Minor things that bother you

[hbelkins]

Heartburn.

[formulanone]

Heartburn.

Especially when trying to get rest.

[JayhawkCO]

Never does an Englishman say "mahr-TEE-nez"; it's always "MARH-tuh-nez". Why is that so damn hard?

It's probably because Martinez is pronounced "MARH-tuh-nez" in British English. As in, people with that surname in the UK pronounce it that way.

Or the name is unfamiliar. So they say "Martin" the way all people in English do, and then add "nez" to the end

I have multiple Latin male friends who would beg to differ.

[kkt]

Never does an Englishman say "mahr-TEE-nez"; it's always "MARH-tuh-nez". Why is that so damn hard?

It's probably because Martinez is pronounced "MARH-tuh-nez" in British English. As in, people with that surname in the UK pronounce it that way.

Or the name is unfamiliar. So they say "Martin" the way all people in English do, and then add "nez" to the end

If they're pronouncing it like Spanish, the stress should be on the middle syllable.  If it is a Spanish name and the stress was on the first syllable it would need to have an accent mark over it.

[Georgia Guardrail]

Ice cream trucks annoy me.  They're loud and obnoxious and think they're all that going through neighborhoods and college campuses.

[JayhawkCO]

Ice cream trucks annoy me.  They're loud and obnoxious and think they're all that going through neighborhoods and college campuses.

Ice cream trucks are arrogant?

[jakeroot]

I have multiple Latin male friends who would beg to differ.

No argument from me that Martinez should be pronounced with the stress on the first syllable. I'm just guessing that in British English, those string of letters suggest stressing of the first syllable. Even if, as Americans, we know very well that the stress is on the second syllable. Per Spanish rules. With which we have lots of experience, of course. Unlike the English.

If the English are to say it right, though, it should end with a "th" sound. British-Spanish rules follow Spain. Eg, "Ibitha".

If they're pronouncing it like Spanish

I don't think they're pronouncing it even close to the Spanish or Latin American pronunciation. They're saying it in British English. And butchering it. lol.

[JayhawkCO]

I don't think an Englishman would say "MART-in-ee" when chugging gin and dry vermouth with a lemon twist.

I think that's my point. It's one thing to translate a foreign word into your own phonology. There are plenty of sounds that are in world languages that don't exist in English, so it makes sense I'd pronounce a Swedish 'y' like 'oo', a Ukrainian 'x' like 'k', or a French 'r' with a hard American 'r', unless I was really trying to get the accent right, which, in everyday conversation I would not.

It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever to change the stress of a word, which in turn "schwas" some vowels and lengthens others.

[ZLoth]

Parents when we were kids: "Hard work never killed anyone!"

Parents when we were working full-time and going to college part-time: "All that hard work will open up opportunities in your career."

Parents when we are working hard with limited resources: "Why are you working so damn hard? All those hours are stressing you out. Are you trying to work yourself into a early grave? Don't you have enough people? You need to enjoy life!" 

[hbelkins]

When apps quit working on your phone because you don't have the most recent OS installed, and you can't install the most recent OS because you use an older phone that won't run the newer OS, and you can't afford to buy a new(er) phone that will run the apps.

[hotdogPi]

When apps quit working on your phone because you don't have the most recent OS installed, and you can't install the most recent OS because you use an older phone that won't run the newer OS, and you can't afford to buy a new(er) phone that will run the apps.

I have an iPhone SE, the first one (between iPhone 5 and iPhone 6), and I could update to current until about a month ago, and the reason I can't now is because I've used almost all of my 16 GB and there's a lack of space and not because it can't run the newer OS. How old is your phone?

[1995hoo]

When apps quit working on your phone because you don't have the most recent OS installed, and you can't install the most recent OS because you use an older phone that won't run the newer OS, and you can't afford to buy a new(er) phone that will run the apps.

I have an iPhone SE, the first one (between iPhone 5 and iPhone 6), and I could update to current until about a month ago, and the reason I can't now is because I've used almost all of my 16 GB and there's a lack of space and not because it can't run the newer OS. How old is your phone?

My wife has the first-generation iPhone SE. I understand that model will be cut off later this year when iOS 16 rolls out. I believe the same is true of the iPhone 7, which my mom has. No longer being able to run the new operating system isn't in and of itself necessarily a reason to get a new phone unless and until there is some very important app you need (assuming, of course, you're able to get a new phone when that time comes). My wife really doesn't want a new phone because she likes the very small size of the original SE–it fits her hand just right and it fits in her various handbags. I get that aspect–I have an iPhone X and anything bigger would not fit properly in the car's cupholder, which is where I normally stick it for local driving. (If I did have to get a new phone, I'd consider offering mine to hbelkins depending on how much I could get from Verizon for a trade-in.)

I have an old (2012-era) iPad that ceased to be updateable a long time ago. I keep meaning to wipe the device, remove the passcode, and configure it so that it can be used solely for purposes of displaying recipes in the kitchen, which is something for which I regularly use an iPad.

