What is it that makes people hate Apple so much?
- Thread starter Robbo
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Absolutly this, every time I have asked my friends who have Iphones if they looked at anything else and the reply is usually a no. It just annoys me that people are so blinded by marketing that they refuse to acknowledge alternatives.
This is business. It's up to the other manufacturers to figure out how to market their phones in an appealing way.
Apple ads show the product being used in everyday situations - at home, walking down the street, in a business meeting, etc. They emphasise features which are actually appealing to people, like iTunes downloads, happy kids using educational apps, people using apps to find a restaurant, etc. Notice that Apple ads rarely if ever show the person using the phone. They just show a hand touching the screen. That hand could belong to anybody. The focus is on the universal appeal of the product rather than on the user, so nobody is excluded.
In comparison, the other manufacturers' marketing is generally rubbish. The recent HTC ad is a perfect example. It shows a bloke doing a skydive, taking a photo and a video at the same time on his HTC phone. That kind of advertising doesn't allow the viewer to connect with the product. Firstly, most people don't do a skydive every day, so the viewer can't put himself in the place of the subject. Who are they trying to associate the phone with? Young men? Adventure sportspeople? Photographers? The brand image isn't nearly clear enough. It also implicitly excludes a large number of people, especially women. When have you ever seen an ad for an Android phone target women? They're 50% of the population, and their money is the same as blokes' money!
Secondly, has anybody here seriously thought, 'if anyone releases a phone which can take photos and videos simultaneously, I'll buy it in an instant?' Of all the things a decent Android phone can do, why on earth did they focus on that one? It's not a feature with wide public appeal, so they're wasting their advertising dollars on it. I have no sympathy for HTC, Samsung, etc. You can make the best product in the world, but it's your own fault if nobody knows about it. It's not like they don't have the budget to run decent advertising. They're just clueless on how to forge an emotional connection with the product.
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Very well said.
The One X is an extremely good phone, powerful, fantastic screen, nice design, decent software skin, etc. Yet they've chosen to focus on one of the smallest features being used in an environment that most people will never experience.
It's ridiculous.
It's surprising how many people with iphones have never heard of Android. Because Apple products aren't very well priced for the spec they've aimed their products at people who blindly buy "fashionable" items so they can charge premium prices for regular products.
MW
As with your other post in this thread, that is just nonsense.
Sure, there are certainly a number of blind iPhone users who think they are fashionable (and to an extent they [iPhones] are). However, there are an equal number of Android users who constantly try and mock iPhone users for having an inferior device when actually, they are just different. Unfortunately the latter is becoming more common. I mostly see Android users vehemently attacking people with iPhones.
Anyone judging anyone else based on what phone they have is just stupid, end of story.
The iPhone is generally priced similarly to its direct competitors (from Apple), so there is no price issue either.
Associate
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No. I think some fellow tech heads also appreciate the simplicity and generally cohesive nature of iOS.
I was on android from day one with the HTC G1, I was and still am a big android fan. I then bought a HTC Desire HD, I was so unhappy with the fragmentation of android and the fact that my "new" handset was only 6 months old, but was already being denied updates to the android OS by HTC, that I switched to the iPhone 4S.
No fragmentation issues with Apple, I get all of the updates when I am supposed to and I dont feel like Ive paid a bundle for a phone and then have been left out in the cold. I am very happy I switched.
In terms of cost the iPhone was slightly more expensive (after adding the extra SD card I had to buy for the HTC Desire HD). But I actually get more for my money on my unlimited data plan with my iPhone.
Ever noticed how all HTC phones display 10:08 as the time in their ads? It's because the hands on a clock look 'happy' at 10:08. Apparently this sells more clocks. However, it only works for analogue clocks and no-one at HTC has realised this.
Spec isn't everything, the best car isn't always the fastest, and likewise the car with the most HP isn't always the fastest either.
Another flaw of the Android manufacturers and their marketing efforts: focusing far too heavily on specifications. Most people want a phone to provide a good user experience - they don't care if it has fairy dust or magic smoke inside it, providing it is nice to use and does what they want it to do.
