Rumor: Apple halts Mac component orders, is less 'aggressive' looking forward

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
Apple has reportedly stopped placing component orders for its Mac line of desktops and notebooks, leaving suppliers in the lurch and observers wondering what the impact will be on the company's bottom line.

macs


The rumor comes from supposed "related upstream suppliers," who tell hit-or-miss tech news site Digitimes that they originally expected Apple to work through its Mac inventories in April but that they're still waiting for additional orders and instructions from the computer maker. Apple's supply chain orders following the Lunar New Year holidays are said to have dropped nearly nothing.

The supposed order shift could signal that Apple overestimated demand for its notebook and desktop models in the face of a struggling PC market. Apple typically gives its suppliers a shipment forecast for the upcoming 12 weeks, but the company is said to have not provided a shipment forecast for the second quarter. Some suppliers reportedly are worried that shipments might not resume until May.

Supply chain issues have been a bigger problem for Apple of late, as the precision required in manufacturing some Mac products has occasionally led to shortages that impacted overall sales. Of recent, though, Mac sales are thought to have been on the rebound.

The PC industry has continually shrunk as consumers have opted for smartphones and tablets instead of traditional computing form factors. Apple, a leader in both the smartphone and tablet segments, has traditionally benefitted from this trend, with CEO Tim Cook calling Apple's iPad the "poster child of the post-PC revolution."

Readers can always find the best prices on Apple's Mac lineup by visiting the AppleInsider Mac Price Guide. Included below is the portion for the iMac, Apple's most recently redesigned Mac lineup.

«134

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 77
    jusephejusephe Posts: 108member
    Or just new models coming out soon....
  • Reply 2 of 77


    Someone must be desperate for AAPL stock to be cheaper to be pushing out all these rumors.

  • Reply 3 of 77
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,801member


    Apple is doomed!!!!

  • Reply 4 of 77
    OK, this shouldn't come as a surprise. Consumers are spending that money on tablets. Its natural that laptop and desktop sales will continue to go down.
  • Reply 5 of 77
    kozchriskozchris Posts: 209member


    I saw in a popup ad a rumor from a guy who heard from a guy on the internet that heard from his girlfriend that worked with a guy that was in a bathroom stall when he heard someone that he swore was Tim Cook talking to himself. Tim definitely said that Apple is going to give every long Apple shareholder 1 million dollars just for being loyal.

  • Reply 6 of 77
    eksodoseksodos Posts: 186member

    hmm

  • Reply 7 of 77

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by kozchris View Post


    I saw in a popup ad a rumor from a guy who heard from a guy on the internet that heard from his girlfriend that worked with a guy that was in a bathroom stall when he heard someone that he swore was Tim Cook talking to himself. Tim definitely said that Apple is going to give every long Apple shareholder 1 million dollars just for being loyal.



     


    Good summary image

  • Reply 8 of 77
    Wait... You all read past that this came from "tech news site Digitimes?"
  • Reply 9 of 77
    poksipoksi Posts: 482member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by eksodos View Post


     


    People were saying this in the run up to the last earnings call too: analysts had it all wrong, rumours were wrong, the stock would soar once the earnings were announced. Instead it sunk from $500 to around $460 after earnings.



     


    I believe no one has expected stock to soar after last earnings call, because they usually sink afterwards. Only extraordinary good reports that blow even degenerated WS analyst mind away do that. Otherwise WS bastards use any kind of info to lure stock from small investors and then in between reports they drove it back up and sell with big profit. Of course, they are idiots, because they loose money when hammering stock down as well. I bet none of them with all their computing power haven't got a clue what they are actually doing. They just want to collect quarterly bonuses and that's it. 


     


    Remember how they drove Google up to 750 and then down to 450 and now back to 800? Because of earnings? P/E? Confidence? Future profits? Come one, don'T be naive...:)


     


    Apple is just a perfect victim for their dirty deeds: secrecy, management incompetence to combine product development secrecy with market communication, changing product cycles and of course: it's own ecosystem.


     


    Price of Apple stock has nothing to do with position of Apple in the world and nothing with the earnings.

  • Reply 10 of 77
  • Reply 11 of 77
    rob53rob53 Posts: 3,241member


    I see the drop in AAPL as being a double-edge sword. For honest investors, it's a bad sign and they will lose money. For Apple, a lower stock price makes it a lot easier to buy back a huge amount of stock for a lot less money. I know many honest people have made a lot of money investing in AAPL for the long term and I feel bad for them (never invested in APPL because of work restrictions). On the other hand, I'd love to put all those dishonest stock manipulators into the poor house if Apple could go private or at least reduce its exposure to the dishonest stock market. Once the market doesn't matter, Apple can focus on doing what they do best, providing the best computing experience in the world.

