Why is the american public disinterested in hightech gadgets?

[imported_goku]

Err, this may seem a bit contradictory to what we know but I'd say america is lagging behind in technologies that europe and asia have and I'm wondering why. Why is it that the subnotebook market hasn't taken off yet? Why is it that cellphones are relatively primative compared to the smartphone that a lot of people in asia and europe use? These technologies are available here but people seem to be hesistant on picking them up, are people in america more geared for asthetics than for technology superiority?

I mean I see these laptops that are ginormous and I fail to see the real reason why. I see all of these innovations that came out in the 90s that really had potential but never took off and it really saddens me to see that people have opted for 'bigger is better'. I have a 15" laptop, infact I have two, and while it's nice having a 15" screen, I really wish I had a smaller laptop because 15" is really too cumbersome no matter how thin it is.

One problem I guess I can see is the fact that gadgets that are really small tend to be more expensive than competing products and lack features. I see no reason why they couldn't outfit a laptop with a high end video card like a mobile 7800GTX with a midrange processor and have it be 12" across (widescreen?) because if people knew anything, they'd know that processor speed isn't really everything and that anything over a 1GHZ especially today is essentially unneeded and wasted. (And will be evenmoreso when conroe comes out)


I'm frustrated. Too many laptops with subpar video cards and lacking features, it seem that it's almost intentional that these companies do this.

Another reason I hate large laptops is because the battery life is really sucky for no real reason..

 

[DavemanUT]

Overall people in America are scared of technology.... especially the rich and corporate execs.

 

[acemcmac]

They are?

Who do you think is keeping best buy in the black?

 

[thebigdude]

Older people don't like change. And America is getting older all the time.

 

[Abel007]

I think thats what he is trying to say...Best Buy sells "primitive" products compared to the Asian market. We seem to be a few years behind them in most of the "cool gadgetry".

 

[KoopaTroopa]

americans like things big!

 

[wyvrn]

I like a bigger notebook for the keyboard and screen. So I compromised and got a sub, but it's not the smallest available. Small is not neccessarily useful, it's just glitzy. I think Americans treat technology like a tool and not as a status symbol.

 

[Babbles]

I think you totally misjudged the average American consumer. Furthermore you failed to find the difference between your personal taste and what the majority opinion is; hate to tell you buddy but not everybody out there is going to like what you like.
It is also interesting that the examples you cite are American inventions - so by definition how can the "American public" not be interested in the products that we invented?
Does not compute.

You may like a small screen on a notebook, personally I can't stand it. Does that make me disinterested in "hightech gadgets" because I do think in terms of screen size bigger is better?

In terms of the cellular network, we actually have zoning laws here so they can't put relay towers up wherever they want. In many countries no such ordinances exist so they put towers up all over the place. Also you may want to check a map; the US is just a wee bit larger than countries like Korea, Japan, Spain, Germany and so forth (i.e. Asia and Europe) and as such it is more difficult to provide full digital coverage all over the place.

What you see as a conflict in personal choice should not be construed as some sort of underlying disinterest in "hightech gadgets."

 

[imported_goku]

Originally posted by: acemcmac
They are?

Who do you think is keeping best buy in the black?

The idiots who buy their overpriced, bulky and not very hightech gadgets such as the iPod and their huge laptops. Those devices are fairly easy to make which is why they're is such a high profit margin, making a laptop with firewire, USB2, expandability, High end graphics with decent processors and low power consumption with good battery life and 10/12" screen is no easy feat. Making a laptop with a grossly overpowered processor with terrible battery life, no upgradability/limited, lacking in features and huge screen is fairly easy to design and create.

One example of something that should have been popular was the IBM 701C with the butterfly keyboard, unnecessary now due to widescreens, it should have been popular nonetheless. Sony's Picture book series as well should have been popular but seem to never catch on here..

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by: wyvrn
I like a bigger notebook for the keyboard and screen. So I compromised and got a sub, but it's not the smallest available. Small is not neccessarily useful, it's just glitzy. I think Americans treat technology like a tool and not as a status symbol.

Yep. Usually the more someone brag about a high tech gadget they have the digger the dork they are.

 

[rudder]

because my motorola v180 phone does everything I need it to do.

