I’m at an IBM event this week, and at dinner I had what has been an increasingly frequent experience.
It used to be that attendees at these events gushed about the new Apple gadget they were carrying, and anyone who expressed reservations seemed out of touch with the group. Much like talking about religion or politics from the minority position at the dinner table, bashing Apple was one sure way to ensure everyone thought you were an idiot.
But last night, instead of showing off an Apple device, another guest showed off his new Samsung Galaxy S III phone, which led to more chatter about my new Microsoft Surface tablet. It spiraled into an “everyone dump on Apple” event, and by the end of the evening, Cupertino’s sole defender seemed to be considering other options.
This may be anecdotal, but I’ve seen the same event played out several times recently among analysts and other influencers in the tech space. It makes me think Apple’s image is changing, and the firm’s products are losing their magical edge.
Samsung’s anti-Apple marketing
The blemish on Apple’s spotless image didn’t just appear there; Samsung helped etch it into the glossy white plastic quite intentionally. Its excellent marketing campaign has attacked Apple’s image on three vectors.
The first is questioning Apple’s leadership. Samsung’s ads paint Apple’s “upgrades” as features the company accidentally or intentionally left out of prior products (larger screens, 4G radios), or obvious improvements (headphone jacks on the bottom). In some cases, they also point out where Apple still lags behind the curve after launching a new device, like the lack of NFC in the iPhone 5. Samsung wants to depict itself as the innovator Apple is struggling to match.
Second, the campaign raises the idea that Apple fans aren’t smart consumers. They’re depicted slogging through long lines waiting for their technology, and getting unreasonably excited about aspects of the product that aren’t exciting. In fact, the not-so-subtle message is that Apple buyers are kind of dense.
Finally the ads build on this dense concept by showcasing Apple users as people you wouldn’t want to emulate: Your parents. Dorks. Clueless hipsters. This is designed to strip away the prestige that Apple products typically carry.
For all its mocking, Samsung actually copied Apple with its first smartphones, but has since diverged, trying to drag away the perceived market leadership with it. The Korean company waged a similar type of warfare on Sony in the television space, which was once the clear leader. Samsung first emulated Sony, then partnered with the company, then took the market away. Sony has never recovered. Granted, Sony had additional issues that complicated things, but the plan worked, and Samsung appears to be following the same playbook with Apple.
Microsoft Surface
Samsung isn’t the only company slinging mud on Apple’s image. The Microsoft Surface tablet is doing relatively well, and Apple’s efforts to disparage it have largely been ineffective (at least so far). It appears to have been designed specifically to make the iPad look wanting in comparison.
As I write this, the Surface is still generating lines, but the important part is it looks both more advanced and more unique than Apple’s offerings. This impression dovetails nicely with Samsung’s efforts, because while the two companies aren’t aligned on products, they are aligned on a common message: Apple’s offerings don’t convey status anymore because they appear to be bought by stupid people.
The too-soon iPad 4 and too-expensive iPad mini
The third leg on this this ugly three-legged stool comes from Apple itself. Its latest launch even showcased an array of different products under one roof, a “big bang” event that trivializes individual products. Firms like Compaq were famous for this approach, but Apple has avoided them like the plague since Steve Jobs returned in the late 90s. Worse, the new iPad made buyers of the old version – launched only back in March – look stupid.
Meanwhile, the iPad mini was priced well out of line with competing models, with inferior specs. When Steve Jobs launched the iPad, it was the lowest priced tablet from a major vendor in its class, and since then, it has remained price competitive against the alternatives. The iPad mini is priced at a 65 percent premium, but lacks the same high-quality displays found on far cheaper competitors. Smart people would probably not buy it as a result. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Apple discount it significantly once initial demand falls off, leaving early buyers upset and looking stupid yet again.
Destroying Apple’s brand
Apple’s strongest asset is the power of its brand, and the historically valid belief that Apple products are purchased by smart people who are well regarded. This asset is being systematically destroyed, overtly by Samsung, covertly by Microsoft, and stupidly by Apple. Apple is not effectively defending this incredibly valuable asset, and the end result will likely resemble the company that existed before Steve Jobs’ return. That also means a market less dominated by Apple. Since I’m writing this on my Surface Tablet, I’m thinking this may turn out to be a good thing.
I’ll tell you what’s “stupid”: This self-serving article with its now-generic pile-on herd-like anti-Apple sentiment. It’s tiring to read so much un-realistic FUD on Apple topics. I have a GS3, and it’s nowhere near as refined and resolved as iPhone, and don’t get me started on how cheap it feels, especially vs iPhone’s industry-leading industrial design.
