Apple 'slashes iPhone 5 screen orders', tight-fisted fanbois blamed Demand for iPhones is plummeting, according to two supply-chain sources. The suggestion of weak sales knocked about three per cent off Apple's pre-trading stock to just above $500 a share. Orders for iPhone 5 touchscreens for January to March 2013 have been cut in half by Cupertino bosses, reports Japanese news service Nikkei …
I suspect that the iPhone phenomenon is an example of an Internet bubble we will just have to get used to. Instant dissemination of opinion to a billion people won't be free of unexpected effects. The original iPhone was groundbreaking - but it is now in the mid range of technical specifications. Apple is just one of a number of tech companies. An adjustment is called for.
Please, lessen our boredom: Why not tell us what you would want to see in a phone?
I suspect that your boredom is a consequence of phone technology (screens, battery, radios, CPUs) being fairly mature, rather than any fault of Apple's. If you want excitement, then study an immature technology suchtouchless finger-tracking control (the forums on leapmotion.com are interesting) or try TED.com, instead of looking for novelty in an article about an existing phone. You won't find it here.
I don't know what other (existing) technologies could be squeezed into a phone that wouldn't result in it being the phone equivalent of the car Homer Simpson designed. Extra functionality can already be added with extra hardware, such as keyboards, microphones, 24bit DACs, battery packs etc
I tend to see a fair few iPhones in the hands of older, and perhaps a bit wealthier, people who no one could accuse of being cool or a hipster. They have the cash, and the phone has a reputation in their broadsheet newspaper-of-choice as being easy to use. Cool don't have to come into it. People are beginning to see hipsters under the bed, like Cold-War era paranoiacs.
Erm, so what would you add to a smartphone to make it groundbreaking again?
Apple fixed the flaws in the smartphone, they added usability, slick interface and a great way of interacting with a phone, using your fingers not some stupid plastic stick.
Everything since then has been improvements to screen, cpu, network speed and software. There are very few innovations you can add to a smartphone now.
Funny, I already had phones that did that before the first iphone 3G (the first iphone wasn't a smartphone, couldn't run apps).
Plus even if we acknowledge some things as Apple strengths in 2007, your argument is biased by cherry picking those things. In fact, there were plenty of things that had to be fixed by Apple - e.g., 3G, apps, basic UI functionality like copy/paste. I could just as well cherry pick other features, and say some other manufacturer like Nokia fixed smartphones by adding Internet, apps, wifi, maps, GPS (e.g., N95), and everything since then has just been making it faster.
I don't know at what point a smartphone had all of the things that we take for granted today - and I'd argue that such a point is a matter of opinion in deciding what's important, and a moving target as new things get introduced. But it *certainly* wasn't 2007. And given that I would rate free built-in sat nav as one of those important innovative features, and not simply "making it faster", Apple didn't fulfil that until 2012.
"using your fingers not some stupid plastic stick"
You could always use your fingers. Pens are an optional extra, which only went away as capacitive screens couldn't support them, but I'm glad to see they're now a possibility again thanks to Samsung etc. Apple were only first with multitouch, not touch.
As for suggestions on innovations today, how about being able to use capacitive screens with gloves again (Nokia), or for the future, flexible screens (a recent Samsung concept video suggests a smartphone that opens up to be a large tablet).
How about a better user interface? Apple's is reliable, but that's about all you can say. It's clunking, clumsy and w-a-a-a-y behind the competitors now. As I've posted before, here's how you open a new private browsing tab:
iOS: home button, settings, Safari, private browsing on, home button, Safari.
Android: long press on tab, select "Open new private tap".
And virtual keyboards that don't change to uppercase when you shift? Goddammit, Apple, this isn't 2007 anymore.
"Erm, so what would you add to a smartphone to make it groundbreaking again?"
Nothing, It's a phone, so long as it makes phone calls, sends messages and maybe allows a few games and a bit of browsing that's good enough for 98% of people. Apple are telling us how ground breaking their latest tech is and how you will be a nobody if you don't buy it, well the only people daft enough to fall for that marketing guff are usually kids under 25, the key demographic that has cash on the hip and no responsibilities.
Apple have drummed up this image of being the hipsters techy friend, you only have to look at the opening videos on their app software. River Island/GAP clad young twenty somethings in Apple emblazoned t-shirts teaching you how to get creative with your new copy of Aperture, iPhoto, etc. People are seeing Apple for what they are, just another successful tech company making pretty good products. People now compare them to others like Samsung, they see that no one product or company is actually any better than any other, they're all make OK products and actually it's down to personal choice in the end.
Maybe I'm the odd one since I don't replace my phone unless it breaks or starts to have problems.
So why would I go out and buy a new iPhone if I don't need it?
Maybe that's killing part of the demand, along with competition from other vendors?
Sorry, but I don't think that its a question of build quality, but more of the fact of supply and demand.
There are more smart phones to choose from these days.
The problem with the iPhone 5 is that the screen was just not big enough.
It's the phones with the briefcase sized displays that are selling like hot cakes, people no longer want to be understated and sophisticated, instead they want to stand out from the crowd be gaudy and vulgar.
