Apple News, Analysis and Podcasts

Lawsuits notwithstanding, earlier this week Samsung took a few shots at Apple, with a tone that could only be described as defensively whiny, conjuring up images of a certain Star Wars character (must I mention Mark Hamill?...). Samsung appears to be in very vulnerable in the TV space, as Product Manager Chris "Skywalker" Moseley stated at their Prague forum:

Those of us who have followed Apple for three decades have been a spoiled lot. In the 80's we were introduced to the Apple II and then to the Macintosh. The Mac was an unbelievable computer that propelled us 50 years into the future compared to DOS and unix counterparts. 

Last week Sony announced three new back-illuminated stacked CMOS image sensors. In simple terms, Sony announced better camera capability for smartphones and mobile devices, but they're likely to cost the competition much more than Apple, whle lagging behind in overall speed.

Seriously? Take a look at these analysts number in pink/red highlight. It's these analysts that are pegging Apple's returns at or below Apple's own guidance. And that is just laughable. There is no data whatsoever alluding to such ridiculously low earnings forecasts, but I'm glad they exist!

Cult of Mac claims to have learned from their visit to CES that iPad 3 is going to be thinner than the iPad 2. This information flys in the face of a cadre of far east rumors claiming the contrary. Cult of Mac is keen to point out that Apple creating a thicker iPad woud be bucking a trend in their iOS device world, having always made device after device, thinner and thinner and thinner.

Only from the mouths of our trustworthy DigitTimes foks (yes, that's heavy sarcasm) have we learned that the iPad 3 was to be slightly thicker than that of the iPad 2... What makes far more sense is an iPad 2 wanna-be, perhaps from Samsung or Google, would be slightly thicker than an iPad 2. Meanwhile, the logical assumption is that Apple – yet again – will scream by their competition with a svelt iPad 3, dominating the space for at least another year.

Apple's move from Intel to ARM processors may be closer than you think.

2011 has come and gone. During the year we saw the new iPhone 4S, a major MacBook Air upgrade, the iPad 2, and a minor MacBook Pro upgrade. It was a great year for Apple fiscally, but sad as it saw the death of Steve Jobs.

Now that 2012 is here, it is time to look ahead and see what the future brings. Apple will continue to shine like a bright star as they release upgrades to their top products. The crystal ball shows the folllowing things happening this year.

In November 2011, Mozilla's arrangement with Google — to make Google the default search engine and home page when launching the open-source browser — came to an end. The relationship was renewed for another three years for an estimated couple hundred million dollars. The fact that Google still needs to (and is willing to) pay Mozilla for mind-share indicates three things about the "State of the Google" as we head into 2012:

Analysts have been coming out of Cupertino lately, ratcheting up their iPhone sales figures. The Street predicts roughly 29 million iPhones will be sold for the quarter, while AT&T's CEO recently commented on seeing a record number of iPhone sales for the December quarter being highly likely.

A recent article by CIO.com titled, "Apple in the Enterprise: Breaking Microsoft's Grip", makes the keen observation that Microsoft is starting to lose their dominant grip in the corporate space. Apple's iPhone and iPad are breaching corporations the same way that Research In Motions Blackberry's did — through the Sales & Marketing Door. iPad's and iPhone's work well on most corporate networks, so it's been difficult for the IT department to prohibit the use of iOS devices within sales and marketing groups. The result has been an explosion of Apple's iOS devices being used in Microsoft's seemingly impenetrable fortress: corporate environments.

Nielson Reports issued shocking numbers yesterday: TV ownership is set to decline for the first time since 1970, which marks the first time since Nielson started tracking this data. An initial reaction would be to blame the economy for such a depressing year in television sales. However, get beyond the simple reasons for the decline and a different story emerges. And with that different story, Apple is set to enter a market that isn't in decline, but in transformation mode. Apple is once again skating to where the puck is going to be, not where it is.

