Lets be honest. The only reason why the iPhone sells better than any individual Android phone is because of Android's ubiquity. If you add up all the iOS phone sales and Android phone sales, iOS is 2nd place.
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How YOU want the iPhone to be Versus how Apple wants the iPhone to be
- Thread starter Calidude
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But if the only Android phone was, say, the GSIII would the sales get up to that of the iPhone?
No because the GSIII is a piece of crap. HTC makes more solid phones, but Samsung has better internals. We'd need a fusion of the two.
To paraphrase Princess Bride, ubiquitous does not mean what you think it means. 
If you said the iphone sells more--despite android's ubiquitousness--the statement would make sense.
I already alluded to the fact that ios is in 2nd place; in spite of ios being in second place the iphone is still a better seller than any individual phone running android.
If you said the iphone sells more--despite android's ubiquitousness--the statement would make sense.
I already alluded to the fact that ios is in 2nd place; in spite of ios being in second place the iphone is still a better seller than any individual phone running android.
1a) Let's not
2a) I trusted Apple for years.
Especially when Wozniak was still there. He's an incredible engineer that was often overlooked due to his low profile as compared to the uber egotistic & extreme narcissism of Jobs.
Now with the advent of iToyz, and the direction Apple is headed as a mass market retailer, they've lost most of my trust. If they had chosen to avoid diluting & cluttering OS X with elements of iOS, I'd have a different opinion. Yet I do understand (even if I dislike it) why they're going in the direction they are.
In my case I'm not going to "leave Apple" per se, as I've already got a full compliment of ThinkPads in various sizes as well as their W Series workstations I rely on in concert with my MBP's for work. Operating in a cross platform R & D engineering environment, allows me to remain current & satisfies my tendency to get bored, even at the rapid pace we work in.
I'm enjoying the Galaxy Series of Android phones as my primary smartphone, I've demoted my small iPhone 4S to secondary phone. My perfect smartphone would be designed by Apple, contain a 4.5" display, and a version of iOS that offered the kind of customizing I can freely do with any of my Androids.
So you haven't trusted Apple since the Apple II which was released in 1977?
Woz was mostly done with Apple after a plan crash and memory loss in 1981...long before the Macintosh, which is more like the Apple we know today than the days of the Lisa and Apple II.
So please, tell us what exactly gave you trust, warm and fuzzies about the Lisa, and Apple II...
That is _not_ what I said.
This is _your_ version of history.
The tone and overall content of your post suggests you are simply looking for an argument, having zero respect for my personal opinions.
Accurate or not, I respect yours, it's my choice.
I'm here to have an intelligent conversation and to listen other's viewpoints. Arguments are a complete waste of my time.
Yet that said, I'm sure in a matter of moments you will find someone else, that will be happy to argue with you.
1. That's exactly what you said unless you used a non-sequitur on purpose.
2. It's not my version of history, it's well documented Apple history. The last major product Woz worked on was the Apple II line which was introduced in 1977. He was not involved with the Macintosh.
3. Don't try and feign the high ground and create a straw-man argument because you are incapable of formulating a retort that backs up your own spouted nonsense.
I see what you're trying to get at there but that's not the only reason. A variety of Android devices means that there are options at varying price points and feature sets whereas the iPhone only really serves one niche. However, it's not pointless to compare the iPhone to a given comparable Android device in the same niche and there are certainly other reasons why the iPhone sells so well. Don't assume that your reasons are everyone else's reasons and don't mask your reason as "honesty" which is something else entirely.
Really, though, the ubiquity argument is a double edged sword. The other side of it is "The only reason that Android smartphones outsell iOS smartphones is because of ubiquity". Granted, that statement suffers from the very same shortcomings of your own statement above.
To get back on subject, I agree that this is yet another poll that oversimplifies Calidude's topic du jour. The iPhone serves me better now than any other option I've investigated. Whether that's true in the future or not is to be determined. I do generally prefer Apple's design and build quality but those aren't my only concerns.
Steve Jobs does have a valid point that you can't let the masses do the designing for you. They're naive and think you can throw every possible feature and the kitchen sink in, get it developed, tested and in production on time and for a cheap MSRP. Reality just isn't like that though. There are always compromises to be made to meet deadlines, price points, etc and people will always complain. A product requires focus and drive to truly succeed. Trust the armchair experts and they'll simply copy what everyone else is doing. All you have to do is look at the trends in various discussion forum sites (not just this one and not just smartphone sites for that matter).
If Apple doesn't meet my needs I'll switch. There's really not much else to say on the matter from my end.
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Perhaps Jobs never considered himself or his engineers, suppliers, prospective additions to the team or those who left etc to be part of the "masses"? Even though they are all part of it.
To act all high and mighty like this is pretty childish.
...and thinking that the average consumer can design a smartphone is ignorant. Everything seems simple when you're blissfully unaware of the details and compromises required. It's not just a matter of "Do we throw in LTE or not?" (as just one example). There are many, many considerations to be made. It's always easier to sit back in your chair and criticize via the internet then it actually is to do something.
Again, products require focus. Decisions have to be made that stay within that focus or you end up with a horse designed by committee. Not all consumers will like the decisions that are made. They can vote with their dollars which is why I don't get this poll. If you're unhappy with a brand or product then why are you attached to it?
If we're being honest our opinions really don't matter. We're just a drop in the bucket. We think more of our own opinions because we're posting them here but these are mass produced products designed for the masses. No such product will ever cater to a tiny fraction of its user base.
