Adequate is good enough

Not long after becoming a technology journalist I met Adam Osborne.

Osborne invented the portable computer. Let’s be honest, his computer was luggable.

We borrowed one for review.

It was obvious a portable computer would change everything. It set us on the path to the iPhone and the Samsung Galaxy phones.

Osborne was a visionary, even if he wasn’t a good businessman — the company went bust after two years.

One thing Osborne said struck a chord at the time: “Adequate is good enough”. 

No fannying about

He meant engineers should get a product to the point where it was adequate then send it out the door, no fannying about making it perfect.

It’s a philosophy software companies like Google and Microsoft built fortunes on. Apple, on the other hand, fannies about making everything perfect.

Android works on the adequate is good enough premise. Netbooks were adequate for most users. So was Windows. The fuss over Windows 8 comes down to the simple idea that for many users it isn’t adequate and therefore not good enough.

Good enough

If you’re not a power user, a gamer or an Apple addict you can pick up an adequate and, therefore, good enough, laptop for well under $1000. It’ll do everything you throw at it and then some.

There should be enough change from $1000 for an adequate but good enough phone. It may not have the latest features, but it’ll meet the needs of all but the most demanding users.

None of this is an argument against buying great kit. It’s your money: spend it how you like. But remember most of the time, you don’t have to break the bank to buy tech gear.