Apple's 'Fanatical' Attention to Detail Revealed in Apple Campus 2 Report

[triton100]

Apple has "borrowed" plenty of ideas from others. There are smart people working in other companies also.

You're correct. However, a Samsung in-house manual outlining the most efficient ways of copying the iPhone would argue differently

...and if you forget to charge it, and it runs out just as you start to work, wouldn't it be better if you could just plug it in and go on using it while it got a full charge? Would there be any penalty for that extra functionality?

We're talking about attention to detail here - that's not the same thing as fitness for purpose. There's plenty of cheaper kit that's fit for purpose.

I do see your point. But I don't see it as a lack of attention to detail. It's a wireless mouse so was never designed or meant to be used tethered.

Those times I have forgotten to charge like you, I simply do a quick 3 minute charge for a full days use. Then remember to charge that night.

 

[Tinmania]

"1/8 of an inch" - JUST SWITCH TO THE METRIC SYSTEM ALREADY!!

Okay then .125 inches. Happy?


Mike

 

[guzhogi]

Okay then .125 inches. Happy?

If you really wanted to be snarky, you would've said 3.17 mm or .317 cm.

Edit: yes, I know how ironic I'm being.

 

[brvhrt]

I laughed out loud when I hit these two remarks, since I came here to post, after reading this interesting piece, that I realized why the stuff I've got from Apple since the 80s "just works" for this human being. In particular I've had great experiences with the phones and the laptops. And the work Apple has brought to us in the way of human interface with computers over the decades is just astounding. I'm not surprised if there are armies of obsessed designers, engineers, developers and QA mavens behind the scenes. They deserve a working environment that complements their own dedication if you ask me.

I'll never forget booting my 512k for the first time on the kitchen table, wrappings and box strewn around me, and seeing that smiling Mac face. That thing still works and I still remember awe over MacPaint.

Long may Apple keep obsessing over details. It's why the iPhone (an SE at the moment) and their laptops (MBPs now) are still my choice over more inexpensive options. And for the moments when something's gone awry, the experiences I've had with customer service using AppleCare and now AppleCare+ make those products more than worth the cost. Living in the boondocks means I've experienced amazingly short turnarounds for shipped-in diagnosis and repair with no more effort than point, click, pop the thing into a box Apple sent me, call the courier and sign for the thing when it comes back.

Above all I appreciate Apple's willingness to collect input on its stuff from end users, everything from public beta to provision for formal feedback. I'm not suprised about that really, but I'm grateful.

[ now if Apple would just obsess over letting iTunes do all that it used to provide for those with an obsession for editing multiple playlists at once -- and yes, I have definitely put that into feedback ]

I just want to be clear with people who are quoting me before expounding on how Apple are all about attention to detail...

The kind of things I am talking about when I say they are not details focused these days are, in no particular order and not limited to:

Small, easy to fix things like iMessage, contacts, etc have different icons in macOS and iOS. This kind of thing should be obvious to someone who is details focused.
Interface issues like play button in control center not working first time, randomly changing established UI like swipe to unlock. Details like this matter.
The Apple TV remote.
The new TV app or whatever it's called.
Actually, everything to do with the Apple TV is incredibly frustrating in use versus what it was meant to be.
Siri.
The humbacked battery case, wireless mouse / pencil charging, etc. Shortcuts, all of them.
Different fragmented tech standards and connectivity in iPad Pros / Airs / Minis / iPhones. Profit before details, every time.
iTunes / Apple Music features and functions too numerous to list. Band aids all over those products / services.

Aperture completely abandoned. Anyone "details focused" would realize the colossal amount of time and effort users have to put into creating and maintaining a photo database and how time consuming it is to switch (I see Tim boasting about Apple support of photography in France recently. How ironic). It's not the same as changing video editors or DAWs and Photos wasn't an answer for most power users and pros.

Logic X still uses easy to resolve legacy UI in many plugins.
Apple services in general are poor versus Google and some Microsoft like Outlook and Onedrive.
Customer service in stores - staff are great but wait times and sign in procedures are a cattle market. Apple Stores are not the pleasant environment they used to be.

I'm also seeing fingerprints, smudges, scratches, etc on new, sealed hardware relatively frequently these days whilst a few years ago everything was absolutely mint condition - not even a fingerprint on it. Details.
Speaking of hardware, how did none of the product testers come across the same battery life issues with the new Macbook Pros? Did they not notice or did they just think "f*ck it" let's just release it anyway. Either way...details.

