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Anti-Apple Anger

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Re: Anti-Apple Anger

#31

Post by astrodust »

thechut wrote: post #26
jmduke wrote: post #2

A lot of the elitism (or at least what I consider elitism) from Gruber, Arment, Siegler et all is incredibly off-putting to me -- and I own a MacBook Air, iPad, and iPhone. That being said, I think this is an incredibly well-reasoned and well-crafted explanation of the massive chasm between Apple 'fanboys' and Apple 'haters' -- and explains to me why, as a current zealot of the iOS ecosystem, I nonetheless find so mu…

You are absolutely correct. In fact, it is this (the elitism), that makes me hate Apple and their products more than any lack of feature in iOS ever could.

The problem is not elitism, but that there is virtually only one "elite" brand and that is Apple. Sony at least gets points for trying. Everyone else is just flailing. This is an anomaly in any other industry, and many industries are the polar opposite.

Can you imagine a world where there are hundreds of varieties of wine, but only several that are any good? Where you can pick between dozens of $2 bottles and several at $50 or more?

Apple's perceived elitism comes from people that produce something they truly care about, that are opinionated and uncompromising. That this is shockingly rare in the technology industry is fundamentally worrying.

Re: Anti-Apple Anger

#32

Post by rcgs »

anthonyb wrote: post #22
seiji wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One example of many: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbcinternet/2013/01/sport_app.htm...

That doesn't seem to be 'rage' to me: Good to hear that an Android version is on the way but why have iOS devices been prioritised yet again by the BBC in the release of an app? I'm getting really annoyed about the BBC's obsession with Apple products that only account for around 20% of the UK market. Poor show BBC. For an organisation who are supposed to be platform neutral ..., there seems to be a steady and consist…

To be honest, it comes of as a bit miffed.

Re: Anti-Apple Anger

#33

Post by capkutay »

I think Apple has positioned itself well in the day-to-day life of the average consumer, and they will likely hold that spot for some time to come.

Apple almost sold more iphones in the last 3 months than they did in the whole year of 2010. Yet to most people Apple is also doomed and everything they're doing is wrong.

Outside the circle of tech journalists and gadget aficionados, people want Apple products. I hear great things about the jellybean and samsung phones and I read anti-apple writings on the web all the time.

On the other hand, almost everyone I know with a smartphone has an iPhone. I don't think of myself as being in a bubble, I'm a student at a big college in a big city, and most of the people I come across have iPhones/ipods/even iPads. Families buy eachother apple products. When I see a non-iPhone user, they are more often not even using a smartphone, but waiting for the iPhone5 or 5S, in transition to getting an iPhone..

I don't doubt google created an amazing mobile OS, but I certainly don't see those phones on a day to day basis.

Re: Anti-Apple Anger

#34

Post by rwallace »

The explanation for anti-Apple anger is far simpler, and doesn't need a reference to the actual products at all.

Anger comes from insecurity. People get angry when they feel threatened. People feel threats come from the top dog (this assessment is usually not very accurate, but it is human psychology). People who feel (whether rightly or wrongly) that their side is securely on top, don't bother getting angry.

Thus, in the nineties the Internet was full of shouting about 'micro$oft' whereas nobody ever bothered criticizing Apple, because everyone perceived that Microsoft was winning an Apple was losing. Today, Apple is perceived as the top dog and therefore a threat. I don't know who's going to be the top dog ten years from now, but I do know whoever it is, that's where the anger is going to be directed.

Re: Anti-Apple Anger

#37

Post by CrazedGeek »

yareally wrote: post #25
rayiner wrote: post #19

I think one phenomenon is that Android users have more experience with iOS than vice versa. I've been pretty much iOS/OS X-only since 2005/2006, I honestly don't know what's up in Android land these days. And, aside from an ill-fated tryst with Windows Phone 8, I'm not super interested in what's happening in Android land. I don't feel compelled to comment on Android threads because I don't really care. But I feel lik…

Average Android user I would be skeptical about, but ones that frequent the forums generally know their own devices fairly well (many are former iPhone owners at some point or switch back and forth). However, I would say that many of them also take cheapshots at Apple to defend their own positions better by claiming things that are absolutely not true (e.g. Android gets similar battery life with the same battery capa…

Small point: the "a 5+ inch phone is easy to hold" thing can absolutely be true. I haven't tried a Note 2, but I had a Note 1 for a little while and it wasn't hard to hold at all.

Re: Anti-Apple Anger

#38

Post by snogglethorpe »

capkutay wrote: post #33

I think Apple has positioned itself well in the day-to-day life of the average consumer, and they will likely hold that spot for some time to come. Apple almost sold more iphones in the last 3 months than they did in the whole year of 2010. Yet to most people Apple is also doomed and everything they're doing is wrong. Outside the circle of tech journalists and gadget aficionados, people want Apple products. I hear gr…

> I don't doubt google created an amazing mobile OS, but I certainly don't see those phones on a day to day basis.

The iphone is certainly a very good product, and deservedly very popular, but keep in mind, that Android phones actually out-number it overall.

Maybe in your circle and/or location that's not the case, but around here a huge proportion of smartphones I see people using on the train or in cafes are not iphones.

It depends very much on where you are and the state of the local cellphone market. I'm in Japan, and the iphone somewhat took the local makers by surprise, but they've come back with a vengeance. The iphone still has a lot of cachet (as do other Apple products), and probably sells more than any other single smartphone—but there are a huge number of other smartphones available, and the iphone doesn't dominate the market to the same extent it seems to in the U.S.

[Over time I'd actually expect the iphone's market share to lessen here, as other makers hone their products for the market (something they're very good at), and the iphone's place as a status symbol slips.]

Re: Anti-Apple Anger

#39

Post by mayanksinghal »

astrodust wrote: post #31
thechut wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You are absolutely correct. In fact, it is this (the elitism), that makes me hate Apple and their products more than any lack of feature in iOS ever could.

The problem is not elitism , but that there is virtually only one "elite" brand and that is Apple. Sony at least gets points for trying. Everyone else is just flailing. This is an anomaly in any other industry, and many industries are the polar opposite. Can you imagine a world where there are hundreds of varieties of wine, but only several that are any good? Where you can pick between dozens of $2 bottles and severa…

I am sorry but it seems really unfair to developers of other tech products when you say truly caring about products is rare. Opinionated and uncompromising - that I may agree to, yes that is rare. But when we see attempts in this direction, by anyone other than a few companies (don't want to name Apple because I fear I will be marked as a fanboy), the attempts are marked as anti-user, draconian and anti-competitive (may not be illegal yet). Examples: Twitter pulling off API (widespread criticism), Facebook and Google+ real name policies (I think Facebook doesn't really enforce it anymore and Google+ now supports pseudonyms), Windows secure boot, Chrome making it difficult to sideload extensions, Quora locking up its contents etc.

While we see all of these other attempts as largely evil, we consider Apple to be producing _pieces of art_ that are allows them to compromise on universal acceptability. We, however, don't give that leeway to virtually anything else.

Re: Anti-Apple Anger

#40

Post by nsmartt »

My issue is fundamentally similar to my issue with Google or Facebook. Information and money are power. Apple is the richest company on the planet. I'm uncomfortable with Apple gaining more money and, therefore, more power.

Their actions have often been highly disconcerting. I'm surprised that I don't see more people who consider Apple to be dangerous.

I don't really have issues with Apple products. In my experience, they've been of fine quality.

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