> So do you feel that anything other than 100% market share counts as a monopoly?
No I did not say that. I say, there's a healthy competition and there's no monopoly as people have viable alternatives and in many other countries people choose these alternatives and people where Apple is dominant do have the same alternatives to choose from.
There's no such thing as "right of minimum market share" that Apple violates by selling too many devices.
People do have the options and if they still buy Apple that's not monopoly, that's success.
No, I'm very annoyed by Google as their product quality keeps declining year after year and I do not have a real choice.
In fact, I have no practical ability to change my e-mail address as I'm using it since 1st of April 2004 and Google does not offer me to keep the address if I want to switch to another provider.
My arguments are in defence of Apple, not Google. I can move away from Apple at any time but I can't do the same with Google.
iMessage: WhatsApp, Signal, SMS etc. No One uses iMessage outside of the US, alternatives are very good and available on all platforms. You don't lose access to your social circle by switching away from iMessage.
Apple Watch: Just another device that has numerous alternatives. Many excel in some way, not crappy alternatives.
iCould: There are numerous alternatives, free and paid and work very well.
So, if you like to get rid of Apple, you simply tell the people you care that they can reach you from WhatsApp or your favourite alternative. Buy the new device, follow the transfer data and setting instructions, erase your iPhone&watch, give them away or sell them and you are done.
Same things can be said about your email address at Google. I moved to an alternative within a year, manually, by changing all services one after another. It was hard but worth it.
> However everyone agrees that Apple created a walled garden which is hard to escape.
An obviously false statement.
> Try to use their watches without an iPhone.
Their watches are an iPhone accessory advertised as requiring an iPhone in order to work.
Anyone who buys one thinking otherwise has been misinformed by someone other than Apple, and can return it to the store for a full refund. Then they can buy one of many Android wear or other smartwatches instead.
From my second link: "Apple iOS and other mobile devices, which are restricted to running pre-approved applications from a digital distribution service." If you find The Guardian and Time references unsatisfactory, consider this: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21587191.
I really don't understand why you are so much defending Apple.
I did not suggest that an article in Guardian means everybody agrees with that. In this case, Apple themselves agree that the iOS platform is closed for many things.
In my opinion, everybody who doesn't think it's hard to escape did not research Apple well enough. I showed you (some) evidence that it's a closed ecosystem. You could show me something suggesting it's not, if you are so sure.
