[OT] mobile rising

[Ola Fosheim Grøstad]

On Friday, 10 November 2017 at 12:55:24 UTC, Tony wrote:
> Very few companies are not "all about making money". That is 
> why Americans were laid off by the millions and replaced by 
> workers in countries with much cheaper labor rates. Bad for the 
> workers, good for "making money". Apple isn't unique in making 
> all it's products outside the USA.

I understand what you mean, but I don't think it is a scientific 
fact that companies are all about making money. They are run by 
humans with a set of beliefs and desires which they operate 
under… Anyway, even companies that are all about making money 
need to think long term, meaning to take care of their long term 
reputation. Microsoft was not all about making money in the 90s, 
but they were all about growing and retaining market share using 
bad business practices and that cost them their reputation among 
IT professionals. IBM also failed in the PC market by trying to 
profit on their brand. Apple might face a similar destiny, but 
maybe there are too many non-techies in their camp for that 
effect to kick in. Hard to tell.

Companies like Amazon are more about growth than making money… 
Some banks are more about being big than making money long term… 
Too big to fail and the government will save your ass. Etc.

Family owned business often have their own set of ethics related 
to the company history and ethics. Same with gründer-owned 
businesses. I'm pretty sure Steve Jobs had a clear vision for 
what kind of company Apple should be and what kind of products 
they should make. I am not sure if the current Apple management 
has such clear visions…

> I don't see where it makes sense to call people who buy Mac 
> products suckers (they seem especially popular with software 
> developers) who pay extra for what you call "low-quality 
> equipment" without saying the same thing about the people who 
> buy iPhones.

I don't know. I use a mac daily, but there is not a single 
product in their line today that is anywhere near good value 
compared by what you get by building your own Linux/Windows box 
or buy a quality non-Apple product from Samsung or Asus…

Apple's best desktop offer is a modest 2-core i5 at $1000 (with 
no screen, keyboard or mouse) Want a 2-core i7 instead? Add $350… 
You have to be a sucker to do that… Sorry. 2-core i7? WTF? Why is 
Intel even producing those?

Ok, so Apple want developers to buy Mac Pro instead… Let's see, 
here in Norway the entry level price for Mac Pro is… $4200, for a 
6-core CPU. Uhm, for that price you could build a 18 core rig…

Yes, one have to either be a non-tech sucker or locked into the 
Mac eco system to buy at those rates.