With Steve Jobs Gone, How Will Apple's Software Fare Vs. Windows 8 & Android? Discussion

Now that Steve Jobs is gone, will Apple be able to stick to the same high levels of innovation that have sparked groundbreaking products like the iPad, iOS, iTunes and Mac OS X over the past three decades? For this to happen, Jobs' carefully put together management team needs to stay as open to new ideas -- and new talent -- as Jobs did throughout his lifetime, and maybe the same willingness to take chances against rivals.

Read the full content of this Article: With Steve Jobs Gone, How Will Apple's Software Fare Vs. Windows 8 & Android?

Related Articles:

• Steve Jobs: His Life, His Death, And What It Means For Apple
• Windows 8: Consumers & Businesses Catch Early Bugs
• McAfee Releases 'All Access' Security for PCs, Macs, Tablets & Phones
• 10 Key Features in Windows 8
• Microsoft Gives Sneak Peek at Windows 8 Browsing, Photo Sharing, Tools
• Steve Jobs Resigns: The End of the Apple Era?
• Apple Releases New MacBook Air with Intel Sandy Bridge
• As XP Dies, Will Users Step to Windows 7, 8 or Something Else?

 

Android has shown little success in the tablet market and will continue to do so as it lacks innovation and just copies the iPad... The only thing it has the iPad beat in is price now that the Kindle Fire is coming out... but even then the iPad will still dominate it because the iPad is better in every other way and has a MUCH superior App Store.

With tablets, the software and ecosystem is the most important thing first and foremost - and I, an unfortunate owner of an Android phone, am not impressed with it.

The only competition I think the iPad will have are Windows 8 tablets - that is because Microsoft is taking a totally different (and riskier) approach - but I think it might work. Instead of creating a totally different ecosystem for their tablets, Microsoft is integrating their current, most powerful ecosystem, Windows, and integrating it into their tablet design.

If Microsoft can get a Windows 8 tablet that is the size of the original iPad, run it on ARM, have battery life of atleast 8-9 realistic hours, it will be highly successful. Even better is if they come up with a way to run x86 code when a person desperately needs it.

 

*sigh* I guarantee you that most people who purchase Apple products don't bother to glance at most of the specifications.

MOST AVERAGE buyers buy the sleek, amazing, look and buy it because it's Apple.

Apple will continue thriving.
Haters will continue hating.

 

That might be true for some, but you aren't giving enough credit to Apple.

The iPad is the best tablet on the market right now. I don't think there is any disputing that.

 

Agreed, main reason Apple will continue thriving is marketing(like it has been) and everyone wants to have an Apple.(alot of my friends are like that...i want to punch some sense into them lol)

 

Lacks innovation, copies the iPad?

My widgets, flash support, animated wallpapers and keyboard dock (Asus EEE Pad) all beg to differ.

 

How are those innovative AT ALL?

And who honestly needs flash support? While it would be nice to have it as an option of the iPad, it isn't that big of a deal. I disabled flash on my Galaxy S and I haven't looked back. Flash is a sinking ship, and thankfully so.

 

I dunno, iOS is probably the most refined tablet OS on the market, but I think there's an argument to be made that the Samsung Galaxy Tab has better hardware (particularly the cameras), and the Sony Tablet S is not only a more unique physical design, but also a better fit for multimedia-oriented types ("throwing" media to Bravias, and universal remote control) and gamers (as Sony expands the number of PS1/PS2 titles available on it). In my mind, the iPad 2, the Galaxy Tab, and the Tablet S are the "big three" tablets out there in terms of what they bring to the table, and which is best for each consumer depends on what each consumer wants out of a tablet. All three are really solid options. Yeah, the iPad 2 is dominating sales right now because of name recognition, but that's not the end of the inquiry in my mind.

Review Apple iPad 2 Tablet/MID - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

Review Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1v Tablet/MID - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

Review Sony S1 SGP-T111DE/S Tablet - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

 

It's a safe bet that you'd describe anything less than what I have listed as 'innovative'.

