[pwinnski]

Apple goes to great lengths to make their case, absolutely. And yet still, even leaving aside your comment which seems to attribute the perception of difference to marketing rather than actual quality, still we get this response: "This question is silly. The Pixel or any top-end Samsung is equivalent or better than the iPhone in hardware."

The poster clearly believes what they are saying, despite other commenters pointing out the counter-evidence for the statement.

So GP is right: many people simply can't tell the difference, despite Apple's best efforts.