By now I question what the advantage of IPhones and IPads are compared to the myriads of variants you get for Android. … So the only advantage of apple in that space is its name, and maybe the choice of OS.

Prior to joining Apple, where I currently work as a GPU Performance Engineer, I only purchased Apple phones/tablets for exactly the reason you considered a pro for Android.
As a developer, all those different resolutions and specs make Android a nightmare. Drivers being made by different vendors means completely different results in some cases, which impacts users as well.
As a user, all those different models simply means that my friend to the left can’t run all the same apps as me, which is disappointing, and my friend to the right waited a day and got a newer model which is frustrating. And of course there is the friend behind me whose Android phone exploded in his pocket.

iOS devices have always been in a controlled white room. Certain GLES extensions are guaranteed to be there on all devices, resolutions are fixed at a given set, releases are periodic, etc. When you meet another iPhone owner, there is a good chance you can share apps and play games together. Apps are screened and controlled, decreasing the risk of viruses, and apps can be written to support a modern GPU API.

Android has always been a clusterfub. You get random specs with random support for an out-of-date graphics API, released at-random with random resolutions. Super Mario Run for Android? That was a virus, and every Android owner you meet will have completely different specs, so you are unlikely to be able to use that cool photo app your friend has with slow-mo, hi-speed, panorama, filters, etc.
Oh, and a few nights ago they ran 6 Samsung Galaxy S8+ commercials in a row (literally), which was annoying, but I’ll blame the TV operators for that one.


Of course, Android owners probably have their own reasons for purchasing Android devices based on what they want from a device, and that is fine.
This is just how I have personally always viewed those pros and cons.


L. Spiro

What happens if Intel can be persuaded to integrate an Apple GPU design in place of the HD graphics?

I'm not sure they even need to do that. I'd argue it's a pretty safe bet that we'll seen an in-house ARM chip in that 12" MacBook within a couple of refreshes.

They should be able to pull out significant battery life improvements over anything Intel has in that space. iOS and Mac OS have been converging for long enough at this point that the OS isn't a big deal. And most consumers of that machine aren't going to care that it isn't running intel...