Apple's stock price is off over 10% in as little as one months time. Aiding the slide, DigiTimes has reported that Apple has slashed (yes, slashed) component orders for iPhone, and Apple can't keep iPhones in stock, possibly due to supply shortages. To top it off, Kindle Fire is now out in the market for only $199, backed with amazing hype. Does this mean the end of Apple is near? Should everyone "Repent Now" from Apple?!

Bloomberg recently created a buzz about a forthcoming Apple HDTV, in conjunction with Sharp Electronics. But this is not where the immediate attention should be focused. Our information points towards a Tuesday, January 25 Apple's Special Event from Apple.

Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet was releasd today, and based on the initial reviews, the secret we T-GAAP-ers already knew about is now out of the bag: The Kindle Fire tablet is no tablet.

In the wake of Amazon's 7" Kindle Fire tablet launch, Barnes & Noble has shot back across the Amazon bow with their own vision of a 7" device. Yesterday saw the release of the 7" Nook tablet, which delivers a dual-core processor, 1 GB of RAM, and 16GB of internal storage with an SD card slot, and a 1024 x 600 dpi display. The new Nook delivers a bit more than the Kindle Fire, but it also runs $50 more at $249. But does this have any effect on what is actually a true tablet, the iPad?

Steve jobs ripped the 7" device market, stating they would die out, as they were too small to do real work on them, and that they are "...tweeners; too big to compete against a smartphone, and too small to compete with the iPad". This is akin to no-mans-land in Tennis. No one ever wants to be standing where the ball bounces. Go to the net or stay behind the baseline, it's that simple. But are 7" devices not worthy of the tablet moniker? Is there a market for this space?

When Steve Jobs re-joined Apple in 1997, he drew a grid on a white board that looked something like this

Podcast Episode 63: Cornholio. The Three Guys (Mark, Karl and Werner) discuss the opening of Apple 5th Ave flagship store in NYC, PBS's show: "Steve Jobs - One Last Thing", iPhone 4S battery life issues, rumors about Amazon updating the Kindle to 8.9" and CBS who apparently turned down Apple's Streaming Service. All this and much, much more in Episode 63: Cornholio.

Start the countdown, because the next TV you are likely to buy, or want to buy, is going to be made by Apple. And it isn't just because this TV has some elegant design and brilliant looking screen, it'll be because the interface and content that comes right out of the box, and the way in which you control it, is going to blow you away.

Jobs Says So
The question isn't if, it's just a matter of when Apple's holistic television solution will arrive. Steve Jobs said as much in his autobiography, and his "I finally cracked it" comment and additional color on the topic, may be the only time during Jobs reign at Apple that he leaked a single grain of data about a forthcoming product. Don't think this is Jobs throwing in the towel or not caring because he was leaving us. On the contrary, this is perfect Steve Jobs start-the-hype stuff. It's all about the mystery and creating a pent-up demand for something we don't know we even want – yet. Jobs delivered a glimpse into Pandora's box, but since he's gone, we can't dig deeper, and since it didn't officially come from Apple don't count on Cook and company rapping eloquently about this any time soon.

Let's waste no time and just dive right into why Apple's 'Let's talk iPhone' special event is going to be huge:

Among the myriad of iPhone 5 mock-ups and spy-shots seen floating around the internet, coupled with a nearly daily dose of DigiTimes reports of component purchases here and there, when we boil it all down what are we left with? What kind of hardware will the iPhone 5 most likely sport?

Autumn has finally arrived in North America. While that means the college football seasons begins as well as school starts as well as cooler morning air bringing a change to the leaves, we Apple aficionados also know that means October is just around the corner.

October means a couple of things. First, a new fiscal year for Apple. We'll get to hear 4th quarter results and annual results in mid-October. This let's us know whether Apple is on track or has slipped somewhere. Second, it usually means new products of one sort or another.

Is Oracle setting its acquisition sites on Dell? That's the idea posed by Seeking Alpha's Omega Investor. Before HP announced the divestment of their PC division, this would have seemed like a ridiclous notion, but not any more.

