The Unsinkable brian cork™

Google says Apple Fanboys are right

April28

I threw out this question on Forbes about twenty minutes ago, and then decided to see if I could get anyone to bite on a Sunday night.

I’m not bored. however, I am very sore from moving boxes all day (we just moved again).

“people who like Apple products are often referred to in a dismissive way as “fan boys”. I might prefer “discerning”. but, I won’t take any of it personally. I just like well made products with style.

all that said, what do people who call Apple evangelists “fanboys” call people who are followers of Google, Ubuntu, or Windows? or, Samsung, for that matter?”

A few years back Nicholas Johnson called me an Apple fanboy. that was the first time I had ever heard the term. if memory serves, he was taken aback a bit that I seemed unaware of the term and its meaning. he said that while standing in my doorway trying to convince me how awesome Google was in every conceivable way. this was after I gave him a Windows laptop and challenged him to figure out a way to put Apple’s iOS on it. he did, and was seemingly very proud of the effort. I still don’t know if that was done through a simple download or really tweaking drivers. so, I bought him one of the original Google Nexus One phones. he was very proud of it and liked to show me magic tricks it could do. today, I am using a Nexus 4, and I really like it. possibly better that my iPhone 5.8. mind you… it’s great because it’s very “Apple-like” because it’s stripped of all the subsidized bull-shit manufacturers like Samsung slap onto (overlay) their Android devices. …and, I’m telling you this on my Macbook Pro 13″ with retina display because blogging on my Nexus 7 or iPad is still uncomfortable.

the Urban Dictionary says this:

Apple Fanboy

1. A person who believes in almost anything that apple says and gives into it’s marketing strategy. 2. A prime target for apple marketers to impose their superfluously costing products to. 3. A person who honestly believes that Windows XP or Vista is Archaic, Inferior, Does Not Work, or just plain ripped off ideas from the Mac OS. 4. One who waits in line for days in some instances, for Apple keynote speeches. 5. One who believes adding an “i” prefix to anything is automatically superior to anything that does not have an “i” in front of it.

Most apple fanboys will possess three or more of the following:

iPod, iPhone, Macbook, iMac, Mac Pro, 3 or more Apple Connector Cables, A membership at Macheist.com.

they forgot the Apple iTV. I have two of those as well, and subscribe to Mac Addict and MacLife.

and, this:

A single-layered thinking drone originally thought to exist in only small numbers. To help them assimilate into the real world, a computer with only simple functions so that the drones don’t get confused was created. Eventually, more products were produced after it was discovered that the number or drones are in the millions. While scientists have been unable to find ways to increase brain performance in this species, a corporation named “Apple” has had financial success in at least convincing that the drone specimen is vastly superior to that of everything else.

A specimen of “Apple fanboy” of this species will act partially retarded.

and, also this:

A person who fits at least one of the following: 1. only knows how to use a Mac and cannot handle a PC, gets very frustrated using one. 2. thinks that Macs’ hardware are much better (although statistically their failure rates are not that different from other laptops). 3. over exaggerate his/her passion for Mac products. e.g. I *need* an iPad to read my newspaper and magazines. 4. uses Apple as a status symbol. 5. buys a new Mac product without knowing the prominent features. e.g. GPS and FaceTime in iPhone 4. 6. thinks he/she is technologically savvy but actually knows very little about technology e.g. does not know the difference between 3G and EDGE, 3G versus Wi-fi. 7. Owns many Mac products and is very proud of it. 8. Feels entitled to get a new Mac product on launch day and get unreasonably angry when failing to do so. 9. Has absolutely no idea what open source is. 10. Thinks that the new features that Apple introduces are ground-breaking even though they had been available for years. e.g. 3G, multitasking. 11. When their Apple products fail instead of admitting that Macs can fail sometimes just like PCs, focus on how amazing the experience of getting it replaced at the Genius Bar. 12. Although Macs are better than a PC in some areas (and vice versa), does not know any of the evidences; just *think* that Macs are better. 13. Feels special and cool to own a Mac product although it is no longer a cult to own a Mac product, unlike 10 years ago.

but, don’t forget this:

Someone who bows before an apple shrine 2 times a day (sunrise and sunset). Usually ignorant and having a go at Microsoft and Google nerds.

my goodness… people who evidently think very highly of other company’s products certainly take a dim view of people who like Apple products. I need to come up with a word that rhymes with hypocrisy and blog about it.