If Apple’s popularity was waning, they wouldn’t be drastically increasing in brand value every year (do your research), and I wouldn’t be waiting months for iPhone 5 since Apple is selling products at rates never experienced before (they can’t keep products on shelves).
Samsung’s generating a following of Apple hating zombies with their pathetically jealous ads. These ads lack class, and lack anything that shows merit to Samsung, rather shows them as being snarky, shameless, ruthless, and desperate to have Apple’s culture and following. These ads paint a picture of a Samsung who can’t sell their products on their own, so they use Apple to go viral (the only reason these ads are talked about is because Apple is “in” them), and they showcase Apple as the one to be, the one in the spotlight, the one Samsung just can’t stand. APPLE doesn’t look unintelligent, this “hater” formula makes Samsung look angry, unintelligent, and envious. All it is is more press for Apple, while making it extra apparent that Apple would never do Samsung the favor of uttering their names in any of Apple’s ads. Finally, these ads further show how obsessed Samsung truly is with Apple, which is just icing on the cake after how Samsung’s entire gadget line is born from Apple knockoffs and IP violations.
Spoken like a true Apple fanboy.
You do realize that the Samsung Galaxy S3 is the best selling phone right now? Apple is falling fast.
Spoken like a true jealous vitriolic anti-Apple Fandroid.
I have a GS3. It sucks. iPhone 5 is crushing it in sales. Big whoop, GS3 outsold iPhone 4S during GS3′s first few months and the 4S’s final few months.
You have a SGS3, lol
I do believe you
Yeah, it’s a POS. Samsung bloatware, keyboard is HORRIBLE, crappy plastic rear casing isn’t biting on one of the ends, so it’s slightly sticking out, Apps aren’t as quality as iOS’s iterations, screen flickers when typing and making quick hand gestures. Fragmentation is killing Android, and making for a horrible user experience, in comparison with iOS to iPhone’s fluidity.
Also, battery drains insanely fast, and I don’t even have a 4G network yet.
@XXX44: You’re faking up impressions that this news doesn’t give. Nobody’s calling Apple stupid, neither is it a lie that some people see those that spend lots buying a single Apple device that you can usually get something comparable for half the price. Neither is anyone denying the fact that Apple is a leader in technology here, the point is that there performance is reducing and other companies are catching up fast… If you’ve used Surface, you will attest to this. I’ve used an iPhone and I agree with you on it’s finesse, but right now I use a Nokia 701 (1.3GHz, 512MBram, 8GB, 8MP, 2MP front, 1GBROM, Symbian Belle 2), I can run more than 28 apps concurrently with no really noticeable performance lag, record HD videos and play Asphalt 6 HD on it and any other thing I ever dreamed of on a cool device. Not that I have mentioned the Swype Technology. In fact, I’ve not seen phones easier to use (for a power user) than a nokia phone, yet I got it for 1/3 the price of an iPhone4! Not to mention that I am not an Apple fanatic, so I don’t have iTunes or have a good internet to download big apps from the iStore, etc. These issues limit the Apple Market. I’m pretty sure that Apple will leap far beyond others once they adjust their prices and everyone who’s not gotten a hand yet would want to get a hand on their devices, but for this strategy to really work out, they need to advance like 2 times the rate they are advancing now. AFAIK, there are two many technologies out there that are not yet available in any devices….
Uhhh, I think part of being COOL is not worrying about what others think (by definition). Perhaps you are one of the people who bought Apple products to BE cool. Then, you should probably be off chasing the next great thing.
Aww, aren’t you the cutest little Apple fanboy?
Are you saying that the coolest kids in school don’t worry about what others think? You’ve obviously never been popular.
You sound like the fanboy, PDTS. Clearly you’ve never been either.
Wow, there’s just too many of you now!.. So.. unique.. and cool
You really believe that Samsung’s ill-conceived and laughable (for the wrong reason) ads somehow “stain” Apple’s image?
Or that the Microsoft Surface is anything more than the next Zune?
We live in strange times, when Apple pulls off record-breaking revenues and income in the recent quarter, and some analysts call it “disappointing” because it was “only” 124% YOY.
Yet the same “analysts” go gaga over Microsoft, completely blind to the fact of how poorly that company is doing, and how it is now less than half the value that it was 10 years ago.
Strange times indeed… but not if this was Bizarro World where everything is the reverse of the logical. ;-)
You have to understand that analysts look at trends not current numbers. They are worried about the future the present is the past for them. The Apple miss was a problem because Apple uses a sandbag strategy. They set targets they know they can beat, and they missed one. That’s a problem and a bit one. They are also trading at a global high which means they don’t have to be good, they have to be extraordinary. They are drifting to good. Surface is no Zune, that comment means you never really understood Zune, it may still fail, though my two weeks with it suggest this is one hell of a first attempt. I don’t think anyone is going gaga over Microsoft in my community, they are simply looking better than bland at the moment but they are held to different standard. Improvement for them is far easier, because they are so low, than it is for Apple. Learn the word “relative”.
