The Whining Bloggers Won. Apple Overreacted. Consumers Lost.

[whocaresit]

Until iOS 6, iOS was magnificent. Rich. Luxurious. Extravagant. Exuberant. AMAZING. INCREDIBLE in a word! Its aesthetic had no match.
The whining bloggers started complaining about Leather and Felt. Two apps that needed fixing, that was it. Then they jumped onto 'Skeuomorphism' bandwagon just because of Leather stitching and Contacts apps being like realworld counterparts. It was actually not that big of an issue.

Apple Overreacted. Removing everything that could be associated to the real-world. Like Reflections. Gloss. Shadows. Stripes. Textures. Colors. A reflective dock. Sign boards in Maps. Even Buttons, couldn't be saved.

Now all iOS 7 is, strictly speaking appearance-wise, obnoxiously ugly. Headache inducing. Every app looks the same, like it was put together the last minute. White everywhere. No shadows. Hard to read text. So much that it alienates the loyal and familiar iOS audience.

In the end, the bloggers successfully managed to bring down iPhone's OS aesthetic to 'just another Andriod-looking OS'. iOS has lost all it's character and richness. Everything feels dumbed-down and subdued.

 

[batting1000]

Totally.

 

[VolceOntra]

Did you not read the many other threads basically echoing how you feel?

 

[kerrikins]

Why does everyone feel the need to start their own thread instead of commenting on the 1093507 that already exist?

Some people will like it. Some people don't. We will NOT know until the fall whether the majority agree or disagree with opinions on either side so everyone should just cool off until then and stop posting separate threads for everything.

 

[gadget123]

Until iOS 6, iOS was magnificent. Rich. Luxurious. Extravagant. Exuberant. AMAZING. INCREDIBLE in a word! Its aesthetic had no match.
The whining bloggers started complaining about Leather and Felt. Two apps that needed fixing, that was it. Then they jumped onto 'Skeuomorphism' bandwagon just because of Leather stitching and Contacts apps being like realworld counterparts. It was actually not that big of an issue.

Apple Overreacted. Removing everything that could be associated to the real-world. Like Reflections. Gloss. Shadows. Stripes. Textures. Colors. A reflective dock. Even Buttons, couldn't be saved.

Now all iOS 7 is, strictly speaking appearance-wise, obnoxiously ugly. Headache inducing. Every app looks the same, like it was put together the last minute. White everywhere. No shadows. Hard to read text. So much that it alienates the loyal and familiar iOS audience.
In the end, the bloggers successfully managed to bring down iPhone's OS aesthetic to 'just another Andriod-looking OS'. iOS has lost all it's character and richness. Everything feels dumbed-down and subdued.

I think it was more due to Scott Forstall leaving and Ive taking over to be honest. The bloggers will get the blame but IOS up until 6 had a good reputation and satisfaction rate.

Everything Steve Jobs built up seems to be changing. Introduction of cheaper products like Ipad minis and plastic iphones due? Plus a drastic change in OS.

I'm afraid the Apple of recent times is changing it seems.

 

[gpsouza]

Why does some people comment in a topic that they don't like? Just ignore it!

I agree with the OP.

 

[gadget123]

Why does everyone feel the need to start their own thread instead of commenting on the 1093507 that already exist?

Some people will like it. Some people don't. We will NOT know until the fall whether the majority agree or disagree with opinions on either side so everyone should just cool off until then and stop posting separate threads for everything.

I agree but even a 50/50 divide is not great. What was the satisfaction rate with IOS 6? Must be quite high.

No good Apple only pleasing half. The idea is to develop something a majority like..for any company surely?

 

[thejadedmonkey]

I agree but even a 50/50 divide is not great. What was the satisfaction rate with IOS 6? Must be quite high.

No good Apple only pleasing half. The idea is to develop something a majority like..for any company surely?

It's not just "satisfaction". Actually the key metric is more like "likely to buy again" or "would recommend to a friend". And that metric is falling across the board. the iPhone is "expensive", "boring", "for old people", or as my incredibly non-techie girlfriend put it "don't get one JadedMonkey".

if Apple really comes out with a $99 colored iPhone, revitalizes the unchanged-for-6-years UI, and can get that "likely to buy again" metric back up, iOS 7 will have been a success. Even if 100% of the people who use it hate the UI.

