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Maybe 10 years ago, but I see lots of people using Android phones now. I don’t think the iPhone has the same must have status it did a few years ago when people used to queue in tents for days to get the latest model.
Your correct. It’s bought online now. I don’t know anyone who camps out. That era is over. More or less.
 
Yeah they roll the near $20 billion they get from Google into services, that fee increases pretty much annually. That is more to do with maintaining monopolies than it is building great services.

Their services revenue would be much smaller without that and the icloud grift.
Apple isn’t a monopoly and the fee isnt illegal at this point in time. So it could continue.
Yes. They are a distant second despite having over a billion people using iPhones alone, before you account for Macs and iPads. The app is preinstalled on every single device they ship.
Yep, but first in revenue.
They were also the market leader for digital downloads, they had 80% of the market in the US and were the biggest music retailer in the world at one point. They have let that all slip in the streaming era.
Spotify?
They were talking about 100 million users at launch, ten years later they still haven't got there.
That doesn’t mean Apple services aren’t best in class. One thing has nothing to do with another.
 
Yeah they roll the near $20 billion they get from Google into services, that fee increases pretty much annually. That is more to do with maintaining monopolies than it is building great services.

Their services revenue would be much smaller without that and the icloud grift.



Yes. They are a distant second despite having over a billion people using iPhones alone, before you account for Macs and iPads. The app is preinstalled on every single device they ship.

They were also the market leader for digital downloads, they had 80% of the market in the US and were the biggest music retailer in the world at one point. They have let that all slip in the streaming era.

They were talking about 100 million users at launch, ten years later they still haven't got there.
A quick Google search would show that is factually wrong. But clearly you want to criticize Apple so go for it lmao
 

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I never had an Android so can't speak to its pros or cons. I suspect the "it just works" and privacy typically championed in iPhone marketing, plus the group-think sense of inclusion and social status that comes from owning the "better" hardware probably drives the teenage decision making process toward iPhones.
I think Android is likely a great device for those who have less disposable income or hate being in a "walled garden"
I have had Android friends who switched to iPhone and loved their android, but the fact that the handset manufacturer (i.e. Samsung) only employed the latest Android goodness into new phones effectively made their aging phones "obsolete" from an OS support perspective. Apple's support of many past generations of iPhones was brilliant in telegraphing the understanding that an iPhone will be there for a long time (especially important now with all the tarrif nonsense).
Getting the iPhones into the hands of teenagers will (ideally for Apple) maintain a dedicated consumer base, much like feeding happy meals to children and triggering that Dopamine rush when you smell those fries as an adult, a customer for life...
 
Apple is smart marketing to young people. These people have a lot of years left and are likely lifetime customers
This is astute. My grandkids for example have iPads. They could give a whit about AI, headphone jack, and all the BS that MR posters heaps on Apple. They will have iPhones shortly.

And I’ve seen it with other families. Other moms and dads get their kids iPads, priming the generation of kids to be an Apple generation.

The genius of the $279 iPad and an iPad cover.
 
Ah so teens are choosing Spotify because of the free tier but not choosing TV+ despite it being cheaper than Netflix.

It's almost as if none of Apple's services are very good.

EDIT: Also 45% have a paid Spotify account vs 30% Apple Music but Spotify was the most popular overall due to the free tier?!
I believe they choose Netflix due to peer pressure and Netflix’s agressive marketing and agenda: they make thousands of pointless movies with 40% of movies consisting of cringe s*x scenes. Apple has a different approach and they do not allow it in their shows, only mentions but not full blown ****hub experience like on Netflix.

As for Spotify yeah definitely because of free tier but probably also because of simple design aesthetics and lots of user-created playlists. I believe the winner in free tier would be Soundcloud but every news article fails to mention it as a competitor
 
Europeans say it was a dead app lmao
Well it is sorta of European etiquette thing. Like, when you try to send iMessage to someone first thing they would think “OMG why tf are you sending me those clunky SMS?”. Everyone from Netherlands to Germany and France uses WhatsApp – businesses, people, schools etc.

Eastern Europe meanwhile is a whole different thing. They are all using Telegram. Probably unsafe but they love it because they also subscribe to their favorite news channels there
 
Approximately 31 percent of teens own a virtual reality device, but most of those have an Oculus (25 percent). Just one percent of teens have an Apple Vision Pro, which is not a surprise given the price of Apple's device. Of teens that have a VR device, 60 percent said that they seldom use it, with just four percent reporting being a frequent daily user.

