gizmodo.com— Android 4.0—aka Ice Cream Sandwich—is such a lovely and tasteful software update for Android phones that I'd be kicking and crying if my phone didn't have it.
Feb 15, 2012View in Crawl 4
It's called marketing, people. Moto can absolutely update your phone with ICS, but then you wouldn't want to buy a new one. Planned obsolescence. Look it up. It's infuriating.
I've been boycotting Motorola for years now. Why are companies like Motorola so pathetic. Hopefully once Google fires all the losers, they will improve.
It isn't just Motorola. Nearly all the carriers and makers have little incentive to upgrade their (your) hardware once you've bought it. If a new OS brings you capabilities you didn't have before, you might not buy a new phone. Google also has little incentive to update your phone. They've allowed both the carriers and the phone makers to change their OS as an incentive to use Android (and no this isn't a slam at Android as an OS but at Google for letting them do it), all the while knowing that if it difficult to update a phone, most people won't bother and just get a new phone.
joshzam below has it right. Planned obsolescence. The only way to really fight it with cell phones is to know BEFORE you buy a phone which one can easily be jailbroken or wiped to put on a clean version of Android.
Apple plays this game too but in a different way. They don't allow the carriers to change the OS, but typically each iPhone is only good for one OS update within its life cycle. In other words, JUST about the time most people's contracts are up, well lookie here there's a new iPhone with a new OS that either can't run on their old phone or doesn't run well.
That and once you build up a certain number of apps (DRM for music or video doesn't really count since that's not up to Apple or any other company that legally sells the content), you're more reluctant to leave a platform whether it's Android or iOS.Comment is buried, click here to see the rest.
"typically each iPhone is only good for one OS update within its life cycle."
That's not really true. Not including minor updates, the upgrade availability history looks like this:
The original iPhone was good for iOS 1, 2, 3
The iPhone 3G was good for iOS 2,3,4
The iPhone 3GS was good for iOS 3,4,5
At this point, the only devices not available for the most recent update are the 1st generation (2007) and 2nd generation (2008) iPhones.
If you've got an iPhone that can't run the most recent version of iOS, you've got an iPhone that was released almost 4 years ago.
Considering the rapid growth rate of the technology for smart phones, I think that record is quite impressive and discounts the notion of planned obsolescence for the iPhone (at least when it comes to OS upgrades).
Well I did say "typically" and let's not pretend that the 3GS runs iOS 5 all that great. I had a 3GS (there wasn't enough of a jump with the iPhone 4 to entice me to get it) and it was sluggish (yes but usable) with iOS 5.
I'm not saying that I prefer the Google/carrier/phone maker solution as it makes phones sold not that long ago out of date with newer apps because of OS upgrades (which you CAN do if you're willing to or have the skills to upgrade it yourself), but Apple does this as well. I have an iPad 1st gen and barely a year after release even running the latest OS I can't run certain apps (Apple's own iMovie is a good example).
Apple, Motorola, Samsung, et al exist to sell hardware. Apple however has some money coming in from content sales which makes them "somewhat" resistant to obsolescing hardware, but hardware is where they make most of their money just like the others.Comment is buried, click here to see the rest.
Mostly agree but I think there is one part of this that often is missed: Consumers are the driving force behind all of this. The smart phone market has been expanding rapidly for the past few years, and every vendor is scrambling to catch their share of the constant influx of first time buyers.
Bringing out a shiny new model every 3 months is one way to stay competitive with the rest of the market.
Dumping a lot of time and effort into producing updates and OS upgrades for phones they have already sold simply doesn't pay off. After all, the best they could hope for is another sale a couple years down the road (and brand loyalty isn't that high anyway).. meanwhile there is this massive steady stream of brand new customers that they haven't pissed off yet, so no problem.
Once the smartphone market is through the explosive growth phase, repeat business will become much more important and I think you will find a general shift in the market: from constantly crapping out new models and screw the rest, to a focus on quality, support, perceived value, etc.Comment is buried, click here to see the rest.
"Bringing out a shiny new model every 3 months is one way to stay competitive with the rest of the market.
Dumping a lot of time and effort into producing updates and OS upgrades for phones they have already sold simply doesn't pay off. After all, the best they could hope for is another sale a couple years down the road (and brand loyalty isn't that high anyway).. meanwhile there is this massive steady stream of brand new customers that they haven't pissed off yet, so no problem."
