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Samsung Marketing Blitz Outpaced Apple in 2012
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you are correct sir the HTC one is the best looking phone out there. boom sound although a terrible name seems to be fantastic. also I love the people talking about their circle of friends lik it means something. all my friends but 2 have android so we must li ve in alternative dimensions considering its the only real way to tell how products are selling.
I guess the time to sing loudly about your products is when you have something to sing about.
Smart phones right now are looking like a two horse race and Samsung are doing well. Samsung is spending a lot in the US, both in advertising and manufacturing there. Competition is good.
Our experiences of a product often determine our future beliefs and buying decisions.
I had constant crap product and service from Microsoft and in the end that was what drove me to Apple. Apple haven't put a foot wrong in keeping me. I bought a Samsung washing machine and it was *****. Wrecked clothes. In the end we sold it a short way through it's life cycle. It looked good but just didn't perform. I'd never buy another Samsung washing machine. I have a Samsung fridge. I scored it near new not going and got it sorted. It's run perfectly since but again quality meant it got ditched early in it's life cycle. Not having money at the time and needing a fridge it was my only choice.
The deal is this. If you sing loudly about your products then make damned sure they're going to work or you lose customers for future products of that type. I still have a strong hate of Microsoft stuff because they abused me for so long.
Samsung phones and tablets looks good. I hope they have the rest right.
Smart phones right now are looking like a two horse race and Samsung are doing well. Samsung is spending a lot in the US, both in advertising and manufacturing there. Competition is good.
Our experiences of a product often determine our future beliefs and buying decisions.
I had constant crap product and service from Microsoft and in the end that was what drove me to Apple. Apple haven't put a foot wrong in keeping me. I bought a Samsung washing machine and it was *****. Wrecked clothes. In the end we sold it a short way through it's life cycle. It looked good but just didn't perform. I'd never buy another Samsung washing machine. I have a Samsung fridge. I scored it near new not going and got it sorted. It's run perfectly since but again quality meant it got ditched early in it's life cycle. Not having money at the time and needing a fridge it was my only choice.
The deal is this. If you sing loudly about your products then make damned sure they're going to work or you lose customers for future products of that type. I still have a strong hate of Microsoft stuff because they abused me for so long.
Samsung phones and tablets looks good. I hope they have the rest right.
natd1993
macrumors regular
I really can't understand anyone would buy a Samsung phone. If you appreciate design and a well made product, Apple is the gold standard, and the former is like that crappy counterfeit store that sells knockoffs.
You can argue that the quality of a product lies in its functionality, but using something thats made out of cheap crappy plastics and engineered using substandard industrial methods? I'll take the iPhone 5's diamond chamfered edges and aluminium any day of the week.
Within a phone, a product that one uses on a daily basis, design and materials matter a heck of a lot. I must be in a completely different mindset, but I've literally never wanted to get a non Apple phone, I just can't deal with the design tradeoffs, within the feel of the product itself, and Android which seems messy and downright crappy coming from iOS.
I guess the late Steve Jobs put it best, 'We [Apple] just can't ship junk'.
You can argue that the quality of a product lies in its functionality, but using something thats made out of cheap crappy plastics and engineered using substandard industrial methods? I'll take the iPhone 5's diamond chamfered edges and aluminium any day of the week.
Within a phone, a product that one uses on a daily basis, design and materials matter a heck of a lot. I must be in a completely different mindset, but I've literally never wanted to get a non Apple phone, I just can't deal with the design tradeoffs, within the feel of the product itself, and Android which seems messy and downright crappy coming from iOS.
I guess the late Steve Jobs put it best, 'We [Apple] just can't ship junk'.
Oh jeez. Same comments/different thread. Apple V Samsung. iOS vs Android. Astroturfing, FUD and Tin Foil Hat parades.
It's as if it REALLY matters to anyone here what either company spends and whether or not they get enjoyment from their devices.
It's as if it REALLY matters to anyone here what either company spends and whether or not they get enjoyment from their devices.
