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This is not surprising, but since the Wall Street Journal keeps releasing stupid stupid STUPID reports on Apple developing a cheapo iPhone year after year, it’s good to have Phil Schiller punching them in the groin with a big hell-no:
Despite the popularity of cheap smartphones, this will never be the future of Apple’s products. In fact, although Apple’s market share of smartphones is just about 20%, we own the 75% of the profit.
He could have said it wearing a King Kong costume and through a 100,000 watt speaker on top of the Empire State Building, but the message cannot get clearer than that.
Of course, Schiller could by lying about this. But the fact is that a cheapo iPhone with razor-thin margins will only do three things: cannibalise the flagship iPhone, reduce their profit margins and total income, and cheapen a brand that is perceived to be the top electronics maker in the world according to all marketing rankings. And, like Phil says, this is about making as much money as they can, not owning the market battling a myriad of crapola smartphones at the expense of the bottom line. [JF Daily (in Japanese) via iDownloadblog]
No Dock for the iPhone 5, Says SVP Phil Schiller
Phil Schiller: That iPhone 5 Scratching Is Totally Normal
Android Is a Free Replacement for a Feature Phone Says Apple's Phil Schiller
Same with Macs – so long as they make money, and are the best, who gives a toss about the market share? Or the price?
are the best?? are they? since when?
Droid and Win8 user here – but I don’t think you can argue that they provide the best complete ecosystem.
I think you can argue that. Samsung have smart cameras, TV’s, sound bars, etc, all plugging into the same laptops, phones and tablets, combine that with Google services and you got a system that wins hands down – without 3rd party support Apple’s eco-system is more or less iTunes and app store. If they start downing a mass device, like a TV, that does the numbers of getting devices into the home and living room then that may change, but till then even Sony and Microsoft have trojan horses ready to integrate a lifestyle better than Apple.
Good God, shocking departure from the norm there buddy.
Oh wait….no…my bad. More of the same for 2013.
Honestly, Apple have a good eco-sysem, but seriously lack a number of key products and services, and I can’t be blamed for that.
Samsung’s CEO recently admitted that Apple’s ecosystem was better than theirs. Gizmodo reported it.
oh i agree with that, its without a doubt the best if you are “all in” and dont get me wrong, i like macs, think they are great machines even at double the price
TBH, its nice to see MS moving towards this ideology at last as well.. Xbox, Win8, Win8 Phone, SurfaceRT. tie them all together and its a pretty good start, but they need to work on it for a bit to become as foundationally strong as apple..
MS are getting there, slowly
Not really, when I got my early 2011 Macbook Pro 15″ High Res (1680×1050) it was the cheapest laptop with the specs, so it really depends some are more expensive (All the desktop ones) but some are the same price or cheaper.
Huh? Really? I find that difficult to believe. What specs did it have and how much was it? And was it new?
I had a similar case when purchasing the mid-2011 MacBook Air. I could have opted for a Windows based machine which appeared to suffer from a trifecta of poorer keyboard, trackpad and build quality for roughly the same price.
The other aspect of using a Mac which is often overlooked is that you are purchasing a computer which has access to a terminal and proper X11 (now Xquartz) implementation while still having far superior software support and compatibility relative to Linux. If you are a user who often find themselves flitting between a Linux machine and Windows (or emulating Linux on Windows) then a Mac is normally a better all round option even if there might be a price overhead for some models.
Not including the retina display MacBooks. Those things are silly pricey.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t X11 removed after Snow Leopard?
X11 was removed with Mountain Lion – it is present in Lion by default and if you upgrade to Mountain Lion and try to run anything over X11 then you are notified to download and install XQuartz – which is effectively the same thing.
Ah, haven’t used Macs since Snow Leopard, so wouldn’t know.
