Comment by MostlyStable
4 days ago
I don't think he's complaining about having a lot of apps, or the ability to have a lot of apps. He's complaining about being required to use apps for hundreds of small interactions every day that don't, or shouldn't, require an app. And he's correct. Companies are doing this not because they think it's better, but because they believe that if they can worm their way onto your device, and insert their cloud service (even if it's initially free), that they can turn you into a more reliable and/or recurring revenue stream in the future, either because you feel locked into their ecosystem so you will buy other products from their lineup, or, even better, buy a subscription service.
Maybe I'm in a tech desert, but I can't remember the last time I was required to use an app for anything. It's a convenient option for my grocery store loyalty card, certain restaurant menus, my HVAC system, etc., but not mandatory. I've heard of restaurants that have no physical menus but I haven't come across one myself.
Some banks. And requesting a French marriage certificate from abroad.
A few years ago I could have done it all on a Linux PC.
90% of the “coupons” at Safeway are “digital deals”. You have to use the app to scan the barcode in store just to get a regular price. Fast food is the same, don’t order through the app and you get ripped off. You’re not forced to use an app an unless you’re okay with getting ripped off.
> He's complaining about being required to use apps for hundreds of small interactions every day
This is the exaggeration that makes these claims fall flat for me.
How are you getting to hundreds of smartphone interactions per day that require apps?
Just because you don't need to interact with all of them today does not mean that interaction isn't required when needed.
Right, but “two or three out of potentially hundreds” doesn’t mean the same as “hundreds”.
That’s the hyperbole the parent was pointing out.
2 replies →
We’ve had smartphones for a decade and I don’t think I have 100 apps on my phone even if you included the ones that came with my phone.
And daily I maybe use 4-6 apps at most.
When I moved to a new apartment in 2021, I did a tally and there was something like 17 new apps associated with it. Off the top of my head:
There were other apps, but I don't care enough now to go looking for the list I made back when I cared about it.
From a technical standpoint, almost all of those apps could be consolidated into one app, but that's not how the real world works. These days companies outsource each little function to a different provider, and each of those providers has its own app.