Are You Ready For The iPhone?

[sheep]

I think people who get hung up on specific features are missing the big picture here, just like they did with the iPod, which was also more expensive and had fewer features than the competition. (Assuming the iPhone is really even targeted at the existing smartphone market... Apple seems to want to redefine this market into something much broader and more lucrative, which may explain why they feel like they can be so cavalier about refusing to compete on the terms set by the current players. They may figure that the current smartphone market isn't even a drop in the bucket compared to the other ~99% of cellphone users who might be willing to pay for the Internet in their pocket, but have so far rejected all the current offerings.) People sometimes forget that a product is more than the sum of its features. On paper, gadget 'B' may appear to have better features for the money than gadget 'A', but if A is slick, innovative, well thought out, well designed and a pleasure to use, and B is clunkier than a Soviet tractor built on a Monday, then A stands a good chance of mopping the floor with B in the marketplace. Of course, some people will grasp at any half-baked explanation for this phenomenon - everyone else must be victims of hype, slaves to fashion, just plain dumb, etc - while the more likely explanation flies right over their head: a lot of thinking people would rather have a gadget that excels at 95% of what they want it for than one that does 125%, but does it all more or less poorly.

Case in point - the 'iPod killer' from Sony that ended up committing suicide instead. It looked good on paper, but you knew it was doomed the minute its crappy interface managed to stump a Sony exec during a demo. Did they even try to understand what they were competing against? This is why I think other cellphone manufacturers are going to have various tasty high-end bits of their lunch eaten by Apple - they don't understand how to compete against anything that can't be reduced to an entry in a bullet point list on a marketing brochure. And even if they manage to 'get it' and understand that the problem is a systemic one of overall design and not just a case of this or that missing feature, they lack the skill and corporate culture to address it, because their product design has always been left in the hands of engineers and graphic/industrial designers, rather than people with a background in the science of human-computer interaction. The results are sadly predictable - products that are cool-looking on the surface and technically competent under the hood, but which turn out to be downright hostile to the user in real day-to-day use. (Anyone who finds this topic as interesting as I do [cue sound of deafening silence] might want to check out the book, 'The Design of Everyday Things'.)

I'm seeing the same thing with the iPhone in review after review - it's a bit pricey, tied to a mediocre network, has some perplexing omissions in its feature set, etc... yet the reviewer would still take it over their current phone because the iPhone is so much better at what it does that it's a revelation - everything is so intuitive and obvious that you can't believe every phone hasn't always worked the same way. I especially liked the BBC reviewer who noted that the first thing using an iPhone made him feel was anger toward all the other cellphone makers for having foisted so much poorly designed junk on people for so long.

People are now recognizing the importance of good human factors in the products they purchase.

Bruce "Tog" Tognazzini is a principal with the Nielsen Norman Group, the "dream team" firm specializing in human-computer interaction. Tog was lead designer at WebMD, the super-vertical start-up founded in February, 1996 by Jim Clark, founder of Silicon Graphics and Netscape. Before that, Tog was Distinguished Engineer for Strategic Technology at Sun Microsystems. During his 14 years at Apple Computer, he founded the Apple Human Interface Group and acted as Apple's Human Interface Evangelist. Tog has published two books, Tog on Interface and Tog on Software Design, both from Addison Wesley, and is currently publishing the free webzine, "AskTog."

 

[Apollo]

I think people who get hung up on specific features are missing the big picture here, just like they did with the iPod, which was also more expensive and had fewer features than the competition. (Assuming the iPhone is really even targeted at the existing smartphone market... Apple seems to want to redefine this market into something much broader and more lucrative, which may explain why they feel like they can be so cavalier about refusing to compete on the terms set by the current players. They may figure that the current smartphone market isn't even a drop in the bucket compared to the other ~99% of cellphone users who might be willing to pay for the Internet in their pocket, but have so far rejected all the current offerings.) People sometimes forget that a product is more than the sum of its features. On paper, gadget 'B' may appear to have better features for the money than gadget 'A', but if A is slick, innovative, well thought out, well designed and a pleasure to use, and B is clunkier than a Soviet tractor built on a Monday, then A stands a good chance of mopping the floor with B in the marketplace. Of course, some people will grasp at any half-baked explanation for this phenomenon - everyone else must be victims of hype, slaves to fashion, just plain dumb, etc - while the more likely explanation flies right over their head: a lot of thinking people would rather have a gadget that excels at 95% of what they want it for than one that does 125%, but does it all more or less poorly.

