“As Apple’s reputation for execution falters in the post-Jobs years, Samsung’s ruthless pace could put it ahead, even if customers would ultimately suffer,” Rob Enderle writes for DigitalTrends.
“Apple has excelled by taking Microsoft ideas and improving on them. The problem hasn’t been that Microsoft didn’t innovate; the company just didn’t execute. Microsoft manufactured smartphones and even had the idea for the iPhone before Apple did,” Enderle writes. “Microsoft produced MP3 players before Apple had an Apple iPod Touch-like product on the market. They played music and did most of what the iPod Touch did years before the Touch came to market. Even though Microsoft wasn’t the first with tablets, Microsoft tablets were on the market years before the iPad.”
Enderle writes, “The consumer electronics market is speeding up. Smartphones in particular have moved quickly to 4G along with larger screens and faster processors. Apple, which once led this market in technology, always had issues, with the latest radios being late to both 3G and 4G. More recently, Apple has fallen behind in screen size. Even if the iPhone is 4 inches, the market appears to have already moved to 4.5 inches, placing Apple behind.”
MacDailyNews Take: While the off-his-meds Enderle clearly ought to change his name to Old Man Jenkins, his disinformative ramblings do raise a central question:
What have we really seen from Apple since Steve Jobs passed?
• A “new” iPhone (4S) that looks exactly like the previous iPhone and whose claim to fame is a beta feature (Siri) that Apple purchased and which even Apple’s co-founder lampoons with regularity.
• Expected, predictable evolutions of the MacBook Pro and Air model lines.
• A new iPad that looks exactly like the previous iPad, but with a better screen and a faster chip. In other words: another totally predictable evolution.
• A new OS X, drop the “Mac” please; another predictable evolution.
• A new iOS, about which we can barely imagine muster the interest to bother installing. Oh, yeah, we get the promise of “Facebook” integration – coming “later this fall.” Thrilling. On the positive side: Maybe Siri will actually finally work more than 20% of the time.
• Ron Johnson, the guy who built the most profitable retailer in the world, exited Apple and was replaced by Cook with some random dunce from Dixons who obviously doesn’t understand the Apple way and who is already “fixing” what isn’t broken, but instead is the public face of the company and one of the main engines for its success.
• Bob Mansfield, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering, retires. Replaced by someone from inside Apple, at least (Dan Riccio, Apple’s vice president of iPad Hardware Engineering). We’ll see. Fingers crossed.
• Apple continuing to do billions of dollars of business with Samsung, a company which is stealing Apple’s intellectual property left and right, outselling Apple by tens of millions of handset units in the process.
• A Mac Pro flagship that is, for now, the ultimate symbol of the post-Jobs Apple: Stagnant, slow, old, neglected and rapidly becoming a sad joke.
Bottom line: We haven’t seen much to get excited about yet, but we have seen much about which to be concerned.
As we wrote in a response to a reader yesterday: [The success you see from Apple thus far has been the result of] Steve Jobs’ massive momentum. [Virtually anyone with a brain could have been Apple’s CEO and experienced the same degree of success – or more – so far (and they likely wouldn’t have hired John Browett, either)].
Until we see something insanely great created under Tim Cook’s leadership, with no prior input from Jobs, the jury remains out on Cook as CEO.
Is Cook a visionary CEO or a mere caretaker? We’ll know soon enough.
Yes, we know Steve Jobs personally handpicked Tim Cook. He also handpicked John Sculley.
Enderle writes, “Samsung is cycling its products quicker and thus improving them faster than Apple does, which should result in a sustainable execution advantage. Given this is how Samsung beat Sony, one can easily conclude that, using the same strategy, Samsung may be poised to beat Apple.”
“Besides Samsung’s speed advantages, there are early indications that Apple is getting weaker. I’m seeing reports out of the Apple stores that satisfaction is dropping as Jobs’ policies of focusing staff on customer satisfaction are replaced by policies focusing staff on sales (and Apple has had a history of underpaying staff),” Enderle writes.
“On the product side, the product-refresh cycle has clearly slowed down. The expected iPhone launch (traditionally in June) has apparently slipped until September, the Mac refresh was very late, and unless something happens quickly, even the fourth-quarter refresh of the iPods (generally in August) will be late,” Enderle writes. “Word out of Apple suggests postponed decisions, missed deadlines, and an increase in secrets leaking out of the company, all of which points to Apple having difficulty executing. With Samsung increasing its level of execution and Apple falling off, one has the potential to replace the other, but the customer gets screwed.”
Enderle writes, “I’ve personally bought a number of Samsung products, and the company’s service and support organization is truly horrid, particularly compared to Apple’s… Unless Samsung improves the way it treats customers, I can’t support that company replacing Apple at the top of the pile.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Here’s hoping Apple’s malaise on the product side so far in the post-Jobs era is not because the magic died with Steve Jobs, but because Tim Cook, Jony Ive, Scott Forstall et al. have been working just as hard as they did with Jobs there to push them and are just about ready to stun us with some real envelope-pushing again!
What a bunch of Enderlite crap.
MDN : fantastic take. You state the facts without being a rah,rah fanboy. You tell it like it REALLY is. Beautiful. I’m always amazed how people on this site are taken to task as being a troll or an Apple hater just because they point out the obvious problems with Apple. It doesn’t bother someone like me because as a parent I understand that the good comes with the bad. Fanboys are the last thing that any company or individual ever needs. Honesty is all that matters. I’m going to guess that Tim Cook scans through the different Apple sites and hopefully will read your take on the current Apple company. If he does, I hope he pays attention. The removal of Browett would be a start but it’s just one of many things that needs to be corrected at Apple. And I’m speaking as a long time Apple user and investor not as a fanboy.
