back to article Apple iPhone owners are the most loyal smartphone buyers

iPhone owners are more loyal to their chosen handset than Android fans are to theirs. So says GfK, a market watcher, after interviewing 4,500 folk across Europe, the US, Brazil, China and Japan. It found that 84 per cent of iPhone users will buy another Apple handset when they upgrade, the company told Reuters. Only 60 per …

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  1. Adze

    Today's headlines...

    ...it's a slow news day across the globe today...

    1. FanMan

      Exactly

      Statement of the bleedin' obvious. iPhone is the best for me for sure. There are points in a consumer's life when they say "OK, this is the brand for me, I can stop frettin' about choice in this area and devote the mental energy to something else." Doesn't always work though, I can't get spares for my Saab any more. But I wish all these other companies would stop aping iPhone (why can't they do something original?) and nipping at Apple's heels and getting me all confused again.

  2. James 51

    You don't need to be good when you have an edge. At the moment, Apple is cool but no fashion continues indefintely. It will be interesting to see what happens then.

  3. Richard 31
    Paris Hilton

    Lock-in works then!

    1. dogged

      Apparently you can get addicted to iTunes exactly the way you can get addicted to McDonalds.

      In both cases, personally speaking, no. Just no.

  4. eSeM

    The 'Most Pointless Story Of The Day' award goes to ..... Tony Smith. Congratulations!

    Everyone already knows the loyalty of the iFanboiTwats.

    Things that are fashionable go out of fashion. It wont last.

    :-)

    1. CheesyTheClown
      Happy

      Yes and no... Apple is Fashion

      Fashion companies (and Apple is certainly more of a fashion firm than a tech firm) know how to run their businesses to cope with the seasonal changes and fashion changes.

      Apple has used a great tactic used by many of the NY and Paris fashion firms for centuries which is to "Define what fashion is" and then sell it. Fashion companies often do it by publishing magazines... big sexy advertisements... even doing things like making something insanely ugly and selling it as elite fashion (think clamshell iBook).

      Now that Apple is no longer a tech firm and is almost entirely transitioned to as a fashion firm, they'll perform business appropriately and they'll protect their label appropriately.

      Samsung on the other hands IS NOT a fashion company... even if much of what they make is pretty. They aren't sexy and they have no clue how to be. They are a tech company trying to steal market share from a fashion company instead of defining themselves as "the alternative choice".

      Just ask yourself why women drool over Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Tiffany even if 99% of the stuff those companies make are ugly as shit. Those companies have been around a long time and they manage to keep on growing. Apple knows why.

    2. Frederick Tennant

      Thats really horrible

      FanboiTwats, thats really bitter of you to call somebody such a thing.

      its a choice thing and don't take it so personally.

  5. Richard Ball

    AOL customers are also very loyal

    A damning comparison to draw - but there is a difference I suppose because Apple products are good.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      AOL customers?

      Loyal? Really? Where did you get this from?

      1. Richard Ball

        AOL

        Whenever an AOL customer asks me for help / advice they are always scared of leaving AOL, they think that what they're getting is special and easier and more effective than what everyone else uses, and they don't realise how locked-in they have become.

        I'd call it loyalty; not good loyalty but they do keep handing over the money.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Are you serious? What year are you living in Richard?

          AOL these days is just an ADSL provider like any other, and actually run by TalkTalk.

          I would somewhat believe if you said people were afraid of leaving BT, but AOL?!?

          1. Richard Ball

            AOL

            I usually recommend they move to Compuserve.

            YES, COMPUSERVE.

            1. Anonymous Coward
              Anonymous Coward

              @Richard

              Wow, nice to see someone else living in the 90s. I'm in 1994, whereabouts are you? We should go for a pint, only £1.80 - good times.

              1. Richard Ball

                90s

                OOOOhhhh see you there. I'll bring my jerrycan.

                I was thinking maybe '97 though? it was a good year for me.

                mmmmm 47p diesel mmmmmmm.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Fanboys stories were true?

    So some views that Apple fanboys will systematically buy Apple products, even though they are overpriced and not always the best alternative (c.f. all iPhone woes), might have been true?

    With the missus, we are on our second Blackberrys, and we previously had a mixture Motorola/Sagem/Nokia/Sony Ericsson/Siemens/Samsung, and to be honest, I can't say that a brand was systematically crap and another was systematically good. When our 24 months contracts finish, we'll do as usual: read reviews, try in shop, and pick the best choice overall. If that's an iPhone, so be it, but they'd have to come free with our cheap-contracts-with-cashback!

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    ay?

