back to article Apple's big secret: It's an insurance firm (now with added finance)

Remember "Peak Apple"? It looked vaguely plausible a couple of years ago. For years, the media had stoked consumer expectations of Apple continuing to launch blockbuster, category-defining, market-making new products at regular intervals. Jobs’ biographer had disclosed that his "secret legacy" was “four years of new products …

  1. CAPS LOCK

    It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

    ... and the results are exponential rather than additive.

    1. Lee D Silver badge

      Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

      Please roll out MDM for 200 Apple devices and then come back and say that.

      Hint: No. You CANNOT stop a user from doing an awful lot of junk that you might expect to be able to.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

        Meh - it's a consumer device and as an owner I just don't care about enterprise MDM. I was asked to enroll with MS inTune to be allowed to keep corporate email and chose to just ditch the built-in account and exclusively use webmail. That's got its quirks too - bookmark Outlook 365 on the home screen, go in, open a PDF and there's no back button to get out!

        If the enterprise I works for would like me to be more contactable and use my own device, it has to accept that I won't give them the potential ability to completely wipe the device at will. I've absolutely no problem with Apple making it difficult for companies to cripple iPhones provided as company phones - I mean that could leave people thinking "all iPhones don't have X feature" when of course they do... it's the company that doesn't want, for example, the camera to work, etc.

        It's not even that I don't trust the company, but with Office 365 and the failures we hear about from Microsoft, it's surely only a matter of time before "woops - we wiped every iPhone enrolled in the MS inTune".

      2. Dieter Haussmann

        Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

        Have you tried Apple DEP?

      3. David Lawton

        Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

        Well i've rolled out an MDM for 450 iPads where i work. Not heard of DEP? (Device enrolment program) really makes Admin's jobs much easier.

        1. Lee D Silver badge

          Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

          We have MDM... DEP is just a shortcut to supervision but only works through full reseller channels (iPads are expensive enough as it is) and doesn't do anything different. Full MDM and profiles, no matter the vendor, do not allow lockdown. Plus... to get there... you have to endure an awful lot of silly Apple problems. The other month access to iCloud went down - 200 iPads become unusable through repeated - and unable to stop - login dialogs every 5 seconds. Similar things happens when you reset iPads, no matter the avenue through which you do it.

          As an aside, we have Meraki MDM. Have you seen it? It costs a god-damn fortune, and has every option known to man that Apple can ever offer. We also have Mac servers on-site. However, there are STILL options that you cannot stop on iPads, cannot restrict and/or if you do restrict has no control over YOU be able to do them (e.g. install/uninstall apps). And still users are swamped with dialogs, logins, questions, overrides.

    2. Midnight

      Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

      Which would be wonderful if they weren't using signed ints for everything and wrapping around to -2,147,483,648.

    3. Naselus

      Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

      That'll be why they have such dominant market share in enterprise software, mobile and desktop O/S, and streaming music then.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

        "That'll be why they have such dominant market share in enterprise software, mobile and desktop O/S, and streaming music then."

        Lets look at the 2014 revenues for each;

        AAPL: $182.8 Billion

        MSFT: $86.8 Billion

        GOOG: $66 Billion

        SPOTIFY: $1.2 Billion

        Hmmm...

        MSFT+GOOG+SPOTIFY: $154

        You can keep your fucking market share...

        1. Handy Plough

          Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

          There are (at time of posting) 4 people that would rather have market share than revenue!? No that is fanboyism...

          1. Dave 126 Silver badge

            Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

            >Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

            >>That'll be why they have such dominant market share in enterprise software, mobile and desktop O/S, and streaming music then.

            Why would any company want 'dominant market share' for it's own sake? A large market share is only desirable if it makes money, or it gives a commercial advantage that will allow money to be made in the future.

            Enterprise software: Was never Apple's game, now have deal with IBM

            Mobile OS: Apple don't care cos they make most of the money that is to be made.

            Desktop OS: Again, Apple don't care as long as you've bought the hardware. OSX has enough users that software developers - especially in some sectors - will continue to offer OSX versions.

            Streaming music: Apple do care, very much - because it has disrupted their iTunes business. However, they only joined the race in earnest a coupla months back, so who knows.

    4. Captain DaFt

      Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

      Yep, the Pippin 5 rocks the socks off the Xbox One and Playstation 4!

      (In some reality out there, I'm sure.)

