Wait a minute! Am I having a mid-life tech crisis? Have I considered wondering away from my true love, Apple, towards a flirtatious encounter with Android? I’m feeling flush and a little dizzy…I need to sit down and think about this. It’s all so dangerous and yet exciting!

Will the GERD leave Apple for Android? Will leaving make the GERD happier or would he regret leaving? What would happen to the kids (all that iTunes content)? Tune in next time to see if the GERD leaves Apple!

The GERD has taken his summer break to consider his options, for he has much to think about.  Apple or Android; the walled garden of iOS or the wild wild west of Android.

When last we left our Technological Hero the GERD was facing a mid-life tech crisis.  He had flirted with Android; he had winked and smiled at a pretty face other than his faithful Apple.  What exactly happened and what are we to learn from this experience.

The GERD obtained the iPhone 5 as soon as it hit the streets and while it is an improvement in every way over the 4 and the 4S, the GERD came to a startling realization.  The iPhone had become STALE!  “Did he just say the iPhone 5 was STALE?” – oh yes, he did.  There is nothing wrong with the iPhone; there is just nothing really new or exciting about it.  Yes, they did make it a bit larger, but not large enough.  Most of the other (ah hem, Android Phones), are larger.  The iPhone 5 has a 4” screen, newer Android screens  run from 4.7”to 5” in size, even up to 6.3”  (Ok, that may be too large!).  Remember when smaller phones were all the rage?  Now everyone wants to watch things on their phones and that takes a larger screen.  The Android OS is maturing as is the Play Store (Android’s version of iTunes).  Android tablets are getting better; better screens, more power, expandable memory (something Apple refuses to do!).

There were two watershed moments that swayed the GERD more towards Android. (1) the price of the new iPad Mini, and (2) the new Samsung Galaxy Phone.  When the iPad Mini was announced it was supposed to compete with lesser priced smaller tablets like the Nexus and the Kindle Fire HD.  To compete with those offering, one would think that the price would be similar – somewhere in the $200-$250 range.  It came it at $329 (more for higher capacity units).  That decision really confused me; however, the Minis flew off the shelves.  But I never truly believed anyone could compete with Apple in the Tablet arena.  However, I grew impatient with my iPhone 5; the touch accuracy was a little off (maybe it was just my phone, but others have complained about the same thing), there was nothing really new about the thing and the screen seemed too small, especially after looking at the Galaxy S3.  So, I got one, and I have not regretted it.

So the GERD has left Apple, and yet he has not.  No one makes a Tablet like Apple (My iPad 4 and iPad Mini speaks to my opinion of Apple tablets).  However, the iPhone needs a serious jolt.  Come ‘on Apple, give me a bigger screen, expandable memory, and maybe something new (a stylus?). Give me a reason to get excited about the iPhone again!