Apple's iPhone 3.0 expands the 'yawning' competitive gap

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Comments

  • Reply 41 of 105
    tenobelltenobell Posts: 7,014member
    The email was being written in the Photos app not in the Mail app. You would have needed to go back to Photos to find he email, not Mail. Even if you leave Photos and come back to it the email should still be there.





    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rtdunham View Post


    Yesterday, on my 3G iPhone, with the latest software, i was twice in the process of writing emails containing a photo i'd taken with the phone, when I got incoming calls. In both instances my email "disappeared". At least, I couldn't find them. They were not in the mail "drafts" folder and were nowhere else i could think of to look.



  • Reply 42 of 105
    timontimon Posts: 152member
    Still a few features that needs to be added before the final release:

    1) Voice Dialing

    2) A true iChat client and not one that only uses SMS.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by BigJim View Post


    Many of these phones will come in at a far lower price than the $2400 cost of an iPhone over 24 months. I'm happy: competition is good for the consumer.



    Not totally true, all of the major carriers charge $30 for their data plans so your going to pay the same monthly price for any of the smart phones. Saying that the iPhone cost $2,400 over two years and not saying that the other costs the same is being disingenuous. If you want to complain about the high data plan price that's fine but it's not fare to say it's Apples fault.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by StuBeck View Post


    I love the ridiculous price targets these idiots are setting.



    Why, if it was not for the economic slow down Apple would likely still near that price. Now, do I think it will get back there this year, no but I would not be surprised if it gets there sometime next year.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Crowley View Post


    Whether the upgrades "should have" been there in the first place in is irrelevant, Apple has broken down the mobile OS software model spectacularly twice, with the iTunes integration on firmware updates, and with the App Store. Whatever functionality the iPhone itself may or may not be missing, it's light years ahead in these two respects.



    Amen, bother.
  • Reply 43 of 105
    kim kap solkim kap sol Posts: 2,987member
    The most mystifying thing I've seen in recent years: the most fervent anti-Apple of the past are now in love with Macs and/or iPhone/iPods.



    Apple has never had the best hardware specs for just about any of their products. The main differentiator has always been the software. This was true 3 decades ago and is still true today. Nothing has changed. Yet everything has changed in the minds of many consumers.



    So what happened? How did Apple suddenly become cool?



    At one point I figured the iPod was what made Apple cool...but it can't be the only thing that created Apple's recent success.
  • Reply 44 of 105
    mark2005mark2005 Posts: 1,158member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by umijin View Post


    Since Apple hasn't released the OS, and the timetable is not definite - why speculate on how far competitors will be behind? It's sort of pointless, because by the time v3 comes out, we have no idea what other phone makers will have. And by pre-announcing all those features, competitors can target those that may actually be useful and do better.



    No point fanning flames when no kindling has been ignited yet.



    1. The SDK that uses iPhone OS X 3.0 has already been released to all developers. Unlike the Palm Mojo SDK that's still available only to the select few...



    2. We've seen WM6.5 (available 2H09) and Palm webOS (available 1H09) already so we have a rough idea of what we'd be getting, altho neither SDK is generally available yet. We haven't seen announcements for the next version of Blackberry or Symbian or Android, so it's possible they could have huge advances (altho there's absolutely no track record of this before). But all have just dipped a toe into the AppStore platform/ecosystem world, so we know there's no way any of them will be close, even by the 2H of 09.



    By the way, I bet some of those AppStore business model mechanisms have been patented by Apple. Time to go back through to see what we missed when we read the patents the first time around.
  • Reply 45 of 105
    thomprthompr Posts: 1,521member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by umijin View Post


    Since Apple hasn't released the OS, and the timetable is not definite - why speculate on how far competitors will be behind? It's sort of pointless, because by the time v3 comes out, we have no idea what other phone makers will have. And by pre-announcing all those features, competitors can target those that may actually be useful and do better.



    No point fanning flames when no kindling has been ignited yet.



    This part of building a system is HARD, much harder than the hardware aspect. Apple has been working on the interface and the complex system that services it (iTunes/App Store, etc) for many years, and with a hell of a lot of research dollars thrown at it.



    As long as companies underestimate this part of the challenge, thinking that all they need is to throw enough dollars at it and slam something out as quickly as possible (e.g. Microsoft Zune & Marketplace) they will continue to lag behind Apple in this space.