They're nice features that make Honeycomb a better tablet Operating System than an upscaled version of iOS. That is, taking advantage of more screen real-estate. That's an innovation, not a very large one, but still an improvement over iOS.

As for Flash, it's still one of the biggest platforms for web content, whether Apple likes it or not.

 

Yeah, it's one of the biggest platforms for advertisements and banners.

Flash is becoming a non-factor in any platform nowadays. The proof is in the pudding. There is a reason why Windows 8 tablet version is also not going to have flash support for IE10: Flash sucks up system resources like no tomorrow, it is unreliable compared to other alternatives (Silverlight, HTML5), and really, unless you want to fiddle with flash games on your tablet, it's useless.

I would say the whole market for tablets pausing and waiting for the iPad to come out means it was pretty innovative. Until the iPad came out, what a tablet was was a large, ugly, ineffective touchscreen with terrible battery life running Windows or some version of Linux that wasn't build for touchscreens making for a frustrating user experience. Apple innovated in the way we view a tablet today. Google and the other tablet manufacturers followed.

While decent alternatives are spawning up like the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, it is the same price as an iPad, yet for most people (95% of people), the iPad would better suit them just because of the much superior App Store, better build quality, and stabler software. The Sony I am going to completely disregard as it gets something like 5 hours of battery life, something completely unacceptable for a tablet.

 

Don't know what build qualities you speak of but the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is a monster. It's thin, sleek and solid and the screen is 10 out of 10 and all the reviews back that up. I own one btw.

With that said my next Tablet will probably be an iPad 3 only because I have a WebOS, Android Tablets. Might as well complete the circle lol.

 

I loved WebOS on phones. Was solid, too bad the hardware they packaged with it was god awful.

 

19.5 hours of battery life at idle
6.5 hours of battery life doing video playback
5.5 hours of battery life surfing over wifi

Source: http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Sony-S1-SGP-T111DE-S-Tablet.63456.0.html (i.e., not just claimed numbers)

Yes, this is less than the iPad offers. Some people might want more. But for a lot of people, that's more than enough. I can't imagine sitting with a tablet being on the internet for more than 5.5 hours straight. I can't imagine using a tablet for more than 5.5 hours per day. For how I would use a tablet--intermittently throughout the day, plugging it in at night--these are totally adequate numbers.

Anything more is as irrelevant TO ME (and probably any others) as the one-month-versus-two-month battery life race for e-readers. Really, who thinks it's inconvenient to plug in a reader every thirty days?

On the other hand, the Tablet S does some things you can't do with an iPad, that I would want to do. Sending streaming video to a Bravia TV. Acting as a universal remote for any electronic device (muting your Samsung TV with your tablet, surfing the web on the tablet during the commercial break, turning the sound back on afterward). Playing Wild Arms and other PS1/PS2 games.

 

You imply that tablets are the only internet capable devices around.

Isn't most of your argument just anecdotes? I.e. 'It's better because I said so.'

The Asus EEE Pad has batter life which exceeds the iPad when plugged into the keyboard dock (and we're talking a dock here, not an unwieldy carry-about bluetooth keyboard), and comes close to matching it without. It has an OS which is designed for tablets, not just a scaled-up version of Android for phones, both cameras are higher resolution than the iPad's, the build quality is comparable. Most importantly, the price is right (~£400 for the keyboard model).

 

First of all:
Flash is a quite important platform nowdays. Whole games are getting ported and are based on flash. Not to mention all those little browser games, video streamings, etc. It is (and was for me when I still used apple products) one of its biggest downsides compared to Android. There were hundrets of nice videos/movies but I couldn't watch any since the iPhone doesn't (didn't?) have flash support. And flash isn't resource hungry at all.. not as long as you use windows instead of Mac OSX which somehow can't get flash working properly for years already. I believe that you can find a HTML5 vs Flash comparison on Wikipedia. It will show you, that HTML5 uses even more resources than Flash on some systems. How can flash be resource hungry when I can play pretty much every flash content on my phone?

