sbutler

Apple provides all of the tools for developers to design and build games on their platform. Whether they charge a fee to the developers at the time of building and designing their app or at the time of install and use, or renewal and in-app purchases - I could care less. Apple deserves to make money off of the platform they have created and the tools they have created... it seems like people are arguing more about whether Apple's cut is the correct amount... which is more of an anti-trust discussion... which the judge rejected.

kellie said:

Apple has always primarily been a hardware/device company.  Its software capabilities have always been secondary to its hardware capabilities.  Siri is a classic example of their inability to architect truly exceptional software.  AI is a similar shortcoming.  They are rarely market leaders with application software.  They do ok with operating systems, but their product announcements are typically focused on hardware, less so the software. 

If they were just a hardware company, the cheaper Chinese clones would have knocked Apple out long ago. If they were just a software company, Google and others would have knocked them out long ago. Apple has always been at the forefront of the connection between the hardware and the software. They aren't often the first to market, but what they do is figure out how to make their hardware and software more intuitive, more user friendly, and more enjoyable to use. AI has pretty much been a software advance and they are slow to pivot... but I imagine that they will figure out how to make it work with their hardware better than others... it will likely be more intuitive, more user friendly, and more enjoyable to use... but they won't be first to market.

I have an iPhone 11 without MagSafe, but I can still use the Standby functionality with wireless charging... there are plenty of stands that allow for this without MagSafe. While I'd prefer that it has MagSafe, it isn't really needed for anything unless you have a bunch of accessories that require it.

Apple Music will stay small if it doesn't offer a free tier as it isn't just competing with Spotify, but the long history of free (over the air) radio stations. Sure there are advantages to paying and advantages to Apple Music and Spotify, but for many people in the world who like, but don't LOVE music, that is often good enough and they will never see the value in paying for something that has been free (on the radio) for longer than they can remember.