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When will Apple launch a COMPLETELY different phone?
- Thread starter cootersgarage6
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MS makes money from Windows and Office, software is "cheap" to develop and you can sell it for a lot of money thus you have good margins on it.
Let me put this in terms you'll understand.
If one phone company sells 10 phones for 10 dollars that makes a profit margin of 100 dollars.
If a second company sells only 1 phone, but for $1000 dollars, they make $1000 dollars obviously.
The first phone company would own approximately 91% of the market share in this instance, but they would make 10 times less money than company B, who only own 9% market share.
I don't know about you, but market share would be of miniscule importance to me compared to profits. That's apple's stance and it's gonna stay the same.
apple likes to keep things the way they are and they dont like to make a lot of new different products. They basically just stick to what they already have and keep upgrading it.
Apple's sitting on a pile of money despite not being the leader in home computers or cell phones. I think they're quite pleased with their current position.
Market share
I'm very concerned that the iphone will be 'history' soon.
1 year go everyone was getting the 3G and 3GS but now at work I see everyone getting android based phones. The 'momentum' has been lost for the iphone and competition has surpassed the iphone.
With android on every carrier, and every phone and even 'free phones', people are gonna see a $200 iphone vs a free android phone that does 100% the same thing.
Its history repeating itself with mac vs windows and cheap PC compatible hardware created the windows monster, and apple almost went bankrupt with 4% of the market.
SURE.. you can say "steve only cares about money and 4% is fine". But the iphone will completely suck when all the software devs jump to android because it's 96 % of the market. So if you make a hit game for 96% of the market, why would you spend 2X the time to make an iphone version when you can make a new hit game again for the 96% and sell it like crazy?
iPhone will die due to software, just like the mac.
I'm sure this has been said 20X times before, but I'd like to know what everyone's response is? History repeating itself? Is everyone too scared to tell steve? I predict the stock will tank once the market share %'s keep slipping away from apple and investors realize they are heading back to 4% for the iphone.
Edit: And about the whole "fragmentation", PC computers also have tons of resolutions and video cards and processors, and software simply comes out with "minimum specs", and too bad if the latest game doesn't run well on your emachine.
As procesor/memory increase in specs for all smart phones, all basic andriod apps will run 'ok' just like on windows, and ONLY high end games will demand top specs, just like on windows.
I'm very concerned that the iphone will be 'history' soon.
1 year go everyone was getting the 3G and 3GS but now at work I see everyone getting android based phones. The 'momentum' has been lost for the iphone and competition has surpassed the iphone.
With android on every carrier, and every phone and even 'free phones', people are gonna see a $200 iphone vs a free android phone that does 100% the same thing.
Its history repeating itself with mac vs windows and cheap PC compatible hardware created the windows monster, and apple almost went bankrupt with 4% of the market.
SURE.. you can say "steve only cares about money and 4% is fine". But the iphone will completely suck when all the software devs jump to android because it's 96 % of the market. So if you make a hit game for 96% of the market, why would you spend 2X the time to make an iphone version when you can make a new hit game again for the 96% and sell it like crazy?
iPhone will die due to software, just like the mac.
I'm sure this has been said 20X times before, but I'd like to know what everyone's response is? History repeating itself? Is everyone too scared to tell steve? I predict the stock will tank once the market share %'s keep slipping away from apple and investors realize they are heading back to 4% for the iphone.
Edit: And about the whole "fragmentation", PC computers also have tons of resolutions and video cards and processors, and software simply comes out with "minimum specs", and too bad if the latest game doesn't run well on your emachine.
As procesor/memory increase in specs for all smart phones, all basic andriod apps will run 'ok' just like on windows, and ONLY high end games will demand top specs, just like on windows.
HUH?!?
Try this June 27, 2010 Bloomberg Businessweek Article for one: http://articles.sfgate.com/2010-06-27/business/21928022_1_iphone-gene-munster-apple-retail-stores
"The rise of the iPhone notwithstanding, the Mac is still a big part of Apple, which dropped "Computer" from its name in 2007. Macs sell for an average price of $1,300 with 30 percent gross margins, Munster said. By comparison, consumer-grade Windows machines sell for half that, about $687, according to research firm IDC.
That's why Apple's relatively small slice of the U.S. market - only 6.4 percent in the first quarter of 2010, up from 4 percent in 2005 - doesn't matter much. For every half-point in market share Apple takes from Hewlett-Packard, Dell and all the other Windows vendors, it boosts its sales by about $3 billion, Munster says.
