Is Apple's "walled garden" as bad as it was when the first few iPhones came out?

It's better than it was then, but there are two big things about iPhone. One is that all web browsers are, in layman's terms, reskins of Safari, so Firefox on iOS can't get add-ons like uBlock Origin, while Firefox on Android can. The other is not being able to get third party apps that aren't on the app store, such as third party YouTube apps like ReVanced.

No, it's nowhere near the same as it used to be, though there are still plenty of annoying limitations. It's especially dramatic when you consider that the iPhone was released without the App Store. Still, though, there are a handful of things you can only do "the Apple way", and while adopting to them isn't particularly painful you arguably shouldn't have to. The biggest thing that bugs me is that there is no way to do file transfers over Bluetooth and the only built-in file transfer utilities is Airdrop (useless on anything not Apple) or uploading to iCloud or a web-based intermediary.

Nowadays there is not only a filesystem, there is a Files app to help you manage it, and the homescreen is not only customizable but has widgets you can use to further customize it.

Apple Watch is going to be a bit different, though, since WatchOS is more limited by design.

Side note to start off, the OG iPhones were locked down hard. Part of that was because of hardware and software limitations of the time and part because Apple being Apple. Example: one big source of friction at the time was Apple refusing to support Flash in the browser. The rationale was that Flash sucks and crashes all the time, you can do most of what Flash did with HTML5, and the hardware could barely run Flash. Android let you run Flash and then IIRC a bunch of browsers disabled it because of all the reasons above. Iphones today are still kind of locked down... but in exchange for living in the walled garden you really do get a smooth and reliable experience.

Their computers are and are not locked down. As an example, if you try to run an app that isn't from a recognized developer (signed by apple) then it will not run until you go into system settings and allow it. This gives the illusion to some people that its totally locked down but you just have to learn the system a bit.

Apple does do a lot of things that make it easier for Apple products to work but cause friction with devices not made for Apple... but then they do other stuff well like printers (using CUPS which is the same as Linux uses) and it shares printers quite well.

Realistically Microsoft does a lot of awful stuff with Windows as well, you just don't notice it anymore.

Apple allows more than it did originally, but they still have near complete control over what goes on your phone or not. So, the walled garden is bigger, but the walls are just as there as they were before.

Sure, your browser can be different, but Apple still basically critiques every bit of the functionality of that browser to make sure it matches "their policy". No feature for that browser gets launched without Apple approving it.

Apple has annoying features and limitations that are more minor inconveniences than deal-breakers IMO.

One of the ones that comes to mind for me is, on my iPhone I'll get an annoying notification to upgrade my iCloud storage that I can't dismiss. I literally can not tell Apple "No, I don't want to pay $0.99 to upgrade my iCloud storage", because the notification will continue to there until you either delete some of the 5 free gigs they give you or you upgrade. I choose not to upgrade because the storage on my phone is perfectly fine and I don't really have any data loss concerns.

The fact that I can't use the full 5 gigs without being ushered into a paid tier and not being able to disable the notification is annoying, but I just cleared a gig or two and it went away.

That's just off the top of my head though. I don't like that Apple got rid of USB-A ports on their Macbooks, seems extremely unnecessary but people will justify it for some reason. When my Airpods connect to my macbook, they sometimes connect at full volume so whatever I was listening to will suddenly blare in my ears. Sometimes, when I'm using my Airpods on my macbook, my phone alarm will go off and my Airpods will decide to connect to my phone and blast the alarm directly into my ears at full volume.

That last point was my fault because I had the settings configured to connect with whatever is making current sound or whatever, but EVEN AFTER editing the settings, this still happens for different devices. Whatever, guess I'm okay with my alarm not blasting in my ears.

It seems like every other day, Apple is asking me to perform a system update for apps I don't care about. The updates on all my computer Apple devices are pretty frequent, which is good because at least I know they're constantly updating but also, sometimes I'll leave updates pendingfor a while because they're so frequent.

If you want to upgrade the RAM or SSD, or pretty much anything for newer Mac models, good luck. They literally made it impossible to upgrade your own device, you are forced to have your specs permanently created when you purchase your Macbook. This is a problem with modern Apple devices, because back in 2014 when I got my first Macbook, I could freely upgrade whatever I wanted. Not anymore, if my battery even dies or something, I will practically need to get it repaired by Apple themselves because the steps to do it on a modern Macbook are so convoluted and purposely difficult that it's genuinely hard to do yourself. Compared to my first 2014 Macbook where I just needed some dedicated tools and a little patience.

It's just these little things that add-up. I don't know why Apple chooses to make things less consumer friendly over the years to where you're forced to do things -their- way or you can't do it. I'm typing this on a Macbook, though, and as much as I find Apples decisions annoying, they are still great for music production and productivity reasons like that. They also just look fancy as hell.

I do own a PC but really only use it for gaming (Since Mac's don't really do gaming), otherwise I do everything on my Apple devices.

