The same thing is going to happen in 2017. The news media will remain critical of EVERYTHING Apple does or doesn't do. Either Apple has an awful lot of enemies or the news media and the rest of the attention junkies simply like to use Apple's name to get clicks. It's really disheartening. It's getting hard to tell whether the company is failing or not. I don't think it's a failing company because it's not closing stores or laying off employees which is something failing companies usually have to do. Apple still remains more profitable than most companies on the planet. What really hurts is how tech critics claim how even Microsoft has better hardware than Apple and I'm not sure what that's based upon. It's as though they think Apple couldn't build some really fancy computer if the company wanted to. I'm sure that wouldn't be all that difficult to do. But would most consumers want some computer like that and I'm sure it would be very expensive to buy.
As a shareholder, apart from the dividends it appears as though Apple has simply given up in trying to gain revenue. Compared to the rest of the major tech companies, Apple is a wheezing laggard in terms of share gains. There are no large acquisitions or unusual products to get the big investors excited. I don't expect Apple to design some miracle product every few years. Even I wouldn't know what type of products those would have to be. Apple can't outdo every computer or smartphone company every year. There will always be some other company to come out with some unusual product even if that product ends up losing money for that company.
Another thing I find very disappointing is how all these other companies are being given favorable odds to reach a $1T market cap like it was the easiest thing in the world to do. Amazon, Alphabet and Microsoft are all going to jump right past Apple as though gaining over $500B in market cap is a piece of cake. If it were that simple I'm sure it would have been done already. It appears as though Wall Street has totally given up on Apple to get to $1T market cap. I know it's easier said than done but Apple seems to be out of the picture at this point. Apple isn't favored by tech critics, the news media or analysts. No one seems to be on Apple's side anymore. How does a company fall out of favor so easily while still being the most valuable company on Wall Street? I have no idea. The Dow Curse, maybe.
I don't like to bash journalists, but I think they deserve this hit piece. The problem is that the press needs engaged readers who come back every day to read their articles to sustain their business. With only two (or three) keynotes per year, Apple doesn't provide them with enough material to support their business. So, what do they do, they hype product and initiatives that don't have a chance in the marketplace. One example is Microsoft's Surface, an overpriced, clearly underpowered machine hailed as the next big thing in PCs. The problem is that with each article hyping a product that eventually flops, these journalists are losing their only asset, their credibility. I hope they get to read this article and that they analyze how they can improve in 2017.
It seems to me that with a clickbait economy supporting journalism, we arrive at the same terminus with politics supported by private interests: a huge mess. As for the people who seem to feed of those hype-centric articles, their objectives seem to be about finding the scape goat for their hatred, as opposed to anything rational or logical.
I wish more journalists would turn the tide, such as DED, and start identifying each other's major failings of the past and beating up on each other, rather than on Apple.
I don't know. This article makes me slightly uncomfortable. It's all technically true, but DED turns a blind eye to recent events that cause deep concern among mac fans. A new MacBook Pro that was panned by CR? A Mac Pro with no updates since 2013? I don't think people are looking for unreasonable levels of innovation when they talk about how "Apple has left them" before buying a Windows machine, and I'm pretty sure Apple could have led in BT headphones without the Beats purchase.
I think, on balance, Apple does get the shaft by many so-called journalists; but this is not a religion, and Apple faces challenges that, when ignored by the author, make it difficult to take his writing seriously.
Seven years ago Wintels controlled about 96% of the computer market. Today that dominance has dropped to about 93% at the same time overall computer sales have dropped more than 5%. The overriding reality is that the number of Wintel users switching to Macs far exceeds the number of Mac users switching to Windows, no matter what the so-called disgruntled Mac user gives as reasoning, or Microsoft claims.
Disagree about now being the time to focus on maintaining. Apple right now needs to avoid becoming Microsoft circa 1999; dominant and yet headed for a lost decade. Things look okay right now, but that can change quickly.
C'mon. Apple is always doomed next year.
