Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

WAY too many gimmicks

A

andymac2210

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 18, 2011
228
0
1 Find my iphone (or now find my mac).
It's been around for a while now, and it's just as pointless now as it ever was.

Yeah it'll let you know if you left your iphone somewhere, but if someone finds it (which they inevitably will) all they need to do is reset it, remove the sim and bye bye iphone.
You've got as much chance of getting it back as if you just locked it and sent a text saying 'please give me my phone back'.
Most people are scum and wouldn't return it.

Same goes for find my mac, anyone with even a little technical know how would just reformat it and it's gone.
They need some sort of mechanism that stops you resetting a phone without your itunes password or some other form of authentication.

2. Siri.

Pure novelty.
Dictating an email or text is horrifically badly implemented, one mistake and you need to restart the entire message from the beginning.
Only america has it tied to any location services so far, so anywhere else in the world it's quite limited.
The voice recognition is also quite lacklustre, even with clear diction and proper annunciation you'll only get about 90% accuracy at best (with optical conditions, no background noise etc).
As for intelligence in following a conversation, that is also quite poor, and also really buggy (yes I know it's a 'beta').
And why on earth does it need to connect to the internet to play a song from my library?

Siri, like facetime will be a short lived novelty item that most people don't use very often.
I find it hilarious apple don't bring it to their other devices too, if they're actually serious about it.


iMessage and notification centre are welcome additions, it's just a shame apple has chosen to go for gimmicks this time around.
 
can be useful features when required. I actually think Siri is destined for the car. But if you want to send an sms whilst driving or in any other way communicate with your phone whilst on the move you have no real option except for Siri...
 
andymac2210 said:
1 Find my iphone (or now find my mac).
It's been around for a while now, and it's just as pointless now as it ever was.

Yeah it'll let you know if you left your iphone somewhere, but if someone finds it (which they inevitably will) all they need to do is reset it, remove the sim and bye bye iphone.
You've got as much chance of getting it back as if you just locked it and sent a text saying 'please give me my phone back'.
Most people are scum and wouldn't return it.

Same goes for find my mac, anyone with even a little technical know how would just reformat it and it's gone.
They need some sort of mechanism that stops you resetting a phone without your itunes password or some other form of authentication.

2. Siri.

Pure novelty.
Dictating an email or text is horrifically badly implemented, one mistake and you need to restart the entire message from the beginning.
Only america has it tied to any location services so far, so anywhere else in the world it's quite limited.
The voice recognition is also quite lacklustre, even with clear diction and proper annunciation you'll only get about 90% accuracy at best (with optical conditions, no background noise etc).
As for intelligence in following a conversation, that is also quite poor, and also really buggy (yes I know it's a 'beta').
And why on earth does it need to connect to the internet to play a song from my library?

Siri, like facetime will be a short lived novelty item that most people don't use very often.
I find it hilarious apple don't bring it to their other devices too, if they're actually serious about it.


iMessage and notification centre are welcome additions, it's just a shame apple has chosen to go for gimmicks this time around.
Click to expand...

If you dont like it don't use it or return it.

Find my iPhone has its usefulness. if you leave it somewhere you could use that to find it. If your phone is stolen your basically SOL.

Siri...beta stage, give it time. With the next iteration of the ip it will be much better. I have found it to be very useful and have had minimal problems with speech to text. You also don't have to restart the whole message but just delete up to the point where the mistake was made.
 
Even at beta stage it can make some pretty nifty tricks. the best way is to interact with the phone by holding the phone but other situations demand otherwise. I am looking forward for this to be a standard feature of every phone in the hopefully not too distant future
 
andymac2210 said:
1 Find my iphone (or now find my mac).

Yeah it'll let you know if you left your iphone somewhere, but if someone finds it (which they inevitably will) all they need to do is reset it, remove the sim and bye bye iphone.
Click to expand...

