Apple Yanks iOS 8 Update

alphadogg writes Within hours of releasing an iOS 8 update to address assorted bugs in the new iPhone and iPad operating system Apple has been forced to pull the patch, which itself was causing iPhone 6 and 6 Plus users grief. Reports filled Apple support forums that the iOS 8 update was cutting off users' cell service and making Touch ID inoperable. The Wall Street Journal received this statement from Apple: "We have received reports of an issue with the iOS 8.0.1 update. We are actively investigating these reports and will provide information as quickly as we can. In the meantime we have pulled back the iOS 8.0.1 update."

Comments

Just don't update it that way.

[Anonymous Coward]

Sent from my iPhone 6, now with FlexScreen Technology

Re: Just don't update it that way.

[Anonymous Coward]

You're sitting on it wrong...

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[ledow]

Then don't make your phone from that metal.

People put phones in pockets. People sit on phones. People drop phones.

I know, because I've done all the above. My phone basically lives in my pocket, sitting or standing, or running around. And I've never bent one yet.

Maybe it's just fashion-over-functionality, like most Apple products, but I'd prefer a very expensive phone not to bend because it's in your pocket.

P.S. My keys are metal. They don't bend. Car keyfobs don't bend, even the larger ones. You can make excuses all you like - other models and manufacturers DO NOT have this problem, to anywhere near the same extent. Seriously, one week after release - it's not a "repeated and prolonged" stress - it's you forgetting it's in your pocket ONCE and then bending a very expensive device.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[slazzy]

It's amazing how electronic devices break when the case they are in bends enough.
It's also amazing how metal effectively doesn't bend when you use enough of it. (like my iPhone 5...)

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[BasilBrush]

P.S. My keys are metal. They don't bend.

Some people have bent their iPhones, some people have bent their keys. Looking at the video of someone bending an iPhone 6 Plus deliberately in their hands, the pressure needed is about the same as it would take to bend a key.

I'd actually say there are very few people who've never bent a key. It doesn't happen often but it does happen. And it's a precursor to the key snapping in the lock, which plenty of people have also experienced.

You can make excuses all you like - other models and manufacturers DO NOT have this problem, to anywhere near the same extent.

You don't know what the extent is. You just have a small number of examples, and this being Apple anything that happens is news. Other phones do bend, and if they don't bend, they break.

http://www.cultofmac.com/29740...

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[kannibal_klown]

I'm not standing up for Apple... this was a stupid mistake. Didn't any of their beta-testers wear skinny jeans and keep it in the pocket? They should have realized the potential issue.

However... your comparisons are silly. Keys are solid bricks of metal, and usually hard metal so they don't deform and become useless. They must be very strong and very rigid; it's their entire purpose.

Phones are hollow metal shells with mostly air inside, with some silicone wafers and bits of copper wires.

If you make a hollow shell out of metal and thin enough... OR COURSE it's going to bend. Even if it's flippin steel. In this case they chose aluminum, presumably because it was easier to shape into that wedge design.

Now... MOST companies when making thin metal shells purposely don't make them too thin just for reasons like this. And this is where Apple's form-over-function failed.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[ganjadude]

Id like to believe if this issue was widespread, we would have heard about it when the note 3 launched.. or the GS5... or the (insert other flagship phone here) was released. I mean the iphone 6 hasnt been out a week, This will end up becoming a much bigger issue than antennagate

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[geekoid]

" My keys are metal. They don't bend."
I bet they have. Keys will bend with time. Take out two keys and place them against each other, very often one will be bent. This is on old circus trick technique for 'mind bending' illusion.
They way you worded that implies you think metal can't be bent. Which is obviously incorrect...right?

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Aaden42]

Can you even FIT the 6+ in the pocket of a pair of skinny jeans???

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[geekoid]

But other hone con't become bent. The go back into shape.
This is a manufacturing problem. It's not a good one. I would wager it's one that wouldn't have gotten past Jobs.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[_xeno_]

I'm not standing up for Apple... this was a stupid mistake. Didn't any of their beta-testers wear skinny jeans and keep it in the pocket? They should have realized the potential issue.

You know what, based on previous Apple stories, probably not.

Apparently Apple is so stupidly secretive about their new phones that when they beta test the new hardware, they require them to be in special "camouflage cases" to prevent outsiders from getting a sneak peak at the new phone.

So it's entirely possible that they literally never tested having the phone in a pants pocket the entire day without it also being in a rigid case that prevented the problem from happening.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Tough Love]

It's amazing how metal objects bend when subjected to repeated and prolonged stress.

No that's not it. It's a reality distortion field.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[BasilBrush]

Samsung phones don't get the same news coverage that Apple phones do. A new iPhone and any surrounding issues make it onto mainstream news sites and chat shows.

All large, thin phones bend. A plastic one is more likely to bend back than an aluminium one. But it depends also on the internals and how flexible or brittle they are.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Grizzley9]

You can make excuses all you like - other models and manufacturers DO NOT have this problem,

Mod +1 Funny.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[mlts]

Depends on the key. My Abloy and Abloy/Abus keys are still quite rigid. My automotive keys (think Strattec, formerly Briggs-Straggon) are well aligned. The five-pin cheapo keys that go to the Kwikset deadbolts that are made out of aluminum or cheap brass are not. That is why locks that are used many times a day are usually either lever locks (like safe deposit boxes), or mogul cylinders (larger keys, and the pins have a ball bearing in them.)

