http://gizmodo.com/5920983/how-winamp-disappeared-into-obscurity

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– Every iTunes user ever

Your affinity for Apple would make a fascinating case study in what inspires brand loyalty for consumers… So you love Apple. That’s cool. I’m not saying that anyone who does is blind, by any stretch. At some point, the Mac versus PC debate seems like it has morphed into the iOS versus Android debate. Just like politics, I think both sides suck, for their individal reasons! And also like politics, I think when people try to defend their choice, it usually devolves into a simple regurgitation of someone else’s talking points; a pre-scripted debate designed to get your dander up, but ultimately yawn-inducing after you’ve been through the motions enough times and realized that it all just goes in circles. This very reason is why I seldom bring up computers or phones on here, even though I’m interested in those technologies.

I’d disagree that Apple’s interface is the freshest thing out there; five years ago, sure it was. Google jumped straight on to the same bandwagon when they created Android. Now I think Microsoft’s got the most svelte mobile OS design language, as far as appearance goes. Only time will tell if it succeeds, and if it translates well onto desktops.

As for materials, I do agree that glass and stainless look great. Combine that with blonde woodgrain and you’ve got the Ikea aesthetic to a T. But stainless and glass are not really good materials to build your phone out of. My last two phones (including the gen1 iPhone) have both been clad in a rubber case, which definitely saved them from scratches/death by concrete on multiple occassions. It seems a bit silly to me that the official Apple case for the iPhone 4 is a neon rubber band… that covers up all the stainless. What statement does that make about the longevity of those materials? Sure, we want it to be beautiful. But must we really sacrifice “functional”?

Other companies are doing some interesting things with materials: The HTC One X uses a unibody polycarbonate shell that is built by micro-arc-oxidizing metal, which is then bathed in a plasma field and electrocuted, carbonizing it. According to HTC that process makes it 5 times stronger than anodisation. Typically that process is used to build satellites. So that’s pretty badass. Maybe the end result isn’t shiny, but I bet it doesn’t fingerprint or scratch very easily. And it probably doesn’t need a rubber case to protect it against death if the phone should fall onto carpeted concrete from pants-pocket height; the circumstance that killed my first iPhone.

Idunno. I could put together a lengthy diatribe on how iTunes has been nothing but one long annoyance the whole time I’ve ever used it, and how I really do think that there will never, in all of time, come a day when all the chip designers get fired because “specs don’t matter anymore”… but I think you’ve made up your mind. ;) You’ll believe what you want to believe, regardless of what I say. And I’m okay with that.

One thing that Apple gets, that other companies STILL DON’T, is that apart from engineery types like yourself, specs rarely sell anything. Purchasing anything is an emotional decision, for the most part… don’t believe me? Ask somebody why they drive a slow, poor handling SUV that guzzles gas when all they do is commute? On paper, it’s the dumbest possible vehicle for their intended usage, but they find all sorts of ways to justify ownership, because ultimately it was an emotional decision. What apple does, and other companies don’t, is really design the entire experience. Now… I’ve run iTunes for years. I haven’t had problems. It is definitely a bigger program than winamp… but it’s faster. Instead of having to organize all my MP3s into different folders, iTunes does that for me; it frees me up to do other things. Instead of having to save different playlists to listen to different artists, I either scroll to find them (quick) or type in the first few letters of who I’m looking for in the search box (quicker). I promise you can create a playlist of multiple artists MUCH MUCH faster than you could in winamp/using windows explorer. So yep. Apple definitely tries to control “everything” about my phone experience… but it works flawlessly, and easily. Backing things up is easy. Syncing is fast (my 1st gen took FOREVER though, maybe they changed it so you’re only exchanging/backing up the changed data, not all of it?), stable etc.

I had that first gen iPhone for almost FIVE YEARS. It still works fine. The only reason I ugpraded was a cheaper “family” plan with the rents. Now… droids? On paper, they have specs that appear to be similar to the iphone, and in some ways exceed them… but literally EVERY SINGLE PERSON I know with a droid has had problems. Random reboots. Touch screens not responding sometimes. Locks. Lags. AND, it’s owned by google, so they’re probably recording everything you ever do or say.

Lastly… as an industrial designer… nothing, NOTHING comes close to apple’s build quality. They are so far ahead of the game it makes everything else look outdated/hilarious. “Oh hey, neat, more injected molded plastic? But neat you put some metallic paint on it, or some soft touch pattern? That’s nice. We’re going to use motherfucking stainless steel with tolerances tighter than the hippest fixie riders pants, and glass.”

Same way with laptops. I bet in Apple’s HQ, all the fridges have photos of the competition’s laptops stuck up wit magnets, so that everyone can admire them the same way a parent admires their mentally-challenged kid’s finger paintings… “Oh that’s so nice Samsung! Good job! When you grow up maybe you can do something like us, where we CNC the entire laptop case out of a muthafuckin BILLET of aluminum!” It’s beyond ridiculous… and the fact that you’re still stuck on specs… man.. .I’m telling you. Losing battle. We are rapidly approaching an era where even the slowest new computer is way faster than we need for most things, storage is practically unlimited, and the bigger deal is the entire experience. When I see droids made of amazing materials and people that keep them for over 2 years… I’ll consider it. Til then, no effing way. Apple has that market on lockdown.