Posts tagged Op-Eds

The main repository is gone, but for good? The precarious situation of hosting paid Android apps finally caught up with pirating superstar Jesusxxx when he received an email from his host that said he was being shut down. I say superstar because you have to hand it to this guy for his (possibly misguided) determination to provide apps that normally cost money for a total of zero dollars. I also think it is safe to assume that he is looked upon as a sort of Robin Hood for those who aren’t willing or are not able to pay for apps in the Android Market.

For starters, let’s be really clear on one thing: stealing apps is bad, mmkay? A lot of developers and companies depend on this money to help support their projects. The staff at AndroidGuys tries to keep everyone informed on how to help give back to the community because it is just that important. However, the presence of this “black” market (I also enjoy his play on words) just demonstrates that there are at least two areas of the Android Market that still need some work.

The first major issue is that when a user buys an app they have 24 hours to make a decision as to whether or not they want to keep it.  Now I don’t know about you guys, but even as a huge Android enthusiast, I simply cannot spend five straight hours deciding on my next Twitter client that I will depend on every single day. Perhaps this is where a longer testing time frame could be useful? Now if the user returns an app, they will definitely get their money back, but won’t be able to return it again in the future. So how about the next time you decide to give the app another shot it’s in the middle of a buggy version? Answer: you can still uninstall it, but you’re not going to get another refund. I do understand the logic of not wanting to have people buy and return their apps every day, but there should be some leniency support by the actual Market for situations like this. Sure some of the developers will work with you and give you a second refund if there’s a huge flaw, but not all, and that’s what’s important to remember here.

Second, and definitely just as important as the first, is the fact that many users from different counties/continents have great difficulty using the Android Market, if they even can. When I spoke to Jesusxxx, he mentioned that those people provide the highest number of requests for paid apps. Unfortunately, several countries have carriers that support Android devices, but not the transactions for Google Checkout or carrier billing–this results in a selection of zero paid apps. Awesome, right? No way! These people can’t even choose to purchase many of these outstanding applications because of geographic restrictions that are mostly out of their control. Even I have to admit that moving somewhere different to use an Android device might be going too far… actually, let me think about that, I do love Android . . .

To me, Jesusxxx’s repository seemed like a chance for people to test and re-test applications that they have already over-extended their refund policy on. It is unfortunate that this also means they can keep the apps for free and never pay any dues to the developer creating the magic on the other end. So my proposed solution to this: let’s find a better refund policy. Yes, I do realize that some people actually do just want to steal apps, but I’m trying to give the majority of my supportive audience the benefit of the doubt. Myself included, many Android users just don’t want to get stuck with broken software and others just want to be able to download the apps to begin with! When an app is paid for, there is absolutely no guarantee that it will be continually updated. Now how would a new policy for this would go about being implemented? Well, I wish I had all the answers here, but the real reason I decided to write about this sensitive subject is because I can see both sides.

How do you feel? Should people be trapped after one refund? Can you suggest a better refund policy? Please note: we’re not looking for piracy bashing, as we’ve already explored that topic and it’s unfairness to devs. Help AndroidGuys (and myself) discover the “happy medium” for the Android Market.

Thanks for your time, Jesusxxx.

Edit: Whatever you’re reading between the lines that implies I am pro-piracy, want everyone to get everything for free, and think piracy in any case is justified, is wrong. When I mentioned what his repository seemed like to me, I didn’t mean for myself. What I was trying to get at is: the people using it view it as a place to test apps–or a place to steal them, as I also noted. Nowhere in my post am I trying to say these reasons justify theft. I am regurgitating the reasons that were given to me when I asked why this repo exists. And lastly, I did not give him the Robin Hood nickname, it is another piece of relayed information.

The following is an opinion piece from one of our readers, Lars Aronsson.