Why is not focusing on specs being 'fashionable'? Buying products which are well-optimised and offer a cohesive user experience isn't being 'fashionable'. It's just acting like the 99% of the population which doesn't care about the CPU speed and amount of RAM in their phone. Anybody who makes this argument fundamentally misunderstands the market and the reasons for Apple's success. Sadly that group includes a lot of Apple's competitors.
Soldato
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I think you'll find it's Apple who advertise with the line "magical and revolutionary".
The reason Android manufacturers have to focus on specifications is because they're in competition with one another to make the best device with the same OS. Much of that means having big spec numbers to throw around - the fastest processor, the most memory, the biggest battery. Design is secondary; it can look like a Porsche, but if it runs like a Skoda punters will take their money elsewhere.
Conversely, Apple are the only manufacturer of iProducts and they only have one set of specs in each generation, apart from the easily understood storage capacity. They don't have to provide details for comparison because there's literally nothing to compare with except to list improvements over the last generation.
I think that supports my point? 'Magical' is a reference to the general user experience and not to the hardware inside the phone. That's what Apple does.
I agree that Android manufacturers have to focus on hardware more than software (although third-party skins are also important). I don't accept that this requires them to throw big numbers around, though. They're competing against the iPhone and WP7 as much as against other Android phones. They could just as easily emphasise the design and usability of their handsets as the internal hardware. They could even easily run Apple-style 'lifestyle' advertising.
Design is not secondary. Few people like ugly products with poor usability. Your average punter will take a phone which looks and feels slicker over one which is technically more powerful, every time. That is the way it is, regardless of whether it's right or whether the Android guys wish it was not the case.
Not really... Apple is competing with Android as well as with its own gear. It doesn't headline with tech specs simply because it knows that it's emotional appeal and brand identity rather than tech specs which gets the average punter to spend £400 on a phone.
Exactly... The UX31 was released mid autumn... Around 3 months...
The current ultrabooks (and I include the air in that) are all the same generation (to the point almost all use exactly the same 2 or 3 processors (i5 and i7). There are several very good ones, including the Air. There is none that stand out as being superior to the rest, although there are several that stand out as being better than most. The Air is not the best, but it's certainly not the worst either, it has nothing to do with age...
EDIT: Oh and the original series 9 was released in March 2011 and only just had a new one released...
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Soldato
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I think recent sales of the now 6 month iPhone 4s tend to say they aren't haemorrhaging at all. A six month old 4S versus the current top end Android handsets and over half is planning on going for the iPhone:
Ok, haemorrhaging is probably a bit strong to use really, although iPads are seeing a sharp drop in marketshare in the tablet space.
We'll see what the Q1 results are then but my expectation is Android will still take the top spot in terms of sales again and in terms of increase in market share.
because they had no competition until last year
My general issue is with obsessive/smug apple fans. Their continual preaching about its benefits, that it simply is the best and a seemingly totally closed minded attitude to any alternative or that anything else could be better. That is the main issue with apple, not apple itself. Its totally pathetic!
Personally I own an ipad and a macbook pro (however with Windows 7 installed on it) but not an iphone. I think apple design amazing hardware but I dislike the software.. How no one seems to be able to compete with them is beyond me. Nokia or Sony have amazing hardware design skills, why havent they put that together as a decent package.
Personally I own an ipad and a macbook pro (however with Windows 7 installed on it) but not an iphone. I think apple design amazing hardware but I dislike the software.. How no one seems to be able to compete with them is beyond me. Nokia or Sony have amazing hardware design skills, why havent they put that together as a decent package.
Soldato
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We have the Tegra 3 Android tablets comig online (although some have abysmal sales) so there is going to be competition but I don't see the iPads dominance. Wing threatened this year. Not due to hardware but Apps. Android tablet apps are terrible.
Also four million iPads where sold in the four days after the launch of the 3rd gen iPad. I don't think Apple are worried about market share. If they ever are.