Is Apple stumbling?

[ryan1835]

not with the amount of money they can make through headphone sales now they ditched the jack for their own propriety connecter - imagine how much they can make in licensing? next it will disappear from the laptops and ipads

[Mercury]

I'm a simple guy who just wants it to freaking work.  I also despise disposable as best I can.  When I switched to the iphone3 it was a huge leap for me.  I came from nokia and palm.  I think was best describes my experience is, it works. 

I had my iPhone3 that played very well with my iMac I got several years later till I finally killed my phone.  I repeatedly dropped it and finally got it soaked one too many times.  Now this mind you was well into iPhone5.   I ended up getting the iphone5 instead of at the time the Galaxy.  I cannot say I would have been disappointed or thrilled for that matter but I can say I haven't regretted my decision. 

My phone and computer work together very well.  My phone has been a great tool for me as well.  I use mine for business purposes and so any disruption is money lost.  Side not is my iMac is also running very smoothly after many years.  I cant say that about the other computers I've had. 

Is Apple stumbling?  Bigger, faster, etc etc is great for marketing but in my usage all I care about is if it works, and mine always have.

I have no need for the iphone7 as I had no need for the sixes.  My iPhone5 works and while my iOS says I need to update, I also see no need.

 


   

I also use my phone for business, and I simply can't afford downtime either.  I am currently using a Chromebook for work, but I might soon upgrade to a Macbook because my chromebook is prone to freezing.  Apple products have always worked for me better than anything else.  I love to experiment with Android and non-apple PC's simply because they are (much) cheaper, but I'm getting real tired of dealing with the crap that comes with them.

[kaput]

I have both android tablet and phone, and Apple phone, tablet and computer.

The Apple products always perform better. For me I have been 100% satisfied with my experience as a whole with Apple products.

Allot of people here have mentioned loving Apple because it "just works". And I agree. Apples ecosystem works seamlessly. It's because they make the hardware, software and services. There is no weak link in the chain. Where as android you have to contend with a good phone, the software working with the hardware specs and then the services. If anyone of these 3 don't work in perfect harmony the end user will be sacrificed.

Also iOS 10 is fantastic. The iPhone 7 is a beautiful phone. Apple Watch is a huge hit and iPads are pretty popular too...

[AimlessWanderer]

I've never used any Apple products

[Mercury]

I've never used any Apple products

I've never seen Game of Thrones.  It's not a crime to avoid something that's mainstream.  I'm actually rather proud I don't keep up with most of Television, and I'd probably be just fine without Apple as well.

BTW, good to see you around my friend!! 

[Grant Lamontagne]

I've never seen Game of Thrones either. But I do have an Apple product.  It's an old 80 gig ipod that my father gave me when he upgraded to a bigger model.  I've only ever used it to play Breakout. 

Def

[AimlessWanderer]

I've never used any Apple products

I've never seen Game of Thrones.  It's not a crime to avoid something that's mainstream.  I'm actually rather proud I don't keep up with most of Television, and I'd probably be just fine without Apple as well.

BTW, good to see you around my friend!!

Thanks Sean 

I've never seen Game of Thrones either  although that's probably due to me not having a television for the last 8 (?  ) years 

[Etherealicer]

I've never used any Apple products

I've never seen Game of Thrones.  It's not a crime to avoid something that's mainstream.  I'm actually rather proud I don't keep up with most of Television, and I'd probably be just fine without Apple as well.

BTW, good to see you around my friend!!

Thanks Sean 

I've never seen Game of Thrones either  although that's probably due to me not having a television for the last 8 (?  ) years 

I have seen the first 2 episodes... you have missed out on nothing

[pfrsantos]

Only saw this thread now. Yup, I'd say apple is stumbling...

I'll give it 5 min.

[Etherealicer]

I have both android tablet and phone, and Apple phone, tablet and computer.

The Apple products always perform better. For me I have been 100% satisfied with my experience as a whole with Apple products.

Allot of people here have mentioned loving Apple because it "just works". And I agree. Apples ecosystem works seamlessly. It's because they make the hardware, software and services. There is no weak link in the chain. Where as android you have to contend with a good phone, the software working with the hardware specs and then the services. If anyone of these 3 don't work in perfect harmony the end user will be sacrificed.

Also iOS 10 is fantastic. The iPhone 7 is a beautiful phone. Apple Watch is a huge hit and iPads are pretty popular too...

I have and use both too.

Both have their merits and flaws.
Apple
Hardware: I love my Mac Mini but I find Apple displays (not iPad/iPhone but computer/laptop screens) absolutely garbage (too much reflection). The hardware is generally great but hard to work with (try upgrading RAM or switching the HDD). iPads are expensive, but I think unmatched. I liked the iPhone 5, but newer ones are not for me.
Apps*: App programming for iOS is much better than for Android, due to the standardization. However, the new screen sizes are getting a pain when you have to deliver images in 237 different formats. And what is an absolute nightmare is submission to the iTunes store (and there is no alternative). It can happen that you develop an App for a client and they simply reject it because they think another program can do it already although this is customer specific. It can also happen that you try to update an App and then because all the standards have changed they require you to make it all new (try explaining that to your customers).
Apple has a huge market share in Switzerland (larger than in most countries). Even so, we have more and more customers that only order an Android app (5 years ago it was the opposite), simply because of the publishing / updating issues.
Troubleshooting: I think the "just works" for apple is not as true anymore than it used to be, e.g. setting up E-Mail accounts that are not Google or MS Exchange. You hit it on the head when you said "Apples ecosystem works seamlessly", meaning that as soon as you want to integrate something non-Apple it gets difficult.

Android
Hardware: There is a much wider range of hardware available, in a much wider price range. There are plenty of premium devices that can easily match an iPhone but there are alternatives for lower budgets and there are devices for smaller niches.
Apps*: Programming for Android is a bit of a nightmare due to the lack of standards (although it is much better than it used to be). Publishing Android apps is so much easier and risk free (Android Apps don't get rejected), making Android apps a good deal cheaper.
Troubleshooting: The wide variety of devices makes troubleshooting difficult. On the other hand looking at this wide variety it is surprising how well that stuff works together. I assume Android users are more capable/willing to solve their own problems as we have by far less requests for Android devices (From the web-statistics two are about even 50% Android, 50% iOS).

*Most Apps we program are for free and for a very limited group of customers. Like a barcode scanner, where you put bar-codes on your shelf and simply scan them to order, whatever was on that shelf (mostly screws, nuts and bolts).