iPhones stink. The more I use one (for work) the more I wonder why anybody uses them. First, the very limited and rigid interface is straight out of the 80's. And today my iPhone randomly decided to not show any of my widgets on the widget screen. A reboot brought them back but I thought iPhones were "so stable." Pfft!
Just some examples of why I'm "less than impressed" with iPhones:
* The iPhone "desktop" is just a group of icons... period.. like a flashback to Windows 3.1 and the interface concepts from the 1980's that led up to it -- you can't put anything actually useful on the desktop, like a weather widget, music controls, etc.
* The closest iPhone comes to supporting widgets is having a dedicated but separate "widget" screen but it's not very flexible as everything on the widget screen is forced into a simple and inefficient top-down stack of widgets.
* Similarly, the desktop icons are forced into a top-left to bottom-right "reading" layout. There is, for example, no way to move a single icon to the bottom-right corner if you want it to stand out for some reason.
* There is no native "swipe' keyboard, and though you can install one from the app store Apple doesn't allow any 3rd-party keyboard app to access the microphone which means to gain swipe-typing you give up easy access to voice-typing.
* iPhones support being mobile hotspots, which is convenient for laptops etc when travelling, but the iPhone only supports doing so on the 2.4GHz band -- using 5GHz or even selecting a specific 2.4GHz channel is not even an option.
* The interface is inconsistent -- there is no universal way of going "back", for example. Each app is left to itself to decide where the "back" option is (if it even has one) and what it's labeled. Some put it in the top-left, others in the top-right. And I've seen it called anything from back, cancel, exit, done, or even just an x or a back-pointing arrow. It's functional, but odd that an interface and phone that is touted for its ease-of-use and supposed integration and consistency lacks such basic integration and consistency.
* iPhones don't support something as simple and basic as standard Bluetooth file exchange. Of course, they make it simple for file transfer between 2 iPhones or a Mac, but if you want to direct file transfer to an Android or Windows PC you have to jump through some hoops.
* iPhones don't allow apps to directly access signal information. This means you can't easily use an iPhone to get even basic WiFi information like what channel or speed you're connected at, or get anything more than basic cell signal information. For example, to know what LTE band you're using, or to get precise dBm signal information, you have to go into Field Test Mode.
There's more, but that's the gist of what I find most glaringly perplexing and limiting to using an iPhone to do anything technically interesting.
Basically everything you've mentioned is - for the vast majority of humans who want a powerful and usable smartphone - a positive feature. The standardized, grid-like layout and strongly-enforced design standards means an always-usable interface.
ReplyDeleteI like both Android and iOS quite a bit, but for vastly different reasons.
The reason I use an iPhone for everyday use, and Android for "tinkering" devices?: I have spent days (literally) trying to break into a locked iPhone and made exactly zero progress. I can probably lock down an Android phone to the point that I would let it go through international security overseas, but I really just don't have the time for that.
Interesting post though, I read through and was shaking my head (that's not a bad thing, I love seeing the diversity of thought and looking into someone else's perspective for a bit - you'd shake your head at my reasoning just as much :)).
I'm a tech/infosec guy but of the personality that I tend to opt for simple mental shortcuts in the mobile space, and my desktop/servers get all the love and customization.
Wow. So you're "tech/infosec guy" point of view is that...
ReplyDelete... lack of flexibility -- not even being able to put icons where you want them for example -- is what the "vast majority of humans" consider "powerful and usable" and "a positive feature".
...not being able to do a simple standard Bluetooth transfer is powerful, usable, and positive.
... not having a universal way of going "back" is powerful, usable, and positive... and "strongly enforced design standards" for an "always usable interface".
???
You seem a decent fellow, but I can't buy for a moment that you really think any of those are positives that are desirable to most of humanity in a modern, usable, powerful, and consistent interface. If you enjoy your iPhone that's totally your prerogative, but don't pretend its limits in all these areas are actually positives, that only discredits yourself.
Now, yes, I do manage to "use" my iPhone daily -- for work --
because I'm pretty much forced to deal with it. But as a tech guy myself the iPhone is a poor excuse for a technical tool. It's so locked down that you can't even do a basic wifi frequency scan with it. But I guess you think that's a positive too that most of humanity wants?
LOL... come'on fellow tech guy... I don't buy that for a moment.
Thanks for stopping by though, I'm humbled you cared to comment at all on my tiny, irrelevant, neglected blog... Cheers!