My wife has an Iphone 5 with verizon. This is a very high quality very good phone. It will not be obsoleted quickly. I have had a Motorola Droid Razr since they came out with them 18 months ago. The Motorola Droid Razr is the top rated phone by Consumer Reports magazine. My Motorola phone is very well made. Extremely sturdy and works as well today as the day I got it. In no way is my current phone out of date as far as operating speed or features. I have looked at the Samsung phones. When you hold one it is obvious that the Iphone or Motorola are made out of better quality stuff. However, I admire well built things and everyone has their own preferences.
If I were getting a phone tomorrow I would be very hard pressed to decide between Iphone and Motorola Droid Razr Maxx. I think I would stick with Motorola.
I don't think any of the major makers sell a bad phone today. They are all good. The Microsoft / Nokia is also supposed to be a very good phone.
Just a comment on the big screen phones. If you want to one hand the phone like I do all the time, too big makes that hard to do.
I also really like the camera in my Motorola. Google owns Motorola these days.