Except that's exactly what Apple does. They don't release phones every three months so their costs for design and retooling (not to mention marketing) remains relatively low. The shotgun approach that most Android phone makers do might sell a lot of phones, but it's at low margins with a higher rate of return due to lower sales per model. That's why they won't allow or encourage OS updatesComment is buried, click here to see the rest.
"Well I did say "typically" and let's not pretend that the 3GS runs iOS 5 all that great."
Yes, you did say "typically", but actually with 5 iPhones now, it's been "never"... kind of the opposite of typically.
As far as the 3GS, it's worth noting that enough people think it runs iOS 5 all that great enough to make it the 3rd most popular model of smart phone, only behind the 4 and 4S.
"I have an iPad 1st gen and barely a year after release even running the latest OS I can't run certain apps (Apple's own iMovie is a good example)."
That's a perfect example of what I'm talking about. iMovie isn't available for the 1st Generation iPad, because the 2nd Generation iPad has a significantly more powerful CPU and GPU. Planned obsolescence, would be if Apple simply didn't offer it for the 1st iPad even if it ran fine or it was a matter of tweaking/testing it.
For mobile devices, the technology advancements are far exceeding Moore's Law. The downside to this, is it's harder to keep up with hardware. This is true both on iOS and Android, but at least with Apple there's more incentive to keep users current as long as possible. Again, going back to iMovie, Apple is *losing* sales for people with 1st Gen iPads who can't buy iMovie.
Typically was a poor choice of words I admit. Maybe if I had said 2 OS updates that would run well. But I stand by what I said about the 3GS. It's sluggish on iOS 5. Maybe some people are so used to poor performance on some other smart phones that it's still a breath of fresh air <grin>
Yes technology is moving quickly with mobile devices, but battery life is a concern. If Apple can't keep that fantastic battery for the iPad, then I would want them to hold back from going quad-core or whatever the big advancement is with the next model. Long life is a hallmark of the iPad and with their big leade there's no need to spoil it.Comment is buried, click here to see the rest.
So they are starting to roll-out in the next couple of months, Sony is doing theirs the same time. Ice cream sandwich is such a big change for manufactures. The only interesting thing is whether Motorola will use Stock Android now Google is taking the reigns.
Why would it not run stock. The last thing I would want is more control from Google...because I am very pro competition. Microsoft have crippled their market with that nonsense. Fragmentation is really choice. Its been the winning strategy.
Wow really? Fragmentation of the OS is GOOD for the platform? That's your take on this? And it's worked so well for Linux too. And you actually believe Microsoft has crippled their market by keeping tight control of Windows (which is debatable with all the crapware so many PC makers put on their computers)?
If only Microsoft hadn't kept such tight control of their OS, why they might have gotten 90+% of the PC market...oh wait
I can't decide if you're really this stupid or a troll. I suppose there's no reason you couldn't be both I guess.
Absolutely fragmentation is a fantastic thing which is why I have a joypad built into my phone. Its called choice. Only in another thread you were arguing against a pen on a tablet, again against a different form of input, or a keyboard on a phone. Or a Phone/Tablet hybrid. It promotes competition and consumer cloice. While keeping Applications pretty compatible. Apple is not compatible and does not offer choice no keyboard;usable screen;slow cpu; slow gpu etc etc nothing to be proud of.
Sorry about the Windows thing Microsoft produce phone software...I know hard to belive. There market share is shrinking. The phones are out of date on arrival by imposing limits on the specifications...Its loosened these recently.
You can call me Stupid or a Troll, but this is an Android thread, and Android have the Lions share of the Market, and one of those reasons is fragmentation.
Fragmentation of an OS is bad. Having different choices with hardware is typically good which I hope is what you're talking about. As far as the rest, I never argued against having a stylus, I said most people wouldn't buy a device because it had one.
Apple's app store is infinitely more compatible with past and current iOS devices than the Android Marketplace could ever hope to be with past and current Android devices and few buying there know it until they purchase an app that doesn't work with their phone.
Apple also leaves the choices you speak of (keyboard and so on) to the 3rd party market. Accessories help to also sell devices and Android phones because they change so often have a very limited accessory market.
Write off Microsoft at your own peril. You may think they have nothing to offer, but Google's Android management team isn't quite as short-sighted as you and take them very seriously
joshzamFeb 16, 2012
It's called marketing, people. Moto can absolutely update your phone with ICS, but then you wouldn't want to buy a new one. Planned obsolescence. Look it up. It's infuriating.
ammattikiFeb 16, 2012
Don't expect much different from any of the other brands.