I’ve been an Apple evangelist since 1985. today, I like any company that pushes others to innovate to our collective benefit.

by the way… this is funny (at least mildly entertaining)… I Googled, “what is an Apple Fan Boy”. I got some interesting bits-and pieces, including the following Youtube video. but, what actually funny is the advertisement that precedes the video is for a Google Nexus 7 – which I have and love, as everyone that reads this blog is fully aware.

peace be to my Brothers and Sisters.

brian patrick cork

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I can phone in the future by dialing into the past

April11

I started this post with a disparate (no… not desperate) thought, and found myself astounded by where we ended-up.

here’s a provocative statement that won’t make sense until you read the entirety of this effort. so read on:

Google either doesn’t fully understand the situation or has trouble using the Nexus program to build clout for Android.

so… here is the punchline in advance…

as an Apple shareholder, I want Google, Android, Samsung – the whole motley lot of them to succeed in wild fashion. innovation creates success for everyone, the most hearty, in particular. that innovation and subsequent change is what creates opportunity for growth and improvement for the bold.

with that; all of that, with its implications, in-mind, ponder the following. do it! invest your time, passion, and money, accordingly.

Samsung Unveils Enormous 6.3-Inch Galaxy Mega Smartphone - mashable.com

“If you liked the big screen of Samsung’s Galaxy Note smartphones, the company has something even more massive coming. The Samsung Galaxy Mega line, which will hit Europe in May, is led by a monstrous 6.3-inch phone – the…”

Brian Patrick Cork: I dunno… 6.3 is pretty big to offer ease of use.

Gianna Messina: They have some of the WORST reviews online bar none.

…whoa…

in any event, I thought the Samsung S4 (NOT pictured below) had promise but remained a bit awkward compared to the iPhone. texting is still wonky, for Gods sake. I still don’t understand why people are so smitten with the Galaxy S III. it’s a known battery hog, an eye sore (what was Samsung thinking when it mucked up Android this badly?) and a glitch bomb (ranging from missed text and calendar notifications to wonky headphone and Bluetooth connectivity). to top it off, it behaves jerkily, despite its 1.5GHz processor.

what can possibly be exciting about a hand-held device, other than what you use it for? it’s a genuinely esoteric questions.

what matters?

I believe the difference will come down to bio-morphics and voice recognition. then size won’t matter unless you want to vChat or watch a video.

I have a Nexus 7 that I like better than my iPad(s). so, it’s not that I’m pushing any particular platform, today.

in fact, we are continuing to test Android devices. the phone I’m most taken with at the moment isn’t the iPhone 5 (although I just picked-up Haley Anne another iP5) no, it’s the (re-imagined) Nexus 4 – a collaboration of Google and LG, representing the pinnacle of Android hardware and software (Jelly Bean 4.2). it runs smooth as butter, with a vibrant screen that is second to none. when I first picked one up I kept thinking “perfect” – providing I can truly customize certain Apps like simple texting. okay… I’ve set it up: impressive hardware, best Android software ever, definitely a threat to the iPhone (the 5, but not the 6) … except.

