David Emery on Premarket: Apple is red - 'Apple updated iMac and 14″ MB Pro with new M6 chips today. But no bump for the 16″ MB Pro. That sets the stage for a significant announcement for the top end (16″) product.'
on Apple's iPhone Duo: Scratched, peeled, dusted, burned, bent, broken - 'I’d say that every smartphone out there can be destroyed, if you intentionally decide to do so, and that being able to destroy one isn’t really a relevant test for determining its ability to survive accidental harm. “What??!! I can’t throw my iPhone (or camera, or laptop, or bluethooth speaker, or electric toothbrush…) down on a logging road and run over it with my truck and not expect it to come out unscathed?? I thought this thing was supposed to be durable!!”'
on iPhone 18 Pro series up 3.1% from the iPhone 17 Pros - 'I think any cannibalization of iPhone Duo would be offset by the new launch cycle of pro models only. That is, some folks wanting a new iPhone probably didn’t wait for the 2027 launch of the balance of the iPhone 18 models. Net/net, I see this as exactly what it is –a 3.1% year over year increase. And that’s solid.'
on Apple's iPhone Duo: Scratched, peeled, dusted, burned, bent, broken - 'If he wants to buy Apple products only to destroy them I’m fine with that. Just like burning Beatles records or J.K. Rowling’s books. I’m still getting paid.'
on iPhone 18 Pro series up 3.1% from the iPhone 17 Pros - 'Add; higher cost for Apple so we don’t know what the bottom line impact is. The good news is the unit volume is higher than last year!'
on iPhone 18 Pro series up 3.1% from the iPhone 17 Pros - 'Add; About 10% for higher ASP; And Duo, at more than 10M units at 2X ASP.'
on Peter Thiel puts Steve Jobs and Elon Musk in the same sentence - 'Oh c’mon Greg how could you ignore the polishing cloth!'
on Apple's iPhone Duo: Scratched, peeled, dusted, burned, bent, broken - 'It hurts to watch these videos'
on Apple has outperformed the Big 8 year-to-date - 'From Reuters: Microsoft (MSFT.O) said on Monday it is offering voluntary buyouts to about 60,000 employees, or more than a quarter of its global workforce, as the technology giant looks to contain costs and help fund its massive AI investments. “Staffers across the Windows maker would be eligible for the offers, including those working in AI experiences, Copilot, finance, human resources, Xbox and Windows + Devices, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters, requesting anonymity as the matter was private. Units such as marketing, commercial business and security will be excluded, the source added. “This offer gives eligible employees who may be considering a future outside the company a new choice to make that transition now with support. It also gives participating organizations another way to adapt their workforce to changing needs,” Chief People Officer Amy Coleman said in a staff memo. Like other tech giants, Microsoft is spending hundreds of billions of dollars on AI data centers and chips, drawing scrutiny from investors over whether the returns will justify the staggering cost. The company, slated to report first-quarter results after markets close on Wednesday, has forecast $175 billion in capital expenditures for the 2026 calendar year.” Gee, $175 billion spread over 60,000 employees would be $2.9M/employee, or about 24 years of employment at $120,000/year. I guess they really don’t need people if they can make do with 75% of current workforce. Probably taken down another 50,000 next year. Excerpt From “Microsoft offers buyouts to around 60,000 employees to contain costs” Jaspreet Singh Reuters https://apple.news/AMF5adqc8Q3KybU5CjksV1g This material may be protected by copyright.'
on Premarket: Apple is red - 'though Apple closed off Monday $3.82 or 1.10% at $343.91, the shares are up 26.50% year-to-date with new all-time highs set as recently as last Thursday.'
on GenAI's big week - 'Hi, Richard. We use English units because pre-metrics that’s how math and engineering was done. Also, the only reason we have a metric system is because we have ten fingers. Also an argument based on “almost everybody else does it” cuts no ice with me. That’s right up there with “We should all just use English”. Besides, we now have ubiquitous calculators, and ubiquitous translators aren’t far off either. No reason to choose one calculating or speaking language over another, so maybe it’s time for metrics to get off its high horse. Just one old man’s opinion, of course.'
on Peter Thiel puts Steve Jobs and Elon Musk in the same sentence - 'Jobs didn’t hire Cook for his creative/vision chops. He left Cook with a second tier of managers including Ives, that filled the areas that Cook lacked. Cook brought organizational and supply chops to the table, coupled with extreme communication skills. That Jobs recommended Cook for the CEO position, and I believe Jobs knew what Apple needed going forward, tells me everything I need to know about Cook. Then there is this: Jobs was a genius product guy that brought Apple’s iconic products (iPod, iMac, iPhones, iPad) to market with great financial success. Cook’s incrementalism took Apple far beyond the next financial level and positioned Apple to dominate the AI era.'
on GenAI's big week - '“American exceptionalism should have its limits!” I’m not sure it has anything to do with exceptionalism. I believe it is because of the source of most of the information that AI draws from.'
on GenAI's big week - '@Ben Actually, it’s rather more than 95%. Of the world’s 195 generally recognised sovereign states (196 including Taiwan), only three are commonly cited as not having fully embraced metrication. That’s approximately 98.5% of countries. One might reasonably ask why the remaining 1.5% should dictate the default units used by AI for the other 98.5%. American exceptionalism should have its limits!'
on Peter Thiel puts Steve Jobs and Elon Musk in the same sentence - 'Upvoted and well-stated, Ben! I agree with everything you stated about Musk. The only thing I’d add was Musk siring 14 children with apparently no intention of being a father to any of them. Despicable.'
on GenAI's big week - '@Steven I liked Forbin Project except for one thing. To make the computer seem powerful they made it really huge. That would have made it really slow. Now we know that really fast and powerful computers are really tiny so you don’t waste time with signals traveling long distances. A fun Kickstarter project would be a facade for the Mac Studio consisting of a lot of flashing LED lights to make it look like a Hollywood computer from the 50s and 60s.'