Piper Sandler surveyed 6,455 teens across 43 states for the spring 2025 report.
The really surprising thing is that depending on where you get your count of teens in the US, by this stat, teens own between half and 100% of the entire US run of Apple Vision Pro.

Seems suspect to me.
 
Has anyone in here may be considered that Apple services aren’t bad, they just excel in different places than other services?
Apple Music versus Spotify for example, I think there’s absolutely no denying that Spotify has significantly better social features, discovery features and curated playlists.
But when it comes to managing your own media that you’ve purchased or added, it’s a joke. When it comes to lossless audio or anything above MP3 quality, it’s a joke. When it comes to surround sound content, it’s a joke. When it comes to integration between devices, it’s a joke.
And the same is true about pretty much every one of their services, there are parts that are good and bad just like everyone else.
Personally, as someone who values having Dolby Atmos mixes, my own personal media that I have acquired over the years, and an actual music library, not just a collection of playlist, but a real library, Apple Music cannot be beat.
And I’ve used both.
 
I believe they choose Netflix due to peer pressure and Netflix’s agressive marketing and agenda: they make thousands of pointless movies with 40% of movies consisting of cringe s*x scenes. Apple has a different approach and they do not allow it in their shows, only mentions but not full blown ****hub experience like on Netflix.

As for Spotify yeah definitely because of free tier but probably also because of simple design aesthetics and lots of user-created playlists. I believe the winner in free tier would be Soundcloud but every news article fails to mention it as a competitor
Do you think “peer pressure” only explain Netflix usage? I have a different theory.

The article only mentions “paid” subscriptions with respect to Spotify and Apple Music. With video services it simply refers to “usage.” Teens are using whatever video services the parent(s) pay for. They just have additional “profiles” for the teens in each service. Teens are not using AppleTV+ simply because parents think AppleTV+ blows chunks and are not subscribed.
 
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Lmao again as I said before it’s not 2012. iPhones aren’t anymore expensive than Android. In fact the new galaxy models are just as expensive and sometimes more than iPhones.

Also in America, can’t speak for other countries, prepaid companies are giving out iPhone 12,12,13 and 14 for free to $100.

So yeah this is not shocking at all.
Yeah, the idea that Apple is significantly more expensive than their competitors has always been a bit over exaggerated, but never more so than today.
When you can get a brand new iPad for under $300, the Apple Watch SE is literally on sale right now for $150 and you can easily find an M1 MacBook Air or even an M2 MacBook Air in the $500-$600 price range, it’s a bit hyperbolic to say anything like that.
At this point, the only actual android phones tablets and computers that are significantly cheaper than apples, are the ones that are obviously that cheap because they are terrible products.
Thinking of the awful Amazon basics, Walmart tablets etc, those are absolutely cheaper than what apples offering, but when you buy a $90 tablet you get what you’re paying for.
Ads on the home screen and such that you literally have to perform hackery to get rid of.
Your actual high-quality stuff, your galaxy S25U and your Galaxy Tab S9s etc, are basically the exact same price as apples, give or take maybe $100.
Same goes for pretty much every other product category as well, even Google‘s new TV streamer is *only $29 cheeper** than an Apple TV.
 
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This is astute. My grandkids for example have iPads. They could give a whit about AI, headphone jack, and all the BS that MR posters heaps on Apple. They will have iPhones shortly.

And I’ve seen it with other families. Other moms and dads get their kids iPads, priming the generation of kids to be an Apple generation.

The genius of the $279 iPad and an iPad cover.
Apple is not the only one targeting young people. Nintendo, Sony and MS are the leaders in living room gaming. Windows still the leader in desktop / laptop gaming. Apple services like Arcade, Music and TV+ still behind with young people compared to the competition. MS Office and Google Workplace are far more popular in schools and colleges than Apple apps. From what I have seen, most Apple young customers have their devices to use non-Apple apps and services.
 
What's funny is that apps like Game Pigeon are what's driving iPhone. You can't play it with Android users at all, and kids really do play against each other with it.

And the green bubbles, well, bleah.
 
I have a dirt cheap Android phone with Lively. It is terrible as a smartphone but just fine as a telephone.
I leave the house with it in my pocket, turned off. If I just need to make a phone call, I'm prepared.
That said, my eyesight isn't smartphone friendly, and at home, I am a glued to technology person.
Either tablet or computer. 67 years old.
Better entertainment most of the time than what my generation called the boob-tube.
As for Spotify, the ads are too much. I don't pay, I just don't use it anymore.
My iPad is on its last leg and I probably won't get a new one.
The latest one is begging me to reconsider.
What I really want is Apple TV with iPad apps and I will pay the iPad price.
I don't like the concept of beaming an iPad to a TV. That's what ATV should be for.
Apple makes more money on this teen iPhone craze but they should not necessarily be pleased.
Everyone is wanting a device that goes everywhere.
When I was a teen, that was called a transistor radio.
Tim Cook is only 3 years younger than myself. He needs to think back.
 
