Apple Reflects On 30 years of Macintosh

At the Verge.

L.A.'s Skidrow Homeless Exploited to Buy iPhones at Pasadena Apple Store

This is sick.

At KTLA, "Homeless People Hired to Buy iPhones for Businessman in Pasadena (VIDEO)."

And at LAT, "Homeless used to buy iPhones in Pasadena left stranded, unpaid (VIDEO)":

Fights break out at Pasadena Apple store as iPhone frenzy gets out of hand; 2 arrested. http://t.co/9KEi20wYax pic.twitter.com/s309pa8Ld3

— Jim Roberts (@nycjim) September 20, 2013

Dozens of people picked up on skid row by an enterprising man hoping to secure a load of new iPhones said they were left unpaid and stranded at the Pasadena Apple store.

Dominoe Moody, 43, said he was taken to Pasadena from a downtown Los Angeles homeless mission with several van-loads of people to wait in line overnight for the latest iPhone.

He was promised $40, but said he wasn’t paid because after handing the man the iPhone, the man was taken away by police when people became upset with him.

“It didn’t go right. I stood out here all night,” he said, adding that he has no way to get home.

Pasadena Police Lt. Jason Clawson confirmed that a fight broke out about 9 a.m. as a man left the store with multiple iPhones.

Other people who were in line and hired by the man began fighting with him because they said they weren’t being paid enough, Clawson said. Police escorted the man from the scene, he said.

Most people weren’t paid by the man, Moody said, estimating that 70 to 80 were recruited and driven to the store to wait in line.

“They need to bring him back ... to pick up the people that he brought here,” said Vivian Fields, 49. “We have no way to get home.”

Fields, who is in a wheelchair, said she was approached by recruiters at a homeless shelter on skid row and arrived in Pasadena on Thursday about 7 p.m. She waited overnight at the store.

Pasadena police are not investigating the incident, Clawson said.

"It's not a police issue. It's a business issue," he said.

Actually, it's an exploitation issue.

Pisses me off. Someone should pop the f-ker who stiffed these people.

A New Touch for iPhone

At WSJ, "Fingerprint Technology, New System Make the 5S the Leader of the Smartphone Pack":

The iPhone 5S is the first digital device I've seen with a simple, reliable fingerprint reader—one you can confidently use, without a thought, to unlock the device instead of typing in a passcode. You can even use this fingerprint reader, called Touch ID, to authorize purchases from Apple's App, iTunes and e-book stores.

It sounds like a gimmick, but it's a real advance, the biggest step ever in biometric authentication for everyday devices. After using Touch ID, I found it annoying to go back to typing in passcodes on my older iPhone.

That's so cool.

RTWT.

Also, at Wired, "Debut of iOS 7 Heralds the Dawn of the Mobile-First Era," and "How to Prep Your iDevice for iOS 7."

Plus, "IMAGE GALLERYA Guide to the Differences Between Apple's New iOS 7 and iOS 6," and "How to Use iOS 7, Apple's New Operating System."

Still more at the Verge, "iOS 7 now available for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch." (Via Techmeme, with additional articles on Apple.)


And on Twitter:

Downloading iOS 7. "About 16 hours remaining." What the hell?

— Robin Abcarian (@robinabcarian) September 19, 2013

Apple customers frustrated by lengthy iOS 7 download delays http://t.co/itYuX3BxnT #Apple

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) September 19, 2013

I'm holding off a bit before I upgrade, lol.

New Apple iPhone 5C and 5S

Here's the main story at NYT, "Apple Unveils Faster iPhone, and a Cheaper One, Too."

And check Daring Fireball, "Thoughts and Observations on Today’s iPhone 5C and 5S Introduction":

I got this one wrong.

I fixed my thinking by this week, but as of a month ago, I had it wrong when I wrote “The Case for a New Lower-Cost iPhone”.

Here’s the thing. The iPhone 5C has nothing to do with price. It probably does have something to do with manufacturing costs (which are lower for Apple), but not price. Apple’s years-long strategy hasn’t really changed. They offer three phones:

This year’s, with the latest technology.
Last years’s, starting $100 lower.
The two-year-old model, with meager storage, free on contract, $200 lower unsubsidized.

