FreeRange

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    • Mon Aug 25th 11:33 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Apple's Problems - Bad to the Core?
      This article is ridiculous and misleading. To use in a report "nanos catching fire" when just 3 nanos overheated, not catching fire, out of 10's of millions sold!!!! Same with magsafe cables, it was a handful out of millions sold!!!! And then to throw in that they had a fire in one of their buildings??? The truth is, mobileme is working great for the overwhelming majority of users, leopard is a huge success (and Vista?), as is the iPhone. And by the way, Macs are still flying off the shelves and into the arms of ecstatic consumers. Guess what, when you buy a new car - "The average number of reported defects across the industry is 118 problems per 100 cars" according to JD Powers. Does that mean we shouldn't buy cars???? Shame on you for this piece of crap. There is no analysis here, just hype.
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    • Wed Aug 20th 11:01 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Is AT&T to Blame for 3G's Performance in the iPhone?
      Ted - what's the scale/range for comparison strong to weak signal?
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    • Wed Aug 20th 10:51 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Apple's Bipolar China Disorder
      Like other tech players that have had to concede to China's rules for conducting business in China (Google, eBay, Yahoo), if Apple needs to make changes to succeed there, including limiting content on iTunes in China, then so be it. Apple is a business and not a political entity. As a stockholder, I fully expect Apple to comply with Chinese rules and regulations, and to aggressively market their products in this rapidly rising, AND CHANGING, consumer market. Lets keep some perspective here. As a frequent visitor to China, if consumers want access to specific content, including banned music, books, web content, etc. I can assure you they find a way to get it. To say that this burden should be on Apple is at best ridiculous and shows a lack of understanding of the Chinese people and market.
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    • Mon Aug 18th 12:06 PM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Apple: Great Company with Lofty Valuation - Due for Pullback
      Ridiculous - insiders sell because THEY have to pay the taxes.
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    • Fri Aug 8th 12:47 PM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Microsoft Gets the Blogging Community
      David B. - you're an idiotic blogger who once again has no clue. Paid shill maybe? You never ever hear MSFT users being passionate about the MSFT products... Why, because they don't play well with others, and are overpriced, defective bloatware! Meanwhile, Apple has the highest levels of customer satisfaction, highest ratings for customer service, the highest rated products in the trade press, a significantly lower cost of ownership, and sales increasing faster than the rest of the industry by several factors. (By the way, Apple doesn't make batteries! Defective batteries came from Sony! Get a life...)
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    • Tue Aug 5th 10:19 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      iPhone Production Rumors Swirl
      Thank you for stating that these are rumors, and especially with the iPhone Nano, one of very low probability. Agreed it would make no sense at this time as it would conflict with the tremendous sales of the new 3G iPhone. Some of your colleagues at other media outlets have not been so "insightful" in their "reporting" and have just picked up the rumors as pretty much fact.
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    • Wed Jul 30th 10:20 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Apple Math: Market Share over Margins
      Good article Jason. Many good comments here. It is amazing how so called analysts are clueless about Apple. There will be no margin erosion. What nonsense. Apple figured out long ago what consumers want, and what makes them passionate. Apple products provide excellent value and will continue to do so at the best margins in the industry. The halo effect from all of the new international consumers, historically Apple's weakest market, will blow the doors off! Agreed though that Apple needs to be very cautious about software and hardware quality, and customer support, so that they don't lose their edge. Hopefully they've learned their lessons with this major launch. And hopefully, Jobs won't beat his people up so bad that his best people bolt. Esprit de corps is critical at this juncture and he needs to keep his people pumped up. Apple, keep up the great work and continue to surprise and delight us with great products people are passionate about! You should all be very proud of what you've accomplished!

      Now, for the shorts... I agree that there is much manipulation going on here by the shorts. It is a trading practice that should be banned across the board as it allows too much room for manipulation and outright fraud at the expense of market stability and the average investor.
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    • Tue Jul 29th 09:17 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Five Great Quality Companies: Are They Too Expensive?
      kbear - excellent post and right on. It amazes me how so called analysts fail to really understand this company, its products, its customers and why they are so passionate about their products, and what the true market potential is. One area where I think you are wrong however is on lowering the margins to increase market share. Apple is forecasting just 3 or 4 pts reduction in GM, this won't amount to much of a cost savings to have a real impact on iMacs or MacBooks though - in the range of $30 - $70, which is not enough to drive sales on a cost basis. I believe they will continue with their same strategy of holding prices overall (with few exceptions) and continuing to upgrade performance with new components that cost a little more but will come down over time. Another explanation is that as component costs rise during these global inflationary times, they will absorb some of the cost increases. But not lower prices. They don't need to as their market continues to grow globally, and they have significant potential on the upside, especially with the expansion of their consumer base internationally, which will result in other Apple product sales. Apple is a growth machine in the near and long term.
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    • Mon Jul 28th 15:26 PM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Apple's 3G iPhone Has Some Kinks to Resolve
      To jazzkeys - you have no idea what you are talking about. Its not just the phone capabilities, or the fact that its the most sophisticated computer in this form factor, its the software stupid!!!! And the fact that it is an integrated platform computing device with no equals, its the ecosystem across all Apple products and services. It has in fact added a lot that is new... like USABILITY, incredible functionality, and the apps store which offers huge promise for the iPhone's future innovation.
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    • Sun Jul 27th 13:15 PM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Steve Jobs: Honesty Is the Best Policy
      To texasgolfer, do you know how to spell? Do you really follow this company closely? Where do these moronic posters come from. Apple has not lowered their prices dumbdumb. If you are speaking of the iPhone, Apple is getting full price at what is believed to be an incredible margin. It is the service provider that is giving the discount as they subsidize the iPhone! If you are speaking of the least expensive iPod shuffle, yes they did lower prices on that one, and their COG had also dropped dramatically. And wow, they dropped the price by what $30? Yet they blew out the quarter including units sold, and the profit and gross margin numbers. What a disaster! In fact, Apple has consistently held steady on their overall pricing and product strategy of adding new features, functionality and higher performance, providing even greater value to their customers. Perhaps you should spend less time on the golf course....
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    • Sun Jul 27th 12:34 PM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Steve Jobs: Honesty Is the Best Policy
      The bottom line, after this is all laid out, is that Steve Jobs' health IS a private matter. (If it were a life threatening illness, it might be material, but since its not life threatening, it is therefore a private matter!) Even as an investor in Apple, which I am, I have no right to know the details of Steve Jobs personal health under the circumstances described. This has nothing to do with what the nitwit here calls "honesty". And the stock is not off because of the perceived illness of Jobs, but because the Apple forecast was much lower than analysts expected, especially their lower gross margin forecast all the way into 2009. Fred, did you even follow what transpired during and after the call? If you had you would know this!

