Does Apple Have a Scott Forstall a problem? [MERGED]

[NedBookPro]

Please tell us which stores are using NFC payment systems? doing some research will help...


http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2012/09/25/baig-nfc-wireless-technology/1593593/

Oren Betzaleli, an executive vice president at Retalix, an Israeli company that provides software and services for the retail industry, estimates that wide deployment of NFC infrastructure is four to five years away. Some of his customers have no interest in ever deploying the technology. "One of the questions retailers are asking themselves is, how soon will commodity phones get NFC? I think the answer is not very soon," Betzaleli says.

Tech industry analyst Ben Bajarin of Creative Strategies says NFC is "irrelevant" for the masses: "Many common-use cases with NFC can be done with an Internet connection and Wi-Fi," he says. "NFC is still a solution in search of a problem."

I'm not sure about you guys in the USA, but over here we already have VISA "Tap and Go" and Mastercard "Paywave". Credit and Debit cards with NFC chips in them. The next logical solution is to use mobile devices, and they have already been on trial.

Here is an article you can read:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/aus...actless-payments/story-e6frgakx-1226215389072

Not this article was written BEFORE iP5 was released, but as you can see, there were hopes for an NFC chip - And so was I, and that's why the ip5 was a deal-breaker for me - It does doesn't not have enough features to warrant and upgrade for me. Maybe the 5S will have it??

Some of the above link's contents:

Both MasterCard and Visa have been trialling mobile handset NFC payment technology with banks for their respective flavours of contactless payment, named respectively PayPass and PayWave.

Visa and ANZ Visa conducted a four-week closed trial of an NFC mobile phone payment device that attached to the chassis of Apple's iPhone. MasterCard late October unveiled a similar product called Kaching. Kaching relies on an NFC payment chip embedded into an iPhone case.

Media reports have frequently speculated that Apple may integrate NFC antennas into the next version of it popular smartphone, the iPhone 5.

Google Android manufacturers have started filling the gap with handsets containing in-built NFC chips.

In Australia the Blackberry Bold 9900 which launched in October, and the Blackberry Curve 9360 launched last week are both NFC capable.

NFC is installed on Nokia's 6131, C7, 700 and boutique N9 MeeGo smartphones but it is limited to pairing operations and not suited to commercial payments.

Expectations had been fuelled that Apple's new 4G iPhone would contain an NFC chip, but it does not. There are still hopes that the iPhone 5 to be released next year will be NFC capable.
​

But guess what? iphone 5 does not have an NFC chip. Why? Because apple thinks you don't need it.
Every other smart phone now has it. But for some reason apple thinks we don't need it. WTF? - WTF??

Can someone explain to me why apple thinks we don't need what EVERY other manufacturer else has built in.
It's not as though NFC is a declining market, it's an emerging one.

Note this article was written Dec 2011, before the release of the Samsung S3. It shows how the retail sector here is really wanting to go this route.

The last paragraph is why iphone 5 is behind the curve.

Now I know all you fanboys are gonna come out of the wood work, but you know it's true. Apple are starting to lose their grip. In the end, maybe iphone will be just a toy for kids.

Right at this time, I have broken Exchange Server functionality since iOS6 upgrade, so I can't even use it for work properly.

And the next idiot that tell me that if I don't like it, buy an Android, well - if the 5S doesn't cut the mustard, maybe I will, and maybe so will many other what were once loyal apple customers.

Despite me spending literally thousands upon thousands on apple gear, the time may come when I've just had enough off the bull-crap.

I'd hate to see this happen... but maybe Samsung will rule the phone universe.

.

 

[chriscl]

With regards to NFC, I'm in the UK and it is pretty prevalent here; I can use my Credit Card for contactless NFC purchases up to £20 by just waving it at a scanner.

An NFC chip would have had me upgrading to an iPhone 5, but no, Apple thinks we don't need it. So I'm perfectly happy to stay with my iPhone 4, thanks.

And it isn't like Apple has a 'track record' of implementing widely-used technology; there's still no Mac available that can play Blu-Ray discs either, and that's another widely-available format.

Granted that's a poor analogy, but its another technology that, for a variety of reasons, Apple thinks we don't need, or want.

 

[bigsexyy81]

Passbook has only been out a little over a week. Give it some time to develop. As for Maps, I personally haven't had any issues with it. If you are having issues, there's plenty of alternatives.

People keep saying this, and it's starting to get really annoying.

Expectations of the Maps experience on iPhone were very high. People were used to one product that worked incredible well for what it was. Apple should have paid another year of royalties for the consumer's sake while they were building up their database.

