“Apple is clearly in a war with hackers over the iPhone and its most loyal fans could take a few hits,” Larry Dignan blgos for ZDNet. “Today’s angst over iPhones becoming iBricks because they were modified is really just the beginning. There are a few reports of non-hacked iPhones going dark following Apple’s latest firmware update.”
MacDailyNews Take: Why is there any “angst” at all for modded iPhones becoming iBricks when Apple warned users ahead of time (and during the update process)? Is it logical to expect any company to support unsupported hacks? Of course, not.
Dignan continues, “The iPhone update is just the latest example. Consider the following moving parts:”
• Apple cut the price of the premium iPhone by $200 just weeks after die-hards waited in line to pay $599 for it. Steve Jobs met these early adopters half way and gave them a $100 store credit. Where’s the other $100? If Steve really cared about you perhaps Apple would have made you better than whole, say a $250 credit.
MacDailyNews Take: Some portion of 0.33% of the U.S was upset that they paid the price on the box and then it changed. The other 99.67% of the U.S. population only sees a much better price. How many other companies offer $100 store credits when they change prices. Take your time, we’ll wait…
• The iPhone sticks you with one carrier–AT&T–that few people want. Why? Apple got the best deal from AT&T. We aren’t privy to the math behind the AT&T and Apple deal, but we do know none of these hacks to unlock the iPhone would be necessary if we had carrier choice. What’s the cost differential between adding a few carriers to the iPhone and wasting time developing software to outflank hackers?
MacDailyNews Take: Interesting question. However, assuming that Apple didn’t use Excel to do the math, one would tend to believe that the differential was great enough to have to sit through half-witted online petitions calling for Apple to change their product and nix their business deals, the fulminations of so-called tech reporters, etc. This is the way Apple has chosen to market the product they developed. AT&T in the U.S. is currently part of the product’s specs. If you don’t like it, there are other (lesser) so-called “smartphones.” It is not an unalienable right that everyone has an iPhone. If you want to deal with what unlocking the iPhone entails, then more power to you. But you shouldn’t complain when unsupported mods go unsupported.
• Apple has the best tech support in the business and could put it at risk over the iPhone. According to Consumer Reports June 2007 rankings Apple had a reader score of 81 out of a possible 100 when servicing desktops and laptops. On laptops the next best score was Lenovo’s 66 and Dell’s 60. One theory behind Apple’s score: Apple owners are an elite–some would say elitist–club. These folks will get whatever Apple pumps out of the product pipeline. Consumer Reports bases its scores on reader surveys. In these surveys perception matters. With the iPhone Apple is going mass market scores for Apple are only going to decline based on the laws of large numbers.
MacDailyNews Take: Another, more logical theory: Apple’s products are more reliable than other companies and Apple offers better tech support than other companies. Radical ideas, we know.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: The more customers a company gets, the more complaints it will receive, as the percentage of “unsatisfied” customers is likely to remain constant despite growth. Apple should do whatever they can to improve support, quality, and their business decisions as they grow in order to protect their good reputation. Apple is not without fault – and can do better with some things – but the worries presented by Digan strike us as more than a bit overwrought.
Yesterday I reported the iPhone update caused the phone to do a complete re-install of the OS. I was without my iPhone from noon until 5 when I got back home from work. I got back, all was fine, and 1.1.1 was installed as expected.
My iPhone was not bricked as I initially thought.
I disagree with ZDNet’s Dignan.
Apple PROTECT the iPhone.
And AT&T;keep working on improving the service.
dd
MacDailyNews Take: We are iZombies, no one is allowed to criticize the God of Gods, Apple. We lick our anuses in defiance of all criticism.
The article is from ZDNet…what did you expect?
So are we to expect that Apple should engineer around iPhone hacks for the iPhone so that they don’t alienate their “loyal” hacker fans? I dont’ think so. Apple must be Apple and keep developing for their real consumers (the one’s buying the phone to actually use). Hackers are free to keep breaking into the iPhone all they want, just don’t polute the rest of us with their sour logic of Apple not playing nice with them. Companies that are trying to sell software to open up the iPhone are just trying to make a quick buck. They don’t care about the end-user experience that they are creating. It’s fun to hack into something, but that doesn’t mean it’s a viable business model.
@shlumdaily news take:
How did MDN make it so that “no one is allowed to criticize the God of Gods”? Seems to me that Dignan criticized and MDN responded. Isn’t that what reasoned discourse is about?
Or is name calling the best that you’re able to do?
Kevin
I believe that reporters and many others like to pick hot topics that stir up feels from the large audience.
But, these issues rarely affect, but a very small number of people.
The number of people with an iPhone is a very small number.
The number of people with a modified iPhone is an extremely small number.
But, the story of Apple causing this very small number of people a problem is crazy. We know that all of these people are world travelers or live in an area without AT&T;service. And, they are just trying to use their phone. I feel so sorry for them. Able we should change some federal law to force Apple to correct this wrong and provide free service to the poor.
The French do not deserve a way to unlock the iPhone.
Hey Shlum, is that really the best insult you could come up with? Man you windows cats just keep consistently proving your lack of imagination, intelligence, and vision.
Keep up the mediocre work!
AT&T;sucks. They’re the main reason I don’t own an iPhone at the moment.
And iDiots who spend $600 (before the price cut) or $400 for a fabulous, value-for-money device and then proceed to tinker around with it deserve their fate.
As for this writer, same old, same old. The new line is:
1) Apple is suddenly making “mistakes.”
2) The “mistakes” are pissing off “loyal” customers (whatever that means).
3) More and more “loyal” customers are abandoning the Apple ship.
4) Therefore, Apple has started to sink.
This calculation too seems to have been done on Excel!
…right… and why are you reading stuff on this site anyway?
All these MSoft Worshippers. You can tell them by their profanity…. sorry, no class…. none at all.
Well, Apple has no choice. They are walking a tight rope and doing pretty good at it. They had to team up with a carrier in order to do things like visual voice mail. If they had made the iPhone really easy to unlock, how would they ever establish any future relationships with other companies. However, if they made the iPhone completely unlockable, they would be alienating part of their user base. So, they didn’t turn it into an iBrick on purpose, but if it happened, well, we told you it might and that you should do it at your own risk.
Now Mr. Jobs has to give an out to these early adopters…..
Just my $0.02
The product is what it is. As a manufacturer, I release a product and if you don’t like it, get an alternative!
If you buy a Ford to put a Chevy engine on it, you do it at your own risk! Don’t expect Ford to make parts for your modified car or to fix your engine.
If you want something you can hack at your leisure, get Linux! Linux was made for that.
As Andrew Dice Clay said: “If you don’/t speak the language, get the F$%& out of the country!” (cound be read as “if you don’t agree with the terms, get another device!”)
This is a phone, not an open source project. Don’t like it? Buy a motorola.
When did Apple Computer become open season for hackers. Why should Apple have to placate a group that represents the smallest fraction of the minority of the customer base. These hackers act like it is their right to do what ever they want with the phone. Apple has certain legal obligations to ATT. Thats why the phone is built the way it was. If the hackers want to hack let them do it, at their own risk. Hackers, a bunch of cry babies.
Apple, learning from Micro$oft, has to protect their stuff, protect it early, and protect it often. Micro$oft is getting a bad trying desperately to protect their stuff too much, way too late. The volume of sign ons is way greater than those complaining about Apple’s monopolization tactics. Again, you can monopolize as long as you have the best product and best product cycle and best product upgrade path. Micro$oft never had the best product, and look at them now…desperate. Go ahead, buy Facebook, Yahoo, and whoever else to try and compete, but the four horsemen have a long term plan and will stay strong. AAPL, GOOG, AMZN, and yes, RIM. Later, AAPL and RIM are going to compete head to head and Apple will win, but, for now, they are on the same page against the spiraling Micro$oft.
