Rant: Windows is a toy & iOS not what you think.

Over Christmas, I had the great fortune of conversing with one of my relatives about what is better: Android or iOS.

Now, for those who follow this blog or may have the misfortune of actually knowing me in person, you already know where this is headed. My wife sure did and tried to keep us as far apart as possible.

Before I go further, I do want to stress that I do not believe that any manufacturer of devices or software mentioned herein makes a bad product nor am I attempting to disparage the users of said devices or software.

"iOS is the ultimate of everything." Yup. That is indeed what he said and some of you reading this may agree. Those of you who do may be very proud of your iOS devices and may be - let's say - enthusiastic about how well you can operate your iOS device. 

This particular relative was overly enthusiastic to the point of being smug. In the interest of the holiday, however, I bit my tongue and only said "You really do not know how wrong that statement is, do you?"

iOS is very good at one thing: making their technology accessible to the people that really do not understand technology or, those who have better things to do than try and learn some new device.

In other words, iOS is designed to be easy to understand, easy to use, and easy to get. The fact that you think it is the "ultimate of everything" only illuminates your total ignorance of anything technological. I am glad iOS works well with your skillset. I know how to use a hammer and a screwdriver really well but I would be woe to do much with them if they were the only tools I knew.

Now, I like what iOS has done with their system with regard to their target audience but I am not their target audience. I recognize that Apple has done a good job of making a limited OS very easy to use.

I also recognize that Windows has a good idea but that idea is poorly implemented. They have taken a common interface and installed it across devices - good. The problem is, that they have now turned their desktop OS into a toy. It is no longer focused on productivity, but on making it look the same as your phone and tablet. Not to mention that this very interface is more about social media than doing business. Fine for the individual - not for business user.

I use Android devices because of their flexibility and openness but these devices have their limitations too. 

In fact, regardless of the mobile OS (Apple, Windows. or Android) they are all compromises. They were designed to run on cheaper, less powerful hardware so many of the capabilities have been stripped out of the OS. 

Apple is probably the worst offender - as many a Samsung commercial has pointed out. They control the hardware and what they offer the consumer is technologically less advanced than nearly all other devices on the market at the time it is released. It seems to be just the bare minimum of what people expect a newer model to be with little or no real innovations at all.

I also know that many people think that a Windows phone runs the same OS as a Windows PC. It does not. The interface looks the same, but essentially what runs on your phone and tablet is Windows 8 mobile edition.

Now, having said all of this, the bottom line is that you have to decide what works best for you. Everything is a compromise and regardless of what you choose, know that it is not going to be "the ultimate of everything" but it will be the device and OS that best fits your needs.