I know I know, I can tell Apple how I really feel with my wallet or use a bunch of other map apps and blah blah blah. Save it. Apple screwed the pooch here. I love my iPhone 5, but this is a serious botch the likes of Antennagate.

----------

I'd hate to see this happen... but maybe Samsung will rule the phone universe.

.

Because of a little chip that Apple could easily throw into a phone any time they feel like it is worth it? Seriously, this is how you think the phone wars will be decided?

 

[BoxerGT2.5]

It just works!

I'm surprised none of the tech pundits have raised this question or taken Forstall to the cleaners yet.

 

[Defender2010]

Forstall is SO annoying to listen to..."Awesome". Plus that smarmy grin of his! He looked so nervous at the keynote, as he should, he was just showing exactly the same thing he did at WWDC. Pull your finger out man for Gods sake! I do like Tim though, seems like a true southern gent.

 

[irDigital0l]

Every feature of google now and jellybean has been on iOS for a long time so it's not like google is innovating either

Apple is playing catch up though...

 

[o0jelly0o]

Yup, gimped is about the gist of it.

I panned ip5 and upgraded to a ip4S because of that. Saved me about $400 in the process.

If 5S still has no NFC, it's gonna be time to jump ship.
Apple's already behind the curve. People here already use NFC on their credit card at supermarkets, etc, so it would be nice to have everything on the phone. It's about time.
Wouldn't be great to go out for a run, or a cycle with just your phone and be able to stop to buy a drink or something to eat. That's convenience.

Passbook just doesn't cut it.

.

Then your phone runs out of battery, your bike tire is flat, and you have no way to get home. No money etc.

 

[spinedoc77]

Neither has Mac OS (in terms of what you are referring to regarding iOS) and Mac OS seems to be doing perfectly fine.

Definitely true, that's why I don't use Mac OS much.

----------

What specifically do you mean? All of the phones have different functionality. There's things on the iphone not on Android and vice versa. They all have their good and bad points. Saying what you said makes ios seem inferior.

True, many of the things are functions that I desire but the next user might not care about. I think little things like Profiles, or side by side multitasking for example. Other OS have useful (subjective per user of course) things like Widgets or live tiles.

It's just that Apple doesn't seem interested in really innovating with their OS. It's simple, I get it. It's an OS that you don't have to think about using, millions use it without issues, I get it. I'm not saying it's bad by any means, and part of the problem probably lies in me being a tech geek and wanting bells and whistles. But hey I haven't switched yet, I'm still using iOS. I think I'd swap over to Microsoft in a second if they had any kind of developer support, but I think they will be dead out of the box unfortunately.

 

[alent1234]

Apple is playing catch up though...

nope, google is playing catch up

real time traffic on google maps sucked and then they got the idea from waze to crowdsource it and called it google now like it was some huge discovery

same with their PDK's to make the hardware more alike and easier to upgrade along with encrypting apps and in app purchasing to bring the devs a little more money

 

[Bill Killer]

iOS6 is a Scott Forstall problem in the narrow view, but it's just another in a growing list of symptoms of the larger problem. Apple is leaderless. Yes, there's a guy in the office, sitting at the desk, but he's no leader.

Apple is full of wacky creatives. It used to have Steve Jobs to reel them in. He would say no as often, if not more so, than yes.

Now it seems that no is being said far less often, and yes far too often.

Yes, let's spend a disproportionate amount of time and energy programming funny stuff for Siri to say.

Yes, lets spend a disproportionate amount of time and energy making 3D maps out of leftover Quake II textures that do absolutely nothing to get people where they need to go, instead of concentrating on nailing basic maps.

Yes, let's change things for the sake of changing them.

Yes, let's not add things that people have been clamoring for since the first iPhone.

Yes, let's make it nearly impossible to find what you're looking for on the App Store.

People went on and on about the genius of Steve Jobs. Sure, he had some cool ideas and was a great showman. But the qualities he had that made Apple what it is today, were his borderline personality, his micro managing, his OCD, his ability to badger, berate and belittle, then kiss and make up, and above all, his ability to instill fear into the hearts of his employees, his vendors, his retail partners, everyone who crossed his path. Everyone feared the wrath of Steve.

No one fears the rath of Tim Cook. There is no rath of Tim Cook. Tim Cook is Apple's stepdad.

Vendors don't fear him. That's why the iPhone 5 was so leaky that a fully functioning phone was built from parts leaked by myriad vendors. That's why Goophone patented Apple's own design before they even launched it.

