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1. shut it down
2. give the money back to the shareholders
3. buy a dell
Phew. Glad you all got the joke. I was worried I was about to get flamed.


I was lucky enough to be working at apple when APPL overtook DELL’s market cap. Everyone got a congratulatory and gloating email from Steve 🤪
 
What would be your first three strategic decisions?
1. Computing: 27” Mac Standard and 32” Pro version. Laptops are fine. iPads are fine. Air and Pro - done. Keep it simple. Push more on making your iPhone a legitimate computer that you just plug into a monitor to use. We’re almost there, but keep pushing this convergence. People will find when they retire they don’t need everything a Mac has to offer. Simplicity is everything. Most Apple users are younger. My generation is split. Plan for what that looks like as Gen X people and younger retire in the coming years to retain your base through life. My phone can do just about all I need with a few touches here and there as far as a computer goes, but there are times when I need a big monitor. Make it seamless.

2. Media: AppleTV “Theater”. 5.1.2 soundbar with remote subwoofer. Option to add two HomePods with upfiring speakers for 7.1.4 and maybe a second sub for 7.2.4. Built in TV OS. Built in camera for FaceTime. Safari. Keyboard and mouse option. Extra HDMI input or two for a BD player et al. Multi device learning remote (think the amazing Logitech we used to be able to get). Get DTS onboard and update the catalog to the original audio formats that were used for the films. Maybe even work with Sony on SDDS for the movies that had it. Improve audio bitrate for movies. Start looking at 8K.

3. Apple ID: Instead of merge an old Apple ID to get access to your catalog, allow a new Apple ID to replace it as long as the old ID is closed out. If you ever get hacked, you’re stuck with the old Apple ID for your content or you have to use another iCloud account or service like outlook or gmail to change it resulting in the use of two Apple IDs to get to your content. It’s messy. This applies to a lot of people that had iTunes before they had an Apple product, but didn’t have an iCloud account. It’s ridiculous I can use a different Gmail account anytime I want for my Apple ID for my content, but I can’t generate a new iCloud account to do the same. There is a way to merge it, but it has restrictions that make it messy and in some cases you can’t actually perform the merge. Just transfer everything and be gone with the old account. There’s probably some legal BS associated with this, but if someone took the time to figure it out then it could be done. It just takes effort. I mean, what if your email was dickandjaneforever@icloud.com and it didn’t work out?🤣

4. Bonus points: Just make a HomePod with a built in charge stand to hold your iPhone, iPad or iPad mini. Forget making an actual device with a screen.
 
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  • Get rid of Air products. Thinness is not a meaningful feature.
  • Make Finder an actually good file manager, starting with a configurable sidebar.
  • Add a headphone jack back to all mobile devices. Seriously, bluetooth just won't cut it.
A headphone jack. YES. In fact, I agree with all three decisions. Cannot think of better ones.
 
1. Computing: 27” Mac Standard and 32” Pro version. Laptops are fine. iPads are fine. Air and Pro - done. Keep it simple. Push more on making your iPhone a legitimate computer that you just plug into a monitor to use. We’re almost there, but keep pushing this convergence. People will find when they retire they don’t need everything a Mac has to offer. Simplicity is everything. Most Apple users are younger. My generation is split. Plan for what that looks like as Gen X people and younger retire in the coming years to retain your base through life. My phone can do just about all I need with a few touches here and there as far as a computer goes, but there are times when I need a big monitor. Make it seamless.

2. Media: AppleTV “Theater”. 5.1.2 soundbar with remote subwoofer. Option to add two HomePods with upfiring speakers for 7.1.4 and maybe a second sub for 7.2.4. Built in TV OS. Built in camera for FaceTime. Safari. Keyboard and mouse option. Extra HDMI input or two for a BD player et al. Multi device learning remote (think the amazing Logitech we used to be able to get). Get DTS onboard and update the catalog to the original audio formats that were used for the films. Maybe even work with Sony on SDDS for the movies that had it. Improve audio bitrate for movies. Start looking at 8K.

