AAPL - Apple Inc.

[rkbabang]

Anyone think that healthcare might be a sleeper for Apple?

 

http://www.healthcaredive.com/news/whats-up-with-apple-in-healthcare/429706/

 

On another subject; I bought a 2016 Chevy Colorado with the 8" color touchscreen & CarPlay (I really like it!)

 

Siri works well, phone calls & texting are a breeze & nav is great (no more map updates needed - yay!!!)

 

Oh & setup was stupid easy (Toyota & the others are producing garbage...)

 

I agree Toyota is especially bad.  I have a nice big screen in my Sequoia, but I never use the built in Navigation.  It is just so bad.  I don't think you could design less user friendly software if it was your goal to do so.  My one complaint with what I understand about CarPlay is that you are required to use Apple maps, which I never use.  I love Waze, so I'd probably stick with navigation on my phone rather than the built in display even if I had a car with CarPlay installed.  What I want is a nice big display in my car which simply mirrors my phone, so that I can use any app that I have installed on my phone at any time.

 

[fareastwarriors]

Apple's Chip Choices May Leave Some iPhone Users in Slow Lane

 

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-11-18/apple-chip-choices-may-leave-some-iphone-users-in-slow-lane

[johnny]

I lost a lot of money last year by thinking "Well this looks so blatantly stupid that there must be some higher level that they're operating on." I don't think that way anymore, especially when the person in question has nothing but a few "good luck" successes followed by a sustained run of mediocre outcomes.

 

I guess it really depends on whether the investment thesis will completely collapse if the assumption is wrong. If the downside is protected by something else, you have the luxury to allow for some uncertainty here and there.

 

Agreed; Apple was a compelling investment precisely because no value was really being assigned to any of the "new" market opportunities. So Cue fumbling on TV isn't a thesis-destroying issue, but I try to be more critical of companies that make up a larger portion of my portfolio, and Apple has been #1 on several occasions so I'm trying to watch it closely and not fall into the somewhat common trap I see of letting my appreciation of their products contaminate my assessment of the business. Might be overcorrecting there, but it's fun and cathartic to ridicule people that have 100x my net worth :)

[fareastwarriors]

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-11-21/apple-said-to-abandon-development-of-wireless-routers-ivs0ssec

 

Apple Said to Abandon Development of Wireless Routers

[fareastwarriors]

How Apple Lost China to Two Unknown Local Smartphone Makers

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-11-22/how-apple-lost-china-to-two-unknown-local-smartphone-makers

[DooDiligence]

fareast - you raise some disturbing issues.

 

Holding Apple is a leap of faith for me.

 

Entertainment + Iger on the BOD (???)

Automotive (I just drove to Miami in my new Colorado & CarPlay is very good)

IOTMD (internet of things for healthcare & HIPPA requirements)

Handsets (can't think of a disruptor / only competitors in the same space)

 

It does seem like they're making some questionable moves but I want some tech in my portfolio & Apple seems more moaty than most & I kinda understand them (even if I can't extrapolate how, what, why, when & where...)

[rb]

Holding Apple is a leap of faith. You have to have faith that iphone keeps its margins. People love to talk about innovation and other very profitable apple products/services. They are correct to a certain extent. But there's no way Apple keeps it current market cap if it cannot keep its margin on iphone. So you need to be a bit religious to hold Apple.

[DooDiligence]

Holding Apple is a leap of faith. You have to have faith that iphone keeps its margins. People love to talk about innovation and other very profitable apple products/services. They are correct to a certain extent. But there's no way Apple keeps it current market cap if it cannot keep its margin on iphone. So you need to be a bit religious to hold Apple.

 

I agree; a 39% gross margin AND a 58 time inventory turn is phenomenal.

 

Most businesses get either the margin or the ITR.

 

Jewelry stores; for example, average a 30% GM (1.8 ITR) to 50% GM (1.0 ITR) & being a professional sales organization is more important than actually being a good jeweler.

 

I've owned Apple since pre-split sub $400 & added when it dipped to $90 post split.

 

All I have is a seat of the pants feel for Apple (might have to change my pants if the 10th anniversary iPhone underwhelms & I don't start seeing some traction in adjacencies...)