    HHow does that Samsung advert help Apple? It highlights how superficial and shallow Apple fan bois are. I suspect this article was written up by an Apple fan at the register in order to put some kind of defensive response up against against that article from yesterday. Creative? No. Cocoon away from the rest of world in an apple ecosystem ? Yes.

    Regarding loyalty, around me most iPhone users stick with iPhone, a couple moved to various others...android have all kept with android but have moved to different manufacturer. All Nokia owners have moved and we never had blackberry or winpho fans.

    1. chr0m4t1c

      >It highlights how superficial and shallow Apple fan bois are.

      No, it re-enforces your prejudice that Apple buyers are superficial and shallow and then attempts to sell their product on equally superficial and shallow points - why on earth would anyone give a monkey's about getting a 4G phone when 4G is deployed roughly nowhere?

      You can just about get away with that sort of thing when you're a small player in the market coming up against a very large competitor, but when you have almost the same market share, you just end up looking like you have no real confidence in your own products.

      Imagine that advert with the "creatives" using Samsung phones and the "cool kids" using iPhones. Would it make you more or less likely to buy an iPhone? I think you would even further lower your opinion of Apple and it would probably do the same for anyone sitting on the fence. That is why that advert probably helps Apple more than Samsung - I personally don't identify as one of the "creatives", but I identify even less with the smug, condescending Samsung owners.

  8. Jemma

    To quote Futurama 603...

    Its cos they're...

    "Dumb Bastards"

    Im sure Apple are so proud they've managed to snag the idiots. Personally I wish we had human cloning already, 10 years of inventing gory imaginative ways of executing clone steve jobs's would just about calm my ire regarding how he brought the smartphone into the dance of the idiots. Not to mention what his 'legacy' has done to personal privacy & security of same.

    1. Richard Wharram

      Dude

      like wtf ?!?

  9. my spout
    FAIL

    "And tricks like this, from Samsung, only serve to help Apple", says the fanboy. The ad portrays exactly what this dumb article was about: (blind) faithfulness.

  10. Ascy
    WTF?

    Loyalty?

    Brand loyalty is the most pointless thing ever. Why would you buy an inferior product for more money simply because you've bought that brand in the past? It's not like after 20 years of buying XYZ brand, that company is going to turn round to you and be 'loyal' back. "Oh, you can't afford a phone these days - well, you've been buying our phones for twenty years, so have a free one on us." Don't think so.

    1. Jedit Silver badge
      Headmaster

      It's all about the apps

      In the case of Apple, migrating would also require the re-purchase of all the apps you've bought. It's stupid to buy into Apple now, but if you bought into smartphones early when the iPhone was the only real contender it makes a lot more sense to stick with it.

      (Android users spend less on apps, which also explains the lower retention rate for that system.)

      1. Markl2011
        FAIL

        "In the case of Apple, migrating would also require the re-purchase of all the apps you've bought. "

        You'll get flamed by the droid boys for that remark. Don't you know all the Android apps are free and just as good as the Apple ones.

  11. Danny 5
    Trollface

    well obviously

    it's pretty hard for zombies to make up their own mind, they just follow the zombie horde.

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "Im sure Apple are so proud they've managed to snag the idiots."

    Ever wondered if the idiot if the guy you see each morning in the mirror? All those iPhone users may be right and you may be wrong.

    Some people are happy to change their phone every 12 months - I want a phone that gets good support and works - it's only an Apple iPhone 3GS but it's still going strong (compared to colleagues who seem to have to tinker / change their Android phones all the time).

    People would buy another iPhone because it 'just works' and works well - looking good is not so much of an issue but seems to be with Samsung et al as they clearly felt the need to copy it so closely.

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Oh Dear....

    lots and lots of comment on the slow news day story.

    Seems it doesn't made nice reading for some...

  14. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "Not to mention what his 'legacy' has done to personal privacy & security of same."

    That cracks me up - it's ironic...

    The typical Android user is running an old version of the software which is often near impossible to upgrade (without jailbreaking etc. which most people would not do) so security = crap. There is little / no checking of apps that go on Android = trojans etc. So security = Apple win.

    Privacy - well Android typically = Google - don't think we need to say more = Apple win.

  15. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    If iPhone users are zombies then Android users are whores going from one version / handset to another and ribbled with bugs and viruses.

    1. Danny 5
      Trollface

      evidence please

      Go on.

      i for one, call that freedom, but i know that's a term that's rather hard to grasp for the typical fanboy.

      do you ever leave the confines of your home, or is the real world also too scary for you?

  16. Tom 38
    Thumb Down

    Seems like most commentards are skint.

