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Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

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Re: Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

#161

Post by SecretDreams »

arcatech wrote: post #90
pjc50 wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For a while people were talking about the "Apple car". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_car_project ; seemingly they gave up on it because they realized that FSD wasn't quite going to work. I'm not sure why they wouldn't just pivot back to making a regular EV, it would still be guaranteed to sell millions of units at a premium price point by being a Tesla without (a) That Guy (b) build quality issues like panel ga…

You're asking why they wouldn't pivot to making a regular EV, but I think the Apple way is to ask why they SHOULD make a regular EV. They could do a lot of things that would make money. The hard part is figure out which ones to say no to.

Apple public transit?

Re: Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

#162

Post by twoodfin »

steveBK123 wrote: post #67
pjc50 wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For a while people were talking about the "Apple car". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_car_project ; seemingly they gave up on it because they realized that FSD wasn't quite going to work. I'm not sure why they wouldn't just pivot back to making a regular EV, it would still be guaranteed to sell millions of units at a premium price point by being a Tesla without (a) That Guy (b) build quality issues like panel ga…

The car always made the least sense to me in that its the polar opposite of what Apple had evolved to. High-capex in-house manufacturing onshore in a highly regulated space vs capital-light outsourced contract manufacturing offshore of discretionary purchase consumer goods. There are no successful car makers that outsource production, and even foreign car makers generally make cars onshore in US for tariff/political/…

If Apple had gotten to the point of making a real product with “Titan”, all the signs were they would be engaging with a manufacturing partner in the US. Hyundai, most likely.

As for why they did it: Apple makes computers. If what you’re interacting with benefits from being a general purpose computer (under the covers or otherwise) Apple thinks they can deliver a superior experience and the margins that come with it.

I think they realized that the only computer in the car they cared about was the smartphone.

Re: Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

#163

Post by kalleboo »

ryandrake wrote: post #105
JKCalhoun wrote: post #77

Cook Doctrine : "We believe that we need to own and control the primary technologies behind the products we make, and participate only in markets where we can make a significant contribution." And later: "I strongly suspect that Apple, whether it has admitted it to itself or not, has just committed itself to depending on 3rd-parties for AI for the long run." Clearly those two quotes are in contradiction (not that Tim…

LLMs are just so antithetical to the way Apple works and makes products. They are first and foremost control freaks over the content they present as "From iPhone" or "From Apple". I would be absolutely shocked if they ever one day took content from a non-deterministic black box and presented it directly to the user. They have always human-curated nearly everything user-facing that comes from their products, and enter…

> I would be absolutely shocked if they ever one day took content from a non-deterministic black box and presented it directly to the user

Aren't the notification summaries just that? When they came out there were lots of examples of their horrifying results (summarizing Messages threads to sound like family members died etc)

Re: Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

#164

Post by esafak »

steveBK123 wrote: post #45
ZiiS wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It isn't innovation if you don't get 99 Vision Pro's per iPhone.

Exactly - Apple needs to be making MORE bets, not LESS. Apple VisionPro may turn out to be an iPod HiFi, iTunes Ping, eMate, Pippin, Newton, Macintosh Portable, Lisa.. etc. Or it may turn out in 5-10 years to be a contributor like AppleTV, Watches, etc. I don't even care which it turns out to be, I want to see them taking bets like this every year or two, not once per decade. The fact that the list of "Failed Apple P…

I don't. That's how you get Google's graveyard. I want them to make a bet and nurture it, like they already do.

Re: Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

#165

Post by eloisant »

highfrequency wrote: post #138
foobarian wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Speaking of missteps, there was a period in late 2010s where MacBook Pros really took a bad turn IMO chasing some "thinness" fetish, but recovered nicely afterwards. My M4 is a glorious device built like a tank

Why do you prefer the laptop to be thicker and heavier?

I'd be fine with a thinner and lighter laptop if it was without compromises.

But having a shitty keyboard, losing the HDMI port, wasn't worth it.

Re: Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

#167

Post by iwontberude »

ComputerGuru wrote: post #143
foobarian wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Speaking of missteps, there was a period in late 2010s where MacBook Pros really took a bad turn IMO chasing some "thinness" fetish, but recovered nicely afterwards. My M4 is a glorious device built like a tank

> but recovered nicely afterwards After Ives was fired/forced out/decided to leave to pursue his creative vision.

I love that he instantly flopped repeatedly and showed it was actually Apple that was great all along.

Re: Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

#168

Post by csunbird »

alex7o wrote: post #129
a012 wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And dont forget the scissor keyboard and the fucking touchbar

Fight me but I miss the touchbar, it was customizable to be super useful with better touch tool

I think the problem with touch bar was that, it completely replaced the function keys, instead of complementing them. Other than that, I actually liked it.

Re: Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

#169

Post by motoxpro »

doitLP wrote: post #69
jinushaun wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you underestimate what he does. It seems simple and obvious in hindsight, but if it were so easy, others would not be so far behind. A difficult thing done well looks easy. Reminds me of when Toyota disrupted auto manufacturing. Under Tim Cook, Apple has pretty much exclusive access to certain parts and suppliers. Apple buys up all the silicon. Competitors can’t compete at the same quality without paying a pr…

I’m not underestimating what he does, I’m asking what does he actually do to make it happen beyond setting priorities and holding subordinates accountable? I’m not questioning that he does many things well and right and even genius, I just want to know what those are! I’m sure Isaacson will cover it well in his bio!

I mean sounds like you are asking the question "What is the job of a CEO?"

Re: Tim Cook's Impeccable Timing

#170

Post by sneak »

jmyeet wrote: post #139
foobarian wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Speaking of missteps, there was a period in late 2010s where MacBook Pros really took a bad turn IMO chasing some "thinness" fetish, but recovered nicely afterwards. My M4 is a glorious device built like a tank

This was the last gasp of Johnny Ive. And yes, it was terrible. It got us ending the incredibly successful Macbook Air for the too-compromised 12" Macbook (1 port, remember?), the pointless Touch Bar and the terrible butterly keyboard (remember how dust could kill it and I'm sure Apple spent a fortune on replacements?). Why did we get all these things? It wasn't just thinness. It was to raise to Average Selling Price…

I collect the 12" macbooks, even today. It really only needs one port; the vast majority of people never plug anything but power into their computer ever. I would pay huge sums for a modern Mx 11-12" ultralight macbook with a reliable keyboard.
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