Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Hardware, Apple
"Why first generation Apple products suck"
Gundeep Hora at CoolTechZone has taken a critical eye to what some consider are Apple's recent and rocky 1st generation product launches. The article utilizes two examples - the iPod nano scratch issue and MacBook heat complaints - to illustrate what Gundeep argues is Apple's faulty process of releasing products and then reacting to serious flaws when the public outcry spreads across enough blogs and petition sites.Whether you're already hastily typing a comment to flame Gundeep or you have one of those aforementioned petitions already open in a separate tab, Gundeep has written an interesting piece that I think could strike a deeper chord if he used a find/replace command to swap the word 'Apple' with 'the computing industry as a whole'. Similar criticism of Apple's 1st generation production quality crops up on the web every couple of months like clockwork, and I think it's because there is an unusually high level of expectation surrounding their products. I'm not saying Gundeep's criticism is misplaced; quite the contrary: my first Mac ever was the 1st generation of 12" PowerBooks (867 MHz baby!) and I had to go through four of them to get one that didn't overheat or have a hard drive that choked itself to death within hours of bringing it home. To make matters worse, the Apple Store, including its snotty manager, treated me only slightly better than that sticky stuff you try to scrape off the bottom of your shoe. My next Mac experience was the 1st gen 15" Aluminum PowerBook that was a part of the 'white spots' debacle - case in point: I feel Gundeep's pain, but Apple isn't the only computer and electronics company to exhibit these kinds of mass production complications. Other computer makers have had to recall batteries and entire batches of one computer model or another. Dell recently had to replace some faulty displays, and I can't remember which mobile phone company's batteries are exploding this week.
To wrap this all up: Apple sets the bar high with their unique design and flashy marketing, and because of that, I think their customers and the media at large simply hop on board for the honeymoon each and every time the company whips out a shiny new toy. Criticism like Gundeep's seems to appear when the fantasy inevitably hits speed-bumps that are simple facts of life and mass production. In the end Apple is a company, like any other, that is susceptible to hardware defects, firmware botches and software hiccups. Then the conversation turns to products, quality and accountability of the industry as a whole - but I think that discussion might be better suited for a different post. Granted, none of these issues are any fun when you're the one stuck with the bad apple (yes, a pun), but sensationalizing the situation isn't going to solve anything. Keeping a level head, however, and understanding that 1st gen hardware can sometimes be a gamble - no matter who it's from - just might save a few headaches, and perhaps then you won't need to sign that petition after all.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Conrad Quilty-Harper said 6:18AM on 6-03-2006
After all, it's not like you don't have a warranty!
I've experienced another problem that I haven't seen anywhere else with the MacBook. The keys on the right side of the keyboard were always slightly slanted. Now the full stop key has popped out and the hinge is broken. So now whenever I press "." it usually pops out. It's a colossal pain in the arse. But at least I know I can take it to an Apple store and get it fixed!
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Wireless said 10:07AM on 6-03-2006
Apple isn't company which it was 20 years ago. Then it's innovations were revolutional and now it's just new word in an IT world
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icruise said 10:20AM on 6-03-2006
I think Apple's limited product line and iconic products also contribute to this phenomenon. Few people would be up in arms if a particular HP or Dell computer had problems, partially because HP and Dell have a wider range of products (not that this is necessarily a good thing, since it can lead to confusion on the part of the consumer) and partially because they have names like XPCQTS4900J and not "iPod nano" or "iBook."
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chris said 10:32AM on 6-03-2006
i think this applies to many more industries than just the computer. It includes auto, gaming, and other tech industries
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John Muir said 11:02AM on 6-03-2006
12" PowerBook G4 user here (867MHz baby!) still using his first ever Mac, which was perfect on the first purchase. I didn't even know it was a Rev.A at the time. It's not all doom and gloom you know. Don't overlook the quietly smug majority whose machines just work from cradle to grave!
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Edsel said 11:10AM on 6-03-2006
You're right Chris (#4). First generation defects also occur in the aircraft, pharmaceutical & building material industry, often with catastrophic results.
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Mister_volcom88 said 11:10AM on 6-03-2006
I Have had a First gen mac mini G4 for over a year and it hasn't given me one problem (knock on wood)
BUT I've had a white macbook 2ghz since tuesday afternoon and I've already had 6 kernel panics. I'm returning it on sunday to get a new one. (uhhhh)
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Appleologist said 11:15AM on 6-03-2006
I have been very happy with my MacBook Pro. It had some serious heat issues, but after that firmware update I've been running very cool.
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Rob said 11:38AM on 6-03-2006
What kind of name is Gundeep anyway? Can anyone with a name like that be trusted? I don't think so.
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Malfoy Roark said 11:41AM on 6-03-2006
The reason why Apple draws the most fire is because they claim to be better than everyone else. We need to look no further than their current commercials. If they drop the ball, they are going to be called on it.
Bill Gates would be out of his mind to say Vista will be virus free because the moment it got a virus, the world would be on him. Thats exactly what happened to Steve Jobs. While it wasn't a virus worth anything, the world called him(or some Apple people) on the "no virus" claim.
Anybody want to show me where HP or Dell is bragging they make the most robust personal computers on the planet? Oh wait, they'd never say it and in turn they'd never have to live up to it.
This applies to every other industry, there is always one or two companies/groups who claim to be better, and when they can't deliver, they get called on it, as they should. Talking the talk is easy, its that walk that requires a bit more skill.
