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Apple Slashes iPhone 5 Part Orders Due to Weak Demand
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or perhaps Apple should stop reusing the same design every year.. or expand their iphone catalog to include different types of iphones...
Android has a winning formula by overexposing their diverse catalog... it gives the customer more choice... whereas with iphones, you'll have the same phone as everyone else
I think part of the problem here is that apple doesn't compete. They simply do their own thing. Which is admirable, but it will only take you so far. They are well aware of what other companies are doing but they hold their philosophy so dear that they don't think scrambling to build a new phone is important. It's really business basics- you don't bring a knife to a gun fight. If Samsung sees huge success with phones like the note 2, that should be a good indication of what you need to do. Even better, apple should wake up and start offering multiple sizes and varying features. You're serving a dynamic customer base. But they tend to view their customers as one in the same.
Also stop suing everyone.
Also stop suing everyone.
With few bells and whistles, stripped to be functional as a cellular communication device only. This I imagine is the concept Apple is toying with now. Quality will be on par with expectations, and with less function = less cost. Not inferior quality as the word cheap implies.
Absolutely stupid headline
*Rumours* of Apple cutting iPhone 5 component orders from *specific* suppliers does NOT mean that iPhone 5 demand is weak.
Why?
-other suppliers may be contracted instead
-Apple could be insourcing *some* components
-Apple could have "over-ordered" just in case to ensure supply can meet even an unexpectedly high level of demand
-next iPhone model is coming soon (3ths+) and there will be no need for these parts, instead will use something else
Even a non-financial site like this should do better homework before posting such stupid headline. Journalism -even blogging- should be about more than cut-and-paste from poorly-sourced WSJ articles that confuse a possible correlation with a desired causation.
*Rumours* of Apple cutting iPhone 5 component orders from *specific* suppliers does NOT mean that iPhone 5 demand is weak.
Why?
-other suppliers may be contracted instead
-Apple could be insourcing *some* components
-Apple could have "over-ordered" just in case to ensure supply can meet even an unexpectedly high level of demand
-next iPhone model is coming soon (3ths+) and there will be no need for these parts, instead will use something else
Even a non-financial site like this should do better homework before posting such stupid headline. Journalism -even blogging- should be about more than cut-and-paste from poorly-sourced WSJ articles that confuse a possible correlation with a desired causation.
The smartphone market that Apple took over with the iPhone is maturing. There is nothing wrong with the design of the iPhone -- its just people who have had multiple iPhones are now getting bored.
It's kinda like having a favorite shirt, and getting bored with it after wearing it a bit too often. Apple needs to freshen things up and I really hope they realize that and don't stagnate and go into denial.
That being said, I *still* think the iPhone 5 is a fantastic device.
It's kinda like having a favorite shirt, and getting bored with it after wearing it a bit too often. Apple needs to freshen things up and I really hope they realize that and don't stagnate and go into denial.
That being said, I *still* think the iPhone 5 is a fantastic device.
For some reason, I think Apple making a feature phone is even less likely than them making one out of crappy materials.
If Apple were to make a "cheap" phone, I expect it'd still use iOS in full, but fall back on older CPU tech, and sport a screen more in par with the iPod line. Cheaper, but not cheap in other words.
OK it says best ever Android and Apple quarterly sales. How else should a person read that other than both Apple and Android saw record sales?
Verizon reported record sales to, with a higher mix of iPhone sales. Now maybe that's just timing and not an overall trend, but I would argue if Verizon is showing higher iPhone sales than it would be odd if AT&T didn't.
http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/9/3854652/verizon-announces-9-8-million-smartphone-sales-q4-2012
How else to read it? How about verbatim and at face value.
The combined sales of both Android and iPhones broke quarterly records at ATT.
If ATT wanted to state that iPhone slaes had a record quarter - they could have stated that. They could have written two sentences instead of combining them.
It's very likely what you propose is true. But quite simply - that's not the statement ATT is making. You and others seem to want to interpret MR's headlines or ATT's statement instead of just taking it for what it states quite clearly. They are touting ATTs success - not the platforms.
I hope that the WSJ actually did some digging and found this out rather than just guess and write and article - because that would cost a company huge amounts of money and loss for stockholders.
OK it says best ever Android and Apple quarterly sales. How else should a person read that other than both Apple and Android saw record sales?
Verizon reported record sales to, with a higher mix of iPhone sales. Now maybe that's just timing and not an overall trend, but I would argue if Verizon is showing higher iPhone sales than it would be odd if AT&T didn't.
http://www.theverge.com/2013/1/9/3854652/verizon-announces-9-8-million-smartphone-sales-q4-2012
higher sales is 5% growth over last year
apple needs 20% or more for the stock to go up
5% is grandma's boring AT&T stock that pays dividends
Me too. This is why I'm a terrible judge of this stuff.
When Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007 I said, "it'll never work... no one wants to use their finger on a touchscreen!" Oops.
And of course, I thought the G4 Cube couldn't possible fail. It was going to convert everyone to Mac...
And your point is what? The word "phone" is nowadays used to describe "small mobile devices that can be used for voice and data communications". My original point stands.
Combination of the screen size and general feel of the device for me.
I find the 3.5" screen a perfect size, and don't see that adding 1/2" makes it any better and definitely don't see it worth swapping my phone for: I have tried bigger screens (including an SGSII for 6 months) and just don't like them
I'm also not keen on the general feel of the device: The 4s feels like a premium device in the hand, whereas the 5 (to me) feels cheap and poorly made
For me its something like this
1: Ipad cannibalizing the iPhone market (mini with basic phone to tether or 3G)
2: So many rumours of an earlier new phone that its already denting sales.
