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I think the thing I realized (and obviously n=1) is there's no longer a single apple product I recommend to friends and family. A new iPhone xr with a storage

by x0x0 8y ago

I think the thing I realized (and obviously n=1) is there's no longer a single apple product I recommend to friends and family. A new iPhone xr with a storage bump and a good charger is over $1k with tax. A MacBook air is similarly $1600 plus with 256g and a warranty and tax. There are perfectly serviceable 500 Androids and $750 windows laptops. Apple's software isn't good enough to double the price.

criddell 8y ago
I only recommend Apple stuff to relatives because they can go to a store when they need help. I wish companies like Google, HP, Dell, Samsung, and any other big consumer tech companies would open their own stores. A secondary reason is that I still think Apple has a pretty big advantage when it comes to security and privacy. When you see Google starting to push RCS messaging with no default encryption you realize how little they really care about their user's privacy. That said, the only Apple hardware I own is an iPad.
- SyneRyder 8y ago
  > I wish companies like Google, HP, Dell, Samsung, and any other big consumer tech companies would open their own stores. They seem to be doing that - Microsoft has a large retail store in Sydney, Australia, and Samsung has retail stores in several Australian cities of varying sizes (the Sydney one is huge). The one in my city (Perth) is just a tiny pop-up stand, but they still do simple on the spot repairs of my Galaxy S8. Perhaps worth noting, some of the Samsung employees there were ex Apple Geniuses who had switched.
- x0x0 8y ago
  And Apple has even screwed that up their stores. They now no longer seem to do much in-store laptop repair. Sure, there's a location you can drive to. But your laptop still disappears for 3-7 days.
lern_too_spel 8y ago
In fact, I've found that Apple's software is significantly worse than the alternatives. People used to ignore the fact that app start up time was worse on iOS devices compared to Android devices released two generations earlier, despite costing way more and running on four generations better hardware. App start up time is the performance metric that affects the vast majority of users the most. They finally fixed this in iOS 12. Some things iOS users still can't do: 1. Develop applications for their own phone without paying a yearly tax or re-building and re-installing weekly. 2. Have a driving mode that works well when used in a phone mount. 3. Automatically route phone calls and texts through Google Voice or a secure phone app. 4. Multi-user support for sharing a device with family or temporarily sharing it with a stranger. These are not niche features like playing games in emulators or using offline maps by default for privacy (both of which are also not possible on iOS). These are software deficiencies that affect normal daily use cases. The Chinese market has even more features that users need that are simply not supported on iOS.
addicted 8y ago
The only reason I recommend iPhones is Apple's stance on privacy. Android is a privacy nightmare. I cannot in good conscience recommend it. At the same time, Apple's walled garden increasingly feels like an uncomfortable jail I want to break out of.

by x0x0 8y ago

criddell 8y ago

I only recommend Apple stuff to relatives because they can go to a store when they need help. I wish companies like Google, HP, Dell, Samsung, and any other big consumer tech companies would open their own stores. A secondary reason is that I still think Apple has a pretty big advantage when it comes to security and privacy. When you see Google starting to push RCS messaging with no default encryption you realize how little they really care about their user's privacy. That said, the only Apple hardware I own is an iPad.

SyneRyder 8y ago
> I wish companies like Google, HP, Dell, Samsung, and any other big consumer tech companies would open their own stores. They seem to be doing that - Microsoft has a large retail store in Sydney, Australia, and Samsung has retail stores in several Australian cities of varying sizes (the Sydney one is huge). The one in my city (Perth) is just a tiny pop-up stand, but they still do simple on the spot repairs of my Galaxy S8. Perhaps worth noting, some of the Samsung employees there were ex Apple Geniuses who had switched.
x0x0 8y ago
And Apple has even screwed that up their stores. They now no longer seem to do much in-store laptop repair. Sure, there's a location you can drive to. But your laptop still disappears for 3-7 days.

lern_too_spel 8y ago

In fact, I've found that Apple's software is significantly worse than the alternatives. People used to ignore the fact that app start up time was worse on iOS devices compared to Android devices released two generations earlier, despite costing way more and running on four generations better hardware. App start up time is the performance metric that affects the vast majority of users the most. They finally fixed this in iOS 12. Some things iOS users still can't do: 1. Develop applications for their own phone without paying a yearly tax or re-building and re-installing weekly. 2. Have a driving mode that works well when used in a phone mount. 3. Automatically route phone calls and texts through Google Voice or a secure phone app. 4. Multi-user support for sharing a device with family or temporarily sharing it with a stranger. These are not niche features like playing games in emulators or using offline maps by default for privacy (both of which are also not possible on iOS). These are software deficiencies that affect normal daily use cases. The Chinese market has even more features that users need that are simply not supported on iOS.

addicted 8y ago

The only reason I recommend iPhones is Apple's stance on privacy. Android is a privacy nightmare. I cannot in good conscience recommend it. At the same time, Apple's walled garden increasingly feels like an uncomfortable jail I want to break out of.