The tech in iPhones is so ludicrously ahead of anything else, it's not even funny anymore.
Their CPUs are 3 years ahead at least.
They have proprietary low power, high reliability Flash memory tech.
They have unique 3D scanning face identification tech and secure ID data storage.
They have far superior battery life for the battery weight.
The camera systems are best in class, I would agree several other phones have camera tech and software that is close enough for most people, but not for everyone.
They have Samsung made screens that even Samsung can't use, some of the tech and QA process is proprietary to Apple.
Also the sensor precision and calibration is considerably better on iPhones than Android phones and highly consistent across models. There's a photo of a bunch of phones showing their magnetometers, with all the iPhones pointing in the same direction, and the Android phones pointing all over the place.
The brand new Apple A13 CPU beats e.g. the 2018 Snapdragon 855, fair enough. But benchmarks have already leaked for next years Snapdragon 865 (e.g. for the Samsung S11) that beat the A13 again. So far from "3 years ahead", they appear to be very much equal, just being launched in alternating years.
And why should they not be equal, when they are produced by the exact same manufacturer (TSMC) using the exact same 7nm process and have basically identical physical constraints on cooling, footprint and power budgets? Ain't no arguing with physics.
Their camera systems have lagged behind other maker's flagships for several years. You don't have to take my word for it; here is a quote from Austin Mann's recent review of the iPhone 11 Pro:
> Many of us iPhone photographers have watched as other phones like the Pixel and the Huawei P30 have passed us in low light performance.
I gather from his review that the iPhone 11 Pro is now on-par with the Huawei camera flagship.
When was the last time you heard of the flash memory on anyone's phone failing? I have a LG P500 from 2011 that the kids literally throw around in their toy box, that still boots and works just fine.
Modern day screens are far beyond what the human eye is capable of resolving. Pick up a $200 Motorola, and you need a strong magnifying glass to even make out the pixels.
Their CPUs are 3 years ahead at least.
They have proprietary low power, high reliability Flash memory tech.
They have unique 3D scanning face identification tech and secure ID data storage.
They have far superior battery life for the battery weight.
The camera systems are best in class, I would agree several other phones have camera tech and software that is close enough for most people, but not for everyone.
They have Samsung made screens that even Samsung can't use, some of the tech and QA process is proprietary to Apple.
Also the sensor precision and calibration is considerably better on iPhones than Android phones and highly consistent across models. There's a photo of a bunch of phones showing their magnetometers, with all the iPhones pointing in the same direction, and the Android phones pointing all over the place.