A friend of mine once asked me why he would ever need to install applications other than games on his iPhone, while he could do most of the things he needed by simply opening Mobile Safari. He’s not new to the iPhone platform: he bought an iPhone 3G in 2008 and finally switched to the iPhone 4 a few weeks ago. He reads blogs to stay updated about what’s new in iOS 4, the latest Apple news and games updates. Yet, he doesn’t install apps to “do stuff” on his iPhone, because he says Safari is such a good browser he doesn’t need to “spend money on additional apps”.
Maybe he’s missing out the best part of iOS, or maybe we, as geeks, need to take a step back and reconsider what we’ve done so far.
His way of using the iPhone made me think: he’s got a pretty huge Games folder on his homescreen, but other than that Apple’s stock icons are all over the place. He truly enjoys the iPhone as it comes out of the box. He didn’t feel the need of OTA sync in OmniFocus, tags in Simplenote 2.0 were not a big deal to him, Pastebot’s clipboard in the background using a silent track was an unknown tale. He loves his iPhone, and he doesn’t need to keep on bouncing from app to app to get his things done.
We, on the other hand, can’t decide between Things and Omnifocus, Cloud or Droplr, Weet or Twitterrific. How are we even supposed to think about using the iPhone without 3rd party apps? Most of us can’t stick with an app for more than 2 weeks; many of us can’t come up with a defined workflow because the next big thing is always coming, and it’s going to be great. I’m throwing myself into the mess here: too many times in the past I called an app “great” just because it satisfied my need of something fresh and, UI-wise, good-looking.
We need to take a step back. We need to look at the big picture and ask ourselves what’s the trade-off when it comes to geek enjoyment and user experience. Geeks love to try new stuff and stay on the edge of software: that’s what keeps the tech world moving. I respect people that help new startups and developers gain visibility in this crowded and messy tech scene; geeks that try new things just for the sake of trying have all my respect. Personally, I won’t stop trying new things and helping new developers coming up with great new apps: that’s what I love, and I’m lucky enough to be able to say that it’s also my job. That’s what gets me out of the bed in the morning: knowing that someone out there might use my…our suggestions, and that many of you guys are always looking for a better way to improve your workflows.
But we need to take a step back and start playing Apple’s game with a renewed consciousness. I’m not saying Steve Jobs is the bad guy here: it’s pretty obvious, though, that by establishing a platform everyone can access to install apps in seconds, Apple wanted us to become a new kind of smartphone users - users who are constantly willing to try new apps. But then again, Apple ships a product which makes perfect sense on its own: the iPhone is a great device even if you don’t install any apps on it. I’m with John Gruber when he says the iPhone is the best thing that happened to mobile.
So I don’t think that’s really a “right” or “wrong” here. I’m not saying people like my friend are doing it right: I think he’s missing great pieces of software like Simplenote and Weet, and I’m sure he could enjoy them a lot. All I’m saying is we, as geeks, could use a reconsideration of our processes and habits. If you’ve ever felt guilty for not having really enjoyed and appreciated all that stuff you have on your iPhone, maybe it’s time to slow down and get out of the loop.
Some might say that we’re arguing on silly problems for people who spend most of their days in front a stupid computer. I think it’s more than that. There are people, expectations, frustrations, hopes and, yes, money behind the great apps in the App Store. There are stories behind them. It’s time to take a step back and start appreciating these things again, like we used to in 2008.
My friend is waiting for you, with his browser open on Twitter.com and Doodle Jump paused in the background.