Apple needs to focus on its core products and refresh them as technology improves. In the background, Apple can investigate other uses of its tech.
I don't know. This article makes me slightly uncomfortable. It's all technically true, but DED turns a blind eye to recent events that cause deep concern among mac fans. A new MacBook Pro that was panned by CR? A Mac Pro with no updates since 2013? I don't think people are looking for unreasonable levels of innovation when they talk about how "Apple has left them" before buying a Windows machine, and I'm pretty sure Apple could have led in BT headphones without the Beats purchase.
I think, on balance, Apple does get the shaft by many so-called journalists; but this is not a religion, and Apple faces challenges that, when ignored by the author, make it difficult to take his writing seriously.
CR also didn't recommend the iPhone 4. Not too worried about it as Apple is investigating the issue.
No new desktops is a problem but it's not a major problem. I'm thinking a spring release for those items. Apple can weather most challenges it faces.
The same thing is going to happen in 2017. The news media will remain critical of EVERYTHING Apple does or doesn't do. Either Apple has an awful lot of enemies or the news media and the rest of the attention junkies simply like to use Apple's name to get clicks. It's really disheartening. It's getting hard to tell whether the company is failing or not. I don't think it's a failing company because it's not closing stores or laying off employees which is something failing companies usually have to do. Apple still remains more profitable than most companies on the planet. What really hurts is how tech critics claim how even Microsoft has better hardware than Apple and I'm not sure what that's based upon. It's as though they think Apple couldn't build some really fancy computer if the company wanted to. I'm sure that wouldn't be all that difficult to do. But would most consumers want some computer like that and I'm sure it would be very expensive to buy.
As a shareholder, apart from the dividends it appears as though Apple has simply given up in trying to gain revenue. Compared to the rest of the major tech companies, Apple is a wheezing laggard in terms of share gains. There are no large acquisitions or unusual products to get the big investors excited. I don't expect Apple to design some miracle product every few years. Even I wouldn't know what type of products those would have to be. Apple can't outdo every computer or smartphone company every year. There will always be some other company to come out with some unusual product even if that product ends up losing money for that company.
Another thing I find very disappointing is how all these other companies are being given favorable odds to reach a $1T market cap like it was the easiest thing in the world to do. Amazon, Alphabet and Microsoft are all going to jump right past Apple as though gaining over $500B in market cap is a piece of cake. If it were that simple I'm sure it would have been done already. It appears as though Wall Street has totally given up on Apple to get to $1T market cap. I know it's easier said than done but Apple seems to be out of the picture at this point. Apple isn't favored by tech critics, the news media or analysts. No one seems to be on Apple's side anymore. How does a company fall out of favor so easily while still being the most valuable company on Wall Street? I have no idea. The Dow Curse, maybe.
Apple cares about revenue. I think you are confusing growth with revenue. It's was tough to beat the iPhone 5 to 6 transition. After that normalized with the 6 to 6s and 6s to 7, growth will return at a sustainable rate.
Apple doesnt care about stock price like other companies. WS doesn't understand that or Apple itself. Apple doesn't control the price.
I don't like to bash journalists, but I think they deserve this hit piece. The problem is that the press needs engaged readers who come back every day to read their articles to sustain their business. With only two (or three) keynotes per year, Apple doesn't provide them with enough material to support their business. So, what do they do, they hype product and initiatives that don't have a chance in the marketplace. One example is Microsoft's Surface, an overpriced, clearly underpowered machine hailed as the next big thing in PCs. The problem is that with each article hyping a product that eventually flops, these journalists are losing their only asset, their credibility. I hope they get to read this article and that they analyze how they can improve in 2017.
This is the thing though: they never seem to lose their credibility. They keep throwing mud at the wall and only DED and the Macalope seems to have the integrity to pick them up on it. The complete collapse of the news industry is one of the saddest losses of 2016.
CR also didn't recommend the iPhone 4. Not too worried about it as Apple is investigating the issue.
No new desktops is a problem but it's not a major problem. I'm thinking a spring release for those items. Apple can weather most challenges it faces.