    5. WatAWorld

      Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

      Is Apple really better?

      Price is an attribute, and the lower the price the better -- except for what economists call "snob goods".

      "An engineer is someone who can do for 50 cents what any fool can build for a dollar." - an engineering maxim

      Does Apple employ any engineers?

      1. Michael Wojcik Silver badge

        Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost everything just a bit better than their rivals...

        Y'know, I don't think I've ever seen an economics article use the phrase "snob goods". But I just plotted that against "Veblen goods" on the Google ngram viewer, and what do you know - "snob goods" was more common in several periods and is still significantly used. "Veblen goods" overtook it in 1988, though, for the Google corpus.

        Of course, Andrew's aware of the argument that Apple gear are Veblen goods, and I don't think anyone could seriously argue that they aren't, for a significant number of buyers. But his thesis is that they also constitute a form of insurance against future change, so pointing out the Veblen-good aspect isn't really responsive.

        Personally, I'm not sure how many customers make that particular association (the insurance one). I'd be more inclined to believe they're making a calculation based on opportunity cost: "I'll pay more money if that means I can spend less time learning how to use the thing".

    6. WatAWorld

      Apple is for sheeple Re: It seems to me that Apple do almost PR and mind control just better

      Apple is for sheeple

    7. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      A new motto

      "What you really do when you buy an Apple product is de-risk the future: consumer electronics is confusing, and will get more confusing ... but Apple will take care of it all for you at a pace you’re comfortable with."

      Apple - Making technology accessible to the vacuous and vain since 1984.

  2. Financegozu
    Thumb Up

    Wow - Good analysis!

    Kudos Andrew!

    1. Chris 171

      Re: Wow - Good analysis!

      Certainly an interesting take that does make sense.

      Where does the revolutionary saccharine soaked marketing come in? I think that is why there's this tribalism involved. The world didn't fall off its perch with the arrival of an apple pencil & I giant ipad. I noted a much larger kick back than the usual web wide fawning coverage of product announcements this time round too.

      Still, Im not going to by any tech device that pretty much put together with a glue gun. Seems like real phones peaked at the Nokia N8 and have gone backwards ever since.

      Apple may be a 'tech' company but there getting closer to just building shiny on the outside ornaments but hey, with a margin like they have I don't suppose it matters.

      1. Dave 126 Silver badge

        Re: Wow - Good analysis!

        >Still, Im not going to by any tech device that pretty much put together with a glue gun.

        No Lotus Elise for you, then!

        Okay, I won't bore you with the advantages of glue in manufacturing ( and in use, and in end-of-life recycling), since I suspect your sentiments are based on one truth: Glued devices are tricky for the amateur to repair / swap out components.

        In good faith, answer me this: If a device took you one hour to repair, how cheap would it have to be for you to think "Feck it, I'll just get a new one!"?

        Damned decent Android and Win phones are available today for £100. If in five years time, your standard do-it-all phone cost £30, would you still spend an hour repairing it? Would you still bother, if the manufacturer offered to part-exchange it for a new one for £10?

        Please, I'm not disagreeing with you. I'm just thinking ' out loud' about at what point scarapping is the better option.

        (And I mean 'scrapping' as an efficient reclamation of materials. You could almost imagine say a Fab designing SoC to be easier to reclaim the scarcer materials... or a laptop maker using cases of a single, common and easily recyclable material- oh wait...)

  3. flearider

    when you are buying a phone you know it will have to last a certain amount of time .. 1 or 2 yrs .. for the price your paying ..

    most want bling .. Samsung and apple do this as well as others ..

    now we have Huawei which has matured into the phone biz bringing us phones just as good but 1/3 of the price ..

    and there not the only ones .. would I now pay £6-700 for a phone no ..when I can get an all round equal for £250 ..if it last a yr it's still cheaper ..

    and this will be what people want in the coming yrs hence why apple have done there home work and will only be charging you £350 for just that yr .. sounds cheaper but really it's not there just charging you the same hmmm

    1. Vector

      To be fair, these cheaper phones from Huawei and Xiaomi and the like are not as good as a premium phone like the iPhone or a Galaxy whatever.

      If history is any guide, however, they probably will be good enough.

      My experience through 30 years of technology is that cheap and functional beats elegant but pricey in the long run. Now that the mobile market is reaching the commodity phase, price is going to become more and more important. These newer players from China don't offer products with the fastest processors, best cameras or most elegant user interfaces, but they offer enough at prices now falling to a fraction of what's being asked for all that top tier stuff.

