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The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses

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Purple Dave
03/13/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
Camera cables. Both of the digital cameras I've owned have proprietary data cables. I can cheat the current camera by just convering my SD cards into USB drives and totally forgetting where I stashed the two cables (one USB, the other RCA stereo/video for playing movies on TV), but with my old camera the cable was a regular-use item at home. For travel, I had to buy a PCMCIA laptop card that would read Not-So-SmartMedia so I wouldn't have to risk losing a cable that would cost me at least $50 to replace (plus S&H).
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Monty
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
The entire technology industry is laden with gadgets that do not make it. That is part of being in the gadget industry, folks. In order for a winner to emerge, there has to be lots of losers. It just happens that Sony (and, to a lesser extent, Apple) have usually been on the losing end of those battles. But some of the comments in this just make me laugh given the world perspective on this stuff.

My top three favorite items in this article:

1.

SD cards are by far the industry standard on memory, and I will be the first to sign a petition outlawing every other memory format (yes, including Compact Flash). But wait! There are multiple varieties of SD cards, too, so we really are not winning any battles here.

2.

CDMA may be disliked (especially by those who have GSM phones), but do not forget that the world has hardly selected one standard for phone carriers. While GSM might be the majority player, like SD cards, it still has multiple varieties. And while the SIM card idea sounds great on paper, we have had a lot of difficulties getting them to work. (GCI in Alaska is our latest example where we have to swap SIM cards because they are moving to a different GSM network. So much for GSM being ubiquitous.)

3.

The sound quality improvement of AAC and WMA is really at very small bit rates, which is stupid in the age of 4gb shuffles. PC Magazine did a study and found that MP3 actually sounds better than both of these formats when using any bit rate above 160K. That leaves only one reason to use a format other than MP3: Because no one wants to pay the small royalties to use it. I am a cheapskate, but that seems absurd to me.

Still, the one thing I have come to accept is that the gadget community will continue to create new standards and formats that will ultimately make all of our lives ridiculously complicated. Consider it job security, folks.
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KhaiJB
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
you missed one huge proprietary mistake made a few years ago.

Kodak Disk Cameras.

[en.wikipedia.org]

worst idea they ever had. I mean.. 35mm was plentiful and easy to get and use.. so they create that??
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OmniZero
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
FireWire. Very hard to find on PCs and a lot of good hard drives use it, not to mention iPod used it at one point.

Apple's Mini-DVI, Micro-DVI, Mini-VGA...whatever other video ports they have. Those are just evil.

All the consoles having different video plugs and power cords.

There has to be more...just can't think of them right now.
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Papercutninja
03/12/09

@OmniZero: Well to their credit, the PS3 has a standard PC type trapezoidal power plug(don't know what its called), and HDMI. So those are pretty universal. But yes, the "multimedia out" on the PS3 is proprietary. Nintendo kept the same connectors from the N64 i think...not counting the power supply.
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Rabid Penguin
03/12/09

@Papercutninja: Nintendo has kept the same plug (For their AV cables) since the Super Nintendo. Which is good I suppose... but it's really not that big a deal. I'd rather all systems have some sort of game backwards compatibility. It upsets me that my PS3 will play PS1 games but not PS2 games :c /
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Vroomtrap
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
Oh allow me to introduce one I found today. Apple with their Mini Display Port. I bought the Mini Display Port to DVI adapter yesterday; Come to find out that it only supports DVI-D, not DVD-I or DVI-A. [en.wikipedia.org]

Example.

So if you already have a DVI to VGA converter and you want to use either DVI or VGA though your Display Port. You have to buy both adapters.
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Framewerk
03/12/09

@Vroomtrap:

Another way apple is sucking more money out of their customers. But noo...no one will complain, its apple almost everyone thinks that they are perfect. Yet they seem to be as greedy, if not more greedy then Microsoft.
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Kaiser-Machead
03/12/09

@Framewerk: Apple won't be making extra money unless people only buy their own adapter for the Macbooks and Mac Minis. Once Monoprice and others make their own accessories, it won't matter anymore. Dell's already adopting displayport.
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Aneurism
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
"Oh no! Beta!"
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Kaiser-Machead
03/12/09

@Aneurism: LOL, Snake reference ftw.
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Antonio Rivera
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
Isn't the iPod plug upgradable when say USB 3 comes out?
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Kaiser-Machead
03/12/09

