With iOS, you get one choice of hardware and (for US markets, at least since it´s come out) one choice of carrier. The hardware and software are controlled by the same company and you can get updates.

With Android, this option is also available in the form of the Nexus series... you get Google hardware, T-Mobile, and you can get updates. However, you can also get hundreds of other phones across different carriers and manufacturers and also varying upgrade options.

Stick with the single company option if you don´t want to get ¨screwed¨ as it´s available too.

iPhone is also one special phone, so why compare it with the whole range of Android phones, rather than particular Android phones?

If one maker produces a crappy Android phones, all Android phones are bad?

It is a disadvantage that there ARE bad Android phones, but there are also good ones. You probably have to invest a little bit more research then when you just buy the latest iPhone.

If virtually all Android phones stop receiving updates before their 2-year contracts are up, the Android ecosystem is bad compared to the iOS ecosystem. Much of this thread has focused on the problems this causes for users, but it's worse for app developers to have so many phones out there running old OSes.