4 ms·

A billion "mobile phones" sold doesn't seem very anti consumer to me.

stephengillie 10y ago
A billion devices with heavy lock-in, reduced feature sets, and no alternative for OS updates sounds pretty darn anti-consumer. Even in this thread, commenters are having to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find uses for their old iPhones.
- coldtea 10y ago
  >Even in this thread, commenters are having to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find uses for their old iPhones. And why should they? Do you keep old VHS drives and mid-2000s PDAs around? Tons of people change cars every 5-6 years or so -- and we're talking about buying a new phone every 2-3 years as if its bad, in a field where progress (from 1995 to 2016) has been astronomical compared to the pace of car progress?
  - stephengillie 10y ago
    Cars have 30 years of resale value, if they're cared for. Like many other electronics, phones have basically stopped improving in the past few years. Processor and battery technology are used at their limits, and a phone from 5 years ago still works well today, if you can get software updates for it.
    - coldtea 10y ago
      >Cars have 30 years of resale value, if they're cared for Well, if resale value is what you're after, then you have the best deal with the iPhone in the first place, combined to any other mobile brand. >Like many other electronics, phones have basically stopped improving in the past few years. I beg to differ. Except if you mean "for what I do/care about". 50-100% faster processors and GPUs every 2 years are not "stopped improving". Newer camera systems (4K, image stabilizations, slo-mo), touch id sensors, etc. A lot of the things people do depend on those improvements. Of course for mere phoning, casual app use, etc, then sure.
- oldmanjay 10y ago
  Have you ever considered how boring the world would be if you determined the only opinions people could hold? I can tell you've considered how great it would be, but I think it's important to think outside yourself sometimes.
  - stephengillie 10y ago
    I want people to be burdened by an over-abundance of choices, but elegantly displayed.
scarface74 10y ago
Yes because the Android manufacturers commitment to support and updates to their phones are so much better....

A billion devices with heavy lock-in, reduced feature sets, and no alternative for OS updates sounds pretty darn anti-consumer. Even in this thread, commenters are having to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find uses for their old iPhones.

coldtea 10y ago
>Even in this thread, commenters are having to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find uses for their old iPhones. And why should they? Do you keep old VHS drives and mid-2000s PDAs around? Tons of people change cars every 5-6 years or so -- and we're talking about buying a new phone every 2-3 years as if its bad, in a field where progress (from 1995 to 2016) has been astronomical compared to the pace of car progress?
- stephengillie 10y ago
  Cars have 30 years of resale value, if they're cared for. Like many other electronics, phones have basically stopped improving in the past few years. Processor and battery technology are used at their limits, and a phone from 5 years ago still works well today, if you can get software updates for it.
  - coldtea 10y ago
    >Cars have 30 years of resale value, if they're cared for Well, if resale value is what you're after, then you have the best deal with the iPhone in the first place, combined to any other mobile brand. >Like many other electronics, phones have basically stopped improving in the past few years. I beg to differ. Except if you mean "for what I do/care about". 50-100% faster processors and GPUs every 2 years are not "stopped improving". Newer camera systems (4K, image stabilizations, slo-mo), touch id sensors, etc. A lot of the things people do depend on those improvements. Of course for mere phoning, casual app use, etc, then sure.
oldmanjay 10y ago
Have you ever considered how boring the world would be if you determined the only opinions people could hold? I can tell you've considered how great it would be, but I think it's important to think outside yourself sometimes.
- stephengillie 10y ago
  I want people to be burdened by an over-abundance of choices, but elegantly displayed.

scarface74 10y ago

Yes because the Android manufacturers commitment to support and updates to their phones are so much better....