    In other words, your attitude and belief that Apple's early announcement will only make it possible for someone else to achieve the same goals in the meantime is the very thing that prevents success. THESE THINGS ARE HARD AND TAKE MANY MANY YEARS AND CARE.



    Thompson
  • Reply 46 of 105
    mjtomlinmjtomlin Posts: 2,673member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Johnny Mozzarella View Post


    I would rather see a LED camera "flash" than Adobe "flash" on the next iPhone.



    Amen to that! That's pretty much the one thing I'm really hoping for in my next iPhone.
  • Reply 47 of 105
    mark2005mark2005 Posts: 1,158member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    I hate to burst your bubble but since when is MMS, Cut and Paste and Stereo bluetooth considered a new feature? And still no video capture from the company that invented Quickktime? Come on - let's get real.



    They are new features to those who already own an iPhone 3G.



    "You see, my iPhone didn't have these yesterday but it has them today, and I didn't pay a single cent for it!"
  • Reply 48 of 105
    mark2005mark2005 Posts: 1,158member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by chabig View Post


    Multitasking wouldn't require new hardware. Multitasking is a software feature not related to hardware. The current iPhone already handles multitasking quite nicely. It's just that Apple limits its use to a handful of it's own applications.



    And Apple has made clear that it will not allow multitasking for other apps unless it meets its user experience expectations for response time and battery life.



    And that is closely tied to faster CPUs/GPUs, and better batteries. Whih is hardware.
  • Reply 49 of 105
    mark2005mark2005 Posts: 1,158member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by coffeetime View Post


    I was hoping to see Apple demo a better way of organizing apps on the screen (perhaps via iTunes), since it is a real hassle the way it is.



    Since organizing apps on the iPhone screen really is of little consequence to app developers, I can see it being left out of the preview. Just the way it's usually left out of Mac OS previews, and even developer releases until the very end.



    So I think there's a real good chance still that this will change.
  • Reply 50 of 105
    sirromsirrom Posts: 32member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    And maybe that's why other phones don't need "updates" because the've had these features (MMS, Cut and paste, bluetooth stereo, and video capture) since day one.



    How quickly we all seem to forget. Prior to Apple offering significant updates to existing phones, consumers were required to buy a new phone to get those new features. Perhaps a phone manufacturer would release a bug fix firmware update, but the consumer frequently didn't even know about it. Also, the tech crowd would find ways to flash newer firmware on older hardware to gain a few features where possible.



    However, when Apple started releasing updated to the firmware that actually added features and not just bug fixes, everything changed. Especially when the OS 2.0 was announced to be a free, compatible upgrade to the first gen hardware. Now, it is the expectation that consumers should get new features without having to buy new phone or hack old ones without official support. Case in point: Windows Mobile 6.5 will not be backward compatible with most WinMo phones except the most recent of hardware. You want the new home screen? Go buy another phone. Same thing will happen when WinMo 7 is released.



    Apple changed a LOT more than a user interface, it changed the way the phone business works, just like they did with music sales.
  • Reply 51 of 105
    First off, I would say the event yesterday was targeted at developers, NOT consumers. The main "feature" adds are interesting but not WOW. Copy and paste we all know was a sin of omission so adding it is more of a finally and thanks moment than a wow look at this.



    That said, I was pretty damn impressed with yesterday specifically because of the focus on developers. The API and functionality adds open up the door to greater leverage of iPod media libraries, mapping functions, multi-tier pricing models, ad hoc peer-to-peer apps like games, aynchronous/event driven apps like IM/right here now services, etc.



    Apple's advantage with iPhone/iPod touch, as others have noted, has never been about having the deepest feature set. It's been about end to end user experience, integration across hardware, software and service and leverage, lots of leverage.



    Mobile will be won or lost as a platform play around who secures the hearts/minds of developers and builds the biggest ecosystem. That is why Microsoft won the PC wars and that is how Apple intends to be #1 in the mobile device/mobility wars.



    Very few developers I know are chomping at the bit for Android and Pre, which is absolutely no knock on either device. It speaks to the goodness of the leverage, installed base and reach that Apple has created.



    This is my analysis of yesterday's event:



    Analysis of iPhone 3.0 SDK Developer Preview

    http://bit.ly/ANdMz



    Check it out if interested.



    Mark
  • Reply 52 of 105
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by GTL215 View Post


    I hear ya. I enjoy the discussions too. I think "fanboys" get a bad rap. This is usually how it goes down -



    1) Apple releases product X

    2) People complain about missing features

    3) Other people say it's not that big of a deal such features are missing.

