Steve Wozniak Believes Apple Has Fallen 'Somewhat Behind' in Smartphones

spyguy10709 said:

He's the chief scientist at Fusion-IO. They make the SSDs that run Facebook, your bank's website, the iTunes App and Music stores - just about anything that's intensive these days.

In other words, he's doing a lot.

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In the million times I've heard the "Chief Scientist" bit, I've never once heard it described what exactly Wozniak does for Fusion-IO, and I'm not aware he has any particular expertise in what they do. So I concluded it's another sinecure, like his position with Apple. I see now I'm not the only one who's been wondering about this:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/09/25/what_does_steve_wozniak_do_for_fusion_io/page2.html

http://www.arnnet.com.au/article/437632/what_woz_really_does_fusion-io/

He's at best an occasional spokesman who gets them press thanks to his Apple notoriety. That's what "Chief Scientist" means in this context.

WillFisher said:

Unless iOS7 is something super revolutionary, I think Apple will sell the same sort of number of phones, or at least the number they sell each new generation, won't increase like it has the last few times, if that makes sense?
I love iOS, but something new has to happen, just to distinguish itself

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Well, we know why they even NEED to distinguish themselves from competing Android phones. If Google, Samsung et al had innovated and done something truly different - for good or for ill - they wouldn't resemble iOS so much on the face to the casual shopper.

We know Google and gang aren't going to do that GUI innovation, so we're reliant upon Apple to do it.

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kjs862 said:

For some reason, I can tell I wouldn't like this guy.

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Which guy? Woz?

Are you like really new to following Apple news?

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Shattentor said:

Oh yeah, they indeed have fallen behind. Software even more than the hardware, iOS is just lacking innovation for years now. Android on the other hand has made some real astonishing progress, especially with Jelly Bean. iOS simply has become so boring.

I'm right now on the edge of replacing my 3GS and I never hesitated for one second that my next phone is gonna be powered by Android.

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So, the problem that iOS has is that it doesn't get you throbbing in the southern region? And that if YOU'RE bored from it, everyone else must be like you?

Jeez, whatever.

QCassidy352 said:

What he said was "in features." Fallen behind *in features.* which we all know - apple has never been one to cram every single feature into a product just to say they have it.

Fallen behind in user experience would be a very different thing, and is not what he said.

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True.

And he said "somewhat behind", the characterization of which isn't the damning some Fandroids on the web cast upon the iPhone. He doesn't specify (to be fair, he wasn't asked to), so it's nigh-on impossible to judge just what features the Apple co-founder thinks the iPhone would benefit from having.

To me, it makes perfect sense that Apple HAS fallen behind in features. Think about it - since 2007, Apple has released a new model just about at a rate of one per year.

The iPhone (EDGE)
The iPhone 3G
The iPhone 3GS
The iPhone 4
The iPhone 4s
The iPhone 5

Six major revisions. Basically, 6 iPhone models in people's hands.

Using wiki.answers' numbers (because they seemed as reasonable as anyone else's), there are about 400 different Android phone models available (about a third of them seem to have come out in the past 9 months!)

So, Android handset makers have had 400 turns to come out and run test balloons for new features, and don't think for a minute that Samsung doesn't pay attention to how well a certain feature, released first on an HTC or LG phone, is implemented and received. They do, and because of the immense size of that (a beach versus Apple's sandbox), innovation can happen accidentally and still happen faster than on the iPhone.

Mathematics of the frequency of phone releases is doing a lot of their work for them.

Woz has no right to be speaking. He hasn't been with the company in a long long time. He's no different from the various media that trash the iPhone for its lack of features year and year, yet with every new release, it outsells the older models combined.

The only major "feature" that Apple seems to be missing these days is a larger screen. Something that can easily be solved.

Android innovative?

I updated from 2.3 to 4.1 on my Note and noticed very little difference. Really. Made me wonder why it took the carrier and Samsung so long to release the update.

If updating to "make it work smoother" is "innovative, then Apple have had innovation for years. iOS just works for most people quickly and efficiently.

I would like to see Woz (and other complainers) list specific issues they think iOS has.

