Dec 11, 2012

Apple Isn't Good Any More, Or, Everyone Else Is Better

Here's what I figure, after exploring for my own personal use:

When it came to phones and tablets, Apple was great. Steve Jobs, like or loathe, was central to the vision of Apple. He would say no to releasing a product if it didn't meet his standards. Sometimes, that was in conflict with traditional business imperatives. There must have been executives, marketers, salespeople urging Jobs to do anything from releasing more versions of products in a year to squeezing more out of the equity consumers had built in Apple. Steve kept the wolves at bay, so to speak.

Then he died.

Now, to me, it seems like the wolves are chewing the fat off the bones. iDevices are coming thick and fast, with substandard updates, rubbish software and unexciting advances. I remember when we'd read the list of updates to an iPhone and marvel at the changes, salivate for the differences, be pleased with the innovation. The gap each successive iPhone or iPad jumps gets narrower and narrower. It's clear to me that those in charge of Apple are taking advantage of the fact that when a person thinks of a smart phone, they think of an iPhone. They got such market share and recognition for long enough, that early adopters turned into my parents. They went from fighting for the top, to cruising the sky.

The resulting auto-pilot lead me and my girlfriend to pull our heads out of the clouds and look around.

Everyone else caught up, and they have features that either should always have been in iProducts, or far surpass them in terms of innovation and usefulness. Now, my fiancee is going to buy a Samsung Galaxy S III, and when we look around, we notice the same early adopters that got the original iPhone - the dev nerd, the media geek, the gadget aficionado - already has one. I just booted up my Sony Xperia S Tab for the first time today.

Apple was great. I'm not going to be an oversimplifying idiot and talk about cults or zombies. Instead, I'll say that when Apple was innovating, I loved the iPhones and iPads I bought, and any shortfalls were worth it because of the highlights...until they weren't.

Dec 7, 2012

Unhappy Australians In An Unhappy (But Well Off) Country

There were reports earlier this year about the nation experiencing a good economic and social situation in an increasingly downturned world, but that Australians were still negative about their outlook. We were seen as being out of step with reality, with other nations worse off than us coming off more positive about the future. Shorthand: we looked like a bunch of privileged, whining complainers.
I had two experiences with strangers recently that emphasised those reports.

I had my scooter towed. The man who picked us up took me into the city, and we got to talking while I bobbed along in his passenger seat.

Among the stories of identity theft and scooter efficiency, the driver decried superannuation as the biggest scam perpetrated by a government rife with business interference. I suggested that maybe it was a good thing we all had to prepare for retirement, but he insisted the money just sitting there, earning interest or making profit off investments that the superannuation owners got to enjoy was outrageous. I offered that it was a good thing we'd been given a choice of who to trust our super with. Nope, he wouldn't have a bar of it. As far as he was concerned, people using our money to make a profit was awful.

"You can always just stash it in a bank, then, or a coffee can under your bed?"

The second chap came to install our oven. We talked about the high cost of living, and he asked if I thought it was better in America. I told him it was most decidedly not. Healthcare, education, working conditions. No way. And perhaps the higher cost of living was necessary for a better life in a better country. He seemed dissatisfied with that, shrugged.

A few tweaks of his screwdriver later, he complimented the suburb I live in. We spoke about how the west of Melbourne is a growth area, that we'd bought because we thought we'd get a good price when we eventually sold. He said it still wouldn't be much, though, compared to what we'd paid and what we'd have to pay for a new place.

He shared with me the original price of his property in Narre Warren, mere tens of thousands. I remarked that now, once he sold, he'd make huge profit. Nope, because then he'd have to buy another place and lose it all. This man was actually complaining about the big profit he'd make on his real estate sale. He'd bought early, just like my parents had in the same south eastern part of Melbourne. Now that prices are so high out there, it's the perfect time for folks like him to take advantage of the market. But nope, everything's the worst.

"My mum's probably going to sell her four bedroom and get a smaller one-bedroom now that we kids have moved out, and sit pretty off the difference."

"But even one-bedrooms are too expensive because everybody wants them."

Jesus, mate, fine! The nation is holding strong, we all have jobs, homes,family, property we can eventually sell: but you're right, both of you, let's go hang ourselves!