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44267547

Cancelled
Jul 12, 2016
37,642
42,491
It Must be really easy to ‘beat up’ on Tim Cook over the Internet and read comments like the majority are in here, some like to think that this is the end of Apple for whatever reason, and it’s not, this is nothing more for Apple to climb out of and continue to do what they do best, sell the best products to the customer and offer services and security. For those advocating Tim Cook ‘should go’, he’s not, so accept that he will be here for a while.
 

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macrumors 6502a
Feb 28, 2018
894
674
Lol, my iPod Touch Gen 5 got booted out of the ecosystem a few years ago. So does that mean I need to replace a perfectly fine working unit with a new one? And also with a new bent iPad?

I'm surprised they didn't pay more shoppers to lurk in the background during this little talk.
I am actually suprised Tim didn't divert more employes to the store so they can clap and cheer everytime he finish saying something
 

Michael Goff

Suspended
Jul 5, 2012
13,329
7,421
As am I. The iPod litterally changed Apple’s popularity from that of a niche brand to a household name.

And I’m talking about the fact that the iPhone changed everything. Entire industries exist today because the iPhone exists. Aside from a few accessories, nothing really happened beyond iPod sales.
 

Mainsail

macrumors 68020
Sep 19, 2010
2,347
3,112
For me, the major concern is that quality and reliability seem to be slipping. In particular, I am worried about replacing my 2014 MBA with a new MBA. I have some time, since my current MBA is working just fine. But, in a year or so, I will want to replace it, and reliability issues related to the gen 3 keyboard make me nervous.

I am willing to pay $1,200 for a good laptop that will last 5-6 years and runs MacOS. My experience with the 2014 MBA has been excellent. But, if Apple can't deliver on quality and reliability with their premium pricing, then I'll have to look elsewhere.
 

I7guy

macrumors Nehalem
Nov 30, 2013
34,238
23,971
Gotta be in it to win it
...No. He doesn’t know how to tell a story or drive a narrative. Now I actually think Apple is an innovative company but the more Tim goes out there and says it the more people think well if you have to keep saying it then you must not be. Don’t say, show.
I enjoy listening to him speak. He is extremely intelligent and does know how to drive home a point.
Subjective. Is it because their "innovating" or is it because people are comfortable (read trapped) in the Apple ecosystem?
It depends if you like apple or not as to whether they are innovating or one feels trapped. Do people complain about being trapped in the “google ecosystem”?

Touch ID is still far better than FaceID
Subjective. But I like Face ID better.

At the expense of their Mac line and professional customers....
Still in the upside.

Thanks to Apple evading and not paying their fare share in taxes.
That basically FUD.

Thanks to the asininely high prices they charge for their products
One has to understand their own value and price line in the sand.

Debatable
Agreed but you can’t argue with the success of the company.

More like deceived their investors and committed possible stock fraud in the process.
Or not. Actually TC did the right thing by addressing this prior to the earnings call.

Product quality suffering, Mac lineups neglected for years and manufactured/designed with a shocking amount of flaws, products that bend right out of the box, insulting their customers when it's clear it's their own design flaws and sneakily and deliberately installing software to slow down their phones to force upgrades, complete abandonment of the Mac Professional. The list goes on.
Your list goes on. I have a very short list because I like their products and never felt insulted, or that apple was sneaky etc. YMMV.

That must be their reasoning behind neglecting the Mac lineup for so long.
I don’t know the reasoning.
[doublepost=1546988406][/doublepost]
the point is market dominance. the only reason apple profits are higher is because it's a close system apple gets all the profits of its sales. were as android is open source so there many more points of it's profits and hence not at a central point. im willing to bet if you went to every single andriod mfg and add up every single one it would be a different story.
Okay android has market dominance. Apple has profits 84% of the smartphone sector. It is the way it is.
 

Baymowe335

Suspended
Oct 6, 2017
6,640
12,451
So he's doubling down on the brand failure. OK, let's see how that plays out in 10 years. is 10 years "long-term" in Cook's eyes?

He has no vision. This is not sustainable and already the writing is on the walls for failure. Declining phone sales for 3 years (this year will make 4) 4 years running. Not a good sign.
The stock has more than tripled since Cook took over, outperforming the broader market by 80%.