I was wondering when devices would get so thin that their basic integrity would have issues. I remember this with the PCMCIA card-shaped Franklin REX, and knew it was only a matter of time before too thin became a liability, not a selling point.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[ganjadude]

I understand that (although im not so sure its as true now as it was in past years, the samsung keynote was pretty big) But you know as well as I that fanbois are rabid, (on any topic) and if it were a large problem for the other phones, the fanbois would be up in arms talking about how THEIR phone is SO MUCH BETTER!!?!

I could be wrong, I dont stay on top of all the little things on all the phones, I still feel if this was a real issue with other phones, it would be out by now.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[andydread]

well if it bends it'll just conform to your face better.. What's the problem?

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Bing Tsher E]

Do you get overtime when Apple fucks up this badly and you have to come on Slashdot to protect them?

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Luckyo]

Plastic bends. It just doesn't suffer catastrophic deformation from it, and instead returns to its old shape when force is no longer applied. Aluminium, not so much.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Wonko the Sane]

Both aluminium and plastic have both elastic deformation and plastic deformation modes. Depending on the exact material involved, plastic might have a larger or a smaller elastic deformation range than aluminium.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Anonymous Coward]

YOU DON'T KNOW! YOU'RE WRONG! ALL PHONES DO IT! MY PHONE IS STILL SPECIAL!

Really? You sound like a petty child defending his toys. I see that the only website that you linked is called the Cult of Mac, which pretty much says it's about the Apple Religion (fanboi!) and not about true functionality.

How many years did you have a key before you bent your first one? When apple comes out with a new design that takes into account that people do put phones in their pocket, will you admit that you're full of shit? Or will you ignore it and/or call them revolutionary for fixing a problem they created? You can't save Steve Jobs' life by sticking your head up his ass now. He's gone. I'm sorry bro. If you need to cry it out then let me know. I'll be your shoulder to cry on. I'll be your strength when you can no longer stand. I love you, bro.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Barsteward]

it saves putting a sock down there

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[exomondo]

Samsung phones don't get the same news coverage that Apple phones do. A new iPhone and any surrounding issues make it onto mainstream news sites and chat shows.

Of course, but there are a couple of other the points you're missing.

-If an Android manufacturer has this issue with a model of their phone then users can just choose a different Android manufacturer or model.
-For the latest model iOS smartphone users have the choice of only whatever the latest iPhone is, so if it has an issue then it's an issue for all iOS smartphone users.
-The iPhone has historically been the most common smartphone so an issue with the most common device affects more people than an issue with a less common one.
-As you point out, plastic will flex but will also bend back and aluminium phones like the HTC one require a lot more force to bend due to the curved back.
-Apple is one of the biggest and richest companies in the world so when they screw up of course it's going to be big news.

Having said all this I have a 6+ and I know I'm going to have to be a lot more wary of this.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[BasilBrush]

-If an Android manufacturer has this issue with a model of their phone then users can just choose a different Android manufacturer or model.

It appears to only have happened to iPhone 6 Plus phones. So there's still the choice of iPhone 6, 5S and 5C if you want to avoid the problem. The 6 Plus was probably not the best choice for anyone who keeps their phone in their jeans pocket. Better for cargo pants or a a purse.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Savage-Rabbit]

Samsung phones don't get the same news coverage that Apple phones do. A new iPhone and any surrounding issues make it onto mainstream news sites and chat shows.

All large, thin phones bend. A plastic one is more likely to bend back than an aluminium one. But it depends also on the internals and how flexible or brittle they are.

Do you get overtime when Apple fucks up this badly and you have to come on Slashdot to protect them?

Get a hold of yourself. By pointing out that ultra thin mobile phones bend easily he didn't commit blasphemy, he made a simple and rather obvious engineering observation. The guy who works in the cubicle next to mine managed to destroy his Samsung Galaxy by putting it in the back pocket of his jeans and sitting down to enjoy a cup of caffé latte. There was an audible *SNAP*, the phone bent and the LCD display was ruined. The only difference here is that there was no TV news crew on the scene 30 minutes later followed by an army of fanboys venting their outrage on Slashdot over how badly Samsung had fucked up and hypothesizing that anybody pointing out that smartphones sometimes bend must be a shill on Samsung's payroll. And just for your enjoyment.... here is the link that started this flamewar, complete with a wide selection of photographs of bent smartphones: http://www.cultofmac.com/29740....

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[exomondo]

It appears to only have happened to iPhone 6 Plus phones. So there's still the choice of iPhone 6, 5S and 5C if you want to avoid the problem. The 6 Plus was probably not the best choice for anyone who keeps their phone in their jeans pocket. Better for cargo pants or a a purse.

Well given that the 5S exhibits this issue - though it's much less widespread - while being thicker and with a smaller face it would seem the thinner, larger iPhone 6 is going to have this issue to even more of a degree. Yes you could choose the 5C, but that's using 2 year old hardware so you're likely to get about another year of it being usable before updates make it dog slow like they have with the 4S.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[painandgreed]

I'm not standing up for Apple... this was a stupid mistake. Didn't any of their beta-testers wear skinny jeans and keep it in the pocket?