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That has nothing to do with it Cali. Companies that aren't non-profit are in business to make money. If revenue/profit wasn't a factor then most companies could blast out product at cost and brag about overall numbers.
You've missed the point in almost every post you've made.
iOS is a developers platform. Apple tried to do the advertising thing but it's just not effective (iAD).
Android is an advertising platform.
So how I want the iPhone to be is the perfect vehicle for outstanding, well crafted applications that are worth the money.
We can talk about overall sales until we're blue in the face but the reality is even Apple's "Free" phone (3GS) nets them $375 per phone. Apple's average phone is equivalent to the cream of Android's crop. Apple doesn't do cheap throw-a-way phones.
Well then blame the same companies for making the "average consumer" dumber by the day. That is how they want to keep them as well to increase sales.
Although my post has less to do with hardware design, a technical limitation and more to do with software which can be controlled as you may like.
How are they "making the average consumer dumber by day"? What specific design choices do this and how? How is this relevant to my comment anyway? You're off on a random tangent and I need you to clarify how you're getting to where you are. My point is consumer ignorance regarding product development. Ignorant != dumb. In any case, products don't make people dumb. People have to choose to not learn or have to end up in a situation where they can't educate themselves. Buying a product does not do this despite your assertion.
Software design has its limits as well. Again, development resources are never infinite. Software has to be coded, QA'd, etc. It doesn't appear on a tree for companies to pick and include in their products. There are deadlines to meet. Same arguments apply here. If you've never done any coding it may seem like it's no big deal to add something. If you have then you realize it's never as simple as it seems from the outside.
To paraphrase Princess Bride, ubiquitous does not mean what you think it means.
If you said the iphone sells more--despite android's ubiquitousness--the statement would make sense.
I already alluded to the fact that ios is in 2nd place; in spite of ios being in second place the iphone is still a better seller than any individual phone running android.
I do not mean to pry, but you don't by any chance happen to have six fingers on your right hand?
I wasn't aware objective C prohibits the addition of simple user control options to hide things like the annoying camera button on lock screen, or to allow a simpler drag and drop option for photos, documents, media, or to allow toggles in notification center, or to allow simple swipe gestures that hobbyists can allow through apps like Zephyr, or to allow syncing with more than five computers/allow multiple iTunes libraries to be loaded using user selected content.
Man that should take a lot of QA and testing.
You're right, found it on ThinkGeek. I have the 4 and will probably be getting the 5, so I don't think I'll make an investment in a new case+keyboard for the 4. But as soon as the 5 comes out I'll be looking for an updated version of this (or if the form factor doesn't change, then I won't have to wait for a redesigned case).
Thanks for the pointer.
The lack of a physical keyboard was the reason I did not get the iPhone when I was first looking for a smartphone. I just like to be able to feel the key before I press it. I really wanted a phone with a landscape, physical, slide-out keyboard. My last two phones had this feature. It's just something that was a deal breaker for me.
I guess we are alike in many ways. I got the Asus Transformer instead of the iPad because it had an excellent keyboard dock. There was nothing that comes close to how good the Asus keyboard dock was for the Transformer when I got it. I do a lot of typing on my tablet and I just hate on-screen keyboards. On top of being a physical keyboard, the dock works as a very good stand as you can tilt the screen at any angle you like. It also closes like a netbook so it acts as a screen protector as well.
Apple decided that for their smartphone and tablet offering the primary input method was going to be an on-screen keyboard. Although many people are OK with this, I still feel that a physical keyboard was something I was not going to compromise on. So far, I have not seen an alternate input method that is as good as or better than a physical keyboard for me. Until that happens, I will continue to look for devices that have a physical keyboard.
There's often discussion about The Apple Wayand what the public wants. Steve Jobs famously said that the "public doesn't know what it wants", but now that the iPhone is out and has matured and its an existing product that is to be refined and improved, I'd like to know if people really trust the Apple Way
What do you want for the iPhone? Are you content with how Apple is handling it or would YOU do a better job at dictating what should go into it?
What on earth are you talking about? What manufacturer allows its customers to dictate what the next upgrade will be or when? This is just another poll to declare which you are, a stupid Apple Fanboy, or a troll.
At this point IMHO Apple makes the best phone for me. I could care less about trying to customize crap. All that I care is that it works, and does all of the things I want it to do. Are there things that could be improved? Sure, and each year when the new phone comes out, many things do get improved.
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Although, I totally understand your preference for a physical keyboard, I have gotten used to the on-screen keyboard. I almost never take out my bluetooth keyboard. I type 75 wpm on a regular keyboard, and about 50 wpm on my on-screen, I just don't see it as much of a hindrance.
Who said any of that? All I said is it took a bunch of complaining for people to finally get what they wanted...
All I'm saying is that I am pretty sure Apple didn't implement MMS & Copy Paste because we bitched about it. I'm sure they knew exactly when it was coming and it had nothing to do with complaints. Lets be real here...They could of had those features in the original iOS, and for whatever reason they chose to hold off on it. It wasn't like it was some revolutionary feature they were having problems with. It was copy & paste for crying out loud.
And what the hell does "for crying out loud" mean anyway? I never understood that saying.
I don't think that's true, at least not with MMS. Jobs himself stated numerous times that the iPhone didn't need MMS because we had email. I think plenty of features are pulled straight from jailbreak tweaks. Plenty of them are implemented exactly as a JB dev implemented it months or years sooner.
I agree Apple (and their fans) put a spin on new features as "revolutionary" and "it took this long because it was done right" but I don't think that each and every key feature we have seen was planned in advance for a future release.