Tim 'visions' the future.
(Images generated by A.I.)
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Apple's Third Quarter Earnings Call Takeaways: Work on AI, Vision Pro Demo Success, iPad and Mac Sales to Fall in Q4
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
(Images generated by A.I.)
A dividend of just 20% is ridiculous. What are they doing with all the money? We got high inflation. Is the ROI of this money higher? The owners like Berkshire should talk business with Tim.
OMG I used to hit Radio Shack every Saturday after paying my paper route to play with their computers.
Pretty sure my version of “Hello World” was:
10 PRINT “I Am Awesome! “;
20 GOTO 10
Oh, don't be silly. Pricing logic for increased storage was the same, when iPads were on the rise. I think the real reason is, that tablet as a product is dead, or dying at least for the last 3-4 years. Average consumer just do not need iPad or any other tablet, there is just no use cases for wide audience. AND iPads are so good, that it is almost 1-2x a life time buy - 5-6 year old iPad works almost as good as new one, so no demand for newer models from upgraders, not counting those, who don't need any tablet at all.
We will see new Macs, but I suspect Apple will work more and more on the games front, as that source of revenue could be immense and Apple seem to be migrating more and more to content creation also. Of course they will need the graphics capability to go with it, but Apple will not miss out on that slice of the cake that has to some extent escaped Apple's direct attention. With more and more pressure of App commission, Games is the obvious route to increased revenues.
Last edited:
If Apple had just gone with Proton instead of Metal, they'd be doing a lot better. So many more games work on linux/proton than mac/metal. Of course, M chips can't handle AAA games, so maybe that's a good thing...
Here's something I don't understand--for years, maybe like 20 years, Apple repeatedly says things like, "50% of Mac purchases were by users new to the platform." This article says this about the Mac and the Apple Watch. If this is true, consistently over time, and it is also (mostly) true that overall PC sales have stagnated, why aren't Mac sales as a percentage of overall PC sales roughly doubling? There's probably some simple math I am missing here, but at the very least, Apple's claims on this would seem to imply a much larger rate of market share growth than they have achieved over the past ten years.
I could say the same thing for my iPad. It doesn't let me do anything my laptop couldn't, but it lets me perform those tasks differently enough that I find value in using my iPad to teach in the classroom compared to a conventional PC. My Apple Watch doesn't really do anything my iPhone can't, but I do find that viewing notifications and Apple Pay is so much more convenient from the wrist.
Same with the Vision Pro. It doesn't need to do something new that my existing computer can't; it just needs to be able to rethink the manner in which I interact with my content in order to be worth the price tag.
If you are referring to generative AI like chatGPT, that is only a very small subset of what AI is, and even then, I won't be surprised if services like chatGPT and stable diffusion eventually get a very dirty reputation due to privacy and copyright concerns.
The truth is that Apple does incorporate AI into their products, like crash detection in their phones, ECG or fall detection in their smartwatches. This might not be what you normally associate with AI, but they have been credited with saving lives, and if you ask me, that's meaningful innovation right there.
This is really the classic mistake most people criticising Apple make. That they think just because Apple isn't doing what the rest of the industry is currently doing, then it must be Apple who has missed the boat and is lagging behind. But Apple does a lot of things differently, and if all you are doing is simply comparing Apple to everyone else and then go “Hey, Apple isn’t following what everyone else is doing, so I don’t think whatever Apple is doing is going to work”, I think they go down the wrong path.
The best way of covering Apple is still to begin with Apple. You have to focus with Apple, and then you move outwards. You start with Apple, and then you analyse the industry that Apple operates in. Not the other way around.
There was a way out. ctrl-x?? After some googling, there was a "Break" key. I think this is pretty off topic so I'll shut up now.
Last edited:
That's the whole point of these investor calls. They're not keynotes.
Or perhaps they are talking about things you don't understand, for purposes you don't understand?
The world is a very big place, and we all know well only a VERY SMALL portion of it. The wise person reacts to the unfamiliar with humility, not scorn.
Not yet...
Don't be so sure about a future Apple display some time in the next five years...
“Big Mac”, funny haha
I don’t necessarily agree; and devices get relevant again when the specs are updated.
It’s less than half the cost of the first Mac, and it will do things no other device can. I think it’s a bargain! 💸
Using the value of the Dollar back in 1984 doesn't mean it was half the price. Life was a lot cheaper, price of gas, buying a car, home prices, interest rates from banks. Just comparing tuition at Stanford University for example has gone from $43,683 to $82,162 (2013-2023) want to guess how low it was in 1984? Try $6500.
So trying to pitch that because the 1984 dollar was a lot stronger in today's 2023 dollars is extremely misleading. Cost of living has gone way up. Yes technology is a bargain these days compared to those Apple dinosaur products, you differently get much faster/better computing products for the weaker dollar.
Last edited:
It appears we are in agreement that inflation exists. People in 1984 weren’t making what people do in 2023. 😝Using the value of the Dollar back in 1984 doesn't mean it was half the price. Life was a lot cheaper, price of gas, buying a car, home prices, interest rates from banks. Just comparing tuition at Stanford University for example has gone from $43,683 to $82,162 (2013-2023) want to guess how low it was in 1984? Try $6500.
So trying to pitch that because the 1984 dollar was a lot stronger in today's 2023 dollars is extremely misleading. Cost of living has gone way up. Yes technology is a bargain these days compared to those Apple dinosaur products, you differently get much faster/better computing products for the weaker dollar.
I have working iMacs dated from 2011 and they work great!! I must admit that I change my iPhone every year because I like to have the latest, but this products endure quite a lot without any failure other than the battery..
From a financial perspective, it makes sense to not be too generous with dividends. First, more dividends mean more taxes paid (unlike selling stock where you can defer your tax payment to the quarter it is sold). Second, you don't really want a company that adjusts its dividend payout too radically every quarter, much less one that fluctuates in accordance to how well or poorly it does. It's just too much noise.
The whole idea of share buybacks is to raise the price of Apple stock by reducing the amount in circulation. As such, if people wish to liquidate their earnings, they can always sell Apple shares. That's my take at least.
Did you listen to the call? It all made sense to me — no nonsensical phrases were uttered.
Buybacks do reduce the total amount of shares, which increases the eps — the stock price is separate from this.
I absolutely agree on dividends. Share buybacks have increased shareholder value far greater. I would rather they put those dividend funds towards growth opportunities like r&d, talent acquisition, m&a, etc.