It’s just that instead of putting the year-old iPhone 5 in slot #2, they’ve created the 5C to debut in that slot. The 5C is, effectively, an iPhone 5. Same A6, same camera, same just about everything — except for the most obvious difference, its array of colorful plastic shells. This is not an iPod Touch with a cellular antenna (the iPod Touch, which was not updated today, still has an A5 chip and roughly 4S specs). The prices of the iPhone tiers remain the same as last year. What changes with the 5C is that the middle tier is suddenly more appealing, and has a brand of its own that Apple can promote apart from the flagship 5S.

In marketing, what looks new is new.

Yes, it’s plastic, but there’s nothing cheap about it. It has a far better fit and finish, and feels way better in your hand, than Apple’s previous foray into plastic iPhones, the 3G and 3GS. The 5C feels like a premium product.

This move is about establishing the iPhone as a two-sibling family, like how the MacBooks have both the Airs and the Pros. Think of the 5C as the Air, and the 5S as the Pro. Or iMac and Mac Pro. The iPhone is growing up as a product family.

This is the first year when last year’s specs remain good enough to serve as the mass market new iPhone. Take a look at apple.com today and note which new iPhone appears first: the 5C, not the 5S. Which phone did they show a commercial for during the event? The 5C. Part of this too is that the 5C is going to be available in greater numbers sooner. Apple is taking pre-orders for the 5C but not the 5S because, I have reason to believe, they expect the 5S to be in constrained supply. That’s not surprising — plastic is easier to manufacture than aluminum, and the 5C’s components are all a year old. And it makes sense to promote the phone that you can actually fulfill demand for.

Schiller repeated, almost mantra-like, that the 5S was Apple’s “most forward-thinking iPhone”. In his wrap-up, Tim Cook echoed that line. This isn’t about downplaying the 5S, but rather, I think, about establishing the 5S as the top tier in what is now a two-tier lineup. The Lexus to the 5C’s Toyota; the Banana Republic to the 5C’s Gap. (The 4S is Old Navy.) Soon enough, all iOS devices will have 64-bit CPUs, motion-tracking sub-systems, fingerprint sensors, and point-and-shoot caliber cameras. But you get those things first in the iPhone 5S.

Some other thoughts and hands-on experiences from today’s event...

Continue reading.

Well, markets are all meh.

At AllThingsD, "Apple Shares Down More Than Five Percent Following New iPhone Event."

Gold-Plated iPhones

I'm enjoying my iPhone. Maybe gold will be an attractive option for buyers.

At the New York Post, "Golden iPhone is Apple of tech company's eye at Sept. 10th event."

And the Verge, "Apple likely to offer next iPhone in gold, according to multiple reports."

Apple Preps iPhones

At the Wall Street Journal, "Apple to Begin iPhone Production This Quarter":

Apple Inc. plans to begin production of a refreshed iPhone similar in size and shape to its current one in the second quarter of the year, according to people familiar with the device's production, teeing up a possible summer launch for the next version of its flagship device.

At the same time, Apple continues to work with its manufacturing partners in Asia on a less expensive iPhone that could be launched as soon as the second half of this year, these people said. The four-inch device likely will use a different casing from the higher-end iPhone. Apple has been working on different color shells for the phone but its plans remain unclear.

An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment. The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that the company was working on a less expensive iPhone that could go on sale as soon as this year. Analysts have said they expect Apple to launch its next iPhone around the summer.

The two devices reflect new pressures on Apple. The Cupertino, Calif., company has long commanded unique premiums for the iPhone, but consumer demand for cheaper products is spiking. A flood of smartphone entrants and the rise of Samsung Electronics Co. have commoditized the market, squeezing margins and dividing profits among an array of devices.

"There isn't really any major differentiator between the players at this phase," said Neil Mawston, an analyst at research firm Strategy Analytics. He said to cope, Apple needs to take a page from Samsung and launch more products faster.

