> but again, everyone knows what the score really is.
That's the problem, innit? Both Apple and Android users see the writing on the wall, nobody is winning. The only people who actively frustrate themselves on tech sentiments are the ones that honestly believe that Apple/Google knows what's best or that Elon Musk is a benefactor to humanity. Rationally, those are wrong conclusions. You're not mad because Android/iOS pundits are harassing you, you're mad because a false assumption about businesses and your personal identity is falling apart. That's fine. Conscious smartphone users everywhere should feel that way.
Similarly, there are people on this website that will laugh you off the stage if you admit to daily-driving Emacs or BSD. Opinionated people are like that everywhere from the CNBC comment section to 9to5Mac. You and me are not obligated to respond to them, and sometimes there is no rational response. Apple does a lot of irrational things, like telling their customers "you're holding it wrong" in response to hardware antennae problems. You don't need to take it personally that you can't defend the indefensible. Most Android users are really in the same boat, tied to a bloodthirsty OEM and Google who will both make irrational choices on the regular. You could call them out, but then you're arguing against your own side. It's a duopoly designed to suck people's egos into it, and the only way to meaningfully discuss change is to acknowledge that neither solution is perfect. It's hard to do when you're fully invested in any ecosystem, but Apple's (and Google's) flaws are self-evident.
Apple will continue to get criticized for as long as they earn the criticism, like how Microsoft and Google were (rightfully) dragged through the mud before them. If you want to change that, vote with your wallet and encourage your favorite company to act the way you want them to.