Not so much relative merits as feasibility. If I want to develop a programmable remote control with a hardware profile resembling a smart phone and remote updating capability, I'm likely to find a platform much more easily and cheaply in the Android ecosystem than in Apple's.
Competition, I think we can all agree, lowers prices and improves quality.
Anyway, here's hoping that we'll soon see water resistant programmable rechargeable remote controls at an appropriate price point, either from Cox or from some third party.