Apple’s Post-PC BS

Apple’s claim that we are in the post-pc era is a load of garbage. This weekend I had the pleasure of updating our iOS household and it required a lot of tethering a lot of time and thanks to one particular failure quite a bit of frustration.

As anyone who’s purchased an iPad knows to activate even the wifi only device requires a sync with iTunes which of course requires both a computer and a cable. iTunes controls everything. It downloads the updates, confirms your device is authorized and flashes things over … all via the cable. In our house, we sync two iPads and two iPhones on two different computers though we share the same AppleID to ensure we can easly share apps and content.

Things were generally smooth for my devices which sync through my older MacBookPro. The update process on the iPad took a very long time, while the iPhone was processed a bit more quickly. In both cases you have to back-up, acknowledge the update, (though backup first) and the sync and restore … iTunes takes care of this, but it’s quite the process.

My wife syncs against her PPC Mac Mini which is older and slower. Her iPhone updated as expected, but the iPad failed. The failure occurred sometime over night. It had already taken hours for the backup and I just left it running when we went to bed. Unfortunately things did not resolve well … Failure in sync for those who have not lived through this means you have to start fresh. Fresh means nothing on your device. You can of course re-download everything or try to restore. Given how long the initial process ran, I opted for the quicker route … this is where the Post-PC BS really comes into play. There is absolutely no direct way to download everything again from the iPad. You have to hunt for everything all over and download them one at a time … You also really get to appreciate Apple’s design of the App Store which closes out on you for each download.

In contrast, on Android when you sign into your Google Account all your apps, settings and preferences come right down. When I upgraded to the Nexus S from the One, I found even my hidden wifi networks auto-reconnected when I was nearby. When I played with the Xoom recently, my apps did not download immediately (presumable to enable preferences between phone and tablet) but did all nicely line up in the Market ready for a single click to download again.

Apple’s reliance on the computer is certainly friendly for the lower end user, but is incredibly limiting for the more advanced consumer. There’s nothing post-pc about connecting to the pc to do the heavy lifting.

3 Replies to “Apple’s Post-PC BS”

  1. There was, of course, no shortage of commentary on this, but I’ll agree. I’ve used the Nexus One and now my G2, and am exploring the Samsung Galaxy Tab for a little while now (it’s a loaner through my job at RadioShack, disclaimer). I’ve not needed a PC for any of the three, for any purpose. In fact, the only reason I’ve ever connected my phone to my PC is to download custom ROMs, and even that *can* be accomplished remotely through the browser or Dropbox (it’s just easier with the computer and phone as a USB stick).

    It definitely reminds me of my Symbian roots – another platform that can be completely setup and used without ever being near a computer (though with a bit more tinkering).

    With iOS devices taking over laptop/desktop sales, I wonder how long before Apple enables remote activation? They have the infrastructure with MobileMe (it would seem) but aren’t using it yet. Perhaps the ‘one more thing’ for iPhone 5?

  2. I would’ve bought those wonderful multimedia toys long ago had they not been tethered to ‘installables’ like iTunes and Windows. The iPod, iPad, and Zune-HD are all marvels.

    Steve Ballmer of M$ was warned by his own internal research not to require Windows w/ the Zune-HD (which could run Zune MarketPlace from within it’s own guts @ 720p, no Windows necessary). Thank God Mr Gates didn’t require Windows to be present for XBox activation/ compliance.

    I don’t think that anyone at Apple suggests anything to Steve Jobs. I don’t like iTunes to the point that it’s a dealbreaker.

  3. I would love to see the initial config and re-download possibilities there. That’s even competitive with Android. Apple can innovate one step past and call it new too … 😉

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.