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How I love such comments – "decline in growth" : D
… growth, growth growth...
 
Since the days of the iPhone4 I’ve calculated the cost of buying outright + the cost of SIM only and up until very recently it’s always been cheaper to part with the lump sum. That difference is very much smaller now but it is still there.
An iPhone 5s cost me £10 times 24 months. Apple didn't sell it for that money. Other phones will be different. And some companies have prices that are all over the place, so you really need to compare.
 
I wonder why people think Apple will keep "real" updates until 10th anniversary of the iPhone.

Do you imagine that there's a board meeting, Tim says, straight-faced, "iPhone 7 is going to be like iPhone 6s, only thinner, but the next year's model will be really cool" and everyone applauds and shouts "well done, let's make sure sales of iPhone 7 are abysmal, the anniversary is so much more important"?
 
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The reason is Ive.

He has a certain design language and seems not to be able to change that. Everybody will get tired after years and and years to look at basically the same thing. He is now also involved in UI design and that makes things even worse. Same look outside, same look inside. For what, like 10 years?

They need to change the designer. Or challenge him. He's had it too good for too long.


Honest question - why? Why do they need to reboot their design every year or so?
 
TouchWiz can be replaced with the stock Google Now Launcher in the Play Store, smart people would buy used or wait for a sale if resale value always drops, and Apple mines user info too (they know exactly how many times you turn on your iPhone https://www.macrumors.com/2016/04/18/average-iphone-unlocked-80-times-per-day/ )

Go reread the article. That was Apples educated extrapolation. A simple average that i can come up with based on my own experience. They don't know ****. Get some sleep, some protein AND STOP SMOKING THAT ****.
 
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An iPhone 5s cost me £10 times 24 months. Apple didn't sell it for that money. Other phones will be different. And some companies have prices that are all over the place, so you really need to compare.
Absolutely but you need to factor in the cost of minutes, texts and data.
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Never seen the point of wireless charging. It's not actually wireless because there's still a cable attached to the large mat/disc/custom made table you need to put your device on. And this mat/disc/custom made table is a lot bigger than the tiny plug on the end of a regular charging table. Then there's the amount of energy these wireless charging devices waste…

USB-C? Not sure we're going to see a USB-C plug on anything smaller than a laptop. Apple seems to expanding their use of lightning on smaller devices.

Waterproof? Again, I'm not sure that anything over heavy rain protection is really needed. I suspect that Apple has done some research and discovered that its customers (its real customers – not people who live on forums) don't make calls while submerged under water and don't use their phones while they're on the toilet (though it sounds like a lot of people round here do).

Camera? Well, who doesn't want a better camera?
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Ah, the outrage of the spec whore.
I’m sure I saw some research somewhere where the insurance companies revealed that the largest number of claims for iPhones was due to water damage from toilet or bathroom. Certainly I know more people that have dropped thier phone in the crapper than have spilled a drink or had rain on it.
 
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How I love such comments – "decline in growth" : D
… growth, growth growth...

I know, some of the comments are making me laugh, "Apple is doomed" the iPhone 7 won't be interesting, it needs more features, the design is old. Blah blah blah, people will still be quing up to buy it
I wonder why people think Apple will keep "real" updates until 10th anniversary of the iPhone.

Do you imagine that there's a board meeting, Tim says, straight-faced, "iPhone 7 is going to be like iPhone 6s, only thinner, but the next year's model will be really cool" and everyone applauds and shouts "well done, let's make sure sales of iPhone 7 are abysmal, the anniversary is so much more important"?

Good point, so what do you think? Do you believe some of the rumoured features will be in the 7 or they are headed for the 7S? I think it's possible.
 
Good point, so what do you think? Do you believe some of the rumoured features will be in the 7 or they are headed for the 7S? I think it's possible.
I'm not an oft-reliable analyst ;) so I honestly don't know. I believe the reason why Kuo is able to talk about 7 and 7s/8 is that those things are decided by now and his connections allow him to know what exactly is going on. It's end of April, if Apple wants to premiere the new device in September, they have the design and specs finished and are working on securing parts and assembly. 7 has to offer some incentive for purchase over 6/6s and I don't think removing the headphones jack and making it thinner is going to make a lot of people queue outside Apple Stores. So I would think there is at least one killer feature (two-day battery life? wireless charging? the best camera in the market? no bezels? no physical button as screen is used for the fingerprint? something I can't even imagine?). It would make no sense to put out a 6SS this year and keep all the new features for 2017. iOS 10 will not be this feature, no matter what comes with it, unless Apple only allow installing it on the 6SS – which would be a very odd move as one of the reasons why iDevices are so popular is that you can update them anytime you like to the newest OS.