    All this constant moaning about money. Money I can get back, days spent fiddling with my phone installing the most super duperest ROM I cannot.

    Some people just want their device to work, not fuck up, do what it's supposed to and not make me think, rather than a super fun little pocket linux computer on which to waste my time.

    1. Graham Dawson Silver badge

      Sony ericsson xperia mini pro. Just works. :)

    2. That Awful Puppy
      Thumb Up

      I'm not skint, exactly, although buying an iPhone is still not a trivial expense for me, and I was seriously tempted by the Galaxy (can't remember the exact model) when my contract on the iPhone 3G was up. But after hearing a mate who's a phone reviewer (and a complete Droid fanboi) going on about how this ROM fixes this and that ROM improves that and how you need a separate app for playing audiobooks, well, I lost the enthusiasm, bit the bullet and bought the iPhone 4. And you know what? It's not cheap, it doesn't have the biggest screen, but it really does just work (TM).

      Am I too daft to fiddle about with a phone with superior specs in order to make it work perfectly? Perhaps. I prefer to think I just don't have the time.

  17. Jedit Silver badge
    FAIL

    So tell me...

    ... if Apple is so wonderful and its users are so smart, why are they all posting as Anonymous Cowards so we don't know who they are?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      because we value our privacy?

      Something Android users don't as they give away all their details to a massive advertising company?

      1. This post has been deleted by its author

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Facepalm

        Fanbois value privacy?

        Did you even read the iTunes T&Cs before you clicked Accept? No, I didn't think so.

        What the fuck do you think Apple do with all *your* details?

      3. DaveNotAMonkey
        FAIL

        http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/apr/20/iphone-tracking-prompts-privacy-fears

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Fail? It was shown that Android also does the same tracking, and even secures that data in a worse way (i.e. anyone can go and map your Wifi router using the information Google collected from you)

          http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/04/22/google_android_privacy_concerns/

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            HEhe

            Clearly you have no comprehension of anything technical.

            Google only tracks you if you enable it in the settings, it does not track by default like Apple does.

            The wifi location based services have nothing to do with your phones, and Apple use the same data....

    2. Ivan Headache
      Facepalm

      So who's anonymous?

      Jedit?

  18. Phormic

    Two Explanations for This – Pick One

    1. The iPhone is quite good, people like them, they tend to work reliably and they make people happy.

    2. iPhone users are complete idiots. Mindless zombies under control of the baby eating, jackboot wearing oppressors who hate freedom and whose success is due to marketing, fashion and absolutely no other reason whatsoever.

    One of these explanations belongs on planet Earth. One is borne out of unhinged nutzoid hate. Pick which is which.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      I pick number 3.

      Because the reality lies somewhere between those two explanations.

  19. DaveNotAMonkey
    Childcatcher

    Sheeple

    Every time I go past the Apple stores in Covent Garden and Regent St, my heart sinks a little for humanity. Isn't it a little sad that, on one of your two days off in the week, you decide to go and sit upstairs in what must be the "Apple cafe" (assuming you wait long enough in the queue outside the store) to be with other "likeminded" Apple fans?

    I find the whole obsessive cult of Apple a little creepy and insidious. The reality behind the shiny low-density stores is a sweat-shop workforce, producing products high on style low on substance.

    disclaimer: I own neither Apple nor Android smartphones. I am 30 y.o and am otherwise entirely integrated into modern life.

  20. b-a-r-k-i-n-g-m-a-d

    My iPhone just works - it's had the odd software bug along the way but the whole experience has been a happy one. My old 3GS got a slight crack (and I mean 'slight') in the plastic near the dock connector - mentioned it to the guy in the Apple store and he arranged a brand new one for me.

    Compared to colleagues / friends with Androids they seem to 'moan' a lot more about problems, not being able to upgrade etc. I want a phone to 'work' and it does - I tried Android on a second handset but for me it just was not the same. It's nothing about the look / design of the handset - it's just about it being reliable and easy to use.

  21. Tegne
    Pint

    Like a dumb dog?

    That is all.

  22. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Android users are probably as loyal as Apple's

    They just didn't hear the survey question because their phone muted itself during the call.

    1. Homer 1
      Linux

      Re: Android users are probably... bla bla

      At least Android phones can MAKE calls.

      http://judasphone.com

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        judasphone.com

        I knew some Android users had a lot of free time, as they spend days of their life fussing around with ROMs to fix the crappy functionality of their phones... but whoever made that website clearly had WAY too much.

        Why is so much effort poured into just criticising a mobile phone? Seems a bit odd to be honest.