Renzatic
Suspended
I can sum this post up in one all-caps paragraph.
MY BEVELS WERE CUT BY DIAMONDS! DIAMONDS ARE EXPENSIVE! APPLE IS GOODER AND I AM SMART FOR BUYING GOODER!
Forget the fact that plastic was just fine for previous iPhones.
Forget the fact that there may be a WEE bit bias. iOS and Android - while having similar functionality are two difference experiences. And it's good there's a choice.
uknowimright
Suspended
AppleScruff1
macrumors G4
Advertising is a good tax write off.
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You mean you wouldn't enjoy your device more if you knew the manufacturer made more profit and spent less on advertising than their chief competitor? 😀
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You mean you wouldn't enjoy your device more if you knew the manufacturer made more profit and spent less on advertising than their chief competitor? 😀
I know. I'm a black sheep. I just use the device that best suits my purpose and don't worry about anything else - whether that's an iPad, Apple TV, Samsung Skyrocket II phone, iPhone, etc. As long as I can do what I want with it - it's all good.
nagromme
macrumors G5
That's just hardware; software is what makes a modern touch device, and is 90% of the reason to choose one over another.
Of the other 10%... screen size is hardware! I like my slim iPhone, and shudder to see people lugging phablets, usually wrapped in massive cases. That's my preferences. BUT a big screen is worth it to other people, so that's one perfectly good reason to add a plus to Samsung when making a phone choice. Small phones are best. Big phones are best--in a different way. Take your pick. (The sharp-point stylus is nice too--for drawing mainly, but the art apps on Android can't compare to iOS. For the rest of users, that's a minor gimmick but still neat.)
As for software/functionality--people DO appreciate a better product, but only if they KNOW it's better. Many people simply don't know why iPhone is better. (Or Android--for some people--but Android is better mainly for a small techie niche who likes to tinker/troubleshoot and is willing to give up a lot of iOS benefits for that.) An iPad owner I know (regular person, not one of us techies) loves her iPad--has replaced her computer with it!--yet was shopping for a Samsung phone. The reason: two people who own them told her the usual vague things about "just like an iPhone but bigger and better." I told her why--for her needs--a Samsung would be so much worse*, and she's glad I steered her straight (but she does wish the iPhone came larger). Many of her Samsung friends would be better with an iPhone too, but they simply don't know--they assume and they parrot.
She was really excited about the "bumping phones" together that Samsung seems to have convinced people they invented. And it IS neat, maybe twice a year... but it's been on iPhone as one of the first apps ever released. My friend was amazed to learn that "iPhones can't do that" was false. Along with a lot of anti-Apple FUD about "control" etc. which really comes down to ease of use and respect for privacy.
Notably, her current phone she's replacing--which she just hates--is another Android brand. So it's true: the Galaxy brand is gaining its own massive mindshare separate from Android. Android has served her poorly, iPad has served her well, yet she still (briefly) wanted a Galaxy over an iPhone!
(* She's one who would have malware and 20-minute battery life within a week. And she wants the painless backup-restore of iOS: she hates setting up each new device from scratch and losing her comfortable setup. Meanwhile, customizing her home screen with various hacks and widgets is of no interest--she wants apps, and iOS has the most and best.)
Renzatic
Suspended
That sounds more like the fault of the programmer rather than the OS itself, because an uninstall should remove every single item from the program, rather than having a few files left lingering somewhere off in the background.
This is weird because this has always been the one biggest advantage 'nix OSes have had over Windows. With Android being a Linux derivative, you'd think it'd uninstall everything to do with Pandora, Spotify, ect. Weird that it doesn't.
Yeah. Sorry but this kind of crap being passed off as fact really needs to stop.
Renzatic
Suspended
Plastic is fine for everything except exuding that "quality" feel everyone around here loves so much. As you're already well aware, since we've both suffered through these conversations about a billion times in the past, plastic isn't any less expensive than aluminium, and only offers one nice advantage over plastic in terms of electronics.