CR has lost all of its credibility with me because of its stance 'We don't need to re-run our tests'. Any systems or software tester with more than a year of relevant experience could totally destroy their testing methodology but now that everything is dominated by Hit Counts they can get away with it. Testers strive for consistency. CR did the opposite and didn't stop to ask why are these results so varied. As for the anti-Apple press. Their whole modus operandii is "Slag off Apple and get more ad revenue". End of story.
What puzzles me is that Apple seems to be content to take it. Like a punchdrunk boxer, they seem unable to hit back. Perhaps it is time for Tim to hand over to someone who would stick their neck above the parapet and take on these liars head on? I don't know but it frustrates the hell out of me. Only one thing is certain and that is the the Sun rises somewhere in the east and sets somewhere in the West.
man... Joanna Stern from WSJ... I could not stand that woman, she is obnoxious... a 40 years woman trying to be cute as a 14 year old teenage girl makes me want to puke.
Not that it really matters, but she's in her early 30s. I find her to be pretty smart, and has a rounded view of smartphones. She's not anti-Apple.
She doesn't have to be anti-Apple or stupid to fall into the same trap. There are plenty of other examples of pro-Apple, otherwise intelligent journalists and commentators deciding that Apple has lost its way and needs to change its practices, or rethink its strategy, usually because they didn't like a specific product (the recent MacBook Pro, for example).
"We redefine expectations. First for ourselves, then for the world. Because we’re a little crazy. Because “good enough” isn’t. Because what we do says who we are."
That's part of Apple's credo. Why wouldn't they be held to the standard they set?
Disagree about now being the time to focus on maintaining. Apple right now needs to avoid becoming Microsoft circa 1999; dominant and yet headed for a lost decade. Things look okay right now, but that can change quickly.
Like a previous commenter I felt slightly uncomfortable reading this. I am a big fan of Apple and have been for a very long time, but I thought that 2016 was a very poor year for them. There were more disappointments than positives: a non-S iPhone with few improvements; no desktop Macs; a MacBook Pro that can’t handle 32Gb; dongles required to connect the latest iPhone to the latest laptop etc.
There were highlights too, such as AirPods, but generally their core products were either given only minor improvements or none at all. The only exception was the MacBook Pro, and that seems to have been rushed out too soon.
I have high hopes for 2017 for all the reasons that Daniel mentions: good underlying technology; lack of decent competition; etc. However, in terms of actual products released (which is the key metric for me) I think that 2016 was the worst year for Apple in a very long time.
I don't like to bash journalists, but I think they deserve this hit piece. The problem is…
The problem is that they are not journalists.
As the article states, "Journalists are supposed to report what's happening, not invent a narrative they want to happen. The problem is that few modern tech writers are actually journalists. Many are casual bloggers from vendor advocacy sites with a grudge against Apple. Journalists are supposed to report what's happening, not invent a narrative they want to happen."
And perhaps, if we keep identifying them as such, and quoting their rhetoric, we only perpetuate their existence.
But how many times can you report that Apple is failing when it clearly isn't true?
perhaps 2017 is the year for tech journalists to stop trying to effect ideological change and more honestly begin to report reality.
They are reporting their nonsense to an audience which desperately wants that to be true. So they won't stop doing it in 2017 and never need to warry about their audience turning their backs on them.
I don't know. This article makes me slightly uncomfortable. It's all technically true, but DED turns a blind eye to recent events that cause deep concern among mac fans. A new MacBook Pro that was panned by CR? A Mac Pro with no updates since 2013? I don't think people are looking for unreasonable levels of innovation when they talk about how "Apple has left them" before buying a Windows machine, and I'm pretty sure Apple could have led in BT headphones without the Beats purchase.
I think, on balance, Apple does get the shaft by many so-called journalists; but this is not a religion, and Apple faces challenges that, when ignored by the author, make it difficult to take his writing seriously.
