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Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

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Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#321

Post by colinjoy »

MAGZine wrote: post #272
ar0 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> OS fragmentation: doesn't apply if you're not a developer, just pick a phone that will have a reasonable amount of updates over its lifetime Can you make a recommendation here? I am an iPhone user who might be inclined to switch to Android, but I still haven't found a phone that would satisfy this criterion. To clarify: "reasonable" for me means ~5 years, as this is how long I expect to keep using the same phone.

iPhones already don't get full updates. They get progressively trimmed updates as time goes on. Stock android does a similar thing. If you get a Pixel, you get 2 years of OS updates (my Pixel from 2016 is running the latest Android), at least 3 years of security updates, and many software updates in the meantime (most of Android's functionality can be upgraded without an OS update). FWIW, phones aren't designed to la…

> FWIW, phones aren't designed to last 5 years. The batteries aren't, the screens aren't, the casing isn't, and the hardware generally doesn't (newer software = more demanding).

FWIW I’m typing this on a 4 year old iPhone and I expect it to easily last another year. Battery was replaced once. Modern smart phones are complex, expensive, ressource intensive assemblies. Swapping them out every 2 years is crazy (... and yet common, sadly)

Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#322

Post by ProfessorLayton »

krrrh wrote: post #302
ProfessorLayton wrote: post #49

The most unfortunate part for me is that Apple's service apps like Apple Music are pretty awful to use. Their stock Music app on iOS takes far too many taps to do anything, is buggy, and overall not a great experience. The same is true on my MacBook, the only way for me to use Apple Music is through iTunes, a complete dumpster fire of an app on OSX. Apple Music is an otherwise fantastic service, but it is hobbled by…

It had a difficult version 1, but having been a subscriber to Rdio, Deezer, Spotify, and Apple Music. While they all have areas where they could improve, I prefer Apple Music to all of them from a UX perspective (especially in how it handles music that you upload to your library). I think a lot of it comes down to different UX being more or less appropriate to the way a person consumes and conceptualizes music.

Difficult V1 is a generous way to put it, it was a mess, and I agree Apple Music has since improved on iOS. I came in from Spotify and moved to AM family plan, and while I found Spotify a little better in terms of UX, I wanted better integration into my device ecosystem.

I understand that not all apps can be perfect for everyone, but I find the latest iOS app overall very regressed from the previous ones. For example, from a fresh start (as it often happens due to iOS nuking apps in the background) none of the tabs are cached whatsoever, so I have to wait for them to load every single time. Music.app has a completely different feel than other iOS system apps I use frequently, like Photos for example: All tabs are loaded upon start, and importantly, it remembers which tab I was last in, even from a cold start. I discover a lot of new music via the Radio tab, and I almost always find myself waiting for it to load. Often times when dealing with a bluetooth disconnect I have to go into system bluetooth settings to reconnect because for whatever reason, they won't be in the audio output menu in the Music app.

This may seem like a rant, but I use their music service hours every day on my way to and from work, and while working. It's the little details that made me like Apple's ecosystem in the first place, and that seems to be missing lately.

I'm not even talking about the mess that is iTunes.

Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#323

Post by noelsusman »

bloorp wrote: post #35

Two months ago, Apple announced an ECG sensor for your wrist. A year before that, they announced face detection for the purposes of identity with enough accuracy that it can be used for financial transactions. Also, AirPods are incredible. I'm not saying Apple has a monopoly on invention, but to say they 'used to be an inventor'? That's weird.

ECG on your wrist is a gimmick, not a true innovation. Extremely impressive from a technical standpoint, but not actually relevant to many consumers.

The criticism always comes back to how impactful the original iPhone and iPod were. Apple has failed to live up to that standard ever since, but to be honest it's an impossible standard to be held to.

Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#324

Post by philwelch »

raverbashing wrote: post #45

Do you know what really worries me about Apple now? So, when SJ came back to Apple, he reorganized their (then at the time) computer lines into more streamlined ones. Something like (I might get some of the names wrong), into consumer/pro and portable/desktop iBook/Powerbook, iMac/Powermac Now look at their line now What the F is an iPhone XR? Is the XS "better" than the X or not? Why are there 2 iPad Pros? Is an iPa…

You don't have to choose between an iPhone 4400, 9600, 8600, 7300, 6500, 5500, or 7600 though. Or even know the difference between all of those models. That's what the desktop Mac product line looked like when SJ returned to Apple, and those were just desktop Macs; there were also three PowerBooks, a couple Performas (which were mostly rebadged Power Macs), a couple Workgroup Servers, and a bunch of clones that were mostly indistinguishable except some of them were slightly overclocked.

Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#325

Post by d35007 »

Green_man wrote: post #236
d35007 wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I think it's increasingly obvious that for everyone except osx stans, it's not the best choice available, and it hasn't been for a long time The problem with arguments like this is that they're self-reinforcing. If I try to refute it, you'll just peg me as an "osxistan" (is that a country?) and say I've proven you right.

thats a fair criticism, i'll consider rewording (stan is a reference to a superfan of eminems, from his song stan). alternatively, you could of course explain why you think apple laptops are the best choice still in 2018(if that's how you feel), its not as if i didn't have some reasoning in my comment that you are free to clash with.