That's why investors voted to keep the entire board less than a year ago. He's making investors a ton of money. That's a fact.

Secondly, long term is not a 3 month stock pullback. He's led Apple through many of those and the stock always makes new highs.

Third, the company is performing brilliantly, particularly from a financial perspective. This revenue shortfall seems to be contained in China (they told us the shortfall was over 100% a result of China) and the other businesses are doing extremely well.

Services 25% growth
Wearable 50% growth
Non-iPhone biz 19% growth
Double digit iPad growth
Record revenue in US, Canada, Germany, Korea, Italy, and Netherlands.

Fourth, iPhone sales have not declined 4 years running. Completely false. They decline ONE year from the outlier of 2015 and then increase every year after that.

iPhone sales unit sales have been flat, or up small the last 3 years and 2015 was an outlier large screen iPhone year:

2015: 231M
2016: 211M
2017: 216M
2018: 217M

Source: 10k

iPhone revenue has been UP the last 3 years, and up 17% in the the most recent year.

2016: $136B
2017: $141B
2018: $166B
Source: 10k
 

btrach144

macrumors demi-god
Aug 28, 2015
2,866
6,977
Indiana
This is a PR stunt to try and calm the markets. Investors are wising up though and seeing Apple for the one trick pony that it is.

Apple has made that one pony out of reach for many so investors are rightful to be nervous.

Tim is wearing thin on me.
 

Baymowe335

Suspended
Oct 6, 2017
6,640
12,451
It's not innovation. OLED, inductive charging, edge to edge screens, water proofing, Apple was extremely late to the party. Only thing new was face ID but the value of that "innovation" isn't enough to sustain a platform. There is another reason of why people keep buying, I think it's just the ease of use and elegance of iOS.

Consider iPhone 7, it was extremely outdated when it came out, because Samsung was already offering OLED, water proofing, inductive charging, edge to edge, but it was a huge success, to this day I'm amazed how such old tech was so successful, Apple wasn't even trying.

The question is how long can Apple keep milking Job's invention without further innovation because historically Apple relies heavily on innovation. I think that's why Apple wants to shift to services and why they want to stop reporting iPhone sales numbers, they know they can't sustain the innovation.
You just dismiss all the other things I mentioned? What about the silicon? This might be the biggest driver for people to stay. Makes the phone a joy to use and makes it last a long time, running smooth and fast.

You might not think it's innovation, but things like FaceID, ApplePay, AirPods, image processing software with depth of field, etc are all things that make people continue to buy iPhones.
 

I7guy

macrumors Nehalem
Nov 30, 2013
34,238
23,971
Gotta be in it to win it
I imagine it’s easier to stay in business selling affordable goods to a lot of people than selling luxury-priced goods to fewer people.
does Ferrari have any trouble staying in business? Ferrari may not make the same revenue as Toyota but they are staying in business....
[doublepost=1546988793][/doublepost]
  1. Confusing iPhone lineup: Which one is the best? Which one should I stand in line for on release date? I don't feel the magic anymore and I guess I am not the only one.
With the max the magic is back. Car manufacturers have been selling confusing lineups for 100 years. So have TV manufacturers (letely). Yet consumers figure it all out.

No small iPhones in lineup: Why is the premium iPhone always the largest one? Where is the SE2? When I bought the iPhone 5 it was special in every way and someone inside Apple thought about usability. Go get the Xs Small! It's huge! It's fantastic! Make Apple great again!
I think apple did the math on an SE type phone and decided it wasn’t worth it.

No services succes without marketshare: Why are (or were) some products overpriced like the HomePod, where instead Apple should lower the price to increase marketshare for services (Apple Music)?
Overpriced is subjective. People have posted on this board they have multiple HomePods. Apple has done the math and it knows the price elasticity if it’s consumers.
 
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diamond3

macrumors 6502a
Oct 6, 2005
881
373
Holy, the streaming service on CNBC is absolutely terrible. I can't even watch the live stream because it keeps bouncing around and different spots in the broadcast. I have a gigabit connection so I'm certain it's not my connection.
 
