MplsP

nubus said:

Did Apple remove mmWave 5G from iPad Pro 2024 to make way for this less capable modem?

Doubtful since Apple’s modem isn’t ready yet. It was likely a cost saving decision. mmWave is all but useless anyway so the cost-benefit equation doesn’t make much sense. 

charlesn said:

MplsP said:

There is likely a small subset of users who want cellular connectivity on their laptop but the overwhelming majority of users are not willing to pay for an extra cellular line just to avoid tethering to their phone. 

Why would you assume it's a small subset when even the lowest end $349 iPad offers a modem option as a $150 upgrade, which is a 43% upcharge (!) PLUS the cost of a monthly data plan? Apple isn't making that available if there isn't a significant number of people buying it. If there's any group that should be content with simply tethering their iPad to their phone for cellular connectivity, it should be the group buying the cheapest iPad possible--and yet that is not the case. So I'm sure the desire for this option among Macbook users, especially the Pro crowd, would be significant--and clearly no big deal for Apple to offer it if it can do so for all six models of iPad it sells, which means dual inventory for each model. 

I was looking for a reconditioned cellular iPad recently - they are very hard to find. So yeah - it’s a small subset.

Alex_V said:

StrangeDays said:

But why tho? Do that many people want to pay for an entirely different line of service, when we can just hotspot on our existing paid line? What am I missing 

Conditions in the market change. Remember when, back in the 1990s, Americans were lagging behind in cell phone use because of exorbitant charges? Providers can offer discounted pure data plans for devices like laptops, for example. 

There is likely a small subset of users who want cellular connectivity on their laptop but the overwhelming majority of users are not willing to pay for an extra cellular line just to avoid tethering to their phone. There are a signifiant number of cellular iPad users out there. Some of them may prefer to use a MacBook over an iPad but again, I suspect it's not a huge number. I'm with @StrangeDays, @yyzguy & @M68000  - until the carriers allow bundling I have no interest in paying an extra $30 per month just to avoid tethering.

Out of curiosity, do any PC laptop makers have a built in cellular modem? Assuming there are no royalties involved this may be a case where the incremental cost for Apple to add their own modem to every device is trivial, essentially the production cost of the chips. 

Well, Tesla used to offer free supercharging, but that was discontinued several years ago and they did it as an incentive to boost sales.

No company is obligated to offer a free service to purchasers of their products. They may do so as an incentive but to claim any sort of obligation is absurd. The fact that people have requested it is simply an indication of their desire, not any obligation on Apple's part.

Don't get me wrong. I agree that the 5GB free tier is all but useless, particularly since it's remained stagnant as device requirements have increased. During that time, server and storage costs have also decreased, so Apple is actually spending less on the free storage option than they used to. That still doesn't put them under any legal obligation. From a business perspective, increasing the free tier would likely cost Apple some amount of money because it would cannibalize sales of the lowest paid tier.

The next question, and the real question posed by the lawsuit, is whether the free tier is essentially a bait and switch. The prices are clearly posted on Apple's web site and they even have a page detailing how to reduce your storage usage so one can't argue that Apple has hidden the prices or that Apple is tricking people into using more storage. As the article stated, iCloud is not actually necessary to use an iPhone. It is clearly the most convenient option but is is not necessary so there is no legal or rational argument that iCloud much less a paid iCloud subscription is required. 

jimh2 said:

The post is made up of rumors and speculation being discussed as if they are known facts. 

Uhhh…your point being? Half of the posts on AI are nothing but speculation.