I've used an iPhone and iWatch for years...but as a Windows user it's not a perfect fit. I'm way past a carrier upgrade and can go with pretty much anything I want.
If I move over to one of the latest Samsung phones...
What features will I miss out on? Any?
Biggest day-to-day may be texting w/iPhone users. Samsung uses RCS, which is similar experience to iMessage w/other RCS/Android users. But Apple won't support RCS so you'll loose things like typing status and I believe if you add an emoji to a message the Samsung it is converted to text in iMessage (i.e., "Tom loved ....").
I'm sure there's more but that was the thing a buddy of mine said he missed the most when he made a similar change to Android. You'll also want a Samsung watch to be consistent/integrated - the Watch 6 Classic is the current best IMHO. I've been using Samsung watches for years and quite like them, especially that they look like a normal watch - the square body of the iWatch is really ugly to me.
You can run Google Messages on your laptop in Windows so you'll have access to texts on phone/watch/computer. You can also link up apps and calender, etc., to Windows. I use Apple Music on my Samsung phone and w/Google Home as my default music app (due to getting Apple Music w/my phone account). Works well.
There is an excellent Android only dashboard community app that is really nice if you want to control things from your phone.
I'm not using my watch for HE/device control, so don't have much feedback there.
Moved this to the Lounge as that's probably more appropriate.
From the Hubitat perspective, you'll lose HomeKit if you use that.
Thanks for the detail! My largest concern would be impact to geo fence apps...but at least my first go to is Geofency...so I think I'm good there.
I haven't yet...but an excellent point. Thanks!
There's an Android version of Geofency?
This is a big one for us. My wife and I both really like the HK interface and the control center on iPhone linking directly to HK is so very convenient. Plus CarPlay is nice. I know there's Android Auto, but I don't think they have an equivalent in Android Auto for HK garage door access, which is relatively easy to add with a really inexpentive module. However, I'm ignorant on that point.
I'm not one of those "I won't drink the koolaid" kind of guys. I love the Apple Koolaid. Gimme, gimme. Their products are expensive (although many TOL Android phones are not far behind in price) and maintenance, viruses, and OS level malware are just not a thing I've ever had to worry about in roughly 23 years on their computers and since my first iPhone, which was 2012.
I'm not familiar w/Geofency, I've been using Owntracks on my Samsung and it's been good for me. A community member also created a mapping integration w/it.
I used this on a Google Pixel and now on an iPhone. I found it to be good on both platforms.
I used Android phones since they became available. At work I used Macs since 1995. At home I used a Linux desktop. About 7-8 years ago, I replaced the Linux PC with a Mac, and when the pandemic started, I replaced my Google Pixel with an iPhone. It is very unlikely I'll ever go back to using an Android phone. The tight integration between hardware and OS on the iPhone provides a much better UX. And that UX is amplified by all the other things you've mentioned (esp. malware).
Yeah, I left out the early days of my Mac use, which was from the beginning. Early Mac OS 7, 8 and 9 needed a lot of upkeep. When OS X matured, that's when things really became easy. And now on the M series chips, I pretty well never think about the OS or performance issues. Just like the phones, they eliminated your need to pay attention to maintenance or OS level protection.
FWIW, Windows has been set it and forget it and trouble-free for me for a long time. Currently on Win11 on two HP and one Dell laptop. Built-in Windows security takes care of things in the background w/out needing involvement, and my wife and I have never had a malware or other security incident of any type on any of our laptops.
Apple's control over both HW & FW on the devices in its ecosystem does allow easier and deeper integrations, and a consistent industrial design that is pleasing, no doubt there. The halo they have gained w/customers from those advantages has interesting results in UX studies done at my former company. In customer testing we found that participants using iOS laptops/phones to complete tasks would blame themselves when they had difficulties. "Oh, it's me, I'm just not very good w/computers." But when they ran into similar issues w/Windows/Android devices their feedback changed. "Oh this is confusing, they made it hard to do." Whaaa?! 
Very interesting comment. I’ve always been a Windows guy. Nothings gonna change that, and as I get older, I really like the idea of some of the folding phones that Samsung has. It’s almost like a small laptop.
I’m just trying to figure out what I lose on the home automation side. If anything.
Thanks!
A couple years ago I almost convinced my wife that we should switch from iPhones to Google pixels.
We didn’t even make it two weeks, for this exact reason. Returned the Pixels, and haven’t reconsidered since.
Yeah, I remember when you guys tried to switch, the whining was audible from here... 
I've found I actually don't care too much either way about the texting enhancements in RCS or iMessage, (I had an iOS work phone that I used for a while).
Had a similar experience, but before ever buying an iPhone. I was looking to purchase the iPhone 4, but they had supply issues so I ended-up burying the Samsung Galaxy III (I think). After spending a day trying to set it up, finding apps, adding my music to it, etc. I found that it has way too many quirks and issues. (GPS not working well, started getting marketing calls, etc.)
I suspect things have changed for the better though…
I went from Windows phone to Android to and recently switched to iPhone, and I really wonder why I didn’t just go straight to iPhone and skip Android all together.
I don’t miss anything from Android, especially not needing to down load tasked having to root my phone to use AD. to get things to work, not to mention staying a step ahead of what Google and Samsung decide to lock down next, Not to mention Samsung locking you out of your phone and data when THEY decide it’s time for you to get a new phone. No thanks.
I started smartphones on the OG 'Droid (slide-out physical keyboard baby!! ) and was building/installing my own ROMs on my first three or four smartphones, was and still am an avid user of custom keyboards & glide typing, reasons why the locked-down iPhones (didn't even allow third-party keyboards until iOS 8!!) never appealed to me.
First Samsung was a Galaxy 4, maybe? Never had any significant problems w/it, other than when I dropped it from a second story balcony. That was not good...
@bobbyD has set up a bunch of automations on his Android phone, and might be willing to tell you some of his secrets if you ask nicely. Lots of options there.
Geofency is iOS only as far as I can tell (but as noted Owntracks works well on Android).
As noted you lose Homekit, assuming you were going to set it up (gives you one-way sending devices from HE to iOS) though HD+ likely would cover most/all of those bases for you on Android.
I have Homekit but all of our phones are Android. You'd miss the Apple Home app on the phone, but not Homekit. You can use an iPad. Who needs an app on the phone when everything is automated. But even if one would like a Home like app experience, Android offers a multitude of options to fill that gap twice over.
I wouldn't call international grey-market phone wars a "normal" experience w/smartphones, nor something that would influence my purchase.
Nothing is really locked down, I buy unlocked phones directly from Samsung so I don't suffer from Verizon pre-installs, and any apps included by Samsung (really can't think of any, frankly, that is not really a thing any more) that I don't want can be disabled/hidden. Samsung's additions to the stock Google UI are nice enhancements.
Download the Hubitat app