    4) Those people are immediately labeled blind fanboys.



    This is the case for every product release. Shuffle, iPhone, Unibody MB/MBP, etc.



    This isn't necessarily directed at you in particular, but people need to understand its OK for some people to BE OK with missing features.



    I like that synopsis.

    I'll have to cut and paste it for quick reference in the future.
  • Reply 53 of 105
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SirROM View Post


    How quickly we all seem to forget. Prior to Apple offering significant updates to existing phones, consumers were required to buy a new phone to get those new features. Perhaps a phone manufacturer would release a bug fix firmware update, but the consumer frequently didn't even know about it. Also, the tech crowd would find ways to flash newer firmware on older hardware to gain a few features where possible.



    However, when Apple started releasing updated to the firmware that actually added features and not just bug fixes, everything changed. Especially when the OS 2.0 was announced to be a free, compatible upgrade to the first gen hardware. Now, it is the expectation that consumers should get new features without having to buy new phone or hack old ones without official support. Case in point: Windows Mobile 6.5 will not be backward compatible with most WinMo phones except the most recent of hardware. You want the new home screen? Go buy another phone. Same thing will happen when WinMo 7 is released.



    Apple changed a LOT more than a user interface, it changed the way the phone business works, just like they did with music sales.



    Apple also changed the way you purchase a phone because many other phones when you upgrade and get those tons of new features usually cost $50- $100 Max.
  • Reply 54 of 105
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mark2005 View Post


    They are new features to those who already own an iPhone 3G.



    "You see, my iPhone didn't have these yesterday but it has them today, and I didn't pay a single cent for it!"



    Right- and I know some who's trying to sell me the Brooklyn Bridge as well.
  • Reply 55 of 105
    tenobelltenobell Posts: 7,014member
    When Apple previewed iPhone 2.0 last year they did not show all of the user interface changes. Its very likely more will be shown when iPhone 3.0 is launched.



    Quote:

    I was hoping to see Apple demo a better way of organizing apps on the screen (perhaps via iTunes), since it is a real hassle the way it is.



  • Reply 56 of 105
    tenobelltenobell Posts: 7,014member
    double
  • Reply 57 of 105
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mjtomlin View Post


    Amen to that! That's pretty much the one thing I'm really hoping for in my next iPhone.



    But where would the flash be located? It would destroy the iPhone aesthetics.
  • Reply 58 of 105
    mark2005mark2005 Posts: 1,158member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by umijin View Post


    Treading water in hardware?? Give me a break. Its competitors have exceeded Apple's hardware in many respects. Apple is behind the curve in hardware Apple's competitors actually have an advantage because they are more flexible in what they produce. The iPhone's major hardware weaknesses include the crappy camera (low res, no video), lack of a physical keyboard, the lack of buttons for vital controls. Companies like HTC and LG (among others) have surpassed Apple in these regards, though they don't have a compelling OS.



    Keyboard and most buttons aren't included because of Apple's view regarding acceptable user interfaces, not because of hardware. So you'll never see those on iPhone.



    Apple traded higher-res camera for thinness in its 1st rev and decided not to fix it for iPhone 3G. Video is possible using iPhone hardware but Apple doesn't provide software to enable it. Both of these could be coming in next-gen iPhone.



    Quote:

    The Palm PRE looks to surpass the iPhone in many ways, and indications are the OS is much snappier than the iPhone's. And certainly it won't be the only device with such stats from Palm or otherwise.



    No surprise, this year's phone (Pre) surpasses last year's iPhone in snappiness. It's got a better CPU., which this year's iPhone can certainly also use (plus have enhancements from its internal PA Semi staff).



    We'll see in July which 2009 phone is snappier and lasts longer on a single charge.
  • Reply 59 of 105
    tenobelltenobell Posts: 7,014member
    What smartphone are you talking about that typically cost $50-$100? I haven't seen such a phone.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by teckstud View Post


    Apple also changed the way you purchase a phone because many other phones when you upgrade and get those tons of new features usually cost $50- $100 Max.



  • Reply 60 of 105
    teckstudteckstud Posts: 6,476member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TenoBell View Post


    What smartphone are you talking about that typically cost $50-$100? I haven't seen such a phone.



    Did I say smart phone? Can't you read? I'm much to busy to try to teach you and reply to your every need.
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