“Ahead of Apple’s media event next week, analysts are sounding increasingly optimistic on shares,” Kristen Scholer reports for The New York Times. “Two analysts with ‘buy’ ratings on Apple’s stock published notes Monday, talking about what they see as promise in the company’s share price after a year of turmoil.”
“‘The next six months [are] likely [to be] more kind than the last,’ said Nomura analyst Jeffrey Kvaal,” Scholer reports. “Meanwhile, UBS analyst Steven Milunovich said Apple’s ecosystem has ‘never been stronger’ and that the company’s newest iPhone – expected to be unveiled Monday – could add 25 cents per share to the company’s bottom line in the fiscal year.”
“A week from today, Apple is hosting an event in which it is expected to show a new 4-inch iPhone and revamped iPads, sources have told The Journal,” Scholer reports. “In the months ahead, the company is also expected to increase its share repurchase program and introduce the iPhone 7 in September — when the company usually debuts the latest version of its priciest smartphone.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: A new iPhone without 3D Touch is like a new Apple TV without 4K.
SEE ALSO:
Open thread: Decoding ‘Let us loop you in’ – March 14, 2016
Coming at Apple’s March 21st event: 4-inch iPhone SE, 9.7-inch iPad Pro, new Apple Watch bands, and more – March 11, 2016
Apple sends out media invitations for special event to be held on March 21st – March 11, 2016
iPhone 7 design to feature flush rear camera, no antenna bands across back – February 2, 2016
3D touch is nice…I enjoy it on my 6s Plus. But it’s not yet a big deal…it’s just a neat little feature. And on a 4 inch screen 3d touch will have even less utility.
I think it may take a few years for 3d touch to be implemented by all 3rd party developers and then to really be given some innovative uses. But right now it’s not a deal maker or deal breaker. Apple knows what they are doing if they do not put 3d touch in their 4 inch iPhone.
Apple introduces some major stuff and they are doomed.
A few months later, Apple introduces some minor updates and everyone is optimistic?
I don’t get analysts sometimes. 🙂
What major stuff? Fruit Loops?
Macs are being badly outclassed in the market, and Cook’s spending all his time on fashion and politics.
I don’t believe that Apple’s got a great chance of wowing the market with derivative iOS products. Rumors of removing audio jacks strikes me as more tone deaf than anything the big bad evil government has done. And 3D touch is a gimmick that really doesn’t work great in the real world. Maybe Apple’s developers find it exciting playing with it in a clean room, but it just goes to show that Apple doesn’t test its products enough in the field. Certainly not out of wifi range, that’s for sure.
If Apple introduces a 4″ iPhone it will not be called an iPhone 5SE. A “5” designation implies technology that is 3 years old. Because it is expected to be announced March 21 neither do I believe it will be updated with iPhone “7” launch in September.
Rather, I see the 4″ iPhone will be updated in September 2018 (the iPhone 4S had a similarly long life cycle), which means it will have an iPhone “7” designation and a “mini” suffix.
Technically it will be identical to the iPhone 6S 4.7″ with two exceptions: it be 4″ and will not have an RCA (mini pin) jack.
It will be offered at $549 with 16 MB memory.
Sounds about right, except it’s hard to predict what Apple will do in 2018. A minijack-free phone might not sell well at all, which should signal Apple to accelerate their redesign cycle.
But “operations genius” Cook loves to extend product cycles well past their expiration dates because he doesn’t realize that Apple’s formerly most prized asset was a reputation for consistent release of innovative user-focused products. That reputation now in shreds, Apple stands for thin fashion-forward designs that overstay their welcome like ill-fitting skinny jeans.
Apple has a long and growing list of hardware that is just embarrassingly old. How about….
-iPods — all desperately wanting real updates for years now. Is there a reason the iPod Touch can’t be made available with more than 128 GB????
– MacBook Pro, last updated in 2012. Perhaps Apple expected everyone to buy the 2015 Retina MacBook Pro, but they removed a lot of user-friendly features from the new chassis.
– Mac Pro, last updated (or neutered, for many users) in 2013. A true sales flop.
– Mac Mini, refresh over a year ago, in 2014, which removed user configurations
– MacBook Air — over a year old now, apparently attempting to fill the void left by the affordable 2014 MacBook
– Apple Thunderbolt Display: last updated in 2011, still in a case from 2010
– Airport Express — does Apple still remember that they make this great little device? But no 802.11ac.
Seriously, Apple, there’s way too much on this list. You’d think that 5400rpm hard drives would be gone from the lineup, but no, Apple still attempts to sell them. A company with that much resources has got to stop embarrassing itself getting so slow with product updates. The MacRumor buyers guide bleeds red ever since Cook arrived.
3D Touch? Ehh… some may like it, but I don’t consider it a selling point for myself.
4K on an Apple TV? That’d be cool, but, there’s not much 4K content out there, however it is growing. The 4th Gen Apple TV DOES have the hardware capability of driving 4K, but Apple doesn’t yet support it because there’s not enough content to warrant it. That will change down the road, I believe.
4K content is here and growing rapidly. Apple is behind, and there is no valid excuse for every other competitor to offer the capability while Apple sits on its increasingly fat derriere.