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News & ArtsTuesday, January 24, 2012
Tech / Money Unscorched by Kindle Fire, Apple Posts Record Quarter on Better than Expected iPhone and iPad Sales
Posted by Goldy on Tue, Jan 24, 2012 at 2:04 PM
Apple blew past analysts' expectations today with another record earnings report, fueled by better than projected sales of iPhones and iPads. For the quarter ending December 31, Apple reported profits of $13.06 billion, or $13.87 per share, on revenue of $46.33 billion, up from $26.74 billion, and $6.43 per share, in the year ago quarter. On average, Wall Street analysts had expected Apple to report $10.06 per share on revenue of $39 billion.
Sales were better than expected across Apple's product line, but especially for its cash cow iPhone, which sold 37.04 million units versus 30.2 million expected, and the iPad, which sold 15.4 million units compared to the 13.2 million street estimate. If iPad sales were negatively impacted by Amazon's bargain-priced Kindle Fire, you wouldn't know it from these results.
Apple now has $97 billion of cash in the bank, enough to fight a small war.
1
Well, I sure wish Apple would fix the problem with Safari on the older iPads. Ever since they updated the software, it's been dreadful.
That's the thing I hate about Apple products: When they work, they're a dream. When they don't they have lousy customer service. And you have to go to a mall to get it.
That's the thing I hate about Apple products: When they work, they're a dream. When they don't they have lousy customer service. And you have to go to a mall to get it.
2
I was in an electronics store and nobody was the least bit interested in Apple. I watched for over an hour and not one customer looked at them. I thought that was odd.
3
Today's after-hours gains in my AAPL holdings are enough to cover every purchase I have ever made from Apple. Yeah!
4
@3 i know the feeling... about 4 hours after i held the first-gen iphone on day 1 of their release i spent every available penny i had on $50/share apple stock
5
But how? Apple must be some kind of cult. What other explanation is there? That their stuff is better?
7
...and they said I was crazy buying 1000 AAPL in 1999. Tucked most into a Roth. Retirement is looking sweet and tax free!
8
It's because their products are portals through which customers have little choice but to throw gobs and gobs of cash at Apple if they want their products to work properly. The $600 you spend on your iPad is only a down payment.
9
"Amazing what relying on exploited semi-slave labor in China can do for your bottom line...."
I guess you missed that photo in the New York times showing Chinese fighting to get jobs at the plant.
I guess you missed that photo in the New York times showing Chinese fighting to get jobs at the plant.
10
@8 maybe for you. I've spent maybe $5 total since buying my iPad2.
Just buy the wireless N version.
Anything good is free, and if it ain't free, it soon will be.
Just buy the wireless N version.
Anything good is free, and if it ain't free, it soon will be.
11
@7 bought 200 shares on Black Monday. Stock was so far below book value it was a steal.
Sold that later for MSFT stock - the profit from the first sale was half the down payment on my first house.
Sold that later for MSFT stock - the profit from the first sale was half the down payment on my first house.
12
@ 8, funny, I know several iPad owners including my wife, and nobody has a single complaint.
Apple's not perfect, but they aren't a suckhole of money either.
Apple's not perfect, but they aren't a suckhole of money either.
13
@6 you should read this regarding the "exploited semi-slave labor", it is very enlightening:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/busine…
long story short, america can no longer compete in manufacturing with china in any way, and iphones will never be made in the US
and it has very little to do with the cost of labor.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/22/busine…
long story short, america can no longer compete in manufacturing with china in any way, and iphones will never be made in the US
and it has very little to do with the cost of labor.
14
@12 Funny, I know several who say the exact opposite. Weird how different people have different experiences isn't it?
15
The Ultrabooks are what turns me on.
I want a Transformer...maybe...would want to see what other options come out this year.
I need small, maybe 13" at most, under 1 lb (or less really), long, long battery life and ability to read in sunshine (like to throw it in the knapsack and take bike riding...only thing that works that way now is Kindle e.Ink).
16
$100M in the bank and they're still spamming me like a boner-pill peddler. Thanks for the heads up on the latest pop/R&B releases on iTunes guys, but, er... what the fuck?
18
Shows how terrified Apple must be of Amazon, Android and Windows Mobile - yep, Apple's quaking in their boots...
19
I've asked this before but I'm still wondering: Does Apple still get "little underdog of the computing industry" credit or is it no longer appropriate?
22
@20 I guess it just slipped my mind that Apple now gives away apps, movies, music, ebooks, and space on the cloud for free now. It was an honest mistake.
23
@22 - 5GB of iCloud storage is free. Apple makes money from apps, yes, but so do thousands of independent software developers, who get 70% of whatever you pay. Movies, music, books, same story: Apple is getting a cut, but most of the money is going to others.
Of course Apple is selling these products to have you buy into their ecosystem (and what's wrong with that?), but they're sharing that pie with lots of others. Most of their revenue comes from the hardware.
Of course Apple is selling these products to have you buy into their ecosystem (and what's wrong with that?), but they're sharing that pie with lots of others. Most of their revenue comes from the hardware.
24
@23 Never said there's anything wrong with it, only that there are more expenses involved with the product than its base price. I'm not sure why this is such a controversial observation.
25
@ 24, because your comment @ 12 doesn't state what you say @ 20 or 24 at all. But even with your further elaborations, that's still ridiculous - who is dumping hundreds more on apps on their iPads? Most of the things you're talking about are transferable. It's like saying you spend thousands on a bookcase because you're including the price of the books on the shelves; or the same on a DVD player because of the DVD's.
You may know some people who buy hundreds of apps. None of them are required to "make the iPad work properly." That stuff DOES come with the iPad, and it's no different from other tablets in that regard.
You may know some people who buy hundreds of apps. None of them are required to "make the iPad work properly." That stuff DOES come with the iPad, and it's no different from other tablets in that regard.
26
@25 Please show me where I said anything about spending "hundreds of dollars" on apps. Also please show me where I can insert a DVD into an iPad. That would be great.
Actually, please do neither of those things. Let us never speak of this again. Please.
Actually, please do neither of those things. Let us never speak of this again. Please.
27
@ 26, "It's because their products are portals through which customers have little choice but to throw gobs and gobs of cash at Apple if they want their products to work properly. "
How much is "gobs and gobs"?
How much is "gobs and gobs"?
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