So today the iPhone 1.1.1 firmware came out, with obvious problems for those that have unlocked their phone. It was to be expected, really. I was following Engadget’s posts about the issue and the comments to see exactly the extent to which the firmware affects unlocked phones and I was quite taken aback by some of the opinions people had with regards to the unlocking. Especially what I perceive to be a misunderstanding of some of the reasons for which unlocking is a good thing.
First, there were the iPhone haters. Not going to go into that. I haven’t been one to follow mobile trends, but I have yet to hear about another device getting so much attention, whether from followers or critics. I think that speaks volumes in itself, so we’ll let it be.
Then, the people putting all the weight on hackers to get their phones back working. Well, hopefully the iPhone Dev Team will get something working soon enough. But there’s no promises. We still have firmware 1.0.2 and ways to use that on the phone, so for now suffice to say that people can still go to that. Remember, the hackers are doing this for kicks and because they believe in something, but they might not get something out.
By far, the crowd that surprised me the most was comprised of iPhone owners on AT&T that were putting down those that have unlocked phones. Either because they are doing something illegal by unlocking the phones - which is simply false - or because they should have just chosen AT&T to avoid all the hassles. Newsflash: the iPhone is used in other parts of the world now, thanks to unlocking. You know, those parts of the world that are covered by neither the DMCA nor the PATRIOT Act1. Take Canada for instance, where the iPhone won’t be available until sometime next year. Yeah, there’s a risk in doing the unlock etc, but I hardly think that it’s sufficient reason to put down and denigrate users of unlocked phones.
My point, however, is about those that said something to the effect of “this is the license, if you’re not happy with it tough break, don’t buy the phone”. Uhm, no! I might not be an economist but I think I’m right in saying that the market is pushed by the will of the people just as much as it is pushed by Big Biz. See, if we didn’t have pirates and P2P, nobody would have ever thought of ditching DRM. People would’ve simply ate up the plate or stayed hungry. But we have the Pirate Bay to show the MAFIAA what exactly consumers want. To show that DRM is not only objectionable on moral grounds, it simply doesn’t hold up in the face of would-be customers. Same goes for Apple, who have recently began what seems to be an aggressive lock-down campaign of their devices2. We have to let them know it’s not OK. They need to realise they won’t make more money in the long run because they will begin losing customers. There is a fine line, I think, for each and every one of us, when it comes to how much we’re willing to sacrifice for good technology. I appreciate Apple products, yes, but that doesn’t mean I don’t look at the company as well and weigh in their business practices. So if they begin bricking iPhones cause they can’t get $10 a month off the plan price from someone that would otherwise not have even bought the iPhone, I can’t sit around and think “Well, that’s business, what can I do?” Every business can run its operations the way they want, and every customer can choose to boycott a business based on those actions.
I can’t believe how many people seem to be losing their sense of ownership in what is an otherwise viciously capitalist environment. I’d expect at least that to kick in, if not a fear of losing freedoms, but neither is awake in the general populace.
