7 ms·

This ethos "if its important to you bring your own" is literally the opposite of user-first development. We've strayed deeply and meaningfully into premiumizati

by pempem 4y ago

This ethos "if its important to you bring your own" is literally the opposite of user-first development. We've strayed deeply and meaningfully into premiumization and only the consumer (human beings, like us) will suffer.

charcircuit 4y ago
AM radio is a niche use case. I've never used AM radio in my life. User first development means that you need to include every niche feature a user may want.
- jeauxlb 4y ago
  I’ve never used a wheelchair ramp but don’t mind that buildings that I use have them. This move is just laziness by automotive manufacturers not wanting to address their negative externalities (spewing RF into the local environment), disguised as efficiency/progress.
  - thghtihadanacct 4y ago
    Right?! Gimme AM, keep your SIM/WiFi away
- galleywest200 4y ago
  My state (Washington) actively uses specific AM stations for traffic and weather alerts.
  - charcircuit 4y ago
    Phones (carplay / android auto) have replaced this. Google maps can show a much better picture of the current traffic conditions than a radio broadcast.
    - jjav 4y ago
      > Google maps can show a much better picture of the current traffic conditions than a radio broadcast. There is no cell phone signal in many areas.
    - das-hinterland 4y ago
      That's great when you never leave a 10 square mile bubble in the Bay Area. There's a > 40 mile stretch of state route 542 (mt baker highway) in WA where there is no cell signal. Zip. Nada. No matter the carrier. And this road can carry nasty rapidly changing weather conditions in the winter. Your iPhone 26 will continue to proudly display "No Service." So, no, it has not replaced this.
      - kanbara 4y ago
        iPhone 14 has satellite connectivity for emergencies, other handset makers are doing this too. in 10 years the picture will look much different, and i doubt any phone will ever have truly “no service” again.
        lozenge 4y ago
        So it'll be unnecessarily dangerous for just 10 years? No, I don't think $200 phones are getting satellite connectivity.
        zamnos 4y ago
        T-mobile's claim is that by 2024 their customers will get emergency satellite connectivity on their existing handsets, even cheap $200 ones. They might need to be new $200 handsets in order to get the software support, but the hardware support is supposedly there already. The specific language T-mobile uses is the "vast majority of smartphones already on T‑Mobile’s network" which sure sounds like it includes $200 phones. With the help of Starlink, T-mobile is going to put cellphone towers in space, pointed down, and your existing cellphone will be able to pick up the signal and the satellites will be sensitive enough to hear the cellphone's transmissions. T-mobile's service will be limited to various forms of texting and possibly also Twitter, which is used by many emergency departments to broadcast information, which is slightly different than the iPhone's offering of dire emergency service coverage. Still doesn't replace AM radio use cases though. https://www.t-mobile.com/news/un-carrier/t-mobile-takes-coverage-above-and-beyond-with-spacex https://www.t-mobile.com/news/un-carrier/t-mobile-takes-cove...
  - davchana 4y ago
    California too. Google may show that traffic jam, accident stuff, but AM frequency has repeated goverment or official information.
xwdv 4y ago
The opposite of user-first development sounds pretty good then. Finally, cars built according to how an automaker wants instead of as a checklist of things to attract as many customer dollars as possible.
- eptcyka 4y ago
  Yeah, an it'd be great if it was also the automaker who paid and drove the cars, right?
SideQuark 4y ago
If different users want different features, should the product include them all and charge each user for all the features? That also doesn't sound like user-first development. I've not used AM in a car in decades. I'd guess Ford has looked at their customers and reached this decision based on evidence. So it may be likely that their users prefer spending money on feature X instead of AM.
- JohnFen 4y ago
  What's wrong with offering an AM radio as an option, though?
  - bcrl 4y ago
    It's the exponential SKU proliferation problem. There's good reason why manufacturers like VW bundle most feature choices into a small number of trim tiers.
  - SideQuark 4y ago
    If the cost to get them working properly in EV is more costly, then it's not worth it. I suspect Ford doesn't want to throw money away, but to optimize sales and profit. Unlikely they'd do this without some pretty good reasons.
- pempem 4y ago
  If there's a world in which emergency information is shared with the populous using AM radio, then it should be considered a bare minimum because human beings, buying the cars and selling the cars, require access to this information. Its literally information that can lead to connection + survival as indicated by the comments below and so I'm gonna say MVP worthy until the body we say governs all of us provides a reliable alternative.
  - SideQuark 4y ago
    There is a reliable alternative, it's already where such items are broadcast, and more people use it than AM by orders of magnitude. Next you'll tell me we need HAM radio and Morse code.