@Antonio Rivera: USB 3 is backwards compatible, but it won't matter if the cables stay the same, unless the iPod itself is capable of transferring fast enough to use more than the pipe USB2 has to offer.
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rip
03/12/09

@Kaiser-Machead: I don't know what the USB 3 specs are, but considering the iPod, and it's dock connector were originally used with firewire, it's at least as fast as usb 2.
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Kaiser-Machead
03/12/09

@rip: The iPod has always used a slow-poke microdrive, with a data transfer rate lower than laptop hard drives, so I doubt that it even took advantage of the wider pipe that Firewire has. The HDD is the bottleneck that made it pointless, and even now, the data transfer rate is probably not great enough to need anything more than 2.0, which I hope changes one day. Lightning quick syncing would be sweet.
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Gordon McAlpin
03/12/09

@Kaiser-Machead: "The iPod has always used a slow-poke microdrive, with a data transfer rate lower than laptop hard drives, so I doubt that it even took advantage of the wider pipe that Firewire has."

It did, to some extent. The Firewire dock cable was much, much faster than USB 1.1, I know that much. I've never compared Firewire 400 vs. USB 2.0 on my iPod, but I've never stared at my iPod in disgust from it being so goddamn slow like I did when I used the USB cable for all of one day, so even if Firewire connector was still faster, it wasn't much faster.

But you're right, the main bottleneck isn't the connector; it's the HDD. USB3 on an iPod won't be much of an improvement, if it's an improvement at all.
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Kaiser-Machead
03/12/09

@Gordon McAlpin: Yeah I have a couple of 1.1 USB ports on the back of my Powermac, and I use them exclusively for the keyboard/mouse and printer. I tried it with an external hard drive, and it's painful no matter the speed of the drive.
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BeautifulAgony
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
Good calls on all of those. The only thing I have to say, is that Verizon is very easy-going about switching phones with the CDMA system. It's as simple as logging in to your Verizon Wireless abount and selecting your phone. Takes a minute and there's no hassle. I've done it several times trying various phones, and it's easy as can be. It's one of the few things Verizon is good at.
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blash
03/12/09

@BeautifulAgony: Whereas with GSM unlocked phones, you don't even need a computer - just take the SIM card from one phone and plop it in the next.
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BeautifulAgony
03/12/09

@blash: No shit. We know this. I wasn't comparing the two, nor was I saying the practice was better. I was simply pointing out that it's a very simple matter to switch, despite lack of a SIM card.

Don't be a douchebag (although from a brief perusal of your posting history that might be difficult for you, but please try).
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Kaiser-Machead
03/12/09

@BeautifulAgony: That's one of the things that always tempts me, but my little SE says "NO NO PLEASE DON'T GO!"

@blash: Caveats aside, she has a point. The convenience is worth noting, and though I like my little SIM phone, Verizon's service has an edge in that regard.
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Con Seannery
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
I hate those Christmas lights that need the immoral male to male adapters...
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BeautifulAgony
03/12/09

@Con Seannery wants the azure F back!: Almost as reugnant as this 3-way lamp I witnessed.
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Kaiser-Machead
03/12/09

@Con Seannery wants the azure F back!: None of this means anything compared to the transgendered anemone. That mofo is an abomination, and mocks God and Man alike.
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ClintonOddfellow
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
AAC is not actually Apple. It's Advanced Audio Codec, and it was developed long before Apple got it's grubby mitts on it for use with iTunes. It's technologically superior to MP3, it just wasn't as widely adopted until iTunes started using it. MP3 was always kind of the 800-lb-gorilla in the market, because it's support was almost ubiquitous. Although AAC requires no license to stream or distribute content, it has license fees for every codec distributed. Neither software developers nor player manufacturers wanted to pay a licensing fee in order to support AAC, and customers never really demand it (hey, MP3 is here and it's 'good enough') so it got a kind of a lukewarm acceptance in the marketplace.
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Kaiser-Machead
03/12/09

@ClintonOddfellow: open AAC is not proprietary to Apple, but the Fairplay DRM .m4p content that Apple sells sure is. Granted, most of their music library has done away with the proprietary format, but the videos remain, which is understandable, since the MPAA is hard-nosed.
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Darklighter
03/12/09

@Kaiser-Machead: Bashing Fairplay is fine. DRM sucks. But that doesn't excuse Giz blaming Apple for other companies not supporting an ISO standard that's part of the MPEG-4 spec.
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Kaiser-Machead
03/12/09