Case in point - the 'iPod killer' from Sony that ended up committing suicide instead. It looked good on paper, but you knew it was doomed the minute its crappy interface managed to stump a Sony exec during a demo. Did they even try to understand what they were competing against? This is why I think other cellphone manufacturers are going to have various tasty high-end bits of their lunch eaten by Apple - they don't understand how to compete against anything that can't be reduced to an entry in a bullet point list on a marketing brochure. And even if they manage to 'get it' and understand that the problem is a systemic one of overall design and not just a case of this or that missing feature, they lack the skill and corporate culture to address it, because their product design has always been left in the hands of engineers and graphic/industrial designers, rather than people with a background in the science of human-computer interaction. The results are sadly predictable - products that are cool-looking on the surface and technically competent under the hood, but which turn out to be downright hostile to the user in real day-to-day use. (Anyone who finds this topic as interesting as I do [cue sound of deafening silence] might want to check out the book, 'The Design of Everyday Things'.)

I'm seeing the same thing with the iPhone in review after review - it's a bit pricey, tied to a mediocre network, has some perplexing omissions in its feature set, etc... yet the reviewer would still take it over their current phone because the iPhone is so much better at what it does that it's a revelation - everything is so intuitive and obvious that you can't believe every phone hasn't always worked the same way. I especially liked the BBC reviewer who noted that the first thing using an iPhone made him feel was anger toward all the other cellphone makers for having foisted so much poorly designed junk on people for so long.

I love you so much. Thanks for that post. It pretty much summed up what was so great about the iPhone. I posted a link that goes in-depth with everything about the phone, and you find it holds its own agaisnt all the competition. One thing Apply is very good at is design and ease of use.

 

[nickscotti]

There are nice people on here! I just wanna thank you guys for helping me out here, I know I wasn't putting forth the most clear argument, but like you all said, excellent interface, even if it doesn't do 100% that other phones do, it does 95% of what other phones do only with 100% ease of use. I'm glad I have comrades here at JUB, thanks again guys!!!

 

[wascallywabbit]

Nice speech ww

I still love my Sony Ericsson Walkman w810i though

With its 2mp camera, FM radio, bluetooth, infrared, flashlight, numerous games, any number of ring tones, numerous themes, personal organiser, GPRS and mp3 player that's loaded from a 4gig SD card - and it all cost me less than $300. Go figure!?!

Plus I it's unlocked so I can change networks AND I can change my battery myself.

edit: Plus you missed my point - 'no other online store' compares (nothing to do with warez).

The point? You guys always take it to the next level and the next and the next and the...you get the idea (I hope).

PC users can't say anything nice about Apple because it's always seen as bowing the knee and then Apple users jump in for the kill and keep at it...over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over AGAIN.

Hey, I didn't mean to be abrasive about it. I just feel strongly that things like design and usability really matter, because they can have a huge impact on the quality of people's lives. I try to avoid getting up on the soapbox because I don't want to come across as a bug-eyed fanatic, which I'm not. (Honest!) I just thought some points deserved to be made, since it seems like a lot of people miss the forest for the trees when it comes to why some of us like Apple's stuff - and the constant sniping gets a bit exasperating, I admit.

 

[wascallywabbit]

People are now recognizing the importance of good human factors in the products they purchase.

Bruce "Tog" Tognazzini is a principal with the Nielsen Norman Group, the "dream team" firm specializing in human-computer interaction. Tog was lead designer at WebMD, the super-vertical start-up founded in February, 1996 by Jim Clark, founder of Silicon Graphics and Netscape. Before that, Tog was Distinguished Engineer for Strategic Technology at Sun Microsystems. During his 14 years at Apple Computer, he founded the Apple Human Interface Group and acted as Apple's Human Interface Evangelist. Tog has published two books, Tog on Interface and Tog on Software Design, both from Addison Wesley, and is currently publishing the free webzine, "AskTog."

Yay, a Tog fan! I have a lot of respect for Tog, even though I disagree with some of his more recent thoughts on design. (I think a lot of his criticism of OS X is wide of the mark.) Maybe it's the difference between being a lone wolf and being part of a group of equally smart people who help nurture your best thinking and winnow out your worst. When Apple was at one of its creative peaks in the early 80s, their best work was a group effort, and Tog's probably a good example of why.

 

[wascallywabbit]

I love you so much. Thanks for that post. It pretty much summed up what was so great about the iPhone. I posted a link that goes in-depth with everything about the phone, and you find it holds its own agaisnt all the competition. One thing Apply is very good at is design and ease of use.