[abefroman329]

(If I did have to get a new phone, I'd consider offering mine to hbelkins depending on how much I could get from Verizon for a trade-in.)

If you time it right, you can make a mint in trade-in credit - back in April, I traded in our iPhone XS phones for iPhone 13s and got $700 per phone.

[jakeroot]

My wife really doesn't want a new phone because she likes the very small size of the original SE–it fits her hand just right and it fits in her various handbags.

Apple has been offering "mini" version of their recent iPhones that are smaller than the SE and other iPhones from that era.

My sister and girlfriend both have an iPhone 12 Mini and really like them. Finally a small phone again, which is great for regular hands (I personally have larger hands so I have the iPhone Max).

[1995hoo]

My wife really doesn't want a new phone because she likes the very small size of the original SE–it fits her hand just right and it fits in her various handbags.

Apple has been offering "mini" version of their recent iPhones that are smaller than the SE and other iPhones from that era.

My sister and girlfriend both have an iPhone 12 Mini and really like them. Finally a small phone again, which is great for regular hands (I personally have larger hands so I have the iPhone Max).

I'm aware of the "mini" phones but I haven't paid a lot of attention because, frankly, Ms1995hoo really doesn't want to replace her current one unless and until she has no choice. Did either your sister or girlfriend ever have a phone sized comparably to the iPhone 4 or the original iPhone SE? I ask because I'm interested in hearing how the sizing compares, although ultimately I think when the time comes I'll just take the missus to the store and have her handle the different phones to see which one she likes. The head of IT at my old job suggested that idea for deciding which Blackberry device to get when they issued said devices to all of us back in 2005 or 2006–go to the store and try them out to see which one you like–and it really makes extremely eminent sense to do that if you're unsure.

[jakeroot]

My wife really doesn't want a new phone because she likes the very small size of the original SE–it fits her hand just right and it fits in her various handbags.

Apple has been offering "mini" version of their recent iPhones that are smaller than the SE and other iPhones from that era.

My sister and girlfriend both have an iPhone 12 Mini and really like them. Finally a small phone again, which is great for regular hands (I personally have larger hands so I have the iPhone Max).

I'm aware of the "mini" phones but I haven't paid a lot of attention because, frankly, Ms1995hoo really doesn't want to replace her current one unless and until she has no choice. Did either your sister or girlfriend ever have a phone sized comparably to the iPhone 4 or the original iPhone SE? I ask because I'm interested in hearing how the sizing compares, although ultimately I think when the time comes I'll just take the missus to the store and have her handle the different phones to see which one she likes. The head of IT at my old job suggested that idea for deciding which Blackberry device to get when they issued said devices to all of us back in 2005 or 2006–go to the store and try them out to see which one you like–and it really makes extremely eminent sense to do that if you're unsure.

Oddly, they both had the iPhone 6. Both seem to really like the "small body, large screen"  format that you get with the Mini models.

I've never been too picky with phone size, but I know in the case of my sister, she wanted a smaller phone. We did go the Apple Store and had her look at the options beforehand. She really liked the smaller body of the Mini, so she went with that because it was easier to hold. When my girlfriend broke her 6, I just told her to get the Mini because it was basically the same phone she had minus the huge bezels on the top and bottom. And I already knew from my sister's experience that it was a good phone with all the latest features. Plus, very easy to hold.

[Scott5114]

I sort of miss having bezels, to be honest. Selecting things at the edges of the screen feels a lot more hit-or-miss without them. And having the screen go all the way to the edges is sort of useless when most content that would be consumed on the device doesn't have that aspect ratio (and I don't like having the edges of the content cropped off so I can use the extra pixels).

[jakeroot]

I sort of miss having bezels, to be honest. Selecting things at the edges of the screen feels a lot more hit-or-miss without them. And having the screen go all the way to the edges is sort of useless when most content that would be consumed on the device doesn't have that aspect ratio (and I don't like having the edges of the content cropped off so I can use the extra pixels).

I'm not sure what phones you are thinking of, but most modern phones have at least a small bezel around the screen that maximizes screen-to-body ratio without making the screen hard to hit (the current iPhones have about a 5mm bezel around the edge). This is very much intentional as, by and large, the market wants phones that aren't physically huge, but do have big screens. The exception are some Android phones with curved displays and such, but even then, the software is designed to keep buttons out of the curved areas.

The old iPhone had a screen ratio of 16:9, but the new one has a wider 19.5:9 ratio. Apple has worked quite well to optimize apps for the new ratio, and I've yet to experience an app where anything on the screen was hard to hit.

[Scott5114]

Mine is an Android where the glass surface kind of curves around the edges, although now that I look at it closer there's approximately 1 mm margin with no pixels under the glass. Still, I wish I had more margin for error so I am more confident as to where I am tapping. Most apps don't require selecting anything that close to the edge of the screen, but there is an OS interface widget that functions as a tray that must be dragged in from the right edge of the screen that I consistently have trouble with.

I'm not particularly convinced that "the market" wants anything that phone manufacturers claim it does. In fact, I'm not convinced phone manufacturers have ever talked to one of their customers at all; pretty much nobody is in favor of changes like non-removable batteries or removing the headphone jack (to say nothing of oft-desired niche features that no mainstream phone offers, like a physical keyboard). These changes benefit the manufacturers at the expense of the users, so the "the market wants" excuse is hard to swallow. It makes it difficult to trust that argument even when the benefit to manufacturers is not so clear.

[abefroman329]

pretty much nobody is in favor of changes like non-removable batteries or removing the headphone jack (to say nothing of oft-desired niche features that no mainstream phone offers, like a physical keyboard).

They may not want the removal of a headphone jack, but they do want phones that are too thin to accommodate one.  They may want physical keyboards, but they don't want phones that are double in size in order to fit a physical keyboard, or smaller screens so you can include a physical keyboard without making the phone bigger.

[Scott5114]

pretty much nobody is in favor of changes like non-removable batteries or removing the headphone jack (to say nothing of oft-desired niche features that no mainstream phone offers, like a physical keyboard).

They may not want the removal of a headphone jack, but they do want phones that are too thin to accommodate one.  They may want physical keyboards, but they don't want phones that are double in size in order to fit a physical keyboard, or smaller screens so you can include a physical keyboard without making the phone bigger.

How do they know that's what "they" want? I'm "they". I would much rather have a phone like the one I had in 2012 with the slide-out keyboard over anything in the AT&T store. But they don't even give me the option to make that choice. I'm not expecting the top of the line Galaxy to cater to my needs, but I would like to have something that does.

Chalk that up as a minor thing that bothers me: when an industry standardizes so much on some practice that there is no actual choice in the matter given to the customer.

[jakeroot]

Chalk that up as a minor thing that bothers me: when an industry standardizes so much on some practice that there is no actual choice in the matter given to the customer.

I think if you did an objective overview of the mobile phone market over the last twenty years, consumers are actually gifted with a remarkable level of choice these days. The phones are all pretty similar, sure, but there is still a lot of choice.

[Scott5114]

Chalk that up as a minor thing that bothers me: when an industry standardizes so much on some practice that there is no actual choice in the matter given to the customer.

I think if you did an objective overview of the mobile phone market over the last twenty years, consumers are actually gifted with a remarkable level of choice these days. The phones are all pretty similar, sure, but there is still a lot of choice.

If the phones are all pretty similar, then by definition there is not a lot of choice. Are you a marketing major or something?

[jakeroot]

Chalk that up as a minor thing that bothers me: when an industry standardizes so much on some practice that there is no actual choice in the matter given to the customer.

I think if you did an objective overview of the mobile phone market over the last twenty years, consumers are actually gifted with a remarkable level of choice these days. The phones are all pretty similar, sure, but there is still a lot of choice.

If the phones are all pretty similar, then by definition there is not a lot of choice. Are you a marketing major or something?

I don't mean like that, exactly. I mean, the original iPhone was a Cingular exclusive because no other carrier would give Apple any free-will. The first Android phone was on T-Mobile only. Two year contracts were the norm. Carrier bloatware on every single phone was the norm. If I wanted a certain type of phone, there was a decent chance that Samsung would offer four different versions, one for each US carrier (at the time). Only half the carriers even used SIM cards. Phones were always carrier locked. The damn list goes on.

Now, it's the polar opposite. No contracts to be found. Phones are always unlockable. Everything has a SIM. Carrier bloatware is at least limited (non-existent on iPhones at least). Yeah, there's less replaceable batteries, 3.5mm jacks, and physical keyboards, but the overall market is better for the consumer. Even if smartphone choice is between a lot of decently similar phones.

For the record, there are still plenty of phones with headphone jacks on sale. It's just the mainstream phones that people buy over and over again (pretty good indication of market satisfaction?) that have lost the jack. Personally, I've used wireless earbuds for a few years, so good riddance!

[abefroman329]

How do they know that's what "they" want? I'm "they". I would much rather have a phone like the one I had in 2012 with the slide-out keyboard over anything in the AT&T store. But they don't even give me the option to make that choice. I'm not expecting the top of the line Galaxy to cater to my needs, but I would like to have something that does.

Chalk that up as a minor thing that bothers me: when an industry standardizes so much on some practice that there is no actual choice in the matter given to the customer.

Look, I dislike capitalism as much as you do, but the simple truth is that it may not be cost-effective to offer, say, one version of the iPhone that has a headphone jack and one that doesn't.  And offering one Galaxy with a physical keyboard and one without would be a logistical nightmare, even if it was cost-effective.  And then there's the fact that, if you offer a consumer too many choices, they won't buy anything at all.