Apple News, Analysis and Podcasts
In Samsung’s effort to become the next Apple, the South Korean company been on a feverish pace to launch a myriad of smartphones. Often these high end handsets contain what the company calls “innovative” features to go along with a heavy dose of hype. But in its race to dominate the smartphone industry, Samsung may be rapidly diluting itself, claiming too much, while delivering far too little.
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Episode 98: Long Distance Dedication. Mark, Karl and Werner analyze Apple’s latest financial report; discuss the WWDC 2013 invitation logo and what will most likely be at the show; whether or not Apple will make a move a majority its operation from Cupertino, CA or Austin, TX; and the introduction of T-GAAP’s advice column. All this and much, much more in Episode 98: Long Distance Dedication.
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 Apple has been on roller-coaster ride for the past several years. Most of the thrills have been watching the stock price and market share climb to unforeseeable heights. But as the song says, “What goes up, must come down...” — or does it? While the stock has hit a bottom of just south of 400, Apple still maintains a strong set of market share numbers whether looking at iOS sales, smart phone sales or tablet sales. Even its Mac desktop/laptop division is posting growth numbers PC rivals would die for.
During this time Operating System software has been continually upgraded. Every year there seems to be another version of Mac OS X or iOS — sometimes both. This is quite amazing considering Microsoft takes 3-5 years before releasing a major new version of anything. While Google is not this bad, they are slower than Apple with major revs to their Android platform. But in all of this, where is the “other” software from Apple?
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Steve Jobs’ grand vision for the amazing “spaceship” campus is an awe-inspiring project like no other. Amazing amounts of green space and trees in a city dominated by cement and rooftops. Underground parking, materials and techniques never thought possible on such a grand scale. But this grand project is running into reality, as costs have soared nearly $2 billion over original estimates — now totaling $5 billion.
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There are an amazing amount of great games for the iPhone, with plenty of games for each type of genre users are interested in. Most of these games are designed to be used in a more causal setting. Hard core gamers may need to use a game console or computer, as the iPhone is just too small for these more complicated games, but that does not mean there are not fun, interesting or challenging games to play on the iPhone.
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By all media accounts, Apple's Maps app was an absolute disaster, at least at launch. Apple should have either announced the product as a beta solution, launched it later as a production level product, or never launched it at all. Truth be told, I've used it from day one, well over 100 times and it's never steered me wrong. But going far beyond the hysteria that Apple Maps was going to lead you into a dark cave of death instead of your intended destination, Apple achieved a major victory with the launch. Google was forced to pony up and deliver a quality iOS maps application. Apple would be wise to play the same card on Microsoft.
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The gaming market for the iPhone continues to grow as the number of iPhone users increase. We carry our iPhones around everywhere and are endlessly looking for new ways to kill time or relax. Games are one way to get rid of the boredom while standing in line or waiting for an appointment, but don't worry, for the iPhone there are many different types of games to choose from.
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 A quick message to Ron Johnson, CEO of JC Penny – your old job at Apple is vacant – take it! If Apple's CEO Tim Cook were to make a perfectly timed move within the VP level, it would be to court Ron Johnson back to Apple. Ron Johnson left Apple in 2011 with the vision of turning around struggling J.C. Penny (JCP). It didn't happen, not even close. With Johnson's quick tenure as CEO of JCP, a move back to a company and culture he understands would be ideal fit for Apple, Johnson and Cook.
I worked at an Apple retail location while Johnson was at the helm, and the company was truly a culture of customer service and work ethic. I had worked at multiple Fortune 500 companies, but never had I experienced anything like Apple retail. Johnson was the only executive I worked under, but I've stayed close with those that have watched multiple VP's move through the retail ranks, and it has been a night and day experience for Apple employees. Unfortunately, the culture change has, at times, spilled over to customer experience.
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Apple's quarterly earnings announcement arrives tomorrow at 1PM Pacific, followed by a 2PM Pacific Conference Call that will be streamed live here. Breaking these facts and figures into numbers anyone can easily follow, look for the following consensus numbers (and Apple's guidance) to dictate how Apple's stock will move:
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Sony, Samsung, Vizio and Sharp are just a few of the titans in the HD-TV universe. Each has carved out its share of the market, exercised control over a distribution channel and built a strong brand loyalty. When Apple decides to jump into this market, the question is whether or not they can duplicate what they did to the mobile phone market when they announced the iPhone, nearly six years ago?
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