What to Expect From Apple's Third Quarter Earnings Results Today

[Col4bin]

Nothing we've seen is indicative of any product.

This site and others have spent weeks reposting the same picture of the back of the phone.
How often do you look at the back of your iPhone?

They are desperate to know anything substantial and so far have squat.

If there was anything that looked any different than what we've seen so far, or significant enough to warrant a leak, Foxconn or some other Apple supply chain partner's employees would have leaked photos by now. (With the exception of the iPhone 5, most leaked photos this late tend to be indicative of the final product.)

 

[C DM]

If there was anything that looked any different than what we've seen so far, or significant enough to warrant a leak, Foxconn or some other Apple supply chain partner's employees would have leaked photos by now. (With the exception of the iPhone 5, most leaked photos this late tend to be indicative of the final product.)

So what you are saying is that there is precedent to things not being indicative of the real thing.

 

[Shoestring1981]

The problem is that some of us do more with our macs than you do with yours.

My desktop is a 4,1 Mac Pro. Am I a professional, making money with my cheesegrater? Nope, I am just a 3D art hobbyist. None of my software is too terribly expensive - it goes from free (Blender) to about $500 (Zbrush).

And yet this software will use every bit of ram and every core I can throw at it.

The iCan isn't a solution - regardless of what Apple thinks, the world runs on CUDA.

Not to mention the cost of replacing missing core functionality that came with the towers (Go price out a TB dock, along with a minimum of 2 4bay enclosures). Expecting me to drop my entire workflow to use the iCan is ludicrous.

When it is time to replace my mac pro, I'll be moving to a dell workstation - and once that starts, I (and the rest of my extended family) will start to transition way from Apple.

When it is time to replace the iPads (2 btw, there hasn't been a single "innovation" to justify spending the money on a newer model), we'll probably go with a Windows tablet - all we really need is the Kindle app.

The next phone purchases will probably be Samsungs - preferably something that can fit our hands, which the 6 models and later can't do.

AFA "services" - That will be a hard sell, based on how they dumped both their server hardware & software. Another missed opportunity.

I get what you're saying, but I think it's pretty clear that Apple has all but abandoned any kind of "power user" market -- probably because 1.) they can't really compete with the PC market 2.) it's not profitable enough/worth investing R&D to satisfy power users needs. Most power users aren't looking for an elegant user experience -- they're looking for brute force, expandability at the lowest price -- not exactly apple's modus operandi. Apple has, in many ways, stopped trying to be all things for everyone. Instead they've refocused on a part of the market where they can differentiate themselves and make the most profit - the casual computing market. 3D renderers like yourself sadly don't fit that niche.

You can blame the iPod for this switch in focus - the iPod thought apple there's more money to be made in casual computing than focusing on pro users. There's never been a pro iPod,or pro iPhone.. And even the pro iPad isn't exactly "pro" in the way we're talking here. They're all extremely limited and simplified.

So long as there are enough people using idevices in the iOS ecosystem, developers will be forced to use macs. For 99.99% of these developers, even the outdated iCan is overkill. Why would apple spend millions on R&D to meet the needs of the other 0.01%? It's not worth the headache, let alone the money.

Consider the fact that most families don't choose their entire computing Ecosystem based on how well their main computer renders 3D graphics, I think Apple has made a safe bet. It could still be the wrong decision, but there's nothing in apples recent history that would suggest it. Most just want simplicity in a pretty package. That's what Apple now offers - to the detriment of some.

 

[robeddie]

Go back to staring at the back of your phone, im sure you'll get a lot of use out of it.

Well, that's a non sequitur. But, whatever.

 

[Col4bin]

So what you are saying is that there is precedent to things not being indicative of the real thing.

IMO what we've seen in the leaks thus far is most likely what we'll see announced during the September keynote.

 

[TurboPGT!]

If there was anything that looked any different than what we've seen so far, or significant enough to warrant a leak, Foxconn or some other Apple supply chain partner's employees would have leaked photos by now. (With the exception of the iPhone 5, most leaked photos this late tend to be indicative of the final product.)

What is this about "looks"?

When I say that we know next to nothing about the next gen iPhone, I'm not referring to what the back of the unit looks like, of which we have a close approximation from mockups.

We have zero leaked internal parts. We have zero actual case leaks. We haven't seen any A10 logic boards, or heard any rumors about its size, fabrication process, or potential speed. Same with battery. We've heard a suggestion on battery, but no actual leaked part. Same with camera module. Sure we've seen an approximate cut out, again on mockup, of the back of the device, but that means nothing.
We also have zero leaks or even rumors about possibly unique iOS 10 software features, or unique hardware features from the new hardware.

In other words, all of the things that matter, and all of the things that add up to an iPhone, are a complete mystery.

But no, let's go back to fixating on the back of the (mockup) device some more. That tells the whole story.

