4 ms·

I am glad physical switches are making a come-back in computers and phones but I wish it had happened sooner and because it's more convenient and practical than

I am glad physical switches are making a come-back in computers and phones but I wish it had happened sooner and because it's more convenient and practical than a stupid piece of unreliable integrated flaky software rather than for privacy concerns (meaning: why did we convert hardware knobs to software ?).

ASalazarMX 8y ago
> why did we convert hardware knob to software Because it was cheaper, and most consumers want cheaper goods.
- JohnFen 8y ago
  But why did we lose our knobs on expensive equipment?
  - craftyguy 8y ago
    Because it was cheaper, and most companies want higher margins.
  - Rychard 8y ago
    > But why did we lose our knobs on expensive equipment? Because it was cheaper, and most companies/shareholders want better profit margins.
  - Frondo 8y ago
    Because very few people buying expensive phones are doing so for knobs; they're doing so for better cameras, larger screens, the cachet of having an expensive phone. Well-written and properly-designed software buttons can satisfy the same need as hardware buttons, anyway; when they don't hold up, it should be considered either a UI bug or a design flaw, not just a consequence of the hw-vs-sw choice. (Same with wireless headphones--when they don't work as well as wired headphones, the answer is to fix them, or develop new tech as necessary so that they're at usability parity, not insist that wires are better.)
    - JohnFen 8y ago
      > Well-written and properly-designed software buttons can satisfy the same need as hardware buttons Technically, but software buttons are inferior to physical ones in terms of usability. Or at least I've yet to see software buttons that aren't, but I have not seen all implementations of software buttons.
robocat 8y ago
> why did we convert hardware knobs to software ? Reliability. Switches fail, and make devices less waterproof. I have had plenty of modern devices fail due to broken on/off or volume switches (and failed sensors, and failed plugs or sockets).
- java-man 8y ago
  And the software "switches" fail too: I had wifi on my iphone 4 disabled after an update. Who knows why.
- johnchristopher 8y ago
  Fair enough. But hardware is easier to fix for most than a software bug.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]

ASalazarMX 8y ago

> why did we convert hardware knob to software Because it was cheaper, and most consumers want cheaper goods.

JohnFen 8y ago
But why did we lose our knobs on expensive equipment?
- craftyguy 8y ago
  Because it was cheaper, and most companies want higher margins.
- Rychard 8y ago
  > But why did we lose our knobs on expensive equipment? Because it was cheaper, and most companies/shareholders want better profit margins.
- Frondo 8y ago
  Because very few people buying expensive phones are doing so for knobs; they're doing so for better cameras, larger screens, the cachet of having an expensive phone. Well-written and properly-designed software buttons can satisfy the same need as hardware buttons, anyway; when they don't hold up, it should be considered either a UI bug or a design flaw, not just a consequence of the hw-vs-sw choice. (Same with wireless headphones--when they don't work as well as wired headphones, the answer is to fix them, or develop new tech as necessary so that they're at usability parity, not insist that wires are better.)
  - JohnFen 8y ago
    > Well-written and properly-designed software buttons can satisfy the same need as hardware buttons Technically, but software buttons are inferior to physical ones in terms of usability. Or at least I've yet to see software buttons that aren't, but I have not seen all implementations of software buttons.

robocat 8y ago

> why did we convert hardware knobs to software ? Reliability. Switches fail, and make devices less waterproof. I have had plenty of modern devices fail due to broken on/off or volume switches (and failed sensors, and failed plugs or sockets).

java-man 8y ago
And the software "switches" fail too: I had wifi on my iphone 4 disabled after an update. Who knows why.
johnchristopher 8y ago
Fair enough. But hardware is easier to fix for most than a software bug.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]