Rob, you clearly wouldn’t know a trend if it was staring you right in the eyes, because YOUR ARTICLE HAS NO SUBSTANTIAL FACTS AND ALL YOUR INFORMATION IS SKEWED. It should be illegal to write such garbage that misleads readers for all the wrong reasons.
Apple missed THEIR OWN GUIDANCE?! REALLY?! You may want to do research (again), because as always, Apple BLEW AWAY their own guidance. It’s the ANALYSTS guidance which they “missed”. Apple posted the second best 2012 in the HISTORY OF U.S COMPANIES, and outgrew ALL OF THEIR COMPETITORS, STILL. And that’s an upset.
This is a witch hunt, but people who can’t stand success and the happiness a company brings its users.
You need a fact checker.
ouch, you’re CAPSLOCKING him. That probably hurts. :/
Go do something better than just religiously defending a brand! You’re not Apple man, don’t take the opinions of someone who doesn’t like a company as personal offenses. You’re being so dumb I just felt I had to waste two minutes writing this.
Cheers! :)
Though I appreciate your 124% YOY comment, Rob is right. It’s a trend issue. Go back and look at the YOY numbers since the iPhone launched.
1) 24% growth with the launch of the 1st significant iPhone change since the original, launch of the iPad mini (OMG stupid move in lieu of an iPhoneXL), launch of the iPad 3, and launch of the iPad 4, isn’t really very impressive.
2) Dec. Gross:Net
2007: 27.07B: 4.072B – Sep. iPhone launched
2008: 39.76B: 6.793B – 66.82%
2009: 46.71B: 9.358B – 37.76%
2010: 76.28B: 16.64B – 77.82% April. iPad launched; purchased Siri inc., to launch Oct 2011
2011: 127.84B: 32.98B – 98.2%
2012(Sep): 156.51B: 41.73B – 26.53% iPad mini launched (There’s only 1Q left to make roughly 74% net in order to continue a trend of YOY growth growth. It’s not going to happen. In fact, they’re not even going to come remotely close.)
3) in the last 30 days, AAPL is down 13%. In perspective, the market is down less than 3% and Google is down around 10%. That’s just in the last 30 days. I assure you, it’s time to sell, before everyone else figures it out.
Nicely said!
Do you really think people are stupid not to see this is an ad for the Surface, disguised as an Apple bashing article? It couldn’t be more obvious,
Nice try, but only idiots will fall for it – which is probably the target user for the Surface anyway, since it’s worse than other tablet out there, expensive and the only selling point is it comes with a dinosaur called Office that only my grandad likes.
Not
Surface is a bag of crap for parents
The Surface device and the Windows 8 OS are in their infancy. Together they posit and idea that I think will marry well…eventually (for whatever reasons). Personally, I am fine with Windows 8 now that I added a Start button. I even enjoy jumping to the Tiles side when it strikes me. Clean, effective and appealing.
This article comes across as anti-Apple simply because you are likely an Apple fan and it points out errors your prophets are making. Problem is, when the person who might have been considered as close to a business prophet as one could get passed away, he apparently did not pass the gift on to another.
It comes off as “anti-Apple” because it’s full of errors and a clear troll bait attempt to gather those who have nothing better to do than hate Apple on online forums (how shocking). It paints Apple as this falling company when Apple is outperforming anything we’ve seen in our lifetimes, doing better than ever, and outgrowing all of their competitors. Those are FACTS. Everything is else is FUD.
This is what is called “click bait”, and no better way these days than to round up anti-Apple’s from their lovely basements.
Hmm. Rob’s article posited some experiences he had and his observations gathered from said experiences. He then made suggestions from evidence as to why his observations made sense. Everything he said made sense to me.
Apple has clearly slowed recently and it’s image is slowly becoming dulled. I’m sorry that offends you, but it seems clear to me. Ever since Jobs passed, Apple has been changing and I dare not say for it’s better. But we shall see.
As the article points out, the early release of the new iPad 4 met little “hoorah” in the media simply because it was ill-timed. Poor planning compared to previous releases. The iPad Mini strikes out where Jobs refused to go and they clearly offered a lesser product at an inflated price. Another downer for Apple image and more to the point Rob made.
You sound more and more like a Fanboy who is being dislodged from his perch and does not like being on the ground with everyone else.
