

In Asia's trend-setting cities, iPhone fatigue sets in - 6thSigma
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/27/us-apple-asia-idUSBRE90Q0IV20130127

======
mturmon
Some ideas I got from this article:

"I bought an Android phone to differentiate myself from the superficial drones
carrying iPhones."

"Nobody wants an iPhone any more, because _everyone_ has an iPhone."

Too many anecdotes, not enough data.

~~~
seanmcdirmid
> "I bought an Android phone to differentiate myself from the superficial
> drones carrying iPhones."

If they really wanted to be different, they should buy a Windows Phone...

Its hard to say where the truth is. There should be some fatigue over iPhone,
but the Android alternatives aren't "good", who wants a second rate phone even
if everyone else has the first rate one? Will people start wearing offbrand
northpeak jackets because northface jackets are too popular?

~~~
herval
The problem with that is the windows brand is not exactly associated with
status. I'm pretty sure these people that buy "androids to differentiate
themselves" are buying "sexy" brands - eg moto Razr or the galaxy III. (I know
a couple of people that did and said just that)

~~~
seanmcdirmid
Well, in my defense I was being a bit sarcastic; maybe ellipses aren't obvious
enough? But if Nokia can break through with a phone, we might see some
adoption as these were the same people buying up the older higher end feature
phones.

Most of my Chinese friends that have bought Android phones have done so solely
for price reasons. All the fashionistas I know still use iPhones, I haven't
seen one with an Android yet, and this is in Beijing.

~~~
cageface
Here in Vietnam I see a ton of younger women using the Note 2. I've asked them
about it and they said the iPhone is boring and they love the larger screen,
which isn't a problem for them because it lives in their purse.

~~~
seanmcdirmid
I've heard the same thing happening in Korea also, but it definitely hasn't
happened here. Maybe we are just behind the trend.

------
bane
I have yet to see or hear of anybody with an iPhone in the Seoul area. I know
they are out there, but an incredible minority. The lack of NFC and a local
market version that supports the ubiquitous over the air digital TV (which is
so common even in-car GPSs let people watch TV while they're stuck in traffic)
[1] makes them more or less a non-starter. [2]

But I'm not sure how much of a signal Asia's fashion trends are towards
western markets, I mean the Turbo Engine, X68000, MSX and VCDs and MiniDiscs
(among others) were all very popular in various parts of Asia, but DOA pretty
much everywhere else.

1 - <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Multimedia_Broadcasting>

2 - this is more or less the solution [http://asia.cnet.com/blogs/koreas-
iphones-become-more-powerf...](http://asia.cnet.com/blogs/koreas-iphones-
become-more-powerful-with-mobile-tv-tuner-62114394.htm)

------
cageface
I think this article highlights a legitimate weakness in Apple's one size fits
all product line. Smart phones are as much luxury fashion accessory as
communication tool now. Like other luxury fashion items people believe they're
making some kind of statement about themselves by choosing one product over
another. And there's not really that much you can say about yourself by
choosing the same single iPhone model that Apple sells to everybody else.

I really think this year is going to be pivotal for Apple. They can recover
their momentum if they broaden their product line and demonstrate some vision
in UI. If they continue to stubbornly cling to the tactics that brought them
their recent successes they're going to continue to slide. They are, to some
extent, a victim of their own success. Android 2.x was so rough that Google
didn't stand to lose much in a bold redesign and they leapfrogged iOS with
ICS. Apple has a huge userbase used to iOS as it looks and works today and
they risk alienating them if they make the changes they need to make to stay
relevant for another product generation.

As much as I criticize some of their decisions I hope they do show some new
life because iOS is currently the only mobile platform that enables the kind
of real-time multimedia apps I want to write.

