A superstar app developer is worried about Apple's subpar software and is talking about it.
The fact that someone is complaining about Apple's (AAPL) software isn't news. The fact that one of Apple's most prominent app makers is making a big stink about it is.
 |
| Marco Arment |
"The software quality has taken such a nosedive in the last few years that I'm deeply concerned for its future," said Marco Arment, co-founder of Tumblr, Instapaper and Overcast, in a blog post. "I fear that Apple's leadership doesn't realize quite how badly and deeply their software flaws have damaged their reputation."
Critics of Apple's software have grown more vocal over the past several years, noting that it has been surpassed by Android and Windows on many fronts. Apple's cloud services are particularly mediocre, as iCloud and iTunes continue to confound users.
But complaints about Apple's core software, iOS and Mac OS, have been far more muted until a wave of bugs and security holes plagued both operating systems over the past several months.
Arment, who is the host of the popular Accidental Tech Podcast, said his Mac is "riddled with embarrassing bugs and fundamental regressions."
He said that Mac users used to make fun of Windows for the same bugs.
Apple has long marketed its products as easy-to-use and bug-free with the "it just works" slogan. Arment notes that the motto was "never completely true," but Apple products are now operating far from that goal.
Related: Apple fixes software bug in iPhone 6
Arment theorizes that Apple's push updates of the iOS and Mac OS X operating systems annually is to blame.
Google (GOOGL) also updates Android every year, though Microsoft (MSFT) is on a much slower update pace for Windows.
Apple refreshes its operating systems to coincide with the releases of its new iPhones and Macs.
"The problem seems to be quite simple: they're doing too much, with unrealistic deadlines," Arment said.