Probably did, but this is happening to probably to one hundredth of a percent of people. Their testing probably only included a few hundred people carrying the phone if that many. Still, with large sales, enough for it to be noticed. Much like the antenna issue with earlier phone. Affects practically nobody, but that's still enough to be an issue with the numbers they are selling the attention it is getting. Add in that they seem to assume that people will use cases (and most do IME, I seem to be the only phone user that goes 'bareback' that I know) or just not put a phone under the stresses that it is getting.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Anonymous Coward]

I seriously doubt that. This is not rocket science, phone manufacturers have been doing bend/flex tests for years.

Here's a video showing Nokia doing it back in 2008!

I'd have a hard time believing that Apple doesn't also do this. More likely, they made a tradeoff in form vs. function. Time will tell if it's the right decision.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[MildlyTangy]

How does this stop them from wearing it all day in pants pockets, while at the Apple Campus In Cupertino(tm)?
That facility is more tightly controlled than a nuclear power station, no member of the public will ever see it within that building.

I cannot see how they failed to test it in house with real world conditions.

But thankfully, Apple being Apple, if there is a genuine issue, they will fix it. Antennagate was fixed when they realised their mistake, it will be the same with bendygate if its a real issue.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[sphealey]

Um.... the same editorial team also runs the Cult of Android site. Bit of self-depreciating humor there I think.

sPh

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[nytes]

That's not a pocket!

I hope you don't keep the business cards you hand out down there.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Blaskowicz]

How often do people sit on a *cupholder*? Car fellatio gone wrong?

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Dutch Gun]

I've noticed my HTC One - which has an aluminum frame - has a distinctly curved back to it. From the photo's I've seen, the iPhone looks like it has a fairly flat back, correct? I just tried flexing my phone a bit, and it didn't seem to give much at all. I wouldn't be too surprised if that shape was deliberately chosen to give the HTC phone extra structural rigidity?

I guess I'm not too surprised to see some issues like that with the race to make these devices lighter, thinner, AND bigger.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[cheater512]

I never even considered bending with my Sony Z2 which isn't exactly a small phone. After several months of being in my jeans pockets a lot it is still dead flat. No warping when placed on a flat surface.

Re: Just don't update it that way.

[jackspenn]

You don't know what the extent is. You just have a small number of examples

Which, is why we're opening up the latest /. challenge.

We've slashdotted web sites before, but not retail stores. So what if in the name of science we go to Apple stores and test for ourselves? (We can publish experiments and their results on YouTube ... Oh the iRony)

Think of how helpful this will be; not only Apple designers, but for consumers as well.

Let's test the iPhone 6+ in tight pants, really tight pants, European tight pants, blue jeans, front pockets, back pockets, shirt pockets, skirt pockets and dare I suggest some of the boys over at the Scottish Apple store (or administrators of System V based Unix) try testing kilt pockets.

iLearn by example, so remember we need a control. Somebody is going to have to go to the NYC glass cube, buck naked. We need to know if your iPhone 6+ gets bent or not when the police choke hold you from behind.

Re: Just don't update it that way.

[jackspenn]

This is not rocket science

Nope, this is pocketscience.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Barsteward]

(Score:4, Informative) - i certainly wasn't aiming for that

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[bingoUV]

Looking at the video of someone bending an iPhone 6 Plus deliberately in their hands, the pressure needed is about the same as it would take to bend a key.

But much less than the pressure it would take to bend Moto X, a Lumia, Note 3, and iPhone 6.

Moto X, some Lumia, iPhone 6 bend much much less than iPhone 6+ on similar force. HTC One M8 bends more, though not as permanently as iPhone 6+.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[kannibal_klown]

Shape DOES help. The top and bottom of the soda can turn what would be a very very weak bag-of-liquid into something a bit more rigid.

However in the case of the HTC One (M8) it's fairly thicker than the iPhone as well. The middle of the back bulges out quite a fair bit, and the edges dont' come close to the iPhone6. That probably means a lot more material in general: thicker metal, more "stuff" inside the case, etc.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[necro81]

My keys are metal. They don't bend.

Ah, but do your keys have a 5.7" screen?

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[david_thornley]

I just tried to bend my 5S. I exerted a significant amount of force with no apparent success. If somebody bent one significantly, I want to know how.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[david_thornley]

I suspect this was behind the iPhone 4 antenna issue, also (although in practice it wasn't that bad). Apple doesn't extensively test the whole product with case in public, and from what I've heard the Apple campus has a strong signal, so dropping the equivalent of one bar (what I could do by licking my finger and putting it in the right place) didn't make much difference.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[rezme]

Might even be self deprecating too...

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[BasilBrush]

Well if we also have examples of the 5S being bent, and yet it hasn't proven to be a significant problem over the year, there is no reason to assume this one is.

ANY phone will either bent or break. It simply depends on how much stress you put on it.

The 5C is only a year old, not 2. And there's a financial compensation for that year - a significant price reduction. It's now free with a contract.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[exomondo]

Well if we also have examples of the 5S being bent, and yet it hasn't proven to be a significant problem over the year, there is no reason to assume this one is.

Except the new ones are much larger and significantly thinner, obviously making the possibility of deformation far more likely.

The 5C is only a year old, not 2. And there's a financial compensation for that year - a significant price reduction. It's now free with a contract.

