A few weeks ago, I wrote about why I had kept my ThunderBolt for so long. Four months is a long run for me. I typically switch phones every month, if not more. But last week, I broke my streak and gladly deactivated my ThunderBolt for another phone. An iPhone.

Seeing as I'm not exactly a big fan of the Cupertino-based company, a lot of people were surprised when they discovered I had switched back to the dark side. But to be honest, it was a much wanted and needed switch that had to be made. The ThunderBolt – despite being a great device – has been driving me crazy for the past three months. Here are just a few reasons why I traded in the original LTE phone for a nearly one-year-old piece of tech:

Design

I have always loved HTC's hardware. To date, they're the only company that has given Apple a run for its money in terms of build quality and materials from the Android and Windows Phone camps. One area that HTC doesn't exactly excel in though, is minimizing the device footprint. The ThunderBolt was a hefty device and weighed down my pockets. I don't mind a bulky phone, especially when it packs a 4.3-inch display. But I have always thought the ThunderBolt's bulk was a bit excessive. The iPhone, on the other hand, is extremely compact and the hardware is top notch. Not to mention, the white makes it stick out from the dozens of black and gunmetal phones I've owned over the past year.

Stability

One area the ThunderBolt has always struggled has been with software stability, and that could easily be said about most other Android devices, especially HTC-made phones. Sense UI is bug-ridden and known to be the culprit for lag and battery drains. The likes of custom ROMs proved to be no better as development for the 'Bolt has hit quite a few road blocks over the months.

Battery life

Little needs to be said here. Android is notorious for poor battery life. Although I tweaked my ThunderBolt seven ways to Sunday (I tried out new ROMs, kernels, radios … everything), the battery life never changed drastically. There was a time or two that I squeezed about 19 hours out of my ThunderBolt battery, but that was mostly standby time. I need something that will last through a day of heavy use, and BlackBerry 6 will no longer cut it for me.

Apps

This could easily be the main reason for switching back to iOS. To be short, I missed some applications that just aren't available on Android like Camera+, Instagram, Twitter for iPhone (push notifications) and the million other image manipulation apps I've used. I have tried their Android alternatives and they just aren't the same.

Camera

This, too, is self-explanatory. The iPhone has one of the best mobile cameras available. Although the ThunderBolt's camera is 8-megapixels, the iPhone's 5-megapixel shooter can put it to shame in several categories. As much as I use the camera on my phone, having a great shooter over a mediocre one is a huge plus.

It's time for a break from Android

As much as I love the Android platform, it's time for a break. In the past year, I've owned over 25 Android devices, both tablets and phones. I eat, sleep and breathe Android at the moment, and it's time to take a step back and diversify. Being on another platform is a welcomed change. Fear not, faithful followers. I still have an Android phone that I will use on a daily basis, but it will not be my primary.