Like Weekend, my post has nothing to do with the OPs comment, but I’ll reply so my comment is near the top.
Seems to be a theme with the new format.
Troll.
Lots of people on this site state facts without being “rah, rah fanboys.” I am getting a bit tired of your supercilious posts, Weekend.
I am not willing to push the panic button, at this point. People seem to forget that there were droughts of products during Job’s reign as CEO, as well.
As far as Enderle (and Thurott, for that matter) goes, I wonder why MDN even bothers to post their drivel anymore.
Because if he doesn’t post their drivel then he won’t have anythingto whinge about 😐
MDN should run stories from all points of view regarding Apple. They usually run pro or over the top pro Apple stories. So I don’t know why you would complain unless you are nothing but a fanboy? You learn more about your accomplishments in a battle after speaking to your enemy. In other words, you need all perspectives regarding any subject matter. Only immature Fanboys want nothing but positive stories. Just write stories and then read them back to yourself that should make you happy. Right,kingmel? Start an Apple blog and then listen to yourself later. It should really make you happy. You’re tired? Try taking a nap. Sounds like you could use one. If you don’t care for my posts why would you read them? A bit full of yourself aren’t you? We’ll all try to post things that make you happy in the future. In fact, I think we will all run our posts by you to see if they are acceptable. Will that make you happy,kingmel?
I don’t want only “pro Apple” stories, Weekend. That is *your* assertion. However, I don’t like wasting my time with FUD from Enderle and Thurott. I don’t consider them “enemies,” just ill-informed and fond of wild, highly speculative behavior.
I have been critical of Apple on many occasions. But I strongly prefer to base my inputs on evidence and sound reasoning. Too often nowadays, people seem to feel that a strong belief in something is equivalent to a factual basis. Conviction is no substitute for the truth, no matter how strong.
You can call me a fanboy all you like. I am certainly a strong supporter of Apple and a fanboy in the good sense of the word. I stuck with Apple through the dark ages of the mid-1990s. But I don’t blindly follow anyone or accept any important assertion without critical examination.
There are a few people who might benefit from “running their posts past me,” Weekend. It might help them avoid sounding foolish. You just might be one of those people. But I am not your editor, and I am not volunteering for that job.
I have been using Macs and everything Apple for 30 plus years. I too support Apple through thick and thin. I use my Macs professionally so I need the company to succeed. I am heavily invested in AAPL. I’m hoping this week will mirror last weeks success. But in the end it’s a company that doesn’t care if I like or approve of them and their moves. They only want to sell more stuff. The difference between them and other companies is that they also want to sell great stuff. But make no mistake, they’re not our buddy. And they are ignoring the professional users. But there is more money to be made with the everyday consumer so I understand. When something better comes along I won’t hesitate to move away from Apple. Even after all these years. I am no fanboy.
ok
RAH RAH FANYBOYS
Looking forward to more cogent inputs for you, Poop Tater.
mel – it’s the first time in a while i’ve heard anything from Enderle. I really thought MSFT pulled him from the teat and kicked him to the curb like a runt piglet. He never ceases to amaze me at how his take on things mixes revisionist reality with B.S. Flair that helps the average wall street analyst believe his tripe. Comparing a 2005 HP Tablet PC to the first gen. iPad is absolute ridiculousness, yet he feels the need to hold microsoft up on a pillar for some reason.
My concern is more the software side.
Loss of functionality with Lion, iPhoto, TextEdit, Safari 6 single search pane etc.
You’re right. It is all about the number of hits he can get and virtually nothing to do with reality.
I am quite surprised that MDN fell for this bullshit hook, line and sinker.
Every minute, another fish is born.
Enderle has the basics facts of his story wrong: Tim Cook has been running Apple on a day-to-day basis since 2009, and all Apple products issued since October 2010 bear the imprint of Steve Jobs despite the fact that he’s dead. So if Apple’s market share is not growing as fast as Samsung’s, it has nothing to do with changes at the top of the company.
And speaking of that, Apple is easily beating Samsung in the US market, where carriers subsidize phones for customers. Apple’s problem is trying to sell an expensive phone in lower-income markets, without carrier subsidies or other forms of financing. Financing is one big reason why Samsung’s share of the world market exceeds Apple’s share, while in America Apple is dominant.
Hold your clicks, surely!
Re. the iPhone 4S, I’m thinking of upgrading to it just for the camera.
That is the reason I invested in the iPhone 4S in the first place. It is a snazzy piece of machinery, and takes simply flawless photos. You should be able to pick up one pretty soon with the new generation coming out.
Logic? “Given this is how Samsung beat Sony, one can easily conclude that, using the same strategy, Samsung may be poised to beat Apple.” No, now the market is different and Apple is no Sony.
Enderle is an extremist: instead of looking at what is there, he uses the facts to support his prejudices.
Are you reading this Tim Cook! Pls amaze us with something Revolutonary! Not evolutionary! Pleeeeease!
The iPhone will have record sales the first quarter it comes out. That will shut him up a while.
Oh come on the apple haters keep saying this over and over, Apple’s magic is gone!
-They said it after the iPod dominated the market, they said it was a one time anomaly and that Apple would sink back down to the “niche” status, from where they came.
