I'm not trying to be snarky, I swear, but iOS checks all your boxes except "be android" along with dual sim and removable battery. And iOS hardware is still top of the pack when it comes to raw power in the majority of real use cases.
Phones with the Apple logo on the back do this job best. Their security posture is just so much better and you don't have carrier-enforced forced obsolescence from the software side. You literally can always run the latest iOS until the hardware _just can't_.
I'm an open source guy only as much as it makes sense.
That means you're not really an open source guy. You're just using whatever is best on the market at the time.
That kind of option doesn't really exist with phones because of market forces. This idea that Android is some better moral choice is a delusion.
If I go apple again, I no longer have the ability to sync my phone, since my Mac died under a glass of wine and I "replaced" it with a Dell Precision 5520 running Arch because the MacBook Pro lineup was untenable.
I'd go apple again if I could actually backup,sync,etc my phone. It's a good device in isolation. But don't dare step out of the apple ecosystem.
I now upgraded to a refurbished SE and it's really nice so far.
The Mac complaint is fair, but you can build and run your own apps outside of the store with a free developer account as of a couple years ago.
Edit: Also, a capable Mac development machine is closer to $1500 than $3k.
That doesn’t really help when you want to use the apps with a few friends. Honestly, Apple and Google can have whatever they requirements they want for their stores, but they should be forced by law to allow alternative stores.
And you’re right, the cheapest MacBook at 1499 EUR is around 1800 USD. That’s not nearly 3000 bucks, but an entirely different story than the 600€ I paid for my thinkpad or the 700€ I paid for my desktop. And I don’t want it anyway, I’d only use it for Apple development. And I’d already have to pay extra for the iPhone.
More like $700ish. The Mac Mini is perfectly capable of doing iOS app development.
That's assuming that you don't already own a Mac but a lot of people do.