The hardware is from the 5, which is 3 years old.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[exomondo]

Well i guess it mustn't have that issue then.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[turp182]

I wonder if they have a patent on the design. It would actually seem to be a reasonable patent in my opinion (structural support via a specific design).

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[BasilBrush]

Except the new ones are much larger and significantly thinner, obviously making the possibility of deformation far more likely.

An observation that applies to all "phablets".

The hardware is from the 5, which is 3 years old.

Same mistake. The iPhone 5 is 2 years old.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Dutch Gun]

It actually crossed my mind, but man, would that be lame if it were true. A curved backplate designed for strength is patentable? Every structural engineer on the planet learns this in his first year statics course (or probably in high school). I hope to high hell it isn't patented, even though I like my HTC One, because I'd just have to cry. Prior art includes soda and beer cans.

A quick search turned up no obvious hits, but I certainly could have missed it. Every time I searched, I got a lot of hits for Apple's patents on curved rectangles and curved batteries, etc.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[exomondo]

An observation that applies to all "phablets".

What other ones are as thin as the new iPhones, flat (because having a curve like the HTC one is better engineering as it gives added strength) and made of aluminium?

Same mistake. The iPhone 5 is 2 years old.

I meant 2, which is what I said in my original post regarding the 5C, it's 2 year old hardware which means by Apple standards it will be dog slow a year from now.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[BasilBrush]

"Look, all you need to do is get an Android phone from HTC for it's curved back. Then get an Android phone from Sony because their cameras are so good. Then get a Galaxy Note from Samsung for the largest screen. Then get a Nexus from Google to get a decent software experience. Finally, get a phone from Hauwei because theyâ(TM)re cheap. Then mash them all together and youâ(TM)ve got one phone thatâ(TM)s better than the iPhone!

"Thatâ(TM)ll work, right? Well, unless you mash them all together and get the worst of each one. Just mash carefully."

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[exomondo]

What are you talking about? The solution is to properly engineer the chassis of the iPhone to be more structurally sound rather than this stupid pursuit of thinness above all else. Nobody ever complained that even the old iPhone 3G was too thick.

Also I notice you avoided answering my followup question to your assertion:

An observation that applies to all "phablets".

What other ones are as thin as the new iPhones, flat (because having a curve like the HTC one is better engineering as it gives added strength) and made of aluminium?

Care to answer that one?

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[BasilBrush]

Would you have the decency to admit you were taken in by a myth, or are you going to go quiet now?

Clearly it's the latter.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[Plumpaquatsch]

Id like to believe if this issue was widespread, we would have heard about it when the note 3 launched.. or the GS5... or the (insert other flagship phone here) was released. I mean the iphone 6 hasnt been out a week, This will end up becoming a much bigger issue than antennagate

Yeah, because all the problems with Samsung products or labour issues had the same media exposure as those from Apple. And yes, this will be a bigger issue than Antennagate, because nobody but the haters will care about it in 4 weeks instead of 3 weeks.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[BasilBrush]

That question became irrelevant given that the premise that the iPhones are worse than the HTC One was wrong. Even if it were relevant, if you want to know go look - I certainly don't follow Android designs.

But you are still ignoring the fact that the phone you presented as a paradigm is more easily bent than the iPhone 6 Plus and the same as the iPhone 6. Evidence via Consumer Reports.You had a chance to prove you weren't just a hater troll, and you failed.

End of conversation. You've proven yourself not to be interested in the truth.

Re:Just don't update it that way.

[exomondo]

That question became irrelevant given that the premise that the iPhones are worse than the HTC One was wrong. Even if it were relevant, if you want to know go look - I certainly don't follow Android designs.

It isn't irrelevant, you stated it and I can't find any evidence of it so you're called out as a liar, unless you can back it up, but you can't.

But you are still ignoring the fact that the phone you presented as a paradigm is more easily bent than the iPhone 6 Plus and the same as the iPhone 6. Evidence via Consumer Reports.You had a chance to prove you weren't just a hater troll, and you failed.

End of conversation. You've proven yourself not to be interested in the truth.

No, actually it is you who is not interested in the truth. Explain to me what exactly is it in that Consumer Reports test that is being tested? Is that thing on the end of the actuator supposed to represent some really thin leg? And the smartphone has somehow wedged horizontally down in one's pocket? Come on, don't be an idiot.

Frankly the level of stupidity on this issue is just astounding and now you are actually going to look at this test and tell me you genuinely think that is representative of a real world situation? Really? You point to that report and then call me a "hater troll"? No, I have a 6+ and it's great, I hope it doesn't bend and I don't really think it will but I'm not a shill, I'm not going to look at that test and pretend it demonstrates anything about real world usage.

it's a new feature

[alen]

to make sure you don't use up your mobile data quota

No big deal

[Anonymous Coward]

Just ask Siri to fix it for ya

Re:No big deal

[plover]

"Cortana, can you fix my buggy iPhone update?"

"You bought an iPhone. Oh, dear. There is a Microsoft store ten miles south of you. Would you like directions?"

Re:No big deal

[ArcadeMan]

"You bought an iPhone. Oh, dear. There is a Microsoft store ten thousand miles south of you. Would you like directions?"

FTFY.

Re:No big deal

[LynnwoodRooster]

Or he used Apple Maps to find the nearest Microsoft store?