But would an Oracle acquisiton of Dell be fiscally possible? Dell's market cap sits at $26 billion, with $15 billion in cash. But Dell's numbers quickly wash away with a debt line of $92 billion. Oracle has a $136 billion market cap, with $28 billion in cash and $39 billion in debt. Financially, Oracle has the means to scoop up Dell should they choose to go that path.

Is Apple going all-out in an effort to acquire the type of contracts that will set their Apple TV and forthcoming HDTV sales on fire? Likely so.

If recent reports are to be believed, a new Apple TV will arrive this fall. Information coming from many of these reports cites TV Execs, which have proven to be anything but reliable in the past. The fall timeframe makes little sense for Apple to deliver an all-new Apple TV and Apple HDTV lineup when considering iOS 5, iCloud, iPhones and perhaps new iPads will arrive during a jam-packed season of fall releases. But where there is smoke there is often fire, and while fall makes little sense, our information points to a January Special Event from Apple.

Outside of the “i” nomenclature which Apple tags virtually every product, Apple is not a company that subscribes to any form of dogma. Adopting smaller 3.5" floppy drives, pushing USB ports over serial, or flipping an entire video industry on its head with a new software philsopy — it makes no difference. There are simply no sacred cows at Apple, and that's what keeps Apple relevant, inventive, and leaves the rest of the industry playing constant catch up.

Will Apple continue its path to reveal an iPhone 5 that delivers monumental hardware changes over previous versions? iOS and iCloud are so closely integrated, virtually all functionally will run wirelessly once the latest software rollout arrives in September. iTunes, photos, backup, syncing, apps, iOS updates, it's all wireless. The only item remaining requiring phycial connectivity is power. But even connection for power appears on its way out.

The latest cell phone market share figures should have tablet makers quaking in fear of what Apple may do to them once iPad 3 arrives. Currently, Apple is sucking all the profits out of the market. Moreover, many of Apple's competitors have taken their best stab at iPad by flooding the channel, but with weak sell-though results (just ask Samsung, HP or RIM how tablets are working out).

The latest figures peg Apple's global tablet market share at 61.3%. Like with iPhone vs Android phones, we saw Android quickly race out ahead in deployment numbers, which are flattening out or starting to work back in Apple's favor. New numbers for the iPhone comes from BTIG analyst Walter Piecyk, predicting up to 30 million iPhones could be sold in the September quarter. If iPhone sales are poised for this absolute explosion, what will halo effect be for iPads vs the rest of the pack?

Unlike the Mac, Windows lets applications install files all over the system and program folders. The result of Windows allowing apps to install files or DLLS in many locations is it can wreck havoc with operating system stability. Apple has a better approach.

OS X confines application files to the application, system's library, and user's library folders. Some application preferences are system wide and others are specific to a certain user (which is why there are two library folders), but hints in OS X Lion suggest things are about to change.

 By using up to 30% of the Internet's Bandwidth, Netflix has become the place to watch movies and TV shows online. They have the largest movie catalog available online with the best prices. Yet, is Netflix opening the door to defeat?

In the past when users subscribed to Netflix, they would get 1,2, or 3 DVDs at a time with unlimited online movies and videos. Recently, Netflix announced new subscriber plans that essentially broke up their two main services. The change has caused a major backlash from its users, as it greatly increases the monthly subscription price. Will Netflix be able to weather the storm, or is this the beginning of the end for them?

Come with me for a moment into my world. One of the hats I wear is being a salesman, and along with that, making presentations. Sometimes those presentations happen in the familiar surroundings of our office. This is where I have “home court advantage” — where everything is comfortable: I use our projector, access our wi-fi network, control the mood with our lighting,... everything is pretty much under my control.

However, that is not the case when I'm at a customer site. I have to show up early to see if I'll use my projector or someone else's. I need to find a wi-fi connection and then whether I can access it. FInally I can't  run through the presentation in case someone else is in the room watching — it'll ruin any “surprise” I've put together. Presenting at a client's site can be a big pain. I've also noticed many companies now have HDTV's in their conference rooms. This is where Apple could really take a giant leap forward and make AppleTV a salesman’s best friend.

