iPhone user complains: €700 for 128GB, no video copy

iPhone: Paying €700 for 128GB but unable to copy a video

A user bought an iPhone only to find they couldn't load a video file to watch during downtime away from home. Not via cable, not by dragging and dropping, nothing. According to their experience, the manufacturer's response to this basic need is the same one it has given since 2007: figure it out yourself. The striking part isn't the isolated incident, but how the complaint repeats with almost liturgical insistence: battery life that doesn't last a day, Wi-Fi turning on by itself, proprietary cables that do nothing but charge, and a system that forces users through iTunes or cloud services for tasks that are solved by simple drag-and-drop on any other phone.

What you can and cannot do with an iPhone

The issue isn't a lack of alternatives, but rather, according to several users, the system blocks them. A €150 Android connects to a PC using the same charging cable, asks if you want to charge or transfer files, and appears as just another hard drive. On an iPhone, that same action requires proprietary software, a user account, and often passing through paid cloud storage. The recurring conclusion is that the phone plays only specific video formats rarely used elsewhere, so even if you manage to copy the file, there's no way to view it.

Some point out that apps like VLC or file managers solve part of the problem, noting most users don't know about them. Snapdrop is also mentioned for transferring files between devices. This nuance is reasonable, but doesn't change the core issue: on Android, these antiestéticatures come standard; on iOS, you have to work around them.

Price as argument and provocation

Storage is the other major battleground. An entry-level model with 128GB sells for €700, a price that in the Android market buys a flagship with 256GB or more. Storage pricing policy is described bluntly: each capacity jump costs a premium, and the alternative offered is subscribing to their cloud service. The result is a squeeze play: either pay the phone's overprice, pay for the cloud, or run out of space.

In contrast, some defend that iPhones last longer with updates, have better-built hardware, and because the system is tied to specific hardware, it runs with fewer glitches. It's a valid argument: vertical integration allows control that Android, spread across thousands of models, cannot match. However, the debate isn't about that. The debate is whether such control justifies making copying a video an odyssey.

Battery, cable, and other burdens

Battery life appears in nearly every critical comment. It lasts less than expected for a phone at that price, and the charger isn't included in the box. Proprietary cables are another source of friction: they don't connect to standard PCs, only for charging. Anyone who has had to borrow a cable at an office knows what that means.

Wi-Fi activating automatically, updates stopping for older models, and the impossibility of installing apps outside the official store: these complaints accumulate and draw a pattern. The phone isn't designed for users to do whatever they want, but to do only what the manufacturer decides they can do.

Status versus utility

The social dimension of the product emerges quickly. Some argue the iPhone succeeded because it's a status symbol, not because it's superior. The comparison with mid-range phones is relentless: a €150 Android does everything an iPhone does, plus allows installing third-party apps, downloading videos, or saving files without going through any cloud. Defenders respond that the system is safer and more stable, qualities that aren't measured in specs.

The flaw in that argument is that security shouldn't be free, but it also shouldn't cost the freedom to use your own device. That's where the conversation stalls: one side talks about performance, the other about experience, and they fail to understand each other.

What gets lost along the way

Beyond this specific case, the episode leaves an uncomfortable question: how much of Apple's market share rests on inertia and prestige, versus real advantages? The answer isn't in public sales data, but in the experience of someone trying to do something as simple as watching a movie on their phone. If that requires a master's degree, something is wrong.

With all caveats, the prediction is that things won't change as long as users keep buying. The day people stop paying for the brand and start paying for what the device actually does, the market will shift. Until then, we're stuck fighting with the cable.

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Key Data

• An entry-level model with 128GB sells for €700.
• A high-end Android with 256GB can be found for €243.
• A top-tier Android with 256GB can be found for €1,100.
• A new iPhone 13 was purchased for under €500 using a discount.
• A €150 Android does everything an iPhone does, and more.