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Canyonero

macrumors regular
Apr 2, 2012
120
282
To all of you guys wishing Tim Cook’s departure: I think you’d be horrified where Apple would be in a few years, given to someone who wasn’t there for 20 years with Steve. He’s different, subjectively maybe slightly worse, but compared to 99% of CEOs and human beings in the world, so much better than what you could have. I don’t think he stresses too much about the market shifts or stock changes. Apple is still laser focused on its core values.
 

akidd

macrumors regular
Jan 30, 2007
226
117
Tunbridge Wells, UK
Tim’s correct on the naysayers regarding Apple’s ecosystem. Android can’t come close.

But his “never been better” and “never been stronger” reeks of as much condescension as their continued raising prices and lacking innovation. And I say this as an Apple shareholder.

Agree to a point. Keep putting the prices up and we'll keep stop buying the Macs and iPhones. Prices now are mad. My early 2015 Macbook Pro is the best laptop I'ved used or come across but to replace it now would cost shed loads more.

Two gens behind iPhone as why replace it?

Solve this and we'll buy again.
 
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Labeno

macrumors 6502
Jul 21, 2008
351
1,089
Agree to a point. Keep putting the prices up and we'll keep stop buying the Macs and iPhones. Prices now are mad. My early 2015 Macbook Pro is the best laptop I'ved used or come across but to replace it now would cost shed loads more.

Two gens behind iPhone as why replace it?

Solve this and we'll buy again.

To add to this post, Tim stated in the interview that customer satisfaction is his most important priority. If that's so then why get rid of the MagSafe concept on the laptops. I had to buy a 3rd party magnetic USB-C connector for my new MBAir. I'll tell you why he did this, because people tripping over the cords and smashing the computer probably brings in 10s of millions in profit due to people having to buy new laptops. Tim is evil with a smile on his face. For those that think I'm wrong, is there any other explanation for why a magnetic USB-C is not standard?
 

Rogifan

macrumors Penryn
Nov 14, 2011
24,148
31,204
Jim Cramer mentions his kid not upgrading. Tim Cook goes on about it might be difficult to upgrade or transfer data. Good grief. That’s not why people aren’t upgrading. Did someone at Apple tell Cramer he wouldn’t get an interview if he asked about pricing?

Tim Cook said the XR has been the most popular iPhone since it went on sale. But he also said of course they’d like to be selling more and they’re working on it. I read that as it’s not selling as well as Apple expected.
 

Khedron

Suspended
Sep 27, 2013
2,561
5,755
How is the ecosystem not strong? The Apple ecosystem is a very large reason why people continue to buy Apple products over other sometimes cheaper alternatives.

The "ecosystem" now just means iPhone/iPad accessories. Apple hardware is obscenely overpriced and the software is now most often just average. Apple is choking the ecosystem with barriers to entry rather than using one product to encourage interest in another.

For example, the Apple Watch isn't "works better with iPhone", it's "iPhone only or **** off".

HomePod isn't "AirPlay allows better quality", it's "we disabled the Bluetooth so Apple devices only or **** off"
 

diamond3

macrumors 6502a
Oct 6, 2005
881
373
Tim Cook said the XR has been the most popular iPhone since it went on sale. But he also said of course they’d like to be selling more and they’re working on it. I read that as it’s not selling as well as Apple expected.

In my attempt to watch it, I interpreted that last statement as 'of course we'd like to see more' and he wouldn't say otherwise.
 

Bawstun

Suspended
Jun 25, 2009
2,374
2,999
The stock has more than tripled since Cook took over, outperforming the broader market by 80%.

That's why investors voted to keep the entire board less than a year ago. He's making investors a ton of money. That's a fact.

Secondly, long term is not a 3 month stock pullback. He's led Apple through many of those and the stock always makes new highs.

Third, the company is performing brilliantly, particularly from a financial perspective. This revenue shortfall seems to be contained in China (they told us the shortfall was over 100% a result of China) and the other businesses are doing extremely well.

Services 25% growth
Wearable 50% growth
Non-iPhone biz 19% growth
Double digit iPad growth
Record revenue in US, Canada, Germany, Korea, Italy, and Netherlands.

