Good morning, A few site updates: For access members, I invited everyone who had updated their profile to confirm that they wanted Glassboard access to the private Glassboard. If you haven’t gotten an invitation, please double-check your profile; I’ll do another import later today. I’ve manually gone through the member lists to make sure everyoneSubscribe […]
Don’t Give Up on the iPad
When people think about the first iconic Apple product, it’s probably the Macintosh that leaps to mind. But Apple Computer was actually built on the back of the Apple II. In fact, for quite a long while it was the Apple II that provided the profits that made the Macintosh possible, as Guy Kawasaki recounts: […]
Daily Update (2014-04-24): Apple Earnings, Capital Structure; Facebook Earnings
Good morning, In case you missed it yesterday, you can now access the Daily Email on the web and through your private RSS feed. Let me know if you have any trouble getting this set up. I also sent a separate email to Access members and Annual Daily Update members asking you to resubmit yourSubscribe […]
Apple and Nike
What kind of company is Apple, anyway? They certainly have great technology, but to call them a technology company doesn’t seem quite right. They have great marketing, but to call them a marketing company isn’t true either. They have an incredible retail chain, but to call them a retailer is clearly off base as well. […]
The Heart of Dropbox
Last Thursday, after waking up to the news of Dropbox’s most recent announcements,1 I couldn’t have been less impressed. To quote myself from a chat I had with a friend: “Dropbox is an unfocused mess.” But then I actually watched the event. I’ve long been a believer in cloud storage; back in college I experimented […]
Black Box Strategy
With the announcement of the Amazon Fire TV and the leak of the alleged Android TV, all of the major players have (or soon will have) a TV offering. There’s been a lot of talk about how similar the products are, but those similarities are for good reason; what is more interesting to me are […]
Samsung’s Disappearing Differentiation
Earlier this week Samsung, and I’m quoting the headline of the press release, “Unveil[ed] Comprehensive, Lifestyle-Focused Galaxy Gifts Package for Next Generation Galaxy S5”: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today announced its collaboration with 16 of the world’s leading mobile content and service providers to offer Galaxy S5 users more than $600 worth of exclusive, pre-paid […]
Microsoft’s Mobile Muddle
Saying “Microsoft missed mobile” is a bit unfair; Windows Mobile came out way back in 2000, and the whole reason Google bought Android was the fear that Microsoft would dominate mobile the way they dominated the PC era. It turned out, though, that mobile devices, with their focus on touch, simplified interfaces, and ARM foundation, […]
Two Bears, Revisited
One of the more annoying aspects of the late great PC area was how review sites treated Macs: for all intents and purposes, they were just another PC. Consider this CNET review of the 2007 MacBook Pro:1 The good: Updated CPUs and graphics without an updated price; LED-backlit display for better battery life; 802.11n support. […]
The General-Purpose iPad and the Specialist Mac
I’ve written previously that the iPad was helping to unbundle the general-purpose PC: The iPad and the Disaggregation of Computing The Humpty Dumpty PC The (Alleged) 13-Inch iPad and the Triumph of Thin Clients From the Humpty Dumpty PC: The iPad and other appliance-like devices have actually had the opposite effect [as compared to the […]