I’m not sure why some people are expecting Apple to suffer so poorly. I’ve seen the stock slide of late, and for no real good reason. Shit, profit from fiscal Q4 this year rose 26% over last year- can’t be too bad. Kick in the fact Apple is sans debt and has plenty of cash, and they are a very solid buy.
Sure, I understand the worries of the recession and the upcoming ‘Google Phone.
As far as I’m concerned, Apple has the best products in nearly all the fields it has a presence in. Not just great products, but almost must-haves. Steve Jobs feels the same way:
“We don’t yet know how this economic downturn will affect Apple,” he said in a statement. “But we’re armed with the strongest product line in our history, the most-talented employees and the best customers in our industry. And $25 billion of cash safely in the bank with zero debt.”
Besides, when times get tough, companies usually create new opportunities to spur consumer spending; i.e. new products and innovations!
Its quite amazing the influence the iPhone has had in its short life so far. Consider how many people now own one. Consider how many companies and developers have created applications designed for the phone. Consider how many third party companies offer covers, cases, skins, wallpapers and other accessories.
Despite the amazing breadth of influence the phone has, this product still comes as a very surprising invention. The inventor of the iYo Magnetic Induction Charger resides in Sweden, which has a pretty good reputation of green living and sustainability. Sweden is engulffed by darkness in the winter, rendering solar panels useless. This charger would appeal to those looking to charge their iPhone’s in a sustainable matter during the winter.
I don’t think this will catch on very much here in the states, but I dig this guy’s efforts and ingenuity.
Can’t say I’m surprised by the news that Starbucks is closing 600 stores nationwide. First of all, they were over expanding to the point of cannibalizing other stores, but were OK with it as long as consumers were still drinking Starbucks coffee.
In college, we spent a lot of time reading case studies about Starbucks. They were sort of the ideal company; great growth strategy (we thought), unbelievable brand strength and even admired for being a good employer. Starbucks apparently over-estimated their domestic growth capabilities, and it wound up biting them. We don’t know a lot about the closings yet, but we do know that most of the 600 stores were opened since the beginning of fiscal year 2006. To me, this suggests poor location decisions. Whether opening in new, unproven communities or blanketing existing locations, these stores did not have the customer base to support them and even dragged down other successful locations. The tanking economy doesn’t help either.
Unfortunately, the real loser in all of this is the 12,000 or so employees that will soon be jobless. Starbucks does hope to relocate many of these employees to continuing locations. Lets hope they do!
Overall, I think Starbucks will rebound from their recent struggles. Their ‘return to their roots‘ strategy will pay off in the long run as Starbucks redeems itself as the world’s best coffee experience. I also like their new WiFi agreement with AT&T, as well as the Starbucks iTunes music store. Their brand is strong enough to carry them, and new innovations such as iPhone ordering is just awesome.
Being an iPhone owner, its been hard not posting anything yet about the new 3G iPhone coming out in July. Soooo I’ve decided to post the new iPhone commercial and compare it a bit to the introductory spots. Apple did a fantastic job building hype for the 1st gen iPhone by showcasing the revolutionary features and usability.
Apple’s new commercial for the latest iPhone doesn’t do much for me, but overall it makes sense. By now, just about everyone is aware of the iPhone and its capabilities, so the new spot focuses more on enhancing the brand and status, but also speedier browsing and the much lower price points of $199(8gb) and $299(16gb).
I don’t have a job that requires me to be online all day or to write blogs or browse social networks (in fact, I have no job whatsoever!), but I do all of these things anyways. Most of my online time is probably spent learning, which comes from reading blogs and news and seeing what people are talking about on Twitter. A big chunk of time is spent job searching on job boards and agency sites. Then of course I spend some time working on AdSponge and Facebook. Oh, and I am connected all the time through my internet friendly iPhone. Becoming disconnected for me can be a difficult task.
Larissa Fair from the Buzz Bin offers a list of ways to achieve balance between your online life and the rest of your life. Most of her tips are pretty obvious, like leaving your laptop at work and avoiding Twitter. I guess for me, it depends who I am with that changes my online habits. If I’m with friends or family or in a social setting, then the iPhone will stay in my pocket. Also, I try to save at least one day a week to be completely disconnected, usually Sunday.
Most of my friends will say I’m online more than anyone they know, but isn’t that a good thing?
Can’t say I’m surprised by the news that 
