Apple's Cash: No Dividends, No Stock Buybacks, Or Acquisitions Just Because Apple Can

“There will be a special guest…” is the only thing that is mentioned on the invitation for Apple’s 2025 special event.  And on the day of the keynote, Tim Cook goes on stage and tells everyone just how Apple just added another $30 billion in cash just in the last quarter.  He makes a joke about how a Starbucks grande latte now costs $15 and money ain’t what it used to be and receive a chuckle from the audience.

Then he said that Apple has been working on something really special and it would change just about every industry and market in the world – military, labor, and even education.  Audience is quiet, on the edge of their seat, all waiting in anticipation.  They expect Tim Cook to bring on Phil Schiller to unveil this next Apple product.  But he doesn’t. Tim goes on to talk about the industrial revolution and the automobile and then it’s about the telephone and personal computer.  He spoke fondly about the old iOS devices – iPhones and iPads.  And he finally touched on the revolution that wearable gadgets that Apple ushered in and bring new meaning to the “roaring 20s”.

Should Apple Offer Mountain Lion For Free To Mess With Google And Microsoft?

The question to the title of this post is absolutely.  And there is precedent for this as well.  And should Apple go through with giving away Mountain Lion and maybe charge on a biannual basis or whenever they figure the upgrade is big enough to warrant a charge.

And Mountain Lion is a bit upgrade from Lion.  However, this is a sense of urgency in this.  Apple is on a roll in both the mobile and PC market - growth beyond anything I expected.  I'm not alone in this.  Giving away Mountain Lion will add fuel to Apple's success in 2012.

Furthermore, Apple can really mess things up for Google and Microsoft.  First, Chrome OS, while still trying to find a footing in the PC market, can further be disrupted by Apple's own OS improvements.  It's not the same segment of the PC market that Apple and Google but every bit of goodwill that Apple generates help.  Media attention on Mountain Lion and the fact that it'll be free could generate a halo effect on iOS device sales.

And then there's Microsoft that is poised to take back control of the PC growth and launch a massive assault on Apple's dominated tablet market.  Even now, there are some doubts that Microsoft with the Windows brand can really hurt Apple's iPad.

First, there is the issue of cost and whether Microsoft's partners can match iPad's pricing in the tablet market.  And on top of that, we already know that ultrabook makers have been making hay over their inability to match the prices of Apple's Macbook Airs. Apple already gives away iOS for free. So, Apple can reward Air owners with free Mountain Lion copies. Windows OEMs will have to license Windows for a fee - be it for the tablet or laptops.

Second, Mountain Lion will bring iOS features that many iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch users are already familiar with.  Not just the multitouch gestures but also the apps with iCloud support.

One more thing, Mountain Lion harmonizes the UI between the Macs and iOS - making it easier for not only regular mobile warriors like me to operate and switch between Apple devices but also for student and business users alike.  Many of them already swear by an iPhone or iPad.  In the last quarter alone, Apple's Mac sales to enterprise grew more than 50%.  I'm sure that put a lot of hurt on Apple's competitors from Microsoft to HP and Dell.

How likely is this to happen?  Well, Apple has stated in its SEC filings (MacdailyNews) that it will defer a portion of each Mac sale to account for free software upgrade.

Apple God As Spoken: iPad 3 Coming Out Party Next Week

Update:  note that in the invitation, the iPad depicted has no home button...interesting...


Okay, it's official.  Apple will unveil the next iPad update next week, March 7th, in San Francisco.

Really, need not say more.  Anything else will be speculation.  It was rumored a few weeks back that it would be on the 7th and this mornnig, CNBC tweeted as such.  But this invitation to the chosen ones confirmed it.

And yesterday, we also speculated that it is possible that Apple could charge a premium for Retina Display.  I still think it's possible Apple can charge more for it but at the same time, it could also be something Apple puts out just to throw everyone off.

Personally, as an average mobile warrior, I am hoping that Apple will keep things the way they are.  Meaning, $499 for the low-end iPad and up.  Maybe keep the iPad 2 around just to mess with the low-end of the tablet market and Android competitors.

Then the next question is how will we receive our iPads?  Pre-order and have it sent to us like last year or order and pick it up in the store?  I've got my credit card ready and set to go.  However, I'm kinda hoping that Apple will allow us to line up on a Saturday to make the pickup.  I've already organized a breakfast for some close friends that are going to be picking one up.  yes, it better be a Saturday, March 10th or 17th.

So, which would you prefer?  Have Apple ship it to you or be able to line up early to pick one up?

iPad Update With Retina Screen Could Cost More - Probably $100 More

One of the highlight features for the upcoming iPad, iPad 2S or 3, is the Retina Display that it'll certainly sport.  So, word on the Internet now is that it'll cost more than the current iPad 2 baseline.  Some are guessing that Apple will charge an additional $70.  Others think it'll be $80.  Me?  I think it'll be a nice round figure:  $100.