What better way than to pull out a 'massive'' and flash it round a darkened bar. The fashion for men with clothes that have map pockets and combat style trousers where a phone can be secreted halfway down your trouser leg in a pocket meant for ammunition just stokes the sales. Even though the closest they get to the Great Outdoors is crossing the road to get a sandwich. For women the choice is easier, they can carry the 'massive' in a massive handbag (note how little bags are not so 'in') even when wearing skinny jeans they remain connected.
The next generation of 5",6" and probably 7" phones may yet be developed, they probably won't sell well though, you'd look like such a pr*ck getting that out in a bar.
For some reason Obviously prefers to think many of his fellow humans are contemptible halfwits, yet he can't grok that there are a good number of people who don't really give a shit about phones, and for whom an extra couple of hundred quid (spread out over a couple of years) isn't going to leave them skint.
Its really not too hard a concept.
Generally, owning things like a Volvo, a Bang and Olufsen stereo, a fancy watch and a Mont Blanc fountain pen is a way of displaying to others that you have reached a level in your career, (certainly it fulfils the stereotype of doctors). It might not be tasteful, but it usually requires some competence to acquire expendable cash. They are not half wits, they are merely well-off. True, there might be better things to spend their money on, but its their money.
Given that a fair few doctors use iPhones (around 60% in the US), it would't be in Obviously's interests to tell each and every iPhone user he meets that they are a idiot to their face. He hasn't got the guts, anyway.
*http://www.viterahealthcare.com/company/Pages/pr_ViteraHealthcareSolutionsStudyIndicatesThattheMajorityofHealthcareProfessionalsAreInterestedinaMobileEHRSolution.aspx
I was with you until you said 'Volvo'.
I thought owning a Volvo generally showed people you were a middle aged accountant, probably called Gerald?
As opposed to my car (a modified subaru impreza), which generally shows people I'm a semi-literate, fake tracksuit wearing, burberry loving peasant. Mostly right, especially the 'peasant' bit
Years since I had a Volvo. Brialliant, did the ton and more down the motorway (and other roads) with too many people in the back.. I just loved the look on people's faces as they were overtaken by a large Volvo Estate. Brilliant, apart from the look on the policeman's face a couple of times, though his words of wisdom were sometimes neat if expensive. Absolutely reliable in all weathers too, even after a quarter of a million miles. Shame about the petrol bill.
No, do n't knock Volvos, nor iPhones for that matter. As you say, successful people seem to like them. So the rest should ask themselves what makes them less successful?
Not knocking Volvos... stating facts. We had a 15 year old Volvo estate which was great, then we changed to new model in 1990 and toasted some marshmellows. So we packed in Volvos and got a Toyota Previa that was just out and it was awesome. Toyota > Volvo. Samsung > Apple. Fact.
And, if you actually need a road vehicle, normal car > 4x4.
I have driven both a Volvo S60 D5 and a Volvo XC90 D5. These share essentially the same floorpan and engine / transmission. The S60 was the most compact body available with those mechanicals.
However I can tell you now, one was swift, solid, had lightning reactions, rock-solid body control and huge acceleration. The other was the 4x4.
One tangential observation: it may be that doctors ended up with iPhones because of some very specialist apps specifically targeted at their needs; for example, an MD friend has been carrying a Palm-based thing for years since it had a variant of some pharmaceutical reference product, and it let him check dosage and contraindications, etc.
The key here is that there are some cases, still, where the old situation that existed with minicomputers still holds sway: the application-specfic software is the sole key, and whatever hardware runs it comes along for the ride.
(And, as an application provider, the idea that I can deliver my solution on a hand-held and a tablet without thinking about it works nicely. Against which, giving some channel 30% of my purchase price seems abhorrent).
>One tangential observation: it may be that doctors ended up with iPhones because of some very specialist apps specifically targeted at their needs; for example, an MD friend has been carrying a Palm-based thing for years since it had a variant of some pharmaceutical reference product, and it let him check dosage and contraindications, etc.
Yeah, the source for the 60% figure came from a developer of software for health services. I read somewhere (probably the Reg) that the NHS had considered using iPhones (fewer nooks and crannys than many designs, so easier to sterilise) in hospitals to deliver/collect health information to staff... but rejected it for the lack of a swappable battery.
Our local doctor is contemptuous of the imposed NHS IT system, but claims that the one used in his practice is good, because it was specified by the people who would be using it on a day-to-day basis.
Swappable battery is a joke when in the other breath they want something with "fewer nooks and crannys".
Do they really imagine doctors / staff are going to carry spare batteries around with them and when it requires the device to be powered off etc. The idea of people just pulling the battery off with apps open etc. just sounds like a joke to me.
My experience of many doctors is that there are many in the profession without an ounce of the intelligence that they are credited for.
My experience at university was also that medical students were out on the booze a lot more than us engineers, with fewer hours and only requiring a mere pass in their exams.