Re:No big deal

[Anguirel]

"You will arrive in 5 minutes... 8 hours... 20 seconds... 92 years... 23 minutes... 18 days..."

From bent to broken?

[blueshift_1]

Apple sure is mucking up this one... from bendable phones to buggy software. You know it's rough when you're creating issues with both hardware and software (but who is ultimately to blame?!? - the usual chicken and the egg argument).

Re:From bent to broken?

[geekoid]

I don't think software has much to be blamed for when the case is bending, and I don't think the case is to be blamed for buggy software.

And no, it's almost never a chicken and egg problem. It is often a blame game hidden behind people saying its a chicken and egg problem.

ha ha

[enjar]

I wonder what Tim Cook's chosen "it's a crappy day in the neighborhood" anger outlet is?
Ballmer threw chairs.

Re:ha ha

[synapse7]

I'm surprised they didn't take their normal stance of denial, maybe that was only a Jobs trait.

Re:ha ha

[plover]

One of the many advantages of jailbreaking is that I have no temptation to upgrade until someone releases a jailbreak for the new version. I probably won't be updating to iOS 8 for months, at which time it will be only to a reasonably stable version.

Of course the buggier they are, the easier it is for the guys to find an exploitable vulnerability. Maybe I should install 8.0.1.

Re:ha ha

[enjar]

Denial is a river in Egypt, but good luck finding it with Apple Maps.

Re:ha ha

[Ash-Fox]

I really wish Apple would be successful in locking people out from jail breaking their devices. Then we could focus more on open platforms instead instead of wasting effort on a platform never intended to be open.

Re:ha ha

[gigne]

ja know geography good an ting!

Re:ha ha

[enjar]

Siri? Is that you?

Re:ha ha

[Ash-Fox]

Don't try to wish away the rights of others to do what the fuck they want.

Too bad, I am. I think it's self destructive to continue down the path of making these locked down platforms popular if your intent is to open it. The open alternatives will die out and at that point, they merely need to succeed in locking out and nobody will have open systems any more. I want locked down platforms to succeed in locking down now, rather than later.

Re:ha ha

[Ash-Fox]

If the open platforms die, they were worthless to begin with.

Or maybe the platform couldn't generate the funding necessary to maintain development at the scale closed platforms are doing; eventually exhausting resources playing catch up and dying out. That doesn't make it worthless, it just shows theres an economic issue to contend with.

However, if the closed down platform actually can't provide what people want, which is something open, then this will help generate interest and further development on open platforms.

Make one that is better than any of the current closed platforms.

The comes back to the economic problem in developing things at a high pace.

Here's a prediction: In 5 years, people like me who are completely platform agnostic will be happier than you.

And for some reason you think I'm not? I'm using some proprietary phones right now; I am not however endorsing jail breaking them or using them as open platforms.

how many of them feature actual improvements and how many feature buggy bullshit because no one bothered to make the code work before slapping their branding on it?

I wouldn't know, I barely use Android outside of the stock Xperia Z rom and my cheap Chinese knock off netbook running Android.

I don't care what platform I use as long as it does what I want, even if it takes a bit of work to jailbreak/root/whatever.

I hope one day that DRM works effectively and stops people like you getting 'what you want' from a platform not intended to be open.

If I were stuck on open platforms I'd be screwed.

I didn't endorse using open platforms exclusively.

I don't want to add all of the Microsoft Office things that I like to OpenOffice.

I pay a subscription for Microsoft Office, I use Office 365 on my Linux machines and Microsoft Office (desktop software) on my Windows machines.

So I use the right tool for the job.

Except you aren't, because you're jailbreaking to get access to features that are for an open platform.

Re:ha ha

[Ash-Fox]

If I pay for a device then it's none of your business whether I jailbreak it, break it outright, wipe my ass with it, load a different OS on it, or use it for target practice. None. That's like telling me I'm not allowed to get tattoos even though I own my own skin or telling me that a screwdriver should only be used on screws and not to pry something open.

I made it my business, what are you going to do about it, buddy?

However, I now see you have a deeper problem than just being a greasy basement dweller. You're a corporate worshiper.

You really spend a lot of time on ad hominem attacks. They don't however make your argument for you.

You didn't speak to how you were going to make open platforms good enough that someone would actually want to use them though. I'm interested in hearing that.

Through shutting out alternatives that only serve as false promises, it will generate more development interests in other platforms. With the maturity of opensource solutions, it is unlikely people will venture for writing a new platform from scratch.

By using Microsoft Office you're keeping the open platforms down.

I'm not opposed to using closed platforms for their intended use. Right tool for the job and all that. You aren't very good at reading people over the Internet.

Re:ha ha

[Ash-Fox]

If you truly believe in the value of open platforms you should support them with all you have.

I don't. I think they could be important and I feel that we'd only ever know once it's too late. It will become quite clear if economic factors are resolved behind it, if it's really relevant or not to a platform.

None of this half-assed bullshit. It's not an economic problem, it's that they suck.

I personally dislike practically every platform out there, they all suck in my opinion. That hasn't stopped others becoming more successful despite sucking more.

No, I kind of assumed that since you wanted open platforms that you actually supported them rather than expecting everyone else to so that it would be easier for you to jump on the bandwagon

No, what you assumed was that I was some sort of opensource zealot and that you had me all figured out.

