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So you went from the statement of “games run smoother on the S4”, to a theoretical statement of “the S4 could easily handle higher settings, if the game would allow it.” He asked you for ONE, simple example of a game running smoother or having higher quality effects on the S4 vs the iPhone 5. Back up your statement by providing just one example, that actually exists, and stop being intellectually dishonest.

At the end of the day specs and benchmarks mean nothing if it doesnt translate into something tangible for the user. I’ve used both the S4 and iPhone 5 heavily, and there isn’t a single instant where the iPhone 5 wasn’t more responsive and faster, at any task. Absolutely everything is buttery smooth and instant, whereas the S4 consistently had random hickups, lags, delays, etc. It could have 128 cores for all I care, it’s what translates into the user experience that matters, and Apple has yet to be beat on this front.

about 8 hours ago on What makes the iPhone so good? 7 recommends

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It also doesn’t preclude them from making a secondary, larger iPhone model. They still made a mini even though 9.7 was “just right”, and thats fine. I don’t believe Apple will replace the current 4" size with a larger model, it will just split the phone into 2 lines, like the iPad.

about 8 hours ago on What makes the iPhone so good?

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I can write 20 pages as to what makes the iPhone so good, from a philosophical, software, UI, and design point of view, but it’s all been said before.

But this might sum it up. Tried an S4 the other day, which is supposed to be a beast of a phone spec wise. I kid you not, it lagged at scrolling, as well as navigating through the interface, something my original 2007 iPhone with what is now prehistoric tech did not do. It also felt like there was a disconnect between my actions and the response, no matter how slight, which is consistent with every single Android device I’ve used.

The iPhone, although not perfect, is still the best overall combination of hardware and software that I’ve ever used.

about 10 hours ago on What makes the iPhone so good?

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And it’s still “unfinished”. Just like every other mapping service out there. They will perpetually be “unfinished”. Google maps still has missing roads, and wrong/missing POIs, and its been out for a decade with God knows how many millions of hrs of manpower invested in it. Apple had to release it eventually, and they would be in a much, MUCH worse position if they waited another year or so. Now that maps is out in the public, its no doubt improving at a much faster rate, than if they kept it in the lab with just a limited # of Apple employees trying to troubleshoot. The world is a big place. This is not a product that can be “finished” and “perfected” in the lab. Unfortunately, because of Apple’s image, and the media circus that surrounds any perceived flaws along with the financial revenue that entails, not to mention hardcore Apple haters who jumped at the chance to drag Apple through the mud, this thing became more sensational than it should have been.

Anyone with an ounce of common sense would realize that Apple Maps is an unbelievable v.1 achievement, and easily bested Google’s maps in terms of UI, clarity, design, responsiveness, real-time incident reports, better tiles, etc. The new Google maps redesign takes ALOT of cues from Apple maps.

Oh, and I disagree that Cook could realize that Apple maps “sucked”. If your team leaders tell you something is good to go, especially such a seasoned and accomplished person like Forstall, eventually you have to trust them. It’s not Cook’s role to Q&A Maps, and for those loudly shrieking that it wouldn’t have been released under Jobs, its very likely that it would have. With such an ambitious piece of software like maps, there WILL be a period of pain after launch, no matter how long it stayed in the labs.

about 10 hours ago on Forstall to Ive 2 replies 2 recommends

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Worst case scenario is that you’ll have to shell out $19.99 for 10.9. And it may very well be cheaper as Apple wants as many people to update as possible. I wouldn’t be shocked if they even made it free.

2 days ago on Should I wait until WWDC to buy an iMac? 1 reply

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Because it’s complicated. Apple get alot of heat when it doesnt work perfectly (ie. takes a long time to default back to SMS when the iMessage fails) but there’s a reason nobosy else has even done it, and Google states that hangout SMS integration will come “in the future”. Because it’s not easy. Apple just makes it look easy through seamless integration, but theres alot of shit going on behind the scenes.