        There's better things to do out there.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Funny that, my iPhone is really good at making calls. So are my HTC Mozart and Orange San Francisco. They all have their strong points and weak points; FWIW, I prefer the iPhone, but each of the mobiles are more than capable devices, I just personally prefer iPhone.

        What irks me about the rampant levels of fuckwittety elicited on these "hallowed" pages is that you are all supposed to be fans of technology. So the iPhone, for what ever reason doesn't work for you and you know what, that's fine. No one ever said that you have to buy one. That you and other people have put some actually quite creative energy into making a site like that is sadly pathetic and the level of vitriol is actually quite disturbing. I get that it a "joke" and some are quite funny. The way that you take it as a personal afront when someone dains to suggest your preference is less than perfect is pretty damned childish and the minute someone expresses the fact that they are happy with an Apple product, they are derided and characterised as idiotic fanboys that are unable to think for themselves. Its like thinking differently from you is forbidden. Ironically, the copy cat comments that are seen daily expressing this suggest the contrary. You'll all throw around accusations of Apple's Orwellian grip over their ecosystem, yet if someone expresses a difference of opinion over which android handset is the best, then they face the wrath too!

        1. Tony Smith, Editor, Reg Hardware (Written by Reg staff)

          Re:

          Indeed, and for all the folks out there who bizarrely don't appreciate having the choice of selecting whether they like iOS, Android or BlackBerry best, just imagine a world where there is Windows Mobile on handsets... and NOTHING ELSE.

          1. Danny 5
            Trollface

            the argument isn't really about how good products are, is it?

            i think i'm one of the few using the "troll" button when i'm trolling, but there's busloads of people on here who flame for the sake of flaming (as do i every now and then).

            There is no sane argument against apple products, they come with certain rules, just like any other platform, you either accept them, or chose a different product.

            alright, i'll take of my apple bashing trollface mask off for once and do an honest reply.

            there's absolutely nothing wrong with Apple products, you can debate the pros and cons about it, but when you put all devices side by side, they're all pretty good. Don't let trolls get to you, trolls are not to be fed afterall. if you like Apple products, who are we to tell you you're an idiot?

            now, mask back on!

            apple users are mindless, cultist zombies.

            you see what i did there?

            1. Anonymous Coward
              Anonymous Coward

              @Danny

              I'm a bit concerned for you. Why do you feel rewarded by personally attacking people like that?

              Is it arbitrary, or do you just target Apple users? Does it happen in real life, e.g. do you pop into an Audi stand and call buyers there idiots?

              Is there some other reward involved other than psychological?

              1. Danny 5
                WTF?

                why concerned?

                are you of such high moral standards that you've never poked fun at anyone for no apparent reason? are you not aware there's an Apple vs Android flamewar going on?

                Yes, Apple users are a valid target for me, as don't like their products. That's not to say their products are bad, just a matter of personal taste. It also doesn't mean Apple users are idiots, just because i say so. If you feel offended, that's your problem.

                and who's talking about rewards? it's just good fun to do it. If there's any rewards at all, it's a few laughs.Have you been reading these threads thus far? if i where consistently the one who's on the attack first, then *maybe* you had a slightly valid point, but i just troll back other trolls.

                Seriously, why talk to me about it, am i the only recognizable troll on here, just because i admit to it?

                1. Anonymous Coward
                  Terminator

                  That's all well and good Danny, but why does it have to resort to ad hominem. Every. Single. Time? Why hijack a thread with what basically amounts to cyberbullying (I know! Thicker skins and all that…)? Because *you* don't like something? That's not on. Hey I'll hold my hands up right now an say that I have been guilty of it, sometimes anonymously too. I accept, and even agree that when someone says something sphincter clenchingly stupid they deserve a trolling. Again, been there, done that both ways. The issue is that every thread that is Apple/iOS related gets hijacked by people who get their jollies winding people up. Hey, if it's witty and playful, even slightly irreverent, there isn't a problem as long as their is a grain of truth an no pompous sweeping statements. But. The level of vitriol and abuse goes beyond the pale. That the mindbogglingly soporiphic and trite memes are trotted out every single time (e.g. sheeple, iTard, crApple etc.), is just so damned boring and repetitive, it's beyond boring. I'd rather see intelligent and slightly irreverent discussions; name calling is for pre-pubecsent morons ( see what *I* did there!) and if you want that and trolling for the sake of trolling, I hear Gizmodo, ZDnet or Engaget are the places. The other issue is such an old truism; the persistent offenders really aren't good at taking it back. If I'm honest, some of the vitriol levelled at a reviewer if their utterances over the latest and greatest non-Apple shiney is less than stellar is quite appalling, especially if the review is worse than that of an Apple product. Also if an Apple product gets even the faintest whiff of praise, then it's stakes at the ready to burn the heretical fartherless spawn; to the extent that there is a disclaimer at the start of every article. It's old. Have the bollocks to be original.

