4 ms·

Apple's genius is in selling Rolls-Royces to the masses (or at least to a sizable fraction of the masses) - bespoke chip design seems in keeping with this strat

Apple's genius is in selling Rolls-Royces to the masses (or at least to a sizable fraction of the masses) - bespoke chip design seems in keeping with this strategy. I would argue that the masses don't need Rolls-Royces, thus this is resource mis-allocation on a global scale - but certainly Apple have pushed device and UI design forward strongly, so maybe we can live with that.

FredPret 5y ago
Personal devices are practically an extension of one’s brain in that it is a key part of most people’s thought processes. Speeding this up globally is a holy mission.
- happynacho 5y ago
  I have never thought of that but I agree. Personal combination of devices/OS/apps is a reflection of our own mind and everyone should choose what works for them best.
- spicybright 5y ago
  Doubling down on the mass production of cheap electronics through unethical labor is not a holy mission.
  - colinmhayes 5y ago
    What's unethical about offering people jobs? The alternative must be worse for them, otherwise they'd be doing that.
    - spicybright 5y ago
      Because for a lot of people, it's either the job or starving on the streets. These jobs aren't great. 16 hour work days and company provided boarding makes them into borderline slaves. I'm not saying stopping the demand for electronics is going to fix that, but promoting that is far from a "holy mission". Unless you care more about plastic gadgets than the people making them for you.
      - colinmhayes 5y ago
        > These jobs aren't great. Who's saying they're great? All I'm saying is that they're better than starving on the street, which as you pointed out is what would be happening to these people without the shitty sweatshop jobs. I really struggle to see how offering an alternative to starving on the street is a bad thing. Would you prefer these companies pack up the sweatshops, return production to countries with expensive labor, and force some of their former workers back to starve on the street? Personally I would not. If those people want to work in those conditions I think it's immoral to stop them. > but promoting that is far from a "holy mission". I don't think anyone is saying this either. Obviously sweatshop operators are looking out for their own interests, but that's the great thing about trade. When all participants are willing they are necessarily better off due to the trade, otherwise it wouldn't happen.
_ph_ 5y ago
Apple hardware isn't "Rolls Royce". It is not low-cost, but in many segments competetively priced. At worst you can call them BMW. Yes, they keep out of the low price market and for some parts (memory, ssd extensions), they ask for a hefty price. But they are pretty competitive to the upper range of the market. On the other side, the M1 MB Air is actually a cheap laptop considering its performance. And on the big scale, we should be happy that finally the x86 monoculture is coming to an end. I can still remember the times when there were several competing cpu architectures which made for a lot of innovation.
threeseed 5y ago
You can get an M1 Mac starting from $699 and an iPhone from $429. Those are hardly Rolls Royces prices.
- goosedragons 5y ago
  It is when you compare it to a $100 Android phone and $200 chromebook.
  - scarface74 5y ago
    How long will the $100 Android get OS and security updates? The latest version of iOS works on the 2015 iPhone 6S/original SE. Apple also releases security updates for phones two years older. Not to mention that the $100 Android is slow and clunky with worse battery life and a horrible camera.
    - SxC97 5y ago
      I generally agree, but I think you might underestimate how many customers _globally_ are very price sensitive. I have relatives overseas and a price difference of ~$40 is pretty sizable over there. Apple devices are seen as quite a luxury there.
      - scarface74 5y ago
        I am aware of that. I think it is amazing that a $70 unsubsidized cell phone exists and Android has done more to make “computers” ubiquitous than Microsoft/Intel did. But a $100 cell phone is no substitute for a $429 iPhone SE. While there are some mid tier $250-$300 Android phones that are “good enough”. The only phones that currently exist that have the performance of even an iPhone SE are - other iPhones.
        goosedragons 5y ago
        No it is a substitute. They are both phones, they both browse the web, check emails, etc. Obviously the iPhone SE is better but guess what? It costs over 4 times as much! A BMW 3 series is also better than Chevy Spark. Not everyone can afford to pay $400+ for a phone.
victor106 5y ago
A big part of the price you pay for an Apple device is that you are also finding their future R&D so they can make the right (or wrong?) choices for their customers. It’s not just the cost of goods sold.
- throwntoday 5y ago
  Apple have been on a hot streak in product design since ousting Ive.