Thanks for stepping in!
Are you actually taking into account how much they sell of new iphones and iPad mini’s? And yes, we have a quite focal forum of people that did not “hooray” the iPhone 5 (others like it very much) but you could say the same about the S3 where reviewers really had go onto a limp to find something that was outstanding, other than it being a new set.
Samsung is measured differently, they are a value player against Apple’s premium position. Kind of the Chevy to Apple’s Cadillac, this puts more pressure on Apple to maintain their brand and perceived quality. But compare Apple’s market cap to Samsung’s and then their revenue base. But on trend Samsung is trending up, Apple down. They (Samsung) did the same thing to Sony, basically helped kill their TV brand.
Coming from Europe, I can’t value the comparison between American brand cars :-) Samsung will probably never get on par with Apple on quality and overall user experience, but that is not important for a growing number of customers who are as pleased to drive a Skoda instead of the more exclusive Audi. It is safe to assume that more Skoda’s will be sold than Audi’s (though I am not sure). The trick for Apple will be to keep creating products that are not in the same category as Samsungs, so people don’t see the Samsung sets as an alternative. So far – but let’s wait for numbers on the iPhone 5 and iPad mini – they still seem to be able to that. It will be more difficult with every iteration. But just look at pc’s. The pc is seen as a low margin, high volume market, the traditional pc vendors have given up already. But Apple still is able to innovate with laptops and pc’s, grow its market share and make a healthy margin. This may also be where they end with the phones at some point: being the only player that still earns money….
when you say “The trick for Apple will be to keep creating products that are not in the same category as Samsungs”. i think it’s already hit that point to my mind but in reverse. i’d say that apple is now in the position of having to catch up. there is no way my sister’s iphone 5 can do all that my galaxy Note can. where do you get off thinking there is a quality difference? others beside apple are capable of making rock solid hardware, and…….performance wise, apple is shot out of the water with the Surface and many smart phones. loyalty and being locked in is all apple has at this point. coconutz247
Loyalty is “all they have”? Do you think people are loyal because they are drugged or something? Loyalty comes from satisfaction with the product (but of course Android fans will say Apple users are just zealots, caught in the Jobs distortion field … oh, wait, he’s gone…). On the other points: blah, blah, blah. Just check the facts.
i take it you don’t think apple is playing catch up on anything, no less “wow factor”. what rob points out is apple has made some goofs and the others have more than caught up. or do you seriously think the ipad can compete with the Surface? or that the i phone 5 competes with the gs3 or Note? you obviously like apple. but your arguments are stale. check the facts. coconutz247
Of course the Fan-iots are going to whine and cry about an article that raises any criticism of their cult, but I agree with the point of this article: Apple (along with predictable help from their competition) is shooting itself in the foot. Their recent trends and decisions makes it too abundantly clear that Jobs was everything to their image and success.
It is funny, I think. Obama (like him or hate him) has a crew of historians he meets with to see what he needs to do to cement the legacy he wants to have as President of the United States. He wants to learn from history to create his own. I think Apple execs would do well to learn from that attempt. They might want to at least study the decisions of the egomaniac that was Jobs and see if they can continue that line of reasoning. At least it was a rampaging success for him.
Actually he used data analytics very well, he knew just where to put his resources. What is funny is we pegged Romney as the better executive manager, it turned out that wasn’t true.
I’m sure you are exactly right about his using his analytic resources correctly. My “egomaniac” remark targets his decisions and remarks concerning approaches other companies took on the tablet idea and his touting them all basically stupid and he has it perfect. Of course, even though the mini in this incarnation is not what it should be, there was, contrary to Jobs’ view, a market for them.
I did enjoy your article.
Thanks for the kind words (for some reason after upgrading to Win 8 this site has forgotten my ID, excuse multiple replies if it clears).
What trends? Apple products breaking all records for any product in their segment? Apple outgrowing all their competitors still? Apple selling products so fast that Foxconn can’t keep up anymore?
Those trends? This article is speaking on the trends that exist only in the minds and online Forums of the Apple-hating faithful. In your minds, the company is about bankrupt, in the real world, the company is doing better than ever.
People tend to forget that Jobs was already on sick leave for a long time before he passed away. Apple had it’s best years (and may very well have more) under Tim Cook’s reign. And let’s not forget that Jobs was the first to admit that “the old needs make place for the young”. Companies can only continue success if they are able to manage change, externally and internally (cue to Ballmer to step up…). The whole “now Jobs is gone and everything goes south” is just wishful thinking.