-Then came the phone (which revolutionized not only the telecommunications industry but also the mobile computing industry as well) But again (after the initial poo poo’ing it as not working that well and lacking features that other phone like the blackbury and the motorolloa “q” had (ha ha!) But again thay said it has been several years and apple has not released (yet) another blockbuster product (never mind that most companies (like Goooooogle, MS and samesung NEVER introduce groundbreaking products blockbuster or otherwise)
-Then Apple launches the iPad, again the haterz proclaimed it a failure (upon launch) and labeled it “a big iPod”
Now here we are again just 3 years from an industry upending product release and the haters are at it again, Appel hasn’t upended and then dominated an entire industry in 3 whole years! They are DOOOOOOOOMED for sure!!!
Give me a break.
I don’t recall anyone saying “the magic is gone” while Jobs was at the helm.
I was regularly hearing that the magic was gone and that the good old Apple had been replaced by a horrible Microsoftian monster drunk on its own success, long before Steve Jobs was even diagnosed with a problem.
You could barely even say the word “apple” on a public forum without some clown coming in and claiming this.
except when they replaced him…. It took a hiatus for him to come back rejuvenated and focused.
Then you, my friend, have a short memory.
It is a constant, dismissing apple’s new product (until it was wildly successful) and then proclaiming it an anomaly that apple can’t do it again.
no, I have a superb memory.
or more accurately, as most everyone is discovering, Jobs was the magic.
Apparently not.
okay, Mister Smarty-Britches, ask me all the state capitals.
Oooh… lets play are you smarter than a 5th grader.
On second thought… not.
bet you can’t do it.
HELLo I DO NOT LIKE YOU YOU ARE MEAN I WILL Sass u
Mom, is that you?
^ this.
Also the resolution changes in the iPad and even more the new MacBook are indeed revolutionary. The MacBook was the first giant leap in resolution in all of computing history going back to the original Mac. It’s a huge breakthrough product, we are just so spoiled at how incredible Apple has been that we think it’s nothong special.
That is a very good point. Show me any other device with the resolution of the current iPad–any device at any price, much less $499.
Also remember, it took 6 years between the iPod, iTunes, Apple retail and the iPhone. And the iPad was an extension of the iPhone.
Cook needs another 3 or 4 years before we know if he is a creative genius or if he can recognize creative genius.
I am typing this on a Macbook Retina, which is not simply evolutionary. It is radically superior to anything else on the market. When Jobs was CEO, there were years going by with simply new dayglo colors of the original iMac. There were years of no significant innovation other than updating the ipod. The only big hardware landmarks of his entire return tenure were the ipod, the flat iMac, and the iphone. So let’s not be too harsh on Cook yet. I agree that Browett is a catastrophe that must go. But keep in mind that Johnson is failing at JC Penney. Enderle exaggerates about delays at Apple: the last iphone was introduced in the fall as well, under Jobs, and THAT was the delayed launch. This year will be ahead of the one year schedule.
There is no question they need to refresh quicker, or at least they’re late this time. But Christmas lies ahead, and that market will dominate what happened in the last quarter or so. if ITV is great, that’s a landmark, and a new breakthrough.
Remember as well, Jobs knew the next 5 years plan. So if there are no innovations yet, that is simply the time required to get a product RIGHT. And that, above all, is what sets Apple apart. They get it right.
Read MDN’s points again. Get your head out of the sand. It’s ok to agree that Apple isn’t perfect. Do you think anyone or company is? Don’t live in some make believe world where people or companies are perfect. Acting like nothing is wrong doesn’t help anyone. Pointing out the obvious sales of Apple product is just that, it’s obvious. No one needs to point that out to the rest of us. Quit acting like a 12-year-old. Quit acting like anyone who makes honest comments is a troll are an Apple hater. You are doing more harm than good by ignoring the facts.
I certainly am not ignoring the obvious, but perhaps you are. Apple can’t possibly come out with groundbreaking, industry changing products like the iPod the iPhone (and the iPod touch) and the iPad every year (or even every other year. Products like this take years of R&D and years product refinement before the are ready for the market.
No apple is far from perfect, and the gaffe by Browett was significant (though easily reversible, at least he didn’t attempt to stand on his decision. But any proof Apple has lost it’s magic will take years to confirm. And, btw spattering an attempted legitimate rebuttal (if that is what it was) with insults, will never help make you point.
Gosh,I thought that it was not only deserving but more than a spattering. Your first sentence throws out the usual fanboy attack on anything negative regarding Apple ; Apple haters. Right? Then you repeat it again. And for no reason. No, you deserve it and I gave it to you. I’ll do better next time.
There is a HUGE difference between personal insults and calling a category of people (who hate apple) apple haters.
(As a matter of fact most all “apple haters” will if candid, will tell you they hate apple) so im not sure how much of an insult that really is. However, I guess I will admit to (and many in my employ will attest to) not suffering fools gladly.
Saying that a comment is a troll is not a personal insult, trolling is the act of throwing out an intentionally controversial statement (normally in an enthusiasts forum)
Calling someone a troll means that they are not really arguing honestly, but are in fact just making an intentionally statement simply to “stir the pot” and cause controversy.
Unfortunately we live in a time where where people are paid to make these kind of posts and blogs (i.e. astroturfing)
Whenever I see a post that simply doesn’t conform to a reasonable interpretation of reality (like the current talking point that is being constantly blogged “Apple has lost it’s magic”, While the constant repetition may in fact just be “web echo” I think it more likely astroturfing.