My bad. From now on I'll assume that just because someone pays something lip-service means they're doing the opposite of what they preach.

But I am doing what I preach. I haven't jail broken my iPad, I haven't rooted my Xperia Z, I did root my Nexus S, which offered the functionality to do so without need for exploits etc.

On a serious note, why is intended use such a big deal to you?

It's not so much the intended use, as much as when there has been an explicit design decision against it, policy decisions against it and the why for that is because best case scenarios don't play out then and you end up with horrible cobbled together shit on every side. As well as the eventual inevitability.

The truth of the matter is that closing the holes that allow jailbreaking/rooting/whatever won't magically make open platforms better. It just means people will stop doing the things that they were jailbreaking/rooting for until someone finds a new way to do it.

Alternatively, it means people will focus doing open development on an open platform instead. After all, if you're aware that say the iPhone doesn't do jail braking anymore, and you don't want to get a device you can't do interesting/open development on, you may end up choosing and improving another solution that offers what you're looking for.

Alternatively, nothing happens and that is proof that open systems aren't necessary, wanted or used.

I bet you'd hate the guitarist community. Tons of people mod their pedals and amplifiers in ways not intended by the manufacturer.

Along with ad hominem attacks, you really love using arguments like the fallacy of the single cause, don't you?

Re:ha ha

[Ash-Fox]

As a friendly note, had I been you; I would have taken back that ridiculous false attribution argument you used, which children use in pre-school, "it's none of your business" as a retort to anything. If matters as these were genuinely an issue to you, you wouldn't have gone on your tirade of ad hominem attacks (fortunately for me, they're not even the truth) on someone's personal life, since, it would have been 'none of your business'.

I am surprised you did respond to my silly response to that.

Re:ha ha

[david_thornley]

Speaking as a happy iPhone owner...if you want an open platform, get an Android phone (and make sure it isn't locked down first). I personally don't care whether my phone is open or closed, so it doesn't bother me.

Re:ha ha

[Ash-Fox]

Speaking as a happy iPhone owner...if you want an open platform, get an Android phone (and make sure it isn't locked down first). I personally don't care whether my phone is open or closed, so it doesn't bother me.

I completely support you to do that.

I'm a PC. And I'm a bricked iPhone who can't call

[JoeyRox]

911 to get an ambulance to help my brother who just had a heart attack.

ha ha

[Anonymous Coward]

Well I guess this blows the whole "Apple it just works" argument out of the water. The new slogan can be "Apple we will patch that patch soon".

All is lost!

[Virtucon]

The world is in a panic! Apple fucked up, no biggie oh wait all those new iPhones bending and now IOS 8 taking a shit! Yeah it can happen to them too fanboys!

Re:All is lost!

[Noah Haders]

dude, if you have a really long, really thin piece of aluminum and you flex it really hard it might bend. news at 11. what do people expect. it's like blaming apple if the screen cracks when you drop it on concrete or asphalt. hint: don't do that.

I don't know anything about the iOS8 issue. I assume there may have been an effect on 1 or 2 phones, but likely something else was going on. so they pulled it, are checking their ducks, and will release it. nothing to see here.

in the meaintime, I'm left with my iphone 5 because I'm not going to upgrade to one of those novelty large toy phones.

Re:All is lost!

[Ash-Fox]

My Xperia Z screen doesn't crack on concrete or asphalt.

Re:All is lost!

[ganjadude]

I'm not going to upgrade to one of those novelty large toy phones.

Must not be such a novelty or a toy being that everyone is now making them bigger...

Re:All is lost!

[Noah Haders]

I just hope that with the iphone 7 apple makes a regular size one. otherwise I'll be keeping my 5s for a long time. big phones are for teenagers who can't afford an iphone.

Re:All is lost!

[Virtucon]

I understand the metallurgy however I don't think folks laying out $600 plus for a phone were thinking that it would crease so easily. Phones bending like that under normal use, not abuse, isn't something that people were expecting. As for software bugs they happen to everybody, it's nice to see that Apple for once is caught in a face palm moment.

Re:All is lost!

[Noah Haders]

I'm not convinced this is a "you're holding it wrong" moment. I've seen lots of videos online of people trying to bend the phone as hard as they can and getting no give.

Re:All is lost!

[Anonymous Coward]

Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance.

Re:All is lost!

[Virtucon]

I don't know, all I've known is what's been written about it. That and the IOS 8 foul ups.

Re: All is lost!

[Ash-Fox]

Nope, I just used it to post this comment too.

Ease of Use

[WarJolt]

I am an Android user, but I've always said that iOS wasn't designed for me. I've said it is great a great product if you want a simple to use smartphone that just works. I think this type of failure really makes me think twice about repeating that advice. Apple success has depended on creating clean products with extreme attention to detail. I'm really disappointed.

Re: Ease of Use

[Redbehrend]

There is a difference between a screw up and plain lies lol. They have one of the top jailbreakers working for them and they didn't know? Riiiight

Re:Ease of Use

[geekoid]

I have a nexus, and it's a simple phone that just works, JUST LIKE EVERY PIECE OF ELECTRONICS IS SUPPOSE TO.
What other company wold have that kind of Gall. Samsung Microwave: It just works.

