Guess I’m back to using an iPhone!

Switching phones can feel like a week-long quest. First, there’s the technical hurdle of transferring eSIMs. If you’re moving between Android devices, it might just take a few minutes. But if you’re making the leap from iPhone to Android, expect a saga involving multiple calls to your carrier, a verification text to a family member, and countless restarts. After that, you’ll spend hours downloading apps, adjusting settings, and personalizing your new device, since every phone has its own quirks.

You can technically get a new phone up and running in a single afternoon, but once you factor in downloading your Kindle books, syncing your podcast library, transferring two-factor authentication apps, and reconnecting Bluetooth devices, it’s a week-long endeavor.

I know this all too well because I’ve been on a phone-switching spree for the past few months. I grew weary of my iPhone 16, which I mainly bought for its blue color, and wanted to explore other options. My background as a former phone reviewer means I’ve spent nearly a decade switching devices, but for the last five years, I’ve been mostly an iPhone user. Now, I feel like a regular phone owner, but I have the unique perk of being able to request devices from manufacturers for testing. So, I embarked on a winter journey through the Android landscape, hoping to find a phone—or even a fresh concept—that would catch my interest.

Spoiler alert: I ended up at the Apple Store last week and bought an iPhone 17. I know, it’s not the most exciting conclusion, but hear me out.

The first device I tested was the Motorola Razr Ultra, which I had high hopes for. I still believe flip phones have potential, especially with a smartwatch-like outer screen paired with a full-sized inner display. The Razr Ultra’s hardware is nearly spot-on for my needs. When opened, it’s a bit tall and can be tricky to navigate with one hand, but that’s a common issue with larger phones these days. I didn’t mind the slight crease in the middle, and I loved the compact, square shape when it was closed. I found myself using it like a mini walkie-talkie, holding it up to my mouth and asking silly questions.

However, the software was where things fell apart—a recurring theme in my tests. Neither Motorola nor Google has nailed the flip phone experience. While there are some handy widgets for the outer screen, the organization makes it difficult to add or locate them. Often, the outer screen just displays a shrunken version of the full Android app, which is fine until the keyboard pops up and obscures the message you’re replying to. Even if I could overlook that, the constant “allow this app to access the external display?” prompts became frustrating. Some apps adapted well, while others simply insisted I open the phone. I spent days tweaking settings and downloading utility apps, but the Razr Ultra never felt seamless, so I moved on.

Next, I tried the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold. I wanted to get my hands on the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, widely regarded as the best foldable, but it didn’t arrive in time. My issues with the foldable were purely hardware-related: it felt bulky, was tough to open, and came with compromises in durability, battery life, and camera quality. While I enjoyed the larger inner screen for watching videos and sports, the steep price tag of around $2,000 made me reconsider the appeal of a bigger display.

Then I tested the Unihertz Titan 2, a hefty phone with a spacious physical keyboard. It felt like a blast from the past, reminiscent of using a BlackBerry! However, I quickly realized I didn’t miss that experience. While the keyboard was handy for quick access to numbers and symbols, I found I could type faster on a touchscreen. Plus, the phone was just too large for my liking, which made me curious about the smaller Titan 2 Elite set to release later this year.

My favorite Android experience came from the Fairphone Gen 6, a solid device featuring a unique physical slider switch that transforms it into a minimalist phone. Fairphone calls this feature “Moments,” and it’s fantastic. You can create different moments with a select few apps; I spent a lot of time with just Phone, Messages, Maps, and Pocket Casts, and it was liberating. Everything else, including your wallpaper, disappears, making it the best realization of a two-in-one phone experience I’ve ever encountered. Unfortunately, it’s not fully optimized for US networks and doesn’t work well with Verizon, so that option was off the table.

Finally, I tested the Google Pixel 10 Pro, which has become my favorite Android phone ever. It’s a bit heavy but exceptionally well-built; the camera performs brilliantly in various conditions, and I appreciate having both fingerprint and face recognition. Pixel devices typically offer the cleanest and most feature-rich Android experience, although my Pixel still lacks Gemini task automation.

The Pixel 10 Pro reinforced a feeling I had throughout my testing: Android is a superior operating system compared to iOS. Gemini is a functional voice assistant, a stark contrast to Siri. Android excels at managing notifications, resulting in fewer distractions. I also noticed a significant drop in spam and robocalls during my testing, which was a pleasant surprise—I even started answering calls from unknown numbers again, as they were often legitimate.

There are countless small differences between Android and iOS that can complicate switching devices, but I find Android’s implementation preferable in almost every instance. Customizing the Android home screen is straightforward, while rearranging apps on an iPhone can be frustrating. The Android app tray is more intuitive than the iOS App Library, and the notification and search functions are simpler to navigate. And let’s not forget how much better Gemini is—I actually use my voice assistant on purpose when I’m on Android!

If I were judging solely on the out-of-the-box experience, I would have chosen the Pixel. However, the reality is that app stores exist, and the App Store far surpasses the Play Store. Many of my go-to apps—like Puzzmo, NotePlan, Mimestream, and Unread—are either unavailable on Android or exist only as web apps. Most cross-platform apps tend to perform better on iOS, and the handcrafted, small-developer gems that populate the App Store are often missing from Android.

Android apps do have one advantage: they can do things that iOS apps cannot. For instance, the Beeper app, which I use for messaging across platforms, integrates seamlessly with Google Messages but not at all with iMessage. I can do more with my Pebble watch when it’s connected to an Android device, and the Tasker app is a dream for automation enthusiasts. But for nearly every other app people use, iOS is simply superior.

There are many reasons the Play Store struggles to keep pace. The Android ecosystem is more fragmented, making development challenging; most developers prefer Apple products; and iPhone users seem more willing to spend money. Ultimately, I realized that phones are primarily app machines, and the iPhone has the better apps.

So, after navigating another complicated eSIM transfer, I upgraded to an iPhone 17. This is the best base iPhone in a while, and my trade-in for the iPhone 16 covered about half the cost. I’m not particularly excited about it, to be honest. I’m back to dealing with robocalls and annoying notifications, and I still have to wrestle with Apple’s frustrating home screen layout. Siri remains a disappointment. But until AI fundamentally changes how we interact with our devices, my phone is still an app machine, and all my essential apps are here and functioning on this iPhone.