I said Volvo because of the doctor stereotype, and they similarly priced to the usual 'premium' car brands such as BMW and Mercedes. There was an aversion to buying premium cars from Germany amongst a certain group for some time after the WWII (guess why), or maybe its to do with the reputation Volvo had for secondary-safety systems.
The retired doctor who drinks in our pub drives a Porsche and his HiFi is the more traditional high-end separates system. He does wear a Rolex though, but not the model that was aimed at doctors which had discreet seconds-hand movement.
Exactly right. I would add "pratmobiles" to that list, y'know luxury 4x4 owners that never seen to get dirty as going up a curb is about as far off the road as they go.
But you can take the piss out of these people all you want, but be careful as they may be your next boss, customer or father-in-law.
Mount a curb in an offroad capable vehicle? You are kidding right? I pass many on the single lane country roads around here and it's me in my little hatch that has to drive up and into the hedgerow while the 4x4 is half a yard away from the verge on their side. Maybe it's because most are women drivers, maybe they just find it harder to judge distance from such a vantage point, who knows? One thing is for sure the last thing drivers of your typical Chelsea tractor will contemplate is to mount a curb!
For the sake of us country dwellers, don't give into them. Just sit and glare at them. If necessary get out, point out they have a 4by4 and offer to guide them to the verge. If we do it enough they will demand sensible cars next time, like the neighbour who has swapped a hugemobile for a Yaris and couldn't be happier about it. Mostly it's the husbands who want a status symbol, anyway.
AAPL is down over 200 points from its 52wk high of 705.07 (they are at 504.14 as I type this). There has been a minor bounce-back from it's 52-wk low of 418.66, so id say, if you didn't get out already, you maybe missed the boat.
Frankly, if you wait a little bit longer, AAPL might be a good opportunity. Overall, if they can deal with the blow-back from the maps issue (which I think has mostly passed), they have a lot of brand loyalty. If you had the 51,000 USD burning a hole in your pocket, it wouldn't be bad to pick up 100 shares if it drops to, say 500 again, then write covered calls against it. Overall, I think it's likely the market has already corrected for many of AAPL's current issues.
Full disclosure: I hold no market position on AAPL. This is not a recommandation to buy or sell. All securities involve risk. The projections or other information regarding the likelihood of various investment outcomes are hypothetical in nature, are not guaranteed for accuracy or completeness, do not reflect actual investment results, and are not guarantees of future results.
Or this could be the beginning of a down swing for AAPL, lower iPhone sales won't make investors happy, iPhone 5S which I am sure we will see at some point this year won't be anything revolutionary, more competition from the likes of Nokia, RIM, Samsung, HTC won't help matters and it appears that the iPhone is not all that popular in most of the "developing world" nor in China probably a lot down to cost.
Perhaps people should wait for it to go further down to buy as this could be the top of the mountain for Apple that we have reached.
Double standards? The "cool" types (definition of whose judgement I avoid) dislike Windows 8 because it's too different from what they know, equally, the comments on Unity or Mountain Lion. Nokia got a lot of flak because it's S60 got more and more unpredictable in its interface. It's why minor, useful changes tend to be more popular with most people (most people not being with-it 16 year olds). Apple did break the mould a bit in that the first iPhone was a startling leap from what sold well before (yes, not all its ideas were new; but the combination, presentation and slickness overcame the old failures by other suppliers). Nothing, absolutely nothing in mobile phone development since then , including the later iPhones, is anything more than a cosmetic or performance tweak and still most Android and Windows versions are struggling to get the consistency and unity of experience. Price and size are far from everything and "not being" something else must be the worst reason for gettng something.
Do you avoid cars because the interface has not changed? You know, steering wheel on the same side, four wheels, usually, gear stick in the middle ... boring.
Has it not occurred to you that, if a maker has found a decent, predictable interface, he is daft to change it just to be "cool" and please the gnat-brained followers of fashion. Nothing worse than buying a new mobile and spending the next weeks cursing as you find out how to do this and not to do that that you did without a thought for the last couple of years. A mobile is a tool, just that. If you want toys, buy some Lego or a kiddy's electrical set or a gameboy.
Not really about cool for me... Value for money.
"Do you avoid cars because the interface has not changed? You know, steering wheel on the same side, four wheels, usually, gear stick in the middle ... boring."
Cars have evolved over a hundred years into a standard. Same thing happens to most thing as they become ubiquitous in today's society and when it is mass manufactured it is more so. Smartphones are a relatively young product and are evolving rapidly with the exception of iOS that seems to think it is perfect already, which some of it's fans appear to believe because they have been told is so. Vanilla Android v4.* is a relatively experience and Google adopts innovation rapidly (see Android v4.2 has taken the Swype keyboard into the core product). Even if you don't like the Swype keyboard you can't argue it isn't pretty quick setting the texting world record: http://gizmodo.com/5619301/latest-texting-world-record-shaves-10-seconds-off-previous-swype-record.
