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Telegram founder says owning an iPhone makes you Apple's digital slave

Pavel Durov also called Apple's devices clunky and outdated.
By

Published onMay 20, 2021

The Telegram icon on an HONOR View 20 on a blue background with a cat and a fish.
Scott Adam Gordon / Android Authority
TL;DR
  • Telegram’s Pavel Durov has criticized Apple for its bad hardware.
  • He said owning an iPhone makes you a digital slave of Apple.
  • He also equated Apple’s walled garden approach to China’s totalitarian regime.

Telegram Founder and CEO Pavel Durov launched an offensive against Apple yesterday. Commenting on a New York Times report about how Apple has allegedly given the Chinese government control over its data centers in Guiyang, Durov said that the Cupertino company is efficient at selling “overpriced, obsolete hardware to customers locked in their ecosystem.”

“Every time I have to use an iPhone to test our iOS app, I feel like I’m thrown back into the Middle Ages,” Durov added. He called Apple’s devices clunky and outdated for being stuck with specs like 60Hz displays instead of 120Hz screens that many Android phones sport these days.

But perhaps the most damaging comment he made against Apple was this:

Owning an iPhone makes you a digital slave of Apple

Durov criticized Apple’s policy of not allowing its users to download apps from anywhere else but the iOS App Store. Probably because Telegram offers a direct app download on Android phones with faster updates and fewer restrictions.

Apple’s walled garden is also under the scanner right now because of its ongoing court battle with Epic Games. Adding to the argument, Durov also condemned the fact the Apple users can only use iCloud to back up their data natively.

In conclusion, Durov said that it’s probably why “Apple’s totalitarian approach is so appreciated by the Communist Party of China.”

Do you agree with Durov’s comments? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.