by pempem 4y ago

charcircuit 4y ago

AM radio is a niche use case. I've never used AM radio in my life. User first development means that you need to include every niche feature a user may want.

jeauxlb 4y ago
I’ve never used a wheelchair ramp but don’t mind that buildings that I use have them. This move is just laziness by automotive manufacturers not wanting to address their negative externalities (spewing RF into the local environment), disguised as efficiency/progress.
- thghtihadanacct 4y ago
  Right?! Gimme AM, keep your SIM/WiFi away
galleywest200 4y ago
My state (Washington) actively uses specific AM stations for traffic and weather alerts.
- charcircuit 4y ago
  Phones (carplay / android auto) have replaced this. Google maps can show a much better picture of the current traffic conditions than a radio broadcast.
  - jjav 4y ago
    > Google maps can show a much better picture of the current traffic conditions than a radio broadcast. There is no cell phone signal in many areas.
  - das-hinterland 4y ago
    That's great when you never leave a 10 square mile bubble in the Bay Area. There's a > 40 mile stretch of state route 542 (mt baker highway) in WA where there is no cell signal. Zip. Nada. No matter the carrier. And this road can carry nasty rapidly changing weather conditions in the winter. Your iPhone 26 will continue to proudly display "No Service." So, no, it has not replaced this.
    - kanbara 4y ago
      iPhone 14 has satellite connectivity for emergencies, other handset makers are doing this too. in 10 years the picture will look much different, and i doubt any phone will ever have truly “no service” again.
      - lozenge 4y ago
        So it'll be unnecessarily dangerous for just 10 years? No, I don't think $200 phones are getting satellite connectivity.
        zamnos 4y ago
        T-mobile's claim is that by 2024 their customers will get emergency satellite connectivity on their existing handsets, even cheap $200 ones. They might need to be new $200 handsets in order to get the software support, but the hardware support is supposedly there already. The specific language T-mobile uses is the "vast majority of smartphones already on T‑Mobile’s network" which sure sounds like it includes $200 phones. With the help of Starlink, T-mobile is going to put cellphone towers in space, pointed down, and your existing cellphone will be able to pick up the signal and the satellites will be sensitive enough to hear the cellphone's transmissions. T-mobile's service will be limited to various forms of texting and possibly also Twitter, which is used by many emergency departments to broadcast information, which is slightly different than the iPhone's offering of dire emergency service coverage. Still doesn't replace AM radio use cases though. https://www.t-mobile.com/news/un-carrier/t-mobile-takes-coverage-above-and-beyond-with-spacex https://www.t-mobile.com/news/un-carrier/t-mobile-takes-cove...
- davchana 4y ago
  California too. Google may show that traffic jam, accident stuff, but AM frequency has repeated goverment or official information.

xwdv 4y ago

The opposite of user-first development sounds pretty good then. Finally, cars built according to how an automaker wants instead of as a checklist of things to attract as many customer dollars as possible.

eptcyka 4y ago
Yeah, an it'd be great if it was also the automaker who paid and drove the cars, right?

SideQuark 4y ago

If different users want different features, should the product include them all and charge each user for all the features? That also doesn't sound like user-first development. I've not used AM in a car in decades. I'd guess Ford has looked at their customers and reached this decision based on evidence. So it may be likely that their users prefer spending money on feature X instead of AM.

JohnFen 4y ago
What's wrong with offering an AM radio as an option, though?
- bcrl 4y ago
  It's the exponential SKU proliferation problem. There's good reason why manufacturers like VW bundle most feature choices into a small number of trim tiers.
- SideQuark 4y ago
  If the cost to get them working properly in EV is more costly, then it's not worth it. I suspect Ford doesn't want to throw money away, but to optimize sales and profit. Unlikely they'd do this without some pretty good reasons.
pempem 4y ago
If there's a world in which emergency information is shared with the populous using AM radio, then it should be considered a bare minimum because human beings, buying the cars and selling the cars, require access to this information. Its literally information that can lead to connection + survival as indicated by the comments below and so I'm gonna say MVP worthy until the body we say governs all of us provides a reliable alternative.
- SideQuark 4y ago
  There is a reliable alternative, it's already where such items are broadcast, and more people use it than AM by orders of magnitude. Next you'll tell me we need HAM radio and Morse code.