 

[gadget123]

It's not just "satisfaction". Actually the key metric is more like "likely to buy again" or "would recommend to a friend". And that metric is falling across the board. the iPhone is "expensive", "boring", "for old people", or as my incredibly non-techie girlfriend put it "don't get one JadedMonkey".

if Apple really comes out with a $99 colored iPhone, revitalizes the unchanged-for-6-years UI, and can get that "likely to buy again" metric back up, iOS 7 will have been a success. Even if 100% of the people who use it hate the UI.

If someone hates it, they won't recommend to a friend and will be put off future products as IOS7 is forced. I wouldn't touch a new computer with Windows 8 on it due to it being rubbish.

Let's be honest I like Iphone 5 but it's took a bit of a hit, sales have not been what Apple expected. Bloggers will blame lack of innovation but there's no evidence people like phones with screens to large anyway. I think the sales of the 5 were low as people get locked into two year contracts so can't upgrade. The new trade in rumour might work?

And some argue the new OS will attract new customers but the word from Android users is it offers nothing more than what they have already as it's copying anyway. Plus you are not stuck with the bright colour scheme so the ball has swung to Android which offers a much more fluid and customisable OS.

 

[joemeetsjane]

the world will continuously change and hopefully, evolve.

some might join the ride, others will stay steadfast and be left behind.

 

[kerrikins]

I agree but even a 50/50 divide is not great. What was the satisfaction rate with IOS 6? Must be quite high.

No good Apple only pleasing half. The idea is to develop something a majority like..for any company surely?

But the market is changing. See, when Apple came into the picture the average consumer did not use smartphones. People like to point to the smartphones that existed before the iPhone but the truth is that at the time the average person probably had a Razr or some other phone like it. Smartphones were for business people.

The iPhone made the average consumer *want* a smartphone and this was a shift that other companies weren't ready for, and that's why they were caught flat-footed... Apple found a way to make the smartphone appealing to everyone from little kids all the way to older people and their OS was so friendly and well designed that it took other companies awhile to catch up. In the meantime Apple had such good word of mouth that pick-up of other models only really started to take off in the last two years.

But see, now we're six years after the launch of the first iPhone and cellphone use is high, so is smartphone adoption. People are much more comfortable with smartphones and they want more functionality and they want change, too. The 'cool' factor has ebbed with Apple and now people are a bit more demanding and a little bit bored. People as a whole really like it when you take something familiar, spruce it up a bit so that it feels brand new, and add in new things that they can do, too, and the market is very ripe for that right now.

That's what I think Apple is going for in this update - put on a fresh new design, add in new functionality, maybe add in new selection of the phone models in the fall, too. If people like it then iOS 7 could be an incredible success, but either way they had to try, IMO. I bet they're feeling the pressure to not lose dominance in phones the way that they did with PCs pretty keenly. It is *way* too early to tell whether this OS will be successful with the public, because right now the only people paying attention are the people who are early adopters in general anyway or people who are paid to write about Apple and pay attention.

We won't know how this is going to work out until the phone is actually launched and in the average consumer's hands.

 

[darngooddesign]

It's not just "satisfaction". Actually the key metric is more like "likely to buy again" or "would recommend to a friend". And that metric is falling across the board. the iPhone is "expensive", "boring", "for old people", or as my incredibly non-techie girlfriend put it "don't get one JadedMonkey".

if Apple really comes out with a $99 colored iPhone, revitalizes the unchanged-for-6-years UI, and can get that "likely to buy again" metric back up, iOS 7 will have been a success. Even if 100% of the people who use it hate the UI.

Most customer satisfaction polls have the iPhone solidly in the likely to buy again category. Regardless of what your girlfriend says.

I'm sure you can cite the iPhone's fall from grace.

 

[gadget123]

But the market is changing. See, when Apple came into the picture the average consumer did not use smartphones. People like to point to the smartphones that existed before the iPhone but the truth is that at the time the average person probably had a Razr or some other phone like it. Smartphones were for business people.

The iPhone made the average consumer *want* a smartphone and this was a shift that other companies weren't ready for, and that's why they were caught flat-footed... Apple found a way to make the smartphone appealing to everyone from little kids all the way to older people and their OS was so friendly and well designed that it took other companies awhile to catch up. In the meantime Apple had such good word of mouth that pick-up of other models only really started to take off in the last two years.

But see, now we're six years after the launch of the first iPhone and cellphone use is high, so is smartphone adoption. People are much more comfortable with smartphones and they want more functionality and they want change, too. The 'cool' factor has ebbed with Apple and now people are a bit more demanding and a little bit bored. People as a whole really like it when you take something familiar, spruce it up a bit so that it feels brand new, and add in new things that they can do, too, and the market is very ripe for that right now.