I have a recording of my grandmother’s voice saying, “Boy, answer that damn phone!”
It was my ringtone.
I’m not stealing anyone’s stupid pathetic who cares crappy ass music. I just liked Lucy’s voice on my phone. My $600 phone. Or is it my phone? Maybe I didn’t read the docs properly. Apparently Apple still OWNS my phone and will direct what I do with it.
To say that I am disillusioned with Apple is an understatement.
@Jim –
I had the same problem as you — an error during the updating process required a “restore” on the iPhone, and resyncing all the data. Why in the world would you think your phone was dead?
The whole process was completely straightforward (if a bit annoying), and on-screen directions made it perfectly clear that this was no big deal. It took about two hours to reload about six gigs of data on my phone. Your iPhone was no doubt waiting for you ready to go long before you showed up after work.
Considering what a pain reinstalling an OS can be (even the Mac OS), I thought this was a relatively painful process.
I wonder if you are who the dumb-ass over at ZDNet was referring to as unhacked customers reporting their phones were “bricked”?
There is no “war” with hackers. Please… What happened when hackers hacked iTunes’ DRM or hacked Mac OS X to run on generic Intel hardware? Did Apple “lose” those wars. Nope, Apple just made a few adjustments, and those hackers where defeated. Yes, they could have come back with another hack, but apparently, it wasn’t worth their effort. I guess even hackers these days have to make money too.
@Grifterus-
Your analogy is flawed. I don’t think that anyone who physically modifies their iPhone expects Apple to support it. Changing software, though, is reversible. If Apple were to release an update that breaks unlocked iPhones, and then doesn’t allow folks a way to reset the software back to factory stock, then I’d call that a problem. Apple doesn’t put this requirement on the desktops or laptops, and since the iPhone runs a variant of OS X, there’s no reason why some one who’s clever enough to do it shouldn’t be able to change the software. They should, however, be able to reset the software, just as you can do on a desktop or laptop from Apple. Besides which, even everyone’s “favorite” law, the DMCA, has an exception for unlocking phones so that they’ll be able to work on other than the original network. If the morons who passed the DMCA even see the ability to change networks as worthwhile and something that should be legally protected, why do have an issue with folks who want to buy an iPhone but don’t want AT&T;’s service?
The iPhone is a great device, but there are plenty of ways it could be better. I’d love to own one, except that I’m not willing to change service plans (no one’s been able to beat my current monthly price), and I’m not willing to pay nearly double what I do now every month just to get an iPhone. Besides which, with an iPhone, I’d lose some capabilities that my current phone has (save, view, and edit Office docs, save and view PDF’s, run 3rd party apps), and it’s not a good trade for me even with the features that are exclusive to the iPhone.
And before any fanboys pipe up accusing me of being a Microsoft hack, I’ve been a Mac user for the last 14 years. I only use Windows at work, and then only when necessary.
Thanks Brian
“We know that all of these people are world travelers or live in an area without AT&T;service. And, they are just trying to use their phone.”
Agree Andrew
” Hackers are free to keep breaking into the iPhone all they want, just don’t polute the rest of us with their sour logic of Apple not playing nice with them”
If you want an iPhone, you have 2 choices,
choice 1/ abide by the terms with your Countries carrier,
choice 2/ unlock/ hack what ever, but do at your own risk, and do not go bitching if they get one up on you
I live in Mexico, have an unlocked iPhone, LOVE IT
I am happy with the original version of software, no need to update, until the hackers have a fix
If it is permanently turned into a brick, I will buy a new one as soon as that is unlocked, I figure if I have to buy 3 iPhones a year, so be it, well worth $100.00 per month just to have one.
Any way, love having a reason to fly to Miami
You would think after reading this and similar articles, that everyone and their brother were unlocking their iPhones. I seriously doubt that anywhere near 1% of iPhone owners have even thought about doing it. So it is unlikely that this is going to have any impact, one way or another, on Apple’s reputation.
anyone that wants to hack an iphone is prolly the type to d/l pirated music. you hacks just dont get it. its not your right to hack someones product and demand they support your lame ass hack. now stfu and go back to your rooms/basement/garage. the VAST majority of actual consumers dont care for your lame ass hacks and are buying the iphone cause they want one. only idiots buy iphones to hack em. i mean wtf get a life. go play wow or something….noobs i swear.
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My first Mac was the 128k version in 1984. And for the first time in the personal history of that relation between me and Apple, I fondamentaly disagreeing with Apple about their deals with IT&T;and all others exclusive foreign networks about the iPhone.
Why?:
– Because Apple make a greedy deal with a non computer enterprise (AT&T;);
– Because this deal with IT&T;impeach an international usage of their GSM product (SIM card locked to AT&T;). I f ican use a MacBook everywhere in the World. Why not with an iPhone, at least as a phone?;
– Because Apple want to impose this same IT&T;deal in foreign countries, when albeit laws in those places prohibite the obligation of joint sale of service (phones networks) and hardware (iPhone). And that prohibition explains perhaps the the problem now with Orange Network in France ;
-Because the relation between Apple and IT&T;have a very strange similitary with the harm job between M$ and all those pc product enterprises, but in reverse…;
I think that they should get a developer kit up and running asap. I don’t care about unlockers, but the energy focused on this technology is precious. Resisting or letting it travel unguided is dangerous and sad. A developer kit would take the ire out of it and channel the efforts toward good, not evil.
I have to agree with the business on this one. Anyone that modifies a product knows that they will eventually be assed out when an update comes along. Or that maybe a certain item won’t work. It’s not Apple’s fault. They told people what was going to happen. Do people get all up in arms when they modify they car to the extent that it voids the factory warranty? No, they understand the risk involved.
The people that are mad are the ones that went out of their way to try and be cool and have the newest gadget possible. They unlocked their phones and showed that it worked with T-Mobile. Good for them. Now what? They should’ve known that eventually something would come along and possible render it useless.
The people making a big deal about this are the ones that feel like they’ve been cheated because they just got screwed. They shouldn’t have tried to be part of the cool crowd and hacking their iPhone for some assinine reason like “I hate AT&T;” or “It doesn’t have something I want on it.” Well, look at you now.
MDN Word – gone. Kind of appropriate.
Plenty of these “hacks” have nothing to do with AT&T;, but come from the whining development community who just want to install apps on the thing. Presumably they’d want to do this regardless of carrier.
The lack of clear logic regarding Apple’s high Consumer Reports ratings is incredible.
Apple is tied for 3rd place with Gateway in units sold in the U.S. (See link below) Therefore, they actually have more customers than Lenovo. This “Apple gets high marks from consumers because they are just a tiny fraction of Steve jobs cultists” refrain is way past getting old. Come on ZDNet! You guys do this for a living! And this is the best reasoning you can come up with?
Might it be that Apple really does have stellar customer service? Is that *so* hard to imagine?
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9027527
This site sucks… What kind of an idiotic pseudo-statistic is this?
“MacDailyNews Take: Some portion of 0.33% of the U.S was upset that they paid the price on the box and then it changed. The other 99.67% of the U.S. population only sees a much better price.”
You guys aren’t apple fanboys, you guys are apple whores. No sense of right and wrong. Pathetic. Let the tyranny reign.
Mixed feelings on this one…..
