Apple screws the pooch again
Now that the Macworld hysteria has settled we can reflect upon Apple’s announcements this week with unbiased perspective. The purported “leaked keynote” turned out to be as counterfeit as Fake Steve Jobs, and more likely leaked by the real Steve Jobs to ferret out dissidents within the ranks at Apple. Either way, heads will surely roll over that folly. But before we talk about the pooch Apple is trying to mount up doggie style, let’s take a look at the latest revelations from Apple.
The MacBook Air, as it turns out, was not the Apple-Nike-Michael-Jordan basketball shoe mashup, but rather a new ultra-portable, super lightweight laptop so thin you could almost slice tomatoes with it. But at $1,800 for the baseline version, it’s a lot of cabbage to shell out for something that could blow away in a stiff breeze. Maybe they should include a neck laynard for it like the first generation Nanos had so you can wear it like a medal.
Then along came the news about movie rentals in iTunes. This sparked some debate about whether this is the “Netflix killer” even in light of Netflix’s move to give away unlimited video streaming to most of its subscribers. In our opinion, Netflix is easy prey for Apple since their streaming product is PC-only, offers no newer releases, no HD, and has a clunky distribution vehicle that appears primitive when compared to iTunes. In addition, Apple’s movie rental service works with Apple TV enabling integration with your living room, the holy grail of home computing that Microsoft has been hoping to own with the Xbox.
And then, of course, was the announcement of the new firmware update that includes some nifty new features for the iPhone and iPod touch. The home screen and springboard are both customizable now, you can send SMS messages to multiple recipients, and the Map app now displays your current location (surprisingly accurate thanks to cell tower triangulation).
Apple’s stock price indicates that investors were hoping for more iPhone news, but that didn’t bother us at all. No, it wasn’t the lack of iPhone love that got our goat, but rather the announcement about the apps for Mail, Map, Weather, Notes, and Stocks being included in new iPod touches. Existing touch owners will have to fork over $20 bucks to get these apps when the price of new iPod touches remains the same. Say what?
C’mon Apple, these dogs are your early adopters and best customers and your asking them to roll over so you can squeeze them for a few more Milk Bones. This move is reminiscent of the iPhone pricing fiasco last August when Apple decided to drop the price of new iPhones two months after they were released, a move which ticked off the early adopters that had already paid much more for their iPhones. Apple eventually made up for it with a rebate, but they should have considered it before making the announcement and causing anxiety with their most loyal followers. iPod touch owners are feeling the same way now and some have even started an online petition. Do these things actually work? Well, even if it doesn’t work, at least it might send Apple a very clear message. Please don’t screw the pooch. Give existing iPod touch owners the apps for no additional fee.
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agreed with you on this one
man i mean,at least make it more expensive and give the old owners a reason not to be sad (at least i said)…since it happened in the past and now again,i think if a new product from apple comes out,people will be reluctant to try it as they have that now preconceived idea that it will drop in price and harm them more than the customers…i mean common,make them pay
i do hope they know they also have competitors our there
Totally aggree on you guys, imagine, most of us bought ipod touch during the holiday rush, and after less than a month, ipod touch with updated software for free, and yet for those early adopters like us.. we get charged.. totally unfair.
And this is even unfair for owners of ipod touch who lived in contries where ITunes is not available…even if some people decided to buy this update, there is no way they can purchase it from their respeciive countries, where ITunes is not available.
Steve Jobs just happened to push ipod touch owners to jailbreak their units… by doing these non sense charges on early adopters..
this is unfair..
What I think the bigger picture here is that not only is Apple screwing the early adopters by charging us for Mail, Maps, Weather, Notes, and Stocks but what I haven’t heard people gripe about is how you have to pay for (albeit included in the $20) the privilege to be able to rearrange icons and add extra home pages.
So I don’t want to buy Apple’s stock app and I can live without maps and mail thanks to Google. Come February when the sdk is released, how am I going to access my extra 3rd party apps that I really do want if I didn’t purchase the ability to rearrange icons and ad pages. This should have been included in the 1.1.3 update. There is even a new setting under general for ‘Reset home screen layout’ So either Apple has royally screwd us or my iPod Touch isn’t working right.
I guess SJ would say: hey, that’s technology.
on a side note,i have read that even if you go to apple’s store,you cannt buy the software as a credit card is required and this is more abt Apple getting your credit card info
Now this is interesting. A sweet product with even sweeter possibilities for apple and just like they did with the OS before Microsoft they screw it all up with greed. More and more disatisfied customers who finally find out that Apple as usual has little customer loyalty. They really don’t care. They never have. Just think about it. they cripple a perfectly good product, disabling all the good widgets just to sell it cheaper. THEN they resell to you, the loyal customer, what you should have gotten in the first place, making a ton of money in the process. you even have to log in on line to play GAMES, read a book or write a note!!! something even the NANO has by default!!!! $20.00 multiplied by how many people that decide to buy into this product? and THAT is only counting the loyal Apple sheep that stand for it. And we continue to support them and PAY and PAY for the priveledge to be a captive market that buy their products(music, TV, etc) at their stores as they become even bigger and bigger. MORE money. AND they continue to screw us. The loyal SHEEP. I am sure they absolutely NEED that money. Stock MUST be doing really badly for them to be this DISLOYAL to their CUSTOMERS. Well. Perhaps we SHOULD vote but with our wallets!!!
