Apple report record profits

[Chris]

Nope, in fact it just shines a light on human nature rather than supporting the theory some held, that Microsoft was somehow more evil than any other company you could name. It wasn't any such thing; it was merely seeking maximum advantage for its own products. The same as Apple is doing now.

However, let's not forget that seeking that advantage lies not only in thwarting your competition but in providing products people actually want to buy. Apple is doing that. People want to buy their stuff, and they buy it in extraordinary volumes. That, in the main, is the reason the company is making such a vast amount of money right now.

[Maggy J]

The fact remains I prefer go without rather than pay Apples prices.

Also if someone else provides a similar product at a cheaper price under another name then I regard that as being a buyer's prerogative.

If Apple really wants my custom then they need to adjust their prices not try and stamp out rivals through the courts.That's definitely anti-competitive.

[Osem]

Originally Posted by Hugh

You do realise Apple is non-unionised, both in its offices and shops?

........ pays lots of pesky dividends to investors and almost certainly has an army of tax lawyers and accountants beavering away trying to reduce its corportate tax liability. How odd that someone who's spent so much time around here banging on about major companies, the super rich, tax avoidance, blah, blah, blah thinks the world would be a better place with more of the same....

Back on topic - I don't/won't ever buy Apple mainly because I don't give a damn about fashion/appearance, hate being so tied to/restricted by a manufacturer and won't pay what I feel is well above the odds for functionality I don't want or need. I much prefer having the multitude of options and choices available to Android and PC users at far cheaper prices.

That having been said, I can see why people who value other things (and operate in particular fields) might be won over by the Apple offering in terms of style and functionality but it's their money and their prerogative.

[Damien]

Originally Posted by Osem

........ pays lots of pesky dividends to investors and almost certainly has an army of tax lawyers and accountants beavering away trying to reduce its corportate tax liability. How odd that someone who's spent so much time around here banging on about major companies, the super rich, tax avoidance, blah, blah, blah thinks the world would be a better place with more of the same....

First of all Apple do not pay many dividends to their shareholders. I am not sure to what extent Apple attempt to reduce their corporate tax liability, I am guessing they do have lawyers to pay as little as they can legally. They did get in trouble for some sort of share thing, where they back dated Steve Jobs' shares but nothing came of it.

Back on topic - I don't/won't ever buy Apple mainly because I don't give a damn about fashion/appearance, hate being so tied to/restricted by a manufacturer and won't pay what I feel is well above the odds for functionality I don't want or need. I much prefer having the multitude of options and choices available to Android and PC users at far cheaper prices.

It's not simply appearance, it's user interface. The design of a interface can seriously impact upon it's usability and how the multitude of functions get exposed to the user. Prior to my iPhone my standard handset had e-mail, but it was such a mess of menus and half-implementations that it never really worked. Feature wise both that phone and the iPhone 'support e-mail' but only one really works. It's something Apple have always understood better than anyone and it's their defining trait.

---------- Post added at 16:09 ---------- Previous post was at 16:06 ----------

Originally Posted by Maggy J

If Apple really wants my custom then they need to adjust their prices not try and stamp out rivals through the courts.That's definitely anti-competitive.

It's not anti-competitive. Samsung are not a small time company trying to make a small profit. They can more than afford to fight these lawsuits and they sue other companies as well. It's just people protecting their IP or fighting a political inter-company battle. The only company which is innocent of this tactic is Google who have yet to sue anyone over IP.

[Osem]

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-1...ward-says.html

Well it appears they are going to and, of course, a 53 fold rise in share value since 2002 would far exceed the value of any dividends such a company would pay so that fact that a cash dividend hasn't yet been paid doesn't mean that lots of pesky rich folks and companies haven't made lots of money directly from Apple and their shares. Something our good mate Alan routinely condemns.

---------- Post added at 16:43 ---------- Previous post was at 16:40 ----------

Originally Posted by Damien

It's not simply appearance, it's user interface. The design of a interface can seriously impact upon it's usability and how the multitude of functions get exposed to the user. Prior to my iPhone my standard handset had e-mail, but it was such a mess of menus and half-implementations that it never really worked. Feature wise both that phone and the iPhone 'support e-mail' but only one really works. It's something Apple have always understood better than anyone and it's their defining trait.