The better indicator is sales, which have grown substantially. In fiscal 2004, Apple sold 3.29 million Macs for the whole year. It sold slightly more than that - 3.36 million - in the first quarter of fiscal 2010 alone.
Charles Wolf, an analyst with Needham & Co. in New York, estimates that Apple will sell nearly 13 million Macs this year.
"It's a real testimony to the power of the Mac brand that Apple sells these machines for nearly twice what the Windows competitors charge, and yet the sales keep growing faster than the rest of the industry," Wolf said."
OR How about this November 2010 article about the iPhone:
https://www.macrumors.com/iphone/20...-place-among-global-smartphone-manufacturers/
So, first of all, your initial premise is incorrect. And second of all, your example of Mac Computers 'dying' is also incorrect.
Being popular and being the best can mean two different things.
With that said, I do believe the iPhone 4 is the best phone I ever had. Heck, best electronic device ever for me!
But times are changing and the gap they had about three years ago is narrowing fast. At some point, everybody will have an iPhone (or iOS device) and then will get sick of it. Think of the current sales of the Wii and DS. Everybody has one and now are focusing onto other consoles. Xbox 360 is finally outpacing the Wii. PlayStation was an unstoppable brand. After 10 years, people started to bash Sony. Like in movies, you can't expect $25M every single weekend. It will always trickle down because everybody saw the damn movie already.
Nobody can stay on top forever. Even Nokia and Motorola has went through their struggles. People get tired of things. Cell phones is a volatile market just like the music industry. FICKLE. You could be yesterday's favorite in a heart beat after being played out so much.
Call me crazy, but isn't Apple selling more Macs than ever, and more Macs each quarter in recent years?
History does tend to repeat itself.
But I see iOS will have a good ten year life cycle. At some point, everything does run its course. If you follow sports, you can't expect your teams to win a championship every single year. There will be some lean years. It's business. There is a decline to everything. Life and relationships can be the same way. It isn't perfect when you want it to be. What seems perfect now may not be perfect ten years from now. When you are young, ~forever doesn't seem that long until you've grown~
I was just looking back to phones about 6-7 YEARS ago. I remember when flip phones with cameras were all the rage back then. Heck, even a color screen was such a big deal. You can buy a cheap prepaid camera flip phone for like $30 brand new at Walmart that are just as nice as those ones from like 2003 and 2004 that were considered high-end. Imagine our current top phones now. Prepaid iPhones, Androids, or anything similar for like $50 brand new before 2020.
I feel iPhone 4 is like the Sega Dreamcast. Not in the way of sales. The Dreamcast bombed, but was still a great console. I compare it because it is a tweener even though it is credited to be in the 6th gen of consoles. The DC was in between the 32/64 bit war and the PS2/GCN/Xbox wars that followed it in 2000/2001. It came at a time where it improved the prev gen, but there is still time and room for improvement for the next one. The APP STORE is what I feel is like the PS2 library. Being the most popular platform, you get the most stuff from software developers. With that, you also get plenty of bad ones too. I feel the next gen is coming that will easily surpass our current phones, but iPhone 4 can still hold its own a decade from now just like the DC. After we get 2-5X better life, glass-free 3D screens, console-style games, better-looking OSes, improved form factors, etc. I don't see anything major after that.
I believe the next gen of phones is between 2011-2012. You can see each company formulating their next strategy. The jump after those Tegra 2 phones won't be anything major after that just like I don't feel a major jump after the Xbox 360 or PS3 in home consoles unless they give us virtual reality or photo-realistic images w/o the CG. Once you get closer to perfection, the next jump become smaller. I think 2010 is Apple's banner year and is the midpoint of the 2007 touchscreen revolution and the next gen of 2011/2012. iPhone 4 is Apple's pinnacle just like Nokia's N95 was their pinnacle in 2007 and Motorola's RAZR in 2004-2006 before their downward spiral after that. At some point, Apple sales will get worse because EVERYBODY has one. People do want to THINK DIFFERENT and have their own individuality. I'm not a fan of the 6th gen iPod classic when it comes to looks (3rd and 5th gen were the best looking) and don't like the current nano. Proof that later gens are not always the best. I see iPhones selling well for another few years before it trickles down to prepaid users. It is turning 4-year old next summer, and at some point, many folks can't stay monogamous for long with Apple or iPhone and want to swing into another direction to spice things up. Try out a few "mistresses" here and there.