Mark your calendar. Today is the day Verizon ends unlimited data plans, putting a nail in the coffin of all-things all-the-time mobile. Eventually all carriers will follow this model as they are all addicted to charge-per-minute plans, so why not charge per bit downloaded, so their thinking goes.

Governing minutes or data, it is the way pipe providers, and unlimited plans are completely counter to their business soul. But ending unlimited plans on AT&T, and now Verizon, it's an Omen of things to come from every data provider, mobile or not. The capping of data is rapidly extending into homes via cable and fiber internet providers. This shouldn't shock anyone. All of these players were spawned from the world of telecommunications, thus the game is the same across the board. How they can extract every cent from our wallets will seemingly never end. However, there is one white knight that has the cash and cajones to change the game – Apple.

We've just received word from our source in the San Francisco Bay Area that Apple is planning to release Mac OS X 10.7 Lion on Wednesday, July 6th at 9:00 am Pacific Time.

One particular item of interest about this news is that with OS X Lion being an online-release-only, Apple can wait until the 11th hour to release new OS. They don't have to first lock it down, then press it onto DVDs, then box it, then ship to their hundreds of stores and through distribution in order to meet a certain publicly announced launch date. With an online release, Apple just needs to upload the final release to their servers and then make it available.

Apple will hold their 3Q11 conference call at 2:00pm PT/5:00pm ET on Tuesday, July 19, 2011. 

Whether or not you have interest in Apple's financial results or have never listened to a quarterly financial conference call, we highly recommend you give this Apple financial call a listen. Tim Cook and Peter Oppenheimer will chair the call, and many things can be learned from listening to their tight-lipped commentary via the questions they choose to answer. Sometimes what they don't say is almost as revealing in what they do.

The latest numbers by Charlie Wolf of Needham & Associates indicates that Android's market share is flattening out, and/or perhaps poised to fall over the coming quarters, due to increased competition from the likes of Apple and other forthcoming competition.  Wolf's assertions also fall in line with NPD's latest market share reports, adding further fuel to the fire that Android is getting the squeeze. 

Today, Google's Andy Rubin Tweeted that Android is seeing an average of 500,000 activations per day. First of all, what exactly does Google consider an activation? Is an Android activation an LG refrigerator with Android built-in for touch-screen control? Is an Android activation millions of China Mobile smart phones that have a core Android OS in them, but everything else Google stripped out of them?

From the days of ThinkSecret or macOSrumors, to today's AppleInsider or MacRumors, Apple Inc. has always had a great rumor mill following, and quite often where there has been smoke we have seen fire. The constant drumbeat of rumors surrounding the MacBook air is nearly off the charts - or so it would seem.

Virtually every day brings forth a new MacBook air rumor. But many sites are conducting mere re-broadcasts of original information, making it appear as fresh information. Thus, we wanted to go back to the sources of these rumors and build a comprehensive list of original sources.

While Apple has been enjoying a financial boom during this down economy (selling more Macs, more iPhones and more iPads) it seems like living in an alternate universe when talking about Research In Motion.

If it wasn't bad enough that RIM's revenue fell more than 12% for Q1 (ending May 28th) or that the Playbook has been a major dud (how's that QNX operating system working out for ya?), it looks like now even the rats are abandoning ship.

According to Apple Insider, Apple won't be shipping any new Macs until Mac OS X Lion is available. The rationale is that "Apple management is so pumped up over the advantages presented by its forthcoming Mac OS X Lion operating system that the company has been holding back the release of at least one new Mac refresh until the software is finalized". In addition, Computer World reported that Apple has announced all new Macs purchased after June 6, 2011 will receive a free OS X Lion upgrade.

The reason we must wait for new hardware — the spin goes — is because Apple is so excited about Lion its holding back hardware releases, we think there may be more of a practical side to this decision.