Re: hacking it to get out of using AT&T;…. I disagree with the whole ‘carrier protection’ thing and think all phones should be forced to be ‘portable’ between carriers using like technology…. BUT since that is not the case.. and our govt allows this carrier monopolization, I think Apple/AT&T;has the right to prevent people from hacking to get around it – I am positive that the AT&T;contracts subsidize the development of future iPhones.
BUT … and a big BUT ! … I expect Apple, if they are going to sell this iPhone as some great handheld computing device that RUNS on OS X…. that this computing device be OPEN to program development by 3rd parties…. we shouldn’t be locked in to dealing with ONLY the software apps that Apple ‘approves’.
Apple puts out great stuff…. including software… but they are far from covering the large gap of providing software solutions for all we need.
Come On Apple…. its OS X – let us all use it to the full advantages it can allow !!!!!!!!!!
> This site sucks… What kind of an idiotic pseudo-statistic is this?
I totally agree with the “statistic” whether the number is correct or not. The number of iPhones sold before the price drop is almost insignificant compared to the number of potential customers. While that small number of “early adopters” may have been upset, the vast majority was feeling smug and superior because they weren’t “suckers.” So they are now even more likely to buy an iPhone.
Tom stated “whining development community who just want to install apps on the thing”
OH COME ON Tom ! Tell me you are ok with buying a pc and not being able to go find OEM software to put on it…. tell me that you have never installed a non-Apple ‘approved’ program on your Mac… (if you’re smart enough to own a mac).
Yeah, sure Tom, I spend hours and hours of my time developing software ….. JUST so I can say I put it on a given ‘machine’… forget the possibility of productivity and usefulness… I NEVER take those into consideration during development.
Blah…blah…blah
Apple can do what it likes in the US. In many EU countries phones have to be unlocked on request. For example ‘in the UK service providers are required to unlock a mobile phone if requested to do so. But they are allowed to charge a fee (usually around £30) for this service.’ If you want an unlocked iPhone Apple will not brick in the future buy one of the UK versions and insist it be unlocked. If the iPhone is ever to come to Belgium it will have to be unlocked because selling locked phones in Belgium is illegal.
I think this hacker demand is far less than what people realize. By the way it’s reported you’d think 90% of iPhone users are hacking their phones when the truth is, it’s probably closer to 2%. They just make more noise than the people who are perfectly happy with the way their phone is out of the box.
TJ,
For all the screaming of productivity and usefulness apps from the dev community, what I’ve seen are Etch a Sketch, Popcorn Popping, Draw a Pirate Face apps, and similar. Please.
You wanna write apps for the iPhone? Use the web. You think you’re too good to use the web? Sucks to be you. A hack is still a hack.
I’ll say this much: When an SDK for the iPhone does become available (and it will eventually) there had better be some KILLER apps from the dev community for all the crying they’re doing now. Sadly, I think the first thing we’ll get is Pirate Faces 2.0.
This whole “Apple should let me use the carrier of my choice” thing is kinda silly. Especially here in america where there are only 2 choices, AT&T;and T-mobile. T-mobile has a much smaller and older network. Why would anyone have such a strong attachment to T-mobile? I was on T-mobile before I bought an iPhone and after switching I got a much better signal in the places I go. (San Francisco bay area)
Second of all, this is just the kind of thing that Apple does to differentiate itself from it’s competitors. They take responsibility for the entire user experience. I’m certain that visual voicemail will not be the last carrier specific feature that Apple will add. Also, the activation process was amazing… does anyone miss having to spend 20 mintues in a cell phone store activating your service? I certainly dont.
First, I think Apple is just paying legal lipservice to protect their relationship with AT&T;. Ultimately, it does not hurt Apple too much if people unlock or jailbreak their iPhones.
However, it’s ultimately up to the users who have hacked iPhones to make sure they can do a software restore to get any Apple updates, and then they can go and redo their hacks. That’s their risk and responsibility, not Apple’s.
If you expect Apple to improve on the iPhone, then DON’T UPGRADE – Plain and simple. It’s not Apple’s job to code around your janky hacks. It’s their job to provide the best feature set possible that conforms to their hardware and sofware designs.
It seems, to me, that the same people that bitch about the hacking are basically the same crowd as internet pirates. Same whiny crowd that bully cyberspace. ME ME ME ME ME FREE FREE FREE FREE FREE. Ugh.
Ask Dignan-berry if Microsoft supports hackers that install Linux on an Xbox.
Hit whore.
liv,
U.S. pop = ~300m
iPhone sold before price cut = ~1m
Percentage of users who bought at launch price = 0.33%
So, you see, simpleton, MDN’s number is completely, utterly, and perfectly correct.
Tom… you apparently have a very low regard for developers…
What you fail to understand… at least in your ranting… is that even the base OS X platform is created by developers…..
I agree with you re: the list of useless apps that you identified for the iPhone…. but you are also attacking a MUCH larger demographic of developers that DO write productive apps also…. not to say that some of us don’t enjoy the occasional game also.
I don’t think I am too good for the web…. but I also hate being limited in developing apps that are limited to running on some ‘middle layer interpreted’ platform…. it is like trying to develop pc apps in BASIC where you have very little control over the underlying OS.
I could see if you were getting a discout from ATT or any other subscriber when purchsing the Iphone, But you are paying full price plus requireing you to buy a data plan with the voice plan from att
If I but a Iphone in germany from TMobile, will it work with Tmobile here (same company, differant companys)
Three comments:
1) I don’t buy the argument that Apple had no choice and had to go with one carrier. This was a business decision, not a technical decision. For example, the visual voicemail feature could have been implemented without a close partnership. Apple could have simply run the voicemail servers itself. Unanswered calls get forwarded to the Apple voicemail servers (normal GSM forwarding). If the phone is on, it forwards the call and so it can just check for the voicemail audio file (over the internet) a few minutes later. No need for help from the carrier.
2) Apple should spend a little effort on tools to help restore phones that were disabled after the 1.1.1 update. Chalk the cost up to good PR. Apple is contractually obliged to prevent unlocks, not to punish unlockers. Make them wait a bit, though, to discourage unlocking. And don’t promise to do this next time.
3) Apple should produce a 3rd party developer kit and provide an official way (through iTunes) to get native apps onto the iPhone. Unapproved apps will be less convenient because they’ll disappear after updates, but Apple should try to guarantee that, as long as an app doesn’t change anything that a restore doesn’t undo, it won’t hurt the iPhone.
Wow! I was just about to jump in and buy an iphone this morning when I heard a customer complain agitatedly about his iphone dying. I put my visacard back and left the store. I’m glad I did so. I’d been feeling hesitant anyway. I think I’ll upgrade my Nokia!
“when I heard a customer complain agitatedly about his iphone dying.”
WHEW! That was close! You almost really fscked up!
I also heard from someone, somewhere that air is bad for you!
Like OMFG! ! !
TJ,
I have a very high regard for developers, and work with them every single day. Have for years. That does NOT mean they cannot pick fights that are ridiculous. I think this is one of those times. I consider it whining and misguided.
Crying in your beer solves nothing. This has nothing to do with development, per se, but rather an illogical ranting, lack of patience, and loss of productivity (since a developer pissing about the iPhone is not working on something else).
I understand you disagree, but let’s be clear that writing me off as some sort of developer-hater is way off base.