However, I fail to see the benefit of providing an iMessage app for other platforms. The biggest thing about iMessage on iOS is that its one and the same with the SMS app- you dont have to think about it. That integration would be impossible for Apple to do on Android/BB/Windows Phone, it would have to be a separate app. And that destroys the whole point. So now users of that platform will need to think about whether to use iMessage or SMS to message, and messages received from iMessage will only show up in the iMessage app and not the SMS- it would be a mess. I always use SMS because I dont memorize which of my friends use what app, and I dont need to have my conversations split across all of them. I only use iMessage because its integrated with SMS and there’s no downside to it. If it was its own app on iOS, I wouldn’t use it, because I dont know who the hell has an iPhone and who doesnt.

2 days ago on Could Apple take iMessage to the next level at WWDC? 1 reply 1 recommend

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True, the sad truth is articles like this are huge click bait and money makers. Gone is any kind of professional integrity, accuracy, or depth when it comes to writing- now the goal is to attract as many trolls as possible in order to make the most ad revenue. It’s the reason why people like Dan Lyons was so successful writing lie after lie, hit piece after hit piece about Apple- and in the end he admitted it was all “SEO chum”. But again, he had a massive following of Apple hating trolls who were only so happy to pretend that he preached the gospel so they can validate their hate and mockery. I wouldn’t wipe my ass with this article, and it said much more about the author, who caused a disturbance by cursing loudly at several people in the store like an ill-mannered, spoiled brat, than about Apple’s customer service, which can’t be define by a single incident such as this. I wonder how this douche deals with real problems in life. He seems proud of being a douchebag with no self control.

2 days ago on Is this cnet review editor out of line? 1 reply 1 recommend

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“She was friendly enough, but her attitude was that if the button was broken in any way, it was broken.
I then started cursing again, which turned some heads in the store. When you’re in a fairly empty Apple Store that’s one big room with glass and stone walls, your voice really carries. Suddenly, you feel like you’re in a museum or in a house of worship on a very holy day.
The senior manager told me that she didn’t appreciate my language or tone. Apparently, you’re not allowed to swear in an Apple Store.”

An even bigger douchebag than I first thought. What a self-centered ass. Sounds like a fantastic rolemodel for his kids and his readers. It’s bas enough he cursed people out multiple times in the store and bothered customers around him, but to publish it and be proud of it takes it to another level. How do utterly unprofessional people like this have these kinds of jobs?

2 days ago on Is this cnet review editor out of line? 1 reply 2 recommends

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“I resorted to profanity, even dropping the f-bomb. I was still having trouble coming to terms with a home button that worked but didn’t work.
“Your home button is broken,” he said again. “Your device needs to be replaced.”
“You guys used to be about ‘getting to yes,’” I volleyed back. “You used to be about having your customers walk away happy. Now you don’t f—-ing care.”
“Hey, come on,” he said, “let’s keep this professional.”
“Why?” I asked.

What a douchebag. If I was a manager there I’d have him kicked out of the store. The guy is a class act alright.

2 days ago on Is this cnet review editor out of line? 11 recommends

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Also, what a self-righteous, pompous headline.

“What my disabled iPod Touch says about the state of Apple’s customer service”

Yeah, your 3 year old iPod touch says more about Apple’s customer service then all the customer service stats out there based on the experience of millions of people, where Apple has higher marks, by a large margin, and any other tech company out there. But you’re right, your isolated incident with your obsolete device is more than enough to draw all these conclusions from. What a childish, trollish notion. Not that I blame them for publishing this, anti-Apple hit-whoring is all the rage these days.

2 days ago on Is this cnet review editor out of line? 2 recommends

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Eh, whatever. I’ve owned like 10 iOS devices, which have been used my multiple people heavily. I had a worn out home button just ONCE, with a phone I bought 2nd hand online which had God knows what done with it. I ended up getting the button replaced for $35 out of warranty. Wow, what a catastrophe. Your logic for not getting an iPhone because of the home button is pretty insane and irrational. If it was REALLY an issue, it wouldn’t be the best selling phone on the planet. Mechanical things don’t have an infinite shelf-life, and its not magic. The vast majority will have no issues with the home button (especially on the 4S and newer where the mechanism was changed) and if you do, there’s options.

2 days ago on Is this cnet review editor out of line? 1 recommend

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No, he’s just an entitled douchebag, and an attention-whore. It’s a 3 year old device out of warranty. He’s not entitled to anything. They offered to replace it, which is more than he deserved, he refused.