If you own Apple (AAPL) stock or are considering doing so, but are not sure when's a good time to get in, this video is a must-see. Michael Holland isn't flashy, nor does he bring anything revolutionary to the table, but his sticking point is AAPL valuation is incredibly low and it can't stay there forever.

AAPL closed the market Wednesday at $326.75 with a intraday market cap of only $302.16b. AAPL is also carrying a forward looking P/E ratio of only 11. These figures for AAPL are starting to become a fixture to the stock, and they are absurdly low. What is Apple going to bring to the earnings table next quarter? There are some sparks out in the analyst world that suggest it will be another above and beyond quarter, but will another strong quarter push Apple's stock price north or leave it in purgatory?

With the the demise of the XServe and the abnormal delay since the last Mac Mini refresh (12 months — the average has been eight), many continue to wonder where Apple is with replacements for both products. 

While there is a Mac Mini Server running Snow Leopard, what if Apple were to take the next step and create a Mac Mini Pro Server?

Holy covered banners Batman! We had thought Apple raised all their banners this past Friday, but have been proven wrong. It appears Werner Reschke (Guy #3), was correct in his guess that Apple may put up covered banners Sunday night. Nice call Werner. You can see more original T-GAAP WWDC banner photos here.

We are not sure what this banner holds under it's black veil, but here are three of our best guesses:

Is it June already? Well not quite, but certainly close enough to really start sinking our teeth into what we will find at the WWDC in 2011.

Having personally attended several Mac trade-shows back in the day (not any recently since Apple has canceled such events), the anticipation for Steve or "JobsCo" to reveal something new is no different this time around. Matter of fact one can argue the stakes are even higher with so many more irons in the fire.

A group calling itself Apple Retail Workers Union picked up some nice press yesterday when they sent out their own form of a press release to some major media outlets. The goal? Simple. Unionize Apple retail stores. The chances of this happening? None to, well, none.

There are any number of reasons why Apple retail stores won't ever form a union, such as Apple's overall pay being much higher than the average mall store (you won't find any Genius salaries in The GAP), and benefits are good. But there are two key reasons any union effort for Apple retail employees will fail. First, Apple retail employees are a happy, satisfied bunch, because the atmosphere Apple has created for them is top of the class. Secondly, Steve Jobs has no love for unions (so it appears). In 2007 Jobs told a school-reform conference in Texas "I believe that what is wrong with our schools in this nation is that they have become unionized in the worst possible way..." Jobs also added "This unionization and lifetime employment of K-12 teachers is off-the-charts crazy." As a result of Jobs public stance it would appear Unions have no love for Jobs either.

Working at an Apple retail store in the past, I felt compelled to share some thoughts on the rumors hinting of a major event coming this weekend at the Apple retail stores. Computerworld's Jonny Evans shares some additional thoughts along these lines, but also shares information from ifoapplestore.com, which has been a faithful follower of Apple retail stores since they opened nearly 10 years ago.

Taking in the smoke from the rumor mill, don't get excited about Apple launching some form of anniversary Mac hardware, or delivering some surprise Apple HDTV product, that just isn't happening. Apple does not waste hundreds of millions of dollars in free press when launching into new markets, and pulling some surprise Mac launch over the weekend would be doing exactly that. What's more likely is a software/cloud initiative.

Based on BGR's claims, it appears Apple will actually be revealing pre-announcement information to a select group of Apple retail staff 12 – 24 hours ahead of a major announcement. This would be a first for Apple, and a bold move from the Cupertino machine. But this may be an Apple litmus test, and if successful may lay the groundwork for how future product launches roll out.

It appears Apple corporate does not trust their retail employees (smart move), in that BRG's source claims the 10-15 employees that will be pulling an all-night-er in the stores, must not only sign an NDA, but also lock their cell phones in the managerial office.

"Stay Tuned" says Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon. Stayed tuned for what? A tablet. But before diving into that topic, I want to make one thing perfectly clear. No one in the tech industry is better positioned to take on Apple in the mobile computing space than Amazon – no one.

