|
|
No third party apps on iPhone
Author: Brett ThomasPublished: 12th January 2007
Hold the phone - nothing can run on the iPhone that Apple doesn't release itself.
That's right - Steve Jobs has gone out on a limb and told us all that the iPhone simply will not accept third party applications at ALL. Unlike the competing products from makers like Samsung and Motorola (which run Windows Mobile 5), Steve-o stated in an interview that the iPhone needs to not be thought of as a computer at all, but instead a reinvention of the phone. This means that content for the device will be positively locked down by Apple and Cingular.
In some ways, his logic makes sense. Apple's position is that if you can throw any app you want on there, it is possible that the phone may crash or be otherwise unusable when you need it most. There could be some pretty annoyed consumers if the device fails each time they go to make a call. Jobs seems to think that can be prevented by restricting apps...but so can innovation.
However, it seems he hasn't really learned his lessons of strict control. Back in the early 80s, his demand to control all things released for Macintosh actually caused the product to implode, forcing him out of the company he helped start. What was heralded as a fantastic step forward in computing turned out to be an utter bust, since nobody could make it do what they actually wanted it to.
Will the iPhone meet a similar fate? Only time will tell - however, at a retail price of $500-600, there may be some people not willing to pay for just the "evolution of the phone," Steve Jobs style.
Have you got a thought on Jobs' interview? Do you think he's just planning well, or setting the uber-tight controls straight for the heart of the sun? When's the last time you heard someone use the excuse "My phone crashed, so I missed your call"?
Tell us your thoughts in our forums.
Related
Comments (33)
Compare over 250 mobile phones &
52,000 deals!
Compare over 100 broadband & mobile broadband deals online!
- Site Links:
- About
- Email Editor
- Newsletter
- Privacy
- RSS
- Score Guide
- Our Other Websites:
- Auto Express
- Channel Pro
- Computer Buyer
- Computer Shopper
- Den of Geek
All content © bit-tech.net 2000-2009
© Copyright Dennis Publishing Limited licensed by Felden
I'm not paying $600 for some crippled piece of iJunk.
These are devices that need to work, and you cant do that if you load any software on them, he said. That doesnt mean theres not going to be software to buy that you can load on them coming from us. It doesnt mean we have to write it all, but it means it has to be more of a controlled environment.
That means there WILL be 3rd party apps, but Apple will control the API and try to do some sort of 'approval' process for apps. I'm sure it won't be unlike other things they've (and Microsoft for that matter) done in the past.
Carey
I appreciate the comment, and perhaps I could have chosen better wording, but I don't mean to spin it - I don't really like sensational journalism, so I certainly don't want to exhibit that myself.. Sometimes, it just IS that bad.
And as for the skype (and other VOIP):
I had decided to buy one of these nifty (and expensive) devices, starting to imagine all the kind of games and the likes that could be made to work with the awesome touchscreen. However, this news bit is like, a turn off. I won't buy one until I know I can do what i want with my iPhone, I paid for it, 600$, I pay the monthly cell bill, I don't want to be told what I can and cannot put on my phone.
Feels kinda like as if you buy a computer for cheap, and a very good one, but you can't put anything else on it except what it comes with which is MSN, Internet Explorer, and a calendar.
Not really worth it if you can't actually "own" the phone since you can't do what you want with it even though you did dish out 500$ or 600$ for it...
Starting to sound more like a rip-off
Edit:
The article also mentions you can't put your ringtones and stuff on it... Hrm.
Edit2:
There's some unlocked iPhones soon to be ready for pre-order for 900$ (4gbs) and 1,000$ (8gbs) on some sites... scary.
Both the iPhone and Apple TV are looking like two very weak products now.
wasn't going to buy one.....now.... wont buy one for sure.
-ed out
A good proportion of posts on messageboards about the phones was about hacks to disable the program signing so user-made apps could run*.
It took them a while, but Microsoft eventually gave in, replacing it with a system that still initially blocked unsigned aps, but gave you a 'do you want to run this, as it may be dangerous? yes/no' box instead, and everyone was happy.
In short i think this is an extremley bad descision by apple, i see no point to pointless restrictions like these :/
*=was fiddly to do, involved plugging in the data cable while the phone was booting up, had to time it so you connected after the USB driver had loaded, but before windows loaded the security settings had so you could overwrite them...
The introduction of a touch screen is not revolutionary because most keypads have shrunk to the point where they are unusable for many, so a touch screen was a necessary and predictable development.