On the other hand, I also believe the smartphone market has matured beyond the point when latest and greatest is a must for everyone. Sure, 6SS will be the fastest iPhone since the previous fastest iPhone. It will have the best screen since last iPhone's best screen. While Apple is far from "doooooooomed", their shipments might indeed decrease simply because a lot of people won't be willing to spend €800+ on a better camera and a thinner phone – it's not like 6s camera is terrible or the phone is way too thick. One of the reasons Android manufacturers are putting 6 GB RAM in their phones is that they have to have SOME selling point that will convince people to upgrade. Samsung removed features people wanted; got "rewarded" by decreasing sales; put those features back in and got rewarded by sales increase. If Apple's base model for 2016 has 16 GB storage, looks the same or almost the same as iPhone 6s and the one and only "innovation" is removing the headphones jack, it will be a rather difficult product to sell to anybody else than hardcore Apple fanatics or people upgrading from iPhone 5.
 
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The good news is that Microsoft are nowhere to be seen...
I may be odd, but to me having more significant competitors in the market helps to keep up innovation = good for the customer. (On a sidenote: my current workphone is a windows phone and for my usage scenario, which includes very close integration in microsoft based applications, it does it's job better then the iPhone did before...)
But Apple is still earning more than 90% of all smartphone profits.
Don't get me wrong, due to heavy investments in the ecosystem I am currently not considering switching away from my private iPhone... BUT...as a customer, why should it make me happy that Apple makes the most profit out of relative low numbers? As a customer (opposed to a brand supporter) this makes me realise that the margin Apple takes is far higher than that of competitors...thus making the product...(evil is coming...)...overprized?!
 
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if apple is lazy or arrogant enough to come up with a iPhone 7 that looks similar to iPhone 6 they can kiss my upgrade $ good bye.

I don't understand the rationale to stick with the iPhone 5 chassis for iPhone SE no matter how good apple think it's. Part of why I upgrade is the appearance of the phone. There I said it I'm vain or whatever. Humor me apple.
 
I'm not an oft-reliable analyst ;) so I honestly don't know. I believe the reason why Kuo is able to talk about 7 and 7s/8 is that those things are decided by now and his connections allow him to know what exactly is going on. It's end of April, if Apple wants to premiere the new device in September, they have the design and specs finished and are working on securing parts and assembly. 7 has to offer some incentive for purchase over 6/6s and I don't think removing the headphones jack and making it thinner is going to make a lot of people queue outside Apple Stores. So I would think there is at least one killer feature (two-day battery life? wireless charging? the best camera in the market? no bezels? no physical button as screen is used for the fingerprint? something I can't even imagine?). It would make no sense to put out a 6SS this year and keep all the new features for 2017. iOS 10 will not be this feature, no matter what comes with it, unless Apple only allow installing it on the 6SS – which would be a very odd move as one of the reasons why iDevices are so popular is that you can update them anytime you like to the newest OS.

On the other hand, I also believe the smartphone market has matured beyond the point when latest and greatest is a must for everyone. Sure, 6SS will be the fastest iPhone since the previous fastest iPhone. It will have the best screen since last iPhone's best screen. While Apple is far from "doooooooomed", their shipments might indeed decrease simply because a lot of people won't be willing to spend €800+ on a better camera and a thinner phone – it's not like 6s camera is terrible or the phone is way too thick. One of the reasons Android manufacturers are putting 6 GB RAM in their phones is that they have to have SOME selling point that will convince people to upgrade. Samsung removed features people wanted; got "rewarded" by decreasing sales; put those features back in and got rewarded by sales increase. If Apple's base model for 2016 has 16 GB storage, looks the same or almost the same as iPhone 6s and the one and only "innovation" is removing the headphones jack, it will be a rather difficult product to sell to anybody else than hardcore Apple fanatics or people upgrading from iPhone 5.

I've kind of got the same kind of thinking, I'm finishing it difficult to believe that Apple won't offer an incentive to upgrade, the 6S was a nice little upgrade really, it got 3D Touch, Live Photos, 12mp camera and 4K video. I know some people disagree but I think the 6S was the biggest of the S upgrades. So why not carry that trend into the iPhone 7? I think Apple know that they must give people a reason to upgrade (they are not stupid).

On the other side tho Ming Chi-Chow has been right about a lot of things in the past, especially the iPhone so I do see why people are believing what he says, I'm 50/50 at the moment, but I do think there will be more that just hasn't leaked yet. I'm hoping so since I want to upgrade to the 7 Plus from my current 6 Plus.
 