@SHIVA
“Your analogy is flawed. I don’t think that anyone who physically modifies their iPhone expects Apple to support it. Changing software, though, is reversible. If Apple were to release an update that breaks unlocked iPhones, and then doesn’t allow folks a way to reset the software back to factory stock, then I’d call that a problem. Apple doesn’t put this requirement on the desktops or laptops, and since the iPhone runs a variant of OS X, there’s no reason why some one who’s clever enough to do it shouldn’t be able to change the software. They should, however, be able to reset the software, just as you can do on a desktop or laptop from Apple.”
Well, if you know how to mod the phone in the first place knowing that there’s no way to get the phone back, you should be intelligent enough to write the software for reset yourself. So, if you *want* apple’s updates, make sure you reset the software first, apply the updates, and put your hacks again.
“Besides which, even everyone’s “favorite” law, the DMCA, has an exception for unlocking phones so that they’ll be able to work on other than the original network. If the morons who passed the DMCA even see the ability to change networks as worthwhile and something that should be legally protected, why do have an issue with folks who want to buy an iPhone but don’t want AT&T;’s service?”
If that’s the reason, why did you buy the iPhone in the first place knowing fully well that it will work only with AT&T;. iPhone today comes only with AT&T;. Take it or leave it.
“The iPhone is a great device, but there are plenty of ways it could be better. I’d love to own one, except that I’m not willing to change service plans (no one’s been able to beat my current monthly price), and I’m not willing to pay nearly double what I do now every month just to get an iPhone. Besides which, with an iPhone, I’d lose some capabilities that my current phone has (save, view, and edit Office docs, save and view PDF’s, run 3rd party apps), and it’s not a good trade for me even with the features that are exclusive to the iPhone.”
Don’t try to patronize anyone. In the current form, iPhone does not do the job. So, stop saying I would like to have iPhone but…. blah blah blah. You should not buy a product that doesn’t do what you want to do. And don’t try to buy a product thinking that you can make it do what you want to; and then complaining that it doesn’t do what you want it to do.
“And before any fanboys pipe up accusing me of being a Microsoft hack, I’ve been a Mac user for the last 14 years. I only use Windows at work, and then only when necessary.”
No one cares a damn who you are; as long as your point is valid.
Everyone talks about Apple backstabbing its “consumers.” Who are these consumers? I define consumers as those who buy the product knowing the “limitations” of the product more than the features of the product. If you don’t like certain restrictions on the product, just don’t buy it. But, people can’t do that. They want the product which doesn’t fit their requirements and then complain about it. Why?
These people who complain are the geeks who try to break anything you give them. As you grow bigger, you will see more of these people. But, they are not “consumers.” Even if you are an Apple fan, and you would like to have iPhone, but you don’t like the tie-up to AT&T;, just let this round pass. May be things will change in future.
These people who bitch and moan are simply some insignificant unsuccessful geeks (their unsuccessful nature is shown in the fact that they did not even bother to create a restore software to get the device back to its original form.). They are crying because they are unsuccessful. They don’t care about the so-called consumers either. They will always find faults with everything you give them; but will never make one thing by themselves which 100 people would like.
1. Along with Hot Carl, I can’t stand AT&T;, and will not voluntarily do business with them. (I switched my landline phone service from SBC to Cox when I found out that SBC was going to become AT&T;.) I think that adopting the AT&T;name, with all of its attendant bad-will, was one of the stupidest business moves in history.
2. A question of value arises with the iPhone and locking it into AT&T;. Most “locked” phones are subsidized by the carrier to the tune of a couple of hundred dollars. And the iPhone, as good as it is, IMNTBHO, just isn’t that much better (at least, for what I use a mobile phone for).
3. Several people commented that “software should be easy to change/fix.” The problem is that embedded software, or “firmware”, in many cases might as well be hardware. Secure systems tend to need the right firmware in order to update the firmware itself; if a firmware update (say, a hack) overwrites code or data on which an update to a “standard” system depends, it’s very possible that the next “standard” update to the firmware of the phone may cause it to no longer fully function, or even have the ability to update, and might require physical intervention to operate again. In other words, “bricked.”
3. There is a bias in American attitude, tradition, and law which favors open competition over “lock-in” deals. While Apple and AT&T;have the right to make such a “lock-in” deal, it really seems more something that AT&T;would do – not Apple. To say that this move is out of character for Apple, at least since the return of Steve Jobs, is I think an understatement.
4. I’m still a Verizon customer. Though I’d really like to have an iPhone, right now – all things considered – it’s just not worth it.
It took four tries and two computers to get the firmware on my non-hacked iPod Touch updated this morning. Because of that, I am about to leave for lunch with a minus my music library. IMHO, at the very least, Steve Jobs owes me a personal apology.
Seriously, though, next time a firmware update comes out, I am not if I dare risk it again.
I’m in-Dignan-t. I believe he’s full of FUD.
MW – answer. that’s my answer.
This whole discussion is misguided.
Apple is NOT infallible, and one of the reasons I don’t look at MDN as other than slightly elevate fanboys is because they don’t look at any objections critically, they just attack like junkyard pit bulls.
Fact is the REAL discussion is how much ATT sux, becaus it’s enough to keep the admittedly very good iPhone numbers lower than they really should be, and would be were it not for the carrier being locked to ATT.
So the REAL culprit here is ATT, PERIOD. All talk about hacks etc has to include that as the root problem.
I don’t think people realize how many people are hacking the phones. In class right now there are three of us. In my dorm, there are all but one of the seven or so people who have iPhones are hacked to work with T-Mobile. Why? Because AT&T;’s prices suck, and we can’t simply Switch services. It’s not Apple’s fault when our hacks break, but they don’t need to deliberately break them. Right? This current update to the iPhone is a direct attack on those hacks.
An iPhone is like a spouse. If it’s not what you want don’t buy it. If she’s not the one you want (as she is) don’t marry her. You can’t change anyone, unless they want to change. You can’t hack her, just hicky her.
An iPhone is like a spouse. If you don’t like the way they are, don’t bother. You can’t re-program anyone. They’ll change if they want to. The iPhone will change over time, (if S.J. wants them to).
“This current update to the iPhone is a direct attack on those hacks.”
No, it’s an indirect attack. The direct attack was an update providing several security and feature enhancements.
Apple has a contract with AT&T;. You don’t like it. We get it.
Now go look up the phrase, “at your own risk.”
We’ll wait.
You brain-dead Macolytes make me sick. If your ran into SJ himself in an elevator and he told you to bend over and drop trau you would do it.
IT IS LEGAL FOR YOU TO UNLOCK A CELL PHONE IN THE UNITED STATES. APPLE, ON THE OTHER HAND, HAS NO LEGAL RIGHT TO DISABLE YOUR PHONE BECAUSE YOU AVAIL YOURSELF OF YOUR RIGHT TO UNLOCK IT.
That’s it – there is no other part of this discussion that is relevant. Apple ‘warning’ us ahead of time is of no consequence. If Toyota warned you that they were going to disable the Prius Hybrid they sold you, just because you managed to unlock the feature that allows you to charge it from an outlet (yes, it has that capability), they would still be guilty in the eyes of the law. You lemmings DO have rights, regardless of what some celebrity CEO tells you!!
jbella asks: “This whole “Apple should let me use the carrier of my choice” thing is kinda silly. Especially here in america where there are only 2 choices, AT&T;and T-mobile. T-mobile has a much smaller and older network. Why would anyone have such a strong attachment to T-mobile?”
Why should anyone have to justify their choice of carrier to you? Or to Apple? Or to anyone? But just for the sake of it, I’ll tell you that T-Mobile has better/cheaper pricing plans than AT&T;. Is saving money for the exact same service rational enough for you? I mean, that IS what Free Market Economics is supposed to be all about. Idiot.