Apple haters? Really now, why would anybody hate Apple? As I said before, you’re just a fanboy who reacts violently to anything that doesn’t glorify Apple. That’s a sign of immaturity. Live with it. It’s what you are. The proof is in the pudding. You go to great lengths here to justify calling someone an Apple hater or a troll. What else would I expect from a fanboy?
Hey Weekend –
Just STFU. What you are saying is so ridiculous, no matter how eloquently you try and parse it. Apple has not lost its “magic” (whatever that means). They are still churning out great products. And will continue to do so. Seems to me something is happening this September, IIRC. All signs point to a redesigned iphone and maybe an ipad mini nad maybe some sort of TV thing. Who knows. True – Apple is not perfect. They make mistakes (Browett). What’s important is how they respond to making a big mistake.
You appear to me to be one of the generation of the over spoiled who feels entitled to earth shattering new stuff at the drop of a hat. I don’t mind name calling and to me you really do appear to be a trolling @sshat. What you fail to realize is that the tighter you hold to a ridiculous supposition, the less and less people will take you seriously. You will join the ranks of those names that people eventually just skip over when reading the comments thinking to themselves: “that guy never converses. He only yells and never listens. Pass.”
Apple lost its magic? Who said that? And I hate to burst your bubble but I follow Apple as closely as anyone could possibly follow it. I’m invested heavily in Apple so it’s in my best interest to know everything they do. And I do. From rumors to facts, I follow everything Apple does and may do. I’m well aware of Apple’s product lines and scheduled and rumored release dates. I’ll be interested in seeing the new iPad Mini. Trust me, I’m not of any generation that grew up expecting anything. Quite the opposite. Browett was a mistake. He needs to go. That’s the end of that story. As far being called a fanboy, if you’re not then I suppose you’re not insulted. And feel free to skim past my posts in the future. I promise I will not be insulted. You have your opinion I have mine. Have a nice day.
Obviously you have jumped the shark (give them enough rope et all) however you (in your nonsensical rambling) have stumble onto an interesting conundrum.
Why do apple hater hate apple so?… The reverse is easy to figure People who much preferred the ease of the Apple Mac were forced to use MS products on a PeeCee (because of the MS market lock) because “it’s compatible” (my personal favorite nonsensical answer) at work, where they didn’t have full decision authority (or were overruled by IT pinheads.) It is easy to see why they would really begin to hate MS and how it forced them to use a substandard (and often frustrating) product. (and get less done with more effort as a result)
However the reverse, that is not so easy to understand… Why would MS fans even bother with the Mac, they aren’t forced to use it by IT pinheads (oh there may be an isolated case but 99.99% of the time wanting a win PeeCee at work will result in you getting one.) So the question is Why the hate? Why spend you time stalking the MDN board (and others) constantly posting nonsense and FUD under multiple names? What motivates these sad little trolls to hate apple and to waste their time on a site where they hate the products and the manufacturer? Shouldn’t apple just be an irrelevant side-note to them? (though not so much with iOS)
I have used Macs probably longer than you have been alive. I use my Macs professionally. I’m not an amateur. I neither love nor hate Microsoft. Why would I? I just don’t use it. The taste of celery is not something that I enjoy. But I don’t hate celery. Why would I hate celery? Isn’t hating Microsoft or anything that’s not Apple sort of childish? Well of course it is. The reverse is true also. I have no reason to love Apple. They make fantastic products and I buy and use all of them. But it’s just a company, it’s not a living breathing thing. Save your devotion and support for people not for a company that doesn’t know you or care what you think. Don’t be so defensive when people make legitimate critical remarks about Apple. It’s just a company. It’s also an investment that made me, a ton of money today. Options,now there’s something to get excited about.
I have to tell you when you dispute that people hate apple (no matter how long you ramble) you just sound silly (more than usual which is quite an achievement). Windows fanboys not only hate Apple, they even hate Apple users.
I recall that one famous quote (windows user) said that it made him want to put his cigarette out in “smug” Mac users Eyes. (this was back during the switcher campaign if I recall correctly)
Anyone attribute the quote, I don’t recall.
Tess : talk about going on and on and on and nothing to say. But keep going we’re all listening…………….
Perfect response Tessellator.
Enderle, and MDN too, ignore that new products (even upgrades) take a couple years to get to market. SJ has been gone for less than a year.
Apple is 3 – 5 years ahead of the competition. NOBODY is positioned to leap frog the moat Apple has built, not even that master fast copier SamSung.
Yep, they want it to be so, sooooooo badly.
For the rise of apple to be over, or better yet just have just been a bad dream.
So they can all get back to worshiping at the the alter of the almighty MS.
It’s interesting that Mac proponents get labeled as zealots who worship apple & jobs, when in reality Apple fans pale by comparison to the religious devotion of the MS worshipers.
Very, very true summary!
That’s it! I’m going Amish and saying to heck with all of this technology stuff. Wonder how much a horse and buggy costs?
Heretic! Those buggy technology is sent from the satan. We are not meant to travel at such insane speeds. Save your soul and life in a cave. Those evil high-tech Amish. They even use woven clothes and they use man-made tools. How dare they?!
Thos amish will burn in hell.
His holy noodleness, the flying spaghetti monster, said to me in a dream we shall dedicated out lives to harvest durum wheat and tomatoes and eat the only holy dish there is : noodles.
RAMEN!
Ramen is most definitely considered a delicacy on Earth.
Microsoft’s Surface looked extremely buggy.