Scott Moritz of The Street, believes the next generation iPhone is delayed, which may result in sales losses to Android-based 4G LTE smartphones. Moritz builds his thinking upon an analyst who is claims to have inside information on the forthcoming iPhone.

How a product can be "delayed" when a company has never given a launch date it could be delayed from is logically impossible, but we all understand how this works, right? First, the rumor mill builds some mythical launch date for an Apple product, then rumors and analysts claim a different date, thus the launch of the product is late. Brilliantly ridiculous.

According to the UK-based V3 publication, market research firm Context is claiming 3G iPads are a disproportionately large chunk of overall iPad sales figures. In fact, Context claims the 64GB 3G iPad totaled a third of all iPad 2 sales in Europe since its launch. The surge in 3G iPad sales is likely to have pushed Apple's average selling price (ASP) north, but to what extent?

The last known ASP for iPads came during Apple's January financial conference call, where Apple COO, Timothy Cook and Apple CFO, Peter Oppenheimer revealed a $600 figure. But Apple's figure was from the Christmas quarter, when entry-level $499 iPads were likely high volume sellers (when compared to other quarters). If Context figures hold true beyond Europe's boarders, iPad 2's ASP for the June quarter will land somewhere around $680. How much revenue does equate to for the June quarter? Mr. Cook gave us an idea last month.

Microsoft's latest pursuit is yet another sign that Apple is tearing them up. The company from Redmond is rumored to be in pursuit of buying out (or heavily investing in) Skype. If you are a user of Skype you may have noticed their latest updates are pretty much deplorable with regard to user interface, and their video quality typically stinks when compared to Tango or Apple's Facetime.

Based on Microsoft's track record, I can only assume they will purchase Skype, repurpose it for "Windows Phone 7 Extreme Plus Home Edition" and market it as: Windows PeopleTime – The Windows you love, now with video chat... Please.

Cnet's Scott Stein comes up with five creative areas where he'd like to see Thunderbolt deployed. Scott has some creative – and some not so creative – ideas:

• External Storage
• Monitors
• Cameras
• External GPUs
• iPhones, iPads and iPods

Hmmmm... We take a quick look at each area to see what makes sense.

Apple's Steve Jobs seems to be the wunderkind reborn after his return to Apple in 1997. His first stint with Apple led to the design and launch of the original Macintosh and the original Mac OS. During his second time behind the wheel he brought us the iMac, Mac OS X, and the i-Series of products and iOS operating system.

There's not much that Apple has done under Jobs' leadership that hasn't been a success. One of guiding principle Jobs has used is during his second term is, "Keep Your Friends Close; Keep Your Enemies Closer". There are three examples of this from the recent decade: Intel, Google and Facebook.

Back in March we covered Apple's aggressive Thunderbolt plans, and how we believed every Mac would be gaining Thunderbolt by the end of 2011. With the recently updated iMac and MacBook pro lines receiving Thunderbolt updates, nearly half of Apple's Mac fleet has now made the transition to the new technology.

The next Mac on the update roadmap is the Mac mini. But regardless of which Mac is next, Thunderbolt is an absolute game changer, and here's why:

No, this isn't a new column that will come out every Tuesday. It's just that the last few days has seen a heavy does of rumors, so to aid in keeping you up-to-speed with the things that are – or are not – going to happen.

Check it out:

Part I can be seen here. Part II continues with market share assumptions and the fallacies they advance.

iOS vs Android: The Market Share War That Is

Analysts and tech media alike have one central theme correctly identified. Apple and Google are in a heated market–share war, but declaring any victor in today's battle would be pure folly. Yet Henry Blodget advances his position that Android is now the victor and iOS is dead. Blodget flashes around Nielsen's latest purchasing intent survey as proof positive. I also recall a survey claiming nearly 54% of all Verizon customers would turn in their Blackberry's and Android's for iPhone 4 on day one of it's launch.