[portfolio14]

1. w.r.t. Oppo etc, everyone's profitability: https://9to5google.com/2016/11/22/most-profitable-android-manufacturer-q3/

 

2. I bought myself and my wife each an Apple Watch (series 2). Let me say I'm NOT impressed with the UI. I have a Samsung Gear 2. Tizen's UI, while not perfect, is more intuitive. I'm wondering whether such a mentally taxing UI would've been vetted and rejected by Jobs if he were alive. Its UI philosophy is almost Anti-Apple. It's all out, exposing you to all the complexity all at once. Not simple at all. Why do you present me with all the possible faces? Why is it such a prominent feature that you assign and waste the all-important left/right wipe gesture for this purpose? I don't need to change the watch face everyday!

 

It seems Jon Ive isn't a good gatekeeper when it comes to software UI. This worries me. I love the hardware but lament the UI.

[DooDiligence]

1. w.r.t. Oppo etc, everyone's profitability: https://9to5google.com/2016/11/22/most-profitable-android-manufacturer-q3/

 

2. I bought myself and my wife each an Apple Watch (series 2). Let me say I'm NOT impressed with the UI. I have a Samsung Gear 2. Tizen's UI, while not perfect, is more intuitive. I'm wondering whether such a mentally taxing UI would've been vetted and rejected by Jobs if he were alive. Its UI philosophy is almost Anti-Apple. It's all out, exposing you to all the complexity all at once. Not simple at all. Why do you present me with all the possible faces? Why is it such a prominent feature that you assign and waste the all-important left/right wipe gesture for this purpose? I don't need to change the watch face everyday!

 

It seems Jon Ive isn't a good gatekeeper when it comes to software UI. This worries me. I love the hardware but lament the UI.

 

I played with the Apple watch a few times in Best Buy & my play time didn't last long for the reason you mentioned.

 

The UI didn't draw me in & I couldn't easily figure out what to do with it.

 

I think they're getting paid to learn how to make a watch with 21st century usefulness & are relying on the fashion aspect to offset the fails...

[DooDiligence]

The Apple store at Dadeland mall in Miami is absolutely packed today!

 

There's a huge cue for the iPhone 7!!!

 

As a counterpoint, I went into the Microsoft store & it didn't have half the crowd as the Apple store.

 

The Surface is pretty impressive though (nobody should point to the iPad lineup as overpriced unless of course you compare specs...)

 

No danger of me switching from OSx/iOS (just sayin')

[Spekulatius]

fareast - you raise some disturbing issues.

 

Holding Apple is a leap of faith for me.

 

Entertainment + Iger on the BOD (???)

Automotive (I just drove to Miami in my new Colorado & CarPlay is very good)

IOTMD (internet of things for healthcare & HIPPA requirements)

Handsets (can't think of a disruptor / only competitors in the same space)

 

It does seem like they're making some questionable moves but I want some tech in my portfolio & Apple seems more moaty than most & I kinda understand them (even if I can't extrapolate how, what, why, when & where...)

 

The big issue with AAPL is that the smartphone market becomes just like the PC market. Innovation in the smartphone market appears to be slowing down, which sooner or later means that there has to be commoditization, with obvious impacts on margins.

 

AAPL does not really have new products that make a difference. The  tables have stalled out. the watch is more of a supplement to the phone than it's own product, although I think it could be getting there - if they offer an autonomous smartwatch that can do the things that a phone does now, just by choice control etc.

[DCG]

fareast - you raise some disturbing issues.

 

Holding Apple is a leap of faith for me.

 

Entertainment + Iger on the BOD (???)

Automotive (I just drove to Miami in my new Colorado & CarPlay is very good)

IOTMD (internet of things for healthcare & HIPPA requirements)

Handsets (can't think of a disruptor / only competitors in the same space)

 

It does seem like they're making some questionable moves but I want some tech in my portfolio & Apple seems more moaty than most & I kinda understand them (even if I can't extrapolate how, what, why, when & where...)

the watch is more of a supplement to the phone than it's own product, although I think it could be getting there - if they offer an autonomous smartwatch that can do the things that a phone does now, just by choice control etc.

