Thread: jPhone ll
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2013-12-15 , 06:10
Posts: 1,839 | Thanked: 2,432 times | Joined on May 2009
#34
Originally Posted by Kein View Post
I think the more pertinent question is, "Can Jolla survive the next 6 months?" The smartphone industry is so fiercely competitive that Jolla would be hard pressed to survive if it made all the right moves but it has made so many wrong moves that it is like a comedy of errors. Among them are:

1) Taking too long to come out with Sailfish when the world has more or less consolidated into two major platforms - ios and Android.

2) Putting in Android compatibility instead of Harmattan apps compatibility. Android compatibility stunts the development of native apps while Harmattan compatibility would be an upgrade path for millions of N9 users plus ensured a pool of quality apps at launch.

3) Doing nothing to promote the development of native apps - no developer units, no developer programs, no contests, no resources and leaving the SDK in an alpha state until the phone was about to launch. Result - almost no native apps at launch.

4) Refusing to prioritize the shipping of early units to developers begging for them in order to test and release native apps. Strictly going on a first ordered first served basis resulted in early units being flogged off on e-bay and auction houses for insane prices.

5) Having no option for paid apps in Jolla store which will again stunt the development of native apps. Isn't this a higher priority than sending out T-shirts?

6) Not setting up a bug tracker and saying they have no time to read bugs so don't send them any bug reports.

7) Wasting their 5 mins of fame and free publicity by launching a buggy beta os unfit for general users. Jolla may improve its os later but will the world know about it?

The world doesn't care if Jolla is a small start-up or not. The question is, "After the group of open source geeks, nostalgic Meego enthusiasts and patriotic Finns have been satisfied who will Jolla sell their phones to?" General users have NO REASON to buy a phone for its Android compatibility when they can buy an Android phone. The only thing that can save Jolla is a pool of quality native apps but Jolla is unable to see this even though the lesson of BB10 is plain for all to see.
Honestly, without the Android support I would have probably not bothered with Jolla. I have been there with N900, N9 and Z10. Wont bother with that anymore. Been there, done that. Like you said, most of us are settled to iOS and Android.
I or you both know with this Android app decision or without we will see similar kind of hobbyist apps as we have seen on N900 and N9. Not all that great and nowhere near enough to anybody who has got accustomed to Android, iOS or WP. Meaning over 95% of current smartphone users. Though I agree that they are not really putting much effort for native apps at the moment.

As for the buggy OS. Jolla was already late 6 months, most likely thanks to ST-Ericsson. They need to get the OS and device out there to start generating revenue and get feedback from customers and their possible future partners. What I have seen so far has been no worse or better than iPhone, HTC G1 or N9. There's no such thing as a complete or not buggy smartphone OS on launch and there never will be.

And yes they do have pretty much a impossible task a head of themselves. Though you got a hand it them that they have got this far already. There are countless of startups that die before they get anywhere near at launching that hardware. While Jolla has managed to ship out their own OS and hardware on one of the most, if not the most fierce industry there is.