Re:Ease of Use

[Bing Tsher E]

Nexus devices don't have SD slots. Because google finds it harder to sift through your data when it's not on their 'cloud.'

Re:Ease of Use

[rolfwind]

Yeah, um, Apple products have always been plagued with blatant oversights (like the antennas years back). Seems every new generation of iPhone has something wrong with it at the start. A lot of it is extreme attention. The other thing is to never be the first to buy a new product or download a major update.

In case of a phone, let the crowd rush in for a couple months and pick up the one with small hardware revisions in November or January. Same with downloads.

Re:Ease of Use

[dave420]

You could claim that, or you could actually find out the real reason and not post things to slashdot which scream "I have no idea what I'm saying, but I hate Google so much I'll gladly make a fool out of myself just to try!".

So iOS 8.0.1 blocks histers from their phones?

[_xeno_]

Wait, so iOS 8.0.1 prevents hipsters from unlocking their phones and from making calls?

And Apple is calling that a bug and pulling the update over that?

This sounds like the best version of iOS Apple has ever created! Why would they want to stop people from upgrading? Get iOS 8.0.1 out to everyone as fast as possible!

These jokes are old, get new material please.

[Anonymous Coward]

1) The "don't hold it that way" joke.

2) The "it's a new feature" joke.

3) The "it just works" joke.

I dislike Apple as much as the next person, but these are lazy jokes that we shouldn't support. I want to see fresh, new material, not the same recycled garbage.

Re:These jokes are old, get new material please.

[enjar]

I want to see fresh, new material, not the same recycled garbage.

I think you will need to look to the Android jokes for that. Apple is a couple of years behind and is playing catch-up. Maybe when the Apple Watch ships, we'll get concurrent updates to the bad humor.

Re:These jokes are old, get new material please.

[SternisheFan]

No reason to get 'bent' out of shape.

(ducks!)

Re:These jokes are old, get new material please.

[sjames]

At Apple we bend over backwards to bring you the thinnest phones?

Re:These jokes are old, get new material please.

[The Grim Reefer]

1) The "don't hold it that way" joke.

2) The "it's a new feature" joke.

3) The "it just works" joke.

I dislike Apple as much as the next person, but these are lazy jokes that we shouldn't support. I want to see fresh, new material, not the same recycled garbage.

Actually I thought the first two words in the title out of context was pretty funny.

Apple yanks...

Not a bug but a feature!

[dysmal]

Apple got sick of people complaining about data and battery usage so they released this update.

Re:Not a bug but a feature!

[Virtucon]

Need mod points +1 Funny

Re:Higher standard anyone?

[Moheeheeko]

Even funnier is that sometimes it takes 6 months for 3rd party products to pass their QA, meanwhile their own software that bricks phones gets shat out in less than a week.

Shocking.

[technomom]

"Apple never releases anything until it actually works." -- Quote from an Apple fanboy Fanboys.....just a tip, never use the term "Never" or "Always" regarding your favorite toy. That goes for Android, Apple, Windows, Blackberry, whatever. These companies have people working for them. Some good, some great, some really suck at their jobs. They're all just people, not superheroes. Sometimes Apple fucks up. Sometimes Google does. Sometimes Microsoft does. It happens. Get over it. Your phone is just another finicky appliance no matter how shiny the bendable aluminum is.

Re:Shocking.

[ArcadeMan]

To summarize the summary of the summary: people are a problem. Douglas Adams

Re:Shocking.

[jellomizer]

From my understanding the update is fine. The problem is in installing the update.

I expect the actual cause isn't in the code, but a setting in their method of pushing software. They probably kept the iPhone 6 values secrete, until it was released and they didn't quite setup the update to automatically handle the 6s yet.

I bet in a few days we will get a working fix.

Re:Shocking.

[sjames]

From my understanding the update is fine. The problem is in installing the update.

As long as you don't install the update everything is fine? :-)

Re:Shocking.

[tlhIngan]

From my understanding the update is fine. The problem is in installing the update.

I expect the actual cause isn't in the code, but a setting in their method of pushing software. They probably kept the iPhone 6 values secrete, until it was released and they didn't quite setup the update to automatically handle the 6s yet.

I bet in a few days we will get a working fix.

No, apparently the OTA update is broken (the update that is just a delta and can be downloaded to the device to update it. The OTA update is basically just a huge patch containing just the files that changed. Almost always it means Apple missed a file.

The iTunes update is fine because iTunes basically erases the entire partition and puts down a fresh copy of everything. It's why iTunes has to download a 1GB file to update, when your phone just gets a tiny update.

(if you want to really clean it, you do a factory restore which erases everything and then puts on a fresh copy of the OS and reformats the user partition, then you restore it from backup).

Re:Shocking.

[Anubis IV]

So, not only have you assembled a straw man to tear apart, you also fabricated a straw person to attack in the first place.

Companies are fallible. We get it. We agree. There's no need to create a fictional quote from a fictional person to make your point.

Meet Apple, the new Microsoft

[ArcadeMan]

Meanwhile, Microsoft 2014 is becoming Apple 2004.

Time to switch to Nintendo OS, I guess.

Re:Meet Apple, the new Microsoft

[RogueyWon]

Nintendo OS?

I hope you're looking forward to only being able to post to slashdot using a sequence of happy-face emoticons.