@Darklighter: I agree, and at the same time, the biggest players already support it. Sony's SE line supports AAC on their walkman phones, Zunes support it as well.
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Jim Topoleski
03/12/09

@Kaiser-Machead: But thats not what Giz is talking about here, they are talking about the ACC Standard in such a way to make me wonder if even a microscopic bit of research was done on the article.
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Wilson Rothman
03/12/09

@Jim Topoleski: Not to get too involved here, but we know that AAC is not Apple's own little homebrewed codec. However, Apple is its proponent, and used it when the de facto standard was MP3. You can make all the arguments you want, but they zagged away from MP3 with their "own" format (i.e., one that nobody else was using), and it screwed up a lot of compatibility issues. And the point of this whole piece is to mourn the absence of compatibility and playing nice together.
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OMG! Ponies!
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
In Oly's defense, the E-series uses that xD picture card for the panorama shots only. It uses regular old CF for the main card.

And if you're going to bitch about camera equipment, how about all the lenses that won't play with each other. Sure, the companies that don't spell their names CANON and NIKON are trying to get Four Thirds going, but that's in the infancy and doesn't help those who bought a Canon or a Nikon.
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blash
03/12/09

@OMG! Ponies!: The problem is, me and a lot of other people who have invested thousands of dollars into either Nikon's F-mount or Canon's EF system would rather not have to buy into a whole different (albeit industry-standard and -unified) system.

It would be nice to get some official converters (between mounts) though, although those converters would inevitably affect the effective focal length of the glass used and degrade the image through additional optics.
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OMG! Ponies!
03/12/09

@blash: Absolutely. I liked the price on my E520, but I'm just a hobbyist.

If I was a professional photographer, I wouldn't buy into 4/3 because, while it's well-intentioned, it's poorly implemented. It has a shorter focal length and smaller sensor size, resulting in higher cropping and lower signal:noise.

But for hobby purposes, it's not bad.
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Josh_Geyer
03/12/09

@OMG! Ponies!: Four thirds is a dumb format. The sensor is too small (2x crop) and the image is a non standard size as opposed to 2x3 format. The pros will always buy Canon, Nikon, Mamiya and Hasselblad. Four thirds will never, EVER, be adopted by pros.
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OMG! Ponies!
03/12/09

@Josh_Geyer: I don't think anyone with a Mamiya would be caught dead with an Olympus. But then again, if you have a Mamiya, you're not a hobbyist (or you're a rich hobbyist).

But for schmucks like me who haven't shot on an SLR since using a Pentax K1000 in film school, it's not bad. It's good enough for hobbyists. And good enough for the rich kids in Billyburg who love dangling D3's from their necks to show how cool they are.
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Serolf Divad
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
Sony has definitely shot itself in the foot with it's proprietary nonsense. Apple, OTOH has been doing it with varying (but ultimately positive) rates of success since they took the lessons learned from the Franklin Ace and PC clones and built serious proprietariness into the Macintosh. It's hard to argue that it didn't work for Apple, though before the iPod it'd be harder to argue that it had.

I agree, though that it's mostly evil. I just bought an HTC Touch on eBay (they're cheap now, from Taiwan) and am loving the fact that it uses a standard mini-USB for power and communication. I wish all gadgets would.
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joe.glass
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
Beta is still widely used in TV broadcasting as it is a fully digital, non compressed format. Just sayin'.

Betamax for the consumer is a bit of a different story. From what I heard, it went under because Sony would allow porn to be distributed on it. The quality was actually better than VHS. But, in the end (not a porn reference), the cheap price and our dirty desires won out.
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OMG! Ponies!
03/12/09

@joe.glass: The ability to hold a 2 hour movie (i.e. a porno) also helped VHS.

One of my professors from law school wrote the oft-cited article on how porn drives technology.
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LuckyFink
03/12/09

@OMG! Ponies!:

Can you please post a link to that article?

I happen to currently be involved in a debate with the little lady about porn, and would gladly and happily site that article.
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OMG! Ponies!
03/12/09

@LuckyFink:

[www.law.indiana.edu]

And yes, I know his name is Peter Johnson. Ha ha ha.
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Hyman Decent
03/12/09

@OMG! Ponies!: Too bad his middle name isn't Richard.

