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Apple Cancels AirPower Product

techcrunch.com

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Re: Apple Cancels AirPower Product

#481

Post by squarefoot »

simonh wrote: post #462
squarefoot wrote: post #362

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I never tried the AirPods so I can't comment on their quality, though I'm all for wired ones so it won't happen anytime soon. Quality aside, psychology can explain a things or two on why people absolutely love what they spend money on. https://youarenotsosmart.com/2010/05/19/fanboyism-and-brand-...

But then everybody who bought anything (that at least worked) would love it. This theory has no explanatory power to distinguish why any particular company has higher that average satisfaction ratings.

I shouldn't post replies when in a hurry (just like now:). I left out some important details: the point was why sometimes people end up loving stuff they spend a lot of money on, to the point they become fanboys even when the item purchased albeit good doesn't deserve that. I'm not bashing Apple, this happens in a lot of contexts, take for example the audiophool world. Are those hundreds €/$ per meter audio cables good? Yes, definitely! So are they worth that price then? Asbolutely not, but people keep shoveling money at them although neither the best instruments in the world nor the best ears could tell the difference when conducting a proper blind test (aka: the famous "coat hangers cable" experiment). This is where psychology plays an important part. Back to the Airpods, they could give the best audio experience in the world -I trust Apple on this, they for sure know a few things about music- but I'm also someone who doesn't like being forced by marketing to accept excessive compromises. The Airpods batteries aren't replaceable so once they fail (a few years max) one is forced to throw them away. To me it seems a price too high to pay for eliminating the headphone port, which I use and like to have on every device. I have no doubt Apple users love their Airpods, but it's a fact that those devices are not perfect. If users accept criticism for iPhones with no user replaceable batteries I would expect the same open mindset about the Airpods.

disclaimer: always in a hurry... girlfriend getting out of the train in 35 minutes and I have to drive to get there.

Re: Apple Cancels AirPower Product

#482

Post by ksec »

ctdonath wrote: post #261
ksec wrote: post #202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>There has to be something that caused this abrupt cancellation. They could have sold a Wireless Charger just like others with their mark up. Instead we got nothing. Also admitting MacBook Pro Keyboard Failure. I believe there is something happening to Hardware Engineering in general.

Were it "just like others with their markup", why would people pay more for the same thing?

Quality, QA, Design, Branding.

That is like asking why are people buying lightning connector from Apple where there are cheaper options.

Re: Apple Cancels AirPower Product

#483

Post by craftinator »

Dylan16807 wrote: post #329
sandis wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The article mentions (rumored) issues with 3D/overlapping coils that I imagine were needed to allow for multiple device placement anywhere on the mat. >> Specifically, I’ve heard that they ran too hot because the 3D charging coils in close proximity to one another required very, very cautious power management.

It's not the end of the world if it slows down under multiple devices, and that trivially solves the heat problem. Is it lack of satisfaction with those tradeoffs? Is there a more fundamental flaw somewhere else? It would be nice to know what actually caused this decision.

Fire? Like, GS Note 7 fire? That would do the trick!

Re: Apple Cancels AirPower Product

#484

Post by ninkendo »

bluthru wrote: post #333
ninkendo wrote: post #309

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I fail to see how using that is any more convenient than a dock-style stand that plugs into the lightning port. What's "wireless" really doing for you if you have to position it just the right way on a dock anyway?

One-hand operation and you don't have unsightly cords everywhere. Do you want to go back to the days of wired mice?

I'm talking about a dock where there is a small lightning jack fixed to the bottom and the phone naturally plugs into it when it's positioned on the dock. Something like the old iPod docks, and (hey look!) the AirPods charging dock on the very product GP linked to.

How is that an additional cable, and how does it interfere with one-hand operation? It's literally neither of those.

Re: Apple Cancels AirPower Product

#485

Post by graeme »

cageface wrote: post #381
brokencoder wrote: post #275

Apple's management has enacted a policy of not offering competitive compensation for top engineering talent. I've had multiple Apple managers express frustration with the company's inability to attract and retain top talent. I myself got an offer from Apple for less than half what three other top companies offered, and Apple was unwilling to negotiate. This product cancellation and Apple's general product quality dec…

Across the board Apple just seems to be struggling to execute on software. What they do offer is incomplete and buggy and they're falling farther and farther behind on new features. If they're serious about pivoting to being a services company they need to fix this ASAP. There's a deep-seated arrogance at Apple that I think they inherited from Jobs that isn't serving them well now that their competition has gotten it…

Safari, music, notes, reminders, mail, health, activity (apple watch), breathe (apple watch), calendar, shortcuts (acquisition), messages, maps, clock, calculator, weather,

I use all of those regularly and they work well. I also use 3rd party apps for some of the same categories.

I use maps for routing, but google maps for search and points of interest

Re: Apple Cancels AirPower Product

#486

Post by Calcite »

sovnade wrote: post #421
golem14 wrote: post #371

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My completely uneducated guess is a behind-the-scenes patent dispute or something along those lines...

IFixit has a good article on it. Basically they couldn't get it to pass wireless emissions standards the way they wanted to do it (put your phone anywhere on the pad to charge not, not directly on the circle, etc).

Link: https://ifixit.org/blog/14883/what-finally-killed-airpower/

Re: Apple Cancels AirPower Product

#488

Post by Dylan16807 »

heartbreak wrote: post #475
Noctem wrote: post #358

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I appreciate it too, unfortunately Apple is not always so transparent. One example that comes to mind is their 2010 promise to make FaceTime an open standard. It was Steve Jobs that made that promise in 2010 (one year before his death), and apparently a patent dispute with VirnetX may be to blame, but to my knowledge they haven't made any public statements about it since the initial promise. If legalities are to blam…

Attorneys usually advice against discussing ongoing legal matters.

When there is a dispute, sure.

If it's just "we don't have all the rights, sorry", there is no legal matter to worry about.

Re: Apple Cancels AirPower Product

#489

Post by whatever_dude »

ianai wrote: post #354
urda wrote: post #265

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. I much rather have a company like Apple just flat out say "we can't make this work to our standards, to our customer standards, and we're not comfortable with releasing this product this way." Versus say Google who'll just never mention it again or launch a broken version only to kill it off within two years.

I hope it’s a sign of change to come. Their hardware has been actively moving from what users want to what their designers want (thinner is always better, ne legacy ports, no finger I’d, etc).

It has always been like that. Remember then the Macintosh didn't have arrow keys? When they dropped disk drives?

They try being ahead of the curve and are know to ignore market interest. Sometimes they get a hit, sometimes they fail.

Re: Apple Cancels AirPower Product

#490

Post by ianai »

whatever_dude wrote: post #489
ianai wrote: post #354

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I hope it’s a sign of change to come. Their hardware has been actively moving from what users want to what their designers want (thinner is always better, ne legacy ports, no finger I’d, etc).

It has always been like that. Remember then the Macintosh didn't have arrow keys? When they dropped disk drives? They try being ahead of the curve and are know to ignore market interest. Sometimes they get a hit, sometimes they fail.

Usb/video ports are definitely in the same hardware realm as media drives. I don’t think people buy a laptop and never need those things. It’s like they’re tying to make their laptops into iPads.
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