Google

[Cakedaddy]

Did you have a legitimate business reason for yours? "testing" doesn't count. We all know what that means.

Me? Or "you" in general? Because I don't have any kind of smart-phone.

That was directed at Leisher, but would apply to anyone that carries an ipad for 'work reasons'.

[TPRJones]

My Android tablet gets used first for reading, but as a close second as a work tool. I use it in meetings to take notes, do spot research as needed, and play games so I don't fall asleep. Does that count?

[Cakedaddy]

Who bought it?

[TPRJones]

Oh, I see what you're looking for. No, I bought it myself. Community colleges don't by tablets for anyone below at least the VP level.



Edited By TPRJones on 1333079907

[Cakedaddy]

And I bet the VPs have Ipads. Actually, my only point is that corporate America isn't keeping Apple alive. It's the general consumer. And the general consumer, while at work, has work buy Apple. Even though us IT folks know better [except for Catt ]. So Windows will NEVER kill Apple. No matter how good it's OS integrates all of our devices. Because people want Apple. However, at the same time, corporate America can stop buying ipads/iphones tomorrow, and while Apple will see a decrease in sales, it will not hurt them. They'll be just fine. Windows 8 is not an Apple killer. Apple is the AOL of tangible goods. It's an inferior product, but everyone has one because that's what everyone sees and knows and they just don't know any better because they are convinced that anything else would be broken and too hard to use. As long as Apple keeps churning out electronic eye candy, people will keep buying it. Regardless of what they have in their office, or if work will pay for it.

I will also confess that my first smart phone (not counting my Palms because I never really used them for their apps, etc, beyond a couple free games) was an iphone. Android phones were on the market, but everyone said the iphone ruled. I didn't know much at all about Android at the time. So, without doing research, I bought an iphone. When that contract was up, and after 18 months of the iphone not doing everything I thought a smart phone should be able to do, I researched Android. And then a 5 minute in-store test later, I'm putting my iphone up on ebay and deciding which Android I wanted.

Have any of your ever walked past, or been in an Apple store at the mall? It's INSANE. It can be 1:30pm on a weekday, and they have about 20 employees servicing about 30 customers. And they are like that all day long. Those aren't businesses gearing up to roll out ipads. Those are consumers looking at their next toy wondering how they can get work to pay for it so they don't have to. People loves them some Apple.



Edited By Cakedaddy on 1333082047

[TPRJones]

That seems to be exactly why Microsoft is pushing integration so hard on Win 8, though. I think they hope that people using Metro and Win 8 at their desk will lead them to think that would be nice to use on their next tablet/phone/whatever as well instead of another Apple product.

If they can make it really slick, that strategy might work for them. If so it will take many years.

[Cakedaddy]

Ok, I will concede that if MS consistently comes out with something slicker/shinier than Apple for the next several years, and Apple goes stagnant and does not, they could hurt Apple. But we are talking Windows 9 and 10 time frames. Windows 8 will not do it.

[Leisher]

And I bet the VPs have Ipads. Actually, my only point is that corporate America isn't keeping Apple alive. It's the general consumer. And the general consumer, while at work, has work buy Apple. Even though us IT folks know better [except for Catt ]. So Windows will NEVER kill Apple. No matter how good it's OS integrates all of our devices. Because people want Apple. However, at the same time, corporate America can stop buying ipads/iphones tomorrow, and while Apple will see a decrease in sales, it will not hurt them. They'll be just fine. Windows 8 is not an Apple killer. Apple is the AOL of tangible goods. It's an inferior product, but everyone has one because that's what everyone sees and knows and they just don't know any better because they are convinced that anything else would be broken and too hard to use. As long as Apple keeps churning out electronic eye candy, people will keep buying it. Regardless of what they have in their office, or if work will pay for it.

You're overlooking a lot, assuming more, and completely underestimating businesses' impact on the consumer market for electronics.

No, corporate America isn't driving sales of the iPhones or iPads, but they're responsible for more than you think. The prime example of this is that Apple has been giving away Macs for decades to schools, and not only has it not translated to a bigger market share, but parents have complained to schools that teaching their kids on Macs is useless because they aren't used in the real world.

People want Apple products at the moment because they're hot and the best on the market. Things change. The best example of this is Apple themselves. They were done. Bankrupt. Gone. Then Microsoft and Realplayer saved them. Now they're on top of the hill. Hell, I just posted an article in another thread about how Google is making money, but seems to be doomed. And look at RIM, they were kings of the cell world as recently as 3 years ago, now they're abandoning consumers, and focus on the business side where they are currently still #1.

