be left out on new app updates within that time.
-Service. How is costumer service. Just received a full refund from BlackBerry two of my devices couldn't update anymore after 2+ years.

These may sound dumb but:
-How does one backup his photo/videos from his iPhone to his computer, do you absolutely need itunes? I hate itunes.
-Is there a place to get all your notifications? e.g. from 5 email addresses and whatsapp and everything just mixed (like BlackBerry HUB).
-Are there Google apps available like Google Photo's for instance.
-Is there an ADBLOCK. If there is one thing that makes a OS/System cheap it's ads, I don't care if they're in 3rd party apps, I don't want to see them, ever.

Last but not least, will the iPhone 7 look a bit more modern (borderless etc) let's be honest the iPhone never won prizes for being beautiful.

Security, other than Blackberry, iOS the most secure mobile platform and Apple is working on making even more secure as we speak.

Privacy, everything is as private as you make it. If an app wants to take advantage of features of your iPhone, such as camera, microphone, contacts, etc., you must approve or deny access for each and every part of the system the app wants to use. You can change these later in settings.

Obsolescence, apps update whenever a developer wants to update them. The last time previous phones were left out of the update loop was iOS 7. iOS 7 was a major overhaul to iOS.

Service, the number of satisfied customers dealing with Apple customer service far outweighs the number of dissatisfied customers. I myself have never had a bad experience dealing with Apple.

Backup, you can either backup via wifi to iCloud or yes, you need iTunes. Backup with iTunes is simple and painless. You can even encrypt local backups.

Email Hub, almost any email app ever on the App Store allows multiple accounts across multiple services, including Apple's stock email, and there is a unified inbox, or you can view each service independently.

Google, an iPhone is one of the best Google phones on the market, if Google has an app, it's on iOS. I've even heard Android users say the iOS version of the app is better.

Adblock, iOS 9 added support for Adblock services, just check the App Store for an Adblock app that supports your needs.

iPhone 7, other than rumors, you gotta wait until September like the rest of us.

 

[Wybrem]

Awesome reply, I don't need to jailbreak or 'root' the iPhone in order to get an adblock to work? This is very interesting stuff all. And the app permissions, very good, I know you can do that with Android 6.0 now, but I've concerns about BlackBerry updating their Android device to it.

I will be checking out local prizes for the iPhone 6s Plus now, I never knew iPhone respected my privacy with apps. It's a disaster on my Android tablet.

 

[eyecrispy]

I've used both BB10 and iOS and i LOVED BB10 but had to come back to iOS when worked stopped allowing me to sync emails. There a lot of BB10 features that I miss, but iOS is clean and solid and dependable. It's more secure than android and yes, Google apps work well and sometimes better than on android. My husband has been really mad that he can't accept a calendar invite from his Gmail AP on his android phone but I can on my iPhone and iPad. He thinks it's ridiculous that Google offers more feature rich apps to a competitor.

 

[ritesh]

-Is there a place to get all your notifications? e.g. from 5 email addresses and whatsapp and everything just mixed (like BlackBerry HUB).

No. Nothing like the Hub on iOs, where you can consolidate emails, messengers, texts. All have to be checked and dealt with separately.

 

[Trees]

Sounds like the Priv could be an option for you if the concerns about iTunes and no BB Hub are a factor.

 

[LockOnTech]

Awesome reply, I don't need to jailbreak or 'root' the iPhone in order to get an adblock to work? This is very interesting stuff all. And the app permissions, very good, I know you can do that with Android 6.0 now, but I've concerns about BlackBerry updating their Android device to it.

I will be checking out local prizes for the iPhone 6s Plus now, I never knew iPhone respected my privacy with apps. It's a disaster on my Android tablet.

For the adblock feature, jailbreaking the device is not required; there are extension available on the app store for mobile safari.

Out of curiosity, knowing that they are going to drop support for those apps on BBOS 10 does that also mean even you have the app on your device that you can no longer use it?