Games, word processor, photoshop,... Lots of stuff
And I can buy an iPhone but it'll only run iPrograms iSteve iLikes.
Yay. Me. Me. Me.
Groan.
Phil
The only thing that could persuade me to one is if they managed to get linux going on it.
Then I heard the initial price tag which put me off some and now the rumors of no third-party apps. I have to wonder which company is at the forefront of this decision, Apple or AT&T Wireless (they are dropping the Cingular name, or so I hear). Cingular/AT&T has been notorious for stripping the base software from their phones in the past and this sounds an awful lot like something they would want to do here in not letting other apps run (VOIP would be a big one, considering the built-in WiFi).
Apple has always had a love/hate thing going with their developers (or so it seems to me, a non-developer). They tend to alienate the best of them by integrating/stealing their ideas and putting them in the OS. Not sure why they would change that philosophy here and not want to take the good ideas from other developers to improve their product for versions 2, 3 and 4. In other words, why lock others out?
I think its still a long time until this product hits the streets and anything can happen. Until then, I am intent to sit back, wait and see just what gets released.
P.S. There has got to be a way around the ringtones thing, assuming it supports MP3s etc as tones...
My current smartphone (R380 World) is on its last legs. ill just have to sit back and wait for a little bit longer.
Put this together with the iphones battery life, size, weight, price, probable poor build quality and most importantly the mature market they're entering and it all adds up to apple fritters tonight.
I admit I'm not an apple lover but I'd be the first to admit it when they've delivered the goods, their interfaces are a good example. However the iphone is a device too far for them and I'm looking forward to seeing how things pan out.
I am actually one of those crazy Mac guys that generally likes Apple's products and is willing to let a few things slide.
In this case I am making myself wait to see what products follow in the wake of this v.1 product.
QFT
I recently boxed up my N80 and confined it to the cupboard never to be used again. The battery life is laughable to say the least, so for Apple to seal the battery in the unit on a 2 year contract is stupidity of the highest order.
Unless Apple have re-invented the battery (unlikely), after 18 months you will have to leave it plugged into its totally bespoke adaptor.
The problem being is that if Microsoft made a phone in a similar vein they'd being booing MS for locking down the phone in a similar fashion...
Grow up and realize that NO company is infallible, making bad calls are what they do.
This is not the first time a company has changed its mind. No worries.
http://www.ipodbatteryfaq.com/#iphone
EDIT:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgW7or1TuFk
if only that was only a video ipod...... instead of a phone. :(
edit2: iPhone runs OSX?
in the end
There's options for Yahoo on it, there's Google Maps. They are right however that Apple does keep the highest standards possible to prevent the Phone from crashing because of bád coded software.
If a third party developer wants to make an app for the iPhone, Apple will hold them under "strict rules". And Apple will definately make more apps/options for the iPhone of course.
- DXR_13KE: It doesn't have a removable battery :)
- antiHero: You don't want to pay 400 for a 4Gb, and 500 for a 8Gb Phone?
Try buying an iPod Nano 4Gb, and a PDA with the looks and multi-touchscreen, and a few other gadget-like options for that money. A good PDA will cost you about 200-400 Euro, and an iPod nano 4Gb will also cost you about 200 Euro. So the price isn't even half bad.
Oh, and most PDA's/Smartphones don't have 4Gb storage, which will add up in the price of buying a 4Gb smartcard. :)
I do agree that they should give a few more options for developers to be able to build more software (Skype for example), because using that baby as a normal Phone, a Skype Phone, ánd (if you're out of range of your wireless modem) the usual mobile phone... thát would be insanely cool :D
I have 2 smartphones, one of them is a Nokia 6600 with a 2Gb card, it's loaded with software, movies, music, games, all sorts of junk, some of the stuff doesn't even work... Has it ever crashed? No.
You know why? You have to start the program to make it run, it won't run by itself, and since the phone willl run OSX anyways, like a regular mac, if the app stops working/crashes.. well, it just crashes the app, nothing else.
So you're gonna pay 500/600$ for something you can't do what you want with?
I don't know if anyone noticed, but they said you can BUY MAc's apps and stuff... So this is all pretty much a ploy to get more money from our pocket.
Just watched the video and thought my phone does that, my phone does that, my phone does that, my phone does that....
seriously put a tilt switch (cos that's a revolutionary technology (no pun intended)) in my jasjar and hey presto everything the iphone has (except multipoint touchscreen (notice the photo zoom))
It's a phone, not a macbook