Anyone who says plastic is a cheap material for crappy phones has either swallowed way too much marketing, or doesn't know what they're talking about.
The biggest problem with some people is that they'll try something for 5 minutes, see that they're not as quick with it as the thing they've been using for the past 3 years, and immediately dismiss it. Like when I first tried Android, I stumbled through it trying to figure out where everything was. I don't consider this a knock against Android because, hey, I did about the exact same thing with my iPhone when I first got it. Contrary to popular belief, you don't pick up an iOS device and somehow intuitively know how to use it the instant it hits your hand. There's a learning curve to it, much like anything else.
But, you know, that doesn't make for entertaining posts. It's much more fun to come on here and say "OLOL I tried blerg for, like, an hour and I HATED IT SO MUCH! How can people defend this CCCRRRAAAPPP...derp plus one me plz".
Exactly. Nothing "just works." And all phones and OSes crash, have glitches. Every device has a learning curve. If iOS and the iPhone was SO easy/intuitive - why are there classes at the Apple store on how to use them? Why are books published? Why are there lines at the Genius Bar and tons of posts on forums like these?
I'm not saying iOS or Android is easier or harder than the other. But people really need to stop parroting back slogans and marketing speak. They also need to understand that EVERYONE has a different (maybe sometimes similar) use case. I have NO idea who you are or what you do with your phone. I would never try to assert that what works for me is what HAS to work for you.
To be able to use aluminum case for iPhone Apple dropped the following features:
* replaceable battery
* memory cards
* NFC
* wireless charging
* [probably] simultaneous voice and LTE data on CDMA (Verizon) - because of issues with antennas
And speaking of "cheap", just look at the actual costs. iPhone's BOM (Bill Of Materials) is the lowest among the premium smart phones. It's literally one of the cheapest top of the [respective] line smart phones out there.
*Replaceable battery
I think its other reasons why they went to non replaceable batteries, but I don't think the Aluminum case is one of them. The iPhone never used user replaceable batteries even when it used plastic/Glass backed versions.
* NFC
* wireless charging
Wireless charging presents its own set of problems and does not necessarily solve many, other then not to use a cable. Its not very portable away from home, a case would be bulkier ect.
Last statistic I've seen on NFC is 8% adoption world wide in seven years time since its inception.
More then likely its due to its volume discounts of screens, memory and other crucial parts that it uses in bulk. Partially how it uses its huge cash reserves to its advantage.
Nope. BOMs are calculated using market prices. The reason iPhones are cheap is simple - Apple skimps on many components:
* iPhone has 1/2 RAM of most Android phones
* at any given price point, iPhone will have less flash memory
* On Verizon, iPhone has only single baseband chip. Android phones have two baseband chips (this is how they can do simultaneous voice and data)
* iPhone has the smallest battery
* iPhone has the smallest display with lowest resolution
* iPhone uses LCD display (OLED screens cost more)
* iPhone does not have NFC chip
Dave.UK
macrumors 65816
* iPhone has 1/2 RAM of most Android phones
Yet with better software optimizations, it had much less lag and ran more efficiently. So it did not necessarily need that much RAM then other manufactures.
* iPhone has the smallest battery
Considering its battery technology made it rechargeable 1000 times, squeezed more battery life in a smaller battery size, replaceable batteries is not as much an issue.
Before you were saying it had the lowest Bill Of Materials, now your saying its due to skimping out out on components, which one is it? You claim many features/components had to be dropped because of its aluminum case, that tells me its not so much about skimping on components.
How these iphones are manufactured can also have an effect on price. Does the aluminum body have to be milled from a single block of aluminum like some of its other devices? Things like that effect the price then just the cost of the parts alone.
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It has the lowest BOM exactly because of Apple skimping on components. Is not that clear? How else can one get a lower bill? BTW, Apple uses exactly the same battery technology as everyone else.
BaldiMac
macrumors G3
Negotiating a lower price. Economies of scale. Efficiency of design.
Or was that a trick question? 🙂