Has Apple lost it's magic?

[TheForce]

Yesterday the store was packed with lookers. The company has maintained it's king of all companies by market cap. The law of large numbers tells me it will be very hard for Apple to double unless they can introduce a new game changer device. There are rumors Apple will introduce a car to compete with Tesla, but that isn't going to spur them to new all time highs anymore than the Ford Mustang Mach E did for Ford. In my opinion Apple making a car is like Tesla making a smartphone. There are rumors for that too which I find absurd.

If you are a die hard Apple fan, what do you believe will ignite the spark to take Apple to new highs in the next year? No posting a new name for the notch or a change in the shape of the edge of the phone or a new color. The cameras are well beyond what ordinary user can appreciate. So higher quality camera isn't going to ignite the spark.

Will the iphone have an app that can make your 2015 Ford Escape a Full Self Driving car with Apple's new wireless interface? Will people actually care for something like this?

Will Apple release regular glasses with built in AR technology that replaces the iphone, much like the Apple watch can actually replaces the iphone today? Glasses that have a high res camera to record everything you see so we have an always on memory recall recorded to the cloud. Or, instant google search that can display a virtual answer because the AR Glasses are always connected to the internet.


Most of the new products this year offer nothing really new, just more colors, new names, brighter shinier and slight shape change. Boring!

 

[harshness]

Apple isn't going anywhere soon and that's a two edge sword. One edge is that they'll be around for a while but the other edge is that their innovations seem to be mostly talk. The faithful are pretty solidly on the teat but even that can't survive years without real innovation (rather than Apple just doing new stuff that the competition has already done a different way).

 

[navychop]

The Apple Holosuite would interest me…

 

[medvyed]

Along that line...why not an Apple Warp Drive?

 

[navychop]

I’m past dangerous adventures.

 

[Josephinelcajon]

My experience and two cents on Apple in general. My early teens I watched the nightly news of two guys in a garage. I admired what they were able to do out of a garage as many were. My first computer experience was DOS on a Radio Shack Tandy Computer and as many it set my mind to only accept PC/Android for life. Learning Apple which I tried was like learning a foreign language. I never lost my admiration for two guys out of a garage. They built nothing but the best quality and service. And always came out with amazing innovations that moved the world. BUT Apple died with its founder. They lost their way and changed everything that made them great! Similar to Walmart was once a very proud American quality made products and once Sam passed away his kids sold it off to the Chinese and destroyed everything good about it. Apple is still "just OK" I feel none of these companies will ever be what they once were.

 

[navychop]

Disagree re’ Apple.

 

[rvvaquero]

I was an avid Android supporter for many years. The phones kept getting bigger and bigger, can you say phablets. I don't use a phone to surf the net or visit SatGuys. I finally gave in and bought an iPhone SE2, just because of it's small footprint. It cost me $200 brand new, which is about what I had been paying for Motorola phones for the past several years.

The iPhone has a small learning curve when moving from Android. It also has a more limited choice of apps. The size is perfect. I like that it gets updates, like forever. The Motos would get one or two updates, then see you later. All in all, the iPhone just works................every time all the time.

 

[Josephinelcajon]

I was an avid Android supporter for many years. The phones kept getting bigger and bigger, can you say phablets. I don't use a phone to surf the net or visit SatGuys. I finally gave in and bought an iPhone SE2, just because of it's small footprint. It cost me $200 brand new, which is about what I had been paying for Motorola phones for the past several years.

The iPhone has a small learning curve when moving from Android. It also has a more limited choice of apps. The size is perfect. I like that it gets updates, like forever. The Motos would get one or two updates, then see you later. All in all, the iPhone just works................every time all the time.

Samsung use to care use to have customer service and use to update their devices for several years. What is even worse is that ALL companies in ALL products are doing the exact same thing!

 

[rockymtnhigh]

I am firmly entrenched in the iOS and MacOS world. And it dies everything I want. The complete synchronicity from phone, tablet, computer, watch and television can not be beat.

Did I need a iPhone 14 pro max? No. But a 48mp camera alone made it worth while. I don’t care that others have had such lenses. I have had chrome devices and android devices and they are clunky, and far less useful to me. The 13 pro max I have is a great device. The m1 iPad Pro is as fast as can be.

the Apple TV 4K v2 is a fantastic streamer, and pretty much my go to for everything on my tv. Indeed, unless Dish can start finding a way to put out a a lot more content in more than compressed 1080i, my days with it will be numbered.

the Mac book air m2 which my wife has is perhaps the nicest laptop I have ever seen. My Mac mini m1 is an incredibly powerful desktop computer. As is my MBP m1.