      This new monthly payment thing is a great strategy for keeping people hooked on their product line particularly when we begin to see phone subsidies falling by the wayside. But as those subsidies fall, the true price of their premium phones will become more apparent and cheaper alternatives will become more attractive.

      1. Andrew Orlowski (Written by Reg staff)

        Good points.

        Huawei's Mate S is as good as anything else. It's a very nice design and it's hard to believe it has the same sized screen as an iPhone 6 Plus, even when you're holding them side by side. This won't be cheap, though.

    2. nightflier

      and there not the only ones .. would I now pay £6-700 for a phone no ..when I can get an all round equal for £250 ..if it last a yr it's still cheaper ..

      If you don't need an "equal", just pay for what you use. Even an $80 phone is overkill for my needs.

    3. Wilco

      My iphone 4 lasted nearly 4 years before I chose to upgrade. I expect my iPhone 6 will last a similar length of time, during which it will continue to be upgraded and improved by software updates - which seems to be far from guaranteed for android phones

      Upgrading is a hassle, so buying something that lasts longer makes sense to me. And it's better for the environment.

      There do seem to be a few phones that are roughly equivalent to an iPhone 6 available for £250. There aren't any close equivalents to an iPhone 6s for that money.

      Apple's tight control results in a somewhat more secure ecosystem

      Apple phones have a higher second hand value than android phones

      So overall you might save some money by buying cheaper android phones - but not necessarily, and you're probably going have to spend more time upgrading

      That sounds like quite a reasonable deal for a higher up front cost

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Slow Upgraders!

        My iphone 4 lasted nearly 4 years before I chose to upgrade. I expect my iPhone 6 will last a similar length of time, during which it will continue to be upgraded and improved by software updates - which seems to be far from guaranteed for android phones

        You are not part of the target market for any mobile device manufacturer. You are the person they endure rather than court. I suspect their marketing teams actively hate you.

        What they want is someone who will queue up for each new release and throw their shitty old, underpowered device as soon as the new one appears which is obviously perfect and will remain so until the next one.

        Apple's tight control results in a somewhat more secure ecosystem

        Hmm.

        Apple phones have a higher second hand value than android phones

        Its all down to economics and again, mobile device marketing teams will curse your soul for this.

        However, if you spend (say) £400 on a device which resells for £200, you've still spent more than spending £100 on it and not selling it on. You've actually lost more of your own economic success then if you bought a device for £200 and dont sell it on, because you've endured the larger cost up front.

        1. Dave 126 Silver badge

          Re: Slow Upgraders!

          If a person has already invested money in useful Android peripherals (yeah, I know!) and apps, then no Apple phone can be its equal for that individual user.

          The converse is also true.

  4. imaginarynumber

    "When the iPhone had no modern competition (meaning its competition was Symbian and BlackBerry)"

    You are Charles Arthur and I claim my £10.

    Seriously though... Lets all play "Windows Mobile or Palm didn't exist".

    My Feb 2007 HTC Athena was vastly superior to the first few generations of the iPhone. I too had tabbed browsing but unlike the iPhone I could use 3G rather than Edge. I could play Flash video, I had GPS, rear and front facing camera, camera flash, copy'n'paste, video calling, MMS, a much bigger screen (5"), higher screen resolution and pixel density, more RAM , a faster processor, SD support, grown up bluetooth, stereo speakers, multitasking, gyroscope, S/W and a detachable H/W keyboard. Oh and it was made out of aluminium.

    Kinda like an iPad pro but you could use it as a phone.

    1. Naselus

      "Lets all play "Windows Mobile or Palm didn't exist"."

      I think we were all playing that at the time anyway tbh.

    2. Si 1

      I'm sorry but I used WinPho devices back then and they were sluggish, fiddly shite. Tiny buttons and overcomplicated screens that required a stylus to poke, a browser that might have run Flash but barely reached IE6 levels of compatibility and apps that just stayed open in the background using up all the RAM until you waded through several Control Panel screens to manually kill things.

      WinPho might have ticked a lot of feature boxes back then but they were all so badly done that it was a rubbish device to use. Plus the Athena was gigantic, it was hardly something that could be slid into a pocket like most phones or the iPhone. Oh and the iPhone 2G was made of aluminium too.