Now, everyone is copying apple.. yeye in a few years people will buy an apple (fruit) in the supermarket and wonder if the supermarket got the patent rights for it. The only real innovation that apple ever made was the ipod and maybe those iMac's (screen + computer in once piece). I bought the iPhone 3g when it got released. I couldn't record videos, I couldn't write MMS... jesus I couldn't even use a music-file as ringtone or as alarm (as long as you don't jailbreak it) ! With iPhone 3gs the iOS (and there for the iPhone) was finally at a state where it was acceptable as a phone for todays standards. And at this point we already had 700 other touchscreen phones that performed better. Then the iPhone4 came with again, a totally new innovation which is called video-calling. Ironic thing on that new and world changing innovation (I think thats how Steve Jobs described it) is that I already did some video-calling 8 years before the iPhone 4.. and guess what, I didn't even need a WiFi connection for it. I wouldn't call that copying.. I would rather call it: Wait until my product is ready for the market instead releasing some useless crap for the price of a new notebook. And even today the iOS is far behind Android in my opinion. It starts with being forced to use iTunes (I won't even start talking about iTunes ) comes to the app-market were 50% of the good apps aren't allowed and ends with the functionality and usage of the whole OS. It might be easier to learn/get used to, but in the end I found Android to be faster, better & easier to work with.
I have the iPhone4 and the HTC Desire HD. The HTC is faster, it's battery lasts way longer when using the navigator or listening to music on the beach. I prefer the HTC design and the build quality is pretty much the same in my opinion. However, for the price of the iPhone4 I could buy two HTC Desire HD's. Makes sense.

Last but not least: Apple products are totally overpriced when it comes to price/performance ratio. Surely they have a nice design (except the iPhone4 and the iPad in my opinion) but that's not really worth it to pay the doubled amount of money. "They are completely made of aluminium and the build quality is incredible" .. yup that's why my ASUS didn't have any warranty problem in 3 years while I had to take care about 8 macbook's/pro in the last 3 years (friends/family). Now we have the iPhone4S which is again behind today's technology but still costs twice as much as other phones.


So in my opinion the only thing Apple can compete with other brands is the iPod/iMac (Screen + Computer thingy). But luckily Apple will always find some guys who seem to think that more expensive equals better product.

 

The iMac idea may have been copied because Wang Labs had already built an AIO PC with two floppies on top. They were real popular with car dealers. I was servicing them back in the early 1980's.

Needless to say I hated working on these things. I had to truck an oscilloscope to fix the darn things.

 

I can't read that middle paragraph without getting a headache but it just seems like a bunch of ranting.

Calling the iPhone 4S old technology is ridiculous. Siri is unmatched and is actually quite useful, it is fast, power. Not to mention the sleekest looking phone out there, in a lot of people's opinions and mine included.

In a price-performance ratio, Apple's MacBook Pros are behind now that the Sony Vaio SE and Samsung Series 7 is out.... but you have to recognize, the MacBook Pro has been out for more than half a year and before the SE and Series 7, the MacBook Pro was a fantastic value... Thin and Light for a 15", Quad-Core Processors, high-end AMD graphics on the higher-end model, and absolutely fantastic battery life. Not to mention, the touchpad is unmatched by anyone.

The MacBook Pro is going to get updated later this year... let's see if the MacBook Pro becomes a better value again.

Now, about the iPad.

Flash - no. Just no. There are better alternatives out there, and saying that it isn't resource hogging on any tablet or smartphone is ridiculous. There is a reason why my built in web browser on my Samsung Galaxy S disables Flash on default where you have to click on the flash box to enable it.

There is a reason why Google, Microsoft, and Apple are all pushing HTML5. I won't dispute the popularity of flash, it certainly was great for its day, but it's time to move on. It's becoming less and less relevant.

And again, I am going to say this: The most important thing when it comes to tablets is the software. Android sucks compared to iOS. All the reviews I have read say so. App Store > Android Market. Stability of iOS > Stability of Android. UI of iOS > UI of Android. Security of iOS > Security of Android. Speed of iOS > Speed of Android.

