Anything can be forced to converge, but the problem is about trade-offs, and you end up with trade-offs that don’t please anyone. You can converge a toaster and refrigerator, but the end result won’t be pleasing to the user.
Year: 2012
Apple Q2 2012 Results Posted
After the recent holiday quarter, this is Apple’s second-biggest quarter ever.
- Quarterly revenue of $39.2 billion (Up from $24.7 billion in the year-ago quarter)
- Quarterly net profit of $11.6 billion (Up from $6.0 billion in the year-ago quarter) That’s a 94 percent increase.
- International sales accounted for 64 percent of the quarter’s revenue.
The iPhone continues to dominate Apple’s books:
- 35.1 million iPhones sold (88 percent increase year over year)
- 11.8 million iPads sold during the quarter, a 151 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter
- 4 million Macs sold during the quarter, a 7 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter
- 7.7 million iPods sold, a 15 percent unit decline from the year-ago quarter.
Update: Apple’s PR statement is live. Here are some quotes:
Peter Oppenheimer, Apple’s CFO:
Our record March quarter results drove $14 billion in cash flow from operations. Looking ahead to the third fiscal quarter, we expect revenue of about $34 billion and diluted earnings per share of about $8.68.
Apple CEO Tim Cook:
We’re thrilled with sales of over 35 million iPhones and almost 12 million iPads in the March quarter. The new iPad is off to a great start, and across the year you’re going to see a lot more of the kind of innovation that only Apple can deliver.
Apple’s call is scheduled for 5 P.M. EST. In the meantime, be sure to check out MacStories’ nice graphs.
Speaking of E-Ink…
On Cloud Storage Systems
Speaking of articles on The Verge, the site has posted a great head-to-head of various cloud storage services.
I’m a paying user of Dropbox, and it really has become a core component of how I work. I have multiple Macs and two iOS devices, and Dropbox (more and more, it seems) is the glue I use to keep them together.
iCloud’s document syncing hasn’t changed that for me, and I’m not sure if it will any time soon. I much prefer having folders and sub-folders over iCloud’s data-in-the-app approach.
Google Drive is much more like Dropbox than iCloud in this respect. It shares a local folder with the web. Where Google Drive stands out is the Google Docs front-end for web-editing. No one else can really do that.
I have no doubt Google Drive will be successful among those users already elbow-deep in the Google ecosystem, but it doesn’t do much for me.
GlowLight
For now, I’m sticking with my Kindle (partly because I don’t have much choice), but I’m going to have pangs of jealously every time I have to get out of bed to turn off the light at night.
Amazon is winning in the e-ink category because of its ecosystem; no fancy new Nook is going to change that. That said, while this Nook does look interesting, I think the external light-in-a-case seems like a better solution. For example, I don’t see that weird dark line that appears on The Verge’s review photos across the top of my Kindle’s screen.
I use Amazon’s case with the built-in light, and have no complaints, except maybe for the price.
Google Drive
It’s here, and is yet another Google service I won’t be using.
Sponsor: Minigroup →
Thanks to Minigroup for sponsoring the 512 Pixels RSS feed this week.
Braizen uses Minigroup to manage projects and collaborate and communicate with their clients.
A minigroup is a private, secure online space where members communicate with posts and comments, share large files, and manage projects.
Braizen uses one minigroup like an intranet, to discuss business and assign tasks. They also create separate minigroups for each client, where employees working on various accounts present comp designs and drafts.
“Telling potential clients that we use this tool, where we’ll keep in constant contact with them, definitely helps seal the deal,” says Tyrie, the copywriter at Braizen.
Watch the full interview with Braizen.
Minigroups start at just $3 per year for owners, with plans up to 100 minigroups and 100GB of storage. There are no user/member fees.
Find out more or try it free for 30 days.
Bringing The Clicky
Shawn Blanc has reviewed and compared the Das Keyboard, the Matias Tactile Pro 3 and the Apple Extended II keyboard.
I won’t ruin his findings, or hold you up any longer. Go read this now.
HOME! BUTTONS!
This is what happens when rumors lead to big page views.
(And this isn’t even really a rumor. Sigh.)
Microsoft Pulls Office for Mac Service Pack
Paul Miller, on Notes and Text
His text setup is pretty similar to mine — including using the Simplenote app on iOS, with some nice Dropbox apps on the side.
Obama Targets Humans Rights Abuses Made Possible With Technology
Scott Wilson at The Washington Post:
President Obama issued an executive order Monday that will allow U.S. officials for the first time to impose sanctions against foreign nationals found to have used new technologies, from cellphone tracking to Internet monitoring, to help carry out grave human rights abuses.
Social media and cellphone technology have been widely credited with helping democracy advocates organize against autocratic governments and better expose rights violations, most notably over the past year and a half in the Middle East and North Africa.
This is a great move by the Obama administration, but I know people like my brother want more. As they should.