“Taking shots at Apple isn’t exactly a new sport. It’s been popular since the dawn of Macintosh,” Ken Segall writes for Observatory. “Even Apple’s multiple revolutions wouldn’t change that attitude. iPod, iPhone, iPad, iWhatever. For those who disdain Apple, its success has always been easy to explain: It’s not about innovation or design. Apple takes its ideas from other companies. It succeeds through marketing hype. It’s all flash, little substance and hardly worth the price.”
“The detractors had to adapt when Apple became the most valuable technology company on earth. Fortunately, success makes a company even easier to loathe,” Segall writes. “Now Apple is just too big. It’s greedy and arrogant. It’s anti-freedom. And it’s still not worth the price. Clearly it’s doomed to failure.”
Segall writes, “For Apple stockholders, these types of claims have never been more than a harmless sideshow. However, one thing changed everything: the death of Steve Jobs… Without Steve as the driving force of Apple, people do react to the company differently. When they see an error, or weakness, or a competitor making inroads, they’re more receptive to the critics’ argument: without Steve, this isn’t the same Apple. I can’t say this is 100% wrong. Steve was unique. Irreplaceable. Things have to be different without him. However, ‘different’ isn’t quite the same as ‘doomed.'”
Much more in the full article – recommended – here.
Yep, the fate of Apple post-Steve is still up in the air. But we’d already have our verdict if Cook & Ive rushed a bunch of new, half-baked products out the door in a clumsy attempt to quell any apprehension about the company. The verdict would be: doomed. It would prove that they learned absolutely nothing from Steve.
Every Apple’s stores I passed by always packed with Apple’s fans.
I will buy more Apple’s products. Apple got me hooked like drug.
I agree with “When they see an error, or weakness, or a competitor making inroads, they’re more receptive to the critics’ argument.” Steve had a wonderful way of drawing attention away from problems. Such as the iPhone 4 antenna issues. He told the media every phone has problems, it is no big deal.
RIP distracting Steve
It was the truth.
Bashing YES, listen to consumer I doubt, to much emphasis on stocks from some and to color or aesthetics from others, hope they will listen to simple users. May be the solution is in the competition, markets…
The same bashers who hated Steve Jobs and never gave him any credit now say the company is lost because he died.
The company is doing fine.
Does the stock really describe how well a company is doing? In Apples case, I think not.
Exactly. They bashed Steve as a credit stealing asshole who only rode the “real” work of engineers before he died, then claim apple will wither within days of his passing because he was invaluable.
Both extremes are way off base.
People need to understand that Steve is gone, get it through their thick skulls. If you are looking for a Steve jobs replacement, there isn’t one. No one can compare to Steve.
Apple, is still Apple, they are still following their trailblazing ways but people need to realize that Apple isn’t going to reinvent themselves overnight. Even when Steve was around, products where released slowly and new things took their sweet time. The first iPhone didn’t have apps and there wasn’t an App Store. Even with Steve, things didn’t always work as planned but we had faith, that’s what makes an Apple fan and that’s what makes Apple great.
It sure took a long time before someone wrote about this, if someone else did, well good for them.
I certainly did contemplate what would happen to Apple once Steve Jobs retired, or the sad scenario of what actually happened. From what I’ve seen it’s pretty well spot on, the stock has taken a serious hit, there are all sorts of leadership attacks and death knells for Apple although the latter hasn’t changed much, Apple has always been passionately hated by those who love to hate.
The risk of it all is to see whether or not Steve Jobs was a visionary fisherman, that could fish for ideas or if he left a legacy and took the time to show people and provide an environment where people can fish on their own. It’s a twist on the adage of giving a person a fish feed them for a day, teach a person to fish, feed them for a lifetime.
I’m willing to lean toward the latter, only cause I am optimistic. The danger here is that western society is now so disempowered by the addiction for so called strong leadership to blindly follow, regardless of protest that they can barely see the value of a strong team where people are empowered and there is no need to a leader to usurp that power. That danger is also an opportunity that can come from a situation of chaos. People are going on like chickens with their heads cut off or worse yet like analysts running around and writing about the iwatch, ieye, iprick, icansell when really, when you really really think about it, Apple has not changed at its core.
It makes software and computers. The ipod, iMac, iphone, folks they are still computers.
Let the bashing continue.
Yes…history will attest that when you lead or on top you are a prime target of aspirants! And they will do it at any cost!!!!!
I will give Apple every chance to prove itself with Tim Cook. One problem: When Apple choose to influence the Supreme Court to destroy the essential foundation of what marriage is supposed to be, it lost my heart and my mind! To think we live in an age where Bob and Henry have the same rights, social status, moral standing, and financial benefits of a sacramental marriage between one man and one woman is utterly shameful! TY Tim for putting your own personal political agenda ahead of your customers! Steve would have never been that insensitive or stupid!
Uhh, you know Tim Cook is gay, right?
You know that Steve supported same sex partners at Apple back in the 80s? You know that Apple in the past has refused to change its corporate policy which has for decades supported same sex couples even when some states offered significant financial incentives if they would do so?
Apple’s stance on this issue is not new.
About your comment: “To think we live in an age where Bob and Henry have the same rights, social status, moral standing, and financial benefits of a sacramental marriage between one man and one woman is utterly shameful!”
The concept of marriage between one man and one woman is just that, a concept. You can put a religious attachment to it but if you do, realize that there was an age where polygamy was sacramental as well (King Solomon comes to mind). To this day there are countries that legally accept a variety of polygamy relationships. Many of these are attached to their sacred religious beliefs.