Scott Forstall doesn't fear him. That's why he had either the loudest or the most final say in iOS6. SJ would have shot down the new App Store design in about 3 seconds and Forstall would have run home with his tail between his legs.

Jonny Ive and his design boys are now a loose cannon too. SJ was all about materials. What does Tim Cook know about materials? He knows how much they weigh on a cargo ship. That's about it. Jonny Ive wanted a black metal iPhone. Steve Jobs probably shot it down 50 prototypes ago. But now Jonny gets his way. In the eyes of a nice guy like Tim Cook, Jonny Ive is probably the closest embodiment to what Steve Jobs stood for and the next person after Steve to get the most credit for where Apple is today, so of course he will defer to Jonny's penchant for a black metal phone, especially since he doesn't know anything about materials.

And I've said it many times, Tim Cook's supply-guy tactics of manufacturing far more product than Steve Jobs did is great for short term bottom lines, but bad for the long term status of the cult of desire for Apple products.

Tim Cook made millions of iPad 3s. There were no lines at the stores. No news cameras. No real buzz. Just a **** ton of iPads.

Steve knew that people want what they can't have. He knew how to get people drooling...dangle the iDevice in front of them for a couple of months before releasing worldwide. That may have meant less iDevices sold on launch day, but it also meant a lot more free press and a lot more cult status, which carried over to the next product, and the next.

With Tim driving, the world is blanketed in iProducts all at once. The vendors leak the parts with no repercussions. The lines to buy are smaller. News about bad decisions in the software is louder than the news about the devices themselves. That's ared flag that something is wrong at the top.

To an extent, I agree with much of this post. However, true leadership isn't judged by the wrath of the leader. That's an incredibly poor form of leadership, and while Jobs' anger issues is well documented, it isn't the reason he was so successful. He made his mark because he had a clear vision of the company and enabled this vision amongst his employees to achieve was is seemingly impossible. It's the RDF. He had a way to motivate his team, and it's not because he got angry and yelled. If that were the cass, more people would quit.

What he did do wonderfully is give Apple a sense of employee empowerment and the idea that they were accomplishing something special and unheralded. And that has little to do with his wrath.

 

[NedBookPro]

Because of a little chip that Apple could easily throw into a phone any time they feel like it is worth it? Seriously, this is how you think the phone wars will be decided?

No, it's not simply about a little chip.

But eventually iphone will get old. It's already behind the curve. People will get tired of it. A lot already are. And you know this.

I read articles from world-wide sources every day (not just from within the US) and iOS6 and iPhone 5 is largely seen as a non event. There's no buzz like there used to be.

I wonder how many people who would have gone for the iphone 5 finally panned it like I did because they didn't feel the upgrade was worth it. I'm sure I'm not the only one.

Jeez... not even the rear camera was upgraded, no NFC. Screen marginally taller. So what? Faster CPU? The 4S seems very snappy already.

Of course people who did take the plunge will now come out in it's defense.
But that's to be expected.

Let's revisit when 5S emerges.

.

 

[mnemonix]

IMO, Passbook was gimped from the start without NFC.

Quite. All the anti-NFC arguments revolved around it not being ready for primetime, not being available anywhere! How is a proprietary system like passbook with virtually no support ever going to succeed!

But I'll tell you why Passbook will really fail.

Because even now, I still have no idea what it is

Call me stupid, or criticise me for not 'researching' it, but if I don't get it, I'm pretty sure most of the general public don't/won't get it either, and neither will any of the companies Apple are relying on to adopt it.

And why would every company out there individually invest to have a special Apple iOS only app developed for them when NFC simply required an updated card payment device in the shops (many of which already are, even if you don't use it yet) that allowed you to use that universal device known as 'money' that we're all familiar with?

I know what NFC is - I can pay for stuff, any stuff, from any company, if the shop has a terminal, just like with my debit card, only now I wouldn't have to carry my card around as well.

Passbook? Uh some kind of loyalty scheme or something with a bar code? and uh, I think a German airline on the UK iTunes store has something for that... you know what? forget it?

 

[GaresTaylan]

Half the time when I ask Siri a question It says "I don't know what that means" and then asks if I want it to search the web.

For me, Siri must just hate my voice. I don't have a thick accent by any means, but she doesn't understand words sometimes. I do not have this issue using the S-Voice thing on my wife's droid. It seems to understand me perfectly. Content wise, despite the fact that I couldn't give 2 *****s about checking sports scores, I prefer Siri I just wish it could decipher me a bit better.

 

[MozMan68]

No, it's not simply about a little chip.