If you want to keep your phone up to date just root it. Should be getting some decent ICS Roms soon.
sgehrmanFeb 16, 2012
I've been boycotting Motorola for years now. Why are companies like Motorola so pathetic. Hopefully once Google fires all the losers, they will improve.
macparrotFeb 16, 2012
It isn't just Motorola. Nearly all the carriers and makers have little incentive to upgrade their (your) hardware once you've bought it. If a new OS brings you capabilities you didn't have before, you might not buy a new phone. Google also has little incentive to update your phone. They've allowed both the carriers and the phone makers to change their OS as an incentive to use Android (and no this isn't a slam at Android as an OS but at Google for letting them do it), all the while knowing that if it difficult to update a phone, most people won't bother and just get a new phone.
joshzam below has it right. Planned obsolescence. The only way to really fight it with cell phones is to know BEFORE you buy a phone which one can easily be jailbroken or wiped to put on a clean version of Android.
Apple plays this game too but in a different way. They don't allow the carriers to change the OS, but typically each iPhone is only good for one OS update within its life cycle. In other words, JUST about the time most people's contracts are up, well lookie here there's a new iPhone with a new OS that either can't run on their old phone or doesn't run well.
That and once you build up a certain number of apps (DRM for music or video doesn't really count since that's not up to Apple or any other company that legally sells the content), you're more reluctant to leave a platform whether it's Android or iOS.Comment is buried, click here to see the rest.
mredofcourseFeb 16, 2012
"typically each iPhone is only good for one OS update within its life cycle."
That's not really true. Not including minor updates, the upgrade availability history looks like this:
The original iPhone was good for iOS 1, 2, 3
The iPhone 3G was good for iOS 2,3,4
The iPhone 3GS was good for iOS 3,4,5
At this point, the only devices not available for the most recent update are the 1st generation (2007) and 2nd generation (2008) iPhones.
If you've got an iPhone that can't run the most recent version of iOS, you've got an iPhone that was released almost 4 years ago.
Considering the rapid growth rate of the technology for smart phones, I think that record is quite impressive and discounts the notion of planned obsolescence for the iPhone (at least when it comes to OS upgrades).
macparrotFeb 16, 2012
Well I did say "typically" and let's not pretend that the 3GS runs iOS 5 all that great. I had a 3GS (there wasn't enough of a jump with the iPhone 4 to entice me to get it) and it was sluggish (yes but usable) with iOS 5.
I'm not saying that I prefer the Google/carrier/phone maker solution as it makes phones sold not that long ago out of date with newer apps because of OS upgrades (which you CAN do if you're willing to or have the skills to upgrade it yourself), but Apple does this as well. I have an iPad 1st gen and barely a year after release even running the latest OS I can't run certain apps (Apple's own iMovie is a good example).
Apple, Motorola, Samsung, et al exist to sell hardware. Apple however has some money coming in from content sales which makes them "somewhat" resistant to obsolescing hardware, but hardware is where they make most of their money just like the others.Comment is buried, click here to see the rest.
TomHanks4Feb 16, 2012
Mostly agree but I think there is one part of this that often is missed: Consumers are the driving force behind all of this. The smart phone market has been expanding rapidly for the past few years, and every vendor is scrambling to catch their share of the constant influx of first time buyers.
Bringing out a shiny new model every 3 months is one way to stay competitive with the rest of the market.
Dumping a lot of time and effort into producing updates and OS upgrades for phones they have already sold simply doesn't pay off. After all, the best they could hope for is another sale a couple years down the road (and brand loyalty isn't that high anyway).. meanwhile there is this massive steady stream of brand new customers that they haven't pissed off yet, so no problem.
Once the smartphone market is through the explosive growth phase, repeat business will become much more important and I think you will find a general shift in the market: from constantly crapping out new models and screw the rest, to a focus on quality, support, perceived value, etc.Comment is buried, click here to see the rest.
macparrotFeb 17, 2012
"Bringing out a shiny new model every 3 months is one way to stay competitive with the rest of the market.
Dumping a lot of time and effort into producing updates and OS upgrades for phones they have already sold simply doesn't pay off. After all, the best they could hope for is another sale a couple years down the road (and brand loyalty isn't that high anyway).. meanwhile there is this massive steady stream of brand new customers that they haven't pissed off yet, so no problem."
Except that's exactly what Apple does. They don't release phones every three months so their costs for design and retooling (not to mention marketing) remains relatively low. The shotgun approach that most Android phone makers do might sell a lot of phones, but it's at low margins with a higher rate of return due to lower sales per model. That's why they won't allow or encourage OS updatesComment is buried, click here to see the rest.
mredofcourseFeb 17, 2012
"Well I did say "typically" and let's not pretend that the 3GS runs iOS 5 all that great."