Fourth, iPhone sales have not declined 4 years running. Completely false. They decline ONE year from the outlier of 2015 and then increase every year after that.

iPhone sales unit sales have been flat, or up small the last 3 years and 2015 was an outlier large screen iPhone year:

2015: 231M
2016: 211M
2017: 216M
2018: 217M

Source: 10k

iPhone revenue has been UP the last 3 years, and up 17% in the the most recent year.

2016: $136B
2017: $141B
2018: $166B
Source: 10k

iPhone sales are down. Revenue is up because of services and increased phone price.

Don’t you understand what fewer sales means? Apple survives only on brand image. If the public persona ever perceives it as not the best top-of-the-line Tesla of mobile phones...it’s toast. Stagnated design and fractured product lines...

Well, who cares. Stock and revenue are up. That’s all that matters...

for now.
 
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chatin

macrumors 6502a
May 27, 2005
929
598
Cook never met a product he didn't like which is the opposite of Jobs. To triple down on "X" was a big mistake and now Apple is paying the price. One size does not fit all. Keep the products dynamic and he won't have a hundred point drop in the stock.
 
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CE3

macrumors 68000
Nov 26, 2014
1,808
3,146
ALL I want to know is if the AAPL Board has asked Cook to RE-sign ???

And if NOT, why NOT ???

ALL the signs (for a Mgmt change) are there !

Re-sign? Like a new contract?

Look, I have my share of criticisms about Apple, but the notion that a new CEO is going to make everything all better is wishful thinking at best. The reality is Apple has been very very profitable under Tim Cook's watch (our wallets be dammed).. and the pitchforks have been out for him since day one.
 

homegrownhero

macrumors member
Jul 26, 2017
60
34
I like how the chairs they're in make it look like they're planning on removing them in post, so they float for the whole interview.

N4bo9v4.gif

You might have just uncovered their next prototype, the iChair Air. Or AirChairs sound better.



I don't know, I'm just coming up with excuses to interact with this wonderful gif.
 

Abazigal

Contributor
Jul 18, 2011
19,579
22,044
Singapore
Any company is going to be in trouble if it can't properly understand its shortcomings. It looks from the outside that Apple doesn't understand this.

It only looks that way from the outside. And only because people seem to have this impression that Apple is somehow failing because of something it did that they don’t like.

Whatever helps them sleep soundly at night, I guess. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 

dan110

macrumors 6502a
Jul 13, 2013
604
1,075
'Merica
It's funny you say that... there's a quote from Steve Jobs from 2004: "Apple's market share is bigger than BMW's or Mercedes's or Porsche's in the automotive market. What's wrong with being BMW or Mercedes?" Apple is a premium brand. They've never built lowest-cost products. That's why the products are so good. The iPhone was $500 bucks on a two-year carrier subsidized contract 10 years ago!


"Low Cost" is relative.

Apple built a range of products from assessable introductory products (iPod Shuffle) to premium products (iPod Classic) where the range was heavy on the introductory to middle (iPod Touch) price points. More importantly, even their least expensive products had a high value/high-quality cache relative to the competition's offerings.

Today, Apple is hell-bent on trying to stay at the premium end of the spectrum while decreasing consumer accessibility and the complete UX. There's no magic to the brand anymore. There's no desire to save up for the premium product after you've fallen in love with its entry-level analog. I haven't seen the ecosystem this fragmented since at least 2005 before the adoption of Intel chips.

Apple is doing the exact same thing they did when Steve was fired. The similarities are shocking.
 

I7guy

macrumors Nehalem
Nov 30, 2013
34,238
23,971
Gotta be in it to win it
Jim Cramer mentions his kid not upgrading. Tim Cook goes on about it might be difficult to upgrade or transfer data. Good grief. That’s not why people aren’t upgrading. Did someone at Apple tell Cramer he wouldn’t get an interview if he asked about pricing?

Tim Cook said the XR has been the most popular iPhone since it went on sale. But he also said of course they’d like to be selling more and they’re working on it. I read that as it’s not selling as well as Apple expected.
You (and everyone) don't know the entire picture. It may very well be sales in America, Europe and Asia have met expectations. The unexpected increase in business from China didn't materialize. Everybody is making assumptions based on their own perceptions or stories the analysts are (mis)painting.

Toyota sells the most cars in the world and I'm sure they would like to sell more also.
 
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