Talk me into it.

[trailracer618]

I'm intrigued by the $99 4S. I've never had an Apple product. Ever. I always considered them way overpriced for what you get. But, now that the 4S is a reasonable price, I'm considering it. I've been on BlackBerry for years and BB10 looks pretty sweet, but I'm thinking that the devices will be $200 minimum and again, I think that's overpriced for what you'll get. My current BB Torch is in great condition and gets the job done. The two biggest "pros" in my book to moving to the 4S are the improved camera and the GarageBand app (which there is no equitable substitute on any other phone OS). The major "cons" are that I think the phones are extremely fragile (I hate cases), messaging/email is not as good as BB, and there is no expandable file storage (aka no what to drag and drop files onto the phone's memory).

So what are some things that the 4S and apple ecosystem can offer me that I cannot get with BB or Android? I'm finding most everything that the 4S has, Android can do just as well, and probably a little cheaper. Obviously BB10 is an unknown at this point.

 

[John Yester]

Here is my .02



I have been using the iPhone 4s for about four months since switching from BlackBerry, then Android. I have tested every platform known to man. I have used almost all BlackBerry devices and a few Android devices. All posed issues to my daily life. Either it was device management, battery life, or just simple tasks. I was ready for the change. Never thought the day would come I would move to a Apple device. I have supported them in tech support at work and tested them over the years are carrier stores, but never pushed my self to be open minded to iOS and it’s core operation.

After my last Android device which was good in sense of operation. Everyday usage was not up to par with me and I was using it very little on some days. Now the fact that screen size and 4G do come into play. But why chop a mobile device capabilities in half to fully use it on a daily basis…. An option I did not want to continue to be involved in…. So I bailed.

The day of activation went with out a hitch, as I already knew what I was getting into and pre- planned the whole iCloud process. one word - Simple. It was a great feeling to have a clean slate and hoping for no issues to arise. Things just work. Applications just work. As of writing this post, my device uptime is 35 days which out any OS lag or reboots.

I have no issues with email, as a matter of fact, it runs better in my opinion. Push, contacts, full HTML. Able to view info , etc.

As for document storage. I use google drive, dropbox, or just plain email for attachments.

Now, not one device that works for one, may not work well for another. which is why I love what else is out there. Keep engineers thinking and making improvements to what is already out there, and make it better. But some things need to change in some device before I even have a itch in switching to something else.

I have been able to do everything I wanted to do before on a mobile device and more. My time is money, work or personal. I need to be able to accomplish a task with in minutes of picking up my phone. Now I can actually enjoy pictures of my daughter growing up with the awesome camera and display and conduct emergency service business with countless fool proof applications, which is pertinent for my other lines of work.


I choose to buy what suits my needs - just as you choose to buy what suits yours. I don’t care what anybody else uses. I really don’t. I’m secure enough with my own beliefs that I don’t need others to believe the same thing I do to feel confident that I’ve made the best decision for how I choose to live my life.

 

[Fausty82]

I don't disagree with anything John says. I've never used anything on the android platform except to play with my son's Droid X before he ditched it for an iPhone. My experience prior to iOS was BlackBerry... and though it's cliche, the Apple world truly does "just work".

The iPhone 4/4S/5 camera is excellent, and though I don't use GarageBand on my phone, I do sometimes use it on my iPad. The storage issue may be a factor... but DropBox and Box storage solutions are very workable, as is iCloud.

The $99 price point for the 4S is only for the 16GB version, and that could be an issue... but at least it's not the 8GB that the carriers offered prior to the release of the iPhone 5.

 

[Just_Me_D]

Here is my .02



I have been using the iPhone 4s for about four months since switching from BlackBerry, then Android. I have tested every platform known to man. I have used almost all BlackBerry devices and a few Android devices. All posed issues to my daily life. Either it was device management, battery life, or just simple tasks. I was ready for the change. Never thought the day would come I would move to a Apple device. I have supported them in tech support at work and tested them over the years are carrier stores, but never pushed my self to be open minded to iOS and it?s core operation.

After my last Android device which was good in sense of operation. Everyday usage was not up to par with me and I was using it very little on some days. Now the fact that screen size and 4G do come into play. But why chop a mobile device capabilities in half to fully use it on a daily basis?. An option I did not want to continue to be involved in?. So I bailed.

The day of activation went with out a hitch, as I already knew what I was getting into and pre- planned the whole iCloud process. one word - Simple. It was a great feeling to have a clean slate and hoping for no issues to arise. Things just work. Applications just work. As of writing this post, my device uptime is 35 days which out any OS lag or reboots.

