What it will take for the iPhone 6 to get me back

Will Apple introduce a killer iWatch tomorrow? 

Tomorrow at 1pm EST is the big Apple event where there will be new iPhones, new iPads and likely, the iWatch. You can watch it live via the Apple website.

I’ve been asked by a lot of my friends if I’m considering switching back to the iPhone after the event. Obviously this is a tough question as no one really knows what will be announced tomorrow. I get asked this because I was a devout Apple Fanboy from the moment the first iPhone came out in 2007, but then I switched to Android in March of 2013 and have been using Android devices ever since. Currently I’m using the Nexus 5 (and here’s a list of things I like about it over the iPhone 5S).

There are a few things that the iPhone does better than my Android device I’ve used – mainly a better camera* and better overall stability. Those aren’t yet enough for me to switch back. So, without knowing what will be announced tomorrow, I spent some time thinking about what it would take for me to consider switching back to an iPhone:

1. Larger screens. Anyone who has used a bigger screen than the current iPhone will likely agree that bigger, even if just slightly, is surely better when it comes to phone sizes. I don’t know that we’ll ever go back to the small size the iPhone is today.

2. A killer phone-to-watch experience. And I mean killer. It has to be something that I think Android and all the companies producing hardware for it won’t be able to replicate for years. I’m a fan of the early smartwatch, the Pebble, but time and again companies have failed to build a truly great smartwatch (I’m looking at you, Kreyos). After reviewing this list, I think this is the one thing that has the most potential to push me over the edge.

3. Ridiculously long battery life. Perhaps, though I doubt it, Apple has found some way to get unheard of battery life on their next iPhone. I believe battery life is the next killer app.

4. Super thin.

5. Integration of Google Now, or something like it. Google Now is fantastic. It’s one of those “once you have it you never go back” kind of technologies. I know Apple would never allow that technology on their phones, but I’d at least need to see something like it.

6. Waterproof. Because the chances are slim that I’ll switch back to an iPhone, I’m basically picking features that would continue to tip the scale. And on that note…

7. Virtually unbreakable. I did read that Apple is possibly going to announce some kind of unbreakable glass with this next iPhone. That would be cool.

One compelling reason for me to switch is that a fair amount of games are still launched first on the iPhone. Since I run a mobile game studio, I have to carry an iPhone 5S with me so I can constantly be checking to see what’s new in the App Store. I don’t see this changing anytime soon, so the idea of only having one device to carry would be an advantage.

I highly doubt I’ll be switching, however, because even if Apple checks all of the above boxes, I would believe that the Android manufacturers – Samsung, LG, Motorola, Sony, etc. – will match or exceed these improvements quickly. And having used Android devices for a year and a half, I’ve become even more entrenched in the Google ecosystem – gmail, calendar, contacts, Google Now, Docs, Drive, etc.

* Regarding the better camera comment above, I know some of you that have Android devices will say your camera is just as good or better. And that may be the case – though not if you have the Nexus 5 like me, that thing is far behind the iPhone’s camera – but the fact that your phone crashes sometimes or locks up (don’t deny it) means its not as good of a camera as the iPhone. If there is a moment you need to capture and suddenly your phone is restarting, then your camera isn’t as good as the iPhone. So when I say the iPhone has a better camera, I’m referring to the combination of the actual camera itself as well as the ultimate reliability of the device.