 

[DFree1]

I don't need to jailbreak or 'root' the iPhone in order to get an adblock to work?

Nope, it was a feature added to the latest versions. What's the reason you hate Android btw? We could address the points that iPhone does better than Android if you give us an overview of the reasons you don't like Android.

 

[qbnkelt]

Out of curiosity, knowing that they are going to drop support for those apps on BBOS 10 does that also mean even you have the app on your device that you can no longer use it?

For Facebook, Blackberry pushed out an "update" that served to kill the app and add what amounts to nothing more than a shortcut to FB on your desktop. This rendered FB unable to be answered from the Hub unless a setting is toggled on FB to allow FB mails to go to the Hub.

So the "upgrade" was a kill switch for the app and a web shortcut.

 

[EggTarts]

I have moved from blackberry to iphone last year with the iphone 6s plus and I am very satisfied. Having been a BB 9700 and Z10 user, moving to iOS was a much better experience.

In security terms, iOS is the most secure service other than BB Enterprise systems. In addition, Apple doesn't let foreign nations have their own servers like what BB did to satisfy request for UAE and countries in the EMEA.

I prefer iOS / iphone because the hardware is simply better, consistent updates not like in blackberry where things get delayed you have to wait according to carrier. Moreover, touchID is a killer feature, it just makes everything easier without having to type an alphanumeric passcode.

You can set up your email all in one place with apple's own mail.app or use the outlook app on iphone since it supports every mail service.

With regards to your questions about adblock, iOS has a content blocking system in safari if you download of the bloack apps.

To your questions about backups, if you don't itunes, you can just have it sync over wifi if you don't want to connect it to your computer or you can backup using icloud.

And if you are using a hardware keyboard on BB, you will get used to the software keyboard in no time but i will admit that is not as good as BB10's software keyboard just yet.

 

[kch50428]

You'll lament not having an LED notification light...

 

[des714]

I haven't used a BB since the Curve days, but I would absolutely recommend switching to an iPhone if you have to get a new device. It's secure and so simple to use. I used to be a very big Android fan, but after switching to iPhone and realizing you deal with a lot less bloat ware and just the simplicity of the phone period I'm pretty confident I can say I will never go back to another platform. Also, you get updates quite often without having to wait for specific phone/carrier updates.

 

[sting7k]

Hello,

As you may or may not know, Whatsapp and Facebook are dropping support for BlackBerry10. This means that I need a new device. Now I REALLY REALLY REALLY hate Android, but I'm not sure about iPhone either. I'd go for Windows Phone, but it's full of bugs and again lack of apps. While it is clear to me that iOS is the superior platform, there's a few things holding me back. And I'm rather new to Apple, so maybe someone could help me with:

-Security. That's right, can I encrypt all my data on the iPhone for instance. How often are there security issues, according to the internet 800+ in the last 8 years compared to BlackBerry's 12 and Android's 250. But I honestly cannot believe that Android is in any way shape or form more secure than iOS.
-Privacy. Does the Apple App Store respect my privacy and enables me to refuses some app permissions such as location tracking?
-Obsolete. How long do app api's last here, I switch phones every 2 years, I don't want to be left out on new app updates within that time.
-Service. How is costumer service. Just received a full refund from BlackBerry two of my devices couldn't update anymore after 2+ years.

These may sound dumb but:
-How does one backup his photo/videos from his iPhone to his computer, do you absolutely need itunes? I hate itunes.
-Is there a place to get all your notifications? e.g. from 5 email addresses and whatsapp and everything just mixed (like BlackBerry HUB).
-Are there Google apps available like Google Photo's for instance.
-Is there an ADBLOCK. If there is one thing that makes a OS/System cheap it's ads, I don't care if they're in 3rd party apps, I don't want to see them, ever.

Last but not least, will the iPhone 7 look a bit more modern (borderless etc) let's be honest the iPhone never won prizes for being beautiful.