Sad-face emoticons might upset people, so those are banned.

And words? Words?!?! Won't somebody think of the children?

Oops

[jovius]

Pulled back after the release? Time to head for the pharmacy.

itunes fix

[SternisheFan]

How to Downgrade From Apple's Fatally Flawed iOS 8.0.1 Back to iOS

://mashable.com/2014/09/24/how-to-downgrade-ios-8-0-1/

Direct link if you want to try to fix an iPhone 6 through iTunes. http://appldnld.apple.com/iOS8...

Here is for the 6+ http://appldnld.apple.com/iOS8...

Re:itunes fix

[SternisheFan]

http://mashable.com/2014/09/24...

http://www.cnet.com/uk/news/ap...

Re:But Apple...just...works?

[alen]

think of it as an unofficial soak test like google does with android updates that have bricked phones

Re:Higher standard anyone?

[_xeno_]

Apparently this only affects iPhone 6/6 Plus phones.

I wonder what the chances are that they just accidentally forgot to include the drivers for the new TouchID sensor and the new cellular radios in those phones? Because that would be a truly hilarious QA mistake.

"What, we were supposed to try this on our flagship phone? Oops."

Re:Higher standard anyone?

[ArcadeMan]

Nobody in QA was able to afford the new models yet.

Laugh

[koan]

They make the hardware, they write the software, and they still can't get it right.

Re:Laugh

[Virtucon]

Walled garden has weeds!

Re:Laugh

[Nyder]

Walled garden has weeds!

Which is legal in CO & WA

Re:But Apple...just...works?

[wile_e8]

But Google doesn't market Android as "It just works"

Re:Higher standard anyone?

[Anonymous Coward]

Nobody in QA was able to afford the new models yet.

Nah, they tested 'em to see if they would all bend and break.

And they all did.

Re:Higher standard anyone?

[ArcadeMan]

Maybe we do need flexible screens after all, because people are idiots.

Re:But Apple...just...works?

[Virtucon]

I've had Android devices for quite awhile, I even have CM11 on a couple and no brick problems. Other bugs to be sure, but no bricks.

Apple's QA vs. Android's QA

[funkymonkjay]

I am wondering how a company that has all the money and talent can't catch a bug like this. Their test surface is laughably small compared to what Android or Windows has to support. What is going on there? What process are they using?

Re:Apple's QA vs. Android's QA

[ZorinLynx]

I suspect they derped the packaging of the release. Its behavior highly suggests missing files or wrong versions.

It's still inexcusable though. Updates should be pushed to a few dozen people inside the company to test the possibility of showstoppers like this one.

Re:Apple's QA vs. Android's QA

[jc42]

I am wondering how a company that has all the money and talent can't catch a bug like this. Their test surface is laughably small compared to what Android or Windows has to support. What is going on there? What process are they using?

It's a well-known software phenomenon: The time it takes to build and debug a program is proportional to the number of people involved. Some argue that it's closer to the square of the number of people (due to the number of interactions in the graph connecting the portions written by different programmers). If you want a bug-free app developed quickly, give it to one person, and make sure that one person understands the problem well.

Actually, a more fun analysis says that the time is really just a function of the (square of the) number of managers managing the development team. But that might be taking cynicism a bit too seriously.

Also, iTunes v11.4 broke stuff.

[antdude]

USB issues: http://www.google.com/search?q...

I saw this in my VMware Fusion Pro v7 images after updating them recently. :O

Apple's QA is really bad these days. Companies really need to do better with their QA!

John Gruber's take

[Trashcan Romeo]

"Embarrassing." Meaning this was too egregious a fuck-up for even him to rationalize.

Steve Jobs?

[CrashNBrn]

Steve Jobs. It's all his fault for not running the company anymore. They should'a animated his corpse or something.

What the fuck is up with this time-post-limiter. I'm logged in for christ's-sake and it's two different articles.

Re:Steve Jobs

[bobbied]

As sad as it sounds, I think you are right. Steve was apparently an SOB to work for, making demands and taking no excuses for failure, but that's what it takes to stay on top with technology. I'm thinking that they are falling into the corporate "manage to quarter" mindset. They are just running in the same well worn rut now and will follow Steve into the grave...

Question is who will replace them.

Market opportunity

[MillionthMonkey]

I may actually buy an iphone... if it can run an app that immediately sells my AAPL shares whenever the phone installs an update.

Re:Market opportunity

[turp182]

That would be an awesome app.

Behaviour

[hduff]

Apple behaves more like Microsoft every day.

just wait a year

[issicus]

i'm sure iOS 9 and iphone 7 will be better.

Re: But Apple...just...works?

[feranick]

No, their slogan is... "Beta". It's all a matter of expectations...

Re:IvePhone a Distaster

[Ron Goodman]

It's such a disaster they sold 10 million the first weekend? Right. I won't be worrying about Apple for a while yet.

Shaka, when the walls fell

[ThatsNotPudding]

Or at least, cracks (and bends) are starting to appear...

Re:Higher standard anyone?

[acoustix]

For all of the marketing, cutting edge...

I stopped reading there. Apple is many things, but cutting edge is not one of them. There is nothing revolutionary about the iPhone 6. Android phones already had the majority of Apple's new features 2 years ago....and so did poor BlackBerry.