Apples"walled garden," which limits users' choices and locks them into the company's products and services hasn't really changed I'd argue its actually worse.

Apple has carefully created an illusion of openness while actually becoming more closed than ever. This strategy is likely a marketing tactic to make the company appear less rigid, corporate and possibly less cool.

Apple has created this illusion across its product line, one example is by allowing some third-party applications and services to be available on its devices. However, these apps often have limited functionality and access to core features, as Apple maintains strict control over its APIs. This gives the impression of openness, but in reality, the company still exercises significant control over the user experience.

Another aspect of this illusion is Apple's occasional announcements of opening up certain aspects of its ecosystem. For example, there have been reports that Apple is considering allowing alternate app stores on its devices to comply with the Digital Markets Act in the European Union. However, these alternate app stores in all likelihood wiil still need to be verified by Apple, which will probably require a fee, allowing the company to maintain some control over the ecosystem (and make even more money).

Their use of marketing and deception to maintain their walled garden is supported by the company's history of prioritizing its own products and services over those of competitors. Apple's operating systems and applications are designed to be exclusive to Apple devices, a strategy that has been in place since Steve Jobs's return to the company. This exclusivity not only grants Apple owners bragging rights but also compels them to stay confined within the company's ecosystem. It really feels like an, emperor has no clothes situation tbh.

The company still maintains significant control over its ecosystem. This grand illusion of openness is a marketing strategy to which is something apple has always excelled at. Apples grand goal is, to have their apples and eat them too. Which so far they are managing to do nicely. Apple are 'open as ever', while still ensuring that users remain locked into the company's products and services.

Personally I'd never by an Apple product, I quit after the iPhone 4. I find Apple products sterile and boring. But that's just my opinion.

I have an iPhone for work. I wanted to send an email with an image attachment using the mail app, and it was the absolute worst experience ever. You have to hold down/tap on the page to get a context menu, and then you have to scroll all the way to the right to attach an image, and then you can't even attach multiple images at a time, you have to do it 1 by 1.

On top of that, it attaches inline, and not even as a file. When my manager received the email they were red X's in a box, not even the actual image. The last part may not be my iphones fault but for a company and a fanbase that prides itself on UI and 'it just works' magic, that was the worst experience I've ever had with an app in my adult life, and it ships as a default app on apple devices.

In terms of walled garden, it's definitely better than years before, and iOS 17 is aiming to improve that further. But I don't think I'll be able to get over the fact I can't arrange my homepage as I like and that there's no app drawer. I just find androids interface way more intuitive in general.

It's much better now than those early gens. There's a files app that can link with my icloud or even network server (albeit the connection can be finicky) but I can also make Firefox my default browser and even add a different keyboard because I don't like Apples native one. Theres probably other stuff but ymmv depending on your personal needs of course.

It's far more limited than Android and if your main goal for the phone is customization, you will be disappointed. I personally don't feel the need to customize the phone experience to the degree that Android lets you, I don't need a custom app launcher or whatever else. I value the stability and reliability of the device far more. In terms of reliability, the iPhone is supported far longer than most Android phones and years old devices receive the latest software updates (and they retain their resale value as a result.)

The Apple Ecosystem (TM) is still a major selling point and if you don't plan on buying additional Apple products (macOS, Apple TV, AirPods, Apple Watch, etc.) then you'll be missing out on a major component of what makes their technology great. Seamlessly moving between these devices for things like browser tabs, messaging, account/password storage, airplay, etc. is wonderful and all just works. You can usually accomplish similar things using third party tools and other platforms, but Apple products do it as first-class citizens of the hardware and software.

I would never use an Android phone because I have an extreme hatred of surveillance capitalism and don't trust Google at all. I try to minimize their presence in my life. Using hardware and software designed by an advertisement company is a non-starter for me. Apple as a company has positioned their products to be privacy-first, so end to end encryption, blocking trackers by default, on-device machine learning instead of sending off to servers, etc. are all built in features of their products. Things like iCloud's Hide My Email let you generate a burner email on the fly for every service you sign up for, store the credentials and seamlessly log in using them. iCloud Private Relay is essentially a built-in VPN to mask your IP from services. iOS app store requires all apps to publicly list the information they collect about you right on the store page. The list goes on and on, and every new features or app they release has privacy in mind. All of that said, remember: this is privacy from mega corporations who want to siphon up your information to sell you ads, not necessarily from governments or Apple themselves. Although they do go to great lengths to keep your private data inaccessible to even them, ultimately you do have to put your trust that they operate in good faith. I do, because my threat model doesn't include stopping governments from accessing my information. I just don't want Google, Meta, etc. to have it.

Lastly, the polish and quality of iOS apps (first party and third party) are in general far better than Android apps, if sleek design and attention to detail are aspects you care about you'll find it in abundance. iOS users spend far more on apps than Android users, so the market for making apps is much broader.