FredPret 5y ago

Personal devices are practically an extension of one’s brain in that it is a key part of most people’s thought processes. Speeding this up globally is a holy mission.

happynacho 5y ago
I have never thought of that but I agree. Personal combination of devices/OS/apps is a reflection of our own mind and everyone should choose what works for them best.
spicybright 5y ago
Doubling down on the mass production of cheap electronics through unethical labor is not a holy mission.
- colinmhayes 5y ago
  What's unethical about offering people jobs? The alternative must be worse for them, otherwise they'd be doing that.
  - spicybright 5y ago
    Because for a lot of people, it's either the job or starving on the streets. These jobs aren't great. 16 hour work days and company provided boarding makes them into borderline slaves. I'm not saying stopping the demand for electronics is going to fix that, but promoting that is far from a "holy mission". Unless you care more about plastic gadgets than the people making them for you.
    - colinmhayes 5y ago
      > These jobs aren't great. Who's saying they're great? All I'm saying is that they're better than starving on the street, which as you pointed out is what would be happening to these people without the shitty sweatshop jobs. I really struggle to see how offering an alternative to starving on the street is a bad thing. Would you prefer these companies pack up the sweatshops, return production to countries with expensive labor, and force some of their former workers back to starve on the street? Personally I would not. If those people want to work in those conditions I think it's immoral to stop them. > but promoting that is far from a "holy mission". I don't think anyone is saying this either. Obviously sweatshop operators are looking out for their own interests, but that's the great thing about trade. When all participants are willing they are necessarily better off due to the trade, otherwise it wouldn't happen.

_ph_ 5y ago

Apple hardware isn't "Rolls Royce". It is not low-cost, but in many segments competetively priced. At worst you can call them BMW. Yes, they keep out of the low price market and for some parts (memory, ssd extensions), they ask for a hefty price. But they are pretty competitive to the upper range of the market. On the other side, the M1 MB Air is actually a cheap laptop considering its performance. And on the big scale, we should be happy that finally the x86 monoculture is coming to an end. I can still remember the times when there were several competing cpu architectures which made for a lot of innovation.

threeseed 5y ago

You can get an M1 Mac starting from $699 and an iPhone from $429. Those are hardly Rolls Royces prices.

goosedragons 5y ago
It is when you compare it to a $100 Android phone and $200 chromebook.
- scarface74 5y ago
  How long will the $100 Android get OS and security updates? The latest version of iOS works on the 2015 iPhone 6S/original SE. Apple also releases security updates for phones two years older. Not to mention that the $100 Android is slow and clunky with worse battery life and a horrible camera.
  - SxC97 5y ago
    I generally agree, but I think you might underestimate how many customers _globally_ are very price sensitive. I have relatives overseas and a price difference of ~$40 is pretty sizable over there. Apple devices are seen as quite a luxury there.
    - scarface74 5y ago
      I am aware of that. I think it is amazing that a $70 unsubsidized cell phone exists and Android has done more to make “computers” ubiquitous than Microsoft/Intel did. But a $100 cell phone is no substitute for a $429 iPhone SE. While there are some mid tier $250-$300 Android phones that are “good enough”. The only phones that currently exist that have the performance of even an iPhone SE are - other iPhones.
      - goosedragons 5y ago
        No it is a substitute. They are both phones, they both browse the web, check emails, etc. Obviously the iPhone SE is better but guess what? It costs over 4 times as much! A BMW 3 series is also better than Chevy Spark. Not everyone can afford to pay $400+ for a phone.

victor106 5y ago

A big part of the price you pay for an Apple device is that you are also finding their future R&D so they can make the right (or wrong?) choices for their customers. It’s not just the cost of goods sold.

throwntoday 5y ago
Apple have been on a hot streak in product design since ousting Ive.