 

[9081094]

I'm a full time iOS Developer and have been for a year+. In February last year, I was excited to pick up a Mac and spend money to get it. I dropped $1400 on a 13" MacBook Pro Retina.
That machine was perfect for me because I was learning. 8gb of ram was good enough but for what I paid, I got a pretty good processor and SSD speed. In college, I temporarily owned a 15" early 2013 Retina and that thing was a BEAST. It had an over-clocked 650M graphics card that performed more like a 660M. It was fast, light, had good battery life and it only cost me $1849 with my student discount. I ended up selling it because it was too much machine for me.

When I finally got a full time offer, they provided me with a 15" Retina in fall and when I changed positions earlier this year, I got moved into a 15" Retina with a 512 SSD.
However, lately I've been planning on moving into my own individual projects and for that, in order to bypass my NDA and own everything I work on, I have to use my own equipment. This isn't possible for iOS Development unless you own a Mac. You can use a VM, but your productivity and work throughput will be in the gutter with how long it will take your VM to run OSX for deploying, building and testing your application on a device.
I had given my 13" Retina to my girlfriend because her Air wasn't powerful enough for her, but I knew I would need my own device. I had outgrown the 13" Pro. I needed a quad, I needed at least 16GB of ram.

I've saved up enough money to buy a machine.. I waited for March... We got a 12" MacBook refresh. That's not a good enough machine for me. I need a quad-core. I vented my frustrations, Apple fans criticized my technical needs. "You don't need anything more powerful than a 12" MacBook. I write a million lines of code every day on my 11" Air with sunglasses on in the dark so you can do anything on a 12" MacBook" or some version of that.
Basically, power users get insulted by the status quo when we say, "This isn't good enough for us".

Well guess what guys, you won. Apple gave you your thin obsessed fleet of devices and there isn't a power user Mac in existence. Apple all but gave up on those "big ugly workhorse" devices that us workstation and production users want and will exclusively buy. And in the process, gave up our wallets.
I will not buy a Mac Pro. For one, it's a horrible design. I say that as an engineer and a professional. I'm not going to spend $3000 on a machine that is that limited. A Mac Pro is a multi-year investment. You buy it because it's fundamentally important that you are able to expand it, upgrade its processor, swap out the graphics cards and throw in multiple drives. This is because, spending $3000 on a Mac Pro isn't a BAD investment when you know you can build on the platform and get 6-7 years out of it.
I am also 10-15% on the "go". I don't WANT two machines to handle what one machine did for me in 2012. The iPad Pro is a notebook replacement? Show me Xcode on it. Show me an iPad Pro driving Firefox with my mLab database in a tab so I can track my tables, Xcode running, SourceTree open handling my repositories, all on one screen. If you can't show me that, then don't tell me an iPad Pro or an iPad combined with a Mac Pro is "ideal" for me.
What's ideal for me is a 15" MacBook Pro that's actually professional grade. It should have the latest processor. Because a $2000 15" notebook being driven by a 3 year old architecture that's already N-2 iterations behind is pathetic. It should have a discrete graphics card that's worth its weight in USD. Having to spend an extra $499, which could literally BUILD you an entire PC with better graphics, just to get a 2GB 3 year old architecture AMD card is even more pathetic.
The only impressive aspect about the 15" MacBook is the SSD speed and the screen quality. That's it.
For any of the "pro" stuff I do, which happens to be within the confines of Apple's VERY OWN ecosystem, I'm hindered by their obsession with thin and light.
Are you someone who likes thin and light? That's great, there's literally an entire lineup of THIN and LIGHT devices JUST FOR YOU. It's called EVERYTHING Apple makes. But for those of us who don't mind "marginally not-so-thin" as a cost for having a Skylake processor, an R9 M480X and either user upgrade friendly memory or just max out every sku with 32GB, we are left HANGING. And why? All so Apple can net capture the few people who are thin-and-light obsessed that are willing to cough up $2000+ because they want a bigger screen.
I'm actually in the middle of an Android training camp. And to be honest, I'm probably just going to abandon exclusivity in my Apple based career because the tech just doesn't live up to my standards.
You guys disagree with me? That's fine. I'm sure it works out GREAT for Apple that they are going to lose me as a customer.
Because in all honesty, you have 0% chance of convincing me that somehow a "less powerful" machine is somehow good for me as an engineer.
Oh and for those of you who are like "OH I DO ALL THIS STUFF ON THAT MACHINE SO THEREFORE YOU'RE WRONG".
No, you are wrong, forever and always. People being okay with inferior tech wouldn't be IMPEDED by having superior tech. "Yeah but if that tech adds weight, then it hurts me because I prefer mobility and battery life and sexy thin lines". Read what I said before... You already have a LOT of devices that are just right for you. If you disagree, that's fine, but you should also be okay with Apple's sales continuing to decline, because you will NEVER convince people like me that these underpowered machines are good enough for us.