@luckylakey: You're wrong. Porn producers put out HD DVD, not Blu-ray, releases first.
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OMG! Ponies!
03/12/09

@Hyman Decent: While in law school, at the same time, I worked for two other attorneys named Peter Johnson. And their middles weren't Richard either.

I used to joke that I'd finish working for Peter Johnson and Peter Johnson at 5:30 so I could get to class at 6:30 and learn from Peter Johnson.
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nutbastard
03/12/09

@OMG! Ponies!:

It all makes sense! No wonder Japan has such high speed internet!
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Earthslide
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
Don't like it, Don't buy it. Simple. Let the companies find out the hard way.
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BeautifulAgony
03/12/09

@Earthslide: In many cases it's not so simple. Should everyone refuse to buy cellphones until the entire industry forms a consortium to standardize power adapters? Even in the case of HD-DVD vs. Blu-Ray, a lack of sales didn't make a lot of difference; it was studio support that sealed the deal.

I understand your point of view, but it isn't feasible in all markets. A lot of manufacturers have learned the prudence of adhering to standards, but companies like Sony and Apple have always tried to be renegades (mavericks, if you will!) and create the "new" standard.

In rehards to trying to create proprietary dominance, Sony and Apple have failed on almost all counts, but other positive aspects or succesful products have kept their heads above water. Neither has set any spectacular benchmarks for proprietary standards because they both try to play hardball and other people simply don't care. The majority of what they've introduced is either on par with competing technology, or simply has a balanced set of pros and cons, which the consumers must puzzle over then decide upon.
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Earthslide
03/12/09

@Earthslide: It is simple. I won't buy something if it requires buying proprietary add-ons like say the new iPod Shuffle. It won't work with Aux on my car stereo without that extra dongle so I can't play it in my car. Therefore it's useless and I won't buy it. Simple.
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BeautifulAgony
03/12/09

@Earthslide: Good for you. You must also not own a cellphone, laptop, PMP, MP3 player, PDA, PS3, PSP, DS, Xbox 360, Wii, or countless other devices then....

It must be difficult being more of an elitist douchebag than the average fanboy... you're an unFanboy. Gratz.
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Earthslide
03/12/09

@BeautifulAgony: You obviously can't read and jump to conclusions. Re-read the article ... then smack yourself in the head ;)
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BeautifulAgony
03/12/09

@Earthslide: Why don't I just skip it and smack you in the head. You're a fucktard and it won't have a negative impact on your cogitative process.
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Enochrewt
03/12/09

@BeautifulAgony: Is it that type of banal name calling that got you your star?

Earthslide is right, if you don't like the proprietary format, don't buy it. Sure, some formats "win", in the short term without consumer support, such a Blu-Ray, but continued lukewarm support of the format will still lead to a shortened lifespan.

The people that read Gizmodo are in a better position than most to find an equal alternative to these proprietary formats... Control your gadget lust!
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BeautifulAgony
03/12/09

@Enochrewt: If you don't know by now how one earns a star, then I'm not going to bother trying to rectify your ignorance.

My posting hasn't changed since day one, and if the star comes or goes, it doesn't greatly concern me. I say what I think, and I don't really pull and punches. Sometimes sensitive people feel hurt and get any whingey. I really don't care.

My point was, almost no matter what you buy you're getting something proprietary and you'll get fucked along the line. Whether it's a power cord, charging cord, charging dock, controllers, remotes, etc... there is no such thing as a consumer boycott, because people buy all this shit because they perceive a need for it. It's just something most companies prefer to do. I don't like it, but I needed a phone and so I had to buy the extra properietary shit necessary to keep it charged and synced.

If you own a cell phone then you own a product with a proprietary adapter. It's that simple.
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Mr.Gawn
03/12/09

In reply to The Worst Proprietary Gadget Offenses
Nintendo's MANY MANY MANY!!! Wii-mote accessories
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closhedbb
03/12/09

@Mr.Gawn: I'm pretty sure just about every controller for a console has only been compatible for the system it was designed for.

You might as well be pissed about every Playstation controller only being compatible with playstations, or the same for XBox, or for Sega, etc...

Have you ever bought a controller to be used with more than one brand of console?
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IN THE FACE!
03/12/09

@closhedbb: I think they are talking about the bajillion snap-on "theme" attachments for the wiimote:

i.e.

Steering wheel

Golf-Club

Tennis-Racket

Light-Saber

etc. ad-nausem
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