[grumpster]

For me it isn't a hate thing. It's more a matter of what's practical and does what I need it to. Everyone chooses their phone either for eye appeal , carrier desires, or hardware needs. For me it was mostly hardware reasons and carrier choice.

For me I don't like Apples controlling and restrictive app store. I believe that the openness of the Android market is a much better approach and I like the more matured and well developed applications for WinMo. I also turned away from Palm because their original OS is being phased out and the Web OS is too new and it and the software needs further development. Same concerns for Android though I really like the OS.

The hardware is another problem with the iphone for me. I needed the larger screen so these old eyes could read a web page and the iphone's screen is just too small for me. I also required a keyboard which the iphone can't offer.

I own 4 Touch Pro2's (I provide phones for my family) and each one is set up totally different from the others. My wife has left hers mostly stock with only minor tweaks, both of my parents run SPB MobileShell with totally different settings and I've got my phone so tweaked you can't recognize it from when I first got it and I still haven't even started on the custom roms. Each of our phones is uniquely ours. You just can't do that kind of stuff with the iphone even if it's jailbreaked.

I left ATT after 12 long and miserable years. They nickle and dime you out of every cent they can. They even go so far as to block Pandora and charge you 3 times as much for the privileged of using a web site that should be free. Sprints unlimited family plan was the final straw for me. Way more service for a lot less money. I've got twice the minutes and all the data I can eat for roughly what I was paying ATT for 1/2 the voice alone and no data, not even texting. I switched as soon as I could.


In a nutshell:
No selection of devices. WinMo and Android gives me many device choices.

More open software with WinMo and Android.

I don't have to stay with ATT. I pay much less with Sprint and have better data coverage. (They all have decent voice coverage)

I multitask way too much. Can't give that up.

Each one of my 4 phones is customized or not to each users desires. All without having to hack the phone.

larger screen.

Slide out keyboard.

Spare battery. A must for me and my wife kills a battery often enough as well. (too much web surfing)

If you like a small screen phone, don't need a hard keyboard and like the way the UI looks right out of the box and don't think you'll ever need a spare battery then the iphone might be the choice for you. For me, it and the new Palms just couldn't offer what I needed in a phone. For now, it's the Touch Pro2. My next device will most likely be a Android phone as it matures.

Apple will have to expand their hardware choices, get a little more friendly in the app store and be available on more carriers before I can give the iphone a more serious look.