> its not as if i didn't have some reasoning in my comment that you are free to clash with

I could have, but I didn't see much reason to because you didn't seem open to a discussion. You preemptively dismissed any argument by implying that anyone who disagrees with you is a "osx stan".

> alternatively, you could of course explain why you think apple laptops are the best choice still in 2018(if that's how you feel)

I do feel that Apple laptops are the best choice _for me_. I don't much care what laptop you use. I think everyone should pick the tools that work best for them. We don't have to be on the same platform to collaborate.

My main reason for choosing Apple laptops is macOS, but I also think the hardware is very good. Expensive, but very good.

Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#326

Post by philwelch »

eisa01 wrote: post #283
sangnoir wrote: post #213

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another example was when Steve said 7-inch tablets were "too small" and you'd need to file-down your fingers to use them (not sure what you'd need to operate 3.5-inch iPhones then). He said this while Apple had the 8-inch iPad mini in development. SJ was a salesman - he'd say untrue things to make his product look good, like trash-talking 5.5-inch phones(!) and saying "no-one wants 'Hummer' phones" while - you guesse…

The iPad Mini has 4:3 screen ratio, so quite a bit larger and more useful screen than the 7" 16:9 Android tablets Same with the netbooks, weren't those often 9" 16:9 with terrible Atom CPU and slow HD?

It's kind of shitty and deceptive to measure screen size by the diagonal. You could have literally a single row of pixels 15 inches wide; does that mean you have a 15 inch display?

Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#327

Post by scarface74 »

philwelch wrote: post #318
scarface74 wrote: post #190

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What makes Android, Android to everyone outside of China is the proprietary Google Play Services and all of Google’s first party apps.

And what made an IBM-compatible an IBM-compatible was the proprietary Microsoft DOS and Windows operating systems.

And neither were ever considered “open” unlike the legendary tweet of by Rubin...

https://twitter.com/arubin/status/27808662429?s=21

Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#328

Post by scarface74 »

colinjoy wrote: post #308
scarface74 wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The $499 Mac Mini came with 4GB of RAM, a 5400 rpm hard drive and had a 1.4Ghz CPU. A usable Mac Mini was at least $699.

Bought a couple of the old base level minis for a DTP shop back then (more RAM / IO bound than CPU). They allowed for installing 16GB of cheap commodity RAM and 2x 2.5” drives which netted you a decent 1.5 TB Fusion Drive. Good days. Today, with improved vendor lock-in for essential components, you’re looking at 2k+ for an equivalent spec. No thanks :)

The RAM is user upgradeable, and an external SSD drive connected to TB3 is not going to exactly be slow.

If you are so inclined you can use an eGPU something you couldn’t do on any previous Mac Mini.

Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#329

Post by philwelch »

Reason077 wrote: post #245
adpirz wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A few quick thoughts: >What the F is an iPhone XR? Is the XS "better" than the X or not? Somewhat agree about the XR, though I guess the idea is it's one less than an S, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and say their "S" naming scheme has been consistent since it was introduced after the iPhone 4. > Why are there 2 iPad Pros? Steve once said netbooks were dead, then released a laptop in exactly that form f…

If Apple were to drop lightning and switch all their phones to USB-C, the rest of the industry would move to USB-C much more rapidly. We may never be fully rid of USB-A since it's embedded everywhere into things like homes and cars, but it makes a lot of sense for USB-C to replace all the other permutations (B, mini, micro, lightning, etc) found on devices.

(A) problem with USB-C is that devices can selectively support different subsets of its functionality. So instead of having one port to rule them all, you have just as many different ports as before, except they all look the same and take some of the same cables.

Re: Apple Used to Be an Inventor. Now It’s Mainly a Landlord

#330

Post by Regardsyjc »

OkGoDoIt wrote: post #101
reacharavindh wrote: post #33

May be people are disappointed with innovation in iPhones compared to previous years' or for the last few years, but every time I use my AirPods, I can't but feel good about the innovation it took to make it as easy to use and comfortable. * If I open the case near my phone, it automatically pairs and shoes battery levels. * They sound decent for earbuds (not in-ear plugs which I hate) * Lasts reasonable amount of ti…

The AirPods are my favorite purchase I’ve made in the last several years and definitely the best new technology product I’ve seen in a long time. I use mine for hours every day and have for the last year and a half. Before I got my AirPods I had used and returned multiple other wireless earbuds and none of them hold a candle to the AirPods. And somehow the AirPods are half the price of any of those others. I’ve kept…

I've tried airpods, $40 enacfires, and 5+ other models for market research.

As an Android user, airpods didn't offer that much functionality, was $160+, looked like qtips sticking out of my ear, and the sound wasn't that great either.

I think the $40 enacfires might have had a better bass than the airpods. I've gotten intimate with these products down to Bluetooth compatibility and chipsets. In my opinion, it's a lot of hype at a high price point when it costs nowhere close. I'm mind blown by the marketing genius. At the same time, I will never go back to wired, wireless is amazing. Companies sure are milking this new technology though and it's just getting started.

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