Sorry. SHEEP never think for themselves. We’re just food for the wolves.
Something else has occured to me…Another conspiracy theory from the Manipulated. What if the reason Apple has never included radio on any of the Ipods was to prevent you from getting “free” content and force you to buy everything eventually? What if, once you’re hooked and then they make you pay and pay for all your content (including, eventually, ALL podcasts), EVERYTHING. What if… Its all about control? What if…
The onine application method/model makes no sense unless access and connectivity is affordable and everywhere… Hence the need for local storage and manipulation of content on the Ipod. Otherwise it (The Ipod or whatever) will never truly ‘evolve’.
This is why Microsoft’s Model or anyone else will always have a foothold and be in the majority. Apple will have ’style’ but everyone else will always be able to say, “so What?”, copy them and erode their base until style means nothing. Thats why the grey box has outsold apple all these years. Not everyone is a sheep. The concept of the stylish item also being a tool to the masses, still eludes apple. Thats why the Ipod and the Iphone and whatever they put out will never be truly #1.
@Geofox, I’m not sure that today’s Apple cares about being #1 in market share as you’re implying. They are decidedly niche and they’ve said so again and again.
I do agree that Apple has somehow gotten greedier in their ways - something I think that’s rubbed off from all the content distributors (music, tv and movie biz) they’ve been dealing with. Let’s face it, Apple is a corporation like any other and they’re not here to make your life better through charity.
It’s too bad because I think the original idea of Apple was to be #1 in both style, technology and market share - all for the ideal that it’s an appliance for everyone. (”1984″ commercial anyone?)
I also agree with the sheep thing. Although I think the beige box people can be just as much sheep as the blind fanboyism that pervades Apple users. They are all sheep, they just follow different farmers
We just like to think that Apple is the benevolent free range, hormone-free type. But in the end, they are still putting the cows to slaughter and sheering the wool off our back.
You guys are morons. Apple has to charge the $20 because of the Sarbanes Oxely act’s effect on corporate accounting. If they add value to a device they’ve already sold they must charge for it. It’s their interpretation of the law; liking it is optional. They don’t have to do this for the iPhone because the the deferred revenue they get from AT&T.
ha ha ha, are you kidding me??? you actually believe apple is claiming SOX compliance as the reason for charging ipod touch owners twenty bucks for the new applications? SOX is just a set accounting rules and guidelines which don’t dictate how much you sell your product for. apple could easily give the applications away for free and account for it as a promo, a marketing expense, or whatever. it doesn’t matter, as long as it’s accounted for. i’m sure apple has some good finance folks that can cover the cost on a balance sheet. and even IF they did have to charge for the new apps, then why not charge .99 cents in the iTunes store, instead of raping their loyal customers?
This is what i call royally owned
“SOX is just a set accounting rules and guidelines which don’t dictate how much you sell your product for. apple could easily give the applications away for free and account for it as a promo, a marketing expense, or whatever. it doesn’t matter, as long as it’s accounted for. ”
“then why not charge .99 cents in the iTunes store, instead of raping their loyal customers?”
Good posting Thomas…
Hey smart@ss (named as fool,good name btw)
“If they add value to a device they’ve already sold they must charge for it.” …i might be wrong BUT i heard those things were native AND you are going to tell me the guys at apples are so stupid,moron maybe that they didnt not foresee the coming of those new icons (err yeah right,and taking into account the little time they took to release it)…and why sell it as same price? (talk about a thank you)
As Thomas said,there is a lot of ways to not charge that,so instead of barging around,take your own advice,koz you are the one looking more moron around here…
sighs some ppl really…
on a side note that freaking law is yet another bush era damage (hhmm maybe its something for the long run as he always do….)
I know nothing about the SOX thing but do know that the new Ipod touch devices come already upgraded with the new stuff at THE SAME PRICE! HA! Explain THAT smarty pants! Anyway we suckers become hackers!!!
You are right about the corporate thing but why &*$*# your loyal, diehard customers? why not give something to the masses that have supported all these years? They HAVE the RECORDS! Another case for the MANIPULATED!!!
Render unto Caesar…
Just look at the seven pieces of silver cluched so tightly in their grubby hands….
Ah Gone!!!
I can’t wait to truly hack this crippled @#$%… Still love it though. You gotta admit, ya got kissed before they screwed you… Beautiful design - they really thought about it… too bad Sony had the basic design first (PSP) but never truly explored the possibilities….
Ah gone again
but never forgotten….
And what about us being a truly captive market on a device they tell us over and over again we don’t really OWN! music and other content we pay for but never have rights to really use the way we want (within reason of course - nuff respect to the creatives out there!) Didn’t Microsoft get into trouble over something like this? How come Apple gets to do it? More money more money!!!