Australian INfront

RE: LOL: Apple iphone 4s on 06th October 2011 @ 11.28 AM in Discussion

I bought a Samsung Galaxy S2 a couple of months ago that has an 8mp camera and 1080p HD video, with a 1 gig of ram and frankly I love it to bits. The best thing about it is how easy it is to modify the navigation so I essentially have 3 docks as opposed to the one home screen (and I'm not stuck with the clunky home button but I have a home, a back and an edit button). Also loving the mini usb which means I can easily transfer files between my macbook, our mac tower and pc's at work when I have to go to work and I don't have to worry about fiddling with settings because of synching issues with multiple libraries and across two platforms.
I was one of the many along with a bunch of other friends who have been holding out for the upgrade for most of this year since my contract expired. The thing that did it for me was that I could barely even make phone calls and send text messages - as you also struggle to do (although having said that I am impressed that you figured out how to open beer bottles with your iphone). I had the opportunity to try out the Sony Xperia for a fortnight and after realising how much more you can do with an android and how much better the battery life is, I was sold.
@Dittmar The thing I was looking for in this upgrade had I held on to my iphone aside from just being able to function without constantly crashing, was improved battery life and a better camera. A mini usb would have been amazing as I haven't bothered to buy another ipod since I got my iphone and I use it to store music files and I'm constantly losing flashdrives. To be honest had I not tried the Sony Xperia and the Samsung Galaxy, I wouldn't have known any better and would have been happy with the latest model.

The thing that most annoys me is that for years I was just happy to not even think about it but after realising how much more there is out there after test driving other phones I feel like I wasted months hanging out for an improvement that was already available - just not being provided by Apple.

Also - unrelated but still with regards to Apple; I'm really saddened to hear of Jobs' death. He was a visionary and changed an industry. Thoughts go out to his family.

RE: LOL: Apple iphone 4s on 05th October 2011 @ 12.59 PM in Discussion

Well I think that for any business to work, they have to develop some kind of emotional rapport with their customer base. Ads aren't there to make us think rationally, they're there to manipulate us into believing that businesses have our best interest at heart. Any person who thinks they're above being affected by advertising is probably full of it; we're bombarded by it in every way shape and form and it has nothing to do with being duped into believing that a company wants to get into bed with us and be best buddies. We continue to need a range of products to enhance our lives and every single business out there wants us to believe that they have the perfect product for us.

The fact remains that after ten years of being a loyal customer I've realised that the options out there are a lot more attractive than what Apple has to offer. I might be nothing in the big scheme of things, but I figure I'm probably not the only one that feels this way.
When I traded in my iphone for an android, there were three other people in the store all 'trading up' from iphone to android. I asked the sales rep about it and they said that most people coming in when their contract is up on an iphone are coming in and trading them in for androids or blackberry's. It might mean nothing in the greater scheme of Apple continuing to trade as a behemoth of technology, but it tells me in my teeny tiny circle, that people have started changing their attitude towards Apple products.

RE: LOL: Apple iphone 4s on 05th October 2011 @ 9.18 AM in Discussion

I don't hate Apple, I just feel that the way that they treat their customer base given how loyal it is is pretty disrespectful. Given how tight money is for people in the current economic climate, I think it's a pretty risky move to make.

Noone was expecting an upgrade to a iphone 5 model that could teleport people. But the reality is that they do have the technology to improve on the current model and release it to the public - they simply choose not to release it. Apple chooses to exist on a business model that requires people feel the need to have to upgrade so as to sucker as much money as they can out of their naiive customers.
Admittedly, I was one of those suckers for years and having a trusty old discount to Apple products always made me feel better about my choices and I was quite vocal also about defending my loyalty to their products.

With regards to upgrading, I'm not about to upgrade whenever a new model comes out simply because it's cool - I've simply had to upgrade whenever my old phone simply stopped working. I had the iphone 3g and I could barely even answer phone calls. When you have a phone that doesn't allow you to send txt messages and freezes whenever you receive a phone call - it's time to upgrade. Husband has the 4g and it's started freezing and crashing in the past few months also.
With respect to all of the people I know currently still holding on to their 3gs who are barely working, they're doing it because they're on a contract and have had faith in Apple delivering. I think people have been perfectly entitled to expect a new version and if I were one of those people who have been holding out for the iphone 5 upgrade, I would be annoyed.

RE: LOL: Apple iphone 4s on 05th October 2011 @ 7.23 AM in Discussion

It's cute that Apple has finally caught up by adding features that have already been available on the Galaxy S2 and the Sony Xperia since the start of the year. But I'm wondering how many people are going to bother to upgrade?

I think it's telling that Apple stocks fell by 5% when the announcement came.

http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/mobiles/apple-unveils-faster-more-powerful-iphone-4s-20111005-1l7nb.html

I believe that it's indicative of how little Apple respects their customers that they continue to expect that consumers are going to get suckered into the upgrade cycle/ trap for all their products. I used to be a massive Apple fan and held out for the original mini coloured ipod (in 2003), I still remember Apple's attitude to the inferior battery life of that particular product; they simply didn't care that people could only get around two -three years (at best) out of their ipods after shelling out $400.
It's poor form to continue to assume that people should expect that a product should only work in peak condition for a year and then have to upgrade. I think Apple is one of the few companies that expects customers to continue to fall for it. I can't imagine how pissed off consumers would be if they had to upgrade their TV's or fridges every year.