“Microsoft manufactured smartphones and even had the idea for the iPhone before Apple did,” Enderle writes. “Microsoft produced MP3 players before Apple had an Apple iPod Touch-like product on the market. They played music and did most of what the iPod Touch did years before the Touch came to market.”
Wrong, wrong, and wrong. Lies, John, all lies.
The expected iPhone launch (traditionally in June) has apparently slipped until September, the Mac refresh was very late, and unless something happens quickly, even the fourth-quarter refresh of the iPods (generally in August) will be late.”
Apple moved the annual iPhone refresh to the fall last year and even stated as much. Apple never released updated iPods in August. It’s almost always been in September.
I am an Apple user/fan myself, but usually I’m turned off by MDN’s over-the-top fanboyism. MDN’s take on this article is a refreshing change to that policy. Keep it up, please – most people seek balanced reporting, not propaganda.
Mdn was always the place to come to to get strong pro-Apple opinion.
There are an excess of places where you can get ‘balanced’ opinions about Apple. Mdn was never one of them.
If mdn is sounding ‘balanced’ then maybe I’m not interested in reading it any longer. There other places like dilger’s blog that are keeping a proper perspective still.
MDN and Enderle have shorted AAPL, that’s all.
Nathaniel : you speak for many of us. I couldn’t have said it better. Thanks.
MDN’s readership is widened to include those seeking ‘balance’. It used to be MDN was the place one sought the alternative from the negative opinion about Apple given by the majority of bloggers.
I don’t know MDN’s motive to introduce ‘balance’. Maybe it’s an aim to become more mainstream.
So you gain some new readers, and you lose some old ones.
Pardon my crudeness, but Enderle is a dick.
So when does the “crude” part come?
As my wife ofter says, a dick is useful.
Enderle, on the other hand, is not.
What a load of crap. Even MDN’s take is over the top.
Would a new iPhone and iPad that looks completely different be an indication that the older ones (under Jobs) were flawed in design? It’s sad to see MDN falling for this “looks the same” bullshit. Now we get a two-tone back on the next iPhone that adds nothing but a new look just to appease idiots like you.
It’s not that they look the same, it’s that they are totally predictable evolutions.
We have not seen anything revolutionary out of Apple since Steve Jobs died – unless you count the stupid decision to hire John Browett to lead Apple Retail (into the abyss) which almost started a revolution.
Give me a break, MDN! Steve has been gone for 10 months! You expect Apple to introduce something unexpected and revolutionary every year? Sorry, look back at Apple’s history and you’ll see that was never the case. The iPod came 17 years after the Mac. The iPhone came 6 years after the iPod. The iPad came 3 years after the iPhone. Apple’s strategy has always been steady, meticulous EVOLUTION, with the occasional revolution thrown in when entering a new product category. This is par for the course.
Now, Tim hiring that clown from Dixon’s was obviously a bad call. Bash him for that, but don’t let that poor decision cloud your judgement of Apple as a whole.
+1
What, Apple can’t introduce industry upturning products every 12 months? Ooooh they’re Dooooooomd, I tell you.
+1000
Very true. In a world of instant gratification, true innovation happens less frequent. Spitting out bigger and bigger Samsung screen phones has little to do with innovation. Especially when power consumption and practicality on an unstable, unintuative OS are the result. Apple stands for quality and not rapid releases. Jobs detested flaws and poor execution of a product. Release an innovative product before its ready and it ruins the reputation of the product and dampers apples shine. Apple continues to grow successfully because it’s entire team is on board with the same goals.
So far, post-Jobs, all we’ve seen are minor updates to existing products, lackluster (or worse) advertising, mediocre public appearances, and a really bad hire that could kill Apple faster than anything,
We continue to wait for something positive.
Funny, all I’ve seen is the iPhone become the 1st, 2nd & 3rd best selling smartphone in the US, that Mac market share continues to rise, that the iPad continues to dominate the market in both quality and quantity, sales overseas absolutely explode (in a good way) and that Apple’s market value has risen over 70% since Tim Cook took over. I assume that, in MDN’s worldview, none of these are good things. I guess that says it all…
Their point is that your grandma at the helm would have brought the same results. Capice? We’re talking about COOK DECISIONS. They don’t speak very highly.
MDN : clearly your astute observations fall on many fanboy ears here. Please remember that it’s the adults who understand exactly how wise your words are. And it’s the minority (fanboys) who make up the majority of posts. But it’s the adults who have the discretionary income to spend with your advertisers.
Well said, basically dont shit on your plate MDN
“So far, post-Jobs, all we’ve seen are minor updates to existing products, lackluster (or worse) advertising”
So in 6 mos or so you haven’t seen a revolutionary product and you are ready to pass judgment? ANd you don’t think that a bit premature? (dam I’d hate to be your significant other’s shoes ;-))
On the advertising, WHile I didn’t really “get” the recent genus ads, the latest crop of iPhone commercials (Scorsese, Malkovich, Jackson, Dechanel) were some of the best they have ever done.
So Steve Jobs announced something revolutionary every few months, correct? Every iteration of the iPod was revolutionary, every iteration of the MBP was revolutionary, iPhone 3G to 3GS was revolutionary. Right? RIGHT?
By the way, the new iPad was a massive overhaul, though it may look the same. What exactly would have been better about it if Jobs was around?