That's what I think Apple is going for in this update - put on a fresh new design, add in new functionality, maybe add in new selection of the phone models in the fall, too. If people like it then iOS 7 could be an incredible success, but either way they had to try, IMO. I bet they're feeling the pressure to not lose dominance in phones the way that they did with PCs pretty keenly.

Listen I agree maybe some people felt it had to change to keep up. However I think Apple has totally redesigned it in a bad way poor colours and complicated. Too big a change in one year maybe? If Apple released something decent there would be some praise.

I think what Apple has done is everybodys worst nightmare. I think many feared the Android style but the colour scheme came as a surprise to all.

IOS is known for being very easy to use. Without a total rebuild of IOS7 I can't see how it's going to be easy to use. Yes some people find it ok but I can see many not liking it.

 

[watchthisspace]

You are welcome to stay on iOS:6. But Apple needed to be bold and daring to keep iOS relevant with what the market is doing. I, for one, like what I see is coming with iOS:7. It's change, but it's still the familiar iOS we know and love.

If Apple wanted the iPhone to be a best seller, it not just sit idle and bring camera and speed updates. iOS itself needs to accommodate,embrace and go with change.

In my other posts I always mention it's not as if iOS is like going from Windows 7 to Windows 8. It's definitely going from Windows XP to Windows 7. How we interact with our iDevice is fundamentally the same, but what we see is changing, evolving, staying current with the trend.

 

[gadget123]

You are welcome to stay on iOS:6. But Apple needed to be bold and daring to keep iOS relevant with what the market is doing. I, for one, like what I see is coming with iOS:7. It's change, but it's still the familiar iOS we know and love.

If Apple wanted the iPhone to be a best seller, it not just sit idle and bring camera and speed updates. iOS itself needs to accommodate,embrace and go with change.

In my other posts I always mention it's not as if iOS is like going from Windows 7 to Windows 8. It's definitely going from Windows XP to Windows 7. How we interact with our iDevice is fundamentally the same, but what we see is changing, evolving, staying current with the trend.

Ok let's be clear:

If IOS7 stayed the same people could leave yeah?

If IOS7 changes too much, in a bad way people will leave?

If IOS7 changes in a great way, intuitive, creative and progressive and offers clear upgrades over the last one people will love it?

Apple went for option 2 bad unpopular change. They risk an uncertain year of sales and take up of it on existing devices will be interesting to say the least.

For me it's such a radical change, I highlight that word that I have to switch platforms.

 

[darngooddesign]

Yes some people find it ok but I can see many not liking it.

Many people will like it. Some people will not.

 

[gadget123]

Many people will like it. Some people will not.

More people seem to dislike than previous versions. Nobody knows what will happen to sales ect..It's a wait and see first.

 

[kerrikins]

Apple went for option 2 bad unpopular change. They risk an uncertain year of sales and take up of it on existing devices will be interesting to say the least.

For me it's such a radical change, I highlight that word that I have to switch platforms.

Early adopter opinion says *nothing* about how an OS will be received, though. Studies have shown that it doesn't matter how enthusiastic or furious early adopters are, it matters how the second and third waves of adoption receive the product. We have no idea how the market will take to this OS because it hasn't even been released yet! If you're going by Macrumors and the tech world then you're looking in the wrong places because one section loves to complain and the other makes no money if all they print is 'everyone loves it and it's perfect'. Perfection and things going well are boring in the media world. You can't even go by 'design rules' because those change all the time.

Seriously, you could be right, but it's too early to tell.

 

[jjlannoo]

headache inducing? lol

 

[darngooddesign]

More people seem to dislike than previous versions. Nobody knows what will happen to sales ect..It's a wait and see first.

No. Some bloggers and people on MacRumors dislike it. Do you really think that's what the majority of iPhone users are?

According to the vocal minority on MR, every single iPhone and iPad has had massive physical defects and everyone required multiple exchanges to get something usable. Is that what you really think played out in reality?

As always all you hear from is the vocal minority.

 

[KenAFSPC]

It's not just "satisfaction". Actually the key metric is more like "likely to buy again" or "would recommend to a friend". And that metric is falling across the board. the iPhone is "expensive", "boring", "for old people", or as my incredibly non-techie girlfriend put it "don't get one JadedMonkey".

if Apple really comes out with a $99 colored iPhone, revitalizes the unchanged-for-6-years UI, and can get that "likely to buy again" metric back up, iOS 7 will have been a success. Even if 100% of the people who use it hate the UI.