We may be entering an age of mature tech and have less need for revolutionary changes, and just evolutionary ones. And that is fin.

and I don’t care a whit about the notch, which so disturbs some people.

 

[Jimbo]

Along that line...why not an Apple Warp Drive?

Potential for Bugs !

 

[AZ.]

Apple had their day in the sun a long time ago! Everything was new and exiting. Remember the days of Apple heads saying see we dont get viruses or anything that Windows get. So in a way it was well worth the extra investment as it was a smooth running operating system no bugs, glitches or viruses, on everything they sold...Then not much change, prices continued to be 30% or more than any other manufacturer. Then people stated to find ways to get information through their software...Now they are like all other companies, just with higher up front costs.

 

[arlo]

I'm the proud owner of nothing apple.
Imagine wanting to do your own oil change in the Ford, or getting Jimmy's garage (a non-Ford dealer) to do it.
Throw in a battery while you're at it. Easy enough, right?
But.
Valvoline wont work, Wix wont work, Die Hard wont work.
You gotta' go to the Ford dealer directly. Buy Ford oil, a Ford oil filter, and a genuine Ford battery.
Be ready to give the VIN number. Because now the parts manager has to pair all of the stuff to your blue GT.
There's a charge for that too. Oh. While you're at it you'll need this special filter removal tool. And this special tool to remove the access cover over the drain plug and filter. Don't forget the special socket you need to swap the battery.
Jimmy doesn't have the tools. So he needs to get them too. And pay the stealership to match everything to your sexy blue 'stang.
So. You get home. The wifey wants to go a cookout at the inlaws across the state. 3 hours away.
She wants you to go. The mom in law makes the best bar-b-que rib-ses-ses. She HAS to take her car. HAS to.
A nasty black GT that you got in a twofer trade in on Memorial day. You dropped a hundred-grand on the two on the Memorial day sale. What you got for the trade in was meh, at most.
Her car is really way past an oil change. The battery is kind of tired. The terminals are a little frosty.
No biggie, right? You'll jack it up and do the deed fast. What? 45 minutes? Mmmmmm....ribses-ses and 'tater salad and a few cold beers with the dad in law.
Crap. Everything you bought is for your blue GT. Even if you managed to fit everything into her car. The damned thing wont start. Or the radio and wipers wont work. A dash full of Christmas tree lights.
So. What do you do? Call the dealer. Yeah. They can squeeze you in. If you hurry. So you do.
Sit in the waiting room for an hour. The service manager says they cant swap the battery because the terminals are corroded beyond saving (they're not). The car is toast.
"Your little white dotty-dot turned red, that shows water damage."
Wait! Both are garage kept. Never seen a drop of rain. Ever. I swear. But you did drive in fog one day.
What about my extended warranty, dude? "Sorry sir, not covered". And not repairable anyway.
Can't you just put on a new terminal or cable? "Sorry sir. That would compromise vehicle safety".
Wait a minnit! That car will do 3 times the speed limit, burn tires down to the road base, spin donuts under an intersection until it's covered in smoke. And you're concerned with safety from a corroded battery terminal?
Service manager: Blank stare.
Smiling right behind him is a sales guy. He's ready to sell you a brand new Cobra GT. Black. Tons of bells and whistles. You talk. When you hear the bottom price, which he refuses to dicker on. Time to change your shorts!

Now. My analogy is EXACTLY what apple does. They are in deep doo-doo with the Right to repair community.
So they miraculously make SOME repair tools available. Not all. You can't change screens, batteries, cameras, etc. from one identical eye-fone to another. Neither can the phone repair shop down the street.
But because of non-descriptive RTR laws. They have met the specifications. Hah-hah-hah (apple).

Legal teams. Like the companies out there offering cheaper then utilities electricity and such.
You join for a fee. Then you can sell the deal to people, who in turn can sell to others. And each time you get a kick back. Everyone paying to get in on the deal.
The company comprised of ex pyramid scheme staff that now work for a pyramid-scheme-that's-not a pyramid-scheme conglomeration. Like your crafty HR head that knows all of the barely gray area things they can get away with to just stay legal. That bite out of the Apple logo is really a joke aimed at you. A bite from your ass.