Yes, I’m sure the Applestore makes exceptions and go beyond their policies in order to keep customers happy. But they can’t do it 100% of the time, and something tells me this guy had a shitty attitude to begin with. I spilled shit on my out of warranty Macbook Pro last month, and it got water damage. Out of desperation I took it to the Applestore, knowing they couldn’t do anything or would charge my an arm and a leg to fix. They asked me if they could keep it for a couple days. I get a call to come to the store, they give me the laptop back with the entire chasis replaced, along with an invoice of $700 and they’d written off. I was blown away. This guy writes a hit piece about Apple because of his one bad experience, to try to convince people that Apple’s customer service has gone downhill for the rremaining of its hundreds of millions of customers. The guy is a whiny douchebag.

2 days ago on Is this cnet review editor out of line? 1 reply 2 recommends

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And? What percentage of people are actually able or willing to do this kind of research for ANY product they buy? Do you think the average person who goes out to buy a TV carefully researches every model, all the specs, then makes an objective decision based on what they actually need? Or even a car? No, because for most people thats impossible. They can’t process and compare most options. They narrow things down significantly to choices that they feel something for on an emotional level. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, since the functionality and capabilities of products these days are so similar to the average person. I do very thorough research and comparisons for tech purchases, but I’m the only one I know in real life who does this. So if someone decides to go for a Macbook Air, because they like how it looks, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Design plays a big part in purchase decisions, and if the design of the product can make you just a LITTLE bit happier while using it, then thats valid. Not like Apple has a monopoly on uninformed purchases- what percentage of people use ANY product to its full capabilities? I know people with S3s who don’t know even the most basic things about the phone- they bought one cause "their friends have one and “it looked cool” and “it has a cool screen”.

If everyone who buys an Apple product making an extremely informed decision? No, but that goes with buying ANY product. At least Apple provides assistance and support, beyond any other company (1 on 1 workshops, Genius supports, etc) , in order to help and educate people use the features of their devices.

2 days ago on Do you buy Apple products because they are new and cool? 1 recommend

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I’ve never, ever bought an Apple product because it was “new and cool”. I always do a large amount of research into all options, and ultimately choose what would work best for me based on my needs and requirements. Yes, alot of the time it ends up being an Apple product, based on my extremely positive experiences with Apple products compared to those of any other company. They’ve all paid for themselves, many times over, as I do all my work on Apple products and they’ve never let me down. It has nothing to do with loyalty or being a fanboy. It’s just that Apple’s offerings tend to be superior in many respects than anything else out there, and their support is top notch- one just needs to check out average review scores and customer satisfaction numbers of ANY of their product lines to make this clear.

It also doesn’t hurt that I have deep respect towards Apple as to how they’ve moved the technology industry forward in such massive ways, and I have no doubt they’ll continue doing so.

2 days ago on Do you buy Apple products because they are new and cool?

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The amt of people that want more than 64GB of storage space is too niche for Apple to bother making it. Not a single person I know has shelled out the extra cash for a 64GB phone, and 128GB is ridiculous overkill for the vast majority.

2 days ago on How are your "realistic" expectations for WWDC ?

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All Nintendo needs is a new SSB, and flagship 3D mario, and Zelda- and sales will skyrocket.

2 days ago on Electronic Arts is no longer developing games for Nintendo's Wii U

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It was a “bet”, it doesnt need to be based on anything. Thats the nature of a bet. Its a gut prediction.

2 days ago on Will Google Glass create information heroes or new-wave Bluetooth dorks?

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You’re right. Nobody, anywhere, can ever look silly, in any situation, no matter what they’re doing or wearing.

Yes, most people today would think wearing fake glasses and a computer strapped to your face is indeed “silly”. You don’t need to act like you’re offended by that notion.

2 days ago on Will Google Glass create information heroes or new-wave Bluetooth dorks?

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I was responding to someone making an analogy with the iPhone, and giving my opinion that it was an invalid analogy. This is a discussion section. I chose to give my opinion and prediction, and took the effort to articulate it clearly. I’m relaxed, but you seem upset at my opinion and offended by it. Yes, there’s no “need” for me to give it, just like there’s no need for any comment ever on the internet.

