Apps - at what point is enough enough?

Apps - at what point is enough enough?

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Discussion

LeeM135i

581 posts

53 months

Sunday 15th May 2022
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captain_cynic said:
LeeM135i said:
Currently in Australia and New Zealand for work and needed multiple apps for visas / pre flight information / Covid / check in etc etc.

The in laws are thinking of travelling to NZ to visit family either this year or next and I don’t think the can do it, neither are tech savvy and only have 1 smart phone between them.
I've been meaning to go back to Oz since 2020 to see family... I think I'll keep putting it off.

I've been on holiday 3 times since the start of the pandemic.. well since Dec 2020 and not required a single app. Everything was either online via a web form and tied to my ticket/passport or a PDF if I needed a copy to show someone. More often both.

You can always count on the Australian government to make things 20 times harder than they need to be.
It’s all app based now and you have to show you have completed the ‘paperwork’ on the app when you get to check in. If you haven’t then you go to one side to complete it. I got it right second time but flew 24h later than planned. I’ve been to Sydney then Melbourne then Auckland now back in Sydney and it’s nearly the same as the UK, no masks but limited testing.

bad company

18,484 posts

265 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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I can’t understand why anyone pay £5 for the privilege of having the Go Outdoors app.

As others have said too many apps now.

Zarco

17,706 posts

208 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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O/T but a work mate of mine managed to order his meal at Wetherspoons from the O'Neils next door getting mixed up with his apps. Needless to say he went hungry!

otolith

55,899 posts

203 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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bad company said:
I can’t understand why anyone pay 5 for the privilege of having the Go Outdoors app.

As others have said too many apps now.
That’s a weird choice by them, they could surely just replace the £5 membership card with a £5 electronic ticket to go on your phone’s wallet?

robsa

2,254 posts

183 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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otolith said:
CoolHands said:
Yeah parking apps are the worst, but when you’re on holiday in cornwall you need the various ones who own different car parks so you’re forced into it. Then they all sell / use your data to each other etc

s
Worst case it's a car park with no sodding phone signal and you can't even install the bloody thing (I'm looking at you, National Trust Studland Bay car park)
This is one of my absolute hates - car parking apps and electric car charge point apps. sttily written apps, usually just a frame for their web page, full of bugs and ridiculous password requirements (you know they're ridiculous if they won't accept an Apple suggested strong password) and no data signal. Often they also change ownership every couple of years so, yep, now you need to download another app.

Reliance on smartphones is really getting bad now. I posted a comment up on Reddit the other day as they were all exclaiming how awful a pub was that said 'no computers or mobile devices in this pub' and I said 'what's wrong with it? Just go to one of the other thousands of pubs if you don't like it' and the replies were 'LOL yeah right so how do you check film times or train times in there lolz idiot' etc. They couldn't even countenance a situation you could survive without having your phone tightly gripped in your hand. Very sad.

bad company

18,484 posts

265 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
quotequote all
otolith said:
bad company said:
I can’t understand why anyone pay 5 for the privilege of having the Go Outdoors app.

As others have said too many apps now.
That’s a weird choice by them, they could surely just replace the 5 membership card with a 5 electronic ticket to go on your phone’s wallet?
I’m dammed if I’d pay for them to send me marketing stuff. Only £5 but ridiculous imo.

otolith

55,899 posts

203 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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bad company said:
I’m dammed if I’d pay for them to send me marketing stuff. Only 5 but ridiculous imo.
You pay a fiver for membership but then get a discount on purchases - I’ve had more than the fiver back on one item before.

bad company

18,484 posts

265 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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otolith said:
bad company said:
I’m dammed if I’d pay for them to send me marketing stuff. Only 5 but ridiculous imo.
You pay a fiver for membership but then get a discount on purchases - I’ve had more than the fiver back on one item before.
I bet you could have got the item cheaper elsewhere.

