Apple Expects First Ever Decline of iPhone Sales Next Quarter

[mantan]

You forgot the most important improvement, significantly improved battery life and I mean significantly. That trumps pretty much everything on your list, including that hologram projector one.

I agree. Battery is the one easy piece of low hanging fruit. Apple could offer a device slightly thicker with signficantly more batter life and people would go nuts about it. Either that or they need to find some realistic way to deal with the battery issue.

I know some asshat will say that it's just me and that they easily make it through their day with 40% on their 6/6s. But most people I know have a charger in their car and at the office. People carry portable chargers. They run for the airport outlets just like in the Samsung commercial. A device that had truly improved battery life would be very popular.

 

[LordVic]

That was my intended take on it. There have to be tons of unused iPhones (and Android phones, plus the nonsmart generation before that) someplace in garbage piles and landfills, allegedly recycled.

Many of them possibly ended up being dumped in the jungles by unscrupulous "recyclers".

I am awaiting the headline:

APPLE iPhones ruin rain forrest!

The headlines will be mixed

Tech Blogs:
"Apple gifts free phones to underprivileged 3rd world nations"


BBC/Wallstreet Journal:
"Apple wastes potential profits, Forecasts down!"

Only the environmentalists will scream about the rain forest. Nobody else seems to care anymoe

 

[RedOctober]

I was a fan of the iPhone until I found how restrictive it was compared to an Android phone. Mind you, I was a bit skeptical about Android phones when picked up a Sony Z3 compact when it was launched but by golly, not having to use iTunes has been liberating. Still have my iPad mini 2 and a Samsung Tab A 8", prefer the mini 2.

 

[LizKat]

Well I still have the iPhone 5S and it works great. Like me I am sure a lot of people hold to their phones for awhile. The every year upgrade is great but honestly I don't have that money to burn and my current iPhone works like a charm. So for me a 3 year upgrade window works well.

The iPhone remains a great product and those on the upgrade cycle will most likely choose a newer iPhone model when it is time to upgrade unless Apple messes it up big time.

Plunk... Ka-ching, ka-ching... sound of me dropping an aging 5C and getting 4" iPhone 7 if they bring one. Not a last-years-tech one, a current, smaller sized iPhone. For screen real estate and long stretches of browsing magazines or whatever, I have an iPad and iPad mini. For phone calls, the quick check of mail, news, weather, and otherwise for just tethering my other gear, I want a phone that's easy to use one-handed. And I'd like it to be as sturdy as my 5C (which I still love).

"Still waiting..."

 

[duffman9000]

I agree. Battery is the one easy piece of low hanging fruit. Apple could offer a device slightly thicker with signficantly more batter life and people would go nuts about it. Either that or they need to find some realistic way to deal with the battery issue.

I know some asshat will say that it's just me and that they easily make it through their day with 40% on their 6/6s. But most people I know have a charger in their car and at the office. People carry portable chargers. They run for the airport outlets just like in the Samsung commercial. A device that had truly improved battery life would be very popular.

My wife can easily kill her iP6 by midday. And yes she does carry a portable battery for times we are away from the car. And yes she is charging her phone while we are driving too.

 

[tampageek]

1) Steve Jobs was right. Phablets are stupid and DROPPING the 4inch phone from the upgrade cycle from also really stupid. I personally do not want a giant phone, if anything I'd be very happy with a tiny one.

2) The new products are not aesthetically pleasing... the new iPhone looked weird, face it. What are those lines? They don't look good, it's not "simple". Ivy wagwon?

3) Apple keeps handicapping it's computers... The iMac is a desktop, it doesn't need tapered edges, it doesn't need to be [that] thin. We don't get CD/DVD drives anymore and have to deal with mobile processors and mobile GPUs because you want the 27inch computer in a monitor to be thin? That's stupid.

4) Single port laptop, including the charging port?

Stupid moves make for declining sales. Smarten up Tim.