Thanks! God knows Apple has had its share of bad designs (hockey puck mouse, anyone?), but they least seem to understand the importance of good design and usability, and have a pretty good record of getting stuff right.

 

[wascallywabbit]

^ Oh, like Apple enslaving humanity would be a bad thing.

 

[wascallywabbit]

On the other hand...



Dear god make it stop.

 

[sheep]

b/f has a SE with a 3.2 megapixel. The pics are good quality on its small screen but to d/l them you need a $200. accessory cable. Other than that its a clunky thick user unfriendly pos.

 

[sheep]

You know the box includes a USB cable and a software CD? You can plug the phone into your PC and upload the pictures?

You dont need a $200 accessory cable for anything.

No, it doesn't in Canada. And the software is pc only.

 

[Kins123]

The video was very bad quality...all juddery and stuttery and the colours were all over the place

That tune gets stuck in your head lol.

It is really pointless seeing so many Apple fanboys defending the iPhone when it is an inferior product to Nokia and SE handsets. Of course you think its the best phone ever, because you havnt ever had a decent phone before it.

I currently have a Blackberry Pearl, that's not decent then? It's a nice phone yes but the iPhone is in a league of its own. The Blackberry has features the iPhone does: Google Maps, Email, Internet etc but it's just not enjoyable to use.

I think people who get hung up on specific features are missing the big picture here, just like they did with the iPod, which was also more expensive and had fewer features than the competition. (Assuming the iPhone is really even targeted at the existing smartphone market... Apple seems to want to redefine this market into something much broader and more lucrative, which may explain why they feel like they can be so cavalier about refusing to compete on the terms set by the current players. They may figure that the current smartphone market isn't even a drop in the bucket compared to the other ~99% of cellphone users who might be willing to pay for the Internet in their pocket, but have so far rejected all the current offerings.) People sometimes forget that a product is more than the sum of its features. On paper, gadget 'B' may appear to have better features for the money than gadget 'A', but if A is slick, innovative, well thought out, well designed and a pleasure to use, and B is clunkier than a Soviet tractor built on a Monday, then A stands a good chance of mopping the floor with B in the marketplace. Of course, some people will grasp at any half-baked explanation for this phenomenon - everyone else must be victims of hype, slaves to fashion, just plain dumb, etc - while the more likely explanation flies right over their head: a lot of thinking people would rather have a gadget that excels at 95% of what they want it for than one that does 125%, but does it all more or less poorly.

Case in point - the 'iPod killer' from Sony that ended up committing suicide instead. It looked good on paper, but you knew it was doomed the minute its crappy interface managed to stump a Sony exec during a demo. Did they even try to understand what they were competing against? This is why I think other cellphone manufacturers are going to have various tasty high-end bits of their lunch eaten by Apple - they don't understand how to compete against anything that can't be reduced to an entry in a bullet point list on a marketing brochure. And even if they manage to 'get it' and understand that the problem is a systemic one of overall design and not just a case of this or that missing feature, they lack the skill and corporate culture to address it, because their product design has always been left in the hands of engineers and graphic/industrial designers, rather than people with a background in the science of human-computer interaction. The results are sadly predictable - products that are cool-looking on the surface and technically competent under the hood, but which turn out to be downright hostile to the user in real day-to-day use. (Anyone who finds this topic as interesting as I do [cue sound of deafening silence] might want to check out the book, 'The Design of Everyday Things'.)

I'm seeing the same thing with the iPhone in review after review - it's a bit pricey, tied to a mediocre network, has some perplexing omissions in its feature set, etc... yet the reviewer would still take it over their current phone because the iPhone is so much better at what it does that it's a revelation - everything is so intuitive and obvious that you can't believe every phone hasn't always worked the same way. I especially liked the BBC reviewer who noted that the first thing using an iPhone made him feel was anger toward all the other cellphone makers for having foisted so much poorly designed junk on people for so long.

Very, very well said.

 

[wascallywabbit]

The video was very bad quality...all juddery and stuttery and the colours were all over the place...was it done on an Apple ww?



We are Apple...resistance is f...f...f...funny

Haha

Well of course it's a bit worn out - it was the company loyalty song and was played on continuous loop in the Apple Campus Icon Garden and Chairman Jobs Devotional Temple through the 80s.

 

[Apollo]

There is absolutely nothing that anyone can mention that would make the iPhone seem greater then the N95 because it is inferior in every way.

Other then the looks, the iPhone does NOTHING better then Nokia and SE phones, in fact, all of its features are a lot lot worse.