      As to Apple's secrecy, and maintaining a culture of STRICT secrecy, I applaud them. In this competitive world, keeping your cards so close to the vest is a key strategic advantage. I know perfectly well what's going on at Apple, when I need to know it. That is to say, when everyone else knows it. When the next brilliant product is introduced, or the official announcement is made about the next release of the operating system. If everything weren't going so brilliantly at Apple, it might be a different matter. Investors would be banging down the door to try to understand the problems, and to get them fixed. But that is certainly not the case here. (God forbid, Carl Icahn would come knocking!)

      The NYT article / author quoted for this piece is also totally off base when he says that Apple's secrecy "poisons its corporate governance. Apple tells analysts far less about operations than most companies do." Nonsense - again, Apple is in a very competitive technology space and secrecy is paramount! (Look how quickly the iPhone was cloned [albeit poorly] in Asia. Or how MSFT tries to copy Apple [again, albeit poorly].) The fact is many companies have stopped giving guidance in their quarterly calls because they're afraid of being sued by shareholders if there predictions fall short, yet Apple consistently provides guidance for the upcoming quarter, albeit consistently conservative guidance, but we do know what to expect.

      Steve and Apple, keep doing what you're doing! Delight us with the brilliance of your market changing products. And keep us guessing. To your health Steve! And to everyone at Apple, great job!
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    • Thu Jul 24th 19:00 PM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Apple's MobileMe Mess
      Jimmy's an idiot - MSFT is still just as evil as ever, and it is total BS that every Apple product has "major flaws" - that is absolute nonsense. Where do people get this crap? And why do people post who have no clue what they are writing about? Apple has the highest customer satisfaction ratings of anyone in the industry across all of its product lines, and also the highest ratings for service and support. Further, their products are shown time and again to be priced around the same price points of COMPARABLY equipped products, and APPLE provides MORE VALUE hands down based on uptime, ease of use, amount of time people spend actually using their products, and based on the superior operating system and additional software you get when you buy an Apple computer. BTW, Jimmy, people are still lining up EVERY DAY at the Apple stores to buy a new 3G iPhone, even this long after the initial launch! Go figure, must be another MSFT huh.
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    • Thu Jul 17th 10:10 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Channel Checks Show Blackberry Sales Not Pressured by iPhone
      I'm sorry, but who is Cannacord Adams again??? Ah, there it is, a Canadian based company. And they and this author are trying to draw conclusions about RIM sales versus a phone that wasn't out yet?
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    • Wed Jul 9th 11:44 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Apple's iPhone to Capture Chinese Internet Market
      As a frequent traveler to China I can attest that this article is spot on. And adding games to the phone will be an even greater driver as the Chinese are absolutely nuts about gaming! As an aside, my mother-in-law is here visiting from China. She and her best friends are all retired and living on relatively small pensions. But they all plan to get an iPhone when launched there! (They all wanted her to pick one up for them while she's here but unfortunately she leaves tomorrow.) So old and young alike will be advancing the cause! One problem in China though is that 3G is not there yet, but that won't stop the iPhone demand, as internet access is already relatively slow compared to the rest of the world so not as great a factor.
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    • Wed Jul 9th 09:36 AM | Rating: 0 0
      Commented on:
      Apple's 3G iPhone: First Reviews Are So-So
      Some important facts that you forgot to mention as part of this article. FIRST, the ATT iPhone plan costs THE SAME as for their other, lesser, "smart" phones! So it doesn't cost more than OTHER phone plans. SECOND, since iPhone users use the data plan/internet SIGNIFICANTLY more than other "smart" phone users (google announced this week that number is 50 x compared to all other phones on their website, YES 50x!), the iPhone user therefore gets far more value out of the data plan. Third, even though the battery doesn't last as long in 3G mode, it still lasts SIGNIFICANTLY longer than other 3G phones' batteries, and backup packs are now available to extend that life when you need it. Fourth, even though as Pogue points out, 3G isn't available everywhere from ATT, it still covers something like 70-80% of the population, and will increase even more by the end of the year! You are supposed to be reporters - do your own work - try finding and focusing on the real facts!!!!!!!
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