Tim saw the huge profits in the iPhone and put too many "eggs" in that one basket. The effects of the push toward making OS X more like iOS (locked down & dumbed down) is starting to show, and Mac sales are also down.

I will never understand why the industry as a whole is so focused on trying to make devices to replace computers. That admission alone should be enough to make them know that people still need computers - because they are more powerful. So what does Apple do? They strip the power from their Mac's with El Crapitan and SIP, which essentially locks down the disc, disables legacy drivers and makes the OS break functionality by design.

It would be a far smarter move IMHO to perfect the Mac & its OS by making it "just work" like it used to. Just because you sell a lot of iphones doesn't mean it's the only product worth focusing on.

Maybe I'm typical, but I sold my iPad Air2 and bought 2 Macs last year because I can do the same AND MORE with Yosemite on a Mac than I ever will on an iOS device. As for El Crapy - I will never surrender control of my OS for a false sense of "security" and deliberate limitation on functionality.

IMHO Tim's days as CEO are numbered.

 

[mantan]

Probably because no one is subsidizing the phone anymore. When faced with paying $299 vs $699, I decided to stick with my 5s.

You never paid $299 for your phone. You paid an initial payment, then paid for it on a monthly basis in your contract. The word subsidy was always a misnomer as it implied the carriers were paying part of the cost for you. They were just paying the amount upfront and billing you the total cost (and then some) while you were on contract.

I do think this has helped the secondary market. If someone doesn't need the latest and greatest phone, you can get a used phone for that same $300 and spend a lot less on monthly service fees as a BYOD.

It's also great for people who keep their phones for a long time, as they finally get a break on service costs once their device is paid off.

 

[tampageek]

"Cook said that 60% of customers who have owned an iPhone prior to the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus have not yet upgraded"

Wow! no wonder they are releasing a 4-inch iPhone again.

Could it be that those 60% can't afford a new $650 phone every year?? (now that subsidies are gone)

 

[Rogifan]

Tim saw the huge profits in the iPhone and put too many "eggs" in that one basket. The effects of the push toward making OS X more like iOS (locked down & dumbed down) is starting to show, and Mac sales are also down.

I will never understand why the industry as a whole is so focused on trying to make devices to replace computers. That admission alone should be enough to make them know that people still need computers - because they are more powerful. So what does Apple do? They strip the power from their Mac's with El Crapitan and SIP, which essentially locks down the disc, disables legacy drivers and makes the OS break functionality by design.

It would be a far smarter move IMHO to perfect the Mac & its OS by making it "just work" like it used to. Just because you sell a lot of iphones doesn't mean it's the only product worth focusing on.

Maybe I'm typical, but I sold my iPad Air2 and bought 2 Macs last year because I can do the same AND MORE with Yosemite on a Mac than I ever will on an iOS device. As for El Crapy - I will never surrender control of my OS for a false sense of "security" and deliberate limitation on functionality.

IMHO Tim's days as CEO are numbered.

Tim Cook's days as CEO are numbered because he's not focused enough on the Mac. As if Wall Street gives a crap about the Mac.

 

[LizKat]

I will never understand why the industry as a whole is so focused on trying to make devices to replace computers. That admission alone should be enough to make them know that people still need computers - because they are more powerful. So what does Apple do? The strip the power from their Mac's with El Crapitan and SIP, which essentially locks down the disc, disables legacy drivers and makes the OS break functionality by design.

I don't know what to do... still running Mavericks on a 2012 MBP. I can't do this forever but some say Yosemite is terrible on this machine and some say El Capitan is actually too much for it. I don't put much stress on a laptop's computing capabilities any more, so I tend to discount such remarks, but still I hesitate and time marches on. The time is coming for me to look for an Apple refurb of a newer machine but I'm also still very fond of being able to pop a DVD into my laptop without having to fetch a portable drive.

 

[NachoGrande]

The same ones who were still buying those $1000 phones when it was hidden in the price of their $200/mo phone bill?

