Been thinking about the Samsung vs. Apple battles going on at the moment and the fallout. On the face of it, it seems to be bad move for progress. Technology innovation is moving on at such a pace that it is inevitable that products produced by different manufacturers will offer virtually identical features and designs. I'm no expert at patent law but how is it that this hasn't come up in the past?
Henry Ford invented a car but he didn't prevent anyone else from coming up with a similar device with an engine, four wheels, seats, doors, roof, brakes, gears and a windscreen. If he had, we'd all be driving Model T Fords. There are so many products which are virtually identical - fork, spoon, television set, record player, oven, kettle - this list is endless.
A modern smartphone has to satisfy a basic design criteria. A certain size to fit in the hand and between ear and mouth; a flat screen which is largely the same aspect ratio as a modern TV screen (16:9), a 3.5mm headphones socket, volume control and an on/off switch. This surely limits the opportunities for manufacturers to create products which are distinctly different from each other.
Although I've never owned an Apple product, I've appreciated their design and they've always managed to be distinct enough with their designs to ride above lower quality products which are similar but simply not 'Apple'. Everyone knows an Apple iPhone when they see it. It is easy to see the difference between it and a rival company's phone in the same way that you can tell an Apple laptop from all the others.
Apple is good but choice is better.