Which is why I wrote:

That having been said, I can see why people who value other things (and operate in particular fields) might be won over by the Apple offering in terms of style and functionality but it's their money and their prerogative.

[Uncle Peter]

Record profits and Finder is still monumentally crap. Mind you, at least browsing for things on the mobile devices is a bit more intuitive.

[Maggy J]

Originally Posted by Damien

First of all Apple do not pay many dividends to their shareholders. I am not sure to what extent Apple attempt to reduce their corporate tax liability, I am guessing they do have lawyers to pay as little as they can legally. They did get in trouble for some sort of share thing, where they back dated Steve Jobs' shares but nothing came of it.



It's not simply appearance, it's user interface. The design of a interface can seriously impact upon it's usability and how the multitude of functions get exposed to the user. Prior to my iPhone my standard handset had e-mail, but it was such a mess of menus and half-implementations that it never really worked. Feature wise both that phone and the iPhone 'support e-mail' but only one really works. It's something Apple have always understood better than anyone and it's their defining trait.

---------- Post added at 16:09 ---------- Previous post was at 16:06 ----------



It's not anti-competitive. Samsung are not a small time company trying to make a small profit. They can more than afford to fight these lawsuits and they sue other companies as well. It's just people protecting their IP or fighting a political inter-company battle. The only company which is innocent of this tactic is Google who have yet to sue anyone over IP.

We certainly have different ideas about what constitutes being competitive..

[Matt D]

Originally Posted by Damien

The only company which is innocent of this tactic is Google who have yet to sue anyone over IP.

Although...

"Google approved new Motorola lawsuit against Apple iPhone and iCloud"

Originally Posted by The Grauniad

New front in legal battles would require written permission from search giant, as patent battles continue to ramp up over Android

Charles Arthur
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 26 January 2012 08.40 GMT

Google specifically gave permission for Motorola Mobility (MMI) to file a new lawsuit against Apple over its iPhone 4S and iCloud products, according to an analysis of the takeover agreement in which the search giant aims to buy the struggling mobile maker.

(snip snip)

Originally Posted by Maggy J

We certainly have different ideas about what constitutes being competitive..

They're all "stamping each other" through the courts, though. It's not just Apple.

This is from last August. It's probably even more of a mess now...

http://blog.thomsonreuters.com/index...ic-of-the-day/

[Maggy J]

So who is paying for all the law suits? I guess we the customers are and the result is more expensive products..What a way to run business..

[Hugh]

The costs will be tax-deductible....

[sniper007]

They love telling us apple devices "just work". Funny, all of my stuff works too. If it didn't, it would go back/move on. I just see that as a stupid argument. "It works well without bugs" would be a better statement. This isn't hard when you are locked down sooooo hard with the apple OS and ecosystem. Apple will never get any of my money. When my kids ask me for an apple product they'll be hearing the truth from the off and will be well educated.

[Damien]

Originally Posted by sniper007

They love telling us apple devices "just work". Funny, all of my stuff works too. If it didn't, it would go back/move on. I just see that as a stupid argument. "It works well without bugs" would be a better statement. This isn't hard when you are locked down sooooo hard with the apple OS and ecosystem.

You wouldn't believe how difficult it is to design and program something that is simple to the user, works well, and yet is powerful.

[Hugh]

Originally Posted by sniper007

They love telling us apple devices "just work". Funny, all of my stuff works too. If it didn't, it would go back/move on. I just see that as a stupid argument. "It works well without bugs" would be a better statement. This isn't hard when you are locked down sooooo hard with the apple OS and ecosystem. Apple will never get any of my money. When my kids ask me for an apple product they'll be hearing the truth from the off and will be well educated.

Not "just works" - "easy to use for non-techies".

Different thing, and what most people want - I had Sony phones and MP3 players, and the UI was, to put it mildly, pants.

[Maggy J]

Well so far my android phone has been intuitive to use...and user friendly..

My only complaint is the one app I would really like (Weight Watchers) only works on the iphone because someone couldn't apparently set it up for android.Hopefully to be sorted next month.

[Chris]

Apple has long accused Google of basically ripping off iOS in developing Android.

Whether or not that's the case, iOS was out first and was there to be borrowed for inspiration.