…brief intermission…

NOTE: I was among the first to buy two Nexus One phones when Google first released them almost exactly three years ago this month. I can prove it. go read, selfless acts of Commerce. I actually acquired them because they were part of history and Nicholas Johnson was so dang excited about “the Google phone”. that was fun to watch. …he earned that.

wait… go read another post of mine where I discuss the Nexus One.

the scales of justice don’t, often enough, balance out against evil

it’s a crazy and interesting sprint down memory lane. it demonstrates how the creative and innovative quickly transitions to the expected and mundane.

in the end (that being defined inside twenty months), all “smart” mobile phones will be very similar. thusly, it will come down to what do you use it for. then size matters.

meanwhile… end to the intermission…

you note that hesitation just before intermission? so what’s the catch? there are two that go hand in hand: availability and network compatibility.

the only carrier actively selling the Nexus One is T-Mobile. mind you, if you’re on T-Mobile, this is your next phone. you would be hard pressed to find anything remotely this good.

but if you’re on every other carrier, you’re basically out of luck. AT&T customers can buy the phone direct from Google, paying the contract-free price of roughly $350, but they can’t run it on their carrier’s 4G LTE network, because it’s not compatible with that technology. so no blistering speeds – which only matters if you care about DATA. and, as for Sprint and Verizon, it’s simply does not have the right innards.

this is a major timing blunder for Google and for LG – the latter in desperate need of a hit smart phone. Google has a genuine opportunity with the Nexus line to take a legitimate run at Apple and it’s iPhone. the Nexus is that good, but everyone is distracted by the Galaxy line. that’s marketing, but also an subsidization strategy. hopefully, once Android get real, Google goes Apple on the world and finds a way to get them on the Nexus platform. that’s when I believe Google gets it.

my takeaway is that Google either doesn’t fully understand the situation or has trouble using the Nexus program to build clout for Android.

Android is huge, but it’s huge by default. the phones are cheaper than Apple’s, the carriers make more money off of them, and the manufacturers license the operating system for little or nothing, and get to do whatever they want to their look and feel.

the result is that every single Android phone delivers a wildly different experience, and no two people who talk about Android are talking about the same thing.

come on Google… we can do this! lead Apple to unimaginable heights of glory!

more later.

peace be to my Brothers and Sisters.

brian patrick cork

es·o·ter·ic

/ˌesəˈterik/

I think it’s ironic that synonyms for the word, esoteric, include: occult, private and mystic. esoteric means, “Intended for or likely to be understood by only a small number of people with a specialized knowledge or interest”. and, Christians don’t like anything related to the occult, or harry Potter. and, its easy and fun to watch Harry Potter on my Nexus 7.

what do you think? is this another blog post opportunity?

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the Apple of my eye

April2

I’ll add some context in a few days but the “new”-ish Apple iPhone is going to surprise a few people, whether it shows its face in the next quarter, or not. well, perhaps a lot of people.

all the talk about innovation really needs to bring us to a point where we ask,”what more can you do with a hand-held device with a five inch window to the planet?”.

dig deep. think about that. do it!

the answer is what you can do with the phone based on the type of materials used to house the software. so… think voice, voice recognition, bio-morphic, and DATA.

also, remember these words… “a picture can say a thousand words”.

meanwhile… last Friday night I posted the following update on Linkedin:

Brian Patrick Cork: “Fascinating that this story appears on a day the markets are closed.”

Why Apple’s Big Win Over Samsung Might Be Great News for Google (GOOG) - fool.com“

NASDAQ: Fresh data from IDC research shows Apple (AAPL) may be succeeding far more than the stock price currently reflects. The iPhone inventor gained share on Samsung in the global market for connected devices, capturing…”

I love competition. it drives innovation. and, that is good for us all.

you are going to start to see a trend towards Samsung bashing as analysts and media pin-heads start to tout Apple at a low point and drive it towards $1000. that’s just how it works.

many analysts have flawed thinking regarding Apple with the tendency to equate users of Samsung’s devices, which utilize Google’s awkward Android platform, with users of Apple’s iPhones. once they figure out this skews both rational thinking and reliable financial modeling they will begin to turn on Samsung and Google. oddly, many of these same analysts appear to struggle with separating Google and Samsung altogether.

case-in-point

bear [sic] in mind that there are over fifteen Android-powered Samsung mobile device products across multiple market segments that compete against (for the moment) a single Apple device. yet, Apple is inexorably chipping (yes, I said that) away at Samsung. all the other manufacturers remain bit-players.