How do I really feel about Apple?

 

[navychop]

Don’t hold back. Tell us how you REALLY feel!

 

[Juan]

20 years ago their man customer base was 50- 60 year old middle aged white men..now they are 70- 80

 

[SamCdbs]

Since we are on cars, Apple vs. Android reminds me of Chevy vs Ford, c. 1968. At the end of the day, they are 98% the same and made by two mega-corporations whose executives belong to the same country club, and who could not care less about your fanboy loyalty.

Continuing the car analogy, the cell phone has matured. Decades ago, when you traded cars, the new one was actually better. New technologies, new doo dads, actually better. Today if you trade cars, it is actually a different color than your old one.

Phones have evolved to that point today. I used to trade phones every year. The new one was better. I plan on keeping my current one until it dies of old age or I crack the screen. The new ones are not better. They are just moving around the camera or adding a new this or that, just like a 21 Ford had an 8 line grille and the 22 has a seven line grille.

 

[harshness]

Continuing the car analogy, the cell phone has matured. Decades ago, when you traded cars, the new one was actually better. New technologies, new doo dads, actually better. Today if you trade cars, it is actually a different color than your old one.

You obviously haven't been doing any critical car shopping recently. New cars have lots of new features versus cars that were produced seven years ago. They typically come with more powerful engines with better fuel economy (and better handling of corn gas) while bringing more capable entertainment systems and features like adaptive cruise control and a host of improved safety features.

 

[ncted]

20 years ago their man customer base was 50- 60 year old middle aged white men..now they are 70- 80

Apple? Haven't you heard about the dreaded green bubble stigma with young folks? Android users are second class citizens to Gens Y and Z.

Based on the battery life and performance, my M2 MacBook Air is a pretty recent home run for Apple. We can't get new Macs in fast enough to satisfy our users. The iPhone has gotten pretty stale for sure. The next big thing? Well, Apple is great at taking other people's ideas and making them better, so whatever else someone comes up with that the wonks at Apple can improve on to the point it becomes a hot seller. Cars have been around forever and it is already a big market with lots of competitors, so probably not that if I'm thinking correctly. Some examples of what I'm talking about:

PCs - Apple II came out after several weak attempts from small companies (including the Apple I)
GUI - Apple took Xerox's ideas and made them work for a wider audience
iPod - Apple made mediocre products from competitors seem that way
iPhone - Apple did the same thing to Blackberry and Nokia that they did to MP3 makers
iPad - Just a big iPhone really, but still so much easier to use than pre-iPad tablets
AirPods - Wireless headphones had been around for a long time, but Apple's ewaste version was somehow better (never liked these FWIW)

I don't love the walled garden, but it works for Apple, and if you don't want to live in it, there are other options as long as you are willing to live with the stigma of the green bubbles.

 

[Comptech]

You obviously haven't been doing any critical car shopping recently. New cars have lots of new features versus cars that were produced seven years ago. They typically come with more powerful engines with better fuel economy (and better handling of corn gas) while bringing more capable entertainment systems and features like adaptive cruise control and a host of improved safety features.

Yeah and that entertaiment system fails talking on the CAN bus to all the other modules can actually put the car in limp mode. I will keep my 1998 Chevy Z71 pick up and my 2001 Grand Marquis. 43 Year master certified Master Technician.

 

[Comptech]

And the bad thing is the manufacturers get away with the crap they build. Let me give you a example. A young couple bought a 2012 GMC acadia with the 3.6 direct injection engine. 80K on the odometer. They had it for a month, when they came to me and the car would barley move. Found both cats melted and told him they don't do that by themself. Got the OK to replace the cats, so I could see what was going on at the tune of 1400 bucks. Found 3 injectors just pumping gas into the chambers due to carbon build up. A very common problem on these engines. No TSB's or recalls. they are dumping fuel at 2000 PSI when they should not be Put 3 injectors in it, cleaned the injection system on it and has been good for 6 months. Car towed in today, another well known problem with that motor, Timing chain, broke Could be a 2k timing chain replacement or a new engine. He still owes 8k on the vehicle. These companies to to stand behind their failures.