> And, given that Mac apps are less complex to write than iOS apps these days, a Mac app could be more profitable than an iOS app.
And you can charge more for a Mac app.
The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
11–20 of 120 posts
Re: The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
#12I don't know about that... I think the only conclusion you could draw from this might be that the market for iOS and Mac _RSS readers_ are almost the same size. You might even be able to stretch it to say they are the _same_ market.
Isn't that weird though? Isn't reading the news the sort of thing you'd do on your phone more often than your computer?
Re: The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
#13I don't know about that... I think the only conclusion you could draw from this might be that the market for iOS and Mac _RSS readers_ are almost the same size. You might even be able to stretch it to say they are the _same_ market.
This was my first thought. Especially as I would guess that Mac users who use RSS readers are extremely likely to have both Macs and iPhones and install their RSS reader on of them.
(I fall in to this bucket.)
Re: The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
#14I don't know about that... I think the only conclusion you could draw from this might be that the market for iOS and Mac _RSS readers_ are almost the same size. You might even be able to stretch it to say they are the _same_ market.
Isn't that weird though? Isn't reading the news the sort of thing you'd do on your phone more often than your computer?
The overwhelming majority of people don't even know that RSS readers are an option to read the news.
Re: The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
#15Markets for RSS app developers^
Re: The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
#16Apple fan/dev here: he's an old school Mac influencer who got famous for writing the first popular Mac RSS client, and blind to the effects his particular narrative would have on those numbers - it's the same 30,000 people who are hip to Mac blog culture, not independent discovery on two separate platforms
Ah, yes, the same crowd that wonders why people won't write native Mac Apps but then rarely acknowledges the documentation is utterly lacking in significant places.
I say this as someone who writes those apps.
Re: The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
#17Earlier quoted context omitted.
Isn't that weird though? Isn't reading the news the sort of thing you'd do on your phone more often than your computer?
The overwhelming majority of people don't even know that RSS readers are an option to read the news.
I think the term "news" is being stretched here..
Re: The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
#18> Yes, the iOS app has more downloads, and it got there in only a few weeks. But if the iOS market were so much larger than the Mac market, you’d have expected this to happen within a day or two of launch day. Based on what logic? Everything about this article feels like it's based on vague and incorrect assumptions.
I feel like being on Hacker News sometimes warps the context of a personal blog post.
If I put out a tweet that said "Huh, my app got about the same number of downloads on iOS and Mac, I think the market's about the same for certain types of apps" would you say my tweet is full of vagaries and incorrect assumptions?
Re: The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
#19Actually, when Apple launched the Airbuds, I computed that it was very likely the AirBuds would generate more profit for Apple than Mac hardware.
IIRC assuming 70% profit on the Airbuds and 30% on the Mac (because lots more R&D, lots more support, lots more warranty, lots more dev...), a 30% attach rate made the Airbuds more profitable.
Re: The iOS and Mac markets are almost the same size?
#20> Yes, the iOS app has more downloads, and it got there in only a few weeks. But if the iOS market were so much larger than the Mac market, you’d have expected this to happen within a day or two of launch day. Based on what logic? Everything about this article feels like it's based on vague and incorrect assumptions.
I feel like being on Hacker News sometimes warps the context of a personal blog post. If I put out a tweet that said "Huh, my app got about the same number of downloads on iOS and Mac, I think the market's about the same for certain types of apps" would you say my tweet is full of vagaries and incorrect assumptions?
the difference between your hypothetical tweet and this article is that humble qualifier "I think".
what I've seen hn (and startup culture in general) distort is people's confidence in their own opinions. this is probably because it is repeated ad nauseum that you cannot start a successful startup without being an iconoclastic innovator.
what isn't repeated ad nauseum is that you should save that kind of arrogance for your vc pitch rather than take it on as a mantle.