But Disillusioned gives the best reason of all IMO:
“I have a recording of my grandmother’s voice saying, “Boy, answer that damn phone!” … It was my ringtone … I’m not stealing [anything] … I just liked Lucy’s voice on my phone. My $600 phone. Or is it my phone? Maybe I didn’t read the docs properly. Apparently Apple still OWNS my phone and will direct what I do with it.”
Exactly.
The rest of you really need to get a clue.
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MDN Magic Word = reaction
“The reaction of the majority on here is totally retarded”
I argue that Apple need to improve and develop iPhone WITHOUT worrying about unsupported hacks.
Apple has learnt from the mistakes of Microsoft.
And I look forward to a developing iPhone, not a stagnating one.
What a load of unmitigated garbage. Apple’s most loyal fans are not butchering their iPhone insides. And the people writing hacks and cracks in many cases are looking to make money off of the iPhone.
Apple needs to show no loyalty to people intentionally breaking it’s products. And those people number in the dozens. They are not some kind of overwhelming force that will punish Apple for the crime of (gasp) maintaining it’s user experience and updating it’s products regularly.
Apparently George Ou is on vacation at ZDNet, so we have s standin?
I’m surprised MDN isn’t pounding on this much harder; IMHO, this is hit trolling and flat out misrepresentation.
1. First, Apple isn’t at war with anybody altho they clearly are intent on shaking up the cellular business model, specifically getting rid of horribly designed phone user interfaces, carriers controlling everything (including phone hardware), carrier handset subsidies and grossly ridiculous data plan pricing. But they’re using the cellular business to do that – not much of a war. They’re holding back on VOIP, for now, but that is coming.
Note that this will be the second big, recent shakeup Apple has taken (music was the first), so DO expect major, game changing changes..
As far as hackers are concerned, Apple views them as an ally, but one they can’t embrace directly, at this time, due to the carriers (VOIP will appear here first, by the way). How else could one interpret the “we will neither help nor hinder 3rd party iPhone folks” remark recently? Apple wants 3rd party apps, but this is all it can say/do now.
Personally, I expect a native iPhone SDK soon (possibly Macworld 08, else WWDC 08), with at least Apple distribution available – this will be a major revenue source for Apple, by the way.
As far as unlocking is concerned, Apple hasn’t distinguished between unlocking and 3rd party apps, and there is no reason to expect it would – this simply makes the iPhone more attractive, encourages innovation without Apple doing anything (but Apple loses the carrier kickback).
Apple obviously tried the iPhone update on unlocked phones, found it broke the unlock (not surprisingly), AND THEN WARNED DEVELOPERS, albeit indirectly by warning customers. This is some war, all right… Apple is obviously going to do a full restore of the phone after an upgrade, so it I don’t know how anybody could have expected anything else but a relocked phone. Sure, its needs a not-yet-available hack to get back to the original state (which is, actually a bit surprising – it would be nice to simply have to re-unlock and re-install).
2. And all the phones still work, just not fully – no iBricks I’ve heard of. Altho I have trouble believing that (short of experimenters) anybody would be foolish enough to try and upgrade a locked phone without restoring it first.
(wonder why Macworld didn’t try that – this is the big test)
3. And Apple is “being a bully” with the media monopolies? Hello? Apple said “enough” to the MiddleBronfman and this is being a bully??!! I thought that was standing up to a bully, one that is abusing the population.
Under this bully definition, the police are bullies with lawbreakers – I hear they even restrain their freedom of movement by putting them in locked rooms with bars on them…
1. Anyone who hacks a piece of hardware or software does so at their own risk.
2. If Apple wants to, it can take whatever measures against hardware and software hacks that it wants to.
3. The fact that these hacks exist and are, in fact, highly sought after and popular indicates that they provide features that are valued by Apple’s customers.
4. Faced with this desire on the part of its customers, Apple has essentially three choices: (a) actively support their customers’ desires and the steps that they take to realize them (in other words, embrace the hacks), (b) be neutral about their customers’ desires and the steps that they take to realize them (in other words, don’t endorse but don’t break the hacks), or (c) actively work to thwart their customers’ desires and the steps that they take to realize them (in other words, deliberately break the hacks and/or hacked phones).
5. In this instance, and atypically for Apple, IMO, they have chosen route (c) and are actively working to thwart their customers’ desires and the steps that they take to realize them.
7. The RIAA has taught us what the results are, both economic and in terms of public relations when a company choses to adopt a business model in which they actively work to thwart their customers’ desires and the steps that they take to realize them.
8. Is this really a business model that Apple should emulate?
I’m an Apple fanboy; have been for many years, and probably (hopefull?) will be for awhile. But some of Steve’s moves of late strike me as a little… douche-y. The iMovie down-grade, the lack of a developer program for the iPhone, the inflexibility about iTunes pricing… Steve seems to be a better underdog than top dog. As soon as he gets on top, it’s like he needs to control everyone and everything. Why not let the market decide fair pricing for NBC’s iTunes shows?
There’s a metastory here that I haven’t heard mentioned at all yet, but was touched on here:
The idea that everyone feels entitled to have an iPhone. I think it says something really significant that is product has innumerable folks talking as if getting the iPhone in their country, for their carrier, on their own timetable, to their own spec is some kind of basic necessity. That so many people can’t accept the basic terms of service but still feel such a strong pull to the product is a strong indication of just how gamechanging it is. Different handsets have always been available only through particular carriers or under certain service conditions… even exclusivity is not that unusual. Until now, though, I’ve never seen anyone react with more than a shrug. Most of us have at one time or another been dissapointed that our carrier doesn’t play with X hardware or support Y feature, but we’ve just taken it in stride as the way this business works. That is, we did until something came along that’s so dang good that it feels like injustice to be denied it for any reason. Until the iPhone.
I think some people are completely ignorant of how businesses actually work. Just as Apple had to compromise in it’s deals with the music labels (DRM, and fuck all those idiots who think DRM is Apple’s idea) Apple absolutely for a fact had to have a partner to give the iPhone it’s start. If you think Apple could have effectively marketed the iPhone everyone and their dog (which would leave them absolutely no control over the terms and conditions) you simply do not understand Apple. It’s that simple.
And does anyone realise that by the mere fact that Apple’s updates have disabled the iPhone in certain circumstances that, for a fact, Apple HAS won this war? Logic. Tech writing is easier without it.
Couple of points:
Most “locked” phones are sold at a discount ONLY when you sign up for a new plan, usually 2 years (at least in the U.S.). But not the brand-new, latest-craze phones. Why? Supply and Demand. The RAZR was several hundred dollars when it first came out. I doubt you’ll see the iPhone discounted/subsidized, but it doesn’t have to be. The demand is strong enough that AT&T;and Apple don’t need to subsidize it.
I was a Verizon customer before buying my iPhone. No big difference between Verizon and AT&T;, except that Verizon phones don’t use SIM cards, so I couldn’t switch my phone to another network anyway without taking the phone to a new company and having them reprogram it (if that could be done). At least with AT&T;I can easily swap out SIM cards.
Apple entering into an exclusive agreement with AT&T;is not that out-of-character for Apple. The difference is that Apple gets a share of the monthly service fees – that doesn’t happen with any other product.
The earlier complaint about being able to use a laptop anywhere in the world and not being able to use an iPhone anywhere is stupid. You don’t need a service plan for a laptop, and your mobile phone is useless unless you have a mobile phone service plan. You can use your laptop in the middle of the Amazon rainforest, but don’t expect your mobile phone to work.