It's not pointless. I've lost my iPhone. I use the "Find my iPhone". I discover it's fallen out of my jacket pocket in the car. Another time I "Find my iPhone" and discover it's still on my desk at work.

IF I discover it's left lying somewhere else, I use "Find my iPhone" to clear any personal data, then ring my mobile phone operator who blocks the IMEA so the phone is basically a brick. If I get it back, I ring the phone people and they unblock the IMEA. If I don't, I get a new phone on insurance.

andymac2210 said:
2. Siri.

Pure novelty.
Click to expand...

Purely optional.

If you don't like it, don't use it. There's lots of other things in iOS5 that are pure genius. Siri is not iOS5. Siri is just another app, like Maps, App Store, etc.
 
andymac2210 said:
.....The voice recognition is also quite lacklustre, even with clear diction and proper annunciation you'll only get about 90% accuracy at best (with optical conditions........
Click to expand...

I find Siri has no problem understanding me, even if "optical" conditions are not perfect...
 
andymac2210 said:
1 Find my iphone (or now find my mac).
It's been around for a while now, and it's just as pointless now as it ever was.

Yeah it'll let you know if you left your iphone somewhere, but if someone finds it (which they inevitably will) all they need to do is reset it, remove the sim and bye bye iphone.
You've got as much chance of getting it back as if you just locked it and sent a text saying 'please give me my phone back'.
Most people are scum and wouldn't return it.
Click to expand...

Many thieves don't think that far ahead.

Same goes for find my mac, anyone with even a little technical know how would just reformat it and it's gone.
Click to expand...

And yet sometimes...
 
andymac2210 said:
1 Find my iphone (or now find my mac).
It's been around for a while now, and it's just as pointless now as it ever was.

Yeah it'll let you know if you left your iphone somewhere, but if someone finds it (which they inevitably will) all they need to do is reset it, remove the sim and bye bye iphone.
You've got as much chance of getting it back as if you just locked it and sent a text saying 'please give me my phone back'.
Most people are scum and wouldn't return it.

Same goes for find my mac, anyone with even a little technical know how would just reformat it and it's gone.
They need some sort of mechanism that stops you resetting a phone without your itunes password or some other form of authentication.

2. Siri.

Pure novelty.
Dictating an email or text is horrifically badly implemented, one mistake and you need to restart the entire message from the beginning.
Only america has it tied to any location services so far, so anywhere else in the world it's quite limited.
The voice recognition is also quite lacklustre, even with clear diction and proper annunciation you'll only get about 90% accuracy at best (with optical conditions, no background noise etc).
As for intelligence in following a conversation, that is also quite poor, and also really buggy (yes I know it's a 'beta').
And why on earth does it need to connect to the internet to play a song from my library?

Siri, like facetime will be a short lived novelty item that most people don't use very often.
I find it hilarious apple don't bring it to their other devices too, if they're actually serious about it.


iMessage and notification centre are welcome additions, it's just a shame apple has chosen to go for gimmicks this time around.
Click to expand...

So basically your post has no point..... except to tell us YOU don't like these features. I like them but thanks for letting us know you don't.
 
Last edited:
IF you are trying to convince people, here, about how useless some of iPhone's apps are, you are not too smart.:mad:
 
Stealthipad said:
IF you are trying to convince people, here, about how useless some of iPhone's apps are, you are not too smart.:mad:
Click to expand...


Well the way I see it, unless my phone is secure from a restore, find my iPhone is a pointless app.

Siri is also quite lacklustre.
 
DroidRules said:
So basically your post has no point..... except to tell us YOU don't like these features. I like them but thanks for letting us know you don't.
Click to expand...

That pretty much sums it up--I'll never understand why some people just can't handle it when features they hate aren't hated by the rest of the world. Everyone's idea of useful is different--that's just the way the world works.:)
 
andymac2210 said:
Well the way I see it, unless my phone is secure from a restore, find my iPhone is a pointless app.

Siri is also quite lacklustre.
Click to expand...