I mean, Apple used to be so perfect in my experience - narrow SKU lineup of products which worked first time every time, useful iLife suite for home users, Pro Apps for prosumers and pros, never any issues with hardware, software and services whatsoever. None. Now I have a drawer full of different dongles and chargers, rebooting Apple TV and Macs frequently, errors, non syncing issues (the recent known Notes iCloud issue in particular really annoyed me). Throw in practically useless developments that nobody asked for such as the touchbar too.

Apple used to keep everything tight and focused, the result being things were easier for them to manage so everything just worked and their claim that it did was plausible. Not so much now.

They are definitely nowhere near as details focused as they used to be.

 

[kemal]

Apple engineers will expect a threshold. The lack of such will cause them to adjust their gate and trip. Since they will be inside the building at that point, Apple will have to pay for the work related nose damage.

 

[freediverx]

Apple has "borrowed" plenty of ideas from others.

This is a tired old trope based on a common misunderstanding of what it means to borrow or copy in the artistic sense.

It's been said many times that all art is derivative. Steve Jobs famously quoted Picasso: "Good artists copy. Great artists steal." This is interesting because this maxim originated in the writings of W. H. Davenport Adams in the late 19th century and was later tweaked and repurposed by the likes of T.S. Eliot, Stravinsky, and Faulkner before being attributed to Picasso by Jobs.

But again, many people take this statement literally with no clue as to what it actually means.

In the Apple/Picasso sense, to copy means to take an existing idea and apply it in a novel and creative way. To steal means to transform and apply the idea in such a superlative way that the "copy" outshines the original and becomes the new standard bearer.

For example, when Apple introduced the iPad in 2010, they also revealed a clever folding protective cover with built in magnets that allowed it to be effortlessly installed or removed and automatically toggled between the iPad's sleep and wake states. Though Apple has never commented on this, some folks have pointed out that the iPad cover's design bears a striking resemblance to that of a certain obscure Japanese bath tub cover.

If accurate, this is a brilliant example of borrowing an existing good idea from one field and applying it in a completely new and original way to another.

This is, of course, is very different from "copying" in the literal sense, which is what we saw after Apple introduced the first iPhone.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

What's it matter to you how long it takes to get the (ludicrously high) standards for the company HQ's done?

Apple's entirely new campus, which required literally inventing new techniques for things such as glass bending and installation, is on track for a 3/4 year complete build.

So lets get this straight. Apple decided to cut corners on the new MacBook Pro, a product that they're shipping to customers, and decided to use old batteries and old CPUs, because they lacked the engineering resources to figure out the new batteries, because they dedicated all those resources to inventing new door handles for a building that only their employees will ever use.

 

[69Mustang]

Well, if Apple's design is such that they don't see it being a good experience to use a wireless device being used with a wire then making the charging experience such that it prevents that type of use which isn't seen as desirable is in fact quite a bit of attention to detail.

We're just gonna disagree on that. Apple design aesthetic is usually pretty good. It's just my opinion, but a stylus sticking out of an iPad and a mouse flipped on it's side for charging is not attention to detail, or if you'd like, attention to the wrong detail.

Your entire argument falls flat when considering I can use all of these wireless Apple devices while they are being charged with a wire: the iPad, the iPhone, and all Macbooks. With all that being said, you want to posit that they considered it undesirable to use a mouse with a wire attached? A mouse. A charging cable attached to a stylus? I'd buy that as being undesirable. But a mouse? You lost me there. But hey, to each his own.

 

[Tinmania]

Timeline of Apple Campus 2:
- 2006: Bought land
- 2011: Approved
- 2013: Broke Ground
- 2017: Still working on it... completely unused thus far.

We're talking about one freaking office building and 11 years after purchasing the land, they still aren't done. They're not even done designing the door handles. The amount this building will change the world is not at all. It's a pointless and vain project.

Timeline of Tesla Gigafactory 1:
- 2014: Bought Land & Approved
- 2015: Broke Ground
- 2016: Began using it (Planned to finish construction in 2020.)

It took them two years to go from buying the land to putting it to use. It's the worlds largest building by footprint, and second largest by volume. Next year, they plan on building more batteries in the one (unfinished) building than the entire world built in 2014. In 2020 (when it finishes), they plan to build more batteries in the one building it than will be built worldwide this year.

One of these companies can move and innovate. The other one takes their time on utterly pointless projects.

One of these companies' founders designed an office building that looks like a "spaceship." The other one actually builds spaceships.



Mike

 

[Gasu E.]

It's an anecdotal case to illustrate something bigger. Surely everyone working with iOS, Mac OS regularly has come across their share of annoying bugs and glitches.

Bugs have nothing to do with "attention to detail". "Attention to detail" relates to design; bugs relate to process.

