@RTWright  Apple has never claimed to create the first product of any category. They didn't make the first personal computer. They didn't make the first smartphone. They didn't make the first MP3 player.
 
However, the "Sony had the first preliminary designs" comment you made is actually a piece of FUD that was spread by Samsung's lawyers during the recent trial. The "Sony design" for the iPhone that was floating around was actually created by an Apple employee that was tasked to create a mockup of what an iPhone might look like if it were made by Sony. The basis for the design was from an MP3 player that Sony had developed, but the iPhone was already in development at the time the artist was tasked with this particular scenario. It was simply an exercise and part of the internal Apple design process that we never even knew occurred before this trial.
 
I won't waste time rebutting your comments about the limitations of the iPhone hardware, as you are generally correct. There may be workarounds, but they aren't convenient for most users. That said, the important thing to remember about the iPhone is that it's geared toward people that don't want or don't care about upgradeable storage, removable batteries, or customizable user interfaces. They just want a phone that works and to know that their experience with their new iPhone is going to be basically the same as their old iPhone.
 
As I've never used Android as my primary phone (I've got a Droid 2 Global that I keep around as a toy), I can't speak for everyone's experience. However, I jailbroke the first iPhone I ever had. It was incredibly easy and allowed me to do all the things with it that you talk about doing with your SIII. I spent weeks rooting and unrooting and rerooting my Droid 2 Global to try and find a single worthwhile mod for the UI that allowed me to experience vanilla Android. I had nothing but problems, despite all the various websites giving me detailed instructions on how to do exactly what I wanted to do on the exact phone I had in my hands. I finally gave up on it and simply updated to the latest version of Gingerbread the phone could run (which is unrootable, though I no longer care), powered the device off, and stuck it back in my bag to pull out the next time I wanted to play with an Android-only app.
 
Now, I know that not everything you want to do with an Android phone requires root, but a great many things do. I've yet to see a phone that lets you modify the UI without rooting it first, and I can promise you that the majority of Android users will never try or want to figure out how to make it work. Which is exactly why you can throw your "choice" argument around all day and it will fall on deaf ears.
 
Lastly, let's talk about your argument that Samsung should dump Apple. Unfortunately, Samsung would be the loser in that situation. Apple certainly does use Samsung parts in the iPhone, but not a single one of those parts is irreplaceable. The displays in the iPad have already begun being manufactured by Sharp. Samsung did not design the Retina display used in the iPhone and iPad. They simply run a number of very large fabrication plants capable of meeting the demand Apple has for their parts. If Apple were to stop using Samsung to fabricate parts entirely, Samsung would lose billions in revenue and Apple would simply move their fabrication somewhere else.
 
Haven't you ever wondered why Samsung has never put a Retina display or an A5 chip in their devices? It's because it's not their tech. They're simply manufacturing it for Apple. Apple does not depend on technology from Samsung.