This could be true also talking about snapdragon 801 vs 835

I once upon a time had an htc one xl, and then an M8 (801), then a galaxy s6 and now an s8+ (835). Huge reduction in battery use between the m8 and my current phone, much faster and responsive in day to day use, much cooler in use, and can switch between many more active apps without any delay. if you were going to compare iPhone it would be like comparing an iPhone 4 with a 6s. Your comparison is flawed.

colours and luminance of display same ppi specs to maintain 'retina hd' moniker (326), same 1400:1 contrast ratio and same, slightly higher max brightness in the 7 (6s 100%=7@96% brightness), same srgb color profile, same panel manufacturers - your claim is not carrying much weight. Also, my s8+ display completely dominates in every aspect both visually and on paper compared to the s7 display (my gf's brother, who is a ridiculous apple fanboy was quite impressed by it when I got the phone 2 months ago)

responsiveness

my gf has the 6s, her mother has a 7 , used both side by side fraction of a second difference opening some native apps (like camera), otherwise not actually noticeable unless you're really really paying attention.

the new home button

more annoyances with 3 click level instead of just 2... even more people wondering how to "turn off the iPhone from talking non stop while I use it" - what an avp actually said to me 2 days after deploying his iPhone 7 (my workplace deploys iPhones w bb uem activated on BES en masse - well over 4000 active devices in CA alone; I too, frequently repair them)

Iphones don't change much at all, they are the definition of homogenous in the smartphone/tablet industry (like the way blackberry was at its peak), in comparison to android devices - so many different hardware and software combinations to appeal to many wider tastes and always innovating.