Reason to get iPhone over Android: Apple awarded the mother of all smartphone patents

[Big.Mac.Daddy]

For the blind fanboys who want to bury their head in the sand and say this patent won't do much ...

Even the dedicated android blog Phandroid is saying "The effects could be swift and lethal"

 

[ReallyBigFeet]

Yes and sacrifice everything I like about android that I still currently have. Can you imagine how not revolutionary the iPhone will be when it has no competition?

I dunno about that. It was pretty revolutionary when the iPhone was first introduced and not because it was loaded with features like file manager, voice recognition, etc. that were common to other smartphones of the day (Nokia, Windows Mobile, etc.).

Its entirely possible Apple will continuing being Apple and innovate for the sheer enjoyment of building cool stuff that makes a ton of money for them.

 

[Mac.World]

For the blind fanboys who want to bury their head in the sand and say this patent won't do much ...

Even the dedicated android blog Phandroid is saying "The effects could be swift and lethal"

Oh, well if it came from a blogger, then that's different. Every manufacturer needs to just give up cause this one blogger says so.

By the way, if Apple tries to sue anyone over this, this patent will likely get invalidated. Microsoft might have something to say about this, as might HP. A lot of prior art on this 'patent'.

 

[cynics]

If Apple spent half as much time bettering the iPhone as they did exploiting the patent system my next wouldn't be a windows phone. I really don't have a problem with them protecting their IP (even though sometimes its silly, sometimes not) but why wait? Wait till Android is an unstoppable force then sue? Maybe they are just that greedy they don't care about the people that manufacture/sell/use those devices, they just want every penny the can get.

The system might be corrupt but it's not to the point it will dramatically effect business that bring billions of tax revenue and effect so many people's livelihood. We'll see how it plays out, by the time anything comes of this will be years.

 

[Mac.World]

Just curious, which phone or device had a patented vanishing scroll bar before iOS?

I.E. 5.x and Google Chrome.

P.s. prior to today, Apple didn't have a 'patented' vanishing scroll bar. I'm waiting for Apple to claim theyinvented the progress bar too.

I like Apple, but some of these granted patents are ridiculous.

 

[cyks]

I really don't have a problem with them protecting their IP (even though sometimes its silly, sometimes not) but why wait? Wait till Android is an unstoppable force then sue? Maybe they are just that greedy they don't care about the people that manufacture/sell/use those devices, they just want every penny the can get.

You realize that they apploied for these patents 5 years ago and are just being granted them now, right? They didn't choose to sit and wait, they had no choice but to. Now, as the patents are being granted, they're doing something about it since they finall can.

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I.E. 5.x and Google Chrome.

iOS and the patent application preceded the release of Google Chrome.

 

[Vegastouch]

Exactly.

Why purchase an android phone that is going to get stripped of its features because it stole them from Apple?

Go with the iPhone and you don't have to worry about any of the nonsense that you do with Android

When Apple gets a bigger screen(over 4") and the OS catches up and allows the things Android does, then ill think about switching back.

Till then, forget it!

 

[sulpfiction]

And you definitely haven't seen the threads I've started then

I'm no fanboy, I criticize Apple like crazy... just that I thought this patent in particular was really interesting and wanted to spread the word.

I'm wit ya. It's more the patent system is this country that pisses me off to no end. It's HORRIBLE.

 

[sentinelsx]

Eh, its alright. My current nexus is good for at least another 2 years. If worst happens and android does fold, MS is there with windows phone 8/9. So i am not too worried. Apple is not going to litigate MS out of mobile arena as much as they would like

 

[Meanee]

I honestly think this patent won't matter much. It's great deterrent. Smaller companies will think twice before making something similar. But I think the moment Apple tries to use this in court, it will be overturned.

 

[buddgeez]

Apple got a patent for Widgets? They don't even support widgets. What the hell is going on over at 1 Infinite Loop?

 

[lordofthereef]

Successfully defending your IP spurs innovation and competition, not inhibits it.

I agree wholeheartedly. But when I can claim farting at a 90 degree Angle on a Sunday facing East is my IP, there is a problem there.

(For the critics, there is heavy sarcasm and exaggerations all over this response)

 

[tekno]

After losing universal search on my SGSIII, patents are really starting to irritate me on both sides. Yeah, it's hypocritical, but I didn't do anything wrong. I bought a phone. It's all my fault.

I've still got it on my s3 (looking press the menu soft key) - what do you mean by universal search exactly.

 

[lordofthereef]

Any company worth a damn will patent every idea they ever imagined for the sake of protecting future innovations.

And this is the fundamental problem with patents, in my eyes. being able to patent an idea without actually having to execute it, or execute it FIRST, is frankly ridiculous.

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I've still got it on my s3 (looking press the menu soft key) - what do you mean by universal search exactly.

I believe they crippled it on Jellybean as well as any device being sold after a certain date.

 

[Mac.World]

Exactly.

