Why My Love Affair With Apple Is Wearing Off

Technology August 8, 2010 8 Comments




I have been using Apple product for the last few years and at one stage it got so bad that I could have probably considered myself a Fanboy. There were times when I would be out with three of their products on my person and I was transferring a good chunk of my disposable income directly in to Mr Job’s bank account. I’ve noticed in the last couple of months though that my attitude towards Apple has been changing and I now think of them slightly differently. Here is why I have gone off Apple ever so slightly…

The iPad Does Nothing For Me

iPads have been flying off the shelf. They have sold millions and the reviews have been gushing for this new type of computing product. I got a Wifi version and although it is useful, fun and great to look at and show off to people it does nothing for me. I picked it up last night for the first time in about 3 weeks and after playing with it for 5 minutes left it back where I had found it. For me a complete waste of money and I was annoyed at myself for falling in to Apple’s marketing tactics. I’m not saying that it is completely useless because I am well aware that the way I work (on my laptop 80% of time I am awake) is very different to what most other people do. I might use the iPad more if I lounged around watching TV or spent a lot of time traveling but I don’t and as result it is totally useless to me.

The Antenna Issue

I really don’t have enough technical experience to go in to this subject but I am guessing that it is not as big an issue as many people thought it was. Other phones probably have exactly the same issue and the stats that they provided about the percentage of returns was enough to dismiss the problem. What did leave a bad taste in my mouth was the way in which Apple attacked other handset manufacturers when they had a problem themselves. They highlighted the “issues” that other manufacturers apparently had with their phones and antennas rather than staying focused on their own phone. If your product is as amazing as you say it is then you really don’t need to start slinging muck at others, that left a bad taste in my mouth.

The iPhone Does Not Suit My Needs

I had an iPhone for a couple of years and I loved it for the first year. It did lots of the things that I never thought would be possible with a phone. I was taking pictures and uploading to twitter, finding my way around using maps in a way that I had never done before and throwing pieces of paper in to virtual bins and strumming guitars on a screen as I played various apps. The big issue that I have though is that for me those things were a novelty and that is why I loved them. For me a phone serves 3 purposes…Phoning people, texting people and emailing. I also like to have a phone that doesn’t need to be charged every few hours. I know other people are different but I would rather my phone carried out those 3 functions perfectly rather than having 6 million pixels per inch or whatever it is the iPhone4 does. Like I said before people have a go at me I am well aware of the amazing features and apps on and iPhone but I personally don’t need them, they would be wasted on me.

Apple’s Hype Machine

I think they are the best in the world at marketing. I have never seen a company that can inspire such manic worship in their products as Apple. As a company I really do have to applaud them for that. As a marketeer myself I can see what they are doing when they restrict stock and have queues around the block. They are building the hype around their products. Plenty of people want to buy in to that but for me I just want to buy a phone without having to camp out at 4 in the morning. There is no doubt that Steve Jobs is a genius and one of the smartest product development leaders the world has ever seen but the constant “this is amazing” is really starting to wear thin with me. I love my Apple computer and have told many people to buy one as well but many Apple fans have literally been brainwashed in to thinking everything they do is right. A large proportion of what they do is great and they do make some great products but it’s important to realize they do still make some mistakes.

My Computer Will Always Be An Apple

Having said everything that I have above I would nearly rather give up using a computer all together rather than having to stop using a mac in favor of a PC. I have had my Macbook Air for the last couple of years and bar one problem with the hinge which messed up my screen (Apple fixed it immediately for free with awesome customer service) I have never had one problem with it. I spend 16 hours a day most days on my computer and it just delivers time after time. The fact that I have an Apple computer makes me so much more productive than I was before with a PC and I am willing to pay any price for that. The price tag for a Mac is expensive but I would go as far as saying that if they doubled the price I would still probably buy one. They are that good.

The Numbers Don’t Lie

Despite what I say people just keep on buying Apple products in even greater numbers than ever. Their phones have attracted a whole new audience and plenty of those people are now buying Apple computers as a result and that is why Apple surpassed Microsoft in Market cap for the first time recently. The old feeling that Apple was very much the underdog is gone, they are now the top dog in town to beat and when you take that mantle on people’s perception of you changes.

I Am Only One Person

I’m one person and although the Apple products don’t suit me they may very well still be perfect for you guys. At the end of the day if I didn’t work so much in the evening and was able to sit on the couch watching TV then the iPad and apps like Flipboard might be perfect for me. I guess what I am trying to say is that I am well aware that Apple still make great products and that most people are still passionate about them but for me their computers are all I need. I don’t know what has happened with their PR in the last year but it just feels like some of their gloss is waring off. I suppose they are a product of their own spectacular success in that they have set the bar so high that they would never be able to keep it at that level forever. I’m well prepared for people slagging me in the comments and telling me that I don’t know what I am talking about but to be honest I do…Apple are great at some things but I am not going to be buying 5 of their products from now on, one amazing slick laptop of theirs at a time will do me :)

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