4 ms·

If N64 games are still worth playing, it's surely equally true that there's really nothing about the styling of the original iPhone that makes it an eyesore. It

by theoh 7y ago

If N64 games are still worth playing, it's surely equally true that there's really nothing about the styling of the original iPhone that makes it an eyesore. It's just obsolete.

huffmsa 7y ago
Zelda OoT and Majora's Mask are still extremely playable. I go through them probably once a year. And you've got Mario Kart 64, the best version for playing Kario Mart (finish a beer before the race ends), Mario Party 2, smash 64. On and on. The iPhone isn't an eyesore, but it's definitely of it's time.
- sosborn 7y ago
  > The iPhone isn't an eyesore, but it's definitely of it's time. I'd argue that the same applies to the N64 hardware.
  - huffmsa 7y ago
    And I'd agree. But the N64 still functions exactly the same today as it did when it was released. It still does it's job. It will still entertain 1-4 players. Same with the S/NES. How usable is an original iPhone? Is it acceptable as a phone these days? Is it even functional? Hell, can you even get the OS image it needs and software to run on it? Nintendo still has people on staff at the 1-800 number listed on their machines who will help you troubleshoot your system.[1] They don't have replacement parts anymore though, but they might help you source some. Good design just keeps working and working. Style might change, but a design's utility should not. [1] http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2018/04/random_nintendos_snes-era_troubleshooting_phone_line_still_works_troubleshooting_still_given http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2018/04/random_nintendos_sn...
    - tinus_hn 7y ago
      Perhaps more importantly, does it do anything a modern iPhone can’t? An original Nintendo 64 is the only way to run Nintendo 64 games unemulated.
      - jandrese 7y ago
        Play music over wired headphones. Connect to peripherals that use the original wide connector. Talk with dongles that communicate over the headphone port, like those credit card readers.
        huffmsa 7y ago
        Oh shit. I totally didn't realize that Apple royally boned everyone using Square readers.
        cweagans 7y ago
        Did they though? Seems like magnetic stripe readers in general are on their way out.
        spaceheretostay 7y ago
        Modern iPhones can play music over wired headphones! Sure, not all wired headphones. But then again, the original iPhone can't play music over all wired headphones either.
        tinus_hn 7y ago
        Apple has adapters so a modern iPhone can play music over wired headphones or connect to 30pin devices. These probably also work with these credit card readers. Or get a new one after 10 years, they’re only $50.
    - jandrese 7y ago
      The 2G modem in the original iPhone is obsolete I think, like they upgraded the towers a couple of years ago and now they can't talk to them anymore. Other than that the old standalone software (stuff that didn't require a cloud service) still works fine. I use mine as a music player sometimes.
    - scarface74 7y ago
      I believe both GSM carriers in the US turned off their 2G compatibility a few years ago. I don’t have an original iPhone, but I do have a N original iPod touch with basically the same hardware. The built in apps still work except for Youtube. You can still sync music to it from iTunes and Google backed Apple Maps still works. You can still restore it from iTunes as far as I know. The original iPad and any device running iOS 5 is a better story. If you go to the App Store and try to download an app that at one time had a iOS 5 version, you can download “the last compatible version”. Netflix, Crackle, Hulu, Plex, and Spotify still work. Also all of Apple’s iWork and iLife apps still work and sync with newer versions. Google Drive also still works. I can read PDFs stored on it. Most websites are unusable though. HN being an exception. Of course I have newer devices.
- giobox 7y ago
  The N64 to me is arguably an outlier in console design in terms of how well it has aged. The console unit anyway; a controller for three handed humans still makes as little sense to me today as it did back then. Thankfully history seems to have agreed as the idea arguably died with the N64. Other than perhaps the original PlayStation, almost all old gaming hardware has aged far worse than the original iPhone’s industrial design in my eyes. It’s also industry trends I’d argue that aged that design of the iPhone as much as the design itself. Modern phones are typically much larger screened devices than what the market expected in 2007ish. A console is still just a plastic box with ports we shove under a TV much as it was in the 90s.
  - huffmsa 7y ago
    Every once and a while Miyamoto will out think himself. I think he was trying to support / smooth the transition from 2D side-scrolling where the D-Pad was a known interface to the 3D world where the analog stick was a necessity. But then they shipped with Mario 64 and no one gave a second thought to the D-Pad. And yeah, I was harsh on the OG iPhone. It's hard being a new design.
    - stormbrew 7y ago
      I don't think it's so much that they shipped with Mario 64 as that all the games that made more sense to use a dpad for wound up on the playstation instead, which didn't originally ship with any kind of 3d control stick at all. Nintendo dove deep into 3d on the n64 and they knew they were going to, but they put the dpad there assuming they'd be as successful as they were with the snes and there'd be a much wider diversity of game types for the platform. Really though I don't think the design is really much of a mystery and I always wonder how the people confused by it tried to hold it. Did they try to grip the outer handle and reach in to the stick or something? It was never unobvious to me how to hold it or why they did it that way. Personally I'd rather play 3d games with the n64 controller than the dual shock/analog, in terms of layout, just because the stick is in (one of the) primary position. Modern controllers with stick primary and dpad secondary and two grips are, to me, superior to either for 3d games though.