I think it is interesting that MDN has decided to start pushing back – in rather stern tones – against its readers (see multiple postings from MDN after this one) who disagree with its juvenile and ill-considered assessments and takes. Somebody at MDN has forgotten that WE, the readers, are its customers and the treatment it is dishing out on just this posting alone is akin to being served by a surly waitress. If you aren’t interested in showing us some respect for our opinions, we can take our clicks elsewhere.
Meanwhile, let me make two critical points about MDN’s take: First, as I regularly point out, whoever writes MDN’s takes has all the maturity of an 11-year-old when it comes to patience. It was THREE YEARS between the iPhone and the iPad, and in-between we had such questionable experiences as MobileMe. But MDN’s what-have-you-done-for-me-lately analysis requires that Tim Cook change the world in a single year in order to be considered a worthy replacement.
Second, MDN’s hypocrisy knows no bounds: While the failure to produce a miracle on MDN’s timetable is an epic fail for Cook, the fact that the iPhone is the 1st, 2nd & 3rd best selling smartphone, that Mac market share continues to rise, that the iPad continues to dominate the market in both quality and quantity, and that Apple’s market value has risen over 70% since Cook took over – well, all this is apparently attributable to Steve Jobs.
Seriously, MDN – grow up. The world is both a more complicated and more interesting place than you think.
You are 180° off. MDN far too often is not critical of Apple. And far too often runs nothing but pro Apple stories. Completely ignoring stories on other sites that cover Apple when it screws up. So you are as wrong as you could be. In fact, it is rare to see MDN this open with any criticism about Apple. Perhaps a new day has dawned? I doubt that MDN would miss the clicks from fanboys as most of them only have loose change in their pocket.
Weekend aka MDN
Look back at SJ’s hiring. As recent as 2-3 years ago. Did he hire a senior exec that was kicked out later? I have a retina display MacBook. Revolutionary for design and quality. Blazing fast. Wtf is going on MDN? Enderle spoof your account? Of course you do display Microsoft ads on your site…
AKA MDN? Hardly. I don’t agree with MDM constantly running nothing but pro Apple stories. Run all the stories, good and bad. Perhaps start a separate section just for fanboys who can’t handle the real world. And I love my retina iPad. It’s wonderful. And oh by the way, Steve Jobs is dead. So Move on. Be concerned with the way Apple is being run now, not in the past. Don’t live in the past.
Man up, I took delivery the 1st iPod in Oct., 2001, the iPhone in June 2007. Things take time.
Steve’s been gone a year. He hired Cook in 1998 and worked with him for 13 years. He did not suffer fools.
To MDN, Steve made his offer to Sculley when Steve was 28. Calling that a mistake and comparing it to the Cook hire is ridiculous.
I think you are a presumptuous turd for declaring that the 2 tone serves no purpose. While ugly, a change in material provides transmissibility – remember the first iPhone? You Sir, are a typical blind fanboy caught in a reality distortion field.
1
Couldn’t agree more. This is the middle finger attitude that mdn should be representing and used to represent historically.
Mdn’s take is really uninformed. It knows better that anybody that Steve Jobs left a healthy pipeline of plans and products.
Today’s Apple is no different logistically than the 2002 Apple, when they were stealthily planning everything we see today. But back then mdn stood up for Apple.
Now mdn pretends as if everything Steve Jobs lived and died for has just vanished with his passing.
Mdn should know better than any other site that Apple has never been about one person. And mdn doesn’t know what Apple is up to today any better than they knew what Apple was up to in 2002. But this time mdn choose to side with the Enderle’s rather sticking up for Apple. What’s wrong mdn? You’ve become an Enderle cheerleading instead of an Apple cheerleader.
Now who’se off their meds? We’ve seen AAPL rise to record levels despite the death of its irreplaceable leader. We’ve seen profitable quarters after profitable quarters. We’ve seen the iPad gain more market share in a market it already owned and was predicted to lose share in. We’ve seen the impending launch of the next iPhone generate so much buzz that the entire smartphone market juggernaut has slowed down. We’ve seen Apple correct the error of its retail VP instantly. We’ve seen APPL exceed 600 Billion in Market Cap twice. We’ve seen more free publicity and public speculation about impending and, as yet non-existent, products than ever before (Apple brand TV and mini iPad.) Prodigious factory coordination on massive product releases.
MDN seems to have it in for Mr. Cook. Every product Mr. Jobs launched was criticized by others at launch and seen as either a sure fire failure or only an obvious evolution. MDN has appropriately pointed out how revolutionary these products are (iPhone 4S, new iPad, MacBook Pro Retina display most recently). Now you are flip flopping and agreeing with Rob Enderle. Perhaps you let your version of “Dixons” guy write this article. Stop criticizing Apple’s Cook and fire the asshole who wrote an article that uses Ron Enderle as a launch pad for its flip-flopping vitriol!
Everything you describe was set in motion by Steve Jobs. Any halfway competent caretaker CEO would have seen exactly the same success, maybe even more.
Until Cook proves himself to not be a caretaker CEO, we will regard him as a caretaker CEO, riding Steve Jobs’ comet until it sputters out.
The next round of product releases will tell part of the story – it’s likely Jobs had significant input into them. The following round of products after these will reveal what kind of a CEO Tim Cook really is.
PRECISELY.
You ignore the fact that you have defended the revolutionary quality of all of these evolutionary products, repeatedly. You also ignore the market value collapse after Jobs’ death that didn’t happen and the continued success of the company and products. You have popped the same Dixons bashing story up three days in a row. Oh yeah, have I mentioned that you have called these evolutionary products revolutionary over and over again?!!!!!
