Apple?
By Frank Moraes
The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple is cutting back production of the new iPhone due to lower than expected sales. Apple stock prices plummeted. And then all the Apple people went crazy. Impossible! Stock manipulation!
As Matt Yglesias notes: maybe! Who knows? And frankly, who cares? I've been very critical of Apple over the years. But this is not due to their products; it is due to their business practices. They are exhibit A in the case against software patents and look-and-feel lawsuits.
But there is another side of this. Apple products are good, but they aren't really any better than any of their competitors. Certainly it is the case that Microsoft kept the PC in the dark ages for a good decade. But I've long been a huge critic of Bill Gates. The fact that PCs really sucked 20 years ago is no reason to claim that Apple has a better smart phone than Samsung. So yeah, I am a little more inclined to joined the chorus against Apple. But that doesn't mean I don't have my own Mac at home (I use it in the kitchen and it is a wonderful machine, even though it is a few years old.)
I should put my cards on the table, though. I just bought my first e-book reader: a bottom of the barrel Kindle. And I am learning to love it. For one thing, I always have my Shakespeare and various Don Quixote translations with me. And still only five ounces! Plus, it is a hell of lot more convenient to book mark than to use Book Darts, even though I do still love them. Bottom line: I'm a Luddite. And I'm happy that way.
But I'm not surprised that people are tending to go more Android than Apple. And if I were to start writing code again, I would do it for the Android. And if I had Apple stock, I would already have sold it. Regardless of what happened today.
In 2014: my first smart phone! Maybe.
(Cross-posted at Frankly Curious.)
The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple is cutting back production of the new iPhone due to lower than expected sales. Apple stock prices plummeted. And then all the Apple people went crazy. Impossible! Stock manipulation!
As Matt Yglesias notes: maybe! Who knows? And frankly, who cares? I've been very critical of Apple over the years. But this is not due to their products; it is due to their business practices. They are exhibit A in the case against software patents and look-and-feel lawsuits.
But there is another side of this. Apple products are good, but they aren't really any better than any of their competitors. Certainly it is the case that Microsoft kept the PC in the dark ages for a good decade. But I've long been a huge critic of Bill Gates. The fact that PCs really sucked 20 years ago is no reason to claim that Apple has a better smart phone than Samsung. So yeah, I am a little more inclined to joined the chorus against Apple. But that doesn't mean I don't have my own Mac at home (I use it in the kitchen and it is a wonderful machine, even though it is a few years old.)
I should put my cards on the table, though. I just bought my first e-book reader: a bottom of the barrel Kindle. And I am learning to love it. For one thing, I always have my Shakespeare and various Don Quixote translations with me. And still only five ounces! Plus, it is a hell of lot more convenient to book mark than to use Book Darts, even though I do still love them. Bottom line: I'm a Luddite. And I'm happy that way.
But I'm not surprised that people are tending to go more Android than Apple. And if I were to start writing code again, I would do it for the Android. And if I had Apple stock, I would already have sold it. Regardless of what happened today.
In 2014: my first smart phone! Maybe.
(Cross-posted at Frankly Curious.)
Labels: Apple, Bill Gates, Microsoft, technology
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