Long time readers know that Irreal doesn’t hold journalists in high regard. Oddly, the worst offenders are journalists on the tech beat. It’s odd because you’d expect them to know the difference between a computer and a composter but they often seem more confused on the difference than the general public.
A quintessential example of this is Sean Holister’s article in The Verge complaining that APPLE SHIPPED ME A 79-POUND IPHONE REPAIR KIT TO FIX A 1.1-OUNCE BATTERY. The level of cluelessness here is hard to capture. When I first saw the headline, I snorted in contempt and moved on. Fortunately, John Gruber is made of sterner stuff and after reading the article wrote a brilliant takedown of it.
But really, you don’t need a reasoned rebuttal of this nonsense. Just the headline is enough to tell you the writer doesn’t have any idea what he’s talking about. Holister seems to think that an iPhone is just a 21st century Heathkit that anyone should be able to work on with a screw driver and a pair of pliers. It’s not, of course. It’s a miracle of miniaturization and manufacturing that fits more power than that of a 20th century computer into a package smaller than a deck of cards. Of course it requires special tools and knowledge to work on.
Holister’s article boils down to the entitled whining of someone who thinks he should be able to replace an iPhone battery with a screwdriver and a one-sheet set of instructions and to do it for less than Apple or one of their authorized repair centers charges. Is it any wonder that everyone hates these clowns and holds them in contempt?