fpgeek

100 ms·

871.
by fpgeek 14y ago
There's a limited market for Google's services in China (if only because the government generally blocks them), but Motorola sells plenty of phones in China and makes even more.
872.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Of course Archos recently changed their tune and started releasing tablets with Google Play starting with the G9 generation...
873.
by fpgeek 14y ago
And now ask yourself the key question: Is Google more a mobile OS vendor / mobile device manufacturer or more a mobile application developer?
874.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Well, until 2017 there's a pesky promise to Chinese regulators: http://news.cnet.com/8301-32969_3-57437774-300/china-to-goog... Of course, Google's willingness to make that promise says something about their current plans and the continge
875.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Absolutely. I have no idea why they haven't replaced whatever they're doing with: <search> site:play.google.com Then they would just need to resolve apps the way the Play Store already does when presented with a URL and tack on any
876.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Very, very true. Think of web pages with POI data (store and restaurant locators are probably the tip of that iceberg), a long history of location-related searches including data from "front door" web searches, data on how the results of th
877.
by fpgeek 14y ago
I suspect it would last for quite some time beyond the officially supported window (possibly until the vast majority of those devices are no longer using Google's map data either via upgrade or retirement). Absent Apple or someone else unre
878.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Yes, Marco's figuring was wrong (or at least incomplete). However, doesn't his expectation sound reasonable (especially for the "it just works" company)? And isn't the mismatch between expectations and reality one of his points?
879.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Much as they've made other mistakes, lingering WiFi issues are not necessarily Apple's fault. There are all sorts of things that can go wrong. For example, I've had routers be unstable with some particular devices because of specific encryp
880.
by fpgeek 14y ago
What's the margin of error on this survey? My guess is the one tenth of a point drop in satisfaction is inside it. A more accurate title (for the original article) would be something like: "iOS 6 Does Not Show the Same Increase in Customer
881.
by fpgeek 14y ago
I think general expectation is that as Twitter turns up the heat on developers there eventually won't be any apps to worry about.
882.
by fpgeek 14y ago
This Bloomberg report says that he actually didn't comment on whether or not a Maps app had been submitted: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-09-25/google-s-schmidt-sa... The Verge also notes that Reuters has softened the tone of their o
883.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Yes, China is going to pass the US as the world's largest smartphone market. And if Apple's maps genuinely are better than Google's in China (something people are arguing about in this thread), that's to their credit. That being said, it is
884.
by fpgeek 14y ago
It is worth noting that Google themselves didn't offer turn-by-turn directions until Android 2.0 (October 2009). Interestingly, Google Maps Navigation launched in the US shortly after they had ditched Tele Atlas (owned by TomTom) as a US da
885.
by fpgeek 14y ago
In my personal opinion, if you're not thinking about an exit strategy, you should be. In the bigger picture, Apple's top two smartphone competitors build transit directions into their mapping solutions. Apple can't afford to leave transit t
886.
by fpgeek 14y ago
I'm sure it is. In fact, I've wondered if Google might try something like that (e.g. if/when they release an iOS app, expose some custom URL schemes for third-party developers to use if they want). That being said, there is another problem.
887.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Um, what data can Apple get from iOS 6 Maps that they couldn't get previously? Remember, they wrote the iOS 5 Maps app, Google was just the information source. They could (and did) have gathered whatever data they wanted. It is quite possib
888.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Recently, an increasing amount of Google's POI data is coming from companies they own (e.g. Frommer's and Zagat). Somehow I think Apple will have trouble working out licensing deals with those providers.
889.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Um, that's what Apple is already doing. So far, it isn't working. Google started doing more than that quite some time ago. They even stopped using TomTom / Tele Atlas (one of Apple's bigger third-party data suppliers) in 2009. Does basing a
890.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Mass transit depends on your definition of "work". If you're fine hunting down third-party apps for all of your mass transit needs then you're fine. Quite possibly better than fine since some of those third-party apps cover places the bigge
891.
by fpgeek 14y ago
The frontend subsidy rate isn't the same, at least according to AT&T's stated online prices. The price difference for any on-contract vs off-contract iPhone is $450. I couldn't find another new phone (Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry,
892.
by fpgeek 14y ago
In theory, sure. In practice, that's not what they do.
893.
by fpgeek 14y ago
This is why I am really, really hoping the "Nexus 5" rumors are true...
894.
by fpgeek 14y ago
I think what it means is that Google had lots of queries of the form: <thing> (e.g. "restaurant") <location> (e.g "Times Square") that came in through the search engine "front door". Having a lot of relevant questions (and h
895.
by fpgeek 14y ago
> This is how the iPod evolved, for example. The first iPod didn't do a lot, but what it did, it did correctly. If the first iPod had had the scale of quality issues we're seeing out of Apple Maps, there wouldn't have been a second.
896.
by fpgeek 14y ago
So iOS 6 maps are Apple's equivalent of Cars 2?
897.
by fpgeek 14y ago
I think you're right that Apple needed an overlap period, but I also think doing that would have been very difficult. Google certainly wouldn't have been happy with a public beta of a replacement app. Meanwhile, Apple wouldn't have wanted G
898.
by fpgeek 14y ago
It is almost certainly a terrible idea for Apple. Carriers already push iPhone alternatives for all sorts of reasons. It doesn't matter how good the third-party transit apps are. Not having transit routing built in is an "instant demo" for
899.
by fpgeek 14y ago
Possible, yes. But given the way many people criticized Google's tone at the time (nervous, etc.) it doesn't seem likely to me.
900.
by fpgeek 14y ago
First, I'm saying that the number you cite is not the true cost of the phone because it does not include the subsidy that AT&T pays the manufacturer on your behalf. Second, I'm saying that the true cost of an iPhone is usually greater t

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