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Some Smartphone Salesmen Aren't Sold on the iPhone X (cnet.com)
A CNET reporter visited four carrier stores to ask their salesmen if they'd recommend an iPhone X. But after visiting stores for Sprint, T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon, "I couldn't even find a salesperson to tell me it was the best iPhone I could buy." So he finally tried asking three salesmen at Apple Stores -- and still got equivocal answers. An anonymous reader quotes CNET's report:
"Well, it depends on what you like," the salesman said, somewhat coyly. "The biggest problem I have with it is using Face ID for Apple Pay. You really have to put the phone at a certain angle or it doesn't work." He started with a problem. I was already suspicious. I was in something of a hurry, but I asked him: "So are you selling a lot more of these than other phones?"
He turned into a high-ranking member of a political party. "All our phones sell well," he said. Which sounded not entirely reassuring. Indeed, it sounded like a "no."
Chatting next with an Apple store "Genius" (who was testing his iPhone 6), CNET's reporter was told that "The X and the 8 are the same phone... Inside, I mean. With the X, you're just paying the extra money for the design." Unfortunately, that salesman's $999 iPhone X was wrapped in an ugly pink case, because after four weeks he'd already cracked it. And a third Apple salesman -- who touted the glories of an OLED screen -- also kept his iPhone X in a case at all times "It's glass," he explained. "You'll definitely need a case."
"But what about not being able to see the lovely phone?"
"Get a see-through case," he replied with a smile.
He turned into a high-ranking member of a political party. "All our phones sell well," he said. Which sounded not entirely reassuring. Indeed, it sounded like a "no."
Chatting next with an Apple store "Genius" (who was testing his iPhone 6), CNET's reporter was told that "The X and the 8 are the same phone... Inside, I mean. With the X, you're just paying the extra money for the design." Unfortunately, that salesman's $999 iPhone X was wrapped in an ugly pink case, because after four weeks he'd already cracked it. And a third Apple salesman -- who touted the glories of an OLED screen -- also kept his iPhone X in a case at all times "It's glass," he explained. "You'll definitely need a case."
"But what about not being able to see the lovely phone?"
"Get a see-through case," he replied with a smile.
http://dilbert.com/strip/2017-...
#DeleteFacebook
You can't really argue much that Apple pushed at the right time with the right product with the right app infrastructure, support etc. iPhones were king mainly because of the app store and how easy it was to use. Noone could even compare (no they couldn't) and Droids, or whatever they were called were lackluster in support, the apps were trash and the app stores were trash. Hell they couldn't even agree on the same os to support things. Apple succeeded because it had all that.
Fast forward to today. Apple has lost that edge. They've also lost the vision people have when using their smartphones. They are moving back to their roots where "Apple knows best" except now... there are much better offerings. I'll be honest, I've been an Apple phone guy since iPhone 4 and bought a 5, 6 and 7. It ended with 8 and their "we know best" removal of ports, constant fighting with app developers and trying to control the playing field when it's not their field anymore.
The X was the real shining moment that Apple was completely out of touch with what the majority of people want. Followed up by the bonehead move involving the batteries. Apple is struggling as people aren't playing ball with them anymore and instead of accepting what they are giving... now demand something better.
I honestly have no idea what my next phone will be but I know for sure it won't be an iPhone. They aren't even close to the best phone anymore.
I'd like to think I'm past the "ooh, I want the new shiny" thing - more or less. Going forward, my "new phone" budget is going to be roughly $500, and it's going to be spent every 3-4 years.
But, in any case, this reads like a hit piece. "Tech writer goes into a story with an agenda, manages to confirm it."
#DeleteChrome
As of this weekend, that word no longer means what you think it does.
You are welcome on my lawn.
End of this month is Apple’s quarterly earnings call, which will include the commercial effect of iphone X. Then we will know whether they were succesful or not. I still see people queuing to pick up their X at the local Applestore, hence my bet is on it being a commercial success, despite cherry-picked negative articles on slashdot.
Apple has lost its edge mainly by succumbing to its own "function follows form" dogma. The main features of any iPhone are sleekness and thinness, which both compromise functionality.
Cases are a necessity because these devices are designed to be fragile, gouging the customer again for the case itself and/or the inevitable repair/replacement of the device.
It's a vicious scam, and unfortunately every handset OEM is convinced they must follow Apple's lead.
While I do have two issues with FaceID, and a couple others regarding the missing home button... it is impossible for me to believe this story. The screen is a huge selling point, and you get the same real-estate as a plus but in the smaller form factor. FaceID is great for trivial security and for securing the phone.
So, my complaints: I am not comfortable with FaceID for securing banking passwords... but it is too secure for storing my /. password; I can't use FaceID while laying on my side in bed. For the home button, the inconsistencies between devices now is a pain.
But hell.... it is the best phone I have owned.
I bought the iPhone X and think it's one of the better phone upgrades in some time. Because of FaceID it is the first phone in a while that feels like a real jump from a previous model instead of incremental improvement. For me I prefer generally how FaceID works generally over TouchID, which includes ApplePay... FaceID works without conscious thought, so it feels like you are using a phone with no passcode.
I will agree that the X is slippery, but I still use it without a case in day to day life. However traveling with it I still plan to use a case.
There is no way going forward I would buy a phone that did not have FaceID. I was planning to upgrade an iPad but I'm going to wait until that supports FaceID as well... If they do that they will need to support more than one person though.
I've seen people claiming the sales were lower than expected but I'm pretty sure that will not be the case since the pre-order wait times were really long compared to other phones.
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
This silly idea of Apple ever having an edge on phones comes from the fact that American carriers had long cockblocked Nokia. The original iPhone was a sleek-looking featurephone that could not hold a candle to the true flagship smartphone of that year, the N95.
I'm trying to imagine the person who goes "This screen doesn't have a bezel? But that's the best part of the phone! No sale!!"
I read the internet for the articles.
He said it was corner cases.
For me FaceID works more often than TouchID does (and I know for sure because for testing reasons I often still use my iPhone 7).
In fact the X is great precisely because it REMOVES a lot of small annoyances you didn't even know were present in phones. Like I said in another post using an X feels like using an unlocked phone, in a way TouchID never did (even though TouchID did make it much easier to unlock a phone).
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
Face ID and the missing home button are a poor compromise
The thing is, it's not a compromise at all. The way the iPhone X works is the way phones should work, period. It is WAY BETTER than a home button or virtual home buttons were. Going back to using a home button based device like an iPad or older iPhone just feels archaic now, the gesture based controls are easier for everyone to work with and the way you activate control center actually works 100% of the time now (before pulling up from bottom edge would sometimes not bring up control center if the keyboard was also up, really annoying).
"There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley