Apple are sore losers. Android is raping them in market share so they've gotten sue happy. If you can't beat em', sue em' I guess. The sad part is that patents were supposed to encourage innovation, but because of douchebag companies like Apple, they're doing the opposite.
The annoying thing over here is that mainstream media (TV) picked up on this whole debacle when Samsung and the like retaliated. This painted it like an unprovoked attack on Apple. The whole thing is freakin' retarded but Apple started it and I hope they get what they deserve.
Eh, they filed for the patent before the iPhone was ever released, and I don't recall other phone makers using "slide to unlock" before then. Don't tell me people are actually worried that other phone makers might have to strain their creativity to come up with a different method to unlock? Because that's all that would be required to avoid a patent dispute.
Most ideas are built on top of existing ideas. If it were up to companies like Apple, we'd be stuck in the Dark Ages.
Yep, other companies like Nokia, RIM, and Google had already moved beyond primitive technology like touch screen smartphones and then Apple came along with the iPhone and forced everyone back into the Dark Ages.
What do you propose then, some kind of unlock mechanism where you fart on the phone to make it unlock? This is as ridiculous as Apple getting uppity about other phones having rectangular screens and grids of icons. Are other manufacturers supposed to make phones with triangle screens? Maybe Apple will patent the power button next. Too bad that Apple also steals ideas, like the notification system in iOS 5 which is an obvious Android ripoff. But it's okay when Apple does it, because you have a ridiculous double standard where Apple can do no wrong. It's a good thing Henry Ford didn't go the Apple route with the steering wheel, because we'd probably be steering our cars with our tongues or something.
Some places say differently! http://www.tomsguide.com/us/Slide-to-Unlock-Apple-Patent-Android-unlock-Patent-infringement,news-12998.html Apple try harder than anyone else to make everyone hate them.
My ridiculous standard is logic. I prefer that to random hysterics inspired by corporate logos. Logic states that tech companies apply for patents all the time and are awarded patents all the time, therefore you shouldn't get bent out of shape simply because it was Apple (and not Google or Samsung or Nokia or Microsoft or Sony or HTC or RIM) that was awarded a patent for something that might seem frivolous. And the thread title doesn't even make sense: patent trolls are patent holding companies that don't have actual products on the market.
And you don't think what Apple is doing is any less trolling? Apple is anti-competitive and anti-innovation.
"Slide to unlock", regardless of how frivolous you might believe that feature to be, is an actual feature of an actual product that Apple sells in the marketplace vs. other competitors. That's completely different from patent troll companies, who hold patents without actually producing any type of product that uses them. In other words, they don't make money through competition in markets. They only make money by patent lawsuits. Also, how viable do you think it would be for Apple to actually try and sue regarding "slide to unlock" by itself? Not very. Isn't Ice Cream Sandwich supposed to have facial recognition unlock? Did you know that MS won a patent lawsuit against HTC and now receives $5 for every Android device HTC makes? Did you know they currently generate more money for their patent lawsuits against Android hardware makers than they do from Windows Phone? They're also suing Motorola for using Android. MS isn't a patent troll, but they certainly aren't shy about suing per Android...and it's pretty rare to hear anyone on this board screaming about MS/Android.
Apple shamelessly stole the Slide to Unlock feature. Check out the 4:00 minute mark: http://www.androidcentral.com/apple-granted-patent-slide-unlock-even-though-it-existed-2-years-they-invented-it
I always thought holding down a button which gets noticeably brighter until unlock would be a better unlock.
Apple also shamelessly stole Android's pull down notification menu in iOS 5. It's one of the worst ripoffs I've seen. But I bet Alterego is fine with it.
The Netherlands didn't allow the patent. The United States did. So? Apple didn't create the patent laws of either country, and they don't run the patent offices. They file for patents and are either granted them or denied them, just like everyone else. And like I said, it's an easy patent to avoid, as bfun just illustrated. Ripping off Javascript, on the other hand, probably isn't. Oracle is the company with the sword hanging over Android. EDIT: I just read some other material that said the patent Netherlands threw out of court was an earlier patent related to slide to unlock, not the recently awarded patent.
Probably because the Dutch had enough sense to realise that you shouldn't be allowed to patent something like this. Stupid American systems and laws are really going to start fucking people over.
Here's the problem: if you say "slide-to-unlock is trivial and doesn't deserve a patent", then why would you be concerned if it did receive a patent? Competitors can easily avoid violating patents that cover trivial features.
I should have patented buttons when I had the chance, or logon screens. "A method for securing one's computer through use of a predetermined access name and an input box requiring a prechosen password to be entered, then allowing access to the system after pressing the enter key or clicking an on screen graphic."