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Comment by xa180 | Hacker News Reader

What exactly do I gain by using Uber? I see it's all the rage on the internet, but I still fail to grasp what exactly it is that I'm gaining through its usage. I'm from a medium-sized city (500k-1m) in Central (or Eastern?) Europe and I can use either public transportation or get a cab literally wherever I may be.

Why would I want to have a non-registered driver who does not adhere to taxi-standards pick me up and pay provision to a multi-billion dollar company that's trying to set itself up as a monopoly?

What niche is Uber filling in that I'm unaware of? Is this the re-invention of an mp3-player as an iPod? Because it sounds cool?

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In the US especially, automobiles are a symbol of economic status. I have not driven for the majority of my adult life and when people discover this they often think I am poor, lower class or lost my license due to drinking and driving etc. This extends to the usage of public transit and taxis. Uber, because it requires an expensive smart phone, balances that because the smart phone is also symbol of economic status. Launching as a premium product before UberX helped as well.

So using Uber is seen as "choosing" not to drive where as using public transit or a taxi is seen as "no being capable" of driving.

Its not that its any better(or worse) than a taxi or a private car you can call in most cities.

The "status" element never even occurred to me and recall that Uber also has Uber X which doesn't confer the status of the "black car" and is basically about the same as Lyft. I think in most urban environments, parking is a royal pain, cars get broken into regularly and it's just not worth the hassle for a small premium payment.

To me cabs are very limited in where they will pick up and the hours they operate. They often don't come or only pick up at designated areas. With Uber/Lyft they come to you. I've had cabs ignore me or just not show up at the appointed time.

With Uber or other ride sharing you pay through the app so you don't take a $70 cab ride after which the driver says they only take cash. You see exactly where there are cars in your vicinity. The drivers get feedback which determines if they will get future rides so they are often much more polite and friendly (though I haven't had TERRIBLE experiences in cabs I haven't had as pleasant ones as I have in Lyft or Uber).

I have also often seen cabs take the long way to boost their fees. Lyft is usually quite a bit cheaper than cabs but not sure about Uber X/Uber.

Some cab companies are starting to come up with their own apps in some areas to compete with the ride sharing companies.

Interesting, so you are more of the, I use self checkout because I'd rather not deal with a person type. That is definitely another part of how Uber is successful. For example having to think about tipping etc.

> Is this the re-invention of an mp3-player as an iPod? Because it sounds cool?

The iPod was much more than a cool sounding mp3 player. The big failing of the mp3 players at the time was terrible software for ripping, managing, and syncing music. iPod provided a hardware and software combination that worked infinitely better than the hardware and software combination provided out of the box by the competition.

I use Uber in London simply because I don't carry cash (who does any more?) If I hail a taxi off the street it more than likely won't take cards. So I take Uber instead, as I know they do.

Taxis in america (especially San Francisco, where Uber is from) are horrible and downright dangerous. Even the shittiest Uber drivers are better than the average taxi driver. And even if you wanted to hail a cab, your best bet is to try to hail one on the street, because if you call, there's a 50+% chance your taxi won't even show up.

And let's not even get into the joke that we call public transportation here.

This is the problem it solves. A problem that is not nearly as pronounced in Europe.

This is absolutely untrue. I have taken taxis very often in many US cities including SF while I lived in the Bay Area. Many drivers drive for both taxi services and Uber depending on the day. How is the same exact driver suddenly dangerous in a taxi as opposed to his own car hailed via a smartphone app?

The average taxi driver wouldn't make it as an Uber driver, only the superior drivers can sustain a 4.6+ rating.

Uber is extremely draconian when it comes to driver quality. Any driver whose average dips below 4.6 is out. Period. That ensures quality and weeds the bad drivers out.

Sure, there are good taxi drivers, but the average driver is horrible. I was comparing them by saying that, say, the 50th percentile cabbie (median), is worse than even the 5th percentile (worst) Uber driver.

> The average taxi driver wouldn't make it as an Uber driver, only the superior drivers can sustain a 4.6+ rating.

Then why is that many taxi drivers drive for Uber as well? Where are you getting these numbers? Or are you maybe just falling for marketing?

Also, in NYC and SF plenty of people rent out their account to other drivers. People sign up for Uber and never drive a single passenger so the rating is really not much more than a rented token in some cases.

Put it this way then:

In America, there is a widespread perception that Taxi companies have shit service, and that Taxi drivers are frequently untrustworthy or discriminatory.

Whether or not the perception is accurate, it is definitely true that the perception exists. Uber provides value to American consumers because American consumers find that the faults they perceive in traditional taxi services do not apply to Uber.

Lest you doubt that I am correct: I am an American, and the above are my beliefs. I can assure you that I have stated my beliefs accurately.

I made an earlier comment about that perception you have. You are likely and upper class US citizen who looks down on things like taxis and the bus. If "providing value" means playing into stereotypes, then I guess you are correct. I also am an US Citizen, born and raised, and your comments make be believe that you are a bigot against the lower classes and see them as dirty. Or maybe your issue is that there are too many non whites driving taxis. I can assure you that I have stated my beliefs accurately.

As a side note, the term "value" has been so overused at this point that when people use it I tend to think they are idealists and I don't take their comments as seriously as if they had not used the term.

> You are likely and upper class US citizen who looks down on things like taxis and the bus.

Lolno. I own a car, but commute every day by bus. I am middle class but, surprise surprise, still have places I want to get to. The only success I have ever had with taxis is if I ambush them when they are waiting outside of airports and train stations. Calling them is always a unmitigated shit-fest. This is both Seattle and Philadelphia. Philadelphia is significantly worse; cabs are unhailable (unless you ambush them at 30th street station) and they hang up on you when you give them an address in west or north philly.

> Or maybe your issue is that there are too many non whites driving taxis.

Eat shit and fuck off.

I completely disagree here. The NYC Uber driver I rode with was checking his GPS and phone literally the whole time, whereas Taxi drivers I've been with almost always know their way around really well. I've called cabs to arrive at 3-4AM and drive me to the airport several times without issue.

It's nice when there's an Uber available a mere 1-5 minutes away, and that they have an app for tracking them, but I don't see how taxi companies couldn't replicate this exact service.

Are you kidding? The dirty look NYC taxi drivers give you when you're there for the first time and tell them an address instead of the cross-streets... I'll take GPS guy any day.

In short, the "niche" service Uber provides fills a huge gap in the progress of ride sharing and the transportation industry across the U.S. When you take that into consideration, it is no longer a niche, but a big step forward to opening a conversation about technology in these industries.

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