 

[Stuxnet]

I actually see a bit of a trend where people are simply realizing they don't need all the ****** that's being pushed on us. I think some people are starting to miss a bit of the good 'ol days when you could take a nap without having your neighbor's cousin's uncle send you a PM through your brainwaves.

I used to LOVE gadgets; had to have them. All of them. But anymore, I'm sick of it all.

 

[ElFenix]

you don't seem to know much about notebooks

 

[vi edit]

Because novelty doesn't equal convenience. Same thing with features. They often times kill any quick and functional purpose of things. Complexity for the sake of complexity is nothing more than frustrating...and one more thing to break.

Small things are often times harder to operate than their larger counterparts. Feature laden things are harder to navigate. Complex items have more parts/routines availble to break.

 

[LinuxIdiot]

:angst: I would buy high-tech products if they were released quicker in the US i.e. Nokia E70

This delay in releasing products in different countries sucks, I always see phones I like in other countries, but seem to take forever to be released here if they are even released here in the 850 range.

 

[TheShiz]

you can only reinvent the wheel so many times, a lot of people don't care if their cell phone is tiny or can take pictures or other crap, they just want to make calls which you can do fine with an old one.

computers are pretty much the same way, you can browse the net on a dinosaur.

for any technology to take off there needs to be more innovation, most everything is just the same crap in a different package.

 

[theNEOone]

the answer is simple: our disposable income per capita is much higher than most countries. rather than spending it on silly things like cell phones and notebooks we'd rather spend the money on expensive cars and $25,000 home theater equipment.


=|

 

[archiloco]

it's harder to implement cutting edge technology at a national scale in the U.S. ....this country is too big, and to release something at such great scale is hard to do, and make a profit each time...so they do study groups, and try and find out what EVERYBODY wants.

 

[djheater]

Originally posted by: Red Dawn

Originally posted by: wyvrn
I like a bigger notebook for the keyboard and screen. So I compromised and got a sub, but it's not the smallest available. Small is not neccessarily useful, it's just glitzy. I think Americans treat technology like a tool and not as a status symbol.

Yep. Usually the more someone brag about a high tech gadget they have the digger the dork they are.

There's an American attitude that high tech=elite. Americans are a gernerally egalitarian and democratic people.
No glitz, no glam, that's the way we like things.
Probably why the ipod is so popular. Simplicity in design and function, everybody can get and use one.

 

[cKGunslinger]

Owning a nifty new gadget may get you laid in Japan, but chicks here still dig guys with gas-guzzling cars, choppers, and tats - not cellphone-mp3-iPod-PDAs that you can wear in your eye.

 

[rhino56]

Originally posted by: cKGunslinger
Owning a nifty new gadget may get you laid in Japan, but chicks here still dig guys with gas-guzzling cars, choppers, and tats - not cellphone-mp3-iPod-PDAs that you can wear in your eye.

HAHAHAHAHA

 

[Stuxnet]

Originally posted by: cKGunslinger
Owning a nifty new gadget may get you laid in Japan, but chicks here still dig guys with gas-guzzling cars, choppers, and tats - not cellphone-mp3-iPod-PDAs that you can wear in your eye.

LMFAO - that's going in my sig

 

[CVSiN]

Originally posted by: Abel007
I think thats what he is trying to say...Best Buy sells "primitive" products compared to the Asian market. We seem to be a few years behind them in most of the "cool gadgetry".

yup the stuff we have here is 4 years behind the rest of the world...

thats why I import my phones and other gadgets from Europe or Asia

 

[Jawo]

America is ruled by monolithic corporations and PACs. This has been beaten to death in other threads in this forum. As it has been mentioned above, the US is a larger place, providing companies an easy excuse not to deply the most technological-savvy gadgets and gizmos in the US. Anything that does not have big profit margins (iPod) or competitive markets (desktops/laptops) doesnt get sold because it isnt worth it for the company. Why do you think WorstBuy or CompUSSR sell usb cables for $20 and Cat5e cables for outrageous amounts?

 

[mcvickj]

I would find it hard to believe that anyone could be productive on a laptop with a 10 or 12 inch screen. No way I would purchase something that small.