Finally, Apple has a different cat here with the iPhone. Never before has any company produced a mobile phone that runs on a REAL OS. Windows mobile is neutered, Symbian isn’t a desktop or full-fledged OS, and java is a joke as an OS.
Mac OS X on the iPhone changes everything. Apple can update and significantly expand your phone’s capabilities by issuing a software update. No one else can do that. Sure, some phones can have third party apps installed, and I suspect Apple will eventually do that with the iPhone via some sort of SDK and licensing/approval program. But most other mobile phones simply become outdated, while even the first iPhones can be changes markedly with a simple software update.
IT IS LEGAL FOR YOU TO UNLOCK A CELL PHONE IN THE UNITED STATES.
Yes.
APPLE, ON THE OTHER HAND, HAS NO LEGAL RIGHT TO DISABLE YOUR PHONE BECAUSE YOU AVAIL YOURSELF OF YOUR RIGHT TO UNLOCK IT.
No, Apple did not disable your unlocked phone. After you unlocked it, it worked fine. Apple didn’t make you do anything to it. Rather, Apple warned you very loudly that its upgrade was not going to work on your unlocked phone, and that it was not supporting unlocked phones with additional features, bug fixes, or warranty service. You avail yourself of Apple’s continued services only through its legal agreement with you. So, either revert back to locked if you want the update, or don’t update. Your choice.
I’m not a Mac user. I have a clue.
I’m a lawyer. Go ahead and sue at your own risk.
I’m just PO’d that the iPhone has a glossy screen!
Doesn’t Apple know, that by not offering a matte option, we’re risking being subjected to blindness and hairy palms!
Why- I’m willing to bet that if Apple recalled every iPhone ever made and installed matte screens on them, users would be so impressed that they’d each buy 2 more!
Grrrr!
I don’t think Apple has really bought into this business model. It’s just a transition step. Let me explain.
Apple introduced the iTunes store with DRM, even though Jobs was previously quoted as being against DRM. It bided its time until circumstances were right to ask that DRM be lifted. But it used DRM in order to enter and begin to change the market.
Apple introduced the iPhone locked into AT&T;even though Jobs has derogatively referred to the carriers as “orifices”. It will bide its time until circumstances are right, at which time, phones will just get data and voice direct from the Internet. But it signed up one carrier to fundamentally change the handset maker – to carrier relationship.
– Apple wanted to do away with subsidies which distort what’s really happening, and drive the brand and intrinsic value of phones to zero (See RAZR as prime example and Motorola as an example of what happens to a company).
– Apple wanted the handset maker (themselves) to have the direct connection to the customer through changing phone distribution, service activation, and phone servicing, and through keeping their name and not the carrier’s name on the phone. (After all the carrier didn’t make the phone.)
– Apple wanted to change the mindset of phones as throwaway devices by continually adding functionality through software updates.
– Apple wanted to end the leverage carriers had over handset makers – where the carriers dictated what capabilities and services could be on the handset.
– Apple wanted all the service plans to have unlimited data at a competitive price, to allow for access to the Internet, thereby breaking the walled garden.
– Apple wanted to innovate within the carrier’s infrastructure, both in activation and in services like Visual Voicemail.
– For that continual innovation, Apple wanted to change how the handset makers get paid – from an upfront lump sum to a monthly revenue stream.
Do you think Apple could’ve even come to market without at least one partner?. Nope. Do you think if Apple had two partners (AT&T;and T-mobile), that either one would’ve agreed to all these changes? Nope.
From recent actions, it’s clear that Nokia understands what Apple is up to, and is embarking on breaking out as well.
I never knew that people who hacked their hardware could cry so much. Why don’t they just hack their phones again. Its like Steve and Woz complaining that improvements in phone technology makes their blue box stop working so the phone company should go back to the old equipment. Personaly I think the hacks are cool as shit but easy come easy go, I would rather have a phone that works and hacks that sometimes don’t.
“Grifterus:If you buy a Ford to put a Chevy engine on it, you do it at your own risk! Don’t expect Ford to make parts for your modified car or to fix your engine.”
Incorrect analogy. Following your logics in Apple case – it would mean that people were replacing hardware in their iPhones. AT&T;is not a part of Apple in any way, so Apple cannot punish its costomers for switching to other providers.
Your example with Ford in the light of what Apple did to its customers should sound like that: “Imagine Ford sells you a car and tells you to fuel it only at BP gas stations”. Thats what happening with iPhone now. And its not right morally, ethically, and I doubt if its legal.
I haven’t read any replies, but I’m responding anyways. MacDailyNews is way to defensive against these types of articles!! These articles, while somewhat FUDsy, do make a little sense. Apple does have the RIGHT to do what they want, and it is our choice to purchase it or not, but that doesn’t make it GOOD to make those consumer un-friendly decisions. Apple is a GREAT company, but even I am getting a little perturbed at them.
Yep, I’ve had two iPhones turned to bricks without any help from me, all in a one week period. The first one had a battery that heated up to the point that it burned my hand when I picked it up. The second one just basically quit working – it’s on its way for repair. If they send me new one instead, I’m seriously thinking of just selling it. I’ve never had this kind of problem with any previous Apple products.
This is such an elegant, gorgeous, solution when you look at it as that – a solution to a problem. Apple is relying on its ability to deliver exclusive access to the Apple brand – the hallmark of excellence in design – to attract a very lucrative, ground-breaking deal from a carrier in every country worldwide. Apple was, of course, confident that they could deliver exclusivity. And I will bet that the contracts signed by the carriers have big damages clauses if Apple is unable to deliver on the exclusivity promise.
Apple were certain that they could. They are being extraordinarily open about it. They intend TO DELIVER THE PRODUCT OVER THE NEXT 2 YEARS which means that the purchaser of an iPhone is buying a promise of 2 years of continual improvement in functionality, reliability, performance etc.
Apple will have installed and tested all the hacks. They know what changes are required in the Mac O/S on the iPhone to disable the hacks. The life of a hack will always be very short – how many weeks will it take Apple to eliminate it?
Some updates will include new features. Sexy new features which no iPhone owner will want to be without. And, as someone else pointed out in another post, it will not work with iTunes after a while.
Apple have engineered a very elegant, legitimate, ethical solution to those who would set out to undermine the worth of the Apple trademark. The value of Apple is enormous. If everyone has Apple then having Apple means nothing. Therefore to HAVE the value of Apple, means to have EXCLUSIVITY.
Apple has earned the right to charge a premium for access to its brand. Apple stands for all that is good. Good design. Good marketing. Good advertising. Good everything really. We all know AT&T;aren’t perfect, but I’m sure Apple thought of that too…
I wonder if the Apple/carrier contract includes stiff penalties for underperformance in key sectors, like coverage, uptime, dropout rate. I should imagine Apple will have insisted on an “Apple” quality service for any carrier expecting to have exclusive access to the Apple brand.
EXPECT AT&T;’s SERVICE TO IMPROVE…
@@bobsyeruncle
Do you think Apple could’ve even come to market without at least one partner?. Nope.
