Apple vs. Samsung

230 days ago in Articles, iPhone, Reviews by Wardy Miller | 3 Comments

Is it just me or do you find the new Samsung ads to be demeaning? The ad implies that if you use an iPhone that you are somehow “uncool”. Here’s my perspective. In my younger days, I would have owned an Android phone, because I could hack it and try to make it do “cool” stuff, but as I have gotten older (and I can afford to use what I want) I have gone with an iPhone. I does what I need it to do. It’s a phone. I rely on the phone part more than I am concerned with the surfing capabilities. I have a few apps that I do use all the time, but I don’t need or want something with a huge screen that doesn’t fit comfortably in my pocket. Instead of having an ad demonstrating the functionality of their phone, Samsung goes out of their way to belittle iPhone users. So based on their contempt for Apple users I will NEVER buy a Samsung device of any kind. If I were to look at a phone other than iPhone, I would look at either the Motorola or HTC offerings. Samsung has lost me as a potential customer for good and people ask me all the time about phones, and I will NEVER endorse any of their products.

Most people in the media are coming down on Apple for filing suit against Samsung for patent infringement. Here is the thing about patent law. If you do not defend your patent EVERY TIME it is infringed, you lose your rights to the patent. Apple learned this lesson with the Macintosh, and has to keep a fleet of lawyers on retainer because of it.

Let’s back up for a minute… The original iPhone was released January 9th 2007. Until the time that Apple showed the world what a smart phone could (and should) look like many people thought the Motorola Razr was the best phone ever. Apple had single handedly revolutionized the mobile phone industry. Think about it, until you saw the iPhone, many were convinced the BlackBerry was the only way to go if you wanted a “smart phone”. Apple innovated, everyone else sat on their hands and were content with their BlackBerrys. As of January 2007, the rest of the phone makers were scrambling to catch up to Apple. Now has there been problems? Yes. This is what happens when you innovate and try to change an industry. Have these problems been resolved? Yes. Will there be problems in the future? More than likely. But the thing is, they are always addressed.

Think about it, when the first phone was released, people clamored for 3G over Edge networking. There were reasons to go with Edge over 3G. The first being battery life. In the early days things were necessary to achieve a decent batter life, but Apple was ridiculed for trying to make the phone have a better battery life than a couple of hours. But as batteries improved so did the capabilities of the phone. Then came the call for GPS, once again Apple figured out how to improve the battery (again) to provide GPS.

Let’s get to the bottom line. There are plenty of options out there. Figure out how much you are willing to spend on a phone and then buy the one that fits your price range and has the functions that you want.

In the comments, let me know what phone you bought and why.