"The panacea is to transform the industry with a revolutionary design," Mr. Mawston said. Until then "you have to do the traditional business school implementations like manage costs and move quicker than rivals."

I'm really impressed with my iPhone. It'll be interesting to see how the product improves.

More at that top link.

In Rare Move, Apple Goes on the Defensive Against Samsung

At WSJ:

In a rare interview a day before Samsung Electronics Co.'s 005930.SE -1.38% launch of a new flagship smartphone, Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller on Wednesday played down the expected competition from the device. He also discussed how he believes products that run Google Inc.'s GOOG -0.28% Android software, such as Samsung's phone, are inferior to Apple's iPhone.

Mr. Schiller shared data on the iPhone's popularity and said Apple's own research shows that four times as many iPhone users switched from an Android phone than to an Android phone in the fourth quarter.

His remarks come as Apple has been gently suggesting similar messages in recent months as competitors such as Samsung have been gaining buzz—and market share.

Mr. Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of world-wide marketing, also said that Android users are often running old operating systems and that the fragmentation in the Android world was "plain and simple."

He added that "Android is often given as a free replacement for a feature phone and the experience isn't as good as an iPhone."

The executive said the Android devices suffer in part because different elements come from multiple companies, whereas Apple is responsible for all its mobile hardware and as well as its iOS operating system.

"When you take an Android device out of the box, you have to sign up to nine accounts with different vendors to get the experience iOS comes with," he said. "They don't work seamlessly together."

More at that top link, and at Bloomberg, "Samsung Targets Galaxy 4 at Apple’s Core IPhone Market."

RELATED: From Larry Page, at the Official Google Blog, "Update from the CEO."

Why Apple Won the Internet

From Michael Arrington, at Tech Crunch, "There Was That Whole Internet Thing, Too":

Before the internet all most people cared about was Office. And Office was really the only reason anyone wanted Windows machines instead of Macs.

I remember endless Apple v. Windows debates in the early 90s when I was in college. Macs were better machines, everyone said, the whole Office thing was a huge pain. It was difficult to transfer files between operating systems, and generally speaking if you wanted to do Office stuff you needed a Windows machine. Macs were for college kids doing graphics stuff. Windows machines were for grown ups.

That all changed in the mid 90′s of course. But before people bought computers primarily to get on the Internet Apple was hurting badly. Market share was so bad there was even a question about whether Microsoft would even continue making Office for Mac.

Then everything came together for Apple at roughly the same time. Steve Jobs came back in 1997. He got Microsoft to recommit to Office on the Mac...

RTWT.

Microsoft Windows 8 Adoption Lags

At IBD, "Microsoft's Windows 8 Is Looking Like a Dog":

While Apple (AAPL) names its computer operating systems after cats, Microsoft 's (MSFT) latest, Windows 8, is looking like a dog.

The percentage of PCs in use worldwide running Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system inched up to 2.7% in February, from 2.3% in January, according to Net Applications. Microsoft launched Windows 8 with a massive advertising campaign on Oct. 26.

Now four months after its launch, Windows 8 barely beats Apple's Mac OS X 10.8 operating system, called Mountain Lion, which had 2.6% usage market share in February.

By comparison, its predecessor, Windows 7, had 9.1% global market share four months after its release, says Vince Vizzaccaro, executive vice president of marketing and strategic alliances for Net Applications.

Even Microsoft's much maligned Windows Vista operating system still has greater market penetration than Windows 8. Last month, 5.2% of PCs worldwide were running Vista. Vista was released in January 2007 and replaced by Windows 7 in October 2009.

Microsoft's Windows 8 has failed to boost sagging PC sales. In the fourth quarter, worldwide PC shipments declined 4.9% from a year earlier, as more consumers shifted their focus to tablets and smartphones and away from PCs. Rival research firm IDC said global PC shipments fell 6.4% in Q4.

That's been bad news for PC makers such as Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), which has reported six straight quarters of declining year-over-year sales.

