You should see the new 2019 Avalon. Toyota/Lexus has a fetish for humongous grilles. It works on some designs(the new LS 500 looks good, but the current GS looks horrendous.)
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Apple 'Accelerating' Efforts to Catch Up With Self-Driving Competition, Expands California Fleet to 27 Vehicles
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You should see the new 2019 Avalon. Toyota/Lexus has a fetish for humongous grilles. It works on some designs(the new LS 500 looks good, but the current GS looks horrendous.)
I very much doubt the demographics for the iCar would buy a Ford.
I bet you trust software to fly you and your family...
Probably a "Nobody ever got fired for choosing IBM" thing but in car lingo.
Coming from Apple that is quite amusing.
Because Apple is the sole gateway to macOS. However, if you make gaming laptops and you want to keep up with the millions of Windows PC competitors, any lapse in the latest tech will instantly put you at a disadvantage.
I agree that this is a deeper and more complicated story than what is being currently reported. Because these rumors are domestic, and not sourced from overseas supply chain chicanery which is more difficult to keep secret, there is no clear path to investigating what’s really going on here.
That said, I do believe that Apple pursued building their own car in earnest.
A) They are first and foremost a device company, and they love designing & making physical stuff.
B) It is part of their DNA to create secret teams that work on developing future products, the vast majority of which are abandoned and never come to market.
I think the Apple Car is no different than the hundreds of other projects they’ve started and then abandoned once they had enough evidence that they would not be able to make significant innovation and own or dominate a new market segment.
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The "Apple Car" logic always eluded me, but many became fixated on the idea that Apple was getting themselves into this business, ignoring the fact that it is a low-margin, capital-intensive heavy industry, far, far, far from Apple's area of competence. Yet the premise was never questioned and so the stories and speculations became steadily more ludicrous.
Yes, this is a start. A little simple arithmetic helps. Currently Apple is:
-Taking a deep dive into AR. What's that about, really?
-Running a huge street level imaging project. What's that about, really?
-Investing heavily in autonomy. What's that about, really?
None of these projects seem to tie directly into current products. So how do those pieces fit together? That to me is a far more interesting and productive question than fantasizing about Apple building a hunk of steel, which was never going to happen. But something else will. What is it?
I have a 2012 Camry, and my dealership keeps trying to convince me to trade up. They offered me insane deal that would net me a 2017 SE basically be,ow cost. But one look at the new design and I hoped out.
I outright had to tell the dealership that I will not buy a car of theirs with the current designs. They look unispired copy cat.
They took the front grill idea from Mazda, and the swooping lines from Hyundai and called it a day. At least my version was inspired by nascar pace cars. This one is inspired by “let’s copy the other guys”
You think Apple had anything to do with the design of the Lexus?
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Well, let's just stop progress because things could go wrong.
While true, on what basis did Apple decide that they do NOT need to keep at least reasonably current with technology? It's that "we'll give you what we want to... and you'll LIKE IT" attitude that is the ultimate downfall of companies around the world. Microsoft had it... and took a hit. HP had it... and look where they are now. Apple needs to lose the 'tude.
It's not a Tesla problem. There's not a single maker that would recognize this scenario, and THAT is why the drive must remain in charge... if not control. If you, as the drive, choose to ignore the warnings, then it is YOUR fault.
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Not sure I agree, but it's still a valid point. And not relevant. Choose your alternate provider for non-Apple cars.
Speculation. How can you know what Apple's strategy is in this area or the economics behind it? Show me the billions anyone is making from self driving cars. It's a new technology still in its infancy with tons of barriers and costs to consider.
If you haven't noticed, Apple is flush with cash and invests in technologies for market testing and/or future profit generating ventures. This could take decades to fully materialize. Apple doesn't do go to market with little/no profit technologies.
So many of you are so poor at analyzing businesses, yet you speak so confidently. Apple has incredibly good management.
That applies to many/most of their product lines... not just the Car
No worries there, I am sure. They are probably waiting for LG to make one, and for Samsung to make the windshield. Then they can add their badge and a notch. OK, ok - that was mostly tongue in cheek!
I like keeping comments related to the topic at hand though
, I'm not a hater, just someone who analyses the topic.I've been waiting to see for a few years now what the Apple Car project was. I didn't believe it was an actual car. That made no sense. Self driving, mapping, in car entertainment / design stuff? all possible. But not an actual car.
But to hear, depsite the wealth that they're so far behind anyone else, even companies who have started more recently, means there's something being mismanaged. People are not paying attention to the market and it's progress, and aren't pivoting or pushing harder as needed to keep up.
Apple doesn't need to be first. And they genrally do well with how they do these things. But, Self driving car tech is one that once others get a leg up, its' going to be VERY hard to get into.