3: ios6 maps
4: scuffgate
5: Critical mass of iPhones - part of the problem is they are too good. I know people still using a 3GS just fine who could easily afford the upgrade
6: Warped statics
7: A combination of the above
1: Ipad cannibalizing the iPhone market (mini with basic phone to tether or 3G)
2: So many rumours of an earlier new phone that its already denting sales.
3: ios6 maps
4: scuffgate
5: Critical mass of iPhones - part of the problem is they are too good. I know people still using a 3GS just fine who could easily afford the upgrade
6: Warped statics
7: A combination of the above
Bigger isn't always better. The manufacturers pushing for bigger phones are the same ones pushing for smaller tablets. At current trends, they will meet somewhere around 6", which is in the too big for a phone and too small for a tablet territory. If I recall correctly, the main reason Samsung went with bigger screens in the first place was to accommodate the batteries needed to power the early LTE chips.
You may be right about resolution independence, but with 440PPI screens coming out this year Apple is close to the point where it can do another resolution quadrupling. I can see Apple going as large as 4.5" since edge-to-edge and switching to a virtual home button could let them do that without making the phone much bigger, but if they ever start making "phablets" then I'll worry that they have lost the plot and are just chasing market share.
I agree the 4S is a better feeling device and Ivy should realize, thin has reached its limits. If they want to scale up the 5S relative to the 4S without a edge to edge look, I'm not the only person I know who will be glad a few grams were added to the weight. The 4S was the sweet spot in solid feel.
Ivy would have been told this by Steve, if he were still with us. The single hand with a thumb navigation commercial was Apple's defense to people reacting to the drop in durable feel they know when going from the 4S to the 5 in their hand. They should have spent more concern with the battery design and less with ``making it thinner.''
Ivy's obsession with thin needs to end.
Couple things.
I know a lot of iPhone 4 and 4S owners who are not going to upgrade until their current iPhone stops working. I understand that however I also think it's stupid to potentially pay the same among for 3G and 4G data if you live in an LTE area.
I think we are going to see a ton of 5" IPS screens this year that will really attract consumers. I can tell you that I'm seriously considering ditching my iPhone 5 for an Xperia Z.
Apple should be ashamed by the way the 5 essentially becomes a scuffed device within weeks without any drops. In the first 3 weeks of owning my 5 I watched it accumulate damage without dropping it once. A pretty phone that can't hold up is a serious flaw.
The screen needs to get wider. End of story.
There are things that I love about my 5 (weight, brightness, colors, photo quality) but I see the iPhone needing to release a 5" screen model and some overdue iOS improvements like toggling wi-fi without entering Settings.
I know a lot of iPhone 4 and 4S owners who are not going to upgrade until their current iPhone stops working. I understand that however I also think it's stupid to potentially pay the same among for 3G and 4G data if you live in an LTE area.
I think we are going to see a ton of 5" IPS screens this year that will really attract consumers. I can tell you that I'm seriously considering ditching my iPhone 5 for an Xperia Z.
Apple should be ashamed by the way the 5 essentially becomes a scuffed device within weeks without any drops. In the first 3 weeks of owning my 5 I watched it accumulate damage without dropping it once. A pretty phone that can't hold up is a serious flaw.
The screen needs to get wider. End of story.
There are things that I love about my 5 (weight, brightness, colors, photo quality) but I see the iPhone needing to release a 5" screen model and some overdue iOS improvements like toggling wi-fi without entering Settings.
It's big Apple news and has hit all the major outlets, so of course MR will report it and attract a lot of comments. I wonder why it is getting so much attention, though, since UBS and Forbes have both said this is old news (and it is, since the initial reports came out a month ago). Plus we don't know how much they cut orders or why (just some speculation). Maybe FoxConn got production ramped up faster than Apple originally expected, and maybe the 5S will be more different than their past history would suggest.
We'll find out how strong or weak iPhone demand was and is expected to be next Wednesday. Analysts will be closely looking at Apple's results, and also their forecast for the next quarter. There may be pressure on Apple to finally strike deals with China Mobile and NTT DoCoMo (the two biggest holdouts globally).
I wasn't discussing the fact MR reported it. That's fine. I was commenting on the level of discussion. You know guys going "Samsung copies off Apple! If Apple is gone, what will Samsung copy on! They should go back to making washing machines". Stuff like that is just sooooo off-topic, unrelated and a big cry for help from posters posting that crap.
Plenty of rational explanations for such a move, last year's Q3 earning's miss being the most prevalent. Can we focus on those topics, you know, actual financial discussion surrounding inventory management and supply chain management, rather than "lowest common denominator I don't know crap about the topic but I'll post Samsung sucks and iOS is stale!" ?
The 3GS is a perfectly good phone, it is only 3.5 years old, ffs! There used to be a time where we would keep our stuff for ages...
That said, I moved from a 3GS to a 5 mostly for development purposes.
This makes me thing that all that "my phone is greener that yours" stuff is moot, since greener things end up in landfills sooner...
Sorry, but that's BS. My iPhone 5 looks like it went through a war, plenty of scuffs and damage on the finish (I don't have a case), but you know what ? I've dropped it every chance I had, on hard floors, the gym's wooden bunch, sent it flying while doing some ab workout once.
So let's be honest about where the scuffs come from shall we ? I can pretty much tell you the story of each one on my own unit.