If you lean towards evolution you can see that we are moving from a some sex marriage situation (monogamy where you experience only “some” sex that is of a person of the opposite sex) to add a same sex marriage situation (monogamy where you experience only “some” but the “same” sex of a person of the same sex). It goes to reason, from an evolutionary point of view that humans will one day evolve a “sum” sex marriage situation (where you experience the “sum” sexual experience, with a person of the same and opposite sex). Threesomes would not work in that type of marriage, it would have to be a minimum of four people.
The age of some (straight) sex marriage is merging with the age of same (homosexual) sex marriage. This will provide the foundation for the age of sum (bisexual) sex marriage.
Intolerance will lead to conflict. If all groups tolerate each other with a live and let live aspect then peace will ensue, deity interference notwithstanding.
The choice belongs to everyone.
For
The only thing better than gay people finally getting some sort of equality in America is watching bigots foam at the mouth over the news.
Let’s make a deal… you stop preaching on this forum, and I’ll stop thinking in your church.
I’m a very religious person. I think the act of homosexual sex, just like the acts of premarital and extramarital sex are on the same level: unacceptable (1 Cor 6:9-10). Some might call me narrow-minded, some might call me old-fashioned or puritanical. I’m not a hypocrite. I don’t choose which parts of the bible I want to apply. I’m always shocked at so-called Christians who rail against gay marriage while thinking nothing of living together before marriage. Hypocritical.
Anyhow, this is just a primer to this: The government does NOT dictate your beliefs. The legal definition of marriage, simply put, does not (and should never) affect a true Christian. If you care about the legal definition of marriage, you are essentially saying that what the government decides will affect your belief system. If the religious organization you belong to now starts performing gay marriage ceremonies and you feel that it’s not following bible principles, then leave that organization, because it is false.
Who cares what the legal definition is of marriage is.
What all the critics, wall street, etc don’t reslize is that Steve is still in charge.
Good to read some common sense, somebody who really understands the pathetic mentality of these destructive elements who fill their small lives with delusional hatred of Apple for some reason. Most of them in the media were actually quite scared of Jobs and the power he had over public perceptions. Without him they now seek blood and will seek it no matter how delusional and misguided the nonsense they spout. Hell will they miss it if its ever not there for them to target and have to bemoan the loss of American jobs and technological leadership, because Google and Microsoft wont supply it.
I’m surprised so many people spend so much time talking about the death of Apple. If it’s going to die, why mention it at all? All they talk about is how Apple is failing at this, lagging behind at that, etc. If Apple is that badly run a company it will just die a natural death without anyone’s urging or remorse. In Wall Street’s history, how many companies with nearly the highest market cap and the most reserve cash ever, manage to die overnight because sales growth was down slightly? It honestly seems as though people are going out of their way to say bad things about Apple even though they would seem to be disinterested third parties.
What’s odd is that Apple consumers and product owners aren’t bashing Apple, yet all these other people are. The carriers aren’t even bashing iPhones. Slow sales doesn’t mean dissatisfied customers. Apple is about as far as declaring bankruptcy as any company around. I’m sure Apple must be more profitable than 90% of the companies on the planet and yet people keep saying that Apple is dying. It just doesn’t make any sense at all.
This morning I picked up 45 more shares at $390 per. I truly expect about a 20% upside by September and I’ll be getting about $55 dividend every quarter on that amount of shares. I don’t feel I’m taking a risk even with all the Apple bashing. Almost every article I read has some indication that Apple will never sell another iPhone because of too much competition. I’ve heard Apple could drop another $20 over the summer, but so what. I may be wrong, but I believe Apple can still sell tens of millions of new iPhones. I can’t help it. Smartphone sales won’t slump forever. I just refuse to believe a company with $145 billion in the bank can’t come up with one more new idea or hot-selling product.
Seriously, Ford still manages to sell vehicles and the company is doing well despite dozens of auto manufacturers selling similar vehicles around the world. If a company has a decent product to sell, consumers will buy it.
Steve’s forte–more than anyone else in the “tech industry” before or since was his ability to see something and know if that thing was the future or if that thing was crap. This was true for the Apple I, Apple ][, GUI interfaces, mice, all in one computers, vector graphics, smart computers paired with cheap/dumb printers, optical drives, USB connections, music stores based upon simple pricing, ultra small music players, smart phones that are really small, graphically driven computers, tablets that have a touch based interface that don’t need a keyboard or stylus. The list goes on and on.
Steve did NOT invent any of these, but when he saw them he knew they were the future and drove Apple and the othe companies over which he reigned to create that future for everyone.
Unfortunately I don’t see anyone else with that talent. Yes, Apple still have GREAT, talented inventors creating a lot of new — and sometimes compelling — stuff. However, I don’t see the guy that knows when to stand up and say, “That’s interesting and new, BUT IT’S CRAP.” Or someone to say, “I know you thing this thing is just a curious nuance, but it is the future of tis industry so focus on that!”
And to be complete— no one (truly no one anywhere in the industry) comes even close to Steve in this area.
Sure, Steve had some miss fires–you need look no further than the hockey puck mouse. But Steve had an unrivaled talent in this specific ability.
Apple is not doomed. Only ignorant people believe this. You can’t be doomed when you have over a hundred BILLION dollars in the bank. Apple products are still selling well and more to come this fall. There are several other companies that are way closer to the doomed category than Apple. Dell who said Apple was doomed 15 years ago is already in that doomed state. Go do your pitiful doom and gloom with Dell.
Having been an ‘Apple Devotee’ since the early 1980’s I have grown accustomed to the obligatory ‘Apple Bashing’ phenomena. As ‘Apple’ the company has grown ever more successful year on year the detractors continue to struggle with the ‘mediocrity’ that eminates from its competitors. There is no greater satisfaction than to watch and enjoy this self inflicted flagellation.