I’ve always had my issues with iOS, just as I’ve had issues with just about every other mobile operating system to date. They all have their benefits, and they all bring something to the table (even in some small fashion), but they’re certainly not perfect. In this day and age, it may not even be about features – it could just be the way something looks. Design’s important, after all, but it’s also a beast that can’t make everyone happy all of the time.

The difference, though, between iOS and the other platforms is that more often than not I’ve just preferred the hardware design of the iPhone compared to other handsets. More specifically, it’s always felt like iOS is just an extension of the hardware, and vice versa. Now that that isn’t the case with just iOS, my attention has been drawn to other handsets for my personal use far more than ever before.

Except that the iPhone has continued to be my “fallback” device. The handset that’s just there, waiting for me to return. And, more often than not, I do come back to it. No matter how easy it is for me to find plenty of reasons why a phone is good, something will always bring me back to the iPhone. Or, at least, that’s been the case in the past. However, something changed a few days ago, and now I’m jumping ship.

Just before the weekend started, I noticed a significant drop in performance with the iPhone 5s. Actually, to be perfectly honest, I’ve noticed it over the last month or so, but it didn’t really come to a head until just before the weekend. Apps were opening slowly, and some of them were even crashing. I hadn’t seen any restarts, thankfully, which is something I know a lot of people across the board have been plagued with.

It didn’t really tap my frustration levels until the camera app just stopped working altogether. During an event for my daughters, my iPhone’s camera would only let me take one picture before it would freeze, then crash. And when I’d restart it, the same thing would happen: take one photo, freeze, and crash. This went on all day, even after several restarts. It just “magically” started working later in the evening, for seemingly no reason whatsoever.

That’s when I realized it was time to ditch the iPhone.

Usage is going to be different from person to person, but for me I’ve got a low tolerance for the way technology works in my life. If something stops working the way it’s supposed to, or has over a length of time, then there’s a good chance I’m going to replace it with something else. This weekend was just the icing on the cake for me, as I noted that the device has been acting “worse” ever since I picked it up a few months ago. It was a gradual declination, made obvious by a major drop in functionality. And it led me to switch devices.

The handset, or mobile OS, that I’ve used as a rock through the years has finally started to wobble, but I guess I can’t be too surprised by this. That, and I should be thankful I haven’t seen as many troubles with the handset as many others have since its release late last year. iOS 7 is a big change for the company, and they’ve obviously got a few things to smooth out. With that in mind, I think I’m okay waiting until the next revision – iOS 8 or whatever they end up calling it. By then, I hope everything’s smoothed out. (Even if there’s bound to be new issues that pop up, too.)

In the meantime, I’m going to focus on the camera, and just be happy with the OS I’m using. Meaning, I’m going to overlook the troubles plaguing the Windows Phone app situation, and I’m going to use this Lumia 1020. I loved the device when I reviewed it last year, and considering how important the camera is to me these days, I feel like it’s a no-brainer to go with this handset over any other. At least for now, until the new devices for 2014 are unveiled.

Have you switched devices because the one you had wasn’t working the way you thought it should, or something failed on you? If so, which device did you ditch, and which handset did you pick instead? Let me know!