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Gandhi said 11:52AM on 6-03-2006
quote[What kind of name is Gundeep anyway? Can anyone with a name like that be trusted? I don't think so.]quote
Well, it certainly better then "Rob," a word that as a verb denotes thievery.
As an aside, it is a Punjabi word
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Jayvee Fernandez said 12:08PM on 6-03-2006
i agree head on with the fact that apple has set the bar so high, that a small flaw in their products sends criticisms flying their way, especially with how steve jobs can be so anal with things.
another thing would be how .mac, up to now still isn't that impressive even with all these value added services and ilife integration.
maybe they should just keep it free...
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Kiran said 12:26PM on 6-03-2006
I have to agree with the article despite my love for apple products. Every apple product i bought has had a problem. Lets go throughe each one of them.
Apple 17" Studio Display - (half the screen is dim) faulty inverter boards fail after a year or two. massive threads on apple forums about this and tons of petitions but apple fails to recognize the problem and abandons users.
Apple Ipod 3g - 4 touch sensitive buttons no longer work.
Apple Ipod shuffle - randomly shut itself off, had to get it replaced twice, current one works but warranty is up so if it fails i am out an ipod
Apple G4 1 ghz laptop - power adaptor wears out extremely fast at the computer side. massive threads and petitions about this, apple fails to recognize the problem. go read the reader reviews on the power adapors on apples site. they also charge 80 bucks for a replacement. other laptop manufacturers charge half that. faulty display, had to get it replaced one day after i bought it.
despite all this i look foward to future updates, and i don't understand why. i will probably buy another apple product but i will never get a first gen product because of their incompetitance. i guess its most liekly because i love the OS. but they can't hope to increase their market share if they piss off first time buyers.
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FritzLaurel said 12:33PM on 6-03-2006
Just out of curiosity -- does anyone know about how long the revision cycles are? I.E. how long until the Rev.B's come out? [grin]
FL
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Ryan said 12:50PM on 6-03-2006
I can't agree more. For example, I'm sure everybody remembers the first PowerBook G4 400's. Compare those to the third generation of those machines - the PowerBook G4 667 DVI. They were nearly twice as fast if you count all the added enhancements. The current MacBook Pro's are stop-gaps at best. A year from now we'll all look back on them as lacking in a lot of areas. Besides, who wants to run Rosetta anyway? : )
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Slypperypete said 2:21PM on 6-03-2006
Following Gundeep's flowchart of successful product release we can only assume that Vista will be the best OS to grace this planet with all the time spent in "R&D" and "Quality Assurance".
Every company that produces anything has issues with their products. Electronics, software, even (or especially) the automotive industry. The only reason companies are hesitant to admit faults in their products is becuase some genius decided civil suits should apply to any and every situation.
It isn't fun but everyone needs to realize that consumer products will always be riddled with issues, heck even body armor isn't perfect at stopping bullets.
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Christopher Nice said 2:27PM on 6-03-2006
Does seem to be a Rev.1 problem. Between me and my rommate we own 8 Macs, okay I own 7 he owns 1. But all of my Macs have worked no need for repair or support since day one. Including my '94 Perfoma which still boots like it did when I brought it home. However my roomate got a Rev.1 iMac G5 it had to go into the shop 3 times, yesterday Apple told him its not worth repairing anymore and gave him a new intel Mac. So I probably wont buy a Macbook this year till the kinks get worked out. As for Apple customer service I see a lot of bad stuff on the net but the folks at our local Apple Store in Flatirons Colorado made it the easiest $3000 product exchange I've ever witnessed and he ended up with a lot more computer. Apple still rocks no matter what!!!!!
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SwissFreek said 4:32PM on 6-03-2006
My dad has always told me since i was a little kid: never buy the first generation of a car model design, buy the last. That way the company gets all the kinks worked out of the design. It's the same situation here. Those of us (myself included when it comes to the MacBook Pro) who want to be early adopters will pay the price of having the newest coolest toys before everyone else. It's a fact of life, and while I get very upset with the snotty attitude that I get from Apple Store staff when I voice complaints (almost like, *gasp* how *dare* you suggest that we are anything but perfect). It's one of the primary reasons why I don't work there anymore...
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Deb said 6:03PM on 6-03-2006
I guess I'm fortunate......between my husband and I, we have 4 apple products and haven't had any problem that I have a need to complain about. I have one of those first generation MB (white, 1.83ghz, 1gb ram) and although it's warmer than I'd like, it isn't anything as hot as I've read on different boards. I use ilap while at home (mostly where I will use this notebook) and combined with my ceiling fans (and of course AC), I run in the 40-57C range with safari (sometimes with multiple windows going), adium, itunes playing, word, and entourage, along with playing in iphoto. I have not and do not plan on using the intel side of the MB. I left behind windows and all it's problems and don't want to make the same mess out of this little baby.
I'm sorry for all the problems that so many people have encountered but I'm happy with my apple products.
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SPower said 6:29PM on 6-03-2006
Is the problem really 1st revision or 1st prodcution run? To my memory, most new models (even so called "speed-bump" releases) have some kind of new features and experience some kind of hiccup. Scrolling trackpad anyone? The point is that a good company will get feedback from the first models off the production line and adjust the prodcution process accordingly/release software patches. I bet that 2 months from now the average MacBook will have none of the common problems of the MacBooks ordered on the day of release. Most likely the first Revision 2 MacBooks off the production line will have issues, but likewise the prodcution will be refined in later runs. If you want a MacBook, don't wait for the first revison 2 units, wait a month or so and buy a mid-production revison1!
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