Why did you dump your Nexus for an iPhone 6?

It turns out that a lot of our readers who switched from Android to iPhone didn't come from outdated Samsung, Motorola, LG, or HTC phones, but from the most updatable phone Google has to offer — the Nexus.

When I recently asked why people dumped their Android phones for iPhones, that's what came up again and again. And it was a big surprise. I expected people would switch from Samsung now that Apple has bigger and better screens, or from Motorola to get features like Touch ID and Apple Pay, or from LG because of easy access to Apple Stores and AppleCare, or from HTC because of the quality and coherence of the software. Nexus converts, I assumed, would be few and far between, because to own one you've got to really want it. You'e got to be a high-order Android enthusiast. So, why did Nexus owners make the switch?

Unlike most Android phones, Nexus phones get updates straight from Google, at least for a couple of generations. They also get to keep Google's native Android experience rather than having it paved over by vendors eager to differentiate, even if it comes at the expense of consistency and usability. That made the better camera or privacy-first business model the obvious reason. The iPhone has the best everyday camera in the industry and Nexus cameras, for a variety of reasons, have always been lackluster at best. I've owned three generations of Nexus, from the One to the 5, and while the first was fine for its time, mostly they've been whatever the opposite is of state of the art.

The iSight camera was certainly the reason reader vnagia made the switch:

I came from four consecutive Nexuses to the iPhone 6, but my heart hasn't come from Android to iOS. Rather, I came from the universally craptastic cameras and lofty promises of Google and Android OEMs to a camera that is fast, reasonably good quality and performs well under every circumstance.

The answers, however, turned out to be more varied and nuanced. Some switched for iOS 8, like reader DanRJones91

I came from a Nexus 5 to an iPhone 6. I've previously had an iPhone 4s. A combination of things brought me back. The size was a little bit of factor. I quickly became accustomed to the size of the N5; 4.8-5 inches is pretty much ideal for me (I think the iPhone 6 Plus is unwieldy - for now), but it was iOS 8 that clinched it. I was impressed with iOS 8 on my iPad mini 2 and owning the iPhone 6 would bring me back to being on iOS/OS X only again.

Others switched away from Android 5.0 Lollipop, including reader reebee 78:

I switched from a Nexus 5 to a iPhone 6 just a week ago. So far I am glad I made the change. The primary motivations for me were the hardware quality, better camera and my dislike of the bright Android 5.0 Lollipop colors.

And reader Bobby Webber:

I've been on Androids since 2009 and I switched from a Nexus 5 to a IPhone 6. For me I wanted something different and I was having way to many problems after the 5.0 lollipop update.

Other switched not only for the user experience but for the international footprint of iTunes. Reader anh92:

I switched from the nexus 5 to an iPhone 6 last month, and so far I am loving every bit of the iPhone 6. From hardware to software to me the experience is delightful. The nexus 5 was a great phone when I first got it even with lollipop the experience was great but not perfect. I always came across hiccups and gaming on it wasn't that great, since games are developed using metal, they always looked smoother and better on iOS. Most importantly for me, the App Store has movies and songs for purchase compared to google play which lacks the ability for me purchase movies and songs because Google doesn't support that yet in my region - sigh.

As someone who lives outside the U.S., I've always been keenly aware of just how big a deal it is that Apple made iTunes so accessible to so many people around the world.

Build quality was a factor for some as well, including reader jimpia17:

I came from using a Nexus 5 and Moto X (2014) Back in November 2014 I broke down and bought myself the ipad Air 2 Space gray 128GB. After one week with it I feel in love. So that's when I decided to get the iphone 6 plus. I switched because the premium look, feel, and build of these decice's is just amazing!!! ios is very clean, simple, and basically just works!!!

For others, it was simply a matter of time. That includes reader ironra23 and his family:

I feel like there is no stability with android you never know who is going to be making the hot phone at any given time one minute it's Motorola, one minute it's Samung etc, and I was also tired of waiting for updates. So when I looked at the note 4. All I seen was bloat it was everywhere LOL. Thought the Nexus 6 was going to solve all of my problems. No bloat,or waiting for updates. Pretty much had everything else I wanted to front facing speakers, 2K display, so I took it and ran, got it home after a few days seen things I couldn't live with. No silent mode, and very poor call quality. Returned it along with my moto 360 and said fuck android give me a iPhone 6plus. Not only did I convert but I also switched over my daughter and my girlfriend also we all have iPhones now. We all are happy with the choice.

I find all of these answers, and the many more I received, remarkable because, perhaps naively, I assumed we wouldn't see many Nexus switchers, and when we did, I assumed it would mostly be for the camera. That we saw so many and for such diverse reasons was fascinating and it made me want to dig a little deeper and find out more.

So, if you ditched your Nexus for an iPhone, I'd love to know why. Was it one specific reason, like the camera or privacy? Or was it a combination of reasons, from hardware to software, quality to feature set? Leave your answer in the comments and we'll use some of the most interesting and insightful in future columns!