                2. Anonymous Coward
                  Anonymous Coward

                  People who troll threads like these for fun are mindless cretins who suck at life. Don't you have something better to do with your time?

                  1. Anonymous Coward
                    FAIL

                    @ davidp1

                    "People who troll threads like these for fun are mindless cretins who suck at life. Don't you have something better to do with your time?"

                    Of course the *real* question raised by your post is: Don't you?

                    Everyone needs hobbies, and one of mine is winding-up fanbois. What's your excuse?

  23. squilookle

    Basically....

    It boils down to the fact that there isn't a single phone on the market that doesn't have at least one flaw. Those flaws range from high price and walled gardens, over to poor battery life and poor spec... each phone has some varying combination of these issues and whatever falls in between.

    The moral is to research your phone carefully, and choose the one that best suits you/that has the flaw you can live with.

  24. Pamplemoose
    Thumb Up

    Wow.

    iPhone owners like their phones and will probably buy another iPhone? I'm pretty sure this is only a surprise to Android users.

  25. Paul E

    Problem is survey compares apples with oranges

    Comparing one high price ecosystem against an eco system with one with a large range is not a fair comparison.

    I would be more interested in a comparison between iphone owners and owners of android phones that excludes the cheap section of the market, e.g. wildfires and the like. I suspect the results would be a lot closer for say iphones owners against Samsung Galaxy S 2 owners.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Can't have it both ways.

      Either it's iPhone vs Android Phones or it's iPhone vs Gallaxy vs Droid etc. The whole "Android has the mahoosive share…" line begins to look far less convincing of we apply the fragmentation as you'd prefer.

    2. Ivan Headache

      I do my surveys on the train

      which is a far more realistic way of guaging phone acceptance and useability as people tend to get their phones out when they settle down (for whatever reason)

      2 nights ago on a train out of Euston (7pm ish), in my immediate field of view were 10 people. 3 of them were using a phone and the rest were either dozing, reading The Standard or a Kindle.

      Of the phones - iPhone 2, BB 1. others 0.

      When the train reached my station I got up to leave and to my suprise the 6 people in the seats behind me were all using iphones (4 or 4s) for either games or email/text as were 2 more standing in the doorway. Other phones 0.

      Yesterday I made 5 train journeys and 1 bus ride. and saw something like 50 phones being used. Without itemising each individual journeys I can honestly say that iphones (both 3 and 4 versions (can't tell an s version just by looking)) outnumbered every other type of phone something in the oprder of 8 or 9 to 1.

      So according all the detractors above all the iphone users are sheep and idiots. That is patently not the case as they ranged though the entire gamut of normal people and ages.

      In fact at one station, a middle-aged black guy in a business suite, burberry-syle mac and briefcase got on and sat down beside me. after getting comfy, he pulled out an iphone 3 and started playing backgammon. Nothing about him looked like a sheep.

      I never count myself in with these numbers as that would slew the figures (on some journeys that would only be by a very small amount though).

      In conclusion I would claim that it is not us iPhone users that have a problem. it is the detractors who have the problem. We made our choice and we like it. Get used to it.

      Does it not occur to them that people actually like iphones

  26. Anonymous Coward
    Facepalm

    Whats that noise? Baaaah, Baaaaaaaah, Baaaaaaaaaah!

    Is there a farm round here?

    No, but theres an Apple store just down the road.

    Ah! That explains it.

    1. Doogie1
      Joke

      "Whats that noise? Baaaah, Baaaaaaaah, Baaaaaaaaaah!"

      Is it your girlfriend?

  27. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Out of curiousity...

    If this article claimed that iPhone users were the ones most likely to switch to another type of phone when it came to upgrade, would people still be saying what a pointless, awful story this is?

  28. Frederick Tennant

    if you think that iphone users upgrading to another is bad......

    More to the point is as more iphone users love their product, more are buying Imac's and or laptops to compliment their phones. When I asked why their answer was it works and the attention to detail which Apple has always had.

    What Im so confused about is that when Apple was taking over the MP3 market nobody said a word. How many of you Android users have or had ipods?

    But not to worry Steve is dead, so its only a matter of time before Apple screws it all up.

  29. Anonymous Coward 15
    Gimp

    So, fanbois are fanbois?