 

I think the problem with the watch is that it doesn't do anything your phone doesn't already do (and typically does better).

[dyow]

I have all apple products. Don't own the stock.  Went to three apple stores in the last 2 days to buy an iMac (first 2 stores were out of the trackpads).  Apple stores have gone to shit, 2 years ago i remember walking in being greeted by friendly hipsters with beards and extremely tight pants who seemed to know what they were talking about. 

 

All i saw this time around were aspiring rappers, half of them looked like lil wayne, and they were clueless and useless.  I went to a best buy in the same mall and the guy there was the only one that actually answered my simple question....i don't know shit about computers and i just wanted to know what the difference was between the hard drives....and the guy at BEST BUY was the only one who could answer. 

 

Also i notice all apple shareholders are emotional fanboys with weak hands (lol at icahn, "apple is worth $220 it is the best stock ever...." and two weeks later he liquidates at $90). 

 

Cook seemed like a good chap, but after visiting those stores it is obvious to me that Apple died with Steve Jobs.

 

You guys should be ashamed if you own this stock. 

 

[DooDiligence]

I have all apple products. Don't own the stock.  Went to three apple stores in the last 2 days to buy an iMac (first 2 stores were out of the trackpads).  Apple stores have gone to shit, 2 years ago i remember walking in being greeted by friendly hipsters with beards and extremely tight pants who seemed to know what they were talking about. 

 

All i saw this time around were aspiring rappers, half of them looked like lil wayne, and they were clueless and useless.  I went to a best buy in the same mall and the guy there was the only one that actually answered my simple question....i don't know shit about computers and i just wanted to know what the difference was between the hard drives....and the guy at BEST BUY was the only one who could answer. 

 

Also i notice all apple shareholders are emotional fanboys with weak hands (lol at icahn, "apple is worth $220 it is the best stock ever...." and two weeks later he liquidates at $90). 

 

Cook seemed like a good chap, but after visiting those stores it is obvious to me that Apple died with Steve Jobs.

 

You guys should be ashamed if you own this stock.

 

Talk about fanboys; you actually went to 3 Apple stores AND a BestBuy?

 

Did the guy in BestBuy have a suitably tight pair of trousers?

 

OMG I am sooooooooooo ashamed...

[fareastwarriors]

I have all apple products. Don't own the stock.  Went to three apple stores in the last 2 days to buy an iMac (first 2 stores were out of the trackpads).  Apple stores have gone to shit, 2 years ago i remember walking in being greeted by friendly hipsters with beards and extremely tight pants who seemed to know what they were talking about. 

 

All i saw this time around were aspiring rappers, half of them looked like lil wayne, and they were clueless and useless.  I went to a best buy in the same mall and the guy there was the only one that actually answered my simple question....i don't know shit about computers and i just wanted to know what the difference was between the hard drives....and the guy at BEST BUY was the only one who could answer. 

 

Also i notice all apple shareholders are emotional fanboys with weak hands (lol at icahn, "apple is worth $220 it is the best stock ever...." and two weeks later he liquidates at $90). 

 

Cook seemed like a good chap, but after visiting those stores it is obvious to me that Apple died with Steve Jobs.

 

You guys should be ashamed if you own this stock.

 

 

wow... 

[johnny]

You guys should be ashamed if you own this stock.

 

I have a new favorite poster

[rkbabang]

I have all apple products. Don't own the stock.  Went to three apple stores in the last 2 days to buy an iMac (first 2 stores were out of the trackpads).  Apple stores have gone to shit, 2 years ago i remember walking in being greeted by friendly hipsters with beards and extremely tight pants who seemed to know what they were talking about. 

 

All i saw this time around were aspiring rappers, half of them looked like lil wayne, and they were clueless and useless.  I went to a best buy in the same mall and the guy there was the only one that actually answered my simple question....i don't know shit about computers and i just wanted to know what the difference was between the hard drives....and the guy at BEST BUY was the only one who could answer. 

 

Also i notice all apple shareholders are emotional fanboys with weak hands (lol at icahn, "apple is worth $220 it is the best stock ever...." and two weeks later he liquidates at $90). 

 

Cook seemed like a good chap, but after visiting those stores it is obvious to me that Apple died with Steve Jobs.