      I do applaud MS for building Windows CE, it managed to cram all the essential elements and APIs of the Windows desktop into a portable device which was an impressive feat. The only problem with that though was they failed to recognise that on a mobile device you need a simple and fast interface that doesn't require getting out a stylus or poking fiddly little buttons. For all its flaws the first iPhone's multi-touch interface made it a pleasure to use on the go.

  5. Barry Rueger

    Jumped the Shark

    Last week we went laptop shopping. It was a real education into what Apple isn't doing.

    We actually looked at Apple first, and at the prices.

    Then we walked across the aisle and looked at Windows machines. Dozens of them, at much lower prices.

    What quickly became apparent was how far Apple is behind the tech curve.

    Specifically, the complete lack of touchscreen support, something which, after years of smartphones, is actually expected. It made the Apple productats feel decidedly out of date.

    The deciding feature though was something that has been around in various forms for long time, but which Windows PC makers have embraced with gusto: the ability to flip the laptop lid over and use the machine as a tablet.

    Again, this is approaching being a feature that is just expected, and Apple doesn't have it.

    These days most makers offer thin, shiny, cool looking laptops. There's nothing outstanding in that anymore.

    Windows makers have moved the tech game forward in noteable ways, while Apple is selling more or less the same products that they offered ten years ago.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Jumped the Shark

      I guess it doesn't occur to you that a huge number of people have no need/desire to be dabbing away at a screen (and probably in that be sitting way too close to it).

      For many peoples uses touch is inappropriate/unworkable, and as countless mothers have told their children... "just because you can do it - doesn't mean that you should do it"

      Similarly a lot of people don't want a laptop that can transform into a tablet Cool maybe but the practicality of modern life is that it leaves the screen vulnerable to breakage whereas sensible people generally keep a tablet a proper protective case.

      I'm more interested in a robust operating system that just *works*.

      Apple are still selling enough units so they must be doing something right.

      1. DryBones

        Re: Jumped the Shark

        Try it sometime. Being able to reach up and tap or swipe an annoying window out of the way is a nice compliment to the normal touchpad. Not all the time, but when optimal. Asus makes a really fine one for $500.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Jumped the Shark

        I agree with you personally -- but you've missed the point. The Windows ecosystem gives you an incredibly wide set of choices, wide enough to intimidate the technophobes. Apple limits your choices to just what they think you need, and then charges you extra for it. The author's "insurance" hypothesis explains why this works.

      3. Michael Wojcik Silver badge

        Re: Jumped the Shark

        I guess it doesn't occur to you that a huge number of people have no need/desire to be dabbing away at a screen (and probably in that be sitting way too close to it).

        I don't know about "a huge number of people", but I know that I never, ever, ever want to touch the screen.

        And no, I don't think I'll come around. When I first used a computer with a mouse, in 1986 (it was a Sun workstation of some variety), I thought it was horrible. It took my hand off the keyboard and didn't offer nearly enough functionality to make that worthwhile to me. Almost 30 years later I stand by that opinion. I still think external mice are a wretched interference with how I work. My own computers always have isometric ("pointing stick") mouse controls, so I can keep my hands on the keyboard; and even then I'd much rather navigate using keyboard controls, when that's feasible. (Alas, with most UIs, it isn't; designers pollute them with far too many on-screen controls.)

        I'm not a fan of Apple products (anything since, oh, the Apple IIe), but I for one don't care about a lack of touch screens on their laptops.

        1. Dave 126 Silver badge

          Re: Jumped the Shark

          Hiya, at the time of writing, the votes and comments above suggest, roughly, that half you really don't want a touscreen laptop, and half of you quite like them or the idea of them.

          Maybe we can at least all agree that "Not everybody would consider a touchscreen on a laptop to be a selling point".

          Personally, implementation is everything.... If a touch screen laptop only had a conventional hinge, it would be of no use to me because it would be ungainly to touch the screen. However, models with keyboards that can fold out of the way - a la Yoga Pro - I can see the point of those.

          I can also see the point in just having a tablet and a laptop as two distinct machines, though well integrated - eg, the tablet can act as a second monitor for the laptop, or as a graphics tablet.

          For some tasks, the latter scenario will offer the better experience.

    2. Ian Watkinson

      Re: Jumped the Shark

      So out of interest, you looked at a Mac air 11". What did you buy?