I totally feel you and yesterday evening it came to light for me. Apple is changing but I didn't change my expectations with it. I was still hoping apple would be at the forefront of the technology. I always wondered why they hired Angela ahrends. But it's clear to me now. Apple is changing into a fashion brand. They're not investing into the latest and greatest technology anymore. Not because they don't can, but because it won't pay off for them that much. They're building their brand like Prada or Gucci. Quality will be could but way overpriced. But hey, you can show off how successful you're and don't have to worrie about price. This isn't the Apple I once knew. It's run by shareholders and profit hunters. They're abandoning the graphic, video and creative market by offering less ports and incompatible ports. The soldered ram and no configurable graphic cards shows you they're not interested in their loyal customers anymore. I've to look elsewhere and admitted this to myself yesterday.
I really hope xiaomi and other Chinese brands will put pressure on Apple by making real good products at a fair price. But I'm afraid Apple won't have to and ignore that because they've become the Gucci and Prada of the computer industry. I just want a brand that suits my needs for being a graphic designer. I hate to say it but Apple isn't that for me anymore.

 

[Col4bin]

What is this about "looks"?

When I say that we know next to nothing about the next gen iPhone, I'm not referring to what the back of the unit looks like, of which we have a close approximation from mockups.

We have zero leaked internal parts. We have zero actual case leaks. We haven't seen any A10 logic boards, or heard any rumors about its size, fabrication process, or potential speed. Same with battery. We've heard a suggestion on battery, but no actual leaked part. Same with camera module. Sure we've seen an approximate cut out, again on mockup, of the back of the device, but that means nothing.
We also have zero leaks or even rumors about possibly unique iOS 10 software features, or unique hardware features from the new hardware.

In other words, all of the things that matter, and all of the things that add up to an iPhone, are a complete mystery.

But no, let's go back to fixating on the back of the (mockup) device some more. That tells the whole story.

Thank you for your snarky reply and for so eloquently detailing the components that we typically see get leaked by this time based on previous year releases. Did it occur to you that the reason there hasn't been many or any significant leaks is due to the phone remaining mostly the same as last year's 6S? So, perhaps there is really nothing to actually "leak" other than some revised rear shells? Hey, I could be wrong, but this is MY opinion and this is a rumors forum last time I checked.

 

[robeddie]

Thank you for your snarky reply and for so eloquently detailing the components that we typically see get leaked by this time based on previous year releases. Did it occur to you that the reason there hasn't been many or any significant leaks is due to the phone remaining mostly the same as last year's 6S? So, perhaps there is really nothing to actually "leak" other than some revised rear shells? Hey, I could be wrong, but this is MY opinion and this is a rumors forum last time I checked.

I dont think he was being all that snarky. He was making kind of a good point, imo, which is that all this discussion about the appearance of the back of the phone is pretty much worthless, and not really deserving of much, if any, discussion.

In fact, the general appearance of the phone is only mildly interesting. We know it's pretty much going to be a thin rectangular object with a screen occupying one side. How the hell is ANY variation of that very interesting?

 

[TurboPGT!]

Thank you for your snarky reply and for so eloquently detailing the components that we typically see get leaked by this time based on previous year releases. Did it occur to you that the reason there hasn't been many or any significant leaks is due to the phone remaining mostly the same as last year's 6S? So, perhaps there is really nothing to actually "leak" other than some revised rear shells? Hey, I could be wrong, but this is MY opinion and this is a rumors forum last time I checked.

Nope, that has not occurred to me, because that is absurd.
If that is what you're thinking, you're wrong.

 

[xmonkey]

Seriously?

Yes.

 

[robeddie]

Seriously?

Since you refused to clarify, I assume when he says 'front of the phone' what you're thinking is interesting is the implementation of the UI in ios10, etc. Certainly NOT the appearance of the phone while powered off, right?
After all ... It's a rectangular glass panel. No matter what slight variation Apple makes to that mandated reality, can't be very interesting. It's still gonna be 'a rectangular glass panel'. And even if the slight change in outward appearance was enough for the average person to notice, within a week or two it would just be their boring old phone again.

 

[jeduars]

If they aren't selling as much new hardware how can they count growth from AppleCare?

well apple QC is pretty ****** these days and the products are so hard to repair ... people probably buy applecare with what little hardware they buy.

 

[Col4bin]

Nope, that has not occurred to me, because that is absurd.
If that is what you're thinking, you're wrong.

Oh ok...I get it, you must have insider knowledge? You're funny.
[doublepost=1469655476][/doublepost]

In fact, the general appearance of the phone is only mildly interesting. We know it's pretty much going to be a thin rectangular object with a screen occupying one side. How the hell is ANY variation of that very interesting?

Thank you. You just made my entire point.

 

[robeddie]

Oh ok...I get it, you must have insider knowledge? You're funny.
[doublepost=1469655476][/doublepost]
Thank you. You just made my entire point.

You're welcome. We certainly agree on that point.

 

[SeanG1027]

well apple QC is pretty ****** these days and the products are so hard to repair ... people probably buy applecare with what little hardware they buy.

Not to mention all the deals from authorized resellers that include "free" AppleCare.

 

[bbbb4b]

Sure mate, cause that's how it works. You would be better learning from the market than attacking it. It doesn't care about you.

You're the one that needs learnin'. You made a false equivalency. I straightened you out with the correct one. And it (clearly) flew right over your head again.