I’ll tell you the thing that has surprised me: Given Apple’s penchant for being tightly vertically integrated, Apple could have done this without any partner at all or with multiple partners. Although they don’t get a lot of attention, there are a lot of smaller cell phone companies who have no infrastructure at all. All they do is resell the cellular service of other companies. Reselling service is a common practice in the telecommunications world. For example, about 10 years ago, I had cell service from MCI. MCI had no cell infrastructure, they resold the srevice from a variety of CDMA carriers and put together an ad-hoc network. The only thing that MCI did themselves were billing, operator assistance and 411. The actual signal came from Bell Atlantic (now Verizon) or Sprint, depending on where you were. Apple could have done this too: they would purchase service from various GSM carriers (mostly AT&T;) and do it all themselves. That way they’d be able to have the kind of vertical integration that they seem to want. This would have been simpler and less confusing for the end-user and would essentially result in exactly what Apple is doing anyway. The downside of this is that they’d probably be mostly buying AT&T;service and AT&T;service stinks. If they had resold AT&T;service as the “Apple Network”, then customers who are unhappy with the quality of service would blame Apple. Now they have someone else as the scapegoat.
I more or less agree with everything else in your message, but I note that you never really addressed any of the points that I made in my earlier message.
“Given Apple’s penchant for being tightly vertically integrated, Apple could have done this without any partner at all or with multiple partners.”
Basically an MVNO, pretty much all of which have failed – Disney closed its doors today. Jobs said he looked at going the MVNO route, but given the info he had, they decided on a single partner instead. (I bet the Directors were briefed on this as well.) Given Jobs other statement about orifices, an MVNO is what I had thought Apple would do given their brand power but I have much less info.
As for your other points, I agree with 1-3. On 4, I think Apple is intentionally breaking the unlock due to their agreement with AT&T;and others. As for breaking the hacks, I’m not planning to look at the code so I’ll have to read up on what the Dev Team comes up with (and take it with a grain of salt) as to whether Apple is out to intentionally break hacks like Jailbreak and AppTapp.
On 5, it’s atypical compared to Mac, but not atypical when compared to iPod. Apple places iPhone in the iPod camp. I believe in time, there will be a small, thin Mac with a touch screen and wifi/wimax/etc but no cellular, on which Apple will have an SDK and allow 3rd party apps. It is possible that given the power of OS X and amount of RAM, that Apple has serious concerns that an iPhone app (virus/malware) can infect the cellular network. Or it is possible there are still lots of undecided under-the-hood decisions stopping Apple from committing to an SDK, and we just need to give them some time. For those who say Apple should say more, Jobs has said they are considering it and working on a “sandbox”, but hackers choose to ignore it.
And on 7 (6 is missing), who are the customers? Apple is aiming for the mainstream, not the geeks, and the mainstream is not interested in adding hacked apps to iPhone. Among early adopters, maybe 50% are hackers. So the question is how much influence the ‘hacker’ early adopter has in affecting Apple’s brand?
As for comparing this to music and the RIAA, I’d say there are many more people (teens and adults) who are willing to torrent to get their music than threre are who are willing to hack an iPhone.
Still wrong analogy. Putting in gas is like putting in electricity, something that is absolutely necessary for the product to run.
Hacking iPhone to add applications is not something the maker intended for others to do; it’s more like adding turbochargers or altering the engine.
MacLemmings.
Apple created a great core product. They left out obvious features and then screw with the smart people who make them possible.
Apple is just trying to regain control of their ecosystem. Next they’ll wipe out Griffin Tech because they’re out-Appling Apple in accessories.
Get a clue. Many of us just added core apps like IM and RSS and good ringtones that should have been there at launch. The same stuff can be added to any Mac. The fact that the device had to be hacked was Apple’s first attack against users.
They should have embraced the mojo, not stifle it. Even 1.1.1 had little value add. Woo hoo! They gave me another place to buy Apple stuff. No thanks. I’ll go Amazon and stay with 1.0.2.
Evil Apple. I thought they were a customer friendly company but alas I was wrong. They launch a great new phone but force you to get locked in with AT&T;. Even worse – they screw people that spent money to have it unlocked. What happened to free choice? I have been a Apple fan for ever but suddenly I a not…..
Apple fanboys… your brains are mine for eating, you have no soul, i made you react as fanboys, haha, i win. i will never look at this site again to see your replies. haha, i win. you lose. you can call me names, i am so intellectual is that all you can do? i am a smart aple fanboy who likes to fight with ppl on the internets because i have small penis and ape ape ape unga unga oop oop throw shit and die. opp oop respond click here respon opp opoopppppoooooooop
Let me draw a very remote parallel.
I decide to buy a new car. I do my research before I buy the car.
Amongst the drawbacks/features of the car is that it will only be driveable on toll roads. As part of the deal when I buy the car I agree to this. When I buy the car I decide that I can modify it so that it will run on any road. The car company has told me that this not only may void my warranty but at some time in the future make the car undriveable anywhere. The company decides to refund in services one sixth of the cost of my car, as a goodwill gesture. I take the refund. They supply an update to my car which makes the changes I made to it unusable.
What has the company done wrong.
Let me draw a very remote parallel.
I decide to buy a new car. I do my research before I buy the car.
Amongst the drawbacks/features of the car is that it will only be driveable on toll roads. As part of the deal when I buy the car I agree to this. When I buy the car I decide that I can modify it so that it will run on any road. The car company has told me that this not only may void my warranty but at some time in the future make the car undriveable anywhere. The company decides to refund in services one sixth of the cost of my car, as a goodwill gesture. I take the refund. They supply an update to my car which makes the changes I made to it unusable.
What has the company done wrong.
“The more customers a company gets, the more complaints it will receive, as the percentage of “unsatisfied” customers is likely to remain constant despite growth.”
That’s not really true, Apple fanboys will take being assraped by Apple without even dreaming of giving them less than a perfect rating an any survey they ever hear of.
As the proportion of fanatics goes down compared to other users of the platform, subjective reports of satisfaction will go down too.
“This is a phone, not an open source project. “
Actually it’s OS X based, so most of the OS is an open source project.
“Do people get all up in arms when they modify they car to the extent that it voids the factory warranty? No, they understand the risk involved”
A better question is if Ford says your car must run on Exxon gas and you put BP gas in it instead, does Ford have the right to come over to your house and smash up your car?
If you put a new non Ford approved CD into the CD changer, can Ford come over and smash up your car?
How about if you hang an air freshener on the mirror, put in a carseat, put a bumper sticker on the back, can Ford come over and rip all of those things out of your car?
You guys are so pro monopoly, anti consumer rights. It’d be funny if you didn’t spend all your time criticizing other companies for trampling on consumer rights while taking it up the arse from Apple all the time and defending them.
“An iPhone is like a spouse. If it’s not what you want don’t buy it”
Correct, if you buy an iPhone it’s like getting married to your 300 pound cellmate named Bubba. You know you’re in for a lot of things you won’t like. But hey you justify it because you really don’t have much choice after telling all your friends for years that Bubba’s actually a 95 pound blond supermodel gymnast and they should get their own Bubba.
@lbuschjr who write :
“The earlier complaint about being able to use a laptop anywhere in the world and not being able to use an iPhone anywhere is stupid. You don’t need a service plan for a laptop, and your mobile phone is useless unless you have a mobile phone service plan. You can use your laptop in the middle of the Amazon rainforest, but don’t expect your mobile phone to work.”
Sorry but my analogy between MacBook and iPhone is valid abroad. The only thing my MacBook need for recharging his battery is an electric adaptor for 110/220v outlet (not a transformer!). The only thing my iPhone – if desimlocked – should need for working in Brazil is a local SIM card. No local service plan is needed, I only have to buy recharge time to time for this local SIM Card. Get real about international cellular usages, SIM swappings are banal. Those SIM local cards could even be bought (20 euros) on Internet before your travel…
So I insist to ask why the iPhone could not be an international mobile phone as every other GSM cellular!?? Why the iPhone could not have an international usage as every other portable Apple products..?
the author has put forth the idea that Apple is fighting modders by by using updates to disable hacked iPhones and refusing to support ‘Phones that are hacked. by this train of thought it should follow that he would think that adding a new chip or modding the engine performance software of your 2007 Honda Civic should not void the powertrain warrenty of said car.
if you take an item, any item, and modify how it functions as to change it’s origninal intent or specs the company that built the item has the right to refuse to support it. if not, that company would be paying to repair other people’s screwed up messes ad infintum.
