Many Android Users Still Switch to iPhones, and Android Auto Bugs Could Be a Reason

Companies involved in this battle have been trying to attract users from the other side for years. Apple has made migrating from Android to iPhone much easier, while Samsung made fun of the Cupertino-based tech giant on every occasion.

The latest statistics show that Apple might be the lucky winner of the long-distance fight.

CRIP data for 2023 shows that 13% of the iPhone buyers last year came from Android. It means that more than one in ten customers who stepped into an Apple Store in the United States had an Android phone in their pockets.

The trends show a small decline from 2022, when the percentage reached an all-time high – 15%, but the new numbers align with what happened in the previous years.

CIRP doesn't provide data for the iPhone to Android transition, but it'd be interesting to see how those numbers compare with this steady migration from Google's OS to Apple's locked garden.

Meanwhile, I can think of a million reasons why someone would want to ditch their Android device and get an iPhone, and Android Auto is one of them. Google's in-car experience has been terrible lately, causing all kinds of problems, from connection errors to apps broken down for no reason. The release of Android 14, which started last year and continues as we speak, was supposed to be a big moment for Android users.

It became a major fiasco for those relying on Android Auto for driving experience. Android 14 broke down Android Auto wireless, caused random disconnects, and made it impossible for Spotify users to see what song they were listening to on the infotainment system. Google hasn't released any patches, with the company already working on the next big Android release due in the summer.

CarPlay encountered its own share of bugs with the release of iPhone 15. However, the madness was mostly caused by the USB-C confusion rather than a problem with the platform. iPhone 15 no longer uses the Lightning port but USB-C, so users believed that any USB-C cord at home could run CarPlay.

However, not all USB-C cables are compatible with CarPlay, as some are only used for charging. Less tech-savvy users might have a hard time telling the difference between the two, so the debut of the latest iPhone was plagued by reports of CarPlay not starting in cars where everything worked correctly with the previous smartphone.

The saga has apparently come to an end, as many people switched to high-speed cables that also support data transfers, so CarPlay is once again the more reliable alternative to Android Auto.