Those apps are just a stepping stone. They will build upon them to make them more rounded and complete in the future...

When Bell invented the telephone he called Watson in the next room, not across the country. It was kind of "gimmicky" if you think about it, cause he could have just yelled really loud.
 
Siri is actually pretty good... and it is still in beta.
I actually do use FaceTime- with my parents, friends, etc
Also- Find My iPhone; We left an iPhone somewhere and got it back!
You sound like an iPhone 4 wonder who just wants the 4s
 
I haven't lost my phone yet so no comments there but I see its potential usefulness as long as I don't lose it in public places. I like siri and especially her humorous personality. It's even more limited here in Canada but I feel it's far from a gimmick.
 
andymac2210 said:
Well the way I see it, unless my phone is secure from a restore, find my iPhone is a pointless app.
Siri is also quite lacklustre.
Click to expand...

Thank you for sharing your opinion. We'll take note of that for future reference.

I assume you also don't see the point of locking your car doors since they're easily bypassed by any thief with a modicum of skill?
 
I'm pretty sure that the people who are spreading snark about Siri are the same ones who were loudly proclaiming a few years ago that the iPod was just a fad ... and the iPhone, and the iPad, and ...
 
andymac2210 said:
1 Find my iphone (or now find my mac).
It's been around for a while now, and it's just as pointless now as it ever was.

Yeah it'll let you know if you left your iphone somewhere, but if someone finds it (which they inevitably will) all they need to do is reset it, remove the sim and bye bye iphone.
You've got as much chance of getting it back as if you just locked it and sent a text saying 'please give me my phone back'.
Most people are scum and wouldn't return it.

Same goes for find my mac, anyone with even a little technical know how would just reformat it and it's gone.
They need some sort of mechanism that stops you resetting a phone without your itunes password or some other form of authentication.
Click to expand...


Tell that to my wife who left her iPhone on a plane one week after she bought it. We were able to post a message and ring the phone with a message asking them to call my phone. Had we not had that feature we may have never been able to get the phone back. A flight attendant found the phone and returned it.

You call face time a novelty, seriously? My wife and I use it all of the time with our daughters. We can call home and see our kids when we are traveling. Their grandparents can all check in on the kids as well without sitting in front of a computer. And it’s simple enough that my daughters can answer or make the call themselves.
 
So your idea of "way too many" is two?

andymac2210 said:
1 Find my iphone (or now find my mac).
It's been around for a while now, and it's just as pointless now as it ever was.
Click to expand...

I find it quite pointy. Find my iPhone has helped me find my iPhone on several occasions. The ability to force the phone to override the mute switch to play a homing signal is invaluable for those times when the phone is hiding under a pile of clothes or has slipped between the cushions on the couch. And it has also allowed me to determine whether I left my phone at home or at work, saving me a lot of searching. Please also note that it is called "Find My iPhone," not "Recover Stolen iPhone."

The voice recognition is also quite lacklustre, even with clear diction and proper annunciation you'll only get about 90% accuracy at best (with optical conditions, no background noise etc).
Click to expand...

This is just not true. I got 98%+ accuracy even when I could barely croak from laryngitis, and I get even better accuracy under "optical" conditions. I love the dictation feature and use it daily; I almost never type anything but unusual names on the soft keyboard these days.
 
Somebody woke up with a little "I don't like feature, so it must be useless to everybody else" -itis.
 
You start by saying WAY too many gimmics but go on to list just 2 points.

One of those points, Find My iPhone, has been around for YEARS, the other, Siri, is very useful in the car.

So Im a bit confused :confused:
 
Siri is excellent for me. I find it to set alarms and reminders much faster. I will actually input events into calendar now through SIRI while previously I was just too lazy. Works great in the car as well and when I'm running or walking and using the apple headphones.

If you don't like it then don't use it, you can always return your iPhone 4S, no one is stopping you. Please do not confuse that your needs and wants is the same as everyone else's.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back