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Apple: Water-resistant iPhones? Not so much

From MacRumors’ “Italy Fines Apple $12 Million for Misleading iPhone Water Resistance Claims” posted Monday:

Apple has been slapped with a 10 million euro ($12 million) fine by Italy’s antitrust watchdog for unfair commercial practices related to its iPhone marketing in the country.

Specifically, Apple is being charged for misleading claims in promotional messages about how deep and how long iPhones can be submerged in water without being damaged…

However, according to the country’s competition regulator, the messages did not clarify that the claims are only true under specific conditions, for example during controlled laboratory tests with the use of static and pure water, and not in the normal conditions of use by consumers.

The regulator also took issue with Apple’s warranty terms, which do not cover damage caused by liquids. The authority considered it inappropriate to push an “aggressive” commercial practice highlighting water resistance as a feature, while at the same time refusing to provide post-sales warranty assistance if the ‌iPhone‌ models in question suffer water damage.

My take: I expect Apple’s warranties to err on the user’s side.

Apple reportedly delays launch event for new 5G iPhone

This according to a New York Post article

the New York Post is out with an article saying that “Apple is reportedly delaying a fall launch event for its next batch of iPhones to the later half of October”.

Apple is now on track to releases 5G iPhone just-in-time for the holiday season. This according to Japanese Apple blog Mac Otakara.
Apple shares are down about $10.55 or 2.71% on the day to $378.50. It’s high price reached $399.81 few days ago – just short of the magical $400 a share.  Apple is expected to announce earnings on Thursday, July 30 after the close. That will be the same day that Amazon releases their earnings.
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Apple supply shortage to last into April: sources

Apple will likely miss its schedule for mass producing a more affordable iPhone, while inventories of existing models could remain low until April or longer, despite suppliers in China gradually resuming production amid the coronavirus outbreak, sources familiar with the matter told the Nikkei Asian Review.

Apple had previously planned to release a more affordable iPhone this spring to maintain sales momentum into the first half of the year. Mass production was supposed to start by the end of February, but multiple sources say meeting that target is now very challenging and production could be delayed until sometime in March.

The U.S. tech giant had previously asked suppliers to ready up to 80 million units of iPhones, including up to 15 million units of the cheaper model, for the first half of 2020, the Nikkei Asian Review reported. With that aggressive production plan now uncertain, Apple became the latest major tech company to lower its revenue forecast on Monday.

“The suppliers are doing their best to produce and ship the [cheaper] iPhone within four weeks. …The delay can’t be too long, otherwise it will affect the sales strategy of Apple’s new products in the second half of this year,” one of the people, who has direct knowledge of the matter, told Nikkei.

“On average, suppliers in the iPhone supply chain are currently operating at around 30% to 50% of capacity,” another source told Nikkei. “The constrained supply of iPhones will likely extend to April. There are still a lot of hurdles, from labor shortages to logistics transportation.”

“The biggest uncertainty is still lingering as no one can be sure whether the coronavirus is under control,” the person said. The source added, however, that most suppliers expect to have more employees back at work as soon as next Monday, after the 14-day quarantine period expires for those who returned from other provinces by Feb. 10. (more…)

Sources: Apple mobilizes suppliers to launch first 5G iPhone range

 In a quest to reclaim its crown as the world’s most innovative tech company, Apple is mobilizing suppliers to produce its first ever 5G iPhones next year, with the three flagship models also set to include the most advanced mobile processors available and leading-edge screens, the Nikkei Asian Review has learned.

The upgraded iPhones, which Apple hopes will vault the company over Huawei’s current position as the second-biggest smartphone maker, will also likely accelerate global carriers to roll out 5G telecoms infrastructure — especially outside China, which has already invested heavily in the nascent technology.

Apple has been slow to embrace 5G; its iPhone 11 series this year only features 4G wireless technology. However Apple will push to reclaim its former glory as the maker of the world’s “must-have” smartphone with the major product line overhaul in 2020, sources told Nikkei. The iPhone, first launched in 2007, still accounts for around half of company revenues.

Apple plans to ship at least 80 million of the new 5G phones, one of the sources said. Rivals such as Samsung Electronics, the world’s largest smartphone supplier, China’s Huawei Technologies and second-tier competitors such as Oppo and Xiaomi, have already launched 5G phones.

“It will be the first time Apple introduces 5G iPhones … There will be three of them and the company has set an aggressive sales target,” one of the people familiar with the company’s thinking said.

Apple reports fourth quarter earnings after the U.S. stock market closes on Wednesday. (more…)

Paper Plane Launched Into Space – British team achieves world first

A team of British amateurs successfully launched—and recovered—a spacecraft made of nothing but paper and straw. The paper plane, which had a 3-foot wingspan, was sent 17 miles into the atmosphere using a helium balloon, the BBC reports. It captured images from space with a miniature camera as it glided back to Earth, landing almost completely undamaged just 25 miles from the launch site.Team members say the only point of the exercise, which ended up costing them $12,000, was to see if they could do it. “We wanted a daft project but we were amazed by how successful it was. We are absolutely delighted,” said one of the amateur space explorers. “I never thought we would find the plane at all. It could have ended up anywhere and I thought it would be smashed to pieces.” The operation is the latest in a recent string of impressive space endeavors involving relatively inexpensive equipment from balloons to an iPhone.

An IBM Hard Drive Being Loaded Onto An Airplane In 1956

IBM-HARD DISK
 

This is a picture of an IBM hard drive being loaded onto an airplane in 1956. According to @HistoricalPics, which tweeted the picture, it’s a 5 mega-byte drive, and it weighed more than 2,000 pounds. 

To put that in context, 55 years later, the weakest iPhone 5S has a 16 gigabyte drive, about 3,200-times as big. And it weighs a quarter of a pound. The IBM hard drive could have stored exactly one iPhone picture, and nothing more.

The Innovation Secrets of Steve Jobs

No one can deny that Steve Jobs is very successful and runs a very successful company. As head of Apple (AAPL), he has provided numerous direct and indirect jobs (have you seen how many iPhone apps there are now?) and dozens of very, very popular and useful products.

The book The Innovation Secrets of Steve Jobs: Insanely Different Principles for Breakthrough Success by Carmine Gallo, presents a very clear road map to follow in Jobs’ footsteps, showing how to be truly successful in your occupation. Look at a few of the principles covered in the book:

Put a Dent in the Universe
Kick-Start Your Brain
Sell Dreams, Not Products
Say No to 1,000 Things

This book is especially useful to the self-employed, showing how to be more creative, have more effective work strategies, and become more successful.

The author had previously written the best-selling book The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience. He writes in a clear and concise manner with plenty of supporting anecdotes.

If you are looking for a good read that can help you achieve the success you want and deserve, get The Innovation Secrets of Steve Jobs. You won’t be disappointed.

Loss Aversion

Changing behavior is one of the hardest things one can do, but as most successful marketers will tell you, it can be done in almost any circumstance. There are apps for the iPhone (I can’t speak for Android) which have succeeded in getting people to exercise or lose weight. Perhaps you might adapt one of them to suit your need.

Yes. If loss aversion is pervasive, then it should show up in regularities relating to price moves. The situation is complicated in futures where one person’s long profit when price goes up is the short’s loss. The endowment effect which is caused by loss aversion or the tendency to connect with what you own, could lead to holding something too long. The reference point effect, which is that people base their decisions on where they are, a variant of holding onto the status quo is also a factor. When there is a profit, a different type of endowment effect plays then when there is a loss. Especially when there has been a big loss and it turns into a profit, the loss aversion effect is greatest I believe. (more…)

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