      From what I've seen there are no comparisons.

      Critiera.

      Same Weight. +/- 10%

      Similar size +/- 10%

      Ability to go to a store and get advice/get it fixed under warranty the same day.

      *nix based os supported for 2 years by one phone call.

      Ability to also run office 365 for work stuff.

      Now I know Dell and Fujitsu have next day on site fixes for a price But the support is normally restore the rescue partition. But normally when you factor it all in. The apple "tax" isn't that high or non exisitent.

      Now the AUDI tax...I mean cars of the same weight/size/power exist, with 5 and 7 year warranties over the paltry 3 year one limited mileage Audi one, but people buy an Audi...I mean how dare they be that stupid...(repeat for BMW/Mercedes etc)

    3. Michael Habel

      Re: Jumped the Shark

      Touch Screen Laptops?! OH HELL NO!!!

  6. Ken Hagan Gold badge

    Hardware as a service

    Is that "renting"?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Hardware as a service

      "Is that "renting"?" - or is it closer to leasing, with a 'tech refresh'?

      Certainly if it's leasing, the company doing the leases could probably come under financial services regulators ....

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Is that "renting"?

      It's probably more like "cottaging" because every satisfied customer gets shafted each month...

      But on the other hand....

    3. P. Lee

      Re: Hardware as a service

      >Is that "renting"?

      That was my thought. To me it looks a little desperate. Although I agree with the de-risking idea, the move to small continuous payments indicates people are no longer willing or able to make a big one for the latest product. Has Apple really become the tech world's Radio Rentals?

  7. Oh Matron!

    Sonos DOES use DLNA

    Songs does use DLNA, although it's wrapped in Sonos' own stuff.

    My TV has DLNA. I turn my Sonos on, and I can play my songs on my iPhone, using the DLNA client, as the Sonos acts as a server. Crap UI on the TV stops me doing it on a daily basis...

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Sonos DOES use DLNA

      and Qualcomm AllPlay destroys Sonos, Uncompressed HD audio support and much smaller (by about 10x) multiroom latency. It's also underpinned by AllJoyn opensource infrastructure. I also found the build quality of the devices I tried were usually better and substantially cheaper than the competing Sonos unit. But then I guess they need to be with so many lazy shoppers that just buy what they know...

  8. Tom 38

    Spot on

    This. Exactly this. It's why all my relatives have apple phones and tablets (with barely a mac between them), because - in their minds - it is simple to use and Apple will look after them.

    Apple have a reputation* for actually caring about the device after they've sold it to you, which you can't say about most box shifting hardware manufacturers. In effect, they are a software firm that make their money from hardware, and that unique position means they can benefit in ways that Samsung or HTC simply can't.

    1. Ed 11

      Re: Spot on

      Yup. My girlfriend has a iPhone 5S on contract from O2 which stopped charging on Monday. She took it to O2 who said they'd need to post it off for repairs and she might get it back in a week. She took it to the Apple shop in Covent Garden and they gave her a new one on the spot.

      The phone was supplied by O2 and was over 12 months old. O2 couldn't have given less of a shit and were happy to leave her high and dry. Apple demonstrated a considerably higher regard for her custom.

  9. Gene

    Long-term value

    I see that iOS 9 will be available for my iPad 2, which I purchased in March 2011. No need to replace it yet. How many 2011 tablets from other manufacturers will still be current next year?

    1. Roo

      Re: Long-term value

      "I see that iOS 9 will be available for my iPad 2, which I purchased in March 2011. No need to replace it yet. How many 2011 tablets from other manufacturers will still be current next year?"

      More than 3 (our kids have a bunch of rooted no-name $80 tablets).

      FWIW my 2006 vintage Samsung Q40 lappy is running the latest cut of Mint just fine too - albeit with a battery died in 2013. The upside is that I don't need any tools to fix the battery. :)

      Fair play to Apple, they have built a good rep and they're doing well as a result. Just wish more vendors would learn the lesson...

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Long-term value

        I'm impressed.

        You're saying you have 3 $80 tablets bought in 2011 that are running Android 5.1.1 and will update to 6.0 soon?

        One, which tablet?

        Two, which ROM are you using.

        Yes, I'm very sceptical about your claims, given that the "flagship" Nexus 7's (launched in 2012, and which were pretty much the most powerful tablets at the time are barely able to do that. The Asus Mempads Samsung Tab 2/3/s etc aren't.

