80s_Apple_Guy

AppleExposed said:

robbyx said:

rogifan_new said:

This tweet too is spot on:

Rene Ritchie (@reneritchie) 1/2/19, 5:24 PM IMHO, complaints about pricing, price points, home buttons, headphone jacks, batteries, upgrade cycles, etc. are all valid but are also all besides the point, which remains:  Can Apple transition iPhone from growth driver to platform that enables more growth drivers?  That’s it.

This is pretty spot on.  Apple has hundreds of millions of iPhone customers.  How do you get those people to buy more things?  And what are those things?  Clearly they aren't Macs.  They are AirPods, however.  And Apple Music subscriptions.  Video is the logical next step.

As someone who has bought Apple products (and stock) for almost 40 years, I remember many long years where Apple sold 1 device for every 1000 the other guys sold.  They struck silver with the iPod and then gold with the iPhone.  The iPod appealed to all sorts of people.  You didn't have to be a techie.  Apple built a better mousetrap and the public responded.  And then came the iPhone.  Everyone needs a phone.  Apple built a better phone and, again, the public responded.  So what else has incredibly broad appeal and needs a better use experience?  And is Apple even the company to deliver these days?  I personally wish they'd focus more on home automation and deliver some killer first party products in that area.  I also think they should get serious about audio, maybe buy Sonos.  HomePod was a huge miss.  I would have bought at least 6 for my house if it wasn't such a gimped product.

I disagree that HomePod is a miss. People are comparing the $350 HomePod to FREE-$20 buck Echos which is just dumb. It's not a direct competitor to smart speakers. It's a high end bluetooth speaker with a Siri "musicologist". It's selling and it's doing its job.

Where could Apple strike Gold?

1. Cars.

2. Glasses.
I have an idea that (hopefully) Cook will read that would make Apple Glasses a miracle device. If Apple can think of better ideas than a poor forum commenter then they will strike gold.

3. Health.
Apple is already a leader here.

Now as far as services:

1. Shopping.
A pre-installed app that can act as a mall, an "eBay" and an "amazon" all in one would pull in billions.

2. Expanding the TV app.
Adding an Apple Service, a possible sports service and movies in theaters would pull in more billions.

3. Expanding Didi.
Apple could also pre-install Didi into iOS devices and go head on with Uber/Lyft in western countries.

AppleExposed said:

rogifan_new said:

AppleExposed said:

rogifan_new said:

robbyx said:

rogifan_new said:

robbyx said:

avon b7 said:

magman1979 said:

And right on cue, the salivating trolls come marching onto EVERY Apple site in existence by the truckload!

Forget trolls. What is your opinion on what is happening on iPhone? 

The rest of the business seems to be doing ok. They have a lot of cash reserves to pull on. That won't save them from a roller coaster ride, short term, but iPhone is suffering. Do you agree with TCs line or do you think he is airbrushing bits? Are prices too high? Is competition playing a part? Are iPhones underperforming on features? Etc.

The smartphone market is mature. I can easily afford the top of the line iPhone model, but I see no reason to upgrade from my 7 Plus. I think a lot of people feel this way.  Even if Apple dropped prices tomorrow, I still wouldn’t upgrade.  My 7 Plus is great. I’d like FaceID, but that’s not enough of a reason to upgrade. 

I dont think prices are the issue. There are iPhone models under $500.  Top of the line is very pricey, but Apple has nice offerings at several price points. The market is saturated and mature and this was bound to happen. 

If price wasn’t an issue why did Tim keep mentioning subsidies going away? Why did he mention not marketing the trade-in program enough? Both of those things scream price issues. Which was obvious when the front page of apple.com was displaying this:

I know many people with older phones and none of them WANT to upgrade. They don’t care about pricing. They are satisfied with their current devices. I was just helping a friend with her Mac today. It’s 8 years old and works fine.  She sees no reason to upgrade. The same thing is happening with phones.

As I said, Apple has phone models at a variety of price points. Stop focusing on the top of the line.  Phones are mature. The tech is mature. There aren’t a lot of new features. Faster, better screen, better camera...yawn. My phone is fast enough and the camera is fine. The days of annual upgrades are over.

Price is a factor, but it’s not the issue. 

I don’t think higher prices is the only factor but it is A factor. It’s not like upgrade cycles just started lengthening this year. It’s possible too that the XR just introduced confusion to the lineup. People weren’t sure what to buy so they didn’t buy anything.

DEAD ON with the XR confusion. A lot of people went into the Apple store prepared to drop $1000+ on a XS and left with a cheaper XR with a larger screen....

Or went into the store and left with nothing. If the XR was doing well why would Apple be marketing it $300 cheaper (with trade-in) on the front page of their website? Why would carriers like Sprint and T-Mobile be offering it for free with new activations?

Oh of course. People went in with $1000+ and left with nothing. DOOMED!

bitmod said:

The cheapest new 2018 iPhone you can get in Canada right now is $1228 with AppleCare ($1375 after tax). 
$1375... for the bottom of the barrel 2018 phone. The cheapest possible phone you can get is a 7 for $1100. 

The iPhone most people would like to have is the Xs 256 - which costs $2058 with AppleCare after tax. 

Nice phones? Sure. 
$2058 nice? lol

Throw in a case and your average data plan cost and you are looking at a 2 year $4500 investment. 

$4500 for the new iPhone with the newest features. 

Go ahead and try to defend that.
Business's can't justify that - so forget about 20 somethings paying off student loans, paying that for dancing poo emoji's and Instagram scrolling. 
And before you attempt to point to other offerings - nobody wants to pay $1100 for a near obsolete 3 year old iPhone 7. 

It's beyond absurd. 

And again you quote the most expensive possible situation. You even threw in AppleCare, a case and a 3rd party data plan for 2 years! lol

Beyond absurd.

AppleExposed said:

Anilu_777 said:

Kuyangkoh said:

sarrica said:

I am holding off on a new iPhone and am sticking with my 6S Plus for a while longer due to Apple's higher prices. I'm sure I am not the only one...

Why not? Still works?? But if you cannot afford a new iPhone theres a lot of android alternative. Nobody is twisting your arm to buy a latest and the greatest 

Nobody even mentions that Apple is still selling the iPhone 7, 8 and now again the X. If you don’t need the latest model, there are plenty of less-expensive models to choose from. People are focusing on the most-expensive Xs Max instead of the whole lineup. Yes the Xs Max is expensive - one reason I’m keeping my 8 Plus. But it’s not all there is. 

It's ridiculous isn't it?

People complain about price and then quote the most expensive iPhone as an example.

The latest iPhone is $750.

When do people complain that Ford is too expensive and then continue to quote the $70,000 Shelby Mustang?
Like they say, people have special rules for Apple.