Just for the sake of clarity, do you mean that there are more apps that are sandboxed on iOS or that all apps have a higher level of sandboxing on iOS?
More "sandboxed" in the sense that iOS apps start in a small sandbox that gets progressively and opportunistically larger. Instead of demanding all permissions upon installation, they demand them contemporaneously with attempted access to certain resources. The idea is that user consent is more informed.
In contrast, Android apps demand all of their permissions up front.
More importantly, if you ask me: iOS allows you to install an app, and deny it permission to something. Eg. I can deny the Facebook app access to my contact list, and the app still works.
With Android, you grant an app access to everything it asks for, or you aren't allowed to install it. This seems obviously inferior to me.
I consider that a weakness of iOS as a platform. There are some pretty cool and useful things you can do with an Android app that you just can't do on iOS, period.
Android's permission-granting model does leave much to be desired, though.
This is the other edge of the privacy sword. Look at OSX applications distributed via the Mac App Store vs traditional methods. The Mac App Store is very limiting but far more secure.
The second option, that all apps have a higher level of sandboxing. Until iOS 8 apps couldn't do anything to modify the OS besides adding push notifications and maybe a page in the settings.
> Oh wow, can this be used to just create a separate profile for every app? That way I can run Uber or Line without giving them every permission to everything? This is the biggest reason I do not install apps. Every "famous" app requests so many permissions it's just stupid.
iOS does not require the user to accept all permissions that an app wishes to use, before installing that app. On iOS, you install an app without giving it permission to much, initially, and then the app, when you start it, starts asking for permissions that it needs, as it needs them. You can deny any permission request, and the app still works.
Eg. you can install the Facebook app, and deny it access to read your contact list.
In iOS, there are about 10 permissions (location, contacts, calendars, reminders, gallery, bluetooth, microphone, motion, twitter and facebook accounts).
In Android, about 150.
There is no mapping 1:1. Some things iOS does not allow at all (wifi information, sd card access). Some things iOS allows by default, with no way to deny it (internet access).
The iOS approach would not scale, the user would be burried under confirmation dialogs. And that's just the initial confirmation, there has to be UI, when he changes his mind later.
Those, who claim that iOS approach is superior are showing their ignorance, that they newer thought about the way, how the user would set matrix of this amount of permissions with many apps, without getting lost (hint: many are getting lost just in the current system. Imagine, that they would be able to toggle anything. And imagine, what the developers would say about that).