    I'm going to have a heart attack and die from that surprisHNNNNNNGGG-

  30. Craigness
    FAIL

    Duplicated

    This is the same story as was printed a few months ago, but with some of the statistics missed out. When the statistics were published in the original story, a more intelligent analysis showed that there is no difference between android and ios "loyalty", and that swapping between android manufacturers had been lumped in with general repudiation of android in order to allow for a biased headline. iTard Reg hacks and intelligent analysis don't combine when there's a chance to put down the world's most techologically advanced and most popular mobile operating system.

    How does Samsung sending up itards help apple?

    More by this article's author:

    45% of Android users to upgrade to rival phone OSes*

    http://www.reghardware.com/2011/09/23/nearly_half_of_android_users_to_defect_to_rival_mobile_oses/

    *except that it's not true

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Android fanbois

      What a bitter bunch, when the article doesn't please them them go on all out personal attacks, shouting offence and general bullying even against perfectly reasonable journalists.

      Must be some inner inferiority complex.

      Give it a rest, it's just a phone.

      1. Craigness
        WTF?

        Confusing content and quality

        At least I have the balls to use a pseudonym. Why do the android haters tend to hide themselves?

        There's no inferiority complex on the part of Android users, and why should there be? When the stats are analyzed they show that android is as popular with Android users as ios is with ios users. So why would anyone publish TWO articles quoting these stats but reaching equally unreal conclusions which both favour ios? Must be inferiority on the part of ios fanboys.

        What exactly do you think a comment section is for? Why shouldn't I point out that both articles and their author are crap, and why do you think publishing 2 pieces of misinformation is reasonable journalism? I had a problem with the quality of the article, not the content. You can badmouth Android all you like, but if you don't stick to the truth then I'll call you out.

        1. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          "…have the balls to use a pseudonym" is that a deliberate oxymoron? How is using any different to being anonymous? You know what a straw man is, right?

          1. Craigness
            FAIL

            Straw man?

            Fortunately I do know what a straw man is. You don't, so let me explain: I was pointing out that itards tend to hide themselves. If I was using that as a straw man I'd have said "you're wrong because you're anonymous". But I didn't do that, I explained my position and destroyed his by using facts and logic.

            What does AC come back with? It avoids specifics and evidence, insults me with no further evidence to support the insult, and is actually pretty close to a straw man. And we can't even tell if it's the same AC, because itards tend to hide themselves. QED. Knowing that I'm the same poster as above and not knowing whether AC is the same person should tell you al you need to know about the difference between anonymous and pseudonymous.

            1. Anonymous Coward
              Anonymous Coward

              "And we can't even tell if it's the same AC, because itards tend to hide themselves" Gentlemen, we have *exactly* the kind of skull-numbing idiocy that I've being trying to point out for a persistent an habitual offender. You know that you are still essentially anonymous, right? How can you feign injury when you spout shit like "...because itards tend to hide themselves"? "iTards"? Twat. Where do you get off? Here's a thought Craigness; perhaps the fact that you spend you day boorishly trolling any article about Apple means that others don't want to really engage with you so they choose to remain anonymous because frankly it's easier, it seem to wind you up too. The fact that you are the kind of fatuous misanthrope that will recite the boilerplate trolling verbatim, smugly making claims that "iTards" are smug and pompously asserting that they are pompous and unthinking isn't even original in it's irony. It's sad. Yeah it's ad hominem. Bite me.

              AC for very obvious reasons. (as if you don't know who this is...)

              1. Anonymous Coward
                Anonymous Coward

                Engage

                If you didn't want to engage him then you wouldn't engage him. Twat. Anyway, the itards are usually the anonymous ones. I've noticed it too, and it's not restricted to replies to any particular individuals.

                "The fact that you are the kind of fatuous misanthrope that will recite the boilerplate trolling verbatim, smugly making claims that "iTards" are smug and pompously asserting that they are pompous and unthinking isn't even original in it's irony."

                You spelled "its" wrong, there was no smugness or pomposity, and you didn't make an ad hominem. You've encountered a complaint about the quality of the article and, presumably, the complaint got you pissed off because the article favoured your brand of phone and the complaint showed that there is no reason to favour that phone. You want the complaint to have no basis because you desperately want your choice of phone to be promoted as better than another choice of phone. But the complaint is entirely valid and, as we must now assume, you have no way of refuting it, so you sling insults instead. But an attack on the person making the argument is an ad hominem only if you are using that attack to invalidate their argument. Otherwise it's just abuse.

                Pseudonymous != anonymous and it will stay that way regardless of how pissed you get that there is a difference.