The notifications iOS gained are quiet Android-ish but integrate without getting in the way. Use em or don't. That's the biggest issue: you add too many new features you risk overwhelming people with things that are confusing or novelty value. Apple don't seem to do things that way. It might be arrogance or maybe just controlling the overall experience. Depends if you are a regular user or a tinkerer.

jon3543 said:

In the million times I've heard the "Chief Scientist" bit, I've never once heard it described what exactly Wozniak does for Fusion-IO, and I'm not aware he has any particular expertise in what they do. So I concluded it's another sinecure, like his position with Apple. I see now I'm not the only one who's been wondering about this:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/09/25/what_does_steve_wozniak_do_for_fusion_io/page2.html

http://www.arnnet.com.au/article/437632/what_woz_really_does_fusion-io/

He's at best an occasional spokesman who gets them press thanks to his Apple notoriety. That's what "Chief Scientist" means in this context.

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The think from arnnet you posted actually explains it. Jesus. Get out of here, man. Woz knows his stuff, and he's still a genius.

spyguy10709 said:

The think from arnnet you posted actually explains it. Jesus. Get out of here, man. Woz knows his stuff, and he's still a genius.

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I know it explains it. That's why I posted it. The more the CEO tries to justify having Wozniak around, the more laughable it gets.

AutoUnion39 said:

Woz has no right to be speaking. He hasn't been with the company in a long long time. He's no different from the various media that trash the iPhone for its lack of features year and year, yet with every new release, it outsells the older models combined.

The only major "feature" that Apple seems to be missing these days is a larger screen. Something that can easily be solved.

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Really? You and I, and in fact, MOST people on the planet speak quite freely about Apple almost everyday. Would you say that NONE of us have a right to be speaking about Apple since we NEVER worked there?

That is such a silly way to judge a comment, especially since he just disagrees with you!

jon3543 said:

I know it explains it. That's why I posted it. The more the CEO tries to justify having Wozniak around, the more laughable it gets.

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Laughable?

What???

The CEO said that Woz approached THEM - Woz wanted to get involved in the conceptual design of new products, and the application of the world's fastest SSD's in an integrated design.

Yeah. Laughable.
(like your FACE. lol jk )

spyguy10709 said:

Laughable?

What???

The CEO said that Woz approached THEM - Woz wanted to get involved in the conceptual design of new products, and the application of the world's fastest SSD's in an integrated design.

Yeah. Laughable.
(like your FACE. lol jk )

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No, like your reading comprehension is laughable.

jon3543 said:

No, like your reading comprehension is laughable.

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Why it said it right in the article...

Maybe you're just trying to get me to rage... Not happening.

Have a nice day!

spyguy10709 said:

Why it said it right in the article...

Maybe you're just trying to get me to rage... Not happening.

Have a nice day!

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The articles I linked to say what they say. Plainly.

jon3543 said:

The articles I linked to say what they say. Plainly.

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No, they actually don't.

In the second, the CEO spelled out plain and simple what Woz's job was. You said "other people want to know, too" --- and the CEO answered. What's the point of this conversation anyway?

spyguy10709 said:

No, they actually don't.

In the second, the CEO spelled out plain and simple what Woz's job was. You said "other people want to know, too" --- and the CEO answered. What's the point of this conversation anyway?

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Clearly, there is no point in talking to you. That's why my replies to you have all been so short and simply refer to the articles I linked to.

jon3543 said:

Clearly, there is no point in talking to you. That's why my replies to you have all been so short and simply refer to the articles I linked to.

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meep.

spiderman0616 said:

I know Woz made the Apple II back in the day...but

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That statement really understates Wozniaks impact on the world.

He were a Aaron Swartz of his days, making the tools and using his creativity so that citizens all around the world could benefit from the computing revolution; making the world a better place.

Wozniak were able to view and analyze systems as a hole, and understand how tings could be made better, and made them better.
- He combined electronics and software in ingenious ways, as he did with video games, were the same and better could be made with a fraction of the electronics.
- Combined with mechanics he made the IWM, modulating the speed of the drive to place more information on the rim of the disc, and to improve reliability, and to keep the speed of the interface constant. The same is used on all CDs and DVDs today. HDs place more information on the rim too.
- The tricks of making RAM without RAM chips, displaying color using "black and white" electronics, and all the others, is a huge inspiration.
- The list of contributions is immense, but more than anything else it is his thinking. How to make the world better. How to make clever and fun things. How to view things in a different light.

Wozniaks ideas had a profound impact on Burell.
Burells Apple II mouse card is also a good example of how to do it right, including using a prime number of instructions in the sync. loop.
Burell is the main genius that created the electronics in the Mac. Without Burell there would be no Apple today.

Wozniak cofounded Apple.


People like Woz and Aaron have given us so much. The direct result of their effort, their inspiration and their humanity. They have enriched the life of so many. They have done so all their life.

