Curbing your enthusiasm may be a good idea
It’s that time of the year again; two consumer tech giants — Apple and Samsung — each release their flagships to battle it out for smartphone dominance; legions of fanboys and girls beat their war drums and yell out their battle cries in cyberspace, driving the hype to a fever pitch.
Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7, struck disaster right after leaving port (incurring losses over US$1 billion.)
So, the iPhone 7 is the winner by default, right? Despite, being the seventh iteration of its series, the adoration for Apple’s best-selling product shows no sign of waning; die-hard loyalists reportedly waited up to 19 hours in line to splurge on the phone.
Even Apple has clearly underestimated the staying power its product with supply shortages reported all over the globe — or perhaps, this is yet another marketing ploy to puff up attention for the new device.
At some telco shops, customers are required to pre-register before they go down to the shops to buy and several models are already sold out.
Also Read: Apple fans in China go nuts, The price of a jetblack iPhone 7 skyrockets to US$3000
But, for those who did not manage to get their hands on an iPhone 7, they might actually be better off.
Why? One aspect that commonly accompanies the exuberance of any launch day product release, is trickling of bug reports by eager-eyed consumers, reviewers, and media sites.
Additionally, Apple faces the most scrutiny in the media space and every iPhone release is greeted with a fair share of naysaying.
The iPhone 7, three days into its launch, has proved that there is no exception.
A new colour but with a catch
Let’s focus on the aesthetics first. The highly-coveted — simply because it is a new colour variation — glossy jet-black model is apparently more susceptible to scratches or as Apple called it, “fine micro-abrasions”.
Also, glossy finishes have a tendency to accumulate more dust and fingerprint smudges than regular matte black. Even wiping a shirt on it tainted the finish.
Also Read: Local rivals bite into iPhone’s market share in China
Of course, you could always put it in the case; but that ruins all the fun of showing off the shiny new iPhone 7.
Lightning earphones may be detrimental
Everyone is crying about how their regular wired headphones are now obsolete; and that Apple fans can not charge the phone and listen to music at the same time.
To offset the problem of the former, Apple has decided to include an adaptor to fit the 3.5mm audio jack into the lightning port.
That’s a slight relief, right? Not exactly.
Think about it, the lightning port, like any physical component, will experience wear and tear. And, if it is going to be used for both charging and music listening, paying an extra S$228 (US$ 167) for AppleCare might not seem like a bad idea, after all.
Also Read: Samsung Note 7 usage now banned on Singapore Airlines, Jetstar and Tiger Airways
Or, and what seems most likely, is ditching the wired headphones altogether and buying Bluetooth-enabled products.
It’s not a terrible proposition because, thankfully, the new Bluetooth 4 technology is not an energy guzzler. Charging headphones, however, may pose a minor inconvenience.
What’s that sound?
Some users are apparently hearing “hissing” sounds emitting from their iPhone 7 while using resource-heavy applications. The problem seems to be isolated to only certain phones, so it may be an early manufacturing issue.
The best is yet to come
The most striking thing about the iPhone 7 is how unremarkably striking it is. I, myself, have purchased the iPhone 7 and found little discernable cosmetic and performance difference between that and my old iPhone 6.
According to several insider sources, Apple is saving all its game-changing upgrades for the phones eighth iteration.
These new features, apparently, include “a full-screen face with a virtual button built directly into the screen”.
Consumers stuck with an older iPhone 6s or 6, for the time being, might lose out at being “first movers”. But, more often than not, while first movers get to play with new toys, they also have to bear the burden of experiencing new problems.
It would do consumers a service to take a step back, read up on reports and analysis, before making a an informed purchasing decision.
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