Security - Not sure where you got the number about iPhone security issues or what specific issues you are referring too. But in any case; the iPhone is very secure. Have you not seen the news about the FBI taking Apple to court over trying to break into an iPhone?

Privacy - Yes you can disable permissions such as location services on a per app basis.

Obsolete - IMHO iOS devices out last every other device out there. My iPhone 5 is running the latest version of iOS and is 3.5 years old with no issues; I also have an iPhone 6 as my primary. I expect to be able to install iOS 10/X this fall.

Service - You get 1 year of warranty included with every iPhone. Most of the time if you have an issue you can walk into an Apple Store and walk about with a replacement device restored from a cloud backup of your old device. You can also purchase an extended 2 year warranty from Apple which also will replace your device if it is damaged for a $79 deductible (only if damaged, NOT lost).

Photo/Video - You're in luck, for these you can use Windows file explorer to drag/drop as you please. Or use Windows photo importer. Windows "sees" the iPhone as a digital camera when you connect via USB so don't need iTunes to move photos/videos to your computer.

Notifications - There is a notification center but it's not like BB hub. It's more just a list of all your notifications. I don't use it very much.

I can't think of a single Google App that is not available on the iPhone. There are some who argue that the iPhone is actually the best "Google Phone". I personally use Google Maps almost daily.

Adblockers are also now available in the App Store for devices running iOS 9 and higher.

Hope this helps.

 

[john_v]

I back all my photos and videos up to Dropbox. Much easier to move around and use.

Google photos - yes...every google app imagineable is on iOS. I'm still a GMail, Google calendar, Google Keep, Drive, Maps, etc, user. And haven't missed a beat on iOS.

I've used BB10 so I know where you're coming from. Make the switch, I think you'll be glad you did.

 

[devon08]

well if you have the money go for it but some dont switch because iphones tend to be expensive

 

[Wybrem]

For the adblock feature, jailbreaking the device is not required; there are extension available on the app store for mobile safari.

Out of curiosity, knowing that they are going to drop support for those apps on BBOS 10 does that also mean even you have the app on your device that you can no longer use it?

You can no longer use the app after dec 2016 indeed. That means any BBOS10 device is obsolete right now--for real. Yet they still selling them--like anyone is using their ad filled BBM.

Nope, it was a feature added to the latest versions. What's the reason you hate Android btw? We could address the points that iPhone does better than Android if you give us an overview of the reasons you don't like Android.

Well Android is slow, never gets updated (by brands), looks to be build for children (google play). My phone just needs to work, I don't want to deal with tweaks and other BS. It just needs to work, fast, and I want to be in control of my privacy. So Facebook doesn't need my location permissions. I also can't stand the crowd who just has to push the resolution and specs, (I don't need a 1440p 8core phone, I really don't see how it benefits me) and yet every Android phone out there atm is AT least two times slower in multitasking--androids can't multi task at all, if you look closely every app has to be reloaded, best seen with games, so what do you need that 4 gb of ram for. Additionally I don't like Android being cheap--everybody can have it. BlackBerry was part of me, it made me unique as only 0.3% of the people use it, and is / was expensive, limiting the people who could afford it.

I am really your die-hard BlackBerry fanboy right here, while I love the priv's design, I don't know if I can deal with ADdroid, also a thing one needs to jailbreak Android in order to get an adblock working, because Google banned it. If something is free or cheap, YOUR the product, I don't like being a product aka ads.

 

[rscott016]

https://youtu.be/10UBsSo6O4I

This YouTube video echoes what you mentioned about android not being able to multitask. This is one of the primary reasons that I will not go away from my 6S Plus, the multitasking puts the brand new S7 Edge to shame! Yet everyone raves over how much better an S7 Edge is.....keep dreaming to those folks. I really want a Priv, er I really wanted one lol. I have a Galaxy S6 Edge for a business device and it is absolutely pathetic in every way possible other than being a paper weight!