2 days ago on Will Google Glass create information heroes or new-wave Bluetooth dorks? 1 reply

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“How was Google able to secure deals for All Access, which was unveiled at Google I/O on Wednesday, while Apple has been stymied? For starters, Google chose to offer a standard subscription music service very similar to those built by Spotify and Rdio, and that meant the terms had largely been established, according to multiple sources close to the talks. Apple, on the other hand, is pioneering a hybrid web and radio service — one that resembles Pandora but melds it with some on-demand features, the sources said. The licensing agreement had to be created from scratch.”

So basically, Google took the easier and less ambitious route. Yes, when you’re creating something new, that takes longer than duplicating an existing template. Not sure that’s something to congratulate Google for. If Apple has the better service in the end, it won’t matter who “beat” who. Same thing went with mp3 players, smartphones, and tablets. Apple is willing to to take its time and get the product the way it wants it, without compromising its vision. Google has a different philosophy of getting it out the door ASAP, and thats fine. I’m glad this article at least educated people that the service offered by Google is not the same thing Apple is working on.

2 days ago on How Google beat Apple to a streaming music service 5 replies 6 recommends

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Yahoo has a billion dollars to throw around?

3 days ago on Yahoo reportedly eyeing Tumblr for possible $1 billion acquisition

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I’d be willing to bet any amount of money that in 10 years smartphones will be as prevalent as ever, and Glass and all varieties of it will be epic failures.

The phone concept has been around the decades. Making it more powerful and functional was a logical step. That paradigm isn’t going to suddenly disappear because of glass.

3 days ago on Google on Glass privacy: 'If I'm recording you, I have to stare at you' 4 replies 1 recommend

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Finally a rational response to the whole BUT YOU CAN BUY SPYCAMERAS ON AMAZON LOL bullshit. Most people will not take that effort and think that far ahead. Just like I don’t go out everyday with my camera- the only reason I’ve taken most of the photos I take is because I happened to have my phone with me and it was ultra easy/convenient. Carrying and pulling out another device to do so crosses the ease/convenience threshold. Just like glass. So many people will do creepy/shady shit like secretly recording people BECAUSE it is so damn easy/seamless and they don’t have time to feel any guilt beforehand.

3 days ago on Google on Glass privacy: 'If I'm recording you, I have to stare at you' 1 reply

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Personally, I would snatch them from their face and hurl them at the wall. There’s no fucking excuse for entering a washroom with those on.

3 days ago on Google on Glass privacy: 'If I'm recording you, I have to stare at you' 3 replies 2 recommends

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“No they’re not, they’re designed for shooting paper targets accurately.”…. which is practise for killing something, the ONLY real, ultimate function of a gun.

Unless your post was sarcasm, but I have a feeling it wasn’t.

3 days ago on Google on Glass privacy: 'If I'm recording you, I have to stare at you' 2 recommends

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iPad was never a joke to reasonable people who could see beyond 2 feet beyond their own face. The success of the iPad has nothing to do with the fate of Glass.

3 days ago on Will Google Glass create information heroes or new-wave Bluetooth dorks? 1 reply 6 recommends

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The government is not likely to take that video from the CC and upload it to FB/youtube, something that has a very good chance of happening when someone records you with Glass.

But continue with the ridiculous comparisons in order to justify a ridiculous device with ridiculous privacy and social implications.

3 days ago on Will Google Glass create information heroes or new-wave Bluetooth dorks? 2 recommends

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I’d rather someone bend over a glowing screen so they can be honest about not paying attention, instead of someone with glass looking at me pretending to pay attention while doing something else.

3 days ago on Will Google Glass create information heroes or new-wave Bluetooth dorks? 1 reply 4 recommends

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As soon as Apple introduced the iPhone, and showed how one interacts with it, I had no doubt it would be a massive, massive success- because it was a fundamental improvement in terms of how the average person uses their phone, and the lack of intuitiveness of current products at the time. Everything else just seemed instantly obsolete and archaic.

With glass, I’m having the opposite reaction. I see it being an epic failure, because for most people, its a solution in search of a problem. There has to be a massive benefit in order to outweigh strapping something like this to your face- for geeks, they will gladly do so regardless- for everyone else, thats a different story. People are self conscious. Maybe in 4-5 generations this will be in a form sufficiently advanced and invisible enough to make this moot- but the product as it stands now has no chance in hell of any kind of mass adoption.

3 days ago on Will Google Glass create information heroes or new-wave Bluetooth dorks? 3 replies 9 recommends