Apple will always having a strong following whether they start to look over-the-hill in an industry based on trends. Being the best (to you) vs most popular are two different things. They can always continue to make $$ just like Nintendo did when they finished 2nd and 3rd place with their N64 and GCN. I see Apple declining a bit in the middle decade and then rebounding like what Motorola is doing right now.
Remember the iPod Mini? It was the best selling iPod ever (and thus the best selling MP3 player ever) and Apple killed it for the iPod Nano. Apple will know when they need to re-invent the phone, not to worry.
If you sell at at a loss, that means you lose money regardless of how many you sell.
I don't know if we'll see a new iPhone in the next few years, but I believe Apple will have to recognize the smartphone market is becoming the old desktop/laptop market. Everyone WILL have one at some point in the future.
Everyone called Bill Gates crazy when he predicted all households will have a computer. While I'm not claiming to be a prognosticator, I do believe everyone WILL have smartphones in the future.
With that said, Apple will have to create several "versions" of "The iPhone!" This is no different than the 13" 15" and 17" MBP lineup. At some point, consumers will demand either smaller or larger phones with varying hardware feature sets.
I don't think a one size fits all iPhone strategy is smart (looking long term). Especially when smartphones are owned by everyone in the future. I know, I know...the iPad is the go between here. My point is, the average consumer will want the functionality and the pocketability of a smartphone over a bulky iPad in the future. If this becomes the case, the Apple will need a robust iPhone lineup to hold onto consumers. After all, it isn't the iPhone that helps drive Apple, it is the environment in which Apple brings the consumer into.
Everyone called Bill Gates crazy when he predicted all households will have a computer. While I'm not claiming to be a prognosticator, I do believe everyone WILL have smartphones in the future.
With that said, Apple will have to create several "versions" of "The iPhone!" This is no different than the 13" 15" and 17" MBP lineup. At some point, consumers will demand either smaller or larger phones with varying hardware feature sets.
I don't think a one size fits all iPhone strategy is smart (looking long term). Especially when smartphones are owned by everyone in the future. I know, I know...the iPad is the go between here. My point is, the average consumer will want the functionality and the pocketability of a smartphone over a bulky iPad in the future. If this becomes the case, the Apple will need a robust iPhone lineup to hold onto consumers. After all, it isn't the iPhone that helps drive Apple, it is the environment in which Apple brings the consumer into.
The endless cycle of a cell phone enthusiast -
Buy a new phone and be OCD about it when it comes to any little fingerprint, dead pixel, or dust. Honeymoon phase.
Whether you love it or hate it, you still want to talk about here in these forums.
Start to get bored with it after a few years whether with the UI or some other nonsense that you weren't whining about before. Become less OCD in this complacency period.
Upgrade to another iPhone because you feel locked with your investments with iTunes/App Store or perhaps turn over a new leaf and just try out a new brand/carrier.
React the same way about that shiny new toy.
Either you love it because it is still new or you have buyer's remorse where you yearn about that older phone you previously complained about before. You start to smile thinking about it because of nostalgia.
Wash, rinse, repeat.
Same old story, different day.
Buy a new phone and be OCD about it when it comes to any little fingerprint, dead pixel, or dust. Honeymoon phase.
Whether you love it or hate it, you still want to talk about here in these forums.
Start to get bored with it after a few years whether with the UI or some other nonsense that you weren't whining about before. Become less OCD in this complacency period.
Upgrade to another iPhone because you feel locked with your investments with iTunes/App Store or perhaps turn over a new leaf and just try out a new brand/carrier.
React the same way about that shiny new toy.
Either you love it because it is still new or you have buyer's remorse where you yearn about that older phone you previously complained about before. You start to smile thinking about it because of nostalgia.
Wash, rinse, repeat.
Same old story, different day.
Nexus one was Co Designed by Google and HTC. Built by HTC.
Nexus S was Co designed by google and samsung. Built by samsung
Iphone is Designed by Apple. Built by Foxconn
I find it funny that people are ok with apples profit margins!? To be more specific non-stockholders. I just laugh!
I see no reason why they couldn't be tempted to offer an iPhone 'Nano' or 'Mini'...a scaled-down version for that magical $99 price point which can get more people to own an iPhone.
Like others have said, it's happened with the iPod. Multiple users have multiple needs and a trimmed-down or souped-up iPhone could be in the cards in the future.
I see no reason why Apple couldn't or wouldn't do this.
Like others have said, it's happened with the iPod. Multiple users have multiple needs and a trimmed-down or souped-up iPhone could be in the cards in the future.
I see no reason why Apple couldn't or wouldn't do this.