This endless tirade between Windows fans and Apple Lovers drives me totally nuts. Yet, both sides continue the argy bargy and neither seems to make any real headway.
The whole scenario is being repeated in the mobile world where Apple is making something of its late arrival in mobile technology with its iPhone. Yet not a single point that I wrote about in 2009 has changed: it’s still hobbled, unopenable, tied to particular vendors, comes without expansion slots, poor pricing, and under even closer scrutiny by Apple (who by the way it seems can control not just what you have on your phone with forced updates, but also seem to be able to shut down phones that have been stolen).
But what disturbs me more is the different visions that both Google and Apple purvey. It seems that Google wants to increase the speed of change in mobile technology, offers free tools, encourages development and offers Android on many different types of phones; while Apple just wants to restrict the range of devices (about four or six models), the software that can be loaded, the updating of its OS, carefully controls what apps are approved and what aren’t.
In there, I’m afraid most of the iPhone fans are missing the BIG picture: the big picture is that Android is setting out to create a microcosm of smartphones with a large variety, differing functionality, a range of pricing, etc., whereas Apple is selling one pretty much selling one size fits all.
In the short run, Apple will do really well, even though it is still playing catch up on its development with serious ommissions on its software; but that is something most Nokia users know already.
In the long run, a range of devices on a variety of systems with a variety of software will be a healthier, and stronger economic model for both developers, vendors and users. It’s unlikely that Apple will be able to produce more than a few versions of its hardware at a single time; yet, Android competitors will evolve faster… and are already doing so.
While I wouldn’t sell Apple stock short just yet, it is interesting to see it it will be a rerun of how Windows eventually helped manufacturers produce an array of IBM-compatible systems that loaded Windows, were affordable, reliable and ultimately knocked Apple systems into an also ran in the PC market.
Oh, and BTW, I can still swap out my Nokia battery, restart the phone, and continue using the Nokia… with my iPhone I would have to recharge the whole phone unit on its cradle! I’d like to see ANY iphone user do that trick!