That things progress very quickly in the world of mobile technology is no secret: there’s always something bigger, better, faster and more powerful around the corner. In the last 15 years, cell-phones have gone from being a rather exclusive gadget, to a necessity of modern living that you wouldn’t leave home without. Since smartphones can do so much, and they keep getting a wider range of uses, it’s sometimes easy to get gadget envy and crave that last superphone that just came out.

As you all may know, the grass is often greener on the other side, and I for one can get so intrigued by a new handset that I just got to have it – even though the one that’s in my pocket right now is more than adequate and only a couple of months old. How fast things move forward on the smartphone scene perhaps became more apparent than ever with the recent launch of the Android device HTC Desire at MWC in Barcelona. HTC’s latest Android beast is basically another version of the Nexus One, with a few improvements.

I bought the HTC Hero unlocked in late September last year when it was fairly new, for the equivalent of $625. In a couple of weeks, the HTC Desire will start selling in Europe.  I can soon get a phone with a more state of the art version of my favorite mobile OS, a 16% larger screen with 2.5 times higher resolution, an improved and more advanced display technology, an almost twice as fast processor and the double amount of RAM. On top of that, for good measures, I’d get a stereo FM radio with RDS as well, only six months after buying the HTC Hero. And I would get all this for the same amount as the Hero back in September. That’s quick progress.  If Apple only had been able to match this impressive rate of development, I just might have had an interest for the technologically inferior iPhone.

I would lie if I didn’t say I desired the Desire, and I did consider buying it for a while. Even though I have more important things to spend my money on, like food and shelter (it all depends on how you prioritize, of course – true phone fanatics may beg to differ). But then I thought; do I actually need a new device? What’s wrong with the Hero? Sure, it would be really nice to browse the web and watch pictures and movies on that huge and vivid AMOLED display. I could play games with great hardware accelerated 3-D graphics; the entire system would be a lot faster with that Snapdragon CPU and multi-tasking would be smoother thanks to the massive amount of RAM. I could enjoy all this longer without recharging as well, since both the processor and the display have power saving features. But do I really need all this? No. The Hero can do most of what the Desire can (especially when the Éclair update arrives), albeit on a smaller scale.

It’s a bit nuts, but I have bought three new devices in less than a year – two of them in the high-end. For each new handset, I’ve thought: this is the last phone I’m going to need for a very long time. But then something new and exciting pops-up that totally geeks me out. However, I think I finally have moved beyond yearning for the greener Google on the other side of the digital river. I’d say it’s time to, in the spirit of John Lennon, start living in the moment and enjoy what I have here today, instead of always wanting something more (at least when it comes to gadgets, one step at a time).

Voices have been raised against Google and affiliates for pushing out new and better products too frequently: the Motorola Droid was released in early November 2009, soon thereafter the Nexus One arrived and now the HTC Desire is the current Android pièce de résistance. I fail to see why this is a bad thing. When you buy a new gadget, no matter when, it’s bound to soon be upstaged by a more advanced one, anyway. It’s always been like that.

I do understand why some people can get a bit stressed about the frequent upgrades, though. It’s hard enough just to keep up with all the new releases, let alone actually having the latest and greatest device out there. Doing so will probably just give you an ulcer and a hole in your wallet.

Instead, I think one ought to applaud the ingenuity that keep pushing technology forward, enjoy the device you have, and rest assured that when you eventually feel it’s time to upgrade – total awesomeness will be there waiting for you. I think yearly or even biyearly upgrades generally are sensible choices – and the longer you wait, the more you’ll get.

Do you recognize yourself in my battle against spending way too much money on gadgets? Does it all depend on how big a phone nerd you are? How often do you upgrade to a new device? My biggest challenge will probably be to resist the rumored Enterprise version of the Nexus One (if it ever comes out), sporting a hardware QWERTY keyboard. I quiver already…

I am determined to not buy a new device for all 2010, and if I’m truly good at my new philosophical, Zen-like approach to technological advances, I will not even want to buy one either. Will I succeed? Only time will tell.

Lars Aronsson