Why purchase an android phone that is going to get stripped of its features because it stole them from Apple?

Go with the iPhone and you don't have to worry about any of the nonsense that you do with Android

Really? I wonder where you think Apple got the ideas for wireless syncing, notification bar, notification center, mobile tabbed browsing, the split keyboard, Opening apps from the lockscreen, and ota OS updates? I guess when Apple takes ideas from Android it's not stealing, right?

Patents are pending for Google. Still believe you don't have anything to worry about with an iPhone?

 

[depths]

If they have its only on the US OTA build. I'm running the latest version of Jellybean and never lost universal search.

 

[onthecouchagain]

If they have its only on the US OTA build. I'm running the latest version of Jellybean and never lost universal search.

I'm in the US and have the 4.1.1 from Google and still have universal search. Google said they didn't remove it.

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Really? I wonder where you think Apple got the ideas for wireless syncing, notification bar, notification center, mobile tabbed browsing, the split keyboard, Opening apps from the lockscreen, and ota OS updates? I guess when Apple takes ideas from Android it's not stealing, right?

Apple's just adopting industry standards.

 

[kdarling]

Nice try but no, that's not the same patent being discussed in this thread.

Your link talks about the disappearing scrollbar patent Apple won. This thread is talking about the "mother of all smartphone patents" that Apple was awarded as well just today.

He was right. It's the same patent 8,223,134.

Whoever wrote that "the mother of... " headline was just someone who cannot read a patent.

I invite interested parties to read the above patent's references to prior and related patent applications. There are a LOT. It's quite possible that in order to use that patent, Apple might have to license previous patents.

The one that really caught my eye was a 2004 application from Philips Labs in NY, not far from me. It was for fingertip scrolling. Now THAT would be more like the mother of all touch patents if granted.

 

[Mac.World]

Apple's just adopting industry standards.

Oh, that's right. Apple doesn't steal. They adopt industry standards. It's everyone else that steals.

I really wish all this software patent litigation would stop. I hope congress mandates it soon!

 

[jav6454]

He was right. It's the same patent 8,223,134.

Whoever wrote that "the mother of... " headline was just someone who cannot read a patent.

I invite interested parties to read the above patent's references to prior and related patent applications. There are a LOT. It's quite possible that in order to use that patent, Apple might have to license previous patents.

The one that really caught my eye was a 2004 application from Philips Labs in NY, not far from me. It was for fingertip scrolling. Now THAT would be more like the mother of all touch patents if granted.

There is no mother of all patents when it comes to smartphones. Everyone everywhere in every company has a patent that can "crush" someone else.

Of coarse, no one ever does go "nuclear" due to the potential ensuing never ending legal battle that would arise. Not to mention the extraordinarily high, and even perhaps prohibitively so, legal price.

I'm sure Google has some good patents to hide behind after the whole Nortel patent firesale sale.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

There is no mother of all patents when it comes to smartphones. Everyone everywhere in every company has a patent that can "crush" someone else.

Of coarse, no one ever does go "nuclear" due to the potential ensuing never ending legal battle that would arise. Not to mention the extraordinarily high, and even perhaps prohibitively so, legal price.

I'm sure Google has some good patents to hide behind after the whole Nortel patent firesale sale.

Where are you getting this from?

 

[ixodes]

No sooner did I read about this patent, when suddenly my Nexus started vibrating uncontrollably. I was in Starbucks, it was so loud a big group of people gathered around the table to watch it literally shrivel up before our eyes.

Wisps of smoke wafting out of the speaker port, when suddenly the screen said "you've been had by Apple" ...

Now I "get it" I'll never buy anything but Apple from now on.

 

[Meanee]

No sooner did I read about this patent, when suddenly my Nexus started vibrating uncontrollably. I was in Starbucks, it was so loud a big group of people gathered around the table to watch it literally shrivel up before our eyes.

Wisps of smoke wafting out of the speaker port, when suddenly the screen said "you've been had by Apple" ...

Now I "get it" I'll never buy anything but Apple from now on.

Were you allowed in Starbucks with a non-Apple device?

 

[jav6454]

Where are you getting this from?

You can't possibly think Apple holds a key smartphone patent? Once which covers all smartphones? Maybe they have a main patent, but nothing that will screw everyone.

 

[ReallyBigFeet]

And this is the fundamental problem with patents, in my eyes. being able to patent an idea without actually having to execute it, or execute it FIRST, is frankly ridiculous.

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I believe they crippled it on Jellybean as well as any device being sold after a certain date.

While I hear you, the argument you made would effectively eliminate a little guy from ever getting a new idea/product to market. The bigger guys have all the money and the moment they see a lone inventor pushing something out to market that's not yet been patented, they copy it, ship it off to China for rapid production runs, and own the market.

The reason you can patent something without getting it to market is to protect your ideas while you do just that...get it to market.

Its both a blessing and a curse, but I don't know any other way to encourage invention by small players.