The iPhone 5 is the #1 selling phone model in North America, by a wide margin, for good reason. Apple should not be so quick to throw out the baby with the bathwater. Most people who purchase a different phone do so for one (or more) of three reasons: cost, customizability, or a larger screen. IOS7 addresses none of these.

What Apple should do (or should have done):

1. Allow people to create and sell their own icon/themes sets in the App Store. That would address customizability. Apple could release a few themes or skins themselves to launch the category.

2. Release an iPhone 6 with a 4.2" screen (identical form factor, thinner screen bezel) and offer an "XL" version with a 4.7" or 4.8" screen.

3. Re-release the existing 4" iPhone 5 hardware in a plastic case for $99 after subsidy.

4. Add all the other IOS7 features, minus the aesthetic changes.

These are changes everyone can support.

 

[gadget123]

Early adopter opinion says *nothing* about how an OS will be received, though. Studies have shown that it doesn't matter how enthusiastic or furious early adopters are, it matters how the second and third waves of adoption receive the product. We have no idea how the market will take to this OS because it hasn't even been released yet! If you're going by Macrumors and the tech world then you're looking in the wrong places because one section loves to complain and the other makes no money if all they print is 'everyone loves it and it's perfect'. Perfection and things going well are boring in the media world. You can't even go by 'design rules' because those change all the time.

Seriously, you could be right, but it's too early to tell.

Like I say no company can dominate forever. I think Apple will fall eventually and need somebody else to turn the ship again. I think Tim Cook isn't helping Apple. He seems to admit more mistakes than Jobs so if IOS7 is a total failure I wonder if he will be honest and say they made a mistake like the maps thing? If it does fail I think Ive should be moved on from software.

I'm a very analytical person and I think it will fail and the main reason is it's not offering anything in terms of radical improvement on what else is on the market and actually makes IOS worse in areas.

If Apple doesn't do a big U turn I think customers will do the U Turn and leave. Certainly interesting times ahead.

 

[darngooddesign]

The iPhone 5 is the #1 selling phone model in North America, by a wide margin, for good reason. Apple should not be so quick to throw out the baby with the bathwater. Most people who purchase a different phone do so for one (or more) of three reasons: cost, customizability, or a larger screen. IOS7 addresses none of these.

Your three reasons are flawed. The 4S sold as well as the 5 and it offered none of the things you said drives people to buy anew phone.

 

[gadget123]

The iPhone 5 is the #1 selling phone model in North America, by a wide margin, for good reason. Apple should not be so quick to throw out the baby with the bathwater. Most people who purchase a different phone do so for one (or more) of three reasons: cost, customizability, or a larger screen. IOS7 addresses none of these.

What Apple should do (or should have done):

1. Allow people to create and sell their own icon/themes sets in the App Store. That would address customizability. Apple could release a few themes or skins themselves to launch the category.

2. Release an iPhone 6 with a 4.2" screen (identical form factor, thinner screen bezel) and offer an "XL" version with a 4.7" or 4.8" screen.

3. Re-release the existing 4" iPhone hardware in a plastic case for $99 after subsidy.

4. Add all the other IOS7 features, minus the aesthetic changes.

These are changes everyone can support.

The word is there's a lack of demand for Iphone 5:

http://www.technightowl.com/2013/02/apple-gear-so-much-for-a-lack-of-demand/

 

[watchthisspace]

Ok let's be clear:

If IOS7 stayed the same people could leave yeah?

If IOS7 changes too much, in a bad way people will leave?

If IOS7 changes in a great way, intuitive, creative and progressive and offers clear upgrades over the last one people will love it?

Apple went for option 2 bad unpopular change. They risk an uncertain year of sales and take up of it on existing devices will be interesting to say the least.

For me it's such a radical change, I highlight that word that I have to switch platforms.

In a nut shell, yes, that would be how it work. But we don't really know how many people will leave, love it, or care.

Right now iOS:7 is still beta, so things will probably change before the GM is released to the public.

Until then, fundamentals such as sliding to unlock, pull down notifications and how we interact with the phone, e.g tapping the icons, folders for organisation are still there, with a different look.

If you feel such changes will force you to switch platform, then that's understandable, but keep in mind you will be learning the ins and outs of Android, Windows Phone, Ubuntu Phone or whichever platform you move to.