I don’t know. I think they want the blue bubbles, but I am not sure they will do with many more years of Tim Crook destroying innovation and only caring about shareholders. Apple can market how green they are and all that but in the end, people will get fed up and something new will come along that takes over and dominantes. Unfortunately, without an innovator in the lead seat, it won’t be Apple creating the next big thing. Apple has milked all of Steve’s innovations for all it can under Crook. But I believe the slide has begun due to lack of innovation. Incremental updates mean these younger adults will hold onto their devices until they no longer function. In addition, with AI many less people will have money to buy overpriced outdated tech that Apple milks new features available in Android phones for years. We need a true third option that will be something radically different. Not a phone. Something that does it all rather than an ecosystem that’s locked in and attempts to act in anticompetitive ways every step of the process. I and done with Tim Crook. The only thing Apple has done really well are the M-series SoCs. But Apple appears to be just adding more power and heat to get any performance gains. And before you torch me, I have the new M3 Mac Studio maxed out and an M4 iPad Pro. But I am not a Gen Z. And for the first time ever, I do not own the latest iPhone since day one of the original iPhone. Every year I bought a new iPhone on launch day. Until this last year which I bought two but returned both as they presented no real value increase. From a 15 PM, I don’t see any reason to upgrade to a 17 series with downgraded aluminum from titanium. What a terrible decision. Now if the iPhone Air is somehow amazing, and titanium, I might buy it. But I am liking my work Pixel phone better and better every day.

I think everyone uses the word “innovative” as some buzzword but do they really know what it means when it comes to their phone? How is your Google pixel innovative, compared to the iPhone?

I think it’s silly to be upset about the iPhone 17 when it’s not even announced yet. All we have is rumor so we only know what the rumors are. They could be completely wrong.
 
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Apple is not the only one targeting young people. Nintendo, Sony and MS are the leaders in living room gaming. Windows still the leader in desktop / laptop gaming. Apple services like Arcade, Music and TV+ still behind with young people compared to the competition. MS Office and Google Workplace are far more popular in schools and colleges than Apple apps. From what I have seen, most Apple young customers have their devices to use non-Apple apps and services.
Apple doesn’t care. They want one to buy the hardware. My grandkids will get iPhones and their next computer will be a Mac. Others may get windows or chrome o/s.

Apple says “just get the hardware in their hands”.
 
because android , like windows, is an abomination UX that is spyware. And no business is brave enough to create an alternative.
 
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Has anyone in here may be considered that Apple services aren’t bad, they just excel in different places than other services?
Apple Music versus Spotify for example, I think there’s absolutely no denying that Spotify has significantly better social features, discovery features and curated playlists.
But when it comes to managing your own media that you’ve purchased or added, it’s a joke. When it comes to lossless audio or anything above MP3 quality, it’s a joke. When it comes to surround sound content, it’s a joke. When it comes to integration between devices, it’s a joke.
And the same is true about pretty much every one of their services, there are parts that are good and bad just like everyone else.
Personally, as someone who values having Dolby Atmos mixes, my own personal media that I have acquired over the years, and an actual music library, not just a collection of playlist, but a real library, Apple Music cannot be beat.
And I’ve used both.
I agree that Apple has better sound quality, but a lot of people won't notice it, considering they use bluetooth earbuds.

Regarding integration, although AirPlay 2 is very popular, the same can be said of Spotify Connect. One advantage of Spotify Connect is that it streams music directly from Spotify's servers. This means your phone's battery isn't drained by the streaming process.
 
Apple doesn’t care. They want one to buy the hardware. My grandkids will get iPhones and their next computer will be a Mac. Others may get windows or chrome o/s.

Apple says “just get the hardware in their hands”.
I think Apple cares and still have a lot of work to do. Imagine your grandkids getting an iPhone and an iMac. What if they want to play games? They might prefer hardware, software, and services from Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony, which are better than what Apple offers. When they're at school, they'll likely use MS Office or Google Workspace, since Apple's apps and services are limited for educational environments. And when their friends share Spotify playlists or watch series and movies on Disney+, they'll probably use those services too.
 
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