Henry Blogdet's recently ran an article for Business Insider titled, IT'S OFFICIAL: Android Clobbering Everyone, iPhone Dead In The Water. To get a better idea of what he is talking about feel free to check out his column here. Am I going to rip into Henry's column from the get-go? Absolutely. I found his entire piece seriously troubling, as I had thought that only a Dvorak-like mind could come up with such antiquated material – I was wrong.

I'm not here to personally tear apart Henry, that's not my goal, as I enjoyed his latest column on the economy as it was quite refreshing. But whether Henry's mobile OS mindset comes from a financial or viable business perspective it makes no difference, his positions are completely indefensible. It actually took some time to decipher whether or not he was actually serious. Was this just another Paul Thurott link bait article, or did Henry really think he'd struck gold with this one? Sadly, I think it's the latter, which means I'm putting in the midnight oil to give Henry – and hopefully tens of thousands more – pause to reflect as to why this isn't the PC war of decades past, rather, it is the new war of post PC devices, and how the twixt of these twain couldn't be further apart. 

Lack of Security within mobile OSes isn't anything new. Developers have seen the gaping holes for quite some time an the public is just starting to become aware. Back on April 5th the WSJ did some pretty impressive research on Pandora's invasive practices within the Apple's iOS and Google's Android operating systems, and both seem to be unable in stop applications from taking what they want out of the phone (at least for now).

With the latest iOS is tracking you story making national headlines, the general consumer seems to be catching on that their devices are peeking in on what they are doing, or at least they think they are (and their apps are likely doing even more privacy damage). The whole buzz around this privacy issue is eerily similar to that of "antenna-gate" and it's best Apple get in front of this as they did with the iPhone 4's attenuation story. It is critical Apple blows holes in mis-information and rumor before it becomes an assumed fact the Apple is stealing your every move from iOS devices.

Apple's financial call is set for Wednesday, April 20 at 5 PM Eastern, and it may be one of the biggest financial thrill rides in recent memory, if our estimates are correct (Imagine that, a financial call being a thrill ride). Apple's CFO, Peter Oppenheimer, delivered guidance of $22m in revenues with a 38.5% gross margin. You can see a full listing of what the pro's and bloggers are predicting Apple will deliver for their fiscal Q211 here.

The highest estimate from Wall Street analysts comes from Jeff Fidacaro of SIG (Susquehanna Investment Group). The highest blogosphere estimate comes courtesy of Nicolae Mihalache over at traderhood.com. They're probably both wrong.

Last week there was a back and forth on whether Microsoft stores were a good idea or a poor one. As most know, last year Microsoft began opening retail stores in malls across America to counter Apple's success. One could almost predict this would happen because Microsoft has become so predictable.

Unless you're slightly crazy, there's no questioning Apple's dominance in the tablet market. In fact, a year after the iPad's original launch, competition is still scarce. PC and cell phone manufacturers alike are struggling to nip Apple's iPad heels. Can these hardware makers find a market for their tablets and truly compete with Apple, or is iPod history repeating itself?

Presently, there are several issues blocking Android-based tablets success in the marketplace:

Apple comes to the table on April 20, at 2 PM Pacific, to reveal what will likely be year another record fiscal 2Q11. Financial numbers are one thing, but how Apple achieves them is another.

There's been a lot of speculation revolving around Apple's supply chain for iPad 2 and MacBook batteries since the Japan quake and Tsunami. But a few hints from Apple may be revealing another story. The truth. On April 20th we'll learn a lot based on the little information Apple delivers.

Apple released their new processor for the coming year's iOS products when they debuted it in the iPad 2. This new processor is called the A5, and it is based on the ARM Cortex A9 reference processor. The A5 is a dual-core system-on-a-chip (SoC) running at a variable speed of 800Mhz to 1Ghz. This variable speed allows it to save more power when not performing major tasks.

The processor costs Apple more to produce their own chip than to buy an off the shelf ARM processor. Some estimate the difference to be around 50% more, but the extra cost gives Apple the ability to make a better chip by modifying the reference design to suit their needs. Apple will be able to reduce this cost over time by putting the A5 into every iOS device like the iPhone, iPod Touch, and AppleTV. The performance gains are well worth it and gives Apple a major advantage in the mobile market space. While we don't know what Apple plans for next year's A6, we do know ARM's plans for future ARM processors.