The bill is still the same, is it not? I was paying $150/month for two lines unlimited data with a subsidized phone. At the end of each year I swapped a phone out, my daughter got the old and I got the new.. Now I still have to pay $150 except I now have to pay $1,000 for a phone Or I can go with an Apple plan for an extra $42+ which means opening a credit card (which I don't do) and then turning my phone in at the end of the year, which means my daughter no longer gets my old phone, which means she now has to pay an additional $42 a month.

So my bill with the Apple plan would be.
$150 for two lines
$42 my line
$42 daughters line
____
$234 a month for two phones. That is pure insanity.


I can purchase the phone outright
$150
$ 88 ($1,059 split over twelve months)
_______
$238

I could lease a car for that amount and that's just me and my daughter, I still have two other family members.

I called this last year that the unsubsidized phone would be a big problem for Apple and it hasn't even begun yet. They need to lower cost or find a better way.

 

[Rogifan]

Could it be that those 60% can't afford a new $650 phone every year?? (now that subsidies are gone)

Sigh. Your phone was never subsizied! You were paying off the phone every month as part of your cell phone bill. The difference now is instead of paying $199 or whatever upfront the big carriers are quoting zero down and then the monthly installment fee (say $27). And that installment fee is itemized separate from your voice and data plan.

I called this last year that the unsubsidized phone would be a big problem for Apple and it hasn't even begun yet. They need to lower cost or find a better way.

If the issue is iPhone is too expensive then how is it that Apple sold more iPhones than ever this holiday quarter with the highest average selling price ever?

 

[tampageek]

Tim Cook's days as CEO are numbered because he's not focused enough on the Mac. As if Wall Street gives a crap about the Mac.

If Apple promoted the Mac and really sold it as the ultimate computing machine, I'd be willing to bet that they could get those numbers up and put a real dent in the MS Windows world. How about creating a hybrid of the MBA &MBP with a solar powered battery? I don't know about you but that would get me to open my wallet.

 

[Rogifan]

If Apple promoted the Mac and really sold it as the ultimate computing machine, I'd be willing to bet that they could get those numbers up and put a real dent in the MS Windows world. How about creating a hybrid of the MBA &MBP with a solar powered battery? I don't know about you but that would get me to open my wallet.

Apple stock isn't down 5% today because of the Mac. A lot of people are probably waiting for Skylake Macs so the holiday quarter was light.

 

[tampageek]

Not surprising. Both the iPhone and iPad are getting stale.

It's been the same old for years, I certainly don't think it has much to do with screen size. Although I'm sure many people do want the smaller screen.

I'm also bored with recent Apple releases. It's frankly been more of the same. Granted the new Macbook was innovative from a form factor and aesthetics viewpoint.

I actually own an Android phone despite owning Mac and other Apple products. I'm also not particularly happy with pricing and specs in their recent products.

In my opinion they are going backwards in many ways.

Profits have become the main focus for Apple instead of functionality and quality. Tim seems to have forgotten that it was functionality and quality that made Apple into a profit giant in the first place.

 

[Gudi]

Not if the new features can't be used by earlier phones. Updates to iOS are optimized for the current and most recent model.

How dare they? Planned obsolescence would mean an update with the manufacturers intend to cripple older phones before they become obsolete themselves. iOS 7 on iPhone 4 maybe was a case of unplanned obsolescence, because the device was a little to slow to run the new UI. Usually iOS updates enrich the experience and make older devices more useful for a longer time. Not getting iMessage with iOS 5 would have made the iPhone 4 obsolete two years earlier.

 

[tampageek]

Apple should just buy AT&T or Verizon. Then they could create their own upgrade deals and data plans. Complete control - it's the  way..

 

[OllyW]

Apple should just buy AT&T or Verizon. Then they could create their own upgrade deals and data plans. Complete control - it's the  way..

That wouldn't help the international sales very much.

Apple today announced financial results for the first fiscal quarter of 2016...with international sales accounting for 66 percent of revenue

 

[timber]

Except Cook said this past quarter was the highest number of Android switchers Apple has ever had. And Apple did sell more phones in the holiday quarter than they ever have before. I don't see many mid range Android OEMs lighting up the sales and profit charts. At one point Xiaomi was supposed to be the next big thing now you hardly hear about them.