And what about this OLED hype? The colors look like on lsd and if you don't hold the screen exact right, it's turning green to yellow. That iphone screen is way better!

Said no one EVER!!
[doublepost=1461579317][/doublepost]You caj
I've never been disappointed with any of my Apple hardware purchases although I was ticked when they stopped making the 17" MacBook Pro, livid actually. My biggest downfall was letting myself get suckered as deep as I am into iBooks - I never researched enough to know that these 200 + books I now have will be forever beholden to some Apple device - absolutely no chancey to move them over to an Android device should I ever have my fill of Apple BS.
You can east transfer itunes music over, are books a separate entity?
 
So in other words the cellphone market is effectively telling Apple to get its act together, start innovating, lower the prices, and come up with a phone worth buying.
 
A nett
That stuff will get old in a matter of weeks after the "new" and "wow factor" wears off. I fell for it at one point. Differentiator for me is and has always been iOS and platform as a whole.

a better display and a better camera will get OLD? Really.. keep telling yourself that.
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Behind the competitors?
Please enlighten us
This isn't even news.. inferior screen, camera, video, design, and battery life compared to the s7 edge. Shall I go on, or are you happy living in denial.
 
I don't understand the rationale to stick with the iPhone 5 chassis for iPhone SE no matter how good apple think it's. Part of why I upgrade is the appearance of the phone. There I said it I'm vain or whatever. Humor me apple.
The rationale is that the SE is largely made of recycled parts from the iPhone 5S. This is the real reason for creating a machine to take iPhones apart. Instead of selling the 5S at a reduced price, now they can take them apart, put the components into a new phone, and sell it at an increased price. Apple really dropped the ball on this one, because it stinks of laziness and a rampant cash grab, and the new phone uses a design that doesn't match the rest of the iPhone range.
 
It's almost unbelievable how people on this forum, after all these years, after the iPod, after the iPhone, after the iPad, still don't get Apple.

You're still thinking about past products (like the Mac in 2001, remember the comments here after the iPod introduction?), when Apple is clearly at work on something completely different. And likely huge.

Time and time again, same comments, no lessons learned. While many are fooled by vaporware from other companies.

The Apple Car will transform the scope and size of the company once again, and the Apple Watch itself will clearly boom in 2-3 years. If you can't see this, you have very little imagination.

Nobody can see the future with certainty. However, speaking of lessons learned, you should also keep in mind that Apple got on the edge of shutting down in the past.

Regardless, I don't think people here are worried about the brand name per se. Hence, the Apple Car is irrelevant, if iPhone gets sinked.
 
I'm sure you could nitpick small details, but generally this guy accurately described each years update by around this point in the year.

At this time last year he listed all the features of the 6s:
https://www.macrumors.com/2015/05/12/kgi-iphone-6s-2015-predicitions/

At around this time in 2014 listed all significant features in iPhone 6:
https://www.macrumors.com/2014/04/09/kgi-iphone6-predictions/

Around this time in 2013 listed all significant features in the 5s (just missed the date):
https://www.macrumors.com/2013/03/0...in-junejuly-fingerprint-sensor-for-iphone-5s/

Predicting features of the 5:
https://www.macrumors.com/2012/06/0...-thinner-and-improved-front-and-rear-cameras/

Hey look he even got the 4s right (when everyone else was predicting a redesign):
https://www.macrumors.com/2011/04/1...or-september-ramp-revamped-iphone-in-1h-2012/

Shall we keep going? Sure! iPhone 4 (including Retina display):
https://www.macrumors.com/2010/05/1...splay-improvements-in-next-generation-iphone/

Well, PED checked his predictions and came up with 41%. He adjusted it up to 44% after I posted.
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I am soooo glad to hear this. I rarely enjoy the misfortune of others, but this is GREATLY deserved. Apple has had this coming for a long time now.

It's because of how RIDICULOUSLY stingy Apple is with specs. Seriously, 16GB of storage since 2011???? Are you joking Apple? For a $650 device that is inexcusable. Same with the RAM, Apple gimped the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus with 1GB of RAM and my 6 Plus is pathetically slow. I've owned it for just year, so I am furious.

I hope this downward trend continues for a few more quarters, I hope those moronic MBA zombies in Cupertino really feel this as a loss because they truly deserve it.

Wows!
 