 

[Mr.Willie]

You'll lament not having an LED notification light...

Problem solved.

You can no longer use the app after dec 2016 indeed. That means any BBOS10 device is obsolete right now--for real. Yet they still selling them--like anyone is using their ad filled BBM.



Well Android is slow, never gets updated (by brands), looks to be build for children (google play). My phone just needs to work, I don't want to deal with tweaks and other BS. It just needs to work, fast, and I want to be in control of my privacy. So Facebook doesn't need my location permissions. I also can't stand the crowd who just has to push the resolution and specs, (I don't need a 1440p 8core phone, I really don't see how it benefits me) and yet every Android phone out there atm is AT least two times slower in multitasking--androids can't multi task at all, if you look closely every app has to be reloaded, best seen with games, so what do you need that 4 gb of ram for. Additionally I don't like Android being cheap--everybody can have it. BlackBerry was part of me, it made me unique as only 0.3% of the people use it, and is / was expensive, limiting the people who could afford it.

I am really your die-hard BlackBerry fanboy right here, while I love the priv's design, I don't know if I can deal with ADdroid, also a thing one needs to jailbreak Android in order to get an adblock working, because Google banned it. If something is free or cheap, YOUR the product, I don't like being a product aka ads.

I came here from a Q10. I tried Android for a year when BB messed up the OS 10 launch. Didn't like it. Found myself using my iPad when i should be using my pocketable PDA. Apple finally came out with a 'real' cellular device (6+) and I haven't looked back.

Three pieces of advice.

1) Outlook and OneDrive. Use them.

2) When you say "Siri, take me to the Peppermint Club", a navigation app will pop up with directions. It won't be Google Maps. Be happy and content anyway. There's nothing wrong with Apple maps. If you're in southern Louisiana and actually go to the Peppermint Club, well you're in for unique experience. Don't blame me. :big grin: Same goes for Safari when you click on links. Mobile browser test a few years ago showed Safari the fastest anyway. Not sure if that's still true.

3) Get over your dislike of iTunes. Yes it can be finicky if you don't keep your library in the default location, (Like an NAS drive.) It also likes to change movies I've ripped from Movies to Home Movies. Hook your device to it and enable wifi sync and encrypted backups. If you never want to use it for managing media, at least use it for back ups. You mention security and privacy, and iCloud backups are not there yet.

 

[LockOnTech]

For Facebook, Blackberry pushed out an "update" that served to kill the app and add what amounts to nothing more than a shortcut to FB on your desktop. This rendered FB unable to be answered from the Hub unless a setting is toggled on FB to allow FB mails to go to the Hub.

So the "upgrade" was a kill switch for the app and a web shortcut.

Now I understand, I appreciate the clarification. That is a bummer that they lost support for BBOS 10 though.

 

[Wybrem]

This YouTube video echoes what you mentioned about android not being able to multitask. This is one of the primary reasons that I will not go away from my 6S Plus, the multitasking puts the brand new S7 Edge to shame! Yet everyone raves over how much better an S7 Edge is.....keep dreaming to those folks. I really want a Priv, er I really wanted one lol. I have a Galaxy S6 Edge for a business device and it is absolutely pathetic in every way possible other than being a paper weight!

Ye I've seen many of them. Android fans will just cry and cry "it's not like you use it that way", "it's just games", bla bla bla. To me it proves how horribly slow Android really is. Being slow on an 2x4core cpu's.

I guess I can give iTunes a try again, last time I used it was back in 2010 or something. I've never been a fan of buying music or music subscriptions. I'm going to wait for the BlackBerry Q4 report (releasing April 1st) if they sold under 2.5 million Priv devices, I'm out and hopping to Apple. Otherwise I might wait out the Android 6.0 update and hopefully a fully integrated HUB.

I guess some of you wonder why I'm this picky, but both the BlackBerry Priv as the iPhone 6S Plus 128gb are 1000euro over here, so need to choose carefully.