PC World: The 15 Biggest Tech Disappointments of 2007
by Volker Weber
No wonder so many users are clinging to XP like shipwrecked sailors to a life raft, while others who made the upgrade are switching back. And when the fastest Vista notebook PC World has ever tested is an Apple MacBook Pro, there's something deeply wrong with the universe.
We have no doubt Vista will come to dominate the PC landscape, if only because it will become increasingly hard to buy a new machine that doesn't have it pre-installed. And that's disappointing in its own right.
Office 2007, Leopard, Zune, the iPhone (yes, the iPhone) also make the list.
Comments
I like this "note to social networks":
...Here's a safe bet: Two years from now, 90 percent of these networks will be gone and their founders will be back working at Starbucks. I'll have a double mocha frappucino, please.
LOL, Schweppes
I'm not surprised the iPhone is on the list. While it may have some nice features from a purely technical perspective, the whole package has been pretty disappointing so far (at least to me).
This sentence about 'Internet Security' made me chuckle:
In 2007, the words "Internet security" joined the ever-growing list of self-canceling phrases, alongside "business intelligence", "Congressional ethics", and "Microsoft Works."
Thanks for the tip, vowe. Nice reading, and oh so true ...
@Ragnar your comment on the iPhone is rather surprising.
Please note, the negative feedback given to the iPhone by PC world is more related to it's networking capabilities and in particular the fact that Apple committed the whole thing to AT & T which apparently lacks decent 2G support on it's (north-american) network.
@Pieter: Why is it so surprising? I must admit that I have only used the iPhone in an Apple store for about half an hour and then I played with a colleague's iPhone for another hour or so. I simply must say that I'm really not that thrilled by the iPhone.
- the navigation was not intuitive for me (a non-Apple guy)
- entering text using the on-screen keyboard with keys way smaller than my finger tip ignores every single result of research on UI design,
- the fact that I have to install iTunes to fully use the phone's features p*** me off,
- paying this much money for a phone with no 3G let alone HSDPA today is just ridiculous,
- ...
I think this is enough to make it into this list. But of course, every such list is very subjective and I do acknowledge that there are tons of iPhone owners who really love it. So be it, not for me though.
@Pieter: I am on AT&T in the US, and I have excellent 3G (even 3.5G, or what AT/T call 3G+). I use a Samsung phone, but Google Maps is nice and fast, and even streaming audio and video (using WinAmp Remote) is working well. So there should not be any problems on the AT&T network.
Surely a brand new product like iPhone support 3G fully out? Anything else would be pretty boneheaded from Apple, don't you think? So 2G should not really be a problem, just use 3G. :-)
"Surely a brand new product like iPhone support 3G fully out? Anything else would be pretty boneheaded from Apple, don't you think?"
Doh!! :)
Personally I'm more fond of our Ten Technology Letdowns of 2007 but then I would be, wouldn't I?