Yeah the retina macbook pros are pricy but if you need that sort of resolution then there is currently not alternative
Oh, I agree, sometimes their products are just the best out there, but that doesn’t happen much these days, with cheap ultrabooks. Normally there’s someone out there who can save you £50 odd or so. Although, whenever someone who doesn’t know much about computers, and has a bit of money, and asks for my advice, I always tell them to get a Mac.
You’re a faggot. Listen to yourself.
How am I a faggot? Immediately lowering the tone of the conversation. Please, seriously, tell me how?
Awkward. I definitely replied to the wrong person. My bad bruh. That was aimed at Spazturtle and Will.King.London in the comments in the other convo in the comments below this one.
Here I was getting defensive!
Hey now, that language is entirely uncalled for.
I love how Mr. Diaz opinions are always well backed up by facts and careful analysis of factual data about the subject in question. So a cheaper iPhone would send the profit to razor-thin levels? It would need to be really really cheap, after all the iPhone 4 is still costing 319 pounds…
I have some “mathematical black magic skills” and can assure you that, if their market share drops too much, not even a 400 pound profit per iPhone could keep the income big enough to cover the costs involved in product development, manufacture, marketing and so on.
You see a big number, when multiplied by a very small one, can result in: another small number. It might sound crazy, but it’s true…
How hilarious would it be if Apple released a clone of the Galaxy S3 or the Nexus 4 as their next phone? Both in black and both feeling all plasticky and flimsy. People would go ape shit and Apple’s many critics would have an absolute field day with it all.
Funny thing, perspective.
Have you ever held either of those devices?
“plasticky and flimsy” – I don’t know what you are expecting from rubberised plastic? You are talking of casing materials, rubber/plastic style stuff could actually be a wise move, I am personally finding that flexi things bounce and still work, more work is needed in this field. And this has nothing to do quality, it is a psychological feeling that some hold against some materials?!
Like the iPhone 5 is suppose to cost around the same money to make as a Nexus 7, and I’m therefore guessing a Nexus 4 costs twice the price to make as a current top spec iPhone. Yet under the current market most would assume that the iPhone 5 is twice the value of a Nexus 4? When the opposite is actually true. Now I don’t know if we can use any of this information to make any bold assumptions, but I think we can give it a crack.
Yes. I’ve held several android phones cased this way and they look and feel (and are) cheap. That’s (one) of the reasons I buy Apple gear. I fail to see what ‘more work’ will somehow achieve. Plastic is plastic and always feels cheap no matter what shape it is.
Good luck with the ‘crack’.
Typical.
They don’t look cheap, they look like small flat rectangles, same as any other. They don’t feel cheap, they all have gorilla glass. And they are certainly not made of cheaper components. If anything they are made with more expensive components than iPhone.
So in what fucking world are they “cheap”?
It’s all in your branded head.
Is it covered with Gorilla Glass 100%? Nope. The edges/back are usually plastic and are designed by the same awful designers that churn out other cack handed far eastern goods, is my point. Sony used to be great at designing their goods. I’m interested to see their new phones up close as they look like someone has put some design thought into it.
My iphone isn’t in a case. I just look after it like I would any other property that cost me hundreds and not some phone that cost me 35 quid with a contract.
I appreciate good design the same way I like art. Why shouldn’t the stuff we live with look good to the eye?
What makes polycarbonates inherently bad? They can be given a variety of coatings or feels, colours, and are very durable. They offer superior shock resistance than aluminium or glass. And they are chosen not because they are cheaper (don’t think they even are cheaper), but because they are better.
“the same awful designers that churn out other cack handed far eastern goods”
What an ignorant comment. I suppose all electronic products you’ve ever seen have been cack eastern crap unless designed by Jonathan Ive? Except by your admission Sony’s, who’s expertise has also flowed out to South Korea, Taiwan etc. etc. Not so cack then?
You want to obsess over your phone as if it was art? 5-10 years ago you would have been labelled by anyone as a very sad man for giving so much of a shit and paying double for a less durable anodized ‘artwork’ telephone that chips and looks worn after 2 days.