Look at what happened to MacOS. Revolutionary when it came out, but Apple stuck to it for far too long and, instead of trying to compete on quality, tried to do it in the law courts instead. Remember how they sued the GEM people for having resizeable windows, which is why it had them on the Atari ST but could only do full screen or a horizontal split under MS-DOS. A feature the not-Metro-any-more designers seem to have liked. But I digress.
Anyway, with MacOS they started off with a good product, didn't improve it, lost their edge and became a small niche supplier. It's a few years away, but I can see that happening with iOS as well.
and since its release fares have gone up at above inflation - again - food & fuel prices continue to climb and I've just lost £130-something a month in child benefit. So a nice-to-have like this, or a newer bigger telly, or even a 2Tb NAS, are strictly in the some-other-time folder.
Luckily my current phone is an iPhone4* - over 2 years old and still looks and works like it was brand new. But id i did need a new phone it'd likely be a secondhand 4S not a new 5. Taller screen and slightly faster? Meh.
*Clearly that makes me a half-wit. I can live with that. In the land of the blind....
There is nothing wrong with the 4S but to pay more than half the 'new' price for a 4S compared to buying the newest 5 - think I'd still get the newer handset for a bit more cash as it should last longer. Also have used a 5 and the 'tall' screen is a benefit - but glad it's no wider.
They expected to sell twice as many as last year, based on a not-completely-earth-shattering update, in more competitive market conditions. But it turns out they're selling about the same number as last year.
I think there's been an accident with the reality-distortion field in the Apple supply-chain department
"Expected" is probably too strong a word. It's fairly common practice in the components industry for buyers to overestimate deliberately the amount they're going to buy from their suppliers, so they can be sure that the supplier has got the capacity to fulfill the order if it comes.
Apple are renowned for winning favourable terms with their suppliers, so it's very unlikely that they've lost anything by cutting down from their "forecast".
Even so, I'd imagine that they haven't done as well as they expected to with the 5. There's only so much "it's slightly faster" upgrades of the same model that people are prepared to shell out for before they get wise and hang on to their old kit/buy the 4S instead. And while Apple may have seen that coming, the ballsup with Maps has really hit their repuation hard. But I still suspect that the shortfall on their *actual* expectations is nowhere near as bad as the cut in their orders to suppliers suggests.
Perhaps they make them too well. I've got a 4s. I like the 5, its longer screen is an improvement for reading newspapers and books on line; but nothing is wrong with my 2 year old 4s. Its battery still lasts 2 or 3 days or even more: it's not too big for my pockets, it's fast and it is still shiny :). Perhaps in another year, when the next version is out, let's see. Silly to be unecological and ditch a working thing just because it's not the latest. Perhaps iPhone users are just more intelligent, more satisfied and less materialistic?
Now with certain other operating systems and suppliers, one has got to get the latest, if only to get the latest bug fixes and keep an intact case. (Not everyone thinks installing a new ROM, jailbreaking etc. is a good way of spending their time instead of making telephone calls or using useful apps). It's astonishing how many iPhone 3Gs one still sees, with happy owners happily using them in public. Not everyone can afford to or wants to buy new stuff just for the sake of it.
I've got an original Samsung Galaxy S. My contract ended six months ago, and I was poised to upgrade to an S3. Then I asked myself "What, precisely will a new phone do that my current one doesn't and is it worth the thick end of five hundred quid to me?"
Ten seconds thought, then "Fuck it" and I stuck with the old one. I suspect I'm not the only one - there are still lots of happy iPhone 3GS users out there.
Similar here, my 4S is working like a charm and I see absolutely no need for a bigger screen just because it make something I almost never do a little better. Also the reason why I won't change to a new Samsung/RIM/Win8 phone, since they only sell in monstrous sizes which I don't need. I want the SIII power crammed into a 4S or S1 form factor, then I will consider changing phone.
It's worth noting that iphone sales were low for *years*, and didn't get mainstream until the 4/4S really. But all we heard was tonnes of media hype, I don't recall it getting the same WP treatment of "Oh, still not popular" (indeed, instead the media spun it so that say, one million sales was hyped as being an amazing success).
I have no idea what will happen for WP, but it's clear that platforms can take years to become mainstream, and it was only Android that shot into massive success very quickly.
I would not be so hasty - I've known people trying to buy an iPhone 5 (not just at launch) and having to wait 2+ weeks to get one. They could have been bit too optimistic with their projections or perhaps changing supplier ratios - i.e. reducing purchases from one or more if another is cheaper / better.
I have an iPhone 4 and I think it's good. But there was not enough in the 5 to warrant an upgrade. And besides, given that I use Google Maps a lot, at the time the apple maps saga was enough of a deterrent. That's now changed I know, but there's still not enough in the 5 that the 4 doesn't already have.
That's the whole point with Apple and upgrading - people love to quote Apple users as upgrading every time a new model is out - it's plain untrue when I know many people still using a 3GS every day and it's still supported / good enough (for them) not to need upgrading. The 3GS is going to be 4 years old this year.
The original article also says "Apple also cut its orders for memory chips for its new iPhone from its main supplier and competitor Samsung" - is that really a surprise to anyone and not sure it's safe to use to corroborate other 'news' from unverified / un-named sources?
