I have always liked apple products, not because I'm a fanboi or I like style and aesthetics, but because I realize that time is money and using apple products save me time.
However I'm beginning to feel uneasy about jobs and his 'new order', certainly on his ideas to control the platform to such an extent that they dictate what software you can load, and if he continues in his ways, ultimately i suspect he is going to fall foul of the US laws covering protectionism and prevention of others writing software for the apple platform.
As regards tablets, I have a number of 'clone' Android devices from China, they are cheap enough to smash up , loose, or from an engineering point of view disassemble.
The one issue I do take exception to..... it the misappropriation of 30% of software costs to people like apple & google, how the hell can they justify taking a cut of 30% from the selling price, if anything kills pad computers, it will be the shear greed of the people controling the distribution of software, at lest google 'Android' has the decency to allow you to install software without going via the store.
Very good points and good analysis of the reasons why Apple OS is more stable and reliable. The only disadvantage I see in the Apple products is the high price they still have. Many people would choose Apple over any other if they wouldn't have to pay 2 or 3 times more. Stability and reliability are two important things to consider when purchasing a new computer or tablet today. The fact is that there are not too many people complaining about the Apple products as there are complaining about the others. Quality makes stability and reliability possible. And they sell despite the higher price. That means that there is a market for quality products.
If manufacturers based their designs , with more focus on Quality, then I'm afraid they would not sell more product, in fact chances are they would very likely go out of business.
No manufactured product can be 100% correct as regards quality, purely because you need market feedback to improve the quality of a product.
The PC market dictates fast turn around with ever greater features and lower price , Asus generally turns round a new motherboard design in 1-3 months.
Apple is successful becasue it controls the whole process,you do it Apples way or you don't do it at all, they have an underlying OS that is incredibly stable on a single platform, because they do not have to write software that runs on hardware from hundreds of companies.
Their hardware is reliable, because they define the standard ,with no second guessing about how the software will run, pc manufacturers are continually second guessing each other in a battle to add features, this in turn leads to unstable hardware which then impacts the software development process.
Plus with the 'home' PC market you throw users into the mix, many of whom have absolutely no idea about design/maintenance of high tech electronics, and yet throw a computer in front of them and they suddenly think they are competent to modify computer software+hardware.
In reality, most of them are completely incapable of performing hardware upgrades correctly, mainly because they don't even follow the most basic of component handling rules (anti-static) due to some belief that the laws of physics somehow don't apply to them.
Most reliability issues can be traced back to a single source, and that is the user.
I'm sorry but I can’t suggest anything that would really be a promising product. At the end of the day it's all about what is the need, and there is lot of laptops that are reliable for long time. The field consumer electronics is really a competition area for all the companies since who ever comes first they can sell first and sell more. I want to hear more comments from the consumers of companies like apple who are giving out great products and with great reliability.
You are certainly right. Now, what if companies would start manufacturing their products more focused on quality instead of launching a new product two times a year?
Which laptop/netbook/tablet would you recommend to Michell?
You present good points here and a very good question concerning the assembly line also in relation to the tablets.
Actually, later on after writing my last comment, I was thinking that all my computers have been PCs so far. I have encountered problems in the Microsoft OS in all of them without exception. This year I have been pretty determined to get an Apple as my next laptop. I don't have much use for a desktop these days, I need mobility above all.
The quality of elctronic products is coming down at faster rate compared to the past. It is lot more in case of the consumer electronics. This is mainly due to the companies trying to design their products have very less time to market due to competition. The second thing is the designs are not completely tested and the reliability is definitely going down. In addition to all this the companies are not interested take the products back and see what caused the failure. It is important to buy devices that are already working well for at least few months and be wise to select something as per the need not just because it is looking cool.
There is an assumption here that Windows-based computers can be differentiated based on the manufacturer. I think the main differentiation we can talk about nowadays is between Apple Macintosh and Windows PC. Even here there isn't too much to talk about outside of the operating system.
The involvement of the EMS provider, or the contract manufacturer has relegated OEMs -- Acer, Apple, Dell, HP, Sony, or whoever -- to some (minor) design and mainly sales, marketing and supplier coordination functions. If any faults appear in these machines, it probably comes from the assembly line. Will this appear in other equipment, including the tablets discussed by Michell?
Differentiation appears in these equipment at the early stage but soon once electronic equipment get commoditized then the faults become spread throughout the supply chain.
It seems like we have been walking a very similar laptop-luck path. How interesting that we had almost the same experience with Sony Vaio. I wonder if those two Vaios belonged to the same series and shipment out from the factory. It's a possibility that many Vaios suffered the same luck. Unfortunately the ones who pays is the customer as they don't lose anything. Or, should I correct myself and say the lose customers? After the experience with the Vaio it was unthinkable for me to buy another one.
It's good news that you did some recycling there. Fantastic!
EBN Dialogue enables and encourages you to participate in live chats with notable leaders and luminaries. Not only editors and journalists, but the entire EBN community is able to comment and ask questions. Listed below are upcoming and archived chats.
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Thailand Stages a Comeback Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Euro-Crisis: What It Means for High-Tech Firms Join EBN Editor in Chief Bolaji Ojo and Contributing Editor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday, July 12, at 10:00 a.m. EDT for a Live Chat on high-tech and Europe's economic difficulties.
Microsoft Surface: Potential Winners & Losers What are the implications for the electronics industry supply chain of Microsoft Corp.'s decision to launch its own tablet PC? Join industry veteran and EE Times' systems and OEM expert Rick Merritt on Tuesday, July 3, at 12:00 pm EDT for a Live Chat on this subject.
Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Peter Drucker famously said "Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window." Yet in the razor's-edge world of electronics—with a lean supply chain and just-in-time demands—the need to know the future is vital.
While no one really can accurately predict the future, we can take guidance from another Drucker saying which is the best way to predict the future is to create it.
You've heard the saying "the No. 1 supply chain risk is your people." That hasn't always been the case. But today's complex global supply chain requires a new type of multitalented employee. It's one who understands, finance, marketing, economics, is savvy with technology, graceful with relationships and can think analytically.
Where are these people? Are universities properly preparing the next generation supply chain professionals? How do train your existing workforce for these new, demanding positions?
Brian Fuller, editor-in-chief of EBN, will lead a 60-minute Avnet Velocity panel discussion that will ask and answer these and other questions swirling around today's supply-chain talent challenges.
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