I don’t forget that at all, nor did I forget he micromanaged while on sick leave. He was an obsessive/compulsive to the nth degree. Even when sick they generally couldn’t keep him from making decisions and, if he was away, he’d often come back and overturn the decisions that were made without him. He had serious trust issues.
I think the way you put this article is spot on. Apple, love them or hate them, is losing its edge in many respects. Maybe they have reached a saturation point of “fanboys” or maybe people are just looking at alternatives with their eyes open, rather than simply peer group pressure. Apple aren’t the leaders in technology and it shows.
Apple value is showing negative growth for the first time in years, and is primarily due to their failed iPhone 5, IOS 6 and ipad mini releases, none of which were breathtaking, and all have issues.
Apple seems to have stalled. The iphone and ipad are simply minor upgrades to previous models, bugs and all!
Apple products DON’T “Just Work” anymore, and people are getting tired to have to pay again and again for bug fixes, minor updates and catchup features which is all the latest ipad and iphone really are.
This is just bullshit. We can’t compare sales figures yet and Apple products still “just work”. I have been smiling when reading the comments about updating windows. Remembering how easy it was to update through the latest iterations of the OS… You clearly haven’t used an iPhone with the latest iOS. And getting updates is better than getting no updates, which seems the normal way in
This is just **** (apparently this word is some blacklist…). We can’t compare sales figures yet and Apple products still “just work”. I have been smiling when reading the comments about updating windows. Remembering how easy it was to update through the latest iterations of OSX… Or iOS for that matter. You clearly haven’t used an iPhone with the latest iOS. And getting updates is better than getting no updates, which seems the normal way in the Android world…
Samsung, Apple and Microsoft have all made mistakes lately.
1) The Microsoft Surface RT is getting terrible reviews. There are reports of poor quality workmanship on the product as well. The MS logo is reportedly easy to accidently rub off, the kick stand has broken for some people and the OS is still buggy and slow
2) The iPad mini is overpriced and Apple is being vague about how many units it sold thus acknowledging that it’s not as hot a product as Apple would have you believe, and could quite possibly be a dud for the company. Did I mention it’s way overpriced? :)
3) Samsung seems to be hitting home runs lately, but even with the smaller Galaxy S3 being available in a smaller size, that means the company has to acknowledge that there is either a new opportunity to sell more phones, or that the larger S3 is too large for some people (the same thing). Or perhaps Samsung has been just as influenced as consumers from the Apple ads telling people you need a smaller phone.
Bottom line: Apple is not the golden boy anymore and that shield of protection they used to have from being an A+ brand is gone. I think this is a good thing overall. People will wake up to reality and see products for what they really are.
It is funny, some folks really don’t like this device. But some really love it. I found once I forced myself to do things the way the device intended me to do them, avoiding old habits, I liked it better than anything else I had but it isn’t a traditional notebook or iPad. The slowness is because it multi-tasks without limits and it is a 4 core ARM processor. If you have too many active apps open it gets noticeably slower. But it does multi-task, but Core will always have the performance edge. Haven’t had issues with the kickstand or logo (just wish the kickstand were more adjustable). I still think you are smoking crack on the kickstand being fragile though, for something in this class is is relatively sturdy (not military spec but it isn’t military weight either). Where Samsung and others really screw up is in service, Apple has most everyone beat by a mile there.
Well, I have just read what others in online forums are saying, it’s not from personal experience.
I like the Surface a lot and not only spent a week playing with it, but with other manufacturers versions. I would encounter instances where the OS would freeze up on me or where there would be a good 5 second plus delay/lag. I hated seeing that on a product this expensive and supposedly using current technology.
The delay thing during usage appears to be a Windows 8 thing and I am more than a little slightly annoyed by it. I upgrade my Toshiba Portege M700 to 4 gigs thinking I was short on RAM and hope to see. But I do notice that my i7 3.2 GHz, 12 Gig RAM PC has slight moments of pause in the midst of what should be a processing time (contrast to HD intensive tasks).
I am a Microsoft supporter overall, but something this core to the OS experience should be taken care of before release.
That annoyance being admitted, I do like Windows 8 just fine. Once I added a Start button, I relaxed and felt completely at home with a little extra something to boot.
I’m not seeing the delay on either my Windows 8 desktops, laptops or RT. But I haven’t done an upgrade yet, all are clean installs suggesting it could be something left over from your Windows 7 build. I’m doing my first Windows 7 to 8 upgrade today, I’ll let you know if I run into the same delay (doing it on a high end Core i7 desktop so it won’t be the system that’ll be lacking).
Thanks. I will check back to see what you come up with. I will be happy to do a clean install to fix any issues. And, as always, I’m not a trained programming expert. I could be completely off about the whole issue.