                1. Anonymous Coward
                  Anonymous Coward

                  AC is the new pseudonym.

                  tl;dr: Bite me. Learn the difference between a possession and a contraction. Bite me. Bite me. Bite me. You're still anonymous, you're still a coward and so am I.

                  "If you didn't want to engage him then you wouldn't engage him. Twat. Anyway, the itards are usually the anonymous ones. I've noticed it too, and it's not restricted to replies to any particular individuals." Doesn't matter; suggesting that using a pseudonym (a device to mask your identity) takes more balls that being generally anonymous is fatuous. the only difference is that their is a thread to see more of the anonymously pseudonymous individuals fuckwittery. I'd suggest that they used their real names when signing up because they don't have 1337 haX0r pseudonyms that so many of the "cool" androids have...

                  "it's" in this instance is a *contraction* of "it is" and therefore the apostrophe is entirely warranted. One can omit the apostrophe if one wants. Since "its" is the pronoun of "it", and irony doesn't physically belong to the article; in this case unoriginal smugness and pomposity, the use of the possessive form is incorrect. Nobber.

                  The complaint is made by a fanboy of another brand, and a habitual troll (and no, it's not "an habitual" either). The merit of the complaint is neither here nor there, the quality is the same as very other android whine and every other Apple fanboy whine when an article suggest that the other isn't simply the greatest thing ever. The complaint itself didn't piss me off, the repetitiveness of it did. We get it; you don't like $brandX. Well done, have a gold star. I own and use daily an iPhone, an Orange SF (waiting for the SF II review...) *and* a HTC Mozart. Frankly, I couldn't give a rats arse if one phone is "promoted" above another. It would bother me if El Reg was writing adverts under the auspices of an article or a review, but I'm certain they don't; they are far too irreverent for that which is why so many come back. Ultimately, it is totally inconsequential to my life. The average fandroid's repeated caterwauling at anything Apple OTOH is skull-numbingly arduous. That is what irks me. In response to you rather trite and asinine assertion that "...the itards are usually the anonymous ones." The fandroids are normally the ones that troll, make smug and/or pompous remarks and have little to no humour. The irony? This is *precisely* what hey habitually claim all fanboys do.

                  The "complaint" *would* be valid were it not repeated with every single goddamned article on every single goddamned website on the internet every time anything positive is said about any product made by Apple. The complaint itself is irrefutable because it is asinine; an "independent'' market research company has looked at the smartphone market place and from the research they have gathered they have shown that people who own iPhones are more likely to purchase another iPhone than those who purchased Blackberrys buying another BB or than those making a repeat Android based device from a particular manufacturer. The reasons for this are speculative. The majority of the "complaint's" are moronic.

                  The OED defines *ad hominem* thus; " A phrase applied to an argument or appeal founded on the preferences or principles of a particular person rather than on abstract truth or logical cogency." In layman's terms it's replying to point with "Yeah?! Well you smell like poo..." or "You're a dick and what you say is irrelevant based on that." or "The fact that you are the kind of fatuous misanthrope that will recite the boilerplate trolling verbatim, smugly making claims that "iTards" are smug and pompously asserting that they are pompous and unthinking isn't even original in it's irony." in context (being anonymous by virtue of a pseudonym) or "If you didn't want to engage him then you wouldn't engage him. Twat."

                  Saying that "Pseudonymous != anonymous" is missing the point entirely. There are still no "bravery" and there is certainly no high ground to be had, moral or otherwise in using a pseudonym. You are still anonymous and still a coward if you use a pseudonym. Yes, that includes me.

        2. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          @craigness

          You're confusing the truth with whatever you see through your Android-green tinted glasses.

  31. Dazed and Confused

    Stupid question survey time again

    When your contract expires what will you replace it with?

    Well if you're reasonably happy you get to the end of the contract.

    If you're not happy you replace it before the end, so you're not picked up by stupid surveys.

    The people I know who've been unhappy with their iPhones ditched them well before the contract ran out.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Who ditches phones before their contract runs out? Would be very costly, most people don't have that kind of money to throw away.

      But yeah blame the survey if it makes you feel better.

      1. Dazed and Confused

        Cost isn't the only factor

        Lets face it, choosing an iPhone is very costly. If you were too worried by price you wouldn't have an iPhone.

        If the phone doesn't do the job you need to do then it doesn't matter what it is, if you need to get things done and this phone doesn't do it, then it has to go.

        For example one guy I work with dumped his iPhone 4 because it wouldn't get a signal in most of the building where he works. Since he needs to be contactable when he's at work, he had no option but to change to another phone.

