Apples OSs are optimised for their devices, resulting in better performance |
Last time I checked benchmarks, iPhones were much slower in terms of performance than top-class Android devices from Samsung, Sony or HTC. Apple may optimize some non-important aspects like screen transitions to be slightly more smooth or the GUI a little more responsive, but poorer hardware means basically lower performance for applications. I saw a comparison of the same game lagging on iPhone, while being completely smooth on Android device (I guess it was Samsung Galaxy S5, but not sure now) - I don't remember where I saw it.
I'm using a good Android phone and even though it is not the best in benchmarks *now*, I don't have any performance problems or lags with it and many applications users complain to be "too heavy" or "not optimized enough" work smooth on it. The GUI is just as responsive as in iOS, battery lasts for 3-5 days of normal use and build quality is the same as in iPhone (basically hardened glass + metal case). I'm just happy with it, so if I'm happy why would I buy an iPhone? To show off?
Now it changed with iPhone 6, which is faster than the competition, but let's wait for the new generation of Android phones (Samsung is going to release something soon for sure, Sony will release Xperia Z3, etc.). We're just before Christmas, lots of vendors will release their new models soon. Typically whoever has the newest hardware, tops in benchmarks.
BTW: Android gets its bad name for millions of cheap China noname phones, which come typically with outdated Android and crappy hardware, that is not only responsible for poor performance but also occasional freezes. Also, early Android versions were slow, buggy and lagged, but with 4.x series those problems are long gone.
Just my opinion: Xperia Z or HTC One are prettier.
Not also prettier, but also better built. Xperia Z and Samsungs are water-proof, iPhones are not. Samsungs are ugly (plastic feel), but actually much harder to destroy by accidentally dropping (because of that plastic, which amortizes shocks much better than metal) - if a Samsung phone falls onto an edge, there are high chances it survives; not so with iPhone.