I Never Thought I'd Leave Android After Over a Decade, but the iPhone 18 Pro Changed That

I still remember getting my first Android phone back in 2014. I'd just received my Class 10 results, and the Motorola Moto E was my first proper smartphone. It wasn't particularly fancy, even for its time, but I couldn't have been happier. I was finally getting to experience Android for myself, and little did I know that this tiny phone would be the beginning of a journey that would eventually turn into my career.

Over the years, I've been lucky enough to use some truly memorable phones. The OnePlus 3T, 5T, and the gorgeous 7T Pro, Xiaomi's Redmi Note series, the Mi A1, and the Redmi K20 Pro are just a few that immediately come to mind. Then came Samsung's Galaxy S series, the Fold and Flip phones, and countless other Android flagships. Some were absolutely brilliant, others had their quirks, but I enjoyed experiencing what each one brought to the table. And that's what kept me hooked on Android. There was always something new to try, something to customize, or another phone that made me excited about where smartphones were headed.

Of course, I've used iPhones along the way, too. But no matter how much I appreciated Apple's hardware or how polished iOS felt, I always ended up coming back to Android. It felt familiar, gave me the freedom I wanted, and, honestly, I couldn't imagine using anything else as my primary phone.

Which is why I find myself in a rather unusual position today. My primary phone is now the iPhone 18 Pro, and much to my own surprise, I'm not itching to switch back to Android. In fact, the longer I use it, the more I understand why I made the switch in the first place.

I expected battery life to be a compromise. Boy, was I wrong.

I've always been a little skeptical about iPhone battery life, and I think my friends are partly to blame. I've lost count of how many times we've gone on trips, and someone with an older iPhone has had to pull out a power bank or desperately look for a charging point before the day is even over. So, naturally, I had this idea stuck in my head that switching to an iPhone would mean constantly worrying about battery life.

And looking at the numbers didn't exactly inspire confidence either. The iPhone 18 Pro sold in India packs a 4,056mAh battery, which sounds almost laughably small when Android manufacturers are putting 7,000mAh and even larger batteries into their flagships. I was pretty much prepared to live with that compromise for the sake of having a compact phone.

But here's the funny part. I've been consistently getting over six hours of screen-on time, and that's with Instagram, X, plenty of WhatsApp messages, emails, a few phone calls, and occasionally pulling out the camera to shoot a quick reel. I've even stepped out for an entire day with just 40 percent battery remaining and returned home with 20 percent still left. Of course, that depends on the day, but that’s still pretty impressive.

Now, Apple hasn't squeezed a silicon-carbon battery into this phone, something many Android manufacturers have increasingly embraced, and, so far, it has been a blessing. But the A20 Pro, built on a more efficient 2nm manufacturing process, certainly helps make better use of the battery that's already there. And frankly, after seeing how well it holds up, I've stopped worrying so much about the capacity figure.

Charging has been another surprise. The iPhone 18 Pro now supports faster charging with compatible USB-PD 3.2 AVS chargers rated at 60W or higher, and I've been using one myself. It's made those last-minute charging sessions a lot more useful, especially when I'm getting ready to leave for a shoot or rushing to cover a smartphone launch event.

Sure, OPPO, OnePlus, and a few other Android manufacturers still have Apple beaten when it comes to charging speeds. But considering I went into this expecting battery life to be one of my biggest complaints, it's rather amusing that it has turned into one of my favorite things about the iPhone 18 Pro.

But there's another thing I've really come to appreciate: MagSafe. The iPhone 18 Pro supports Qi2.2 magnetic wireless charging at up to 25W, and being able to simply snap a magnetic power bank onto the back of my phone has been incredibly convenient.

The A20 Pro is ridiculously powerful, and I'm loving it

Apple has really gone all out with the A20 Pro this year. It's built on a 2nm process and packs a six-core CPU with two performance cores and four efficiency cores, a seven-core GPU, and a dual 16-core Neural Engine. That's quite a lot of horsepower for a phone this small, and the benchmark numbers back it up. My iPhone 18 Pro scored 3.4mn points on AnTuTu, while Geekbench 7 returned 3,983 in single-core and 10,389 in multi-core tests.

But numbers are one thing. What matters to me is how the phone performs when I'm actually working on it. I regularly shoot quick videos for social media and edit them using Instagram's Edits app, trimming clips, adding transitions, and putting together reels before uploading them.

The iPhone handles all of this beautifully, and I haven't had to worry about the phone slowing down when I'm trying to get something posted quickly. Even everyday multitasking, with Instagram, X, WhatsApp, emails, and a bunch of other apps running in the background, has been a breeze. I've seen reports of occasional lags and stutters on the iPhone 18 Pro, but I haven't experienced any of that.

Gaming has been just as enjoyable. I've spent time playing BGMI and Call of Duty: Mobile at 120fps, while Genshin Impact runs beautifully at 60fps. But what has impressed me more than the frame rates is how the phone handles heat. Apple has redesigned the thermal system this year, with a larger vapor chamber offering three times the cooling surface area of the iPhone 17 Pro. The A20 Pro also places the memory alongside the chip rather than stacking it on top, allowing heat to move more efficiently towards the vapor chamber.

The back gets warm during extended gaming sessions or when I'm pushing the camera and editing videos, but it hasn't become uncomfortably hot, something I have seen with older iPhones.

The iPhone 18 Pro reminded me why I loved compact phones

For the longest time, I was convinced that bigger phones were simply better. And it's not like I didn't have good reasons. I've used some incredible devices over the years, including the Galaxy S26 Ultra, OnePlus 15, OPPO Find X9 Ultra, Vivo X300 Ultra, and more. I absolutely love what these phones offer, particularly when it comes to their displays and cameras. But there's one thing I never really enjoyed about them, and that's their sheer size.

I mean, have you ever tried replying to a message while holding a cup of coffee in your other hand? Or reaching for something at the top of the screen without doing that awkward little shuffle where you slide the phone down your palm and hope it doesn't fall? I've gotten used to doing all of this, but that doesn't mean I enjoy it.

And that's probably why the iPhone 18 Pro clicked with me almost immediately. It's not just that it's smaller. I love how it sits in my hand, how nicely the edges meet the frame, and how Apple has managed to make a relatively small phone feel this premium. The design is gorgeous, too, and I'm not ashamed to admit that I've spent a fair bit of time admiring it without a case.

What surprised me even more was how little I missed having a bigger screen. A good chunk of my day involves jumping between X, Instagram, WhatsApp, emails, and a dozen other things for work. I'm usually doing this while walking around, sitting at my desk, or just lying on the couch. And for all of that, the iPhone 18 Pro feels like the better fit.

Would I still prefer the enormous display on the S26 Ultra for watching a movie or editing something? Absolutely. And I'd still pick up the OPPO or Vivo if I were heading out specifically to take photographs. But those aren't things I spend every waking minute doing.

It's funny, really. After spending years getting excited about larger displays, thinner bezels, one of the things I appreciate most about my current phone is that I can comfortably use it with one hand.