 

You guys should be ashamed if you own this stock.

 

Talk about fanboys; you actually went to 3 Apple stores AND a BestBuy?

 

Did the guy in BestBuy have a suitably tight pair of trousers?

 

OMG I am sooooooooooo ashamed...

 

I'm heading to the mall to do a tight pants check on Best Buy.  If this anecdote is true and Best Buy really does have a stronger tight pants rating I am selling all of my Apple stock and buying Best Buy so I don't have to be ashamed anymore.

 

[Liberty]

I think we've just discovered that finding quality retail staff is very hard to scale up because the number of people-friendly computer geeks is more or less a constant in the population but Apple's retail operation is way, way bigger than it was 10 years ago.

[DCG]

I'm still dumbfounded how the iPhone can still work so terribly with car stereos. It was understandable in the early days of it, but it's been around for nearly 10 years.

 

The fact that it automatically starts playing the first song in alphebetical order every time you connect the iPhone to a car stereo is mind-bogglingly stupid. In the billion iphone users, I can't imagine a single one of them actually liking this. I also can't believe, out of the 80,000 or so Apple employees, not a single one of them can point out to the design team that this is incredibly annoying.

 

When you use the podcasting app, or other audio apps such as Spotify, it often doesn't know what to do. It starts playing something from Apple music when you're trying to use a different app. If you unplug the phone (or even turn off your car) for a even just few minutes and plug it back in, it often just starts playing the first song starting with A in Apple Music again instead of pickup up where you left off.

 

About 40% of the time I plug the phone into the USB cord, the stereo isn't able to recognize the device.

 

I used to think it was just due to the fact that I had an old car with an old stereo, but now I have a new car, and have been traveling and using various rental cars, and the iPhone is a pain in the ass to use in every car.

My wife uses bluetooth with her iPhone in her car and has the same problems.

 

Android has to work better than this in cars, no?

 

iPods released 15 years ago did not have these problems. You plugged it into your car and they worked great.

[rkbabang]

I'm still dumbfounded how the iPhone can still work so terribly with car stereos. It was understandable in the early days of it, but it's been around for nearly 10 years.

 

The fact that it automatically starts playing the first song in alphebetical order every time you connect the iPhone to a car stereo is mind-bogglingly stupid. In the billion iphone users, I can't imagine a single one of them actually liking this. I also can't believe, out of the 80,000 or so Apple employees, not a single one of them can point out to the design team that this is incredibly annoying.

 

When you use the podcasting app, or other audio apps such as Spotify, it often doesn't know what to do. It starts playing something from Apple music when you're trying to use a different app. If you unplug the phone (or even turn off your car) for a even just few minutes and plug it back in, it often just starts playing the first song starting with A in Apple Music again instead of pickup up where you left off.

 

About 40% of the time I plug the phone into the USB cord, the stereo isn't able to recognize the device.

 

I used to think it was just due to the fact that I had an old car with an old stereo, but now I have a new car, and have been traveling and using various rental cars, and the iPhone is a pain in the ass to use in every car.

My wife uses bluetooth with her iPhone in her car and has the same problems.

 

Android has to work better than this in cars, no?

 

iPods released 15 years ago did not have these problems. You plugged it into your car and they worked great.

 

I don't have any of these problems, but I don't use Apple music or the Apple podcast app.  I use Cartunes for music, Overcast for podcasts, and Bookmobile for audiobooks.  They all work as you would expect them to.

 

[DooDiligence]

I'm still dumbfounded how the iPhone can still work so terribly with car stereos. It was understandable in the early days of it, but it's been around for nearly 10 years.

 

The fact that it automatically starts playing the first song in alphebetical order every time you connect the iPhone to a car stereo is mind-bogglingly stupid. In the billion iphone users, I can't imagine a single one of them actually liking this. I also can't believe, out of the 80,000 or so Apple employees, not a single one of them can point out to the design team that this is incredibly annoying.

 

When you use the podcasting app, or other audio apps such as Spotify, it often doesn't know what to do. It starts playing something from Apple music when you're trying to use a different app. If you unplug the phone (or even turn off your car) for a even just few minutes and plug it back in, it often just starts playing the first song starting with A in Apple Music again instead of pickup up where you left off.