I am more grateful than I can express.

HOW? An iPhone does everything that other phones can do...and it just works!

spyguy10709 said:

Right, that's why my AT&T HTC One X is still on ICS... When JB 4.1 came out 8 1/2 months ago.

If you think Android updates are working well, get out of here.

Android has more features, but show me any 2.5 year old android device that is still being updated... Let alone will run well.

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Completely missed the point.

But for starters, I stated the iPad 1, 2.5 years old, didn't get iOS 6. The iPhone 4, a little newer than the iPad 1, got a crippled iOS 6. So if your point was "yea but it is the same on Android" then, uh, ok. Except Android is getting better whereas iOS is more stagnant.

And 2.5 year old Android devices get updated to the latest core apps that newer devices get. Can't say that about Safari or iOS core apps: you get the apps updated with the OS (absurd, IMO). Gee let's wait a year for the new Safari. Yay.



Michael

Tinmania said:

Completely missed the point.

But for starters, I stated the iPad 1, 2.5 years old, didn't get iOS 6. The iPhone 4, a little newer than the iPad 1, got a crippled iOS 6. So if your point was "yea but it is the same on Android" then, uh, ok. Except Android is getting better whereas iOS is more stagnant.

And 2.5 year old Android devices get updated to the latest core apps that newer devices get. Can't say that about Safari or iOS core apps: you get the apps updated with the OS (absurd, IMO). Gee let's wait a year for the new Safari. Yay.



Michael

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I agree with your notion that Android core apps can be updated from the Play Store is a superior method to Apples way. now with that being said, we dont have to wait a year for Safari to be improved, Apple always adds updates to Safari in .1 patches and what not. iOS 4.2 brought faster Safari with new features, iOS 5.2 brought a faster Safari with new features so the wait for a update to Safari is actually generally about 3 months

i can see Apple really changing around the way iOS works in iOS 7, there is alot of things that Apple can simply add that would make the OS better, things like having core apps be able to be updated through the App store and what not, etc

Androids method of distributing OS updates through carriers then to the people is a really poor method and
I hope they can fix that in the future

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DarkKnightNine said:

You people are delusional to think Apple hasn't fallen behind as they were NEVER on par with other phones here in Japan to begin with. Woz was being political in order not to step on any toes, but the fact of the matter is, if you look at the features offered on almost any phone here in Japan, they have ALWAYS been far superior to the iPhone.

So then why do I and so many other Japanese use the iPhone? Ease of use and software integration. One thing the Japanese suck at is GUI design. Their hardware may be awesome, but software is how people interact with any device and that's where Japanese suck. When rumors of the very first iPhone began to surface, everyone thought it would be a failure here in Japan. Since I worked at a large tech company at the time and saw first hand how Japanese design their software interface, I knew the iPhone would take Japan by storm. People just want something simple and elegant and that is the iPhone's greatest strength. It is certainly not chocked full of features. Meaning no disrespect to Apple, but "thinner and lighter" although ver sexy, is NOT a useful feature. I can use my Japanese phone to ride the train, buy stuff at a convenient store or a snack machine, it connects hands-free to the audio system in my car and displays all of my contacts on my car navigation display, it has a 12 megapixel camera and so on. Those are REAL features.

So has the iPhone fallen slightly behind? In my opinion, it never caught up.

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i can have my iPhone 5 connect hands free to the audio system and display all my contacts as well, thats been a basic feature on almost every bluetooth capable phone since ever..

i fail to see how a "12 megapixel camera" is a big FEATURE, megapixels arent everything you know, the i5 and i4S can take some fantastic looking photos



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to be honest, yes Apple has slowed down in progress in iOS, but there honestly in a fantastic position still, they really have no where to go but up with iOS, they have a extremely solid foundation to build on and improve and with Scott Forstall gone, there will be a new breath of fresh air for the next version of iOS. i have a great feeling about the future of iOS.

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nazaar said:

I agree... I actually saw a guy with Lumia on the commute train this morning, the OS looks fresh and the phone design very modern... I was impressed.
I didn't feel like pulling out my iP5 because side by side I think the iP5 wouldn't look as sharp (IMO).

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I don't think a bigger screen is so much of an issue as iOS. Apple needs to think outside the box here... Android and Windows OS is leaping over Apple (IMO).

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aw man, how can you say the i5 doesnt look spectacular, i think its the best looking smartphone on the market by far. thats just my opinion though, espcially the white iPhone 5, that thing shines and gleams man its beautiful

Tinmania said:

Completely missed the point.