One important thing to note here is that the name "Apple" isn't selling products. The names "iPhone" and "iPad" are selling products. Apple's computer division is still in the celllar. People don't care about Apple unless they're a liberal hippie who has deluded him or herself into thinking Steve Jobs was a patron saint of anti-corporate greed.

And by the way, you know what word I most commonly hear to describe the iPad? "Toy" I hear it from users, vendors, tech websites, etc. That's what most people see it as, a toy. For every tech like me who can remote into servers using it while sitting on a beach, there's 50 normal people using it to play solitaire and watch movies.

If you really sit down and start playing with one, you'll realize that out of the box, the iPad is worthless. It comes with no directions whatsoever. The App Store is a jumbled mess. Reviews of apps are commonly being skewed by company employees to drive up sales of their bad apps. Most "features" that people brag about their iPad doing are only there because of third party apps. Third party apps means more cost, less security, less support, more failure points, etc.

I can also tell you that a lot of folks have begun grumbling about Apple's annual new models. It's the backlash that sports games for the consoles get hit with..."same shit, different year on the title." What's the difference between an iPad2 and an iPad3? Not much.

Will Windows kill Apple? It could. I don't say that as just my opinion, but because people who have their fingers on the pulse of this business have written articles about it. Because Apple is already doing everything it can to offset what W8 is bringing to the table (that was what drove the release of iCloud). If W8 does what MS claims, I think out of the gate the company that will be hurt most is RIM. I think Yahoo will be severely impacted too, followed by Google. Why? Because the MS devices will obviously push Bing, while the Apple devices are using Siri. Combine those, and start removing more Droids from the market in favor of the iPhone/iPad or W8 driven devices, and you have fewer consumers for Yahoo/Google/etc.

Apple is massive right now, but really take a look at their core business, and you'll see vulnerabilities. Macs suck, and have never really penetrated the market. iPods are going the way of the dodo. iPhones are hot, but you KNOW another tech is going to come along at some point and kill them. iPads are hot too, but they recently got pounded by Amazon and their Kindle (a FAR cheaper device that does everything the iPad does).

My point is that Apple needs to do something now that they've never done: they need to innovate. They can't just keep polishing other people's ideas and repackaging them. They need to be looking at new technologies. Is that going to be Apple TV? Maybe, maybe not. Apple's going to be in direct competition there with Sony, Microsoft, Valve (really), and others.

And I never said Apple will go under overnight, but if W8 changes the business landscape and people begin moving over to MS products because of it, the consumer market WILL follow. Not ALL, Apple will always have their cultists, but the majority of the public will go that route because work will be paying the bills, it'll be familiar, and compatible with everything else without the need for third party apps.

We could talk about this stuff all night, but honestly, time will tell. This all hinges on MS actually releasing a product that makes businesses fall in love, and what are the odds of that? After all, they just released a good product in W7, so the next one has to suck...

Have any of your ever walked past, or been in an Apple store at the mall? It's INSANE. It can be 1:30pm on a weekday, and they have about 20 employees servicing about 30 customers. And they are like that all day long. Those aren't businesses gearing up to roll out ipads. Those are consumers looking at their next toy wondering how they can get work to pay for it so they don't have to. People loves them some Apple.

You mistake love for genuinely needing help.

Those folks have to make appointments to get help or the employees will NOT talk to them, and all the workers wear tags that say "Genius" (fucking arrogant).

Again, Apple devices have NO instructions. They have basically NO tutorials. iTunes is a massive pile of shit that routinely locks up computers, slows them down, and fights with other processes. That's not even going into how user unfriendly it is...

Every single person I handed an Apple product to has no idea how to work it out of the box. They all seek help from me, other users, other Apple product owners, forums, etc. Apple is not user friendly.

I've contacted Apple support before to get help with a company wide issue, and do you know what I was told? Go to the user forums, and hopefully someone there will have an answer.

Ask Dell what happens when your support sucks.

Now stop making me rant on Apple. Let's sit back and wait for W8 to be released and see what happens.

[Troy]

This is the best thread on the forums I've seen in a while.

Edit: Mostly cause of the "Cell-phone University" posts by Leisher.

I carry with me: Android Phone, Work Blackberry, Ipad, and a Lenovo Laptop.



Edited By Troy on 1333128380

[Leisher]

Unfortunately, over the past four years I've had to learn a LOT about mobile devices and mobile billing.