It is really pointless seeing so many Apple fanboys defending the iPhone when it is an inferior product to Nokia and SE handsets. Of course you think its the best phone ever, because you havnt ever had a decent phone before it.

Completely wrong. They have the most easy to use and comprehensive UI on any smartphone. All the reviewers agree. It is better than your precious N95.

 

[Apollo]

All the revievers being based in america that have never laid hands on an SE or Nokia maybe. I have read several reviews, the iPhone is only compared against the blackberry and Pearl, and any none Nokia + SE handsets.

Give the iPhone over to a european user who uses the 3G and Camera features on the phones we have and you'll see a completely different story.

I will say this simply once more. Nokia and SE are the leading manufactures of mobile phones in the world with sale figures larger then any other mobile phone company. Yet neither made an impact in the US.

Europe and Asia are a completely different market to America. We already have much better phones that havnt been released in the US, and the iPhone is not going to be able to compete with its current features.

I have quoted how important 3G is to many users over here. If the European/Asian version of the iPhone lacks 3G, it will plummet. You might not know this (As americans know nothing about the world outside of America), but im sure apple do and hopefully the rumors that they will be releasing a 3G version for Europe will be true.

The iPhone hit a niche in America that other phone manufactures were unable to reach before. However this niche has already been saturated with superior products in Europe + Asia. We dont want the current iPhone over here because it is crap compared to what we already have.

Hahahahahahaha, all the reviewers own either a N95 or SE and have reviewed them as well. Also, I should mention, the European reviewers say the same thing. A Cambridge group of reviewers broke the iPhone down step for step and said it had the best UI. I believe Cambridge is one of your highest establishments, second to Oxford I think. (of course I am probably dead wrong about it being second to Oxford. Might be third)

iPhone users in the US also miss 3G. Many Americans wont get the iPhone because it doesn't carry 3G, MMS, and it is with AT&T.

YOU don't want the iPhone. Doesn't mean that every Europeans doesnt. I am sure it will sell quite well in the European and Asian markets.

 

[Apollo]

whats so hilarious about it?

 

[Apollo]

Its not just me, but the majority of forum users and people from the UK commenting on the phone .

Again, you have no idea of what Europe + Asia wants. Oh, heres a clue, We want 3G, HSDPA, as many Megapixels as possible, and it must be made by Sony Ericcson.

hmmmm the same thing all the american techies want, but wont get out of the first generation iPhone.

www.wirelessinfo.com, that is the cambridge bunch reviewing every aspect of it. they dont call it evolutionary, but they do call it evolutionary. i.e. they have created stuff in the iPhone that other Smartphones will soon follow by (like a easy to use UI)

 

[Apollo]

Of course it isnt just for the UI easy of use. It is also for the FEATURES that it comes with. You of course know what they are.

They bought the iPhone because they wanted the iPhone. Just because they bought it without 3G doesnt mean they dont want 3G.

Your incredibly impossible. You making broad generalizations about a phone and people you know nothing about. You seem to think we are all stupid in America because we don't want some smart phone created by Nokia or SE seeing how they are "the best at smartphone technolgy", and whats more, you can't seem to wrap your brain around why someone wants a iPhone instead of a N95 or SE whatever. It's funny actually.

I knew that I would never change your mind about the iPhone. Didn't expect you to change your point. And it was stupid on my part to even argue with your closeminded "all hail the N95" views so I guess I am done.

Oh, and not a lot of Americans need smartphones nor want to buy one. We tend to spend our money on other cooler gadgets than a phone that keeps you in touch with people you dont want to be in touch with 24/7. Enjoy your n95 (i so know you will)

*sigh* you waisted precious minutes of my life. why do i even bother arguing with you people?

 

[Apollo]

^of course not. thats why most people wait for the later gen products from Apple. they work out all the bugs and the price goes down.

 

[_AJ_]

wow this thread is pathetic

how is it that an apple user can not admit ANY flaw in an apple product?

Definatly the biggest bunch of whining, blinkered fanboy's in the world an i am not going to respond to there Tripe any further

Good day to you Guy's

 

[Kins123]

This thread is really pissing me off now. You've made your point Cum_Slave! We get it, you don't want an iPhone. Please don't insult people who say they want one! Heck, you even insulted a whole country. If that's not reason enough to ban you then I don't know what is.

Every phone has problems whether it is missing features or has some bugs, people seem to take it upon themselves to identify every single problem the iPhone has and blow it way out of proportion! Please remember this is the first gen iPhone, the first ever phone Apple has made. How long has Nokia been making phones for?

//end rant