From a business standpoint, Apple’s users are far more valuable since they are willing to pay more for their phones and use them far more vigorously. the numbers are clear… iPhone users buy more apps and spend more time with them. I think this might be just one more reason why Apple is able to produce seventy percent (70%) of the profit in the mobile device market despite selling fewer devices than Samsung.

I suppose it comes down to how you define “market-share”. me? by portion of profits.

here is a tantalizing tidbit that will outrage Google-Nation and Apple-haters… while Apple’s share price was been declining, it was also becoming the most profitable company in the country. history books may lie depending on the author. however, in Q4 2012 alone Apple brought in thirteen billion dollars ($13 billion) in net income. by comparison, Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), which was the fourth most profitable company last year, did not even generate half that amount.

Look Into My Eyes And See Your Future

look… literally… there is going to be an iPhone mini. there is a market for it. and, it won’t cannibalize Apple’s iPhone market. it will augment it. we saw proof of this expectation with the MacBook line, the Mac Mini, and the iPads. there is also going to be a cloudPhone. …what… (I hinted at this last month on Linkedin). that said, based on what I’m seeing, I can’t say Apple will actually produce the cloudPhone hand-set, so much as influence it. I’m thinking that might turn-out to be something of a trend. I THINK HTC will be involved.

all of this is me pulling a lot of disparate data together from far-ranging sources. that said, many of you are putting your kids through college based on my thinking around Apple.

My Android Adventure Update

meanwhile, last Friday I made good on my promise to keep being open-minded about Android. I let the Samsung representative put a Galaxy SIV in my hands. I admit I liked the feel and responsiveness. it’s “snappy” much like my NEXUS 7, which I like more than my iPad. however, it took me all of fifteen minutes to put it back in the box after trying to text with it. obviously there is more to the hand-set than texting. and Android Nation is going to be pleased with the upgrades. but, (HUGE but) that was a key reminder for me why I still prefer the iPhone.

Apple’s [now] flagship product remains in possession of the most intuitive operating system available. it was the first to change the market, and remains the front-runner to beat. you simply have to be open-minded and willing to read the numbers accurately, not in a skewed marketing fashion, as Samsung would have you do.

peace be to my Brothers and Sisters.

brian patrick cork

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Google Apple for a definition of Success

March27

Tablets are the new norm.

“The mere mention of tablet computing will, in most, elicit the knee-jerk reaction of praise for Apple’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPad. Since the launch of the first version in 2010, the domination of the…”

read more about that with detail, here. do it!

Apple did much of the work popularizing the concept and how a tablet can improve your life. it also set the standard in weight, size, and dimension, as seen by the fact that many tablets announced or released since the iPad look almost exactly like it.

however, the primary challenge for any competitor is Apple’s incredible efficiency. with iTunes and the ability for users to purchase music, movies, TV shows, and educational content, Apple is giving its customers a one-stop shop. so… buy, download, sync, and take everything with you. if one adds the App Store to that equation, Apple is the epitome of convenience.

the second notable adversary was Google’s Nexus. as many of you know our team just took delivery of some Google Nexus 7′s.

Android has long struggled with its need for more tablet-optimized apps. still with an excellent design, good battery life, and low starting price, the Nexus 7 is an inexpensive way to experience the best of the tablet world without breaking the bank.

to be candid, it’s smoking our high-end iPads, and very easy to navigate. Right now I like it better than my iPad.

but, my status as an Apple shareholder aside, I believe this is good. Apple remains the best example of a company that innovates. so, this means they need to push harder, smarter and more efficiently. that’s good for all of us.

peace be to my Brothers and Sisters.

brian patrick cork

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So, while I harangue the public in my not so gentle way, you will discover that I am fascinated by all things arcane, curious about those whom appear religious, love music, dabble in politics, loathe the media, value education, still think I am an athlete, and might offer a recipe.

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