3. Apple ID: Instead of merge an old Apple ID to get access to your catalog, allow a new Apple ID to replace it as long as the old ID is closed out. If you ever get hacked, you’re stuck with the old Apple ID for your content or you have to use another iCloud account or service like outlook or gmail to change it resulting in the use of two Apple IDs to get to your content. It’s messy. This applies to a lot of people that had iTunes before they had an Apple product, but didn’t have an iCloud account. It’s ridiculous I can use a different Gmail account anytime I want for my Apple ID for my content, but I can’t generate a new iCloud account to do the same. There is a way to merge it, but it has restrictions that make it messy and in some cases you can’t actually perform the merge. Just transfer everything and be gone with the old account. There’s probably some legal BS associated with this, but if someone took the time to figure it out then it could be done. It just takes effort. I mean, what if your email was dickandjaneforever@icloud.com and it didn’t work out?🤣

4. Bonus points: Just make a HomePod with a built in charge stand to hold your iPhone, iPad or iPad mini. Forget making an actual device with a screen.
I can't count the number of things you can do on Windows/ChromeOS/Linux/Android that you can't do on Apple devices. Some of them are more complex/geeky and Apple caters to the "let's keep it simple" crowd, so I can understand that. But other things, like the one you mention, are pretty straightforward and simple, so you have to wonder why Mac can't do that.
 
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I would:
  • Make just ONE iPhone again but in TWO sizes, priced at 800$. No less, no more. No pro, no air, no "e", just "iPhone". One size would be as small as iPhone 5 was (or at least something in-between iPhone 5 and iPhone 6/X), another would be like iPhone Air. Both thin and light, NO UGLY CAMERA BULGES, DYNAMIC ISLANDS and ALL that goofy ahh trash!! Design is always a compromise. One camera? Good, iPhone Air shows people don't even need other cameras! No FaceID? OH NO, anyway... TouchID into Apple logo or power button, problem solved. Worse camera? So what, go buy Sony Alpha a7 if you care about pixel peeping! Smaller screen in smaller model? YES you heard me right, because people deserve good and pocketable phone, not PHABLET or shoe-in-your-face brick.
  • Fire whole software design department, rehire Scott Forstall so he can assemble a team of UI-UX professionals and release new iOS 27 as soon as possible, with each iOS 26 update replacing the ugliest elements of iOS 26;
  • Send PWM in OLED displays into trashbin of history. Make phones safe for eyesight, because company must care about health of its customers;
  • Fire marketing department, hire real professionals and come back to real, live keynotes, streamed with real cinema cameras not some cheapo iPhone with plastic lenses. I am sick and tired of boring, tired Apple ads that will resonate only to minority of potential target audience.
Miscelaneous:
- Bring back skeuomorphism (obviously);
- Remove subcription option from AppStore and bar developers from using it outside the AppStore;
- Make it as easy as possible for game devs to port games to iOS and macOS, so there will be finally something to play on new iPhone apart from 12 year old GTA San Andreas port;
- Make iPads water-resistant, bring removable SD card storage as an option to every iPad;
- Implement new battery designs so that they will be as easy to replace, like replacing AA batteries in TV Control. Will sell every original battery at 30-50$/piece;
- Bring back chargers, stickers and even add AirPods to EVERY new iPhone;
- iPads will get Apple Pensil BUNDLED instead of AirPods;
- Finally bring back BootCamp for native Windows installation, will solve that with Microsoft;
- Make camera shoot natural pictures, remove unnecessary computations, remove aggressive sharpening, remove aggressive denoising, tone down HDR and make it an option;
- Rebuild UI of iOS from scratch to make it actually user-friendly, no options you cannot disable (like memories in photos, "recently deleted", object recognition, AI features). Everything must be possible to opt out of.
 
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I would:
  • Make just ONE iPhone again but in TWO sizes, priced at 800$. No less, no more. No pro, no air, no "e", just "iPhone". One size would be as small as iPhone 5 was (or at least something in-between iPhone 5 and iPhone 6/X), another would be like iPhone Air. Both thin and light, NO UGLY CAMERA BULGES, DYNAMIC ISLANDS and ALL that goofy ahh trash!! Design is always a compromise. One camera? Good, iPhone Air shows people don't even need other cameras! No FaceID? OH NO, anyway... TouchID into Apple logo or power button, problem solved. Worse camera? So what, go buy Sony Alpha a7 if you care about pixel peeping! Smaller screen in smaller model? YES you heard me right, because people deserve good and pocketable phone, not PHABLET or shoe-in-your-face brick.
  • Fire whole software design department, rehire Scott Forstall so he can assemble a team of UI-UX professionals and release new iOS 27 as soon as possible, with each iOS 26 update replacing the ugliest elements of iOS 26;
  • Send PWM in OLED displays into trashbin of history. Make phones safe for eyesight, because company must care about health of its customers;
  • Fire marketing department, hire real professionals and come back to real, live keynotes, streamed with real cinema cameras not some cheapo iPhone with plastic lenses. I am sick and tired of boring, tired Apple ads that will resonate only to minority of potential target audience.
Miscelaneous:
- Bring back skeuomorphism (obviously);
- Remove subcription option from AppStore and bar developers from using it outside the AppStore;
- Make it as easy as possible for game devs to port games to iOS and macOS, so there will be finally something to play on new iPhone apart from 12 year old GTA San Andreas port;
- Make iPads water-resistant, bring removable SD card storage as an option to every iPad;
- Implement new battery designs so that they will be as easy to replace, like replacing AA batteries in TV Control. Will sell every original battery at 30-50$/piece;
- Bring back chargers, stickers and even add AirPods to EVERY new iPhone;
- iPads will get Apple Pensil BUNDLED instead of AirPods;
- Finally bring back BootCamp for native Windows installation, will solve that with Microsoft;
- Make camera shoot natural pictures, remove unnecessary computations, remove aggressive sharpening, remove aggressive denoising, tone down HDR and make it an option;
- Rebuild UI of iOS from scratch to make it actually user-friendly, no options you cannot disable (like memories in photos, "recently deleted", object recognition, AI features). Everything must be possible to opt out of.
Best so far!
 