I have no issues with email, as a matter of fact, it runs better in my opinion. Push, contacts, full HTML. Able to view info , etc.

As for document storage. I use google drive, dropbox, or just plain email for attachments.

Now, not one device that works for one, may not work well for another. which is why I love what else is out there. Keep engineers thinking and making improvements to what is already out there, and make it better. But some things need to change in some device before I even have a itch in switching to something else.

I have been able to do everything I wanted to do before on a mobile device and more. My time is money, work or personal. I need to be able to accomplish a task with in minutes of picking up my phone. Now I can actually enjoy pictures of my daughter growing up with the awesome camera and display and conduct emergency service business with countless fool proof applications, which is pertinent for my other lines of work.


I choose to buy what suits my needs - just as you choose to buy what suits yours. I don?t care what anybody else uses. I really don?t. I?m secure enough with my own beliefs that I don?t need others to believe the same thing I do to feel confident that I?ve made the best decision for how I choose to live my life.

Outstanding! ...

 

[ThomasJL]

Security, stability, ecosystem, customer support, latest & greatest OS release when it goes live, integration w/OSX (if you choose to go that route), battery life, camera, app choices (what is it, 250k or something like that).

I was never an Apple person either until I bought the 2007 iPhone "1". I liked it, but I laugh when I think about that device and compare to the ones we have today. Night & day, obviously. I was on the 3G model for quite awhile until the 4S. Never had a single problem with my iPhones. Customer for life. Bout to be a big Mac customer too.....Coming from a Unix Admin by trade, who works on Linux daily.

 

[Roo Zilla]

If you take a lot of photos, the camera is huge. Go to this thread on Crackberry to get a better idea of the difference:

http://forums.crackberry.com/general-discussion-f2/whats-talk-about-crappy-camera-750627/

Don't believe too much of the nonsense of how fix focus is better because you don't have to wait for it to focus... cuz... same with iPhone, you don't have to wait for it to focus.

- - - Updated - - -

Well..... in case you're already sold on the camera..... Here's the best reason to get an iPhone....

http://forums.crackberry.com/general-discussion-f2/dark-side-blackberry-750740/

Even forgetting apps, the camera, the build quality, industrial design, the screen, ecosystem, support........ it's stable and doesn't require you to take 10 minutes (frequently more) out of your day to do a battery pull. In a year, that's 3600 minutes, or 60 hours, or 2.5 days.

Finally, it's not as fragile as people make it out to be. I've dropped mine on concrete multiple times, I don't use a case, and aside from a few dings on the metal band and a couple of chips on the edges of the glass, it survived just fine. I admit, I might have gotten lucky, but it's not like it's gonna break from casual use. Some people have commented it's slipperier than plastic phones with the rubberized sides or back or whatever.... I guess that's true, but unless you're a real klutz, it's not really an issue.

 

[Jaguarr40]

Outstanding! ...

Ditto from JustMe'D and John and to the OP no need to convince you when after you finish reading this thread and have a look around this great forum ( I am biased... Sorry ) as well as the main page of iMore you will understand why we are all in love with our IOS devices.

I just went out today and bought from the nearest Apple store to me 60 miles away out of Preference for Apple retail a Black iPad 4 16GB and as soon as I am done with this thread post I am going to play and set up the apps that were put on my Pad that I have on my 4S and tweak some settings. i love it already and know you will love your 4S. Jump in with both feet and don't look back.

Then the best part is now you are part of our family so Welcome in advance.

 

[RWWackostu]

I just made the switch from a 9900 to the 4S after 7 years of Blackberry. I could not be happier! Granted it has only been a couple of days but I am really impressed with the quality of the device, the smoothness of the activation and setup and how fluid the iOS runs. I would concur with John, that I am impressed with the email, and I thought I would have an issue with the virtual keyboard after the physical but I type just fine with big hands. Add to that the quality camera and every app imaginable and you truly have one great communication device. And for the price point it cant be beat. Take the plunge. I am glad I did!

 

[jburke82]

I have used every major platform...BB, android, WP7...and I ALWAYS come back to the iPhone and iOS. I find the iPhone to be much more user friendly, smoother, just overall easy to use. I actually prefer email on the iPhone than any other platform. I rarely use a case, and as long as you aren't playing catch with the device, you should be fine.

Just like everyone else said...it's really up to you and what you need and want. If you decide on the iPhone, then welcome in advance!