  32. Brett

    fanboi but

    Loved my 3GS to bits. It pretty much did what it said on the tin :)

    Have now retires said phone and picked up the Galaxy Nexus - loving it so far (only had it 2 days though.

  33. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    What would be more interesting would be how many iPhone users would buy an Android next time (probably very few) and how many Android users would buy an iPhone next time (probably many more).

  34. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    "disclaimer: I own neither Apple nor Android smartphones. I am 30 y.o and am otherwise entirely integrated into modern life."

    Still live with your parents? Lol. Seriously what are you doing commenting on an article about smartphones when you clearly have zero experience. Making statements like "producing products high on style low on substance" when you would only know what others have told you.

  35. Anonymous Coward
    FAIL

    Really....

    Apple owners CAN'T defect, all their content is locked into Apple products forevermore.

    Android owners can pick and choose which Android hardware supplier will be their next one, thus rewarding the best..

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      So?

      You can choose your hardware supplier, but can you move away from Google? Well, no.

      If you change your phone and don't put in your Google ID, paid apps are gone (unless you hack it).

      Also if Google doesn't specifically approve the phone, you won't find their Market there (again unless you hack it) so again bye bye past purchases.

      It's not a lot more freedom, the lock-in is with Google instead of Apple. Take your pick.

  36. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Why not ask...

    ... when replacing your phone, will you even consider looking at another option?

    I have absolutely no problem with people replacing an iPhone with an iPhone. It's your choice.

    I bet most people on here know of the car driver who, every year, replaces his car with another one that's exactly the same. An ex-neighbour replaced his Micra with a new one each year... and you just know he never even went close to another dealer before rolling up outside the Nissan showroom.

    So, the next time you come to replace.. just look at the competition... you may like it, you may not, but what have you got to lose?

    And for those who say Android is hard to use, well, my 11-year-old son can use my phone no problem... says a lot about your technical skills, doesn't it?

    As for "it just works" and "you have to root / mod an Android to get it working".. my phone is as it came from the shop, not rooted, not modded in any way, has had a software update from the manufacturer and just works. Perfectly. And has some style to it too, unlike some dull rectangles you can mention.

    1. Ivan Headache
      Meh

      I would have upvoted your post

      because it was decent and honest - had you not written the last sentence.

      No votes then from me.

    2. Tom 38

      Friend of mine has a San Fran, because he is skint. He was constantly complaining of crashing, apps not launching, yada yada. He upgraded to the latest Orange supplied version of Android, still crashed doing simple things like Angry Birds.

      He was finally convinced to put a 'stock' version of the latest OS on there, which wiped his contacts (he knew, so they were backed up), and now can finally play Angry Birds.

      Clearly this 'just works' works differently depending on the handset and the network that have played with it..

      BTW, if my 11 yr old son couldn't use any sort of smartphone intuitively, I'd worry and think about extra tutoring. If I was a breeder.

  37. Keep Refrigerated
    Mushroom

    Pearls before swine

    <pulls ring, lobs grenade>

    I have an in-law who is deeply entrenched in the cult of Apple. He's a geek, I'm a geek, nethertheless I try to avoid getting into any geekie techie conversations with him as it's a lose-lose situation which invariably ends with him pointing out how technically superior his choice is (iPhone, iPad, Mac etc) to my own choice, regardless of facts on the ground.

    My last conversation with him went something like...

    Me: Well I rooted xxxxx's phone and put on a firewall (Droidwall) so it's pretty well protected from rogue apps and gets less ads now. I like the fact I can root and get custom roms, overclocking, firewalls etc...

    Him: That's why I love the iPhone, I don't have to do that it's already done.

    Me: What, a firewall, custom rom and overclocking - out of box?

    Him: Yes

    Me: Umm, I'm having a hard time believing that...

    Him: You don't get it do you, I don't have to hack it to make it work like an iPhone.

    Just got to chalk it up to the reality distortion field I guess...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Cool story bro

  38. ConexionPoint
    Happy

    Are you kidding me, when is the last time a bank actually did something to make my life easy.

    I have one single devise for both personal and business and it’s an iPhone. At work my iPhone is docked into the iFusion smart station for those long calls and when I need an enterprise class speaker phone. We have the Cisco mobile app running our extensions with Salesforce.com and use Skype for international calls. The extra desk space alone made this an easy decision and I’m not radiating my brain for 6 hours per day.

    My iPhone is what makes me productive and keeps the minimum balance in the bank. Maybe someone can build an app to seamlessly switch banks with one single click?

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