Bugs are due to complex internal interactions that cannot be foreseen by any human review or intelligence. Therefore, testing processes are set up to find bugs through processes that do things that are completely unlike what a human engineer would do if they were paying "attention to detail".

 

[NT1440]

So lets get this straight. Apple decided to cut corners on the new MacBook Pro, a product that they're shipping to customers, and decided to use old batteries and old CPUs, because they lacked the engineering resources to figure out the new batteries, because they dedicated all those resources to inventing new door handles for a building that only their employees will ever use.

Sure.

If in some fantasy world a ****ing battery engineer is doing double duty as an architect.

Asinine doesn't even begin to describe the mental gymnastics at play here.

 

[Tinmania]

If you really wanted to be snarky, you would've said 3.17 mm or .317 cm.

I'm guessing you don't see the irony in what you posted.


Mike

 

[theluggage]

Well, if Apple's design is such that they don't see it being a good experience to use a wireless device being used with a wire then making the charging experience such that it prevents that type of use which isn't seen as desirable is in fact quite a bit of attention to detail.

Its not like people with Logitech mice keep them plugged in permanently. I plug it in to charge, and unplug it when it is fully charged. I bought a wireless mouse for a reason! Its just that I can still use it while its plugged in, so it gets a full charge and I don't get stuck in a cycle of endless top-ups.

So your saying its like the parody "goto" statement in standard Pascal?

Back in the day, Pascal evangelist's main beef about BASIC's was its reliance on the GOTO line-number statement. They mostly had a point but, unfortunately, before languages had proper exception handling there were a few cases in which it was the "least bad" solution to (e.g.) deal with an external error or quickly patch some existing code. So, rather than adapt to a less-than-perfect world, the designers of standard ISO Pascal implemented a GOTO statement in the most bloody-mindedly awful and unfriendly way possible: "goto number" where number had to be in the range 0-9999 but still had to be declared in advance as well as prefixed to the line it referenced. (Note: most implementations ignored this nonsense, and let you use a meaningful name as a label, but go check out ISO 7185:1990 Pascal standard and there it is...)

 

[C DM]

We're just gonna disagree on that. Apple design aesthetic is usually pretty good. It's just my opinion, but a stylus sticking out of an iPad and a mouse flipped on it's side for charging is not attention to detail, or if you'd like, attention to the wrong detail.

Your entire argument falls flat when considering I can use all of these wireless Apple devices while they are being charged with a wire: the iPad, the iPhone, and all Macbooks. With all that being said, you want to posit that they considered it undesirable to use a mouse with a wire attached? A mouse. A charging cable attached to a stylus? I'd buy that as being undesirable. But a mouse? You lost me there. But hey, to each his own.

There's an important difference in the use of those devices where the mouse is a device that is meant to be moved around all the time as part of it's inherent and main functionality, while that isn't the case with the other devices you mentioned.

As for wires and mice, one of the main things when it comes to wireless mice is to be free of wires that can often get in the way in one way or another. Nothing really strange that a company might want to not compromize on that even with charging in play. That's not to say that it can't be done or it would be horrible to use it like that or anything of the sort, simply that it's not exactly an unreasonable approach to it especially from a company that often has its own views on the use of something and tries to design things to those views.

 

[rGiskard]

It would be nice if they gave this sort of attention to regular product updates.

 

[1050792]

This is a tired old trope based on a common misunderstanding of what it means to borrow or copy in the artistic sense.

It's been said many times that all art is derivative. Steve Jobs famously quoted Picasso: "Good artists copy. Great artists steal." This is interesting because this maxim originated in the writings of W. H. Davenport Adams in the late 19th century and was later tweaked and repurposed by the likes of T.S. Eliot, Stravinsky, and Faulkner before being attributed to Picasso by Jobs.

But again, many people take this statement literally with no clue as to what it actually means.

In the Apple/Picasso sense, to copy means to take an existing idea and apply it in a novel and creative way. To steal means to transform and apply the idea in such a superlative way that the "copy" outshines the original and becomes the new standard bearer.

For example, when Apple introduced the iPad in 2010, they also revealed a clever folding protective cover with built in magnets that allowed it to be effortlessly installed or removed and automatically toggled between the iPad's sleep and wake states. Though Apple has never commented on this, some folks have pointed out that the iPad cover's design bears a striking resemblance to that of a certain obscure Japanese bath tub cover.

If accurate, this is a brilliant example of borrowing an existing good idea from one field and applying it in a completely new and original way to another.

This is, of course, is very different from "copying" in the literal sense, which is what we saw after Apple introduced the first iPhone.

So all the new smartphones that came after the first iPhone should be in another shape? Maybe circular? I forgot Apple had patents for the smartphone shape...