Are the walls of your house filled with prints from IKEA? If you think an iPhone is art, then perhaps. I certainly wouldn’t pay £500 for a print of the Mona Lisa from IKEA.
Some people are aesthetes, others aren’t. That’s life. We’re all different. Some appreciate nice stuff more than others. And some are completely blind to it and think everything looks or feels very much the same.
First world problems.
There are certain people who will buy “the brand” because it is “the brand”. They will insist that it’s due to x reason or y reason, but it’s all bollocks and everybody else who isn’t mind-fucked by “the brand” knows it.
The power of the brand.
‘The power of the brand’ works for every brand on Earth.
Except most people don’t buy Android phones due to brand loyalty, they choose them for a number of objective reasons.
People buy iPhones primarily because of the brand. I don’t see how you can objectively pay double otherwise.
‘Except most people don’t buy Android phones due to brand loyalty, they choose them for a number of objective reasons.’
They can’t really be loyal to any single brand because the landscape is fractured. Trust me, there’d be FAR more brand loyalty if there was a single physical Android phone that was updated every year along with the OS.
I’d say brand loyalty is fostered by making objective decisions in the first place.
Well said, Will.
@Kauzion
My house isn’t filled with Ikea prints but several works of art. Honest. Buying art isn’t that expensive.
I know people who pay thousands for their hi-fi gear. Are they wasting their time and/or crazy. No.
I personally find a scratched and flaking case to look cheap, I feel rewarded that clever people are working on practical solutions so I don’t buy a nice phone to wrap in a bumper case.
Because no S3 or N4 ever scratched or cracked. Your skewed reality continues to astound.
But it doesn’t come like that in the box?!
I had to replace my S3 twice because of a yellowing screen. Nothing new to phones in general though. And the N4 doesn’t come in any box because quite frankly, it’s a 2012 phone. I don’t think Google will be shifting anymore of those this year.
And conversely, those people who adore anything with an Apple logo slapped onto it will sing its praises and declare it to be the most beautiful, most magical, most amazing thingyamijig ever.
It works both ways.
Why on earth do you all think I’m some maddened Apple fanatic just because I find fault in the obvious!? I own one product that’s Apple, an old Macbook which I rarely use. I own 5 products that are Miele. Why aren’t I a Miele fanatic? Where are all you posh Gaggenau fanboys!?
I’ll tellsya’ll why you think I’m an Apple fan…because it fits in with the little narrative you have going on here. God damned wretches!
Anyway, I’m off to the bar!
The Nexus 4 is glass, and the back cover is really pretty, with silver impressions, not black. And the S3 is Polycarbonate (so sort of plastic), but it’s not very flimsy at all. Although the back cover can feel a bit shit when you peel it off.
I had an S3.
I never said you didn’t…. I’m just saying neither of them are plastic, really, since Polycarbonate doesn’t feel like plastic, so long as it’s secured.
Polycarbonate is a thermoplastic polymer. It’s very much a plastic.
I’m not against plastic. I just think, as per my post above, that people don’t really care much about the way something like an S3 looks or feels. It’s not high on their checklist of things an android phone must have. They’re a different breed of consumer. I liken them to people who didn’t have anything against PC’s being bland, beige boxes. They just cared that it functioned to their standards. That’s what android phones are and nothing more.
I know it is a plastic! I said that earlier, it just doesn’t feel… plasticky. I think the Nex4 looks better than the iP5, honestly. I do kinda get where you’re coming from with the S3 though.
Right, Mr Diaz. There will never be a budget line of iPhones, just like the last one would never be of 16:9 aspect.
http://www.gizmodo.co.uk/2012/05/why-i-think-the-next-iphone-wont-be-169/
This story was withdraw from your source and reuters. Just sayin’
I don’t know why they’re being so open about ripping customers off. I did think it was probably bs that they’d release a cheaper iphone though.