Questions following Apple's (AAPL) FQ3: 1) Is Samsung's Galaxy S III having a big impact on...

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davidbdc Comments (2994)
 
Wonder if shareholders still think that Cook is worth 500 million?

From the folks I know and that are really into electronics - the competition is catching up.
25 Jul 2012, 12:02 AM Reply Like

pridon Comments (17)
 
So you expect Cook to be all seeing and all knowing. He put forth a reasonable forecast and beat it - not by much. He has no control over the amount of hype re the "new iPhone". I'm waiting to buy 3 and for my current contracts to expire. Weak spots in W. Europe were France, Italy and Greece. Italy and Grece are not small markets. I don't believe they are buying Galaxies instead. During a recent trip iPhones were common in Greece, Italy and Turkey from cabbies to tour guides.

It was the analysts who were wrong, not Tim Cook. Apple is totally secretive. The analysts are either self serving or incompetent or perhaps a bit of both. All of the "amateurs" totally missed also.

Tim is no Steve Jobs, but I'm not sure Apple would be faring any better, if Steve were still in charge. Steve believed that the competitors would be required to respect Apples's IP. Instead Apple has to fight tooth and nail for the smallest victory. If Samsung and Google are so great, why didn't they have a iPhone type device before Apple.

Apple has favorable decisions against Samsung, Motorola, and HTC in various venues, but the incessant appeal process goes on.

By end of September, we will find out who is right in the major Samsung trial in California. However, whoever loses is sure to appeal. Samsung will never give in as a matter of "face". The CEO's biography quotes him as saying Samsung caught up with the competition by copying.
25 Jul 2012, 12:33 AM Reply Like

davidbdc Comments (2994)
 
For $500 million he should be pretty damn close to all seeing and all knowing when it comes to Apple's markets.

I'm not a technology person and can only relay what those around me say/do. I see more and more people that are very happy with other devices and the few folks that I know that are really into these things say there simply isn't a gap any more in terms of functionality and usage.

I've read that perhaps this new I-phone is going to cause problems with some of the things you plug into your phone - something I don't believe would have happened if Jobs were still running the show.

But the nice thing is that time will tell.
25 Jul 2012, 06:35 PM Reply Like

Matthew Lewis Comments (259)
 
Revenues up 22% year over year and earnings up 20% yoy...what a disaster. :)
25 Jul 2012, 12:18 AM Reply Like

PeterScriabin Comments (145)
 
True, but a year ago the stock was in the 350-400 range. 20% on that is only 420-480. You could argue it was undervalued a year ago, but I think even AAPL longs, like yours truly, suspect it will be hard to get back to 640 until killer features of the iPhone5 or the TV become apparent, not just rumor.
25 Jul 2012, 01:42 AM Reply Like

New Superhuman Comments (840)
 
It's a disaster when everyone is expecting continued parabolic moves and early retirement. Reality time.
25 Jul 2012, 03:53 AM Reply Like

Clayton Rulli Comments (1540)
 
Compare Its value to the rest of the industry though..... MSFT trades that same but has like 1/5th the growth?
25 Jul 2012, 08:36 AM Reply Like

HarryWanger Comments (151)
 
Gotta say, my niece got her new Galaxy III today and it's amazing. Her mother and I put our iPhones next to it and it felt like an old dial phone next to a sleek, fast smart device. I think Apple's in trouble now. No innovation after Steve and playing catch up in the genre they created.
25 Jul 2012, 01:52 AM Reply Like

Tack Comments (9396)
 
Exact same opinion of Galaxy Nexus I bought a few months back.

This chart sort of says it all:

http://bit.ly/SDsOtC
25 Jul 2012, 02:17 AM Reply Like

GORDONPO Comments (66)
 
To Tack: "This chart sort of says it all"

That chart is misleading. It reflects aggregate Android sales as a % of the total VERSUS iPhone (a single company and brand). In other words, it reflects Apple/iPhone versus the whole Android offering as if it were one company (which we know t is not) implying that the brand Apple/iPhone is losing ground. If you are going to show charts like this then you should show the following to give a complete picture:

1. The % of Total Smartphone Sales by company/brand
2. The % of Total Smartphone Profits by company brand

That will tell it all. You will find that iPhone completely dominates the profitability arena versus all the Android companies (even viewed in aggregate like the chart you show). Which means that Android companies are gaining sales through meager profits (and maybe losses in cases). If Apple used its pricing power by cutting prices it could collapse the competitor's already small profitability altogether and still remain profitable (with probably big volume gain). That would be a game changer and not far from reality.
25 Jul 2012, 08:05 AM Reply Like

bailinnumberguy Comments (1086)
 
Actually Q2 results looked better than they actually were and Q3 results looked worse. You have to look at channel inventory levels, which were stuffed in Q2 and drawn down in Q3. Take the average of the last 2 quarters and that's how Apple's performed.
25 Jul 2012, 08:46 AM Reply Like

phood Comments (9)
 
I think it's possible that both camps are right. Android is gaining; the market is maturing.
On the Apple side, I meet lots of people here in the Bay Area, Apple's home turf, who have been waiting months for the iPhone 5 and will continue to wait. Some of them, being Geeks, already have a Samsung phone that they plan to ditch when the iPhone 5 arrives.
Overall, a lot of Androids are used by people who text, call, and map--iPhones and iPads are used for a lot more "work" and other applications. Apple's overall experience is still better and will continue to be. Even when Apple was on the brink of bankruptcy a Mac was easier to use than a Windows PC. But I think the screen size on the phones is a big deal that Apple needs to get right. I just see in talking to people that they swoon over the Samsung screen size. Emotionally, it makes it hard to choose a smaller screen phone when doing a head-to-head comparison.
25 Jul 2012, 01:32 PM Reply Like