The cheering for Apple here is annoyingly laughable "apple is taking 90% of profits =good ?" " apple can't go down because they can charge what they want = good?" Are you guys talking as customers or investors ? As a consumer you should not be happy to pay far more than what others are charging for similar products but if u are speaking as investors then yeah, more money more price appreciation and more dividends. The problem is apple like any other company is bound to suffer after reaching an unsustainable level of growth which should normalize to world company growth or its market growth. Now about Apple products, they are really trying hard to diversify their topline from the iPhone dependency however it's not working for them as the tablets are not as useful as manufacturers tried to sell them to us, smart watches are nothing but a fashion accessory that adds no usability. Now they are trying to appeal to other emerging markets with lower specd phones hence hurting their margins.
 
Apparently my English is worse than I thought. Can someone explain this to me? Limited iPhone 7 selling points? Where did he get those? And what do they have to do with this quarter's sales?

Edit:
OK, just realized this was not related to this quarter's results. Still, how does he know iPhone 7's selling points?
 
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If Apple doesn't change the form factor and has limited technical updates, I think Apple lowers the price. We have a clue with the SE being $399 that this is their plan. Apple could drop flagship phone price by $50. Then there would be only $200 price difference between SE and 7. That would make sense. Unlike now where the SE is so cheap you would almost "have" to buy it if you were in the market for a new iPhone. The 6s in some form could remain on the market at $499 and the 6 would be dropped entirely.

I can also see Apple dropping prices even more. Though this is more of a reach. Yes that would really hurt their margins. But this is an OS battle and services are growing as a source of revenue. The services have 60% margins and at some point it is worth it for handsets to drop in margin a bit in order to maintain growth a solidify greater long term service margins.
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Apparently my English is worse than I thought. Can someone explain this to me? Limited iPhone 7 selling points? Where did he get those? And what do they have to do with this quarter's sales?

Edit:
OK, just realized this was not related to this quarter's results. Still, how does he know iPhone 7's selling points?

He has his rumors from suppliers. So from what he can identify the phone does not have what he considers significant selling points. In his view a case redesign is the most significant selling point for a consumer product. For tech guys like us that seems ridiculous. The 6s's main selling point to me is the improved CPU. But he may be right that many consumer won't drop the cash for a phone that will look largely identical.

I note however that he did not predict the SE selling price of $399 and has had to significantly increase his estimates. Price is something that Apple can control without the rumor getting out.
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On the other side, all of your bashing doesn't change the fact that Apple had more than several record breaking quarters and if things got "that" bad they could lose billions and not break a sweat, if they had to.

Maybe improvment is needed in some areas, but imo, the company is nowhere near the doom and gloom in this board.

Agree. A 5% reduction in iPhone sales year over year is still going to leave Apple with more cash than it knows what to do with. But if Apple can't get the "real" iPhone 7 out this fall and it has to go with the "backup", then obviously this will be a bad year for Apple.

Alternatively, maybe Apple has realized that with the maturing smartphone market it is time to start focusing on three year update cycles.
 
Well...this is how investmenting work. People get rich off investing because they pick companies that have a great growth potential. The fact that Apple sells 200 million phones per year is already priced into their stock - it really doesn't matter if they continue this trend. Selling another 200 million the next year isn't going to make the stock budge, making it a poor investment. If they sell 190 million the year after, they're an even worse investment.

Apple has to realize that the iPhone ship has sailed (just like the iPad, which they are still in denial about) and if they want their stocks to rise again, which is their legal obligation their investors, they are going to have to come up with a new product.

I understand that's how it works - I just think its crazy that when a company is as successful as Apple has been over a prolonged period of time it throws up a situation that appears so counter intuitive.

A company shifting 200m units and making an annual profit of $200bn may appear a better investment prospect than a company shifting 20m units and making an annual profit of $2bn.

Whilst I understand it is about growth, I sometimes find it strange that growth seems to be the be all and end all of the whole investment thing.
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Agree. A 5% reduction in iPhone sales year over year is still going to leave Apple with more cash than it knows what to do with. But if Apple can't get the "real" iPhone 7 out this fall and it has to go with the "backup", then obviously this will be a bad year for Apple.

Alternatively, maybe Apple has realized that with the maturing smartphone market it is time to start focusing on three year update cycles.

I don't really see it as getting the "real" (for want of a better expression) iPhone 7 out in 2017 rather than 2016.

Isn't it (from the rumours about moving to OLED a year earlier than planned) more a case of getting the iPhone 8 (again, for want of a better name) out a year early?

I don't really know why there has to be this hunger for a phone to significantly change its design every two years or less anyway.

And I don't get why any slow down in sales seems to be solely attributed to a lack of innovation on Apple's part, when it seems far more intuitive to think it is, as much as anything, down to the fact that the smartphone market has matured, and most people with a phone have transitioned from an older style phone to a smartphone.
 
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