captain_cynic

11,874 posts

94 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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bad company said:
otolith said:
bad company said:
I’m dammed if I’d pay for them to send me marketing stuff. Only 5 but ridiculous imo.
You pay a fiver for membership but then get a discount on purchases - I’ve had more than the fiver back on one item before.
I bet you could have got the item cheaper elsewhere.
Largely I agree with you and abhor "loyalty" programs... but often the sell popular items at a loss hoping that you'll buy some overpriced tat in store to make up for it. I.E. they'll give you £5 off the item but sell you a £1 sponge for £10 or try to rope you into something like an insurance/warranty scheme that costs you £20 (that you'll never be able to claim on).

Sometimes the discount is about brining in the punters.

monkfish1

10,874 posts

223 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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robsa said:
This is one of my absolute hates - car parking apps and electric car charge point apps. sttily written apps, usually just a frame for their web page, full of bugs and ridiculous password requirements (you know they're ridiculous if they won't accept an Apple suggested strong password) and no data signal. Often they also change ownership every couple of years so, yep, now you need to download another app.

Reliance on smartphones is really getting bad now. I posted a comment up on Reddit the other day as they were all exclaiming how awful a pub was that said 'no computers or mobile devices in this pub' and I said 'what's wrong with it? Just go to one of the other thousands of pubs if you don't like it' and the replies were 'LOL yeah right so how do you check film times or train times in there lolz idiot' etc. They couldn't even countenance a situation you could survive without having your phone tightly gripped in your hand. Very sad.
Where is this pub. I need to go there. Must be crazy, people might talk to each other.

otolith

55,899 posts

203 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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The stuff I bought was a good price for a bricks and mortar place including the fiver.

The business model is that people will go back to use a card they paid for and not to use a free one.

monkfish1

10,874 posts

223 months

Saturday 21st May 2022
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RobbieTheTruth said:
monkfish1 said:
ecsrobin said:
monkfish1 said:
An no, i wont have a ticket on my phone. The whole phone/app thing is WAY to unreliable, and frankly, beyond my abilkity to risk rocking up at a station or airport, reliant on nothing other than my phone.

Tried it once on a ryan air flight. That was an unmitigated disater which i still prefer not to think about.

The biggest issue with it all, if there is a problem, there is NO help available. whatever goes wrong or doesnt work, is YOUR problem. And it almost always doesnt work.
I’d suggest this is user error.

I haven’t had a physical ticket for anything in at least 4+ years but probably more (except for the local theatre last month).

Train a couple of times a month for the last few years all booked on Trainline either prior to departure or as I walk to the station. Scan the QR code on my watch and the barriers open every time without fail. Guard on the train wants my ticket phone out show them and scanned (my railcards on my phone so don’t use the watch for that).

Flights to Austria this year all boarded the flight using phone I had everyone’s (7persons) tickets and just swiped across plus everyone’s covid passes again no issues, that’s been the same for the past few years of flying.

Theatre since covid is QR codes works first time every time.
Maybe less user error, more user inability.

As per my last sentance, if it doesnt work, or doesnt make sense, there is no solution. There are invariably no instructions or guides. No one to ask. You are just left to it.

The whole thing relies on having a greater level of understanding than i actually have. If i went to a restaurant and i had to order on an app, leaving aside id refuse, where do you download it from? How do you find that? How do you do that on your phone. How do you "install". These might be second nature to you, but to some of us its a complete mystery.

I managed to install "absolute 80's radio" onto my phone once. Its never worked, ive no idea why or how to resolve.
I agree with the overall theme of the thread - but I also think there are certain, basic things you owe it to yourself to be able to do.

You're saying you can't get to the shops, because booking a train ticket online and having the ticket sent to your email is beyond your ability - then I suggest you educate yourself and learn how to do it.
Do you not think ive tried. For over 4 years. I dont get it. Its that simple.