Damn that is an easy installation, I’m noticing so minor video driver issues which suggests I need to find and load an update. (Screen flashes black and driver resets). What is also interesting is while this site hangs IE 9 it seems to do fine with ie10. Go figure? But so far it is working very well no noticeable issues.
I’m noticing an issue something left over from Win7 is kicking off errors. I’m back to my recommendation for a new OS like this. Format and clean install after a backup. Just did another clean install and no issues.
The upgrade process from Windows 7 is ugly with a fully loaded box (something went really wonky). Starting over with a clean installation. Fortunately I have lots of PCs. Once on 8 however, because all of your app store apps transfer automatically, if you stay with App store apps, updates will be brain dead simple. But I don’t recommend the upgrade path right on an existing machine.
Good to know. I might wait to upgrade my high-end system until SP1 comes out for Windows 8.
i agree the surface RT is ill conceived. i’d rather microsoft had just sold the “Pro version” for cheap and that would be the end of the tablet war. rob sees it differently on the kickstand, and slow OS however. coconutz247
Me too, I hate the RT version and will be getting the Pro.
I’m starting my first full Win 8 native tablet test on Win 8 hardware (the Samsung I had been using was a Win 7 config running Win 8), I’ll try to post on that this weekend. Should be similar to the pro.
Apple products are far and away the best. Apple is still THE A+ brand. I got a GS3 to see what all the hype was about, and guess what? Turns out I listened to phony Apple FUD. Apple is still the most premium, and Samsung/Android’s fragmented existence is far behind.
Samsung Galaxy S3 blows away the iPhone…plain and simple. I invite anyone reading to get one next to the other and play.
iPhone 5 users get a larger screen (still smaller than S3) to place their little icons on. Wow…so much better than a GS3. Let me know when you can glance at your phone with pertinent/relevant information instantly and constantly displayed without having to stop and pop open each program.
Enjoy your icons. And be sure to rub the little apple on the back the next time they promise “Something Revolutionary”. Maybe their next iteration will actually catch up with the competition.
With your nick I would assume more balanced postings… Looking at the build quality the S3 is nowhere near to the 5. High quality materials, designed to the nanometer, compared to plastic. Should that matter? For some it does, for others clearly not. I rather save a bit longer and buy the original eames chair then the cheapo fake alternative. This is all moot: Apple and Samsung lovers shouting. What would be interesting is some scientific data: is the iPhone 5 actually a more reliable handset? So many opinions, so little facts…
This is a good article, however it leaves another key point: Apples blames EVERYONE but themselves for product problem, always initially at least, and perhaps always.
Care to explain?
Let’s be honest, has Apple ever been an innovator? No. They’ve been an improver. I get the sense that Apple’s take hasn’t been simply to make people wait a year for something everyone else gets, but rather to wait a year to make sure what everyone else getting works in the devices they’re designing.
I love Android. Love it. I think that the latest iterations blow IOS out of the water for simplicity of operation, communication among apps, screen usability (I love me the big screen!), and, of course, innovative technology inside.
But I just got the iPhone 5.
Why? Android phone manufacturers suck. I considered the Galaxy 3 hard because it looked and felt cool in my hand. But after having my HTC EVO 4G LTE that couldn’t connect to a 3G signal with any consistency and two separate Samsungs prior that were updated on a cycle that can best be described as glacial, I decided to go back to iPhone. Why? The phones tend to work and stay working for the two year cycle. Apple tends to be the first to get the loudest criticism when something is majorly broken and pushes out updates to ALL of its phones more quickly. Samsung and others seem to spend more time in making cool new phones than in realizing people have to live with them for more than six months. And don’t get me started on physical service after the sale. As someone who spent months trying to get Sprint to remedy my HTC EVO 4G LTE with no luck, having an Apple Store to replace your product is a God send. Perhaps the appropriate follow up ad would be a bunch of Samsung people wandering the streets looking for a place to get their phones looked at or replaced and having the Apple people tell them “well just take it to the Genius Bar at your Samsung Store”.
Does Apple appear to have its head up its rear right now? Yes. Switching back to iOS after two plus years on Android has felt like a step backward in many respects. And why Apple didn’t put out a wider and taller phone is beyond me.
I also like that I have a full app store at my disposal with apps that will work with my phone properly. Didn’t have that with Android.
Good response, the iPhone 5 is total is one of the top phones in market and for you, as you point out, the best choice. But you still see the shortcomings. I get tired of the Lemmings, you clearly aren’t one. I mean the customer service alone is often worth the premium. Nicely said, thank you.
Apple’s not been an “improver”, either. They’ve been an image factory from the day Stevie-boy came back and took over.