Yeah well my gran was speaking to so-and-so's mum in the butchers and he overheard a conversation in a pub...
I think from the comments from iphone owners the nail has been hit on the head. Not enough change for an upgrade. From a purely Android user point of view, I see the UI and hardware as way outdated and the things are just frankly way overpriced. To add to that the arrogance of the company and it's just a sure fire way to turn people off. About the only thing Apple has going for it is the number of apps etc available but Google is certainly catching up there.
This was dramatically highlighted the other day when I was on about the keyboard on my S3 with an iphone user. I said I did not like the layout or look so I simply downloaded another keyboard app. Or being able to use widgets on any screen, or changing the whole look of the OS. My friend had to concede to those points.
IMHO For Apple to survive in the future, they are going to have to radically change.
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Yeah, it's "fine", but it's not great. I want a row of number buttons. I can't have it. Despite the 5 having a taller screen, I still can't have a taller keyboard?!?
I want better auto-correct, maybe multiple word suggestions... can't have that either.
Apple is "fine", but it's not flexible and that's where it's losing out. And this is from someone who had a 3G, then a 4 and resisted a 5 for a long time as it offered nothing new for the upgrade money and the pain of the damn lightning connector.
* I have a 5, but I have a 5 because CPW and Quidco were giving so much cashback it essentially cost nothing upfront to change. Perhaps because they couldn't find enough fanbois to cough up the initial handset price - I don't recall that being the case with any of the earlier ones...
The difference is the Apple keyboard is fine to start with - I have never met anyone who had considered replacing it - even if you could.
Oooh, oooh, me, over here! Had to use an iPhone for a while and I bloody hated the keyboard. Far too basic, far too slow. The basic Android keyboard allows for long presses to bring up numbers, special characters, etc. More advanced ones allow tap-and-hold for smiley faces, and then have a separate page full of additional stuff. Yet more advanced ones, especially the downright brilliant Swype, allow for continuous input that's way faster than anything else I've used on a touchscreen.
By comparison, the iOS keyboard is a piece of shit. Inputting passwords on it was a bloody chore.
IOS keyboard has always had long press popup, and slide from shift key to chosen key for single keystroke shifts. But that doesn't mean it's perfect for everyone. Personally, I could never buy a BMW because the texture on the brake pedal isn't as effective as on the Audi. (lame joke) The idea that it would make a BMW better if different models had different brake pedals (more choice - more versatile - see?) doesn't gel with me. Equally the idea that each Android device might have different keyboard details does not excite me.
I've never used an iPhone, but I recall some of the earliest things I ever downloaded on an Android device were a variety of keyboards. My current phone has a slide-out physical keyboard - I can't stand tapping stuff in on a piece of glass. I'm amazed at how much folks are paying for the iPhone if they don't even get such basic options that Android users have had for years.
It is not that different Android devices might have different keyboards. It is that one single Android device can have a choice of any and all of the keyboards available on the Play store. So if you like and get used to one particular keyboard that meets your needs, you can install that on your tablet too, and on whatever your next phone is. You do not have to put up with whatever keyboard the manufacturer has chosen.
I hate the keyboard on the iPhone, and the one on the iPad. Having got used to Swype, and keys showing multiple characters that you can long-press to get, the lack of these features really annoy me on Apple devices.
Also - I've not used the iPhone much, but does it have the same word prediction feature as on the iPad? If so, that's one thing which winds me up more than anything else I've used on any other device. Why would it default to replacing the word I was typing with a completely random wrong one? Sure, show me options that look like words it knows about, but let me choose when to use a different one. And how about automatically adding (or offering to add) words I type frequently for which I have to override it's spell checker to the dictionary for me?
I'm guessing you live on a deserted island then, because pretty much every iPhone owner that I know would love something like Swype on their fruit-themed device! Of course, there are some iPhone owners who are oblivious to the idea that other OSs offer a choice of keyboard, but once they know, they generally wish that the iPhone did too.
Don't get me wrong, for a long time, the iOS keyboard was the one to beat, but it is now very, very dated in comparison to Android keyboards like Swiftkey and Swype.
P.S. I originally wrote deserted desert island, but it just looked strange! :)
The reason for not showing lower-case key caps is probably because of Scott Forstall's adherence to skeuomorphism - the virtual iOS keyboard is made to be as alike to a real-life keyboard as possible. In the real world key caps don't change when you hit shift-lock so the iOS virtual keyboard doesn't change key caps either.
Just saying - not trying to defend it or anything.
I think skeumorphic design is good, but only insofar as the real-life equivalent is the purest form of the object. The reason the keys don't change on your keyboard when you hit the shift key isn't because no one wants this but because it can't be done cost effectively. If it could, every laptop would have keys that changed when you hit the shift key (or changed languages or keyboard layout) so IMHO iOS ought to do it this way rather than just highlight the shift arrow.
In fact, having LED keycaps is exactly the sort of thing Apple is likely to be the first to do in a mass production product because PC OEMs playing the cutthroat margin game can't afford risky stuff that drives up component costs like Apple can (c.f. Retina laptops)
Perhaps people haven't forgotten about the iPhone 5's major problems.
