cropr

chasm said:

Make no mistake about what Apple is saying here. The bottom line on this from a user’s perspective is simple:

Developers would LOVE to make more money collecting lots of extra data about users and selling that data to entities like Google and data brokers.

Apple’s App Store rules make that difficult-to-impossible, and puts some control of this in the USER’S hands. For example, the pop-up on new apps that asks you if it’s okay for this app to track you, and (unless you’re an idiot) you say NO.

You WILL NOT SEE that warning/option in apps you get from other App Stores, because that’s the ONLY way they can attract developers. And they’ll primarily attract skeevy developers running frauds, scams, crypto schemes and other shady ventures, including gambling and porn apps. And Epic, because they are also skeevy.

I’m not a fan of Apple’s monolithic App Store, and would have preferred if the EU had mandated alternative App Stores that complied 100 percent with Apple’s own self-imposed security/privacy rules, but that was unrealistic.

But users don’t have be suckers. Use EXTREME caution if and when you download anything from alternative app stores, because there’s probably a reason the app is in there instead of the “real” App Store, and that will ALWAYS have to do with either data gathering/selling, and/or apps that push scams/frauds, or at BEST legit gambling/porn apps.

Spencer314 said:

What's less surprising than the fact that fake apps can make it through Apple's overwhelmed review process is the fact that Apple does such a poor job of taking them down when they are reported. You would think that fake apps would be taken down within days of being reported by a legitimate source, rather than remaining in the app store for months or years. 

There is a case to be made for a non Apple app store that does a better job than Apple of providing properly curated apps. But, users are going to have to figure out which ones are trustworthy by themselves, creating an annoying meta problem. 

tht said:

The hard part is the marketing and engineering. That's 99.9% of the job, not the whatever is in the patent. It is really doubtful any of that can be stolen. Any company that productizes an idea spends the same amount of resources on the engineering and trying to get into market, which are closely guarded trade secrets. The actual value. That's why I say Apple stole nothing from Masimo, and Apple likely spent more resources on the Apple Watch blood oxygen measurement feature than Masimo ever did on their devices, as Apple's scale and standards are quite large relative to other companies.

chasm said:

People who choose WhatsApp — and many millions of people do — are giving Meta/FaceBook your data (maybe — or maybe not — the content of your messages, but lots and lots of other data) to sell to advertisers and media manipulators.

JaiOh81 said:

chelin said:

aldanno said:

Just imagine if Circle K was forced to carry every brand candy, soda and beer. Also imagine they weren't free to mark-up their product prices as they saw fit! No one is asking the Apple Retail Stores to stock every iPhone charger, or competing smart phones? Why is the digital store different? Especially in Europe, they also won't let you sell car parts that haven't been 'certified' to not compromise their safety or environmental standards. Are they planning on setting up an international body to 'certify' apps as not harmful to the operating system or other apps?

I don't get it.

This isn’t the same. Imagine if you had the deed to the land. And then you wanted to have a chevron station next to the circle k. You own the device (deed) because you purchased it. You should be allowed to use it in whatever way you see fit. That means if you’re ok with potential risks you can install a third party App Store. It doesn’t impact any liability on apples side. It doesn’t even increase any cost on their side. It would impact their revenue however 

We all know the “limitations” that come from owning an iPhone. If you want a phone that you can have multiple app stores on, buy a different phone. There are tons of manufacturers that make smart phones that allow you to side load from anywhere on the internet. I don’t understand what’s so hard about that? It’s like buying a house with an HOA and then complaining the HOA won’t let you do something you know you wouldn’t be allowed to do before you bought the house