New phone for my wife - iSomething or Android?

[AC Question]

My wife and I have been happily using flip phones for the last 7 years or so. However, we decided that instead of replacing an old LG with cracked outer screen, we'd try a LG G4 "smart" phone. Needless to say, it's been a heck of an upgrade! I have been using the G4 since July, and for the most part, am completely happy. I do get an occasional glitch, or something just stops working for no obvious reason, but am able to fix it or get past it.

Being to able to access so much on the go has not gone unnoticed by my wife, and not she'd like to try a smartphone when our Verizon Upgrade becomes available in December. My wife struggels with tech sometimes, so the question is whether we should look at another Android phone, or an iPhone for the sake of her not pulling her hair out. I like tech, so for me, the flexibility of Android OS is great. But she's not going to be doing anything with the phone beyond the basics, most likely. Soooo, are iPhones THAT much easier to get the hang of for a first smart phone, or is it just whatever you get used to? We do have an non-cellular iPad Air 2, so somewhat familiar with IOS, but not as a phone. Are iPhones much more expensive than comparable Androids? She doesn't need the latest model of either.

 

[Golfdriver97]

Welcome to the forums.
I think the iPad and iPhone OS are going to be nearly identical. So she is somewhat used to the way iOS works already. I think if you were to have her look at an Android, perhaps something that is a little slimmer in terms of the OS, like the Moto X, or even the Turbo.

Keep this in mind though: You should have a 2 week time frame to exchange the device for something else.

 

[dpham00]

From what I have seen, the majority of non tech people seem to like Apple more than Android, assuming the same price range. To give Apple credit, they keep the basic usage of the phones very similar throughout the years. With Android, they seem to like to change things even core items that affect usage. And not only that, but the Android experience varies greatly between manufacturers, and even models within the manufacturers. Non-tech people that I know think of a smartphone like an appliance, and just want to be able to use this phone just like their last phone and just like their future phones. Apple gives them that much more than Android. And that is why I recommend Apple to non tech people around me.


Samsung also tries to keep the basic user experience similar over the years, moreso than other Android manufacturers, but they don't do as good of a job as Apple. If all she needs is basic stuff, then I know that Samsung offers an "easy" mode in some of it's Androids like the S4/5/6 and Note 3/4/5. There may be other phones that offer this too. Here is a demo on the Note 3:

Samsung GALAXY Note 3 Easy Mode | Verizon Wireless

Personally, I wouldn't go older than the S5 or Note 4 though. I have seen the S5 refurbished for sub $200 before. iPhones hold their value better. For an iPhone, the 6S performs much better than the 6 or 5s. It has a much more efficient CPU and 2gb ram, which imo would future proof it better as iPhones can get a bit slow on older models updated to the latest OS. Personally, if money is an issue then I would just get a 5s if you decide to go with apple

 

[mj0]

From what I have seen, the majority of non tech people seem to like Apple more than Android, assuming the same price range. To give Apple credit, they keep the basic usage of the phones very similar throughout the years. With Android, they seem to like to change things even core items that affect usage. And not only that, but the Android experience varies greatly between manufacturers, and even models within the manufacturers. Non-tech people that I know think of a smartphone like an appliance, and just want to be able to use this phone just like their last phone and just like their future phones. Apple gives them that much more than Android. And that is why I recommend Apple to non tech people around me.

Absolutely agree. If an iPhone is too expensive maybe you should take a look at Windows Phone, I found them to be easier than Android on first-time smartphone users as well, and they can be had for significantly less money. Then again she's already used to the iPad and using an iPhone is exactly the same. The only difference is there's a phone app now to make and answer phone calls, everything else is identical.