Android's share is so large and usually increasing that eventually almost anyone that buys a new iPhone (not having one before) is an Android switcher so I think those type of conclusions (including the one I'm stating) should be taken with a grain of salt.
The fact that Apple takes so much of the profits share leads to the fact that Android OEMs aren't able to sell high end. And the fact that Android shares keeps increasing leads to concluding that despite that they sell a lot.

 

[tampageek]

I haven't had a raise in 4 years. There's negligible growth in my country for the last 5 years. Only consumers can make growth and none of it is trickling down to the average man/woman. These billionaires lamenting lack of growth in multi-billion dollar companies need to take that into account. Your share prices and ******** forecasts mean very little to those who actually live in this world.

You have just summed up the entire issue beautifully. As Bill Clinton said - "it's the economy, stupid."

 

[Thunderhawks]

I don't know what to do... still running Mavericks on a 2012 MBP. I can't do this forever but some say Yosemite is terrible on this machine and some say El Capitan is actually too much for it. I don't put much stress on a laptop's computing capabilities any more, so I tend to discount such remarks, but still I hesitate and time marches on. The time is coming for me to look for an Apple refurb of a newer machine but I'm also still very fond of being able to pop a DVD into my laptop without having to fetch a portable drive.

I run El Capitan on a 2008 MBP 17". Put in max possible memory and replaced the DVD drive with an SSD.
If you do that it runs as if it is a new machine. Don't miss the DVD part, as I don't use discs anymore.
If you leave the HD in AND install an SSD, you can put all the DVD stuff onto that drive.
I like all the possible connection ports and the fact I can tinker in it.

Note: Had a motherboard failure, which was repaired for apr. $ 350 (Depot charge) at an Apple store.
All well worth it.
So, almost 8 years old and still going strong.

I also have a 15" MBP 2014 (ebay used), which is a little faster, but not enough to ditch my 2008 MBP workhorse.

Annoying with the new MBPs is the lack of ports and I had to buy an OWC dock. (BTW: The best there is, it has EVERYTHING!) Waiting for OWC to come out with a 1MB SSD since forever. Oh well.

So, if I were you, I'd upgrade that 2012 and go to El Capitan. If you MUST have that DVD option, just replace the HD with an SSD.

I don't know what you do, but there are more positive things about El Capitan than the naysayers give it credit for. I don't expect perfection in anything and for me Apple is working on making it better and better, small hickups on the way expected.

 

[timber]

How dare they? Planned obsolescence would mean an update with the manufacturers intend to cripple older phones before they become obsolete themselves. iOS 7 on iPhone 4 maybe was a case of unplanned obsolescence, because the device is a little to slow to run the new UI. Usually iOS updates enrich the experience and make older devices more useful for a longer time. Not getting iMessage with iOS 5 would have made the iPhone 4 obsolete two years earlier.

Do you remember Siri? The new iOS 5 (iPhone 4s) feature? The one that iPhone 4 never saw (or better, heard)?

 

[duffman9000]

If Apple promoted the Mac and really sold it as the ultimate computing machine, I'd be willing to bet that they could get those numbers up and put a real dent in the MS Windows world. How about creating a hybrid of the MBA &MBP with a solar powered battery? I don't know about you but that would get me to open my wallet.

That ship has sailed and is not coming back. My 2011 MBP will probably be the last Mac that I buy. OS X has been much buggier than Windows for me over the years and I'm tired of dealing with it.

 

[tampageek]

Apple stock isn't down 5% today because of the Mac. A lot of people are probably waiting for Skylake Macs so the holiday quarter was light.

Apple stock is down because Tim is relying too heavily on iPhones to generate profits - when he SHOULD be focused on keeping ALL product lines strong just in case one falters. Two HUGE revenue streams are better than one.

 

[Kirb112]

I wonder how much the move to carrier unsubsidized phones is influencing this.