Do you think Ford / GM is going to pay Apple for self driving tech if they manage to figure it out themselves first?
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man, your posts are so defensive of apple. You say we don't know anything, yet you don't know what we know either....
I'm quoting this because it points out how little you understand about markets yourself. The Car market for example is an extremely saturated market controlled by very few manufacturers. The cost to buy in is extremely EXTREMELY expensive. COULD apple be making their own car itself? Yeah, POssibly. But I doubt it (and yes, I could be wrong).
But given that they are not likely building a car of their own. Coming out 10 years later for example for in car technology, will mean they will NOT have a market.
if Apple is working on developing self driving tech. If they only get it out in 10 years, all the current manufacturers will already have their OWN technology. Do you think Toyota, Honda, BMW etc are going to in 10 years time drop their own self driving solution for Apples? Which will likely have a high licensing cost?
Self driving tech in cars is one you can't be 10 years late for (unless you make your own cars)
So what else is Apple doing in the Car department? I'm genuinely curious? Apple CarPlay is nothing more than a set of Application that run on existing QNX platforms, and I highly doubt they've spent the years and money rumoured in this car project JUST for carplay.
It's going to be a super interesting couple years in the auto industry. The big disruptor is already here with EV, and Apple doesn't seem inclined to play and compete for an EV (could change, but above, doubt their actually building a car).
Nice math! Again, I agree that those are all fascinating questions that I’m dying to know the answers.
Perhaps you personally were never interested in them developing a physical car, but I disagree that such speculation is “fantasy”. It’s true that some people have taken such speculation way too far, to the point where they were not only expecting it but almost felt entitled to one, and were actively disgruntled/pissed off when news emerged that it likely wouldn’t happen. But that’s their problem. It doesn’t change the fact that it’s highly likely that Apple did actually create a skunkworks team to explore the idea of developing their own car, that it very much could have happened, and that they simply decided to pass for the time being.
I’d even argue that the pursuit and abandonment of that physical car may have been the path by which they developed the institutional knowledge that ultimately lead them towards the intriguing path they are currently on. And that there’s no fantasy or windmill chasing going on. It’s all a normal part of their development process.
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I’d check out Kia. The newest generation of Optima’s have shown to be just as reliable as the Camry so far. Plus, an Optima is a handsome car that doesn’t look like every other car. The new Accord is just even more hideous. Kia dealerships are hit and miss though. However, I’m extremely satisfied with my 2018 Optima.
Not to be
Did I imply they did, someone at Apple did choose this car for this 'program though, I think that one should be fired for having such bad taste.
Did I imply they did, someone at Apple did choose this car for this 'program though, I think that one should be fired for having such bad taste.
I'm not in the market for a new car. I actually love my 2012 SE. the styling fits what I like (Clean lines with a wedge shape, not curvey, very nascar like) and is sufficiently powerful enough for a comfortable drive (obviously it's not a spots car at 180hp). PLus I have only 40,000km on the car as I only need to drive casually.
just using the anecdote that they can't even get me to buy their latest design by giving it away at discount because of how much i hate it
The government already wants back doors into our phones, can you imagine the back doors they will insist have to be installed in a self driving car? They will want the ability to control when and where it can go, overriding the user's input and they will want to track where it is at any given moment all without the need for a warrant. Hackers will be able to hack into the system, so say you are going through a legal battle, the person against you could hire a hacker to drive your car off a bridge.
Really, these are real world scenarios of what self driving cars will allow to happen, it is time to say enough right now.
Really, these are real world scenarios of what self driving cars will allow to happen, it is time to say enough right now.
Question:
Why would a successful ("primo") automobile manufacturer secede market-essential technology which senses, processes, and ultimately manages intelligent driving to a third party, such as Apple?
Two examples of "fail" -- the race to the bottom when strategic know-how is simply licensed from others:
In my view, Apple must produce fully-assembled, proprietary technology to compete successfully in the next-generation autonomous-driving marketplace -- somehow, somewhere, sometime. The alternative, simply licensing a plug-compatible overlay to the many will be faced with derision.
Why would a successful ("primo") automobile manufacturer secede market-essential technology which senses, processes, and ultimately manages intelligent driving to a third party, such as Apple?
Two examples of "fail" -- the race to the bottom when strategic know-how is simply licensed from others:
- Google as licensor: the Android market, when reference designs are vested onto multiple licensees.
- Microsoft as licensor: the Microsoft-computer (personal and server) market elicits the same results.
In my view, Apple must produce fully-assembled, proprietary technology to compete successfully in the next-generation autonomous-driving marketplace -- somehow, somewhere, sometime. The alternative, simply licensing a plug-compatible overlay to the many will be faced with derision.