        So....I guess it's put up or I call bullshit on your claim.

        1. Matt Siddall

          Re: Long-term value

          I have an £89 HP Touchpad that I bought in 2011 that's on at least Android 5.0. Not sure if there's a 5.1.1 update available, I only check every once in a while (although given how the community works, I expect there is, and that it will get 6.0).

          Granted, I had to root and am using Cyanogenmod so it's not for the average user, but it's still an option (unlike on an Apple device).

        2. Roo
          Windows

          Re: Long-term value

          "You're saying you have 3 $80 tablets bought in 2011 that are running Android 5.1.1 and will update to 6.0 soon?

          One, which tablet?"

          In our case M009S.

          "Two, which ROM are you using."

          Some random one from a Chinese website.

          "So....I guess it's put up or I call bullshit on your claim."

          If that's what you need to do to feel better about your iWidget be my guest.

          1. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Long-term value

            Interesting, as google just finds people having issues with people putting ice cream sandwich on them.

            Googled for - M009S tablet update to 5.1.1 rom

            I'm sure security wise, getting your firmware from random chinese websites works for you, perhaps not for anyone that wants to put anything other than films/music on a tablet and not put anything with a username/password on it.

            One of the reasons I dislike android is this lack of manufacturers supporting their kit, I thought you'd found a manu that was...seems not :-(

    2. Frenchie Lad

      Re: Long-term value

      Perhaps you can advise how to upgrade IOS on my iPhone 3GS? Needless to say the lightning connector needs an adapter to use with the 3GS.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Long-term value

        They provided the last update for iOS 6.x in March 2014, almost five years after the 3gs first sold. How long do you expect a GS4 or GS6 will still be getting updates? Surely nothing like five years...

        Still, they can't support them forever, at some point the older ones will struggle so much to run the newer versions that if they were supported they'd get crap for foisting an OS update on a phone that can't handle it.

      2. Frank Bough

        Re: Long-term value

        What's that, 6 years old at this point. Honestly, the hardware is fast enough to gain any advantage from the current iOS. My daughter uses my old one, and gets a lot of utility from it.

    3. SteveK

      Re: Long-term value

      I see that iOS 9 will be available for my iPad 2, which I purchased in March 2011. No need to replace it yet. How many 2011 tablets from other manufacturers will still be current next year?

      I'm still bitter that a mere 18 months after buying an iPad 1 in 2010, found they'd dropped it from all future updates, leaving it with overly resource-hungry IOS 5 that could barely manage a browser with more than one tab open without crashing regularly [but how can that be, they told us Flash was what crashed browsers]. And since they'd encouraged developers to upgrade apps to only run with the latest IOS, it was soon fit only for the scrapheap. (or in my case, given to a minion while I wasted more money on a replacement).

  10. captain veg Silver badge

    "So what is this ineffable value proposition that Apple delivers?"

    And let us see if we may not eff it after all.

    -A.

  11. Bota

    Technology ..

    What you really do when you buy an Apple product is de-risk the future: consumer electronics is confusing, and will get more confusing - really? But really though? Everything seems to be getting more and more idiot proof as time passes. I'm not sure what's confusing about you touch the screen and x happens or you want an app so you click this. My dear sweet tech phobic Italian mother installed debian with gnome from a USB I burned for her. It seems to me that the proposal of leasing a phone seems good to you. I use a 2 year old Samsung and they updated it to 5.0.1 and patched the stage fright bug. Worst case scenario is that I may flash it with a custom rom. So no, I don't think I need to rent a phone.

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Holmes

    I'm happy to let Apple do my thinking for me

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Indeed. I like their stuff because it works most of the time with little faffing around, they only put features on when they're mature in the market, and they always seem well built. (But they do make mistakes!)

      On the contrary, my work PC runs Windows 7, and I'm constantly having to babysit one part or the other of that, and when I had an Android phone it was such a pain in the arse to set up and look after and make the battery last a day that I sold it after a year and went back to an iPhone. Which I do not regret at all.

      I want things that work, not the latest shiny thing or buzzword. Apple products may be shiny, but I don't buy them for that reason.

  13. kryptylomese

    Make no mistake, Apple do not create, they just fit together parts that are already out there and put their badge on it and people who want to show off buy over their priced goods because they are just out of reach of poorer people so it makes the show off's feel special. You do not have to be clever to own an Apple product, you just need a carefree attitude to money to pay hiked up prices.