Assuming i fought my way through booking a flight on my phone, as per my first post, im now totally reliant on my phone to get where im going. I have zero confidence in it, nor my ability to find whatever it is i need to show come the moment its needed. Piece of paper in my pocket cant and doesnt go wrong.

I see people paying for stuff on a phone. I have absolutely zero idea how thats done.

I had a chap who worked for me set up work emails on my phone so they were synched with work. One day they stopped working. Why? Who knows. Chap has left. What do i do now? If you understand this stuff, great, if you dont, tough luck.


r3g

2,923 posts

23 months

Sunday 22nd May 2022
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smile

croyde

22,702 posts

229 months

Sunday 22nd May 2022
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CoolHands said:
Yeah parking apps are the worst, but when you’re on holiday in cornwall you need the various ones who own different car parks so you’re forced into it. Then they all sell / use your data to each other etc

s
Car park at the bottom by St Ives, I was there for work, app needed to pay, no alternative but.......

No frigging signal.

I too am sick of having to sign up and register just to buy something, and ordering on the phone once in the actual restaurant.....go FO!

CoolHands

18,496 posts

194 months

Sunday 22nd May 2022
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My daughters 64gb iphone was getting low on memory yesterday. So we had a look and quite a few gb was from apps. One had nearly 1gb on its own! Like a virus. Got her to delete loads of old ones which made a decent dent (I think around 4gb). Also had a large amount of gb she had ‘downloaded’ from youtube, about 400 songs/videos!

Reclaimed over 10gb

paulrockliffe

15,639 posts

226 months

Monday 23rd May 2022
quotequote all
croyde said:
CoolHands said:
Yeah parking apps are the worst, but when you’re on holiday in cornwall you need the various ones who own different car parks so you’re forced into it. Then they all sell / use your data to each other etc

s
Car park at the bottom by St Ives, I was there for work, app needed to pay, no alternative but.......

No frigging signal.
Why? Just don't pay, if they hunt you down, tell them why and move on.

Or you can simply pay later when you do have signal, for less time and save some money. You can guarantee that a carpark that's stripping costs like that isn't paying for enforcement either.

camel_landy

4,863 posts

182 months

Monday 23rd May 2022
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paulrockliffe said:
Why? Just don't pay, if they hunt you down, tell them why and move on.

Or you can simply pay later when you do have signal, for less time and save some money. You can guarantee that a carpark that's stripping costs like that isn't paying for enforcement either.
Be careful with the assumptions...

M

Leicester Loyal

4,517 posts

121 months

Wednesday 25th May 2022
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monkfish1 said:
Do you not think ive tried. For over 4 years. I dont get it. Its that simple.

Assuming i fought my way through booking a flight on my phone, as per my first post, im now totally reliant on my phone to get where im going. I have zero confidence in it, nor my ability to find whatever it is i need to show come the moment its needed. Piece of paper in my pocket cant and doesnt go wrong.

I see people paying for stuff on a phone. I have absolutely zero idea how thats done.

I had a chap who worked for me set up work emails on my phone so they were synched with work. One day they stopped working. Why? Who knows. Chap has left. What do i do now? If you understand this stuff, great, if you dont, tough luck.
Old man shouts at cloud biggrin

CoolHands

18,496 posts

194 months

Thursday 26th May 2022
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I was in marks & sparks this week (I must be approaching oap status) and there was a handy QR code above each clothing rack saying you can check for other sizes online and in the store (using the link) of the items I was looking at. That’s handy I thought as they didn’t have the sizes I needed on the rack so thought I’d do it and see if they had any stock.

So camera out, point at code, it takes you niftily to the webpage where I am expecting to search for said stock.

Durh! Error

This webpage no longer provides this function. Please download the M&S app for blah blah blah….

Yeah like fk am I

PBCD

715 posts

137 months

Thursday 26th May 2022
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Leicester Loyal said:
Old man shouts at cloud iCloud
Fixed that for you! wink