MDN, you are 100% correct that everything released by Apple in 2012 was set in motion (or not! cf: Mac Pro update) by Jobs before he died. but you are 100% wrong in not giving Cook and his team full credit for their very successful execution. with iPad 3, iCloud, Mountain Lion, iOS 6, the iPhone 6 and whatever we see next month, Apple has had a very good year. no, that wasn’t easy, and no mere “caretaker” could have delivered it.
you are right again that 2013 will show what this next generation of Apple leadership is really capable of. for me, one important test will be if they correct some of Jobs’ stubborn refusals. why, for simple example, does the iPad have such a crummy mono speaker? answer: because Jobs’ never prioritized good sound for Apple hardware, anytime. so the audio hardware was never the “best Apple could do,” altho its audio software was often the very best.
and using Enderle’s grab-bag of trumped up BS as a jump-off for you anti-Cook bias … well, that was stooping low.
no. Lame commercials, thicker iPad, evolutionary developments, terrible UI (iOS iPhoto, appleTV), mac Pro languishing, watering down the focus (Apple donations to charities, stock buyback, dividends), terrible leaks, hyperbolic promises about amazing products to come (as yet unfulfilled), terrible keynotes, missteps leading up to the four ass, need I go on?
Yes. Your view is so off you must be a Fandroid troll. STFU. All these lame things have made me a shit ton of money! You?
Cool. Guess I should mark my calendar. It’s the first time ever I’ve been called a troll.
Yeah, so you made money. Sure, I did too. Do you really miss the point? Native Cook decisions have been weak. That, Michael, is the point.
Enderle’s diatribe is predictably lame and so off base that it shouldn’t be posted.
MDNs ramblings are a bit more worrying. They are mirroring the typical analyst BS, discounting the fact that Apple are decimating multiple industries at the same time.
I’m pretty sure SJ had a lot of input on the iPhone 4S.
As usual Apple’s new products are not gimmicky but adopt new technology that improve performance and the experience.
Now understand this Tim Cook has been central to getting Apple to this point. Without him, products would have been delayed, prices would have been higher and the quality would have sucked.
Apple is a team not just one person. They have some of the best people in the world in their respective fields. So what TC lacks in vision others will provide.
Making the trains run on time does not make you a visionary genius capable of revolutionizing multiple industries.
The jury remains out on Tim Cook.
The jury should always remains out for CEO’s and senior management. It keeps the company healthy. Even with SJ there was plenty of negativity about his some of his moves.
What I don’t get is how you discount the fact that a successful company needs a good organization. SJ greatest asset in the end was not his vision but his ability to create a team that could make it possible. That is what he learnt after the exodus from Apple in 85 and honed at Next. This was so essentially for Apple’s success that without it even the greatest ideas would not have achieved squat.
No one can replace SJ because he was unique but the team such as Ive and Forstall can provide the innovation.
+1
MDN, Dude, you are jumping the shark.
It’s an inflatable shark in an inflatable pool with 3 inches of water in it.
Where’s The Fonz when you need him?
He may be a Softie too!!!!!!!
Lame writer has to submit something or his publisher-website goes to pot…so mash up something…some rumor…something that keeps the viewers…
Personal experience shows Apple’s products remain functional for a LONG time. The 3GS is still a fantastic smartphone and doesn’t have apps that quit and forced reboots. It works. The MacBook Pros hum along fine for 5-6 years until you do a major boo-boo in my experience.
Apple will cover the latest smartphone segment within weeks as they will with a smaller iPad, to suit needs of people like myself who carry the MBPro.
Apple is doing just fine. The article writer (won’t use his name) obviously needs more income.
And what has Samsung really done that is so great? Copy Apple, copy Apple, and copy Apple. Make a phone that won’t fit in your pocket, big deal. And to top it off they do buy one get one free and then claim there selling more phones when in actuality there giving them away. So in the end Apple is still on top and the innovations that Apple has done will continue and more than likely there will be some great new products coming. Underwear can insult Apple all he wants but in the end Apple has stomped on Microsoft and the PC industry during the worst time of the economy and continues to make products that people can actually use.
If Apple goes down, so eventually do the others. Without their “developer for the world”, and nothing new to copy, the whole industry stagnates.
Suicidal? In a corporate sense, yes, but the players are human—irrational, impulsive, envious, self-serving, and blind to the obvious. When things go south, they’ll grab what they can, and clear out.
Pay no attention to the Enderle man behind the curtain. His facts are incorrect and he completely misses the salient point that only Apple has released groundbreaking products that took the promise of an existing idea and made it workable in a product and for that they are to be super-commended. Apple is the executable leader making technology ideas actually work and all else are followers.
I am not aware of ANY mp3 player from Microsoft that came out before the iPod. Windows Mobile phones were a joke and even Bill Gates when he first saw the iPhone said “I wish we had invented this” putting to rest COMPLETELY any notion that Microsoft had something like it in the works. That doesn’t get them any brownie points anyway, not hardly. They also had unsuccessful tablet computers with a stylus on the market for many years in a form factor most found repugnant.
Any chance we can put Rob Enderle out of the tech world’s misery or at the very least a good tar and feathering? His writings are the writings of a madman and completely out to lunch. The master of the bad analysis stoked by unsubstantiated facts, fantasy and hyperbole.