But eventually iphone will get old. It's already behind the curve. People will get tired of it. A lot already are. And you know this.

I read articles from world-wide sources every day (not just from within the US) and iOS6 and iPhone 5 is largely seen as a non event. There's no buzz like there used to be.

I wonder how many people who would have gone for the iphone 5 finally panned it like I did because they didn't feel the upgrade was worth it. I'm sure I'm not the only one.

Jeez... not even the rear camera was upgraded, no NFC. Screen marginally taller. So what? Faster CPU? The 4S seems very snappy already.

Of course people who did take the plunge will now come out in it's defense.
But that's to be expected.

Let's revisit when 5S emerges.

.

You're joking right?

Considering the number of people that already have iPhones that according to you are only marginally worse, how do you explain record sales of the iPhone 5?

If your defense is that there are just that many more Apple "sheep" out there, don't bother responding.

 

[dv8r]

You're joking right?

Considering the number of people that already have iPhones that according to you are only marginally worse, how do you explain record sales of the iPhone 5?

Records sales is kinda hard to know before one tor two quarters don't you think? Based on their opening weekend it might happen, but there also might be a slump after the first couple of weeks...

 

[bigsexyy81]

No, it's not simply about a little chip.

But eventually iphone will get old. It's already behind the curve. People will get tired of it. A lot already are. And you know this.

I read articles from world-wide sources every day (not just from within the US) and iOS6 and iPhone 5 is largely seen as a non event. There's no buzz like there used to be.

I wonder how many people who would have gone for the iphone 5 finally panned it like I did because they didn't feel the upgrade was worth it. I'm sure I'm not the only one.

Jeez... not even the rear camera was upgraded, no NFC. Screen marginally taller. So what? Faster CPU? The 4S seems very snappy already.

Of course people who did take the plunge will now come out in it's defense.
But that's to be expected.

Let's revisit when 5S emerges.

.

What revolutionary features have Android phones come out with in the last year? What selling point does an Android device have over an iPhone 5? What can I do on an Android that I can't on an iPhone 5 besides NFC (which many are too paranoid/confused/not technically sound enough to use anyways)?

Bigger screen/4.5 in or more? Crappy battery life
Rear camera? iPhone has one of the best in the biz anyways, and it's plenty good enough for the vast majority.
LTE? Got that now.
Widgets/software? Jailbreak it.

Android devices will always win the spec wars because they basically need to. Doesn't mean that the OS is anymore stable or performs better than iOS/iPhone.

We're at the point where there aren't much more things that can be added to phones. Samsung/Motorola/etc got to sell the LTE feature for a year, but they can't use that as a selling feature anymore. Bigger screen? Can still use it but not as much as before. And they won't sell any amount of phones based on having an NFC chip in them.

 

[BoxerGT2.5]

You're joking right?

Considering the number of people that already have iPhones that according to you are only marginally worse, how do you explain record sales of the iPhone 5?

If your defense is that there are just that many more Apple "sheep" out there, don't bother responding.

The question in sales numbers is how many of those sales are existing iPhone users vs. new users. I'd imagine the over 85% of them are existing iPhone users considering Android dominates market share in both US and Europe.

 

[MozMan68]

The question in sales numbers is how many of those sales are existing iPhone users vs. new users. I'd imagine the over 85% of them are existing iPhone users considering Android dominates market share in both US and Europe.

Yes...I should have said that as well...please don't compare a single phone to the hundreds of Android options out there...

 

[BoxerGT2.5]

Yes...I should have said that as well...please don't compare a single phone to the hundreds of Android options out there...

That doesn't matter, apple chooses to put out one phone a year, don't penalize the other companies because of it. As an OS, Android still is way ahead of iOS (phones, don't include iPad in it because apple likes to) in terms of market share, regardless of manufacturer.

 

[NedBookPro]

You're joking right?

Considering the number of people that already have iPhones that according to you are only marginally worse, how do you explain record sales of the iPhone 5?

If your defense is that there are just that many more Apple "sheep" out there, don't bother responding.

I suspect most people buy on emotion. Even I buy on emotion.
In my case I had such high hopes, but they were dashed because i did not feel that ip5 was any sort of breakthrough. I followed it's unfolding from the first leak, and was more and more disappointed as time went on.
I took a step back to take a sober look at what was on offer once released and decided to get a 4S instead, mainly because of the camera.

Like it or not, some of the other companies are starting to come out with some good hardware. That can't be denied. Surely that has to be on apple's radar.