Yes, you did say "typically", but actually with 5 iPhones now, it's been "never"... kind of the opposite of typically.
As far as the 3GS, it's worth noting that enough people think it runs iOS 5 all that great enough to make it the 3rd most popular model of smart phone, only behind the 4 and 4S.
"I have an iPad 1st gen and barely a year after release even running the latest OS I can't run certain apps (Apple's own iMovie is a good example)."
That's a perfect example of what I'm talking about. iMovie isn't available for the 1st Generation iPad, because the 2nd Generation iPad has a significantly more powerful CPU and GPU. Planned obsolescence, would be if Apple simply didn't offer it for the 1st iPad even if it ran fine or it was a matter of tweaking/testing it.
For mobile devices, the technology advancements are far exceeding Moore's Law. The downside to this, is it's harder to keep up with hardware. This is true both on iOS and Android, but at least with Apple there's more incentive to keep users current as long as possible. Again, going back to iMovie, Apple is *losing* sales for people with 1st Gen iPads who can't buy iMovie.
macparrotFeb 17, 2012
Typically was a poor choice of words I admit. Maybe if I had said 2 OS updates that would run well. But I stand by what I said about the 3GS. It's sluggish on iOS 5. Maybe some people are so used to poor performance on some other smart phones that it's still a breath of fresh air <grin>
Yes technology is moving quickly with mobile devices, but battery life is a concern. If Apple can't keep that fantastic battery for the iPad, then I would want them to hold back from going quad-core or whatever the big advancement is with the next model. Long life is a hallmark of the iPad and with their big leade there's no need to spoil it.Comment is buried, click here to see the rest.
tuppe666Feb 16, 2012
So they are starting to roll-out in the next couple of months, Sony is doing theirs the same time. Ice cream sandwich is such a big change for manufactures. The only interesting thing is whether Motorola will use Stock Android now Google is taking the reigns.
macparrotFeb 17, 2012
Most likely Motorola won't run stock and yes, Google DOES need to take the reigns not only with phones but with the tablet market
tuppe666Feb 17, 2012
Why would it not run stock. The last thing I would want is more control from Google...because I am very pro competition. Microsoft have crippled their market with that nonsense. Fragmentation is really choice. Its been the winning strategy.
macparrotFeb 17, 2012
Wow really? Fragmentation of the OS is GOOD for the platform? That's your take on this? And it's worked so well for Linux too. And you actually believe Microsoft has crippled their market by keeping tight control of Windows (which is debatable with all the crapware so many PC makers put on their computers)?
If only Microsoft hadn't kept such tight control of their OS, why they might have gotten 90+% of the PC market...oh wait
I can't decide if you're really this stupid or a troll. I suppose there's no reason you couldn't be both I guess.
tuppe666Feb 17, 2012
Absolutely fragmentation is a fantastic thing which is why I have a joypad built into my phone. Its called choice. Only in another thread you were arguing against a pen on a tablet, again against a different form of input, or a keyboard on a phone. Or a Phone/Tablet hybrid. It promotes competition and consumer cloice. While keeping Applications pretty compatible. Apple is not compatible and does not offer choice no keyboard;usable screen;slow cpu; slow gpu etc etc nothing to be proud of.
Sorry about the Windows thing Microsoft produce phone software...I know hard to belive. There market share is shrinking. The phones are out of date on arrival by imposing limits on the specifications...Its loosened these recently.
You can call me Stupid or a Troll, but this is an Android thread, and Android have the Lions share of the Market, and one of those reasons is fragmentation.
macparrotFeb 17, 2012
Fragmentation of an OS is bad. Having different choices with hardware is typically good which I hope is what you're talking about. As far as the rest, I never argued against having a stylus, I said most people wouldn't buy a device because it had one.
Apple's app store is infinitely more compatible with past and current iOS devices than the Android Marketplace could ever hope to be with past and current Android devices and few buying there know it until they purchase an app that doesn't work with their phone.
Apple also leaves the choices you speak of (keyboard and so on) to the 3rd party market. Accessories help to also sell devices and Android phones because they change so often have a very limited accessory market.
Write off Microsoft at your own peril. You may think they have nothing to offer, but Google's Android management team isn't quite as short-sighted as you and take them very seriously
Mick1964Feb 16, 2012
Does anyone really purchase Motorola anymore???
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