GeorgeBMac

maestro64 said:

StrangeDays said:

tedz98 said:

This is a classic example of the failures of communism, big government and central planning. They can’t keep the lights on! The article, which in many ways from a journalistic perspective, isn’t written well - doesn’t answer the basic question of why there is a power shortage in China. It also speaks to the corruption of big government. Companies with political influence, and by inference, the resources to bribe officials, are the ones who get electricity (sounds a bit like what’s going on in Washington D.C.) You can be sure if companies are being denied electricity, private citizens are going without power in their homes. Do global warming alarmists really think China is going to limit CO2 output when they are bringing new coal burning power plants online every week, yet still can’t meet power demand? Apple should have been undertaking a serious effort to leave China a long time ago. But the lure of cheap labor and easier profitability has kept them there longer than they should have been. So wake up America! The siren’s lure of big brother government being the provider of the basic necessities of daily life touted by the likes of AOC, Bernie, Biden, Nancy and Schumer are deceptive and false. California, which is already a semi-socialist state, is well on its way to being unable to meet everyday power needs during periods of peak demand. Gavin Newsome and his ilk in Sacramento falsely think they posses the intellectual superiority to control the basic economic, environmental and societal variables of California to lead to optimal outcomes for the citizens of California. Given the outflow of people and companies from California I would argue they are failing. Tesla is moving their headquarters to Texas as a very recent example of this. Not to mention the California problems with homelessness. Apple’s next big worry is TSMC and their reliance on Taiwan for Apple CPU’s. If Apple were smart they’d be knocking on the doors of Intel and other domestic chip producers and start developing backup supply chains for chips. This is a multi-year effort so get started now! The China pendulum has reached its apex. Time for new plans Apple!

Oh, did you mean California - the 5th or 6th largest economy in the world? Yeah they're doing fine. Just because anti-labor and anti-COVID-measures wingnuts like Musk chase corporate welfare elsewhere doesn't mean there is anything wrong w/ CA. 

Also, you've enjoyed the fruits of socialism since before you were born.

If you beliver this, you need some reeducation. Everything on that lists was paid for by the US tax payers and none of it would exist if it was not for capitalism. The government does not create a thing, they only take money and redistribute it there is no value add, they mostly distroy value in the process. There are few on the list which are true socialist program and are failures. SS is running out of money since whole idea relied on each generation being larger than the one in front of it, the Boomers will deplete most of it leaving nothing for those behind them. What a great program, i just wish they allow me to invest that 14% they get of wages I would have done fare better for myself. Then again I do not rely on others to do thing for me.

Keep in mind Socialism is that the government control all means of production meaning everyone works for the government and no one gets paid since the government provides everything. Everyone is equally poor, it is easier to drag people down and to pull everyone up, and the one no raising rather pull everyone down to make themselves feel better for failing themselves.

multimedia said:

Just make sure you paid extra for AppleCare+ insurance in case it and other design or manufacturing flaws show up. That way you can always get a free repair or replacement.

Beats said:

Is iPhone still gaining marketshare every year? I want Apple to take over the cheap iPhoneys ASAP.

Do these teens even know what a Rolex is?

GeorgeBMac said:

OF my 14 year old grandson's friends, I do not know of a single one who doesn't have an iPhone.  And the oldest model is an Xr.

They use group chat and FaceTime not regularly but constantly...  But increasingly I see them using Apple Cash -- not only to buy stuff but, on occasion, they transfer cash among each other peer to peer.  For them, it is replacing cash.

Basically, their preference for iPhones has little or nothing to do with hardware and mostly / everything to do with Apple's software and ecosystems that enable them to interact with each other in ways and at times they could do without their iPhones.

On the other hand, I do not know of even one who has an Apple Watch.  My grandson had one (a Series 3) but stopped wearing it -- now his mother uses it to monitor exercise.

I see Apple Watch on almost every teen’s wrist who owns an iPhone. 

Not to be a bully but can Gatorguy chime in? He said he had never seen an Apple Watch in the wild just a few years ago. I saw them immediately after release and now you can’t avoid them. In my town if you count watches about half will be Apple Watches and the other half are analog or some crappy digital thing.

jas99 said:

All good signs for an expanded user base. Good for Apple. 

Bad Apple. They will have a “monopoly” on iPhones!!!!111

MplsP said:

One has to wonder if the real reason Google canned the project was to avoid being under regulatory scrutiny. 

 Credit cards like the Apple Card are routinely offered in partnership with a bank, but when you start offering banking services you fall under banking regulations.