Do you consider apple products to be closed hardware/software?

[jbcohen]

One of the gripes that several of my pals have against apple products is that they are all proprietary and you can not go buy hardware/software from anyone besides apple corp. What do you think is apple corp all about closed ended hardware/software?

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by jbcohen

One of the gripes that several of my pals have against apple products is that they are all proprietary and you can not go buy hardware/software from anyone besides apple corp. What do you think is apple corp all about closed ended hardware/software?

well I do not think that is all they are about but it is true that they want to approve all devices attached to their products and likely get a cut for their efforts. In addition all apps must go through their review and again they get a cut. In particularly I think they are draconian on their Bluetooth support requiring custom changes to make a standard non-standard. I have a Garmin Bluetooth GPS but it has to have custom features to work on Apple devices. A standard Bluetooth is simply not recognized. In addition they are very restrictive on any devices plugged into their i/o port.

On the plus side they encourage updates and fixes to apps and are very good at distributing the fixes.

Dale

[AnemicOak]

I have an iPhone. Before that I had an Android phone (Galaxy S). While I agree that Apple is locked down pretty tight I can't say that I've really felt the shackles. I've been able to do basically the same things on both phones without issues. I will say that some of the iOS versions of apps have a more refined feel to them, but function wise both have been fine. iOS has definitely been better on the updates front.

Maybe I just don't do enough on my phones to really feel the chains.

[kguil]

Originally Posted by DaleDe

On the plus side they encourage updates and fixes to apps and are very good at distributing the fixes.

I agree that they do encourage updates and fixes to apps, however there is a bottleneck in the distribution of critical updates. If a version of an app is released with a critical bug, even if you fix it within the hour of finding it out, it will still take about 4-5 days to get approved and released. This can cause irreparable damage to the reputation of an app. You can request an expedited review but you only get one (max two) of those a year. This problem is known to happen even to major software developers with massive resources.

What's upsetting is that apps from a few major vendors get critical updates approved sometimes within the hour. As a developer, I'd gladly pay for this privilege. Whenever I release a new version of Marvin, I always find myself in a panic for the first few hours irrespective of the effort that has been put in internal and beta testing (a lot).

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by jbcohen

One of the gripes that several of my pals have against apple products is that they are all proprietary and you can not go buy hardware/software from anyone besides apple corp. What do you think is apple corp all about closed ended hardware/software?

Apple has tight control over both hardware and software. It's partly why OS X and iOS works so well. Personally, I'd prefer some flexibility but I reckon majority of folks are fine living inside Apple's walled garden (assuming they can afford it).

[Penforhire]

I like the phrase "walled garden." You can certainly (jail)break out if you must but I am happy enough with Apple's curated offerings, including iCloud services and iTunes for media. The closed system has benefits and drawbacks. The walls do chafe at some people and Android OS tends to appeal more to them.

I prefer to get timely OS updates. I see even Google's Nexus-brand phones do not always get such timely updates and most other Android phones have a worse record.

I prefer format-optimized apps and Apple serves up more of those. Yes, technically it is the app creators who do the optimizing by platform but in practice Android versions lag. I expect that situation to improve but we're not at parity yet.

I prefer a large choice in accessories. Because Apple sells so many units of so few devices we get an abundance of choices. I consider this related to their closed system.

At the same time, Apple users are starting to get some of the 3rd party apps that non-Apple users point to. Checked out the latest update of Google's iOS search app, with Google Now? Pretty cool.

[Jessica Lares]

I don't really care to be honest. I don't get the whole software thing. Some developers still sell their apps outside of the Mac App Store. Heck, I just bought the MacHeist nanoBundle 3 for $10 the other day. Developers are free to put their apps on sale whenever too, and many do in both stores.

You can plug whatever monitor, mouse (I use a 2001 DELL mouse on the G5, and then my 206 Bluetooth Mighty Mouse for drawing on my MBP), external keyboard, etc. So I don't get that either.

[afv011]

Originally Posted by Penforhire

I prefer a large choice in accessories. Because Apple sells so many units of so few devices we get an abundance of choices. I consider this related to their closed system.