The Apple Mantra: Steal it. Make it look pretty. Sell it for way too much. Sue everyone and say they stole our stolen property.
I was an Apple fanboy. Until Jobes decided that the Apple IIgs was too much of a challenge to his crummy Macs and proceeded to betray all the IIgs owners by deliberately killing it off.
Takes a lot of courage to write an article like this, whether its true information or not. Comments are guaranteed to be pretty incendiary when you say something negative about Apple lately. I don’t understand why though, Apple seemingly agrees about some slight stagnation in the company, they are even shaking up management to fix this, yet some people seem to really want to argue that there are no problems at all.
I mean jesus, they are losing tablet marketshare yearly by the BUNDLES. Thats just insane considering how much better the iOS tablet apps are compared to all the competitors. I really thought that they might lose the smartphone marketshare and top selling phone quarterly in the coming years, but that they would ALWAYS own the tablet market. But it seems that Android is finding a way to chip at that market also. Its unreal.
Competition is great for us, the consumer. Buy what you like and don’t worry about what people think. Who cares? A great Surface tablet will mean Apple will have to step up it’s game. When one company dominates all…they get lazy and greedy.
Justin, bringing up one court victory for apple and ignoring there loses on the exact same lawsuit in other countries shows your bias.
Apple is due to fall, so is Facebook. Its just a matter of time. I’m hoping its soon for both.
“This asset is being systematically destroyed”. How about “They wish they could destroy it” or “are trying to”. There is 0 signs of them accomplishing this. If anything, their recent loss in court and even the judge’s “this product does not look as cool as the ipad” proves otherwise.
simple put Apple has grown to big and its normal whats happening, deep in our psyche we are scared of monopolies and we are slowly turning away. remember how Microsoft rose to prominence and everyone was wary of it at the beginnning of the millenium, so the same story goes for Apple.
Okay, I’m sorry. I haven’t seen any advertisements or otherwise marketing campaigns against Apple, as I pretty well isolate myself from all that mess. I also am a pretty big Apple fan. With that said: Apple is on my last D@&^ nerve.
The fact that I purchased an iPhone 4S and had the battery issues that went unsolved for months, and still isn’t fixed, but I get iOS 6.0.1, which updates worthless features to me with no battery is, in my opinion as irresponsible as forcing an extremely hotly contested partisan medical reform bill through congress, with an unemployment rate of over 10%. There is a hierarchical priority list of things to be done, but when the number one thing on the priority list is put aside in lieu of the number 10 thing on the priority list, that’s cause for concern.
The fact that Apple still refuses to allow any version of flash to be used (even within alternative browsers using a battery drainage disclaimer or something), is simply embarrassing at this point.
The fact that Apple thought the problem with the iPhone 4S was that it was too thick, so it had to make the tough decision to cut features on the iPhone 5 so they could make it thinner: an obvious disconnection from reality and its customer base. I’ve read a whole lot of forums and feedback, and I can’t recall a single comment regarding anyone complaining about the thickness of the phone. I sure heard a whole lot of other complaints they refuse to address though.
iPad mini? WT*? People aren’t complaining about the iPad being too big. We’re complaining about the iPhone being too small. Had Apple been in tune with us, it’s customer base, they would have created an iPhoneXL. I appreciate the fact that they want people to be able to do just about anything with one hand, but they aren’t the only people using the phone, but they sure make policies to the contrary.
XXX44: drastically increasing the brand value every year stopped when the last thing Jobs was a part of launched. Though increasing, the rate of increase has not only drastically reduced, it’s exponentially reduced (look no further than the history of the stock itself). Apple loyal customers like me are reaching the realization that Apple not only operates in a world of its own, it’s no longer producing products worthy of me overlooking that fact. Don’t even get me started with the maps fiasco. I don’t give a rat’s A@@ what happened in your “personal life”, behind your ivory towered board-room doors. The mark of foolish leadership is found in making the customer suffer, as a result of personal squabbling between competition (pulling YouTube, Maps, etc.).
This new CEO. WHAT!? Surely the board of directors must be made up of infiltrators who secretly plot to destroy the company from the inside out. Or, maybe the chemo really fried Jobs’ brain more than we thought. Yeah… that would explain how Tim Cook got the job. How do you go from Steve Jobs to Tim Cook? How do you go from a visionary who surrounds himself with genius people who know how to make visions come to fruition and can sell an ice sickle to a hypothermic eskimo to Tim Cook. The guy who has better stage presence than Siri reading from a teleprompter?