Finally - it is OK to criticize isn't it?
I'm not saying like Jobs once famously said: "this is the dumbest fscking phone ever", I'm just saying iP5 is disappointing - in my opinion.

.

 

[NedBookPro]

What revolutionary features have Android phones come out with in the last year? What selling point does an Android device have over an iPhone 5? What can I do on an Android that I can't on an iPhone 5 besides NFC (which many are too paranoid/confused/not technically sound enough to use anyways)?

Perhaps folks in your area are, but not in my part of the world. Here people use "tap and go" and "paywave" all over the place. All our major supermarkets and fuel stations have it. Apparently in Japan it's widely used as well. We must all be deluded.

Bigger screen/4.5 in or more? Crappy battery life
Rear camera? iPhone has one of the best in the biz anyways, and it's plenty good enough for the vast majority.
LTE? Got that now.
Widgets/software? Jailbreak it.

Yeah, bigger screen would have been nice, but apple are going to pump their mini ipad which would conflict with that idea. Rear camera is the same is 4S. It's the reason I bought a 4S *instead* of a 5, and saved a load of money.
Who said anything about jailbreaking? iOS is quite good (when all the bugs are ironed out)

Android devices will always win the spec wars because they basically need to. Doesn't mean that the OS is anymore stable or performs better than iOS/iPhone.
We're at the point where there aren't much more things that can be added to phones. Samsung/Motorola/etc got to sell the LTE feature for a year, but they can't use that as a selling feature anymore. Bigger screen? Can still use it but not as much as before. And they won't sell any amount of phones based on having an NFC chip in them.

Well, one thing that could have been added that EVERY other smartphone has the iP5 hasn't is NFC. As I said, NFC is an emerging market. Apple is behind the curve. Strange. They used to be leaders.

Anyhow bigsexy, don't be offended. It's just a phone, and it's just my observation and opinion. As I originally said, lets see what iP5S offers.

.

 

[Tinmania]

That doesn't matter, apple chooses to put out one phone a year, don't penalize the other companies because of it. As an OS, Android still is way ahead of iOS (phones, don't include iPad in it because apple likes to) in terms of market share, regardless of manufacturer.

Only a tiny percentage (1.8) of that "market share" is even running the latest version of Android--which came out nearly 3 months ago.

Less than 25% are on the second version back, ICS.

The majority (55%) of Android devices are running Gingerbread. That is 3 versions back.

http://www.zdnet.com/android-4-1-jelly-bean-reaches-1-8-percent-market-share-7000005096/


Mike

 

[BoxerGT2.5]

Only a tiny percentage (1.8) of that "market share" is even running the latest version of Android--which came out nearly 3 months ago.

Less than 25% are on the second version back, ICS.

The majority (55%) of Android devices are running Gingerbread. That is 3 versions back.

Image

http://www.zdnet.com/android-4-1-jelly-bean-reaches-1-8-percent-market-share-7000005096/


Mike

You're making the assumption that people care? You might, I might, but Joe may love his phone and whether it had gingerbread or ICS is a moot point. If he knows ICS even exists it'd be shocked. Just because a new version of software comes out doesn't mean all other devices are broke if they don't get it, not when people usually upgrade every 2 years unless they ABSOLUTELY love their phone. Hardware changes and does so much more rapidly on non-iOS devices. It is one of the benefits to controlling it the way Apple does, but then again not every previous iPhone gets every feature set of the upgraded iOS.

 

[dv8r]

Only a tiny percentage (1.8) of that "market share" is even running the latest version of Android--which came out nearly 3 months ago.

The IOS upgrade thing is something Apple does very well - the amount of upgrades just doesn't say much about the differences between IOS6 and JB.

 

[Tinmania]

The IOS upgrade thing is something Apple does very well - the amount of upgrades just doesn't say much about the differences between IOS6 and JB.

Oh I think it does.

I can't count the number of people I know with a crappy android phone running old versions of the OS who either have a lot crashes, reboots, or issues with app updates. None that I know are thinking: "Well this thing is crap, but if I bought a new android phone running that wonderful jelly bean everything will be great." I doubt it. Some will simply say no the next time around, and since their friends with iPhones don't seem to complain why not try that instead? It's anecdotal, yes, but I know around a dozen people that did just that.




Michael

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You're making the assumption that people care? You might, I might, but Joe may love his phone and whether it had gingerbread or ICS is a moot point. If he knows ICS even exists it'd be shocked.

That is the point: many that I see not only don't "love" their older-but-only-by-android-standards phones but are downright angry at them. It doesn't really matter that they know about ICS or JB when they don't like what they already have.



Michael