But Apple's iron grip on the digital accessories in hotel rooms, store shelves and living rooms is starting to slip—potentially risking the royalties it earns from accessory makers and, more significant, giving Apple customers more freedom to switch to rival products. That could be an issue for a company whose stock has been shaken in recent months as investors worry that the iPhone business is slowing.

Source

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by Jessica Lares

You can plug whatever monitor, mouse (I use a 2001 DELL mouse on the G5, and then my 206 Bluetooth Mighty Mouse for drawing on my MBP), external keyboard, etc. So I don't get that either.

What if you prefer a custom built desktop tailored fit to your specific requirements and budget? You don't get a lot of options with Apple. Hardware is limited to what Apple provides (unless you go the gray area Hackint0sh route) and Apple doesn't really offer a mid-range option. It's either SFF (Mac Mini), AIO (iMac) and workstation/server-grade (Mac Pro).

[Jessica Lares]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

What if you prefer a custom built desktop tailored fit to your specific requirements and budget? You don't get a lot of options with Apple. Hardware is limited to what Apple provides (unless you go the gray area Hackint0sh route) and Apple doesn't really offer a mid-range option. It's either SFF (Mac Mini), AIO (iMac) and workstation/server-grade (Mac Pro).

Does anyone really do that though? Every company will let you max out the RAM, but you can't really tailor a machine towards your liking. You just get the next best model. It's been like that for two decades now maybe.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by Jessica Lares

Does anyone really do that though? Every company will let you max out the RAM, but you can't really tailor a machine towards your liking. You just get the next best model. It's been like that for two decades now maybe.

I build my own. I choose the case, motherboard, CPU, RAM, graphics card, storage, power supply, operating system, etc. Plenty of mom and pop stores, and computer boutiques that offer a multitude of options. For pretty much the same reason I don't buy Apple computers, I don't buy desktops from Dell, HP, etc. If only I had the manual dexterity for it, I'd build my own laptops, too.

[afv011]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

I build my own. I choose the case, motherboard, CPU, RAM, graphics card, storage, power supply, operating system, etc. Plenty of mom and pop stores, and computer boutiques that offer a multitude of options. For pretty much the same reason I don't buy Apple computers, I don't buy desktops from Dell, HP, etc. If only I had the manual dexterity for it, I'd build my own laptops, too.

Same here, I pick and choose my components. I get a much better machine, tailored to my needs, at a lower price than a ready-made one.

[jersysman]

The only Apple product I have is an iPhone. It is great for me because I have a stable phone, that gets all the updates available and get all my apps at one place.

However, for desktop computers, I prefer to pick out my own components and build my own computer. I am doing that as we speak and my last component should be in tomorrow and then I can put it together. I could never just get an all put together one because I know I can do it myself. My phone is a different animal though.

Go figure!

[Jessica Lares]

If I were to build my own desktop, it would still be specifically for Mac OS X, so it's not really worthwhile. I get why people do it, but it's a complete PITA, and I'd rather pay the premium to NOT have to deal with it.

Plus, I'm mainly a laptop person. And I require lots of power, but I don't want to carry a huge brick either.

[David Munch]

Closed, not at all. The only gripe I see is this:
• Apple's too fascist rules on what is allowed in the App stores. I do understand the regulation, and I do like most of it, as it makes sure I don't get junk (Or at least not pure junk) or malware. I do think they are too aggressive with apps that are close in functionality with their own apps (Such as not allowing sales through apps, without Apple taking 30%, which is *a lot* for ebook stores for instance). Also, they have too strict software regulations on the Mac App store, such as not allowing any open source software.

One could also argue for the fact that you can't install Mac OS X on a non-Apple Machine (At least, not all hardware, see Hackintosh), but then again, why would I want to build a machine that doesn't run 100% stable. I can for sure understand why Apple don't want to develop a gazillion drivers, from a business point of view. And I like their design so much I would buy an Apple machine anyway. Frankly, apart from people that are capable of building their own machine and thus save some 100s$, and hardcore gamers, this is not really a problem.

Other than that, I don't see any problems at all frankly - Only things people complain about, just to complain.