Windows 7 is the top PC operating system in use, with 44.6% market share in February, followed by Microsoft's ancient Windows XP, which was released more than 11 years ago. Win XP had 39% usage market share last month.

Microsoft controlled 91.6% of PC market share usage with its Windows family in February. Apple's Mac was second with 7.2% share.

But Apple dominates in the mobile operating system market. Its iOS software ran 54.9% of smartphones and tablets in February, Net Applications says...

Continue reading.

Samsung Challenges Apple's Cool

This is something I've been thinking about more often since getting an iPhone. It's an amazing piece of technology, but what's the competition? Who makes a better device? Remember, I mentioned the iPad had a huge glitch with the browser crashing, so that experience really tarnished the user vibe for Apple products. Their stuff is still the most invulnerable from malware --- or, that's what they say. But criminal programmers will get to them sooner or later.

In any case, at the New York Times, "Samsung Emerges as a Potent Rival to Apple’s Cool":

Apple, for the first time in years, is hearing footsteps.

The maker of iPhones, iPads and iPods has never faced a challenger able to make a truly popular and profitable smartphone or tablet — not Dell, not Hewlett-Packard, not Nokia, not BlackBerry — until Samsung Electronics.

The South Korean manufacturer’s Galaxy S III smartphone is the first device to run neck and neck with Apple’s iPhone in sales. Armed with other Galaxy phones and tablets, Samsung has emerged as a potent challenger to Apple, the top consumer electronics maker. The two companies are the only ones turning profits in the highly competitive mobile phone industry, with Apple taking 72 percent of the earnings and Samsung the rest.

Yet these two rivals, who have battled in the marketplace and in the courts worldwide, could not be more different. Samsung Electronics, a major part of South Korea’s expansive Samsung Group, makes computer chips and flat-panel displays as well as a wide range of consumer products including refrigerators, washers and dryers, cameras, vacuum cleaners, PCs, printers and TVs.

Where Apple stakes its success on creating new markets and dominating them, as it did with the iPhone and iPad, Samsung invests heavily in studying existing markets and innovating inside them.

“We get most of our ideas from the market,” said Kim Hyun-suk, an executive vice president at Samsung, in a conversation about the future of mobile devices and television. “The market is a driver, so we don’t intend to drive the market in a certain direction,” he said.

That’s in stark contrast to the philosophy of Apple’s founder Steven P. Jobs, who rejected the notion of relying on market research. He memorably said that consumers don’t know what they want.

Nearly everything at Samsung, from the way it does research to its manufacturing, is unlike Apple. It taunts Apple in its cheeky advertisements while Apple stays above the fray.

And the Korean manufacturer may even be putting some pressure on Apple’s world-class designers. Before Apple released the iPhone 5, which had a larger screen than earlier models, Samsung had already been selling phones with even bigger displays, like the 5.3-inch screen Galaxy Note, a smartphone so wide that gadget blogs call it a phablet.

Samsung outspends Apple on research and development: $10.5 billion, or 5.7 percent of revenue, compared with $3.4 billion, or 2.2 percent. (Samsung Electronics is slightly bigger than Apple in terms of revenue — $183.5 billion compared with $156.5 billion — but Apple is larger in terms of stock market value.)

Samsung has 60,000 staff members working in 34 research centers across the globe, including, Russia, Britain, India, Japan, Israel, China and Silicon Valley. It polls consumers and buys third-party research reports, but it also embeds employees in countries to study trends or merely to find inspiration for ideas.

Designers of the Galaxy S III say they drew inspiration from trips to Cambodia and Helsinki, a Salvador Dalí art exhibit and even a balloon ride in an African forest. (It employs 1,000 designers with different backgrounds like psychology, sociology, economy management and engineering.)

“The research process is unimaginable,” said Donghoon Chang, an executive vice president of Samsung who leads the company’s design efforts. “We go through all avenues to make sure we read the trends correctly.” He says that when the company researches markets for any particular product, it is also looking at trends in fashion, automobiles and interior design.

Continue reading.

And see Steve Kovach, at CNN, "How Samsung Is Out-Innovating Apple."