Now, I don't like to traffic in Apple rumors (though I enjoy reading them when they sound plausible, come from reputable sites, and does not come from DigiTimes), in this case, we can speculate about Retina Display pricing.  And I reckon the new high resolution displays are difficult to make, lower yields (meaning more waste), and is not something Apple's competitors are capable of matching at this moment.

So, a premium, $70 to $100 more, isn't out of the question.  Make no mistake.  I'm as disappointed as you if our speculation turns out to be true.  This is it leads me to believe that Apple will continue to offer the iPad 2 similar to the current configuration to take the lower price points, $350 to $400.

Still, something bugs me.  What'll happen to Apple's $500 price?  Will it be occupied by the iPad 2 or the newer iPad?  It would make sense for Apple to have a new iPad take the $500 and lower the prices of the iPad 2.

Obviously, no one, including myself, knows what Apple will do.  If this was the Macbook, I can see Apple offer new laptops with standard screens with an option to upgrade to higher resolutions as they do with the Macbook Pros. Can Apple offer the new iPads with the same iPad 2 screen, 1024x768, and for $100 more, upgrade to the Retina Display, doubling the resolutiont to 2048x1536?

It's possible.  And along with the the doubling of the resolution, Apple could sweeten the deal with a better CPU with beefier graphics processing power.

What I am suggesting does complicate things a lot.  Nevertheless, Apple is well into the post-PC era and the iPads represents the future of mobile computing.

Well, we'll know in a couple of weeks.

iPhone Losing Out To Competitors In Countries With Austerity Measures Or On Verge Of Bankrupcy – NO One Should Be Surprised

Apple is a premium brand.  However, it’s not the same thing as saying that Apple products cost more than competing devices or computers.  Rather, it’s about Apple’s unwillingness to compromise.  The “premiumness” is about Apple’s talented teams of designers, programmers, and engineers making the best products they can.  That is what makes Apple such a sought after brand and why people line up year after year to buy its products.

So, we learn now that Apple’s iPhone is not doing well in countries where carriers do no offer subsidies.  In fact, Android smartphones had take Apple to school when it comes to market-share.  So what?

There are going to be many analysts and tech pundits who will push for Apple to release a cheaper iPhone to address those market.  Screw that.  If Apple could not lower it self to make a PC at the $500 price point that was not a piece of junk, what makes anyone believe that Apple will make a $200 or even a $300 smartphone that not worthy of the name “iPhone”.

The other issue is that Apple wants a certain kind of customer.  Not necessarily affluent ones though that definitely helps the bottom-line.  What Steve Jobs, Tim Cook, and others want are the type of customer who recognizes a product that was developed with the meticulous care that Apple has put into.  And it’ll certainly cost money to buy it but it’ll be worth it.

Furthermore, there are other things at play.  One that quickly comes to mind is the economic factor.  Take a look at this chart.  The iPhone isn’t doing too hot in Greece and Portugal.  If you’re not too up and up on the latest financial market news, here it is:  Greece is on the verge of bankruptcy while Portugal has had their bonds rattled by downgrades and austerity measures are in full play.

Android devices in general are good enough for the vast majority of the market.  No, not everyone needs the iPhone or even high-end Android device like the Galaxy S II.  A $200-$300 unsubsidized device is good enough.  I know a few big mobile warriors doing just fine in a $300 Android device on Virgin Mobile but I also know that if not for the $25 prepaid plan they’ve got grandfathered in, they would have long jumped ship to an iPhone.

In conclusion, Apple is never going to make a $200 iPhone that is garbage because it’s not in their DNA.  I wouldn’t want Apple to either.  Apple could conceivably lower the price of the iPhone 3GS to $300 someday for economically troubled markets and even the 3GS is still head and shoulders above competing devices in that price range.

Source:  Cult of Android.

2011 Was Year of the iPad 2, 2012 Will Be Year of the Tablet

Mobile World Congress has started and leaks are already happening.  And guess what, tablets are huge this year and it should not be a surprise to anyone if tablets get more attention than smartphones.  After all, this is the year when Google gives it another shot at the iPad while Microsoft makes a very risky bet, albeit a necessary one, by making Windows 8 its chief competitor to the iPad.

Take the quad-core tablets powered by Nvidia's Tegra 3 chip that will soon flood the market with many Android tablet makers using specs to help them muscle in to take some marketshare.  It's likely many Taiwanese companies will try to outspec competitors on similiarly pricted tablets.  What's interesting is the response from the top tier tablet makers.

More at Greenjava.

Sun, High Gas Prices, And Mobile

It's that time of the year again. Daylight savings is coming and and heat. At least in Calfornia, we have been having quite a warm winter and I don't see that changing much. To top that off, we are having quite a ride at the gas pumps. So, I've tooled up my bike, make sure everything is working as it should, and take it out today.

So, I'll be looking to start up my recording of how much money I'll be saving by biking insteading of driving around my SUV.

And where does mobile fit into all this?

Our smartphones are yesterday's note pad. I used to use a little note book to record my bike rides in school, both high school and in college. It was neat to see just how much money I've saved over time because of all this.

And since I've been looking for an app to do do just this, maybe I ought to write an app to do this for myself.