1. The map application. While Google Maps is available as a third-party add-on, there's no way (short of jail breaking) to make Google Maps the default map app. Even with Jail breaking, it is still impossible to open Google Maps when clicking on an address in the list of contacts. This CAN be fixed by Apple through software, but it is unlikely.
2. The crystals used to protect the camera lens give photos a purple haze under certain circumstances. Since this is a hardware problem, Apple cannot fix this without releasing the next version of the iPhone. Will Apple admit their faulty design and give us a camera worthy of 2013?
<2. The crystals used to protect the camera lens give photos a purple haze under certain circumstances. Since this is a hardware problem, Apple cannot fix this without releasing the next version of the iPhone. Will Apple admit their faulty design and give us a camera worthy of 2013?
That's not technically a design fault, its a design compromise, as most design and engineering decisions are. The compromise is between having a more easily scratched coated-glass lens which might mar all photos, or having an uncoated sapphire lens that only affects photos taken against a strong light. Back in the days of film cameras, the first rule of getting a successful photograph was: 'do not take a photo of a person with the sun behind them'.
Its a camera on a phone, and such it was designed to be stored in your pocket with your keys (keys won't scratch sapphire, but your wife's rings or some diamond grit from a cutting disc will). A dedicated camera lens will be designed without this consideration.
That said... if phone makers continue to compete on cameras, then replaceable screw-in filters (ND grad, UV, skylight, polarizing etc) might be something they could consider in future. If the filter gets scratched, just swap it out- as many photographers do to protect their SLR lenses.
> 2. The crystals used to protect the camera lens give photos a purple haze under certain circumstances. Since this is a hardware problem, Apple cannot fix this without releasing the next version of the iPhone. Will Apple admit their faulty design and give us a camera worthy of 2013?
Why wouldn't Apple be able to fix a colour cast problem in SW. All the image you see has been heavily processed before it end up in a file. You could put a bright yellow filter in front of the lens and they could fix it in SW (ok in extreme cases you'd loose a little quality, but a slight tint no problems). Take a look at the history of the Hubble telescope, the lens (mirror) is out of wack but they corrected it in SW.
>You could put a bright yellow filter in front of the lens and they could fix it in SW (ok in extreme cases you'd loose a little quality, but a slight tint no problems).
That would result in losing yellow information from the scene, which can't be restored in software. And placing a yellow filter in front of the lens rather negates the purpose of using sapphire in the first place. It's far easier to just not point the camera at bright lights.
>Take a look at the history of the Hubble telescope, the lens (mirror) is out of wack but they corrected it in SW.
IIRC, that was a geometric distortion of the mirror they fixed.
1. true, but most people like the fact that an iphone is an iphone, and not a weird personal statement. A long time ago there was "What did morons do before CB radio?" Today it's "..before Android?" That's not to say there aren't plenty of perfectly normal people who use Android.
2. All cameras produce imperfect images with very bright lights in front. You can see the effect on screen, and slightly adjust camera position to fix it before taking the picture. I've never seen the iPhone 5 purple haze produced unintentionally. The camera is very good.
More likely people are locked into contracts that prevent them from buying a new phone more than once every 18 months. Then you have those that are fed up with Apple releasing upgraded devices every 6 months at the same price they just paid for theirs. Those that were burned buying an iPhone 4 a few months before the iPhone 4S was released will think twice about buying an iPhone 5.
Apple has NEVER released a new phone less than about a year since the last one. There was a bit over a year between the 4 and 4S, so you obviously have no clue WTF you're talking about. The only time they've updated sooner was the iPad 3 getting updated to the iPad 4.
I remember hearing a lot of Apple haters complain about how Apple only releases new products once a year, versus Android users getting new products all the time. No matter what Apple does, haters are gonna hate.
There are still people out there who are happy enough with the 3GS and plenty of satisfied 4 and 4S users. Add to that Apple keep dicking about with the SIM card format (off putting to potential SIM free buyers) and I can see why the 5 might not be moving as quickly as Apple would like.
The big issue that's stopped me ditching my old 3GS for a 5 is the lack of a car kit with lightning connector - using their convertor is not an elegant solution - I suspect I'm not the only one in that situation - why Apple thought people would move without having the same set of accessories available as they have on their older models is beyond me.
I have met people who have made your decision for the same reason. That said, Apple had already made iPods that didn't use their 13pin connector (the iPod Shuffle) so the Lightening could be used across almost all future devices, more-or-less regardless of size.
Annoyingly, since Android 4, I can't use my phone as a plain Mass Storage Class device connected to my USB/SD car stereo, but hell, SD cards are as cheap as, er, memory chips.
Geez, use Google you can buy Lightning accessories for this and many other things for only a few dollars. Around the end of November I checked and bought a couple cheap ($4/ea) Lightning cables so I'd have one to carry in my laptop bag, plus a spare just in case. I didn't get anything for car charging since I never charge in my car, but they were available. Yeah, not official Apple products but they work just fine, as did the cheap cables I bought a few years back for the old dock connector.