IDC may have some impressive survey clout and reach, but when it comes to actually delivering decent reasoning behind their numbers, my sub-five-year-old daughter can draw better conclusions by consulting her Polly Pocket dolls.

IDC's latest report concludes that by 2015, the smartphone market share will look drastically different than today, with Apple falling well behind the pack. While I agree with IDC's assessment that the market will have shifted, their conclusions are way off.

iPad 3 has been rumored by Daring Fireball blogger John Gruber and MG Siegler of Tech Crunch as possibly landing this fall, but recent information suggests to T-GAAP that iPad 3 will not be arriving this year.

Any delay in launching the iPad 3 is not due to parts availability or the lack of retina display production, it is because of iPad 2's tremendous holding power in the market. iPad 2 is besting Apple's highest world-wide demand expectations, and therefore may not trigger a speedy iPad 3 launch.

This past Thursday, RIM's co-CEO Jim Balsillie spun his best story, explaining why RIM would be able to compete in what he called the "Superphone" market space. Balsille also tried to clarify why the RIM's financials were not in line with Wall Street expectations, presenting a rosy picture in just a few quarters from now.

Unfortunately for Mr. Balsillie, renaming smartphones as "Superphones" won't change the Blackberry makers problems. RIM's margins are shrinking, and the physical keyboard market is limited. Making matters worse, RIM's efforts to counter the iPhone with their touch-screen Storm lineup has been a complete failure. RIM's best days are behind them. To make this perfectly clear, 2011 is the beginning of the end for RIM.

The Mac Pro was last updated in July of 2010. Most recently, at the end of March, the MacBook Pro received a new high-speed data port called Thunderbolt. This new data port really benefit professionals who need fast data transfers, such as video editors.

Current Mac Pros will not be able to add the Thunderbolt data port because it needs a new motherboard. Intel will not be offering a PCIe adapter card for current and older computers either, so when will Apple add the Thunderbolt port and refresh the Mac Pro? Lets take a look at the current hardware and past updates.

The iPhone and iPod touch have proved to be stiff competition for Sony and other hand-held game console makers. While standard handheld game consoles are supposed to be better at gaming, the iPod touch and iPhone can do so much more than just games. This has led to a majority of non-hardcore gamers switching to the iPod Touch or iPhone. The iPad is adding to this trend for those who want a bigger screen.

With the launch of the iPad 2, Apple added the ability to mirror the iPad's screen on a TV with a HDMI output option, which allows the iPad to compete with traditional game consoles. iPad games can now be viewed on a HDTV at 1080p, instead of looking over someone's shoulder. This changes the iPad from a personal gaming device to becoming the social gaming console.

Apple's iPad 2 has a hidden advantage over its competitors, and that is their supply chain. This supply chain gives the iPad access to parts its competitors can't touch and at prices they can't reach. With Apple's war chest of cash and high volume production, will their competitors be able to compete?

Steve Jobs has greatly improved Apple's supply chain management since his return to Apple back in 1996. Back in 2000, Dell was viewed as having the best supply chain management. They excelled in a commodity driven computer industry. Apple replaced Dell when the iPod Nano was released by cornering almost the entire flash memory business. Flash memory production increased after that, but by then is was too late for Applecompetitors. Apple was the second best supply chain management back in 2007, with Nokia being number 1. Now Apple is continuing its success with the iPad and iPhone.

Intel's Light Peak technology (also known as Thunderbolt) was first introduced on Apple's MacBook Pro line-up last month. Thunderbolt is set to race across the Mac platform, spreading across Apple's entire lineup by the end of 2011.

The next Mac product to include Thunderbolt is the Mac Mini — via a product update due this month. Following the Mac Mini will be updates to the iMac and Mac Pro towers. That said, both systems update timelines have varied greatly in the past few years. What is not known is