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Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

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Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#241

Post by RegEx »

mojowo11 wrote: post #196
TeMPOraL wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It kind of works like seatbelts. You can't prove that the fact someone fastened seatbelts had saved one from death in the accident that already happened. Some people survive, some people die. But the relative proportion of those two cases is the matter of scientific studies - that's the first method we have to determine that seatbelts help save lives. Another one is a mix of physics and common sense. It's better not…

> But the relative proportion of those two cases is the matter of scientific studies I guess my point is that I'd like to see a study like this, and I'd like people to stop saying "My case has saved my phone so many times," because nobody really knows that. I'd like to know how much and in what situations a case actually is likely to save your phone from meaningful damage. Because, to use the analogy, my phone's been…

> iPhones are not as fragile as they seem as long as you treat them with a reasonable amount of care.

Accidents aren't about reasonable amounts of care. Cases are obviously there to protect phones when placed in non-ideal situations. Your crusade against cases is fairly silly.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#242

Post by Evbn »

mikebracco wrote: post #190
raldi wrote: post #2

It seems like the people who say the "new" one is thinner, lighter, more elegant, etc, all have cases on their phones. So in essence, the case sets your phone back a generation or two.

Placing a case on a phone is like putting a plastic cover over your couch. I don't get it personally. Use and enjoy the disposable hardware and then get a new one a year or two later.

Time to failure is a poisson distribution, not a step distribution.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#243

Post by gurkendoktor »

sillysaurus wrote: post #138
tlrobinson wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've dropped my phone numerous times with only minor dings resulting. The pot of boiling water, on the other hand... (I was using the phone as a kitchen timer)

My wife's phone fell off a countertop, resulting in a completely smashed screen. (Basically a dense spiderweb of cracks covering the entire screen.) She wasn't using a case at the time, otherwise there's a good chance that wouldn't have happened. However, it was fairly cheap to replace the screen (~$50) so maybe there's still no point in getting a case.

> However, it was fairly cheap to replace the screen (~$50)

+ transportation to the next Apple Store or reseller

+ time to deal with all of this

+ if you do not get an instant repair, getting a replacement device (and another round of transportation)

I've never had to pay to get my MacBook Pro repaired, but the (very rare) interruptions were enough to make me buy a Mac Mini as a backup computer. (Freelancing iOS developer reporting in from a hostel.)

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#244

Post by 8ig8 »

ollysb wrote: post #3
raldi wrote: post #2

It seems like the people who say the "new" one is thinner, lighter, more elegant, etc, all have cases on their phones. So in essence, the case sets your phone back a generation or two.

I never understand why people use cases. What's the point in preserving something in mint condition if you never see it without the case?

Jerry Seinfeld agrees: http://comediansincarsgettingcoffee.com/joel-hodgson-a-taste...

And so do I. I hate cases. If the phone needs a case then it wasn't properly designed.

Cases diminish the value of the product. It's a risk, but having a phone that slides in and out of my pocket is so worth the risk of smashing the glass.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#245

Post by spullara »

mattee wrote: post #124
spullara wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can get the iPhone 4S screen replaced by 3rd parties for $90 just about anywhere. Mine was swapped out in less than 30 minutes after being thrown on a marble floor from a balcony.

Who threw it?!

A two year old, of course.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#246

Post by CamperBob2 »

dhughes wrote: post #239
jarek wrote: post #164

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another alternative is buying robust phones! My Nexus One has met the pavement with some assistance from gravity and my clumsy hands a couple of times and the casing has a couple of scratches to show for it. Screen as new. Then there was the Blackberry Pearl I threw down a couple of times as a demonstration...

I was tying my shoelace and my Nexus One fell out of my shirt pocket and fell about 16 inches onto carpet, yes carpet. Ruined. I found out later from HTC the screen was cracked neatly all down the right-hand side http://imgur.com/a/QmqHx But I couldn't see any crack when the bezel was on the only way to see it was when HTC disassembled it. It was a month long battle with HTC before I agreed to $150 and told them I wa…

Seems almost certain that the crack was already there. Maybe it was a production defect from the factory, or maybe it was caused by a previous drop that did no obvious damage. Landing on the carpet didn't deliver much of a shock to the glass, but it was obviously enough.

It's similar to what might happen with a cracked car windshield. I don't think it's fair for you to blame HTC without knowing for sure if that crack was already there, and/or exactly what caused it.

Any phone company that sells a cellphone that breaks so easily when dropped, especially 16 inches onto carpet, should not be in the business of selling cellphones.

Obviously these phones don't normally break when dropped onto carpet from a moderate height, or their owners would all be screaming bloody murder. That crack was caused by either an unusual factory defect, shipping damage, or something else that happened before you dropped it onto the carpet.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#247

Post by mhenr18 »

benihana wrote: post #24
TillE wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> at full cost Apple will actually send you a new/refurbished iPhone 4S for just $199, much much less than the cost of a new unlocked no-contract phone. You just mail in the broken one. http://support.apple.com/kb/index?page=servicefaq&geo=Un... I recently broke my iPad's screen (dropped it, completely smashed) and got a new one for about half the original price.

For most Americans, that is full cost for an iPhone. Even though it's technically the cost with a contract, I'd wager that 98% of all people who purchase iPhones purchase them subsidized by carriers with contracts.

Wow, there's actually an upfront cost in the US? I never paid a cent for mine - it was 100% subsidised (and you could have gotten the same plan for the same cost but without the phone, so this really was 100%).

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#248

Post by jsz0 »

sray wrote: post #155
owenjones wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I showed my sister my 4S recently, she was thinking of upgrading, and she was amazed at my lack of case. "How do you protect it from scratches?" she asked, to which I replied "I don't drop it." I can't really comprehend dropping this thing, it costs $4-500! That's a lot of money! I can't imagine not handling things that cost that much without the utmost of care.

I'm with you. Accidents happen, but most can be prevented if you just treat your expensive device with care and respect. I find that people really don't like that advice, though!

The carrier subsidy model is partly to blame for that mindset. I don't know how many people really understand the device they are tossing around actually costs $650 and not $199.

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#249

Post by bobbles »

Dove wrote: post #179
jnelso99 wrote: post #160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If it were their names, imagine the fun in explaining what happened to 2.

And in a couple years, while introducing them, "Here are our children, 1 and 3. 1 is 3 and 3 is 5."

Reminded me of that old verse (best said out loud):

"Oneone was a racehorse, twotwo was one too. Twotwo won one race, and twotwo won one too!"

Re: Give people an iPhone 4S, tell them it's an iPhone 5

#250

Post by ajays »

samstave wrote: post #234
raldi wrote: post #2

It seems like the people who say the "new" one is thinner, lighter, more elegant, etc, all have cases on their phones. So in essence, the case sets your phone back a generation or two.

I'm on my lifetime 16th iPhone. (between all the versions) - my current 4S is the longest ive had one without dropping it and it breaking. I've always hated cases, and this is one of the reasons I have broken so many. Personally though, the thing I really hate is the iPhones lack of a notch to attach a lanyard without a case. I've even email Jonathan Ive about this directly, though he's not cool like Steve and actual…

And I still have mine from 3 years ago (a 3GS). I have never used a case; carry it around everywhere; and have never broken it.

16? Really? Then you must really, REALLY love the iPhone. At what point does one say 'enough is enough' and switch to some other phone?

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