I can easily continue with Apple’s extraordinarily foolish decisions over the past couple of years, which have resulted in the demise of their reputation, but I feel certain no one would read it anyway. Rest assured; this is self-inflicted damage, reinforced by substantial competition.
If you’re holding AAPL in your portfolio: With every stock, there’s a time to buy and a time to sell. Until there is significant paradigm shifting inside Apple (whereby they begin to actually pay attention to what the customer base is demanding, rather than the number of apps sold in the app store), rest assured, it’s time to sell. Those apps can and will just as easily be sold on another (better) operating system.
The Microsoft Surface is a great product IMHO. Within 15 seconds of me logging into my new device my 2000 contacts were beautifully organized in the people hub complete with contact histories and the driver for my hp printer was automatically installed. I haven’t picked up my iPad since I bought it. Just sayin’.
Great storey
As it describes appel people so well like long waiting lines for what
Funny how I have a similar experience recently to your IBM event recently Rob.. This was at a wedding and most of the people there that know used to have an iPhone are either have Samsung or HTC phones. Their rationales for leaving Apple were numerous but the common theme is that Apple’s competitors simply have better phones and Android is simply more interesting than iOS. The only ones that still have an Apple’s products are young teenagers or seniors. It is an eye opener to see the change but I reckon this probably happened when Steve Job died and the magic that once surround Apple’s products left with him.
Agree, the iPhone just doesn’t have the image it once had. I’ve also noticed that while last decade Apple pretty much marketed heavily alone, this decade even Google is doing good work, and Microsoft is funding marketing at a high level as well. It feels like Apple’s ad group exploded out and suddenly most everyone in their class is doing competitive marketing. It not so much Apple is sinking it’s more everyone else is upping their game I think.
Simple for those copycats of Samsung please go to made better Fringes and Drier machines,what you know about tech…….Apple is the revolution of the 21 century sorry …
It’s funny how people have so much invested in inanimate objects, its sad really
Interesting story….
Thanks!
Apple lacks behind on the phones because they bird feed the customers with one new feature at a time when other smartphones already have them this is part of their plan to milk the iphone of every drop
I had a GS3 but didn’t like the experience. It was ok. I went back to apple and got the iPhone 5, very happy now. Just my experience.
I have a GS3 and feel like I was duped by all the anti-Apple trolling going on on the Web. It’s a horrible device. Keyboard sucks, bloatware sucks, the OS just isn’t fluidly joined with the hardware therefore I get screen flickering. Very easy things are difficult to do, the UI looks cheesy, the exterior looks and feels incredibly cheap.
Apple is doing “so badly” that iPhone 5 is still sold out everywhere as people snap them up quicker than Apple can have them made. Therefore I have to keep waiting.
The Samsung Galaxy S3 is a wonderful device and I have none of the issues you claim. Not sure why you feel the need to make up stuff about it. The Apple fans around my workplace used to openly demonstrate their wonderful devices. Seems, nowadays, they stand by quietly whenever I show someone something on my GS3 (people ask me all the time how to use technology in my job as a teacher). The GS3 is large and in-charge and is visually beautiful to look at and use.
I don’t have the Samsung myself but the folks I know who do rave about it (not at it) so I agree I think XXX44 either doesn’t know how to use the device, is relatively unique, or is just making stuff up.
You’re absolutely right. I just can’t decide whether to buy the hamstrung, hobbled version of the Surface — or the overblown, overpriced one.
and by ‘one’ I hope you mean one of the biggest corporate/patent cases in the last few years. The same case has also won in other countries. Of course everything fails in time, but the point of the article is that some stupid commercials proves a companies demise. That make no sense and also wouldn’t even hold up in court. haha
rob, i agree with your analysis completely….hard to see it any other way. thank gawd keeping up with the Jonses finally depends on the product….not the brand. the beginning of the end for apple? coconutz 247
Thanks for the comment!
It must be sad to be a 58 years old professional and when you google your name the first Google suggestions are “bias”, “wrong”, “SCO” and “jackass”.
Maybe it’s just me, but kind of makes you think if this is the sort of legacy you want leave when you retire. Fortunately I still have a long time to work on mine, do you?
Someone needs to find a journalism brush-up course at their local community college…
Enderle the eternal shill. Last time it was Dell writing our cheques, but guess you’re back at Microsoft.
65% premium on other mini tablets now, wait 6 months to a year. There will be 50-100$ tablets starting to invade. Amazon won’t be selling the Kindle HD for 199$ for long, bigger price drops are coming.
i agree the rumored Xbox tablet which will be game subsidized could drop the the price point for this class sharply and the old Kindle Fire is one heck of a value at around $160 and still in market. So I agree I think the $200 price point will be under pressure next year.