mpantone

Well, one thing for sure, Apple isn't going to take a massive cut on gross margins.

Anyhow, let's not forget that even Gurman -- whose prediction accuracy is better than most of this peers -- still bats way below .500. That means the majority of the things he predicts end up being inaccurate.

It is highly unlikely that the full-sized HomePod will return.

I could see another model maybe twice the cubic volume as the HomePod Mini arrive, but nothing nearing the size of discontinued model.

It is highly likely that Apple had prototyped a wide variety of sizes (which a wide range of components and functionality) before it released the original HomePod. I'm willing to believe that hundreds of prototype configurations existed in their labs but we only say one.

As we have seen for previous products, there are tons and tons of unreleased designs that end up on the scrap heap or in some warehouse that never see the light of day as a shipping product that will end up on a store shelf.

mikethemartian said:

But it is contrived. Like when Johny Srouji pretends he is speaking from Apple’s hardware labs. It is just a dressed TV set. It isn’t s real hardware lab. It is just for show.

Hell, it's not just Johny's lab. It's ALL green screen.

There are often no/little shadows for the presenters, just what is carried over from the green screen even if those shadows make zero sense relative to where the light is coming from in the shot. No reflections despite the fact that many of the "sets" are shiny surfaces including impossibly clean and scuff-free floors, glass, metal, etc.

Infinite depth of field. No backlighting or exposure issues. No optical defects/aberrations, lens flares, etc. 

The audio is even more contrived. No echoes whatsoever, even in spaces where the speakers should be difficult to hear (spaces in or around the Steve Jobs Theater, Tim walking through an empty spaceship building ring, etc.) where crisp audio should be impossible. No one ever wears a microphone. Not even the sound of footsteps even when the presenter is wearing shoes that should make noise (e.g., women wearing heels).

The outdoor scenes are hilarious. Apple won't simulate real wind for the presenters' hair in outdoor scenes. Everyone's lighting is perfect despite the fact that most outdoor daytime scenes appear to be midday where the overhead sun should cause sharp and unflattering shadows (like photos from a real estate property shoot). Perfect weather conditions. Out of season foliage in landscape shots.

More sterile and contrived than a utopian sci-fi movie from the Nineties.

I love watching these pre-recorded announcements for the sheer plasticness. It's like a "Where's Waldo?" game trying to identify all of the inconsistencies and incongruities.

One thing for sure, they have excelled at learning to read off the teleprompter. No interminable delay waiting for the video source to switch to the demo machine or the next presenter to step to the right place on the stage.

Everything is faker than Beverly Hills augmentation mammoplasty which still casts real shadows...

  

currentinterest said:

Flat sides so it can charge an Apple Pencil 2, makes perfect sense.

Apple Pencil recharging capability would invariably come to the iPad Pro first, not a low end model. Knowing Apple they would probably release a newer, more expensive Pencil for this rather than make the functionality available on existing hardware.

  

Anilu_777 said:

I have a few apps that I really like but they haven’t been updated in 3 years. So I know when I get a new phone they won’t download. I wish developers would give yearly updates to make sure apps work with the new OS. 

That's not Apple's fault. Often it's not just downloading the newest version of Xcode and pressing the "compile" button.

It's up to the developer to commit to regular refreshes which might require rewriting portions of the code, sometimes extensive amounts.

rob53 said:

genovelle said:

bonobob said:

So will Apple respect employees’ desires to work in a masked environment, or work from home if that’s not possible at their location?

Working from home full time is not realistic for the majority of Apple employees. If that is what they need, a secretive hardware based innovation dependent company like Apple is probably not a good fit for them. 

I agree. Sometimes the only place to work for certain employees is at the company's building where everything is located. It doesn't work to try and outfit every employee's house with enough corporate hardware to allow them to do everything.

It has little to do with allocating hardware for employees' homes.

Apple has repeatedly stated at the highest level that in person, face-to-face collaboration is vital to creativity and the company's success.

Remember that most Apple employees don't need access to high-security labs or super-expensive test equipment.

Even from Day 1 of the initial shelter-in-place order by the Santa Clara County Public Health Officer (back in March 2020), there were explicitly stated exceptions made for on-site access for mission critical tasks. If you need access to a high-security lab filled with prototype models and specialized testing equipment, you could be there by the SCC DPH regulations. Even an admin could periodically show up at a brokerage office to collect snail mail, pick up forms, etc.