Smartphone Guide 3) iOS

Up until very recently, the iPhone was the single most popular smartphone ever sold. It is very solid, and the most tried and true smartphone experience.

Tried and True

iOS hasn't changed much from when it was originally released in 2007, which is both good and bad. It's great because once you get used to it, you will always know exactly what's going on, and it is pretty easy to use to begin with. The downside: it is stagnant. There's not going to be the same innovation that other mobile operating systems are experiencing... Android saw a re-haul with android 4.0 list year, Windows Phone also just got a massive update to WP8 in the fall, and BlackBerry is also getting completely redone in early 2013. So iOS is pretty stable, and doesn't appear to be changing anytime soon. Also, Apple controls both the hardware and software, so you won't have any weird conflicts between the hardware and software... Even better they are optimized for each other. If you used the 1.2GHz dual core processor found in the iPhone 5 on an Android device, it wouldn't be pretty. Another place where iOS really shines is apps. It has the biggest app selection (although android is quickly catching up), and has by far the highest quality games available for download. iOS is the best mobile operating system if you want a stable, get-stuff-done with no-nonsense in between.

The iPhone is the world-wide standard as far as smartphones go, and for good reason - it's simple enough to understand whether you are a Computer Science major, or a non-tech savvy grandparent. There are hardly any menus to get lost in, you can't mess up the software (unless you know exactly what your doing...but then it's nearly impossible still).

Apps

The Apple App Store has the widest selection of quality apps. Android typically has free apps, but there are quite a few that look like they are 8-bit games...If you are an app-aholic, iOS is certainly the operating system for you.

Updates

Windows Phone just screwed over it's users. Windows Phone 7 will not be up-gradable to Windows Phone 8. It won't happen...in order to upgrade to full WP8, you will have to buy a new phone. Android's updates are very slow, the fastest updates (besides the Nexus line) still take 3 months at least. 

On iOS, updates work like this: Apple releases the new update (next year will be iOS7), and then within a few days you will be able to update your software if your device is supported (Apple generally supports devices up to 3 years old). This is by far the best upgrade cycle, as it actually happens.

Strong points, Weak points

Strong: "It just works", tons of quality apps, one iPhone available worldwide (no confusion), the industry standard, amazing hardware (both build quality and materials), anybody can use it

Weak: Bare minimum customization options (only wallpaper), has become stagnant (or "stuffy" some say), Apple keeps you out of dangerous waters (by locking you into their realm of services and such).