Until Google catches up, Windows 8 needs to show up and compete against Apple. And I believe it will. Hence why I just loaded up on Microsoft stock.

 

The middle paragraph are just facts based on my own experience and those of other people. The middle paragraph also describes why iOS sucks compared to Android. I could go more into the details but I really can't be bothered right now and explaining it to some "apple-lover" often turns out to be senseless anyway. The macbook pro was already completely overpriced when it got released and it still is. Just like pretty much all apple products. If you would do a little research and compare it with laptops of other brand like Asus,Dell,Clevo/Sager/MALIBAL,Sony,.. you would know that (or you simply won't accept it and continue to love your apple). Can't wait for the update.. it will cost twice as much as my MALIBAL Satori and probably won't come close to its performance (and that notebook is already 9 months old).

No comment on the flash part.. you seem to ignore half of what I write and I won't re-write everything again.

One more thing for the overpriced performance/price ratio:
4GB RAM on apple for the macbook pro = 200€ = 280$

3500$ for:
i7 2,2 Ghz
4GB RAM
750 GB Serial-ATA 5400 U/Min.
FullHD 17"

You think I forgot smth? No I didn't, you read right. Those 3500$ won't include any extras like Thunderbolt port, Display adapters or anything else. Every other decent notebook will have those things you just praised about the macbook pro... for half the price ofc. For the touchpad I can't say anything. For the times I had a macbook pro I never used the touchpad.

Siri.. I just watched a review about it on youtube.. what's so new about it? And yes the iPhone 4S is behind with its technology.. both hardware and software wise. For the design: It really is a matter of taste. I like the iPhone 3g(s) design a lot. But I can't understand how someone could like the iPhone4 design :S One of the best looking phones must be the new Nexus Prime (atleast from the few screenshots I saw).

 

Very interesting thread....I truly think it depends on how much the Board and in general all the higher ups at Apple have learned from Jobs and the past. I mean they know what happened when Jobs was forced out years ago and they've been witnesses to his "magical" touch all these years since then when it comes to innovation and consumer products.

One would have to be stupid to not think that Jobs at the very least left a course that he himself personally charted for them for the next decade or so. Its up to them if they want to follow it (and of course use their own creativity and stuff) or completely toss it out and do whatever the heck they want.

I don't own Apple stock but as an iPhone owner and an Apple supporter I wish nothing but the best for the company. Few men truly change the world...Steve Jobs did. I just hope they continue to beat android and wp7....

 

are we really going to go back and forth with iOS sucks, no android sucks, no iOS sucks!

really? grow up.

one nice thing about iOS is that updates are provided pretty regularly and generally you are going to get at least 2 years worth of software updates (available right away) from the point when you get your mobile device. android is sort of hit or miss as far as updates.

one nice thing about android is the open nature of the app store. apple devices have to use the apple store. with android, you still have the google market as a centralized source of apps, but if you really don't want to do business with google's market or can't for some reason, you aren't required to do so.

there. you can each have a cookie. now lets move on.

 

Just shared my opinion about apple. Maybe you could get on-topic and share yours? Didn't really want to go into an Android vs iOS discussion as I had too many of those already anyway.

Just one thing I forgot to say: Steve Jobs was a god for marketing & selling his products. If apple can't keep up all this hype and "I need apple stuff" then I think apple's best times are over.

 

Jobs wasn't the entire marketing department so I doubt that will be an issue.

And for the record I didn't say android sucks although I find it hilariously underwhelming everytime I'm exposed to it. Specifically the lagerific interface despite this race to the bottom between android manufacturers to reach the fast dual core (and eventual triple core) processing speeds....

Bottom line is that Apple is clearly entering a crucial period in its history and the next couple of years could determine what the future holds....

 

OMG, How I cannot give you a +1 rep after reading this??

Completely agree, sorry, for me no design, just performance.

 

Seems like Apple is doing fine so far... 4mil iPhones sold this weekend, double that of last year's iPhone 4.

So a "spec bump" sells this many phones, imagine how many a redesign will sell next year?

 

LOL...android fanboys every where are just losing their minds this morning...