I can't even tell the difference between my Apple Lightning cable and the two I bought, though maybe if I look really closely there's a logo or part number on the Apple one the other lacks.
So can you get something like this for an iPhone 5: http://www.tomtom.com/en_gb/products/accessories/for-smartphone/hands-free-car-kit-iphone-9UOB.001.08/
i.e. a kit which mounts the phone on the dash or windscreen with a built in lightning connector? (I don't want just a backet and then a seperate charging cable which I have to fiddle to plug in every time I get in the car)
If there is one, I couldn't find it easily on a google search - plenty of brackets and plenty of charging cables, but no combined offering...
and if there is one which I just didn't see due to my poor googling skills - well... I'll get my coat...
Can someone explain to me the logic in changing from the old 30-way dock to the Lightning port? It's commercial suicide.
There are two sides to the argument - Apple says iPhone 5 and lightening...Ooooh...its small and fast and goodness shall pour through each pin. But why make FSM-knows how many accessories almost unusable?
If I can't use my existing docking stuff such as my car stuff, my clock radio etc, what is the point in changing? You can get an adaptor but its shit, ugly and inelegant. I can't understand Apples business model in trying to sell this to the Fanbois let along intelligent consumers. My two year old iPhone 4 works well, is in nice condition, works with my adaptors, runs iOS5 and none of the stupid crap with Apple Maps.
The headphone socket has also been moved to the bottom of the phone - why? Why not put the Lightning port on the top of the phone, retain the 30-way connector on the bottom and everyone is happy?
I'm holding out to see what happens - the re-introduction of the 30-way connector would IMO boost sales. Marketing is about listening to what your customers want, NOT what you think your customers want. In the early days of the iPhones, yes they were revolutionary and brilliant. Unfortunately now it seems to be seen as a commodity and lacks the creative input that the product was once given.
I think that now is the time to start to look at dropping Apple stock. The Emperor is gone and no-one will be able to fill his shoes.
It's smaller and due to eliminating all the analog signaling used on many of the 30 pins the old connector had (for analog audio and video) it allows for higher speed per pin as well as simplifying board design inside the iPhone/iPad by eliminating the need to support higher voltage analog wiring.
It isn't really making any use of the higher speed yet, but it will down the road - the old connector supported 1080p HDMI output but that was the absolute limit it could handle. This will be able to support output to 4K displays...meaningless today, but this will be something they will want the capability for down the road.
Apple was going to have to change someday, but I honestly don't see the big deal. The old connector lasted nearly a decade. Should PCs keep VGA ports forever to preserve the significant investment that people have in analog monitors, or PS/2 ports so the mouse they bought a decade ago works?
It's called progress. If you had an Android you can basically forget 'docks' and 'car kits' as it's such a moving target. Most people now use Micro-USB but it's in different places on each device and inferior to Apple's lightning connector. It's been 10 years and they wanted to make smaller, slimmer devices and the old connector was pretty large by comparison.
You can get adapters which would work in most situations (but not all) - my advice would be to stick with your 4/4S for now - it's still a very good phone, still works with your devices and probably will for years to come. Over time most (new) devices will adopt the lightning port, will use wireless streaming or you find the Apple adapters a compromise you can live with.
I have a Bose sounddock with the dock connector - you can get a small bluetooth module that plugs into the dock connector and makes it wireless - yes it does not charge but it's not a big deal.
No it's more that most people are in 18-24 month contracts so if you have a 4S you are not usually at a point where you can upgrade. People claim iPhone users upgrade all the time when I actually see quote the opposite - two friends of mine by way of example - one has an iPhone 3GS coming up for 4 years old still working fine - another is an Android user and is now on his 3rd phone. This seems fairly typical as I know other people still using 3GS handsets still whereas many Android handsets seem to get replaced at the end of their contract.
BGR (link above) seem to be saying "Hey, Q1 is always soft, so you'd expect lower component sales" and "anyway, those components may be being used for iPods as well as iPhones".
While the latter sounds perfectly reasonable, it is totally irrelevant: if the cut is true, then what it means is demand for the things that use those components is down dramatically. It could be that the iPod is a dog, or the iPhone 5 is a dog, or both of them are partially dog-like.
But the former is entirely problematic: the report is not that the component order is down on Q4 (which, they rightly point out, is what one might expect), but that the order for Q1 components has been CUT from whatever the Q1 component had been.
Unless Apple is surprised by the fact that Q1 sales are softer than Q4 (which is rather improbable, to the say the least), that admits only two possibilities:
1: Sales of devices using those components are softer than forecast, resulting in existing product in the supply chain that will meet part of the demand for early Q1 deliveries, hence requiring fewer new components, or...
2: Something new will be available sooner rather than later which will reduce the demand for those devices later in the quarter (the "something" may be a competitor's product or their own).
Based on Apple's previous practice with the iPhone, my belief is that "2" is unlikely, because they tend to operate on the not unreasonable basis that the "current model" can continue to be sold at a lower price AND they tend not to (visibly) pay much attention to the competition.