Technically, the iPhone 4s was announced when Steve Jobs was still alive, so it wasn’t announced “since his passing”…
So Sanmsung us leaping ahead with great ideas like a bigger screen that’s big but Apple better screen is not. Hmmm then that assumes bigger screen is better so watch out Samsungs 8 inch phone is on its way. then 4G wow I mean Apple never thought of that. What a great Samsung idea. Oh right Apple as in Steve Jobs said no because of battery life. That was Steve right? Steve did not want the bigger screen
Ok maybe it’s true with no Steve it’s not gray things but to say 4g and bigger screens fine Samsung are great new things and enhanced screens and Siri from Apple us nothing well then that seems to be a double standard. Watch how many Surus there will be.
Bottom line is Samsung does the easy stuff and copies the innovation of Apple. If Apple fails to innovate don’t expect big things unless you count screen size from Samsung
True. I want a 42″ screen on wheels to push around as my phone. It’ll be great in my car.
Think most of you are missing some points. Most of apples output is evolutionary. Even Mac osx, iMac, iPod, iPhone etc were improvements on existing formulas. Steve was a fantastic remixer, the lee scratch perry of tech. Apple does a great job of evolution and occasionally the evolution is quite pronounced; but the term revolutionary is over used and hyperbolic.
A bigger than 4″ screen is better? I want something I can carry comfortably in a trouser pocket, not have have a jacket or courier bag to carry my phone.
4G? Show me where in the world this tech has been extensively introduced. Dammit, 3G is still a luxury in some parts of the UK!
Apple doing extensive business with Samsung?
Is MDN suffering amnesia? How many times has it been pointed out that it takes a long time to replace crucial component suppliers with new ones who have the capacity to produce both in quality and quantity, let alone end existing contracts. Anyone who imagines Apple can find equivalent suppliers overnight is delusional and irrational.
Yes MDN is full of it. They completely deny any wrong doing during the SJ reign.
This morning I had an extended chance to try a Galaxy 3. What a plastic cheap pos. Any who thinks that the UI on an iPhone sucks ought to try and navigate that android dog pile. The plastic on the back is so slipperly that it almost impossible to use it with one hand.
If this is MDN’s idea of revolutionary they need to change the name of the site to Samsung daily news.
twobraincells: Yes MDN is full of it. They completely deny any wrong doing during the SJ reign.
MDN: “Yes, we know Steve Jobs personally handpicked Tim Cook. He also handpicked John Sculley.”
Nowhere did MDN claim that Samsung’s Galaxy 3 is revolutionary. Reading comprehension is your friend.
(Brought to you by Carl’s Jr.)
One example in a litany of mistakes numb nuts.
At least I have nuts.
Her’es MDN blasting Apple’s Ping (and Jobs’ hockey puck mouse, for good measure):
I have many more, but I won’t bother further for a supercilious twit like you.
(Brought to you by Carl’s Jr.)
You started the unnecessary name calling. Try some courtesy.
I only started that because you first post was completely wrong and proven completely wrong by blatant facts contained within the article upon which you were commenting. Therefore you struck me as a stupid fucking idiot.
Crediting you with two brain cells was actually a compliment, moron.
(Brought to you by Carl’s Jr.)
Thanks for proving my point.
By the way how is that burger flipping at Carl’s jr working out for ya?
Enderle equates “had the idea before Apple” with executing and successfully marketing the product…… not even in the same ballpark. Ideas are a dime a dozen, successful products are comparatively rare as diamonds. That’s the difference between the Xerox PARC mouse and the Apple Macintosh mouse.
So many places to shoot holes in Enderle, just a few quite obvious ones should do-
Mac refresh was dependent on timing of Intel processor release, which INTEL delayed substantially. Not in Apple’s control.
What we did get when it came out was the best damned Mac ever made- the Retina Macbook Pro- which is revolutionary, if you actually use it. Faster than my Mac Pro, with a better display than any you can buy to go with your Mac (I have an NEC 30″ pro display so I’m not blowing smoke here). Dual Thunderbolt ports so chaining external drives and displays is a cake walk- it’s a photographer’s dream in the field or at home- that I can afford this as an amateur is a real blessing.
One thing to remember which John Gruber points out relentlessly, is that Apple got to where they are by working carefully and a long time before bringing out the version 1.0 of a new class product, then relentlessly refining and improving it over time, year by year. Not by major model changes and disruption, and not without building the software foundations carefully- maybe a a registered developer I have more perspective on the core technologies that were introduced earlier and laid the foundations for the hardware following- such as core imaging/graphics in the mid 2000 leading to the iPhone, and the resolution independent capabilities creeping into OSX that lead to the Macbook Pro Retina I’m typing on.
As an engineer, I have some appreciation for the effort it takes to develop significantly improved products, much less that which it takes to develop ground breaking product categories. MS has failed in the latter, with the overall history of their efforts outside Windows and office would be bankruptcy.
One point Enderle may be partly right about- good ideas are easy to come up with, insanely great execution in the real world, not so easy.
The new Galaxy note is a case in point; another plastic fantastic knock off with little innovation (a stylus! WOW! that was sure easier to do than a Retina display!) and more me, too. Folks like Enderle who dismiss the Retina display as eye candy obviously have no idea why contrast ratio, gray scale tracking, and color fidelity are important to photographers but also impact the quality of everything you do. You’d never get it from the PC makers, that’s for sure, as a quality user experience is not on their list of deliverables!
Winning can be defined many ways. Sammy will win on volume -how can they fail with the number of devices they push to market and BOGO deals providers offer. Apple will win on profits and customer experience.
I’ll take profits over volume any day.