  • Reply 12 of 77


    Taking Apple Private would be like the largest LBO.  Ever.  LOL  ;)

  • Reply 13 of 77
    asciiascii Posts: 5,936member
    I usually take most things at face value, but this rumor sounds made up to me.

    I can't imagine a situation where they would halt ordering components for all their computers. Maybe one line of computer, or one kind of component. And they don't keep that much inventory on hand anyway do they? 2-3 weeks? It just doesn't add up.
  • Reply 14 of 77
    jdnc123jdnc123 Posts: 233member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by ascii View Post



    I usually take most things at face value, but this rumor sounds made up to me.



    I can't imagine a situation where they would halt ordering components for all their computers. Maybe one line of computer, or one kind of component. And they don't keep that much inventory on hand anyway do they? 2-3 weeks? It just doesn't add up.


    Sure, they could.  Tim Cook allowed the narrative to be taken away from Apple and this is now a self-fulfilling implosion of historical proportions in the markets.  They are caught up in the PC downtrend, but he was clearly caught flat footed in smartphones.  Samsung expected to nearly double earnings this year and Apple shrinking.  


     


    I'm not sure who is more stressed out.  Investors or employees who are watching their net worth evaporate.  Went from working for a visionary to a man that can't articulate a strategy.  It is really sad.  

  • Reply 15 of 77
    Apple cuts the component order coz Apple is going to reinvent the computer . A touchable Mac.
  • Reply 16 of 77
    jdnc123 wrote: »
    Sure, they could.  Tim Cook allowed the narrative to be taken away from Apple and this is now a self-fulfilling implosion of historical proportions in the markets.  They are caught up in the PC downtrend, but he was clearly caught flat footed in smartphones.  Samsung expected to nearly double earnings this year and Apple shrinking.  

    I'm not sure who is more stressed out.  Investors or employees who are watching their net worth evaporate.  Went from working for a visionary to a man that can't articulate a strategy.  It is really sad.  

    Samsung doubling its earning wont make it earn more than Apple . In fact , I don't think Samsung has the ability to earn more than Apple any time in future.
  • Reply 17 of 77
    rogifanrogifan Posts: 10,669member
    jdnc123 wrote: »
    Sure, they could.  Tim Cook allowed the narrative to be taken away from Apple and this is now a self-fulfilling implosion of historical proportions in the markets.  They are caught up in the PC downtrend, but he was clearly caught flat footed in smartphones.  Samsung expected to nearly double earnings this year and Apple shrinking.  

    I'm not sure who is more stressed out.  Investors or employees who are watching their net worth evaporate.  Went from working for a visionary to a man that can't articulate a strategy.  It is really sad.  
    You seem pretty stressed out over Tim Cook.
  • Reply 18 of 77
    jdnc123jdnc123 Posts: 233member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Rogifan View Post





    You seem pretty stressed out over Tim Cook.


    Not stressed, just hope employees, investors, etc see what I see and push him out the door.  This company going nowhere but down with him leading it. We are over $300 billion of value evaporated at this point in less than a year.  Its really an epic implosion.  Its like a train wreck.  What you are watching has never happened before, no CEO has every destroyed that much value, let alone in such short order.  Harvard Business Review case studies will be written about this. 

  • Reply 19 of 77
    asciiascii Posts: 5,936member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by jdnc123 View Post


    Sure, they could.  Tim Cook allowed the narrative to be taken away from Apple and this is now a self-fulfilling implosion of historical proportions in the markets.  They are caught up in the PC downtrend, but he was clearly caught flat footed in smartphones.  Samsung expected to nearly double earnings this year and Apple shrinking.



    Well, the computer market is shrinking, but Mac is becoming a bigger percentage of it. And it's tablets that are cannibalising PCs more than phones, and iPad dominates there, so I don't buy your narrative. 


     


    But that's not the reason I don't believe the rumor. I don't believe it because when Apple moves you can normally see the thought that has gone in to it, but just outright cancelling all orders (as against this or that particular component) seems uncharacteristically broad and thoughtless. It's not something they would do.


     


    Edit: And they haven't been caught flat footed on phones either, everyone else has been playing catch up with the iPhone for a long time, some big old phone companies nearly bankrupt because of it. Now you could argue Android has finally caught up, but playing catch up and innovating are 2 different things. The media was by and large underwhelmed with the Galaxy S4.

  • Reply 20 of 77
    mhiklmhikl Posts: 471member


    Two ways to stop the disturbers. Block, block, block and then start blocking those who continuously quote them. Quoting & replying just supports the envious.The read at AI is so much better with out them. Both suffer anger issues.

Sign In or Register to comment.