Any way you slice it, cutting a component order from previously forecast levels is not Good News for the products involved.
We knew it would happen. Apple have lost their innovation now, there isnt really anything new that they can think of. If you are a first time apple buyer, then the latest phone is really good, you should consider getting one. However if you are an apple fan, then there is just no real reason to upgrade your phone if it still works fine.
This is why Samsung have leaped ahead, their phone range is far superior and caters for all needs from the simple budget smartphone, to the large screen lovers of the note(for which I currently have)
Apple need to diversify a bit more than simply making a mini. They need a budget phone, but then again budget phones usually have smaller screens than the big brother phone, apples screen is tiny as it is now.
I don't call adding a stylus and making phones out of plastic counts as 'leaped ahead'.
Samsung better watch themselves - Google own Motorola and the Nexus 4 is cheap compared to what they are offering. There is nothing special about Samsung - they have no real control over the OS and literally anyone could make the new best selling Android phone.
That is also a problem for them - they are almost obliged to source components internally which limits them unless you can be sure they will make the best of everything. Apple can have multiple suppliers and cherry pick.
When someone else (LG, Sony, Lenovo, Motorola, Asus etc.) come out with the next best Android phone / tablet everyone will buy that and not Samsung as there is nothing unique to Android / their phones. At that point the other divisions supplying the components will also suffer as they have lost their massive customers like - Apple.
The main characteristic of the Note is not the stylus (although read on), it's the screen size.
It's not for everyone, but for me it makes the tiny screens of the previous iPhones look toy-like, and the iPhone 5 just looks OK; from my personal experience, the Note 2 is rather like an iPad Mini but with far better specs, easier to work with, and it makes phone calls nicely.
On the stylus, those who jump to dismiss it seem to be operating under the misapprehension that it's like the plastic sticks one used to have to poke at small screens with. It's not. Not even close: it's a Wacom tablet stylus, which understands degrees of pressure, etc. Again, maybe not for you, but if you do use a tablet for sketching, it is essential.
Bottom line is that the Note 2 is a very different phone from it's sibling, the S III, even though much of the design architecture is the same. And that's where the Apple fabois and apologists fall flat: the Galaxy S III and the Galaxy Note 2 are both top-end phones that appeal to different consumers, and Apple has nothing even vaguely comparable to that breadth of product.
Congratulations. You evidently missed those words where I said it was not for everyone...
But you have at least recognized the critical point: "not everyone wants...". This is why the Apple model is inherently self-limiting: BECAUSE (as you say) "not everyone wants" a phone with a small screen, or a medium size tablet with lousy resolution, or a full size tablet.
Some people want smaller high-spec tablets, larger phones, cheaper phones, particular carriers, etc.
And they're not wrong. Anymore than you are for claiming you wouldn't want the phone I use.
Did Miss Leach know that Apple can't comment? SEC rules prohibit Apple from talking publicly about the company. This is known as a quiet period and all publicly traded companies must adhere to these rules. The WSJ and the Nekkei would have known that Apple can't comment due to releasing it's earning on the 23rd.
If Miss Leach didn't know this then why is she being employed?
So? Are you suggesting that (even if true, which is at least debatable) that a publication like the Wall Street Journal or a service like Reuters shouldn't report of information that they have just because one of the companies involved is in a quiet period?
[ The reason I say it's debatable is that companies regularly issue statements such as "we can't comment prior the earnings report due on such-and-such a date". ]
Funny how those who don't have a tool like to pretend that the tool they don't have is a "gimmick".
This particular "gimmick" is patented (US patent #4878553). And unlike Apple's rounded corners and simulated bolts and bouncy scrolling, that patent describes something that is really quite clever and, dare I say it, ingenious.
I'd bet money that the Coward that dismisses the thing has no clue that the Note's stylus contains active circuitry...
I seem to remember reading a article a few weeks back on this site that Apple had abandoned using their new built in touch sensor in the glass technology used in the iPhone 5 and mini etc and replaced it with something better. Could this not be the reason for the reduction in screen display orders?. Why would they continue to order the old display technology when they have developed something better.
...is the infrastructure that many long term iPhone users built up over the years.
I, like many others, have quite the collection of iPhone chargers in strategic places.
Sure, it's just the cables that need to be replaced as the chargers will still work with the new cable, but when cables cost £15 each (or if you prefer, you can get an adapter for £25) then this significantly adds to the cost. Up until now, I've been able to buy a new iPhone knowing that all my previous chargers and cables would work.
I'm not complaining about a change of connector; I think Lightning is a good evolution of the cable, particularly the bit where you can enter it any way up and it works, but it is a cost concern.
Not really that big of a deal is it - you get a cable with the phone and how many extras do you need - 1 or 2 maybe - at least you can re-use the actual chargers. Plus the lightning connector is likely to be good for the next 10 years - maybe longer. More than you can say for many others where you end up chucking the charger and cable - micro-usb is better now but I've chucked countless non-Apple chargers over the last 5-10 years.
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