Seven years ago Wintels controlled about 96% of the computer market. Today that dominance has dropped to about 93% at the same time overall computer sales have dropped more than 5%. The overriding reality is that the number of Wintel users switching to Macs far exceeds the number of Mac users switching to Windows, no matter what the so-called disgruntled Mac user gives as reasoning, or Microsoft claims.
Well, perhaps. I'm one of those switchers although I did it slowly over more than 10 years. But looking at the large bunch of offererings by Apple that hasn't been given an upgrade, and those that did get the upgrade give off a somewhat 'meh' feeling, beside the unbelievable high price, I find myself looking more and more at the other side. And I would not be doing that if Apple had shown me how committed it is to the OS-world bij offering a new iMac, upping MacBook Air's, and what not.
I don't like to bash journalists, but I think they deserve this hit piece. The problem is…
The problem is that they are not journalists.
As the article states, "Journalists are supposed to report what's happening, not invent a narrative they want to happen. The problem is that few modern tech writers are actually journalists. Many are casual bloggers from vendor advocacy sites with a grudge against Apple. Journalists are supposed to report what's happening, not invent a narrative they want to happen."
And perhaps, if we keep identifying them as such, and quoting their rhetoric, we only perpetuate their existence.
I don't like to bash journalists, but I think they deserve this hit piece. The problem is…
The problem is that they are not journalists.
As the article states, "Journalists are supposed to report what's happening, not invent a narrative they want to happen. The problem is that few modern tech writers are actually journalists. Many are casual bloggers from vendor advocacy sites with a grudge against Apple. Journalists are supposed to report what's happening, not invent a narrative they want to happen."
And perhaps, if we keep identifying them as such, and quoting their rhetoric, we only perpetuate their existence.
SPOT ON! A downside of the Internet is that many can make themselves appear to be something they're not. And web loggers posing as journalists is one of the most egregious examples, along with Nigerian princes.
A common hue and cry on the Internet is 'Information wants to be free'. More like an axiom, to many. A corollary to that is 'Misinformation pays'. Not that money is the prime motivation for poseurs, but it's a big one. And it's fairly easy, but would be nigh impossible without the 'Net.
I appreciate both DED's and the Macalope's efforts.
man... Joanna Stern from WSJ... I could not stand that woman, she is obnoxious... a 40 years woman trying to be cute as a 14 year old teenage girl makes me want to puke.
Not that it really matters, but she's in her early 30s. I find her to be pretty smart, and has a rounded view of smartphones. She's not anti-Apple.
is that you, Joanna? Well, go watch some of her cheesy product review videos and let us know if you still find her to be "pretty smart".
CR also didn't recommend the iPhone 4. Not too worried about it as Apple is investigating the issue.
No new desktops is a problem but it's not a major problem. I'm thinking a spring release for those items. Apple can weather most challenges it faces.
CR has lost all of its credibility with me because of its stance 'We don't need to re-run our tests'. Any systems or software tester with more than a year of relevant experience could totally destroy their testing methodology but now that everything is dominated by Hit Counts they can get away with it. Testers strive for consistency. CR did the opposite and didn't stop to ask why are these results so varied. As for the anti-Apple press. Their whole modus operandii is "Slag off Apple and get more ad revenue". End of story.
What puzzles me is that Apple seems to be content to take it. Like a punchdrunk boxer, they seem unable to hit back. Perhaps it is time for Tim to hand over to someone who would stick their neck above the parapet and take on these liars head on? I don't know but it frustrates the hell out of me. Only one thing is certain and that is the the Sun rises somewhere in the east and sets somewhere in the West.
Here's the problem: replying would be playing right into their hands. All these people want to do is generate page clicks.
They make s**t up. Page click. Apple responds. They make s**t up about the response (you won't BELIEVE what Apple had to say about THIS article) and generate more clicks. Apple reponds to their response… and the lies perpetuate. The only way to deal with these idiots is to bitch slap them with the real numbers. They can't even take the liars to court because they're not doing anything illegal.
