The Controversy of Apple, Inc.

Oh, technology. It is such a highly debated subject in today’s technological world, especially when it comes to consumer technology. And when you think of debated consumer technology, I’ll bet smartphones come to mind. Probably the most heated smartphone discussion still reigns on: iPhone or Android? No matter who you talk to, whether they have a tech mind or not, they probably have an opinion on why they like their phone and dislike the competition. However, despite them being controversial, I think that buying an Apple computer or smartphone is still justifiable.

Let’s talk about smartphones. Although the iPhone has been around longer, it still struggled to keep up with features that have been on Android smartphones longer, such as wireless charging, and facial recognition. Apple has long had the reputation of getting rid of things on their devices that we are used to using. For example, the headphone jack. While this port is slowly becoming obsolete, as more smartphones begin to get rid of it, Apple was the first to do this on the iPhone 7, leading me to my point. Although Apple tends to remove these things before we are ready, they push the innovation of technology to where it will be: the future. And with 2017 coming to a close, we have seen other high-end smartphones rid the headphone jack, such as the Google Pixel 2 and the Essential Phone.

How about specifications of smartphones? Well, Apple was never known to have the very best cameras, largest batteries, or like I’ve mentioned before, features. However, what you get when you buy an Apple product the quality is of the hardware, and the quality of the operating system. Throughout many reviews of operating systems, iOS and even Mac OS have received good reviews. Android has always tended to be slower, especially if you are using a non-Google device. And say whatever you want about Apple, but they know how to make a quality made product and a good-looking product. Macs, iPhones, and iPads have been and are still made of aluminum, giving it a quality feel. Whereas, Android and even some Windows machines have historically been made of plastic, giving it an overall cheap feel. In my opinion, the quality of Apple products is a large attraction to their world.

However, this quality comes at a price, literally. Apple has historically made their products pricier than their competitor’s for almost the same hardware and software. Such as, iPhone X starts at $999 and has similar features to the Galaxy Note 8, a phone that starts at $899. Despite this however, the quality of what you are getting is still a winner for me.

So I have given you a lot of information. What does it all mean? Well, to me it means that as technology pushes forward the need for competition will no longer be needed. As companies like Apple, Google, and Samsung continue to push innovation forward, their products become increasingly similar. So in the end, it necessarily comes down to you, the user. What are you used to seeing? iOS or Android? Windows or Mac OS? Meaning that the clear winner, of who in terms of company is, there is none. I firmly believe that in the not so distant future, that the consumer technology that is in the palm of our hands will simply be near-same hardware, with a different coat of paint on it.