 

About 40% of the time I plug the phone into the USB cord, the stereo isn't able to recognize the device.

 

I used to think it was just due to the fact that I had an old car with an old stereo, but now I have a new car, and have been traveling and using various rental cars, and the iPhone is a pain in the ass to use in every car.

My wife uses bluetooth with her iPhone in her car and has the same problems.

 

Android has to work better than this in cars, no?

 

iPods released 15 years ago did not have these problems. You plugged it into your car and they worked great.

 

This is likely to be one of the following:

 

a) Defective or aftermarket sync cable.

 

b) Defective USB port.

 

c) Poor head unit design.

 

I recently bought a Chevy Colorado & have experienced a problem with the volume controls continuing to only control phone volume after making a call.

 

When the call is ended, the radio volume is significantly reduced & I'm unable to turn the volume up using either the steering wheel control or the volume knob on the head unit & occasionally lose all control of the head unit (ie: nothing happens when any button is pressed.)

 

I turn the stereo off & disconnect & reconnect the phone & the problem goes away.

 

After reading on a Chevy owners forum I find that most users point to the above list of culprits.

 

I will be taking the vehicle in to the dealer to see if they can resolve this.

 

It is truly annoying...

 

 

[DooDiligence]

The majority of my experience with CarPlay has been wonderful!

 

No more $200 map updates...

[DooDiligence]

I have all apple products. Don't own the stock.  Went to three apple stores in the last 2 days to buy an iMac (first 2 stores were out of the trackpads).  Apple stores have gone to shit, 2 years ago i remember walking in being greeted by friendly hipsters with beards and extremely tight pants who seemed to know what they were talking about. 

 

All i saw this time around were aspiring rappers, half of them looked like lil wayne, and they were clueless and useless.  I went to a best buy in the same mall and the guy there was the only one that actually answered my simple question....i don't know shit about computers and i just wanted to know what the difference was between the hard drives....and the guy at BEST BUY was the only one who could answer. 

 

Also i notice all apple shareholders are emotional fanboys with weak hands (lol at icahn, "apple is worth $220 it is the best stock ever...." and two weeks later he liquidates at $90). 

 

Cook seemed like a good chap, but after visiting those stores it is obvious to me that Apple died with Steve Jobs.

 

You guys should be ashamed if you own this stock.

 

Talk about fanboys; you actually went to 3 Apple stores AND a BestBuy?

 

Did the guy in BestBuy have a suitably tight pair of trousers?

 

OMG I am sooooooooooo ashamed...

 

I'm heading to the mall to do a tight pants check on Best Buy.  If this anecdote is true and Best Buy really does have a stronger tight pants rating I am selling all of my Apple stock and buying Best Buy so I don't have to be ashamed anymore.

 

I just bought a pair of spandex pants (already have a beard) & am contemplating putting in an application to work in an Apple store!

[glorysk87]

I'm still dumbfounded how the iPhone can still work so terribly with car stereos. It was understandable in the early days of it, but it's been around for nearly 10 years.

 

The fact that it automatically starts playing the first song in alphebetical order every time you connect the iPhone to a car stereo is mind-bogglingly stupid. In the billion iphone users, I can't imagine a single one of them actually liking this. I also can't believe, out of the 80,000 or so Apple employees, not a single one of them can point out to the design team that this is incredibly annoying.

 

When you use the podcasting app, or other audio apps such as Spotify, it often doesn't know what to do. It starts playing something from Apple music when you're trying to use a different app. If you unplug the phone (or even turn off your car) for a even just few minutes and plug it back in, it often just starts playing the first song starting with A in Apple Music again instead of pickup up where you left off.

 

About 40% of the time I plug the phone into the USB cord, the stereo isn't able to recognize the device.

 

I used to think it was just due to the fact that I had an old car with an old stereo, but now I have a new car, and have been traveling and using various rental cars, and the iPhone is a pain in the ass to use in every car.

My wife uses bluetooth with her iPhone in her car and has the same problems.

 

Android has to work better than this in cars, no?

 

iPods released 15 years ago did not have these problems. You plugged it into your car and they worked great.

 

i haven't experienced any of these issues...