    Clothing manufacturers do the same thing and it is quite fair to say that Apple sells fashion products (not the best tech products) Think haute couture computing......

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Or actually you can care about that little appreciated factor - Total Cost of Ownership. Yes Apple are expensive but they do work, are well integrated with the ecosystem (closed garden or not) and Apple provide good service, like it or not. Unlike many readers on the Reg, most people will pay for a combination of nice design, bling factor and ease of use. How many people will root their Android phone in the wild?

      1. kryptylomese

        I forgot to mention that Apple users are too dumb to care about security too - how does that fit into your total cost of ownership??

  14. Frank Bough

    How is AirPlay

    inferior in quality? It supports lossless compressed and uncompressed codecs. Works great for me, DLNA is full of compatibility holes, by contrast.

  15. Unicornpiss
    Meh

    Allow me to say...

    That anyone disillusioned enough to say that Apple devices "just work" has never had to support hundreds of the @#$!!@% things. And using iTunes no less... Personally I find them flaky and annoying, but that's just one tired IT worker's opinion.

    I will grudgingly admit that the business model for "hardware as a service" will probably work. People have been leasing cars for a long time. It's not a 'value-added' service for a lot of people, to use another tired buzzword, but it works for some. I suppose I will keep using my Android devices (which I love) and buying 2-4 year old cars after someone else has soaked up the depreciation.

    Oh, and I like having an SD card slot too.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Allow me to say...

      Yeah 'cos supporting thousands of Windows Mobile devices is just sooo much better.

      Holds power button slightly too long..oops it hardware reset, mail doesn't work, as date is wrong.

      Hello Helpdesk my phone doesn't work....

      Thanks Nokia and Microsoft...

    2. captain veg Silver badge

      Re: Allow me to say...

      My (limited) experience with Apple devices is much less "it just works" than "your buggered". Perhaps it's a mistake on my part, but knowing that they are actually general-purpose computers I expect them to work like general-purpose computers.

      In mitigation, at least on a Mac you can get a shell.

      -A.

  16. WatAWorld

    So you're saying Apple is the consumer version of the old IBM ?

    "It guards against technological obsolescence and offers a gradual pace of change."

    "guards against technological obsolescence" IBM's promise with the IBM 360 architecture.

    "offers a gradual pace of change" IBM's modus operandi and the reason its mainframe products never acquired the windows and mouse style interfaces Xerox invented and implemented commercially in OS/X and Windows.

    I'll add:

    "Nobody ever got fired for buying IBM" probably true for buying Apple in many graphics arts companies.

  17. werdsmith Silver badge

    This really has become a tired subject.

    It's your money, do what you like with it.

    If you want to fly first class, then that is your choice.

    1. Michael Wojcik Silver badge

      STOP THINKING, EVERYBODY!

      Remember, if you examine your life, it might become worth living. And then where will you be?

  18. Terry Maguire

    Hardware as a Service

    The UK "throws away" one million tonnes of electrical and electronic equipment each year and a major cause is in-built obsolescence. Anything that improves the durability, repairability and upgradability of products should be encouraged.The act of renting results in the product provider having a long term interest in keeping the asset in use. Apple has a poor record in this respect and an improvement is well over-due.

    The idea of course is as old as the hills, anybody out there remember Radio Rentals - one of the shops that rented out TVs.

  19. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    As a techie, I detest Apple, they're more a design company than a tech company, and they sell loads of devices because stupid people want to look cool and gratuitous, conspicuous expense is cool. They're the haute couture of tech.

    But, their device UI is simple and usable, OSX is pretty stable and usable from my limited experience with it, and their customer service is extraordinary.

  20. DropBear

    "It guards against technological obsolescence"

    Right - it's usually obsolete right out of the box, compared to most everything else.

  21. el rekrab

    Stylus?!

    I think if you look up Wacom Cintiq 13HD touch display, you'll get a better comparison to what they're giving.

    Even the iMovie edits were being shown with fingers. They've just added a pressure and tilt-sensitive digitizing tablet to a big iPad. I think this one's going to excite digital artists.

POST COMMENT House rules

Not a member of The Register? Create a new account here.

  • Enter your comment

  • Add an icon

Anonymous cowards cannot choose their icon

Other stories you might like