Price is all that matters
As unbelievable as it is, you can apparently get a gig writing for the Harvard Business Review (no link) to make the case that Apple will eventually get shut out of [insert market du jour] because other vendors will come in at lower prices and everyone likes lower prices so Apple will never sell more iPads, iPhones, Watches or anything else ever again QED The End.
Today’s Meh is a good counterpoint in their inimitable style:
Check out this genuinely awful tablet. It’s a total piece of shit. It’s the least appealing Android since Vicky from Small Wonder. It freezes up more often than the Weeping Angels. If it feels a little sticky, don’t worry, that’s just residue from the box of Cracker Jacks. You’d have more fun playing with a solar calculator. At night.
Now is when we say “But hey, look how cheap it is! Buy it anyway!” Right?
Wrong. We should be paying you to take it.
Of course, it’s already sold out because there are people who will throw $20 good dollars at a bad tablet. I don’t deny these people exist, what I’m saying is there also exist a lot of people who would rather not throw that money away but take it and some other money and put it toward something with a far better user experience. These are Apple’s customers.
I’m not sure why that’s so hard to understand.
» ‘Windows RT is officially dead’
The Verge’s Tom Warren:
Microsoft was left alone as the last manufacturer of Windows RT-based tablets, and now the software giant is no longer producing any RT devices.
That explains that slide whistle sound I heard the other day.
The move makes sense — no point in beating this dead horse — but it’s too bad Microsoft wasn’t able to make a platform that allowed it to jettison some legacy overhead.
» Turning This Car Around #48: Anal Vacuuming Technique
This episode of the parenting podcast I’m on every week is about chores which you could probably guess from the title, right?
» The Verge’s look at Photos
Josh Lowensohn:
One of the biggest problems right now is what to do with all our photos. Taking them is easier than ever. So is sharing them. But storing and organizing them all in different places still manages to be an experience filled with gotchas, and one that varies wildly depending on what companies you’ve sworn allegiance to with your phone and computer. And if that company’s been Apple, you’ve basically been a guinea pig in a good idea that was hastily (and poorly) executed.
Apple might have just fixed that for Mac users with the new Photos app.
Key takeaway: it’s fast. Can’t wait.
» The Rebound #20: Maximum Darkness
Who wants to talk about Radio Shack?! Everyone, that’s who. We also discuss the state of Apple blogging and Lex’s weird use cases.
» Clockwise #73: I Prefer My Cars With Backdoors
I sat in on this week’s episode of Clockwise where we talked about Goober, the Shack, Apple’s worst products and do-it-yourself ebooks.
» So long and thanks for all the cables
Bloomberg:
RadioShack Corp. is preparing to shut down the almost-century-old retail chain in a bankruptcy deal that would sell about half its store leases to Sprint Corp. and close the rest, according to people with knowledge of the discussions.
There is one just a 10 minute walk from my house. I only ever pay them a visit when there’s a cable or adapter I need and am willing to pay more than Amazon to get it immediately. That’s not often. I have a bit of nostalgia for a store that’s been around forever but, alas, nostalgia doesn’t pay the bills.
I know because I keep writing “Nostalgia” on my utility bill and I keep having our electricity shut off.
» The Rebound #19: Headwinds and Hedges
Dan and I talk about Apple’s results, the Apple TV, the Apple Watch, Apple Pay and how I used plastic disks as counterfeit nickels.
» ‘Unfathomable’
Writing on Joystiq, another site axed by AOL, Brianna Royce confirms my cynicism about management:
I would like to be able to tell you truthfully that this is an equitable and just decision that makes some sort of logical sense, but the reality is that our overlords’ decisions have always been unfathomable. I know more of what I know about corporate from reading tech and finance news than through my own job. We all suspected this was coming eventually a year ago when a VP whose name I don’t even know and who never read our site chose to reward our staggering, hard-won 40% year-over-year page view growth by… hacking our budget in half.
(Via Nilay Patel)
» AOL to shut down TUAW
The Verge’s Micah Singleton:
There goes another one. AOL is shutting down The Unofficial Apple Weblog, better known as TUAW, sources familiar with the situation tell The Verge.
It is counterintuitive to me why Apple’s success should have an inverse relationship on the corporate-owned Apple sites. I’ve heard it said that “Everyone’s reporting Apple now” but the larger sites never do the kind of Apple reporting I want to read. Neven Mrgan suggests that Apple’s just doing a better job at some of the things Apple-centric sites have been known for.
My loosely-held belief based on what I’ve heard is that these corporations scooped up Apple blogs during the iPod heyday, expecting big returns. All they saw were modest returns (some of that possibly exacerbated by misguided policies) and have finally given up.
All I know is, every time I’m asked to speak at school career fairs, I’m very bullish on getting into Apple blogging. (Disclaimer: I have never been asked to speak at school career fairs.)