Apple iPhone 4 (32GB - black, Verizon Wireless)

Pros: Where do I begin?
-Battery is surprisingly and unexpectedly amazing.
-Facetime is fun, clear, and smooth
-For a 5MP camera the image quality is impressive.
-Overall, so easy to use and so smooth.

Cons: Android (what I have been using till now) has a few advantages.
-I miss the Vlingo voice app. It is better on Android
-I miss the google nav and voice commands from my Android.

Summary: So. I work for Verizon, and I have been trained for years to HATE this phone and sell against it. I felt compelled to write this review because up until recently I never really got to use an iPhone out and about in the real world as my primary device. I never really knew how it stacked up from personal experience. I have been using Android since they launched on VZW, I have had every single one, and consider myself a substantial expert on the platform. I have talked Android up over the iPhone for a while now. Rooting, custom ROMs, open platform stuff...that is all fun for a while, but ultimately loses its flavor after a while. I will forewarn that I will be comparing Android routinely throughout the following assessment. I can't help it. It is what I have been most used to, and is the iPhone's biggest competitor.

Truth is, I almost want to say that the iPhone is better than Android, but it is really not about that. My Droids, overall, have been a great experience. In fact, I still use one for my business line. My Droids really gave me some great times, and I still hold them in high regards. I still recommend them to people day in and day out. What it comes down to is what phone you are most comfortable, and what works best for you.

Android still has some work to do. They failed me at some critical times, and Google still has much to figure out. Prior to getting the iPhone, with each subsequent Google OTA update, the Droids were becoming very laggy, and were screwing up on a regular basis. Battery pulls, loss of features and service, and much more were a regular happening (and that was just on the stock OS). Google REALLY needs to figure out how to manage memory. To date I believe 2.1 is the most stable OS of the bunch. Also, after having all of the Android devices, I am just kind of bored with them and wanted something new to stimulate my interests.

The iPhone is just simply smooth. It doesn't lag, battery is awesome, and there is not a bunch of random programs popping on when they so feel like it. I know there is a good amount of hate out there for the iPhone because Apple has their OS fairly locked down, and you more or less have to run it the way they want you to run it. ALso, they are pretty expensive (Applecare, insurance, accessories, you name it). But all in all, it is Apple's phone and OS, and they provide the experience and can do what they wish. You can choose to use it or not.

Apple really does make a darn good product. This phone has been incredibly reliable, and bugless up to this point. The apps are all quality, and I did not realize how much I missed the iPod music player. Sound quality is super, and it is nice to finally have a stable bluetooth link again. Android was really irritating in that respect. Google really needs to iron out the bluetooth issues in their phones (loss of connection happened all the time).

The iPhone is just darn easy to use. Even my wife, who had a Blackberry prior and is by no means tech-savvy, got this phone and is finally using her device for everything it offers. The facetime and Skype application are unbelievable. My family and I did an international Facetime call recently and got a personal walkthrough of our friend's new apartment overseas in real-time, and saw her baby take her first steps. The equivalent apps for Android, Tango or Qik, could not hold a candle to this.

The camera impresses the heck out me. Even though it is 5MP that does not hold the phone back. In fact, I think the 5MP camera on the iPhone outdoes a number of 8MP cameras on some of the other devices out there. My Droid X simply errored and straight up dumped and/or lost SOOO many videos that I shot. Precious, precious moments that I was really relying on my phone to capture (like the birth of my first child. I will never get over that one...good thing it was only a backup to my regular camera), the X failed me a number of times.

Apple does not do flash, but boy do they do a fantastic job at working around it. The first app I downloaded was Skyfire (converts flash to HTML5). It shows flash in a different manner, but honestly, it does it better and more smoothly. Plus, Apple is such a giant in the industry that most major websites provide either and application, or alternate website that is JUST for the iPhone.

So yea. I have thrown in the towel. The iPhone rocks. I finally see why all of the apple fanboys have been so freakin' Ga-Ga over this for years now. It really is a great experience. I did list some "cons" and particular apps I sort of miss from Android. I did make use of a number of widgets. But I am quickly getting over that stuff. As long as the phone doesn't freeze regularly. As long as it captures and loads my media content...I can overlook certain things.

The VZW iPhone is real treat. I would recommend it to anyone. A good friend of mine is a sales rep for AT&t and he once described it to me as "The perfect phone for dummies". Now, I am a rather advanced user, but if you have never had a smartphone before, you would LOVE the iPhone. I think it fits just about anyone.