~~~
snogglethorpe
> _iOS is currently the only mobile platform that enables the kind of real-
> time multimedia apps I want to write_

Why aren't such apps (not sure exactly what you mean) "enabled" in Android
etc?

~~~
cageface
The main issue is unacceptably high audio latency and the complete lack of any
kind of MIDI stack.

There's some hope that the audio issue at least might be fixed in 4.2 but even
if it is it will be a while before developers can comfortably require that API
level.

------
BenoitEssiambre
I don't understand why these articles all ignore the one main Android strength
which is that it is a much less restrictive OS than the other mature mobile
OSs.

Apple, in particular, imposes a 30% cut in profits on everything that is run
on their devices and decide what users are allowed to run or not!

Although the general population aren't necessarily aware of this, it has a
huge impact on the trend setting enthusiasts and early adopters.

The masses are not that clueless either. Just the other day I was talking to
an non techy parametric, someone pulled out an iPhone and he went on a rant
about how Apple controls their devices and takes away freedoms.

I don't understand why this isn't ever mentioned in the media.

~~~
vor_
> Apple, in particular, imposes a 30% cut in profits on everything that is run
> on their devices and decide what users are allowed to run or not!

Not to get too snarky here, but piracy is so rampant on Android that it's
practically unprofitable to target as a platform unless you already have a
well-known product or get extremely lucky. Granted, one could argue that those
things are required to see a profit on iOS as well, but at least you have a
reasonable enough guarantee that the vast majority of people using your app
have paid you for it.

> Although the general population aren't necessarily aware of this, it has a
> huge impact on the trend setting enthusiasts and early adopters.

In what way is Apple's 30% profit cut having a huge impact on users and what
is your source? I don't see how such a developer issue has any relevance to
the general public. If you're referring to the control over what users
install, I think you're greatly overestimating the technical prowess of the
general public and their desire to install custom software on their cell
phones. These are things only techies care about, and they are outnumbered by
the people who just make phone calls and post to Facebook.

> The masses are not that clueless either. Just the other day I was talking to
> an non techy parametric, someone pulled out an iPhone and he went on a rant
> about how Apple controls their devices and takes away freedoms.

With all due respect, one person random about freedoms on their smartphone is
hardly "the masses".

~~~
sebilasse
Pirating iPhone apps in SE Asia is rampant as well, at least in Thailand. Most
people don't pay for apps.

------
jpxxx
So there's a stupendous expansion in sales of mid-range and low-range
Samsung/Android devices, an Android-first carrier affiliate says Apple is
stupid, people with Android phones want Android apps, and marketing
dilettantes are tired of seeing the rabble using -their- status phone.

Doomed, Apple doomed. Sell sell sell. Steve Jobs dead. Flop doom flop sell
doom.

------
b1daly
One thing I think is interesting from purely a perspective of watching the the
competition between iOS and Android and their respective strategies.

In my mind the elephant in the room (or the emperor's lack of clothes) is the
screen size of the iPhone. Clearly there is demand for and utility in larger
screens. Yet Apple has argued that the smaller screen is a feature not a bug.
They changed the size in a way that didn't obsolete existing apps (which was
sensible).

But they have also made a big deal about the hi res retina screens.

I've wondered if the simplest way for them to up the size of the screen is to
go with lower resolution, keeping the same number of larger pixels. This could
maintain backwards compatibility on apps. Since the resolution is already so
high, it seems to me this would be a fine solution (would love to hear some
engineers perspective on this).

But this would force them to back track on two claims of technical
superiority: smaller screen and higher resolution.

After using devices with larger screens, the iPhone screen feels tiny, harder
to read on, and harder to do things on the web with. (I agree that it's fine
for making calls and texting.)

It feels like a situation that could turn quickly against the iPhone and all
of a sudden nobody wants a phone phone whose form factor was determined by the
state of the art five years ago.

Again, I'm just observing it as a fascinating case of strategy and tactics
among two giants engaged in fierce competition.

------
adamjernst
"Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded." – Yogi Berra

~~~
snogglethorpe
I don't think that (awesome) quote is really relevant.

The point is not that the iphone isn't popular, it's that with popularity come
changes in the way it's perceived, and that will affect its future momentum in
some places.