Comments
As a shareholder, apart from the dividends it appears as though Apple has simply given up in trying to gain revenue. Compared to the rest of the major tech companies, Apple is a wheezing laggard in terms of share gains. There are no large acquisitions or unusual products to get the big investors excited. I don't expect Apple to design some miracle product every few years. Even I wouldn't know what type of products those would have to be. Apple can't outdo every computer or smartphone company every year. There will always be some other company to come out with some unusual product even if that product ends up losing money for that company.
Another thing I find very disappointing is how all these other companies are being given favorable odds to reach a $1T market cap like it was the easiest thing in the world to do. Amazon, Alphabet and Microsoft are all going to jump right past Apple as though gaining over $500B in market cap is a piece of cake. If it were that simple I'm sure it would have been done already. It appears as though Wall Street has totally given up on Apple to get to $1T market cap. I know it's easier said than done but Apple seems to be out of the picture at this point. Apple isn't favored by tech critics, the news media or analysts. No one seems to be on Apple's side anymore. How does a company fall out of favor so easily while still being the most valuable company on Wall Street? I have no idea. The Dow Curse, maybe.
It seems to me that with a clickbait economy supporting journalism, we arrive at the same terminus with politics supported by private interests: a huge mess. As for the people who seem to feed of those hype-centric articles, their objectives seem to be about finding the scape goat for their hatred, as opposed to anything rational or logical.
Seven years ago Wintels controlled about 96% of the computer market. Today that dominance has dropped to about 93% at the same time overall computer sales have dropped more than 5%. The overriding reality is that the number of Wintel users switching to Macs far exceeds the number of Mac users switching to Windows, no matter what the so-called disgruntled Mac user gives as reasoning, or Microsoft claims.
Apple needs to focus on its core products and refresh them as technology improves. In the background, Apple can investigate other uses of its tech.
CR also didn't recommend the iPhone 4. Not too worried about it as Apple is investigating the issue.
No new desktops is a problem but it's not a major problem. I'm thinking a spring release for those items. Apple can weather most challenges it faces.
Apple doesnt care about stock price like other companies. WS doesn't understand that or Apple itself. Apple doesn't control the price.
Any systems or software tester with more than a year of relevant experience could totally destroy their testing methodology but now that everything is dominated by Hit Counts they can get away with it. Testers strive for consistency. CR did the opposite and didn't stop to ask why are these results so varied.
As for the anti-Apple press. Their whole modus operandii is "Slag off Apple and get more ad revenue". End of story.
What puzzles me is that Apple seems to be content to take it. Like a punchdrunk boxer, they seem unable to hit back.
Perhaps it is time for Tim to hand over to someone who would stick their neck above the parapet and take on these liars head on?
I don't know but it frustrates the hell out of me.
Only one thing is certain and that is the the Sun rises somewhere in the east and sets somewhere in the West.
The problem is that they are not journalists.
As the article states, "Journalists are supposed to report what's happening, not invent a narrative they want to happen. The problem is that few modern tech writers are actually journalists. Many are casual bloggers from vendor advocacy sites with a grudge against Apple. Journalists are supposed to report what's happening, not invent a narrative they want to happen."
And perhaps, if we keep identifying them as such, and quoting their rhetoric, we only perpetuate their existence.
So they won't stop doing it in 2017 and never need to warry about their audience turning their backs on them.
A common hue and cry on the Internet is 'Information wants to be free'. More like an axiom, to many. A corollary to that is 'Misinformation pays'. Not that money is the prime motivation for poseurs, but it's a big one. And it's fairly easy, but would be nigh impossible without the 'Net.
I appreciate both DED's and the Macalope's efforts.
Well, go watch some of her cheesy product review videos and let us know if you still find her to be "pretty smart".
They make s**t up. Page click.
Apple responds. They make s**t up about the response (you won't BELIEVE what Apple had to say about THIS article) and generate more clicks.
Apple reponds to their response… and the lies perpetuate. The only way to deal with these idiots is to bitch slap them with the real numbers. They can't even take the liars to court because they're not doing anything illegal.