But for starters, I stated the iPad 1, 2.5 years old, didn't get iOS 6. The iPhone 4, a little newer than the iPad 1, got a crippled iOS 6. So if your point was "yea but it is the same on Android" then, uh, ok. Except Android is getting better whereas iOS is more stagnant.

And 2.5 year old Android devices get updated to the latest core apps that newer devices get. Can't say that about Safari or iOS core apps: you get the apps updated with the OS (absurd, IMO). Gee let's wait a year for the new Safari. Yay.



Michael

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2.5 year old Android devices DON'T get the latest core apps. Look at my Evo 4G --- It doesn't have the latest Play Store, the latest GMail, and it can't run chrome. AND it has better specs than the iPhone 4. End of story.

spyguy10709 said:

2.5 year old Android devices DON'T get the latest core apps. Look at my Evo 4G --- It doesn't have the latest Play Store, the latest GMail, and it can't run chrome. AND it has better specs than the iPhone 4. End of story.

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Wish there was a way to auto-scan for "end of story" and ignore any post that ends in it. Do you think it adds some kind of weight to an argument? It just looks like reaching to me.

You chose about the worst example of an Android phone not getting updated. Granted it was released before the iPhone 4, when things were pretty bad for Android regarding updates.

Regardless, it is 2013 now, not 2010. Most all flagship Android phones released in 2012 have jb updates.

All that said I am sure you are fully aware you can get ICS and Chrome on the Evo 4G. Or even jb for that matter.




Michael

Tinmania said:

Wish there was a way to auto-scan for "end of story" and ignore any post that ends in it. Do you think it adds some kind of weight to an argument? It just looks like reaching to me.

You chose about the worst example of an Android phone not getting updated. Granted it was released before the iPhone 4, when things were pretty bad for Android regarding updates.

Regardless, it is 2013 now, not 2010. Most all flagship Android phones released in 2012 have jb updates.

All that said I am sure you are fully aware you can get ICS and Chrome on the Evo 4G. Or even jb for that matter.

Michael

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Show me how I can get ICS. And I don't mean hacking. I can hack all the latest features (and MORE!) onto my iPad 1 or iPhone 3GS, but I'm not talking about that.

I chose the worst example? Look at ANY AT&T ONE series phone. All "flagships" of 2012, but none have jellybean. Or the Sprint GS2. That doesn't have JB. Or the Verizon GALAXY NEXUS, which is still on 4.1. 4.2 came out MONTHS ago, and the ultimate Google flagship doesn't have it?! Ridiculous.

Android is a great OS, I love it. But updates SUCK.

(Oh and BTW, try CMD+F "End of story". That should do it. But I'm sure you already knew that.)

Mabus51 said:

Oh I notice I have one sitting on my desk here at work. Jelly Bean is nice and clean looking. But still cumbersome to deal with in my opinion.

I have a user who brought his Galaxy III phone to me and every time it is rebooted it wipes out the data? All contacts, settings, emails, apps, everything gone. This thing is a week old according to my user and nothing was done to it other than he added contacts and setup his email. It's things like this that keep Apple ahead. Believe me I understand this isn't the normal activity and is probably bad hardware. But going through "Settings" on a Droid is annoying enough for me to stay away.

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So a clearly faulty phone is allowing Apple to stay ahead? I've never seen anyone with that issue. I don't feel Jelly Bean is nice to look at on a GS3 because I dislike TouchWiz, on my Nexus 4 however it looks great. Also what's wrong with the settings menu in Android? To me it makes more sense than iOS, especially with App settings. In Android your settings menu controls your phone settings, if you want to change app settings you go into the app to change them.

On iOS some app settings are in the settings menu, some are in the apps themselves and it's a confusing mess.

AlbertEinstein said:

Maps data is not related to iOS.
But JellyBean only works on new devices. My Android from early 2012 can't run it.

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What phone do you have? Odds are there is a JellyBean ROM for it.

AlbertEinstein said:

You seem to be one of those who believe in change for the sake of change. It works, doesn't it?

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Sounds a lot like how RIM thought of their Blackberry Business.

Dr McKay said:

On iOS some app settings are in the settings menu, some are in the apps themselves and it's a confusing mess.

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I hate that about iOS. Leaving one app and going to another app (Settings is an app), in order to change settings for the first app, is ridiculous in my opinion.



Mike

He sort of has a point but i think it that Samsung/Google is catching up rather than Apple falling behind. You can only innovate so much.