“by this train of thought it should follow that he would think that adding a new chip or modding the engine performance software of your 2007 Honda Civic should not void the powertrain warrenty of said car.”
But when you take your modified Civic to the dealer, they shouldn’t be allowed to slash your tires, smash your windows out with a sledgehammer and pour sand in your engine oil just because you installed a modified chip.
There’s a big difference between a company providing an update without giving any consideration to it’s effect on hackers, compared to what Apple did, providing an update specifically designed to wreck phones updated by hackers.
Sarah, you lucky gal! What are the odds of you walking into a store to buy an iPhone just as a customer is loudly agitating about his iPhone going dead?!! Whew . . someone up there must be watching out for you, especially since you don’t seem to have found the relevant information before trotting out to plonk $300 on a device!
Apple, are you listening?!! YOU’VE LOST SARAH! You’re going to regret this!!
Well, at least from now on you can follow Shiva 105’s advice – if you don’t like the rules that come with iPhone, don’t buy it. Apple is not a welfare organization . . . it’s a business.
You Windows fanboys all misunderstand. Being assraped by Apple and enjoying it is just part of the Apple experience.
If Apple isn’t out there obsoleting my Mac by changing operating systems and processors, selling me hardware which overheats, whines, discolors and catches fire, and charging me twice for the same iPod games then I start to feel unloved.
I particularly like the idea of buying an iPhone and having the price drop soon after, and it being turned into a brick by Apple if I so much as use an unauthorized ringtone. That makes me feel special.
Apple really cares about me.
If Apple were ever to stop slapping me a round and giving it to me roughly from behind every once and a while, then they’d be just like any other PC company.
Any Mobile phone manufacturer that limits choice of networks is in for a rude awakening. The iPhone maybe very cool but every other single mobile phone on the market is made to be used on any network and can be bought directly from a manufacturer for that purpose. Apple is going to lose this war with average folks.
“every other single mobile phone on the market is made to be used on any network “
Unlike Nokia, Motorola, Samsung etc who have the resources to develop many different versions of the same phone, The problem is Apple doesn’t have the resources to develop iPhones for all the USA’s different phone standards,
So they went with GSM which would give them the most globally applicable product as most countries worldwide have at least one GSM carrier
The only US networks the iPhone is physically capable of working with are AT&T;and TMobile. So even if Apple changed their mind tomorrow and let you unlock your iPhone, it’d work with one more carrier only.
as far as I’m concerned anyone who f*cd their iPhones and are complaining about it should go to h*ll
and I mean seriously.
to: disallusioned
of course its YOUR phone, but when YOU break YOUR phone its YOUR problem
…bitches.
“when YOU break YOUR phone its YOUR problem”
But when Apple intentionally breaks it for you, in violation of US law which allows you to do what you did, that’s just Evil.
Apple didn’t break shit and you know it. bunch a babies grow the fuk up.
“Apple didn’t break shit and you know it.”
Steve has your fanboy shit all over his dick and is loving it!
I’m a recent MacBook Pro owner and love it. However I don’t view Apple as some sort of wonderful, flawless organisation who are beyond criticism as many on here do.
Frankly I don’t agree with any restrictive practice and this most certainly counts as one. If I buy an iPhone and under any reasonable legal definition I own the product I should be free to use it in any legal manner I see fit. It is simply none of Apple’s business.
Apple has every right to refuse to support a product not used within it’s terms and conditions, but to effectively break the product? Would it be acceptable if you’d just bought a new BMW only to find a BMW representative on your driveway one morning disabling your new car because BMW decided they didn’t like the way you were driving it?
To render a significant number of iPhones unusable simply because Apple don’t like they way you are using the product is the worst form of corporate vandalism I can think of. It’s up there with Microsoft and DRM, most on here don’t have a problem routinely and correctly criticizing Microsoft for their obsessive control.
Apple are exactly the same corporate scum as Microsoft.
All these back seat business man (and women) who run huge successful companies and are so totally sure what will work and what will not!!! BITE ME! When you actually run a large company, then you may speak with such assurance.
And the obvious trolls,,, you know who you are “Wow! I was just about to jump in and buy an iphone this morning when I heard a customer complain agitatedly about his iphone dying. I put my visacard back and left the store. I’m glad I did so. I’d been feeling hesitant anyway. I think I’ll upgrade my Nokia!” You post such stupid comments that you must think that we are Microsoft users!!! Cheeeeezzzzzeeee.
I am going to go back to bed now and cover my head. I hope that you will all be gone by the morning. Like the hang over I am planning on having.
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en …….. hick!
All these back seat business man (and women) who run huge successful companies and are so totally sure what will work and what will not!!! BITE ME! When you actually run a large company, then you may speak with such assurance.
And the obvious trolls,,, you know who you are “Wow! I was just about to jump in and buy an iphone this morning when I heard a customer complain agitatedly about his iphone dying. I put my visacard back and left the store. I’m glad I did so. I’d been feeling hesitant anyway. I think I’ll upgrade my Nokia!” You post such stupid comments that you must think that we are Microsoft users!!! Cheeeeezzzzzeeee.
I am going to go back to bed now and cover my head. I hope that you will all be gone by the morning. Like the hang over I am planning on having.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”grin” style=”border:0;” />
en …….. hick!
Remove “self interest” from all the complainants’ posts and none of you would have anything to say. It is amazing how many people sit on their fat arses and complain that they can’t enjoy, free, the product of someone else’s labour. Its an American thing I think. Somehow Americans have been brought up to believe that they are entitled to anything they want. Me me me me me…
Grow up.
“can’t enjoy, free, the product”
iPhones are free now? Great. Because I thought they were worth $599, I mean $399.
MacademiaNut’s comment: “And don’t try to buy a product thinking that you can make it do what you want to…” is interesting. I say it is exactly like a woman marrying a man THINKING that she will be able to change him and his bad habbits. It never works.
What the iPhone, what ATT is and all was out there for all to see before the purchase. It you don’t like AT&T;, don’t buy the iPhone. All sorts of companies make these deals every day. This is nothing so special. Everyone complaining are spoiled children. They what it their way or they start crying. BOO HOO.
I was Verizon for years. Loved Verizon. BUT, when the Treo 650 came out, Verizon did not carry it so I switched to AT&T;because they had it. Frankly, I have no problems with AT&T;. It works fine or at least as good as Verizon. In fact, I am SAVING money. Internet access on a Treo was $39.95 so but on the iPhone it is $19.95. That is a $20/month saving which is the main reason my wife let me buy it.
She knew I would anyway. She had been trying to change me for years!
I think way more people used 3rd party apps on the iPhone than Apple realized. I did not “brick” my phone. I just used AppTapp to install apps that made my iPhone much more useful and fun. I did not like the 1.1.1 “upgrade.” I reverted my phone back to version 1.0.2 and all is well again. My iPhone is much more functional and useful at 1.0.2, so that is where I will stay. No problem, Apple does not force you to upgrade to 1.1.1. Three out of four iPhone users I know all reverted back to 1.0.2. I am an Apple fan, but they blew the 1.1.1 update. I will be more careful next time.