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I would make all the OS's open source, then every year hold a poll for what the consumers want on the new phones (as long as it is reasonable), and then give the watch a face store+remove hardware exclusive faces.
 
I would:
  • Make just ONE iPhone again but in TWO sizes, priced at 800$. No less, no more. No pro, no air, no "e", just "iPhone". One size would be as small as iPhone 5 was (or at least something in-between iPhone 5 and iPhone 6/X), another would be like iPhone Air. Both thin and light, NO UGLY CAMERA BULGES, DYNAMIC ISLANDS and ALL that goofy ahh trash!! Design is always a compromise. One camera? Good, iPhone Air shows people don't even need other cameras! No FaceID? OH NO, anyway... TouchID into Apple logo or power button, problem solved. Worse camera? So what, go buy Sony Alpha a7 if you care about pixel peeping! Smaller screen in smaller model? YES you heard me right, because people deserve good and pocketable phone, not PHABLET or shoe-in-your-face brick.
  • Fire whole software design department, rehire Scott Forstall so he can assemble a team of UI-UX professionals and release new iOS 27 as soon as possible, with each iOS 26 update replacing the ugliest elements of iOS 26;
  • Send PWM in OLED displays into trashbin of history. Make phones safe for eyesight, because company must care about health of its customers;
  • Fire marketing department, hire real professionals and come back to real, live keynotes, streamed with real cinema cameras not some cheapo iPhone with plastic lenses. I am sick and tired of boring, tired Apple ads that will resonate only to minority of potential target audience.
Miscelaneous:
- Bring back skeuomorphism (obviously);
- Remove subcription option from AppStore and bar developers from using it outside the AppStore;
- Make it as easy as possible for game devs to port games to iOS and macOS, so there will be finally something to play on new iPhone apart from 12 year old GTA San Andreas port;
- Make iPads water-resistant, bring removable SD card storage as an option to every iPad;
- Implement new battery designs so that they will be as easy to replace, like replacing AA batteries in TV Control. Will sell every original battery at 30-50$/piece;
- Bring back chargers, stickers and even add AirPods to EVERY new iPhone;
- iPads will get Apple Pensil BUNDLED instead of AirPods;
- Finally bring back BootCamp for native Windows installation, will solve that with Microsoft;
- Make camera shoot natural pictures, remove unnecessary computations, remove aggressive sharpening, remove aggressive denoising, tone down HDR and make it an option;
- Rebuild UI of iOS from scratch to make it actually user-friendly, no options you cannot disable (like memories in photos, "recently deleted", object recognition, AI features). Everything must be possible to opt out of.
Quite a lot of good ideas !!!

I would also add the following:

a. To stop the dumb marketing idea about Apple AI. This is not going anywhere any time soon.
b. To stop the incessant idea of "thinness and compactness," specially for desktop computers. Just built regular or medium to "obese" computers with efficient heat dissipation. Thinness and compactness may save $ in construction costs, but at the same time makes heat dissipation more problematic.
c. Produce Macs with removable and replaceable RAM and SSDs. Leave it to the customer to do whatever he or she wants with it once the warranty is over.
d. Concentrate on improving the design of OS-X, based on being more intuitive for all users.
e. Get rid of the Apple News department. That's a waste of money and resources.
 
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I'm curious, are you a proponent for better capitalism or something else specifically?
A better and fair form of capitalism. Or, I could complain about socialism and run for Congress, get elected for a couple terms, retire and enjoy the benefits of socialism(on a grading scale) that the American people bestow on me for life, lol. Ohhh, the lovely irony of it all.
 
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