When the iphone came out, it was very much an exclusive fashion item; when
everybody has them, it's not exclusive. Whether it's still viewed as a
"luxury" good is probably more complex—some brands have been surprisingly
successful at retaining their luxury image despite widespread adoption—but
given carriers offering completely subsidized iphones, it may be an uphill
battle.

Not everybody cares about such perceptions, but there are definitely cultures
where many people do.

None of this seems surprising, or particularly controversial to me...

------
fpgeek
As someone who lives in Singapore, I have a completely different take on this.
I don't see what's happening as iPhone fatigue. I know plenty of people who
still have and love their iPhones. Instead I see this as Asian vendors
(Samsung, in particular, of course), doing a better job of understanding the
Asian consumer and figuring out how to make phones they want more.

In my opinion, the original Galaxy Note illustrates this perfectly. When it
launched in the US last year, I remember the parade of terrible reviews (it's
too big, too awkward to use, you'll look stupid talking on the phone, who
wants a stylus, etc.) and the piles of mockery from Apple fans. But from my
vantage point I knew they were missing something. The Note had launched a few
months earlier in Singapore and I had seen Singaporean consumers "get it"
almost instantly. In retrospect, it's clear Samsung had seen something about
Asian consumers that made the Note worth trying - and they were right.

------
ksec
1.Hong Kong never was, and never will be the trend setter. Dont know who make
this BS up but he properly dont have a clue about the Region. And neither
Singapore will.

2\. The Point about Chinese Writing and Video are mostly true. As a Phone, and
purely as a phone it is rather hard to argue about the quality iPhone offers.
Indeed Single Handed operation is important if not the most important factor.
However these days they aren't using it as a phone anymore. Phone has neglect
into a relatively 2nd class function. The region ( I mention the region as
CJK, and some other countries close by; ) uses Whatsapp, ( or other type of IM
that most of US and EU users never heard of ) more to communicate then
calling. While it is extremely popular to use iMessage in US and EU. This
isn't the case there. Writing, ( Specific to Chinese, since Japaness and
Korean has a comparatively simpler and default input method ) is harder on a
iPhone with a smaller screen. Since IM is used more often then Calls this
create another barrier for users compared to a larger screen, and much better
selection of input method on Android devices.

The Video Part as well. Compared to US and EU users. CJK regions are very used
to Subtitle. ( Yes even the video is in their own languages. And of coz all
the Hollowood movies will have subtitle as well ) Now imagining watching Video
on iPhone compared to a Wider devices with Subtitle. The Subitle would have
taken significant amount of space.

3\. It is hard to explain the Korea Pop to everyone. KARA, Super Junior or
Girls Generation. If you dont know them dont worry. You properly know Psy from
Gangnam Style. The pop culture, mixing in the 10 times more advertising budget
from Samsung compared to Apple. It is not hard to understand why these are
more popular region where K-POPs are hot.

But knowing Apple. Chances of Releasing a bigger iPhone is slim or next to
zero. I was hoping they release a 3.8" and 4.34" with iPhone 5. But Since they
took the 4" size that is likely to be the case in the foreseeable future. And
even if they did release a bigger screen size version. It properly wont be
called an iPhone then.

------
maguay
Except in Bangkok, where I live, the iPhone is still by every indicator the
most wanted phone. You see iPhones more often, the iPhone 5 is the most
predominantly advertised device by carries themselves, and the iPhone 4 is
cheap enough that plenty of people I know have said they considered a cheap
Android but decided to go for an iPhone 4 instead.

If Apple has any problem, it's that the iPhone 4 is good enough for many
people.

------
vor_
Is this like Wired's infamous "Japan Hates The iPhone" story from three years
ago? Both stories are based entirely on anecdotes and marketshare percentages,
which are percentages of a total--it doesn't mean sales are going down.

Overall, a very weak article lacking convincing evidence of any sort of trend.

