iPhone users love their phones. It’s a simple fact. Study after study shows that Apple device owners are the most loyal out there — many are so loyal that they admit to buying anything with an Apple logo on it. On occasion, however, some iPhone users make the jump to other operating systems. Sometimes they’re looking for a bigger display, other times a more open platform, but it’s often interesting to read these users’ thoughts when they’re offered succinctly.
Since “iOS vs. Android” is the most hotly debated mobile rivalry out there, so we have often covered commentary from smartphone enthusiasts who try to switch from the iPhone to an Android handset. For example, we covered one story from a self-professed Apple fanboy who couldn’t bear using the Nexus 5 even for 24 hours, and then we found an anecdote from someone who switched from the iPhone 5 to the Galaxy S4 for six months before moving back.
But can an iPhone fan survive after switching to a BlackBerry?
Dan Nessel is a gadget fan who likely represents the average enthusiastic smartphone user pretty well. He knows his stuff, but not to the point where studies device specs or builds hardcore gaming PCs. He relies his smartphone though, just like we all do, and his weapon of choice is the iPhone 5.
Armed with a demo unit from BlackBerry, however, Nessel decided to take “the BlackBerry challenge” and switch from his iPhone 5 to a BlackBerry Z30 phablet for 7 days.
First things first: Nessel was nervous. As smartphone owner will attest to, it’s hard to make a big change after growing accustomed to the features of a mobile device. Some liken it to breaking up with a girlfriend or boyfriend and while we wouldn’t go quite that far, it can certainly be rattling.
Nessel soon learned that it wasn’t nearly as bad as he thought it would be, though.
After the anxiety began to wear off, Nessel actually found that he like the BlackBerry Z30. In fact, he liked it a lot. Specifically, the blogger listed the Z30’s larger display, the BlackBerry Hub that collects notifications, the battery life and the novel predictive text function on BlackBerry’s virtual keyboard as some of his favorite features. He also said that the battery life on the Z30 is much better than his iPhone 5.
As for what he missed while using the BlackBerry phone, Nessel pointed mainly to apps, noting that he couldn’t even find staples like Netflix in BlackBerry’s app store. He also said he missed proprietary iOS features such as FaceTime and PhotoStream.
Despite speaking of the BlackBerry Z30 very enthusiastically, it doesn’t look like Nessel plans to go out and buy his own to permanently replace his iPhone. But he did conclude that the handset is a terrific option for people who aren’t overly reliant on a wide range of third-party apps, and he said switching from an iPhone to a BlackBerry 10 handset couldn’t be easier thanks to BlackBerry’s Device Switch app and BlackBerry Link.