by theoh 7y ago

If N64 games are still worth playing, it's surely equally true that there's really nothing about the styling of the original iPhone that makes it an eyesore. It's just obsolete.

huffmsa 7y ago

Zelda OoT and Majora's Mask are still extremely playable. I go through them probably once a year. And you've got Mario Kart 64, the best version for playing Kario Mart (finish a beer before the race ends), Mario Party 2, smash 64. On and on. The iPhone isn't an eyesore, but it's definitely of it's time.

sosborn 7y ago
> The iPhone isn't an eyesore, but it's definitely of it's time. I'd argue that the same applies to the N64 hardware.
- huffmsa 7y ago
  And I'd agree. But the N64 still functions exactly the same today as it did when it was released. It still does it's job. It will still entertain 1-4 players. Same with the S/NES. How usable is an original iPhone? Is it acceptable as a phone these days? Is it even functional? Hell, can you even get the OS image it needs and software to run on it? Nintendo still has people on staff at the 1-800 number listed on their machines who will help you troubleshoot your system.[1] They don't have replacement parts anymore though, but they might help you source some. Good design just keeps working and working. Style might change, but a design's utility should not. [1] http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2018/04/random_nintendos_snes-era_troubleshooting_phone_line_still_works_troubleshooting_still_given http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2018/04/random_nintendos_sn...
  - tinus_hn 7y ago
    Perhaps more importantly, does it do anything a modern iPhone can’t? An original Nintendo 64 is the only way to run Nintendo 64 games unemulated.
    - jandrese 7y ago
      Play music over wired headphones. Connect to peripherals that use the original wide connector. Talk with dongles that communicate over the headphone port, like those credit card readers.
      - huffmsa 7y ago
        Oh shit. I totally didn't realize that Apple royally boned everyone using Square readers.
        cweagans 7y ago
        Did they though? Seems like magnetic stripe readers in general are on their way out.
      - spaceheretostay 7y ago
        Modern iPhones can play music over wired headphones! Sure, not all wired headphones. But then again, the original iPhone can't play music over all wired headphones either.
      - tinus_hn 7y ago
        Apple has adapters so a modern iPhone can play music over wired headphones or connect to 30pin devices. These probably also work with these credit card readers. Or get a new one after 10 years, they’re only $50.
  - jandrese 7y ago
    The 2G modem in the original iPhone is obsolete I think, like they upgraded the towers a couple of years ago and now they can't talk to them anymore. Other than that the old standalone software (stuff that didn't require a cloud service) still works fine. I use mine as a music player sometimes.
  - scarface74 7y ago
    I believe both GSM carriers in the US turned off their 2G compatibility a few years ago. I don’t have an original iPhone, but I do have a N original iPod touch with basically the same hardware. The built in apps still work except for Youtube. You can still sync music to it from iTunes and Google backed Apple Maps still works. You can still restore it from iTunes as far as I know. The original iPad and any device running iOS 5 is a better story. If you go to the App Store and try to download an app that at one time had a iOS 5 version, you can download “the last compatible version”. Netflix, Crackle, Hulu, Plex, and Spotify still work. Also all of Apple’s iWork and iLife apps still work and sync with newer versions. Google Drive also still works. I can read PDFs stored on it. Most websites are unusable though. HN being an exception. Of course I have newer devices.
giobox 7y ago
The N64 to me is arguably an outlier in console design in terms of how well it has aged. The console unit anyway; a controller for three handed humans still makes as little sense to me today as it did back then. Thankfully history seems to have agreed as the idea arguably died with the N64. Other than perhaps the original PlayStation, almost all old gaming hardware has aged far worse than the original iPhone’s industrial design in my eyes. It’s also industry trends I’d argue that aged that design of the iPhone as much as the design itself. Modern phones are typically much larger screened devices than what the market expected in 2007ish. A console is still just a plastic box with ports we shove under a TV much as it was in the 90s.
- huffmsa 7y ago
  Every once and a while Miyamoto will out think himself. I think he was trying to support / smooth the transition from 2D side-scrolling where the D-Pad was a known interface to the 3D world where the analog stick was a necessity. But then they shipped with Mario 64 and no one gave a second thought to the D-Pad. And yeah, I was harsh on the OG iPhone. It's hard being a new design.
  - stormbrew 7y ago
    I don't think it's so much that they shipped with Mario 64 as that all the games that made more sense to use a dpad for wound up on the playstation instead, which didn't originally ship with any kind of 3d control stick at all. Nintendo dove deep into 3d on the n64 and they knew they were going to, but they put the dpad there assuming they'd be as successful as they were with the snes and there'd be a much wider diversity of game types for the platform. Really though I don't think the design is really much of a mystery and I always wonder how the people confused by it tried to hold it. Did they try to grip the outer handle and reach in to the stick or something? It was never unobvious to me how to hold it or why they did it that way. Personally I'd rather play 3d games with the n64 controller than the dual shock/analog, in terms of layout, just because the stick is in (one of the) primary position. Modern controllers with stick primary and dpad secondary and two grips are, to me, superior to either for 3d games though.