 

[NT1440]

There's an important difference in the use of those devices where the mouse is a device that is meant to be moved around all the time as part of it's inherent and main functionality, while that isn't the case with the other devices you mentioned.

And given that you about two weeks of notifications that the battery is low, how ****ing hard is it to plug it in overnight when not in use?

 

[LizKat]

I just want to be clear with people who are quoting me before expounding on how Apple are all about attention to detail...

The kind of things I am talking about when I say they are not details focused these days are, in no particular order and not limited to:

~snip~​

I mean, Apple used to be so perfect in my experience - narrow SKU lineup of products which worked first time every time, useful iLife suite for home users, Pro Apps for prosumers and pros, never any issues with hardware, software and services whatsoever. None. Now I have a drawer full of different dongles and chargers, rebooting Apple TV and Macs frequently, errors, non syncing issues (the recent known Notes iCloud issue in particular really annoyed me). Throw in practically useless developments that nobody asked for such as the touchbar too.

Apple used to keep everything tight and focused, the result being things were easier for them to manage so everything just worked and their claim that it did was plausible. Not so much now.

They are definitely nowhere near as details focused as they used to be.

Points well taken... and I'm no fan of the dongles which is why I'm using old tech in the MBPs over going with the flow at the moment. I think they have had growing pains ever since the MBAs and iPads rolled out. In some respects I regret the markets' pressure on all companies to "innovate" and "grow" and so forth at the expense of sticking with the craftsmanship that brought them to market to begin with... but I still love it that the obsession with detail shines through in what Apple does try to do, even if they need to invest in some more Q&A.

I do wish Apple would be more forthcoming about the extent to which they have various responses to feedback in the works. They bring upon themselves some of the criticism they pull in by being so closemouthed on whether they're addressing commonly cited "issues" or not. I realize since they're Apple they'll never quit trying to figure out what we need before we think we need it. I concede to them that they've been right a lot of the time. I've also cursed them for being at least somewhat ahead of the curve when they roll out stuff that says "and btw you don't even need this, or that, any more." Well maybe that's at least temporarily a crock for a lot of us.

There's a certain bubble quality about being inside Apple and wired/wirelessed/cellsignalled to the gills --and devs probably running as root half the time-- versus being out here in the boonies with no cell towers and an intermittent DSL connection, for instance while running a well-advised "standard privileges" setup in most cases. Not a little of my feedback to Apple has been about stuff like that. I don't expect them to cater to me but I expect them to listen when I remind them that people in the boondocks buy Apple stuff too and that end users are not devs so if they expect stuff like authorizations to stick and that only happens with admin setups,,,,, yada yada.... I think some of that feedback has been taken on board, but sometimes it's hard to tell.

 

[C DM]

Its not like people with Logitech mice keep them plugged in permanently. I plug it in to charge, and unplug it when it is fully charged. I bought a wireless mouse for a reason! Its just that I can still use it while its plugged in, so it gets a full charge and I don't get stuck in a cycle of endless top-ups.

So your saying its like the parody "goto" statement in standard Pascal?

Back in the day, Pascal evangelist's main beef about BASIC's was its reliance on the GOTO line-number statement. They mostly had a point but, unfortunately, before languages had proper exception handling there were a few cases in which it was the "least bad" solution to (e.g.) deal with an external error or quickly patch some existing code. So, rather than adapt to a less-than-perfect world, the designers of standard ISO Pascal implemented a GOTO statement in the most bloody-mindedly awful and unfriendly way possible: "goto number" where number had to be in the range 0-9999 but still had to be declared in advance as well as prefixed to the line it referenced. (Note: most implementations ignored this nonsense, and let you use a meaningful name as a label, but go check out ISO 7185:1990 Pascal standard and there it is...)

I'm simply saying that if Apple has such a view in relation to a device like a wireless mouse then they paid attention to details as they aligned with their view and design. Whether or not someone might believe that the design isn't a good one or doesn't work as well for them is a related but a separate item to the concept of paying attention to detail.

 

[freediverx]

Apple decided to cut corners on the new MacBook Pro... decided to use old batteries and old CPUs, because they lacked the engineering resources to figure out the new batteries, because they dedicated all those resources to inventing new door handles for a building that only their employees will ever use.

Was this meant as humor or are you really this clueless?

What newer battery technology did Apple neglect to incorporate? Since when is Apple responsible for Intel's delayed release of new CPUs?
[doublepost=1486485473][/doublepost]

It would be nice if they gave this sort of attention to regular product updates.

Designing and building a new headquarters is a one-off project without any hard time or cost constraints. Designing and building a new iPhone must be done within a very tight and specific timeframe and under very tight cost constraints.

 

[applezulu]

"Magical"View attachment 687345

I would imagine that's a great way to prevent users from leaving the wireless mouse plugged in while using it, only to complain that its operation is clunky or otherwise less-than-optimal. Same deal with the pencil.

 

[koa]

If Apple's engineers are that preoccupied with their train of thought they can't navigate an entrance threshold, how are they going to make it from the parking area to the entrance without being run over?

 

[69Mustang]

There's an important difference in the use of those devices where the mouse is a device that is meant to be moved around all the time as part of it's inherent and main functionality, while that isn't the case with the other devices you mentioned.

C DM, I've seen so many intelligent posts by you. This one? Not one of your best. How would the charging cable be an impediment to moving a mouse around? I'm not asking with snark. Mice have been moving around desk tops since their inception. Even if I bought into triton100's argument about quick charge times, it still wouldn't make sense. Because following the quick charge logic, I could plug in the mouse and keep working instead of stopping. 1, 2, or 3 minutes later I could disconnect the cable and keep it moving. There's no appreciable benefit to that charge port being on the bottom.

 

[C DM]

I just want to be clear with people who are quoting me before expounding on how Apple are all about attention to detail...

The kind of things I am talking about when I say they are not details focused these days are, in no particular order and not limited to:

Small, easy to fix things like iMessage, contacts, etc have different icons in macOS and iOS. This kind of thing should be obvious to someone who is details focused.
Interface issues like play button in control center not working first time, randomly changing established UI like swipe to unlock. Details like this matter.
The Apple TV remote.
The new TV app or whatever it's called.
Actually, everything to do with the Apple TV is incredibly frustrating in use versus what it was meant to be.
Siri.
The humbacked battery case, wireless mouse / pencil charging, etc. Shortcuts, all of them.
Different fragmented tech standards and connectivity in iPad Pros / Airs / Minis / iPhones. Profit before details, every time.
iTunes / Apple Music features and functions too numerous to list. Band aids all over those products / services.

Aperture completely abandoned. Anyone "details focused" would realize the colossal amount of time and effort users have to put into creating and maintaining a photo database and how time consuming it is to switch (I see Tim boasting about Apple support of photography in France recently. How ironic). It's not the same as changing video editors or DAWs and Photos wasn't an answer for most power users and pros.

Logic X still uses easy to resolve legacy UI in many plugins.
Apple services in general are poor versus Google and some Microsoft like Outlook and Onedrive.
Customer service in stores - staff are great but wait times and sign in procedures are a cattle market. Apple Stores are not the pleasant environment they used to be.

I'm also seeing fingerprints, smudges, scratches, etc on new, sealed hardware relatively frequently these days whilst a few years ago everything was absolutely mint condition - not even a fingerprint on it. Details.
Speaking of hardware, how did none of the product testers come across the same battery life issues with the new Macbook Pros? Did they not notice or did they just think "f*ck it" let's just release it anyway. Either way...details.

I mean, Apple used to be so perfect in my experience - narrow SKU lineup of products which worked first time every time, useful iLife suite for home users, Pro Apps for prosumers and pros, never any issues with hardware, software and services whatsoever. None. Now I have a drawer full of different dongles and chargers, rebooting Apple TV and Macs frequently, errors, non syncing issues (the recent known Notes iCloud issue in particular really annoyed me). Throw in practically useless developments that nobody asked for such as the touchbar too.

Apple used to keep everything tight and focused, the result being things were easier for them to manage so everything just worked and their claim that it did was plausible. Not so much now.

They are definitely nowhere near as details focused as they used to be.

While some of those things can and hopefully should/will be refined, some other ones are in fact to the design that Apple wants them to in and it's just some people don't agree with that design in one way or another rather than Apple not paying attention to detail in those cases.

 

[prowlmedia]

If only they had the same attention to detail for their own products. It's been months now that I cannot simply turn on Bluetooth on my iPhone without the need to redo it two or three times because it simply doesn't work the first time. There are many, many othere examples of obvious bugs that go unrepaired for far too long.

Stop whinging about it and take it back then. Any time I've had a real issue they have just swapped it out.

Re: that bluetooth issue never heard of the one - but the last BT issue I had was actually down to a faulty headset which locked the BT up. removed all the devices from BT - did a network settings reset and boom worked fine.

Oh and as you clearly chose this article to air your grievances for no apparent reason that has nothing to do with the subject, i'll do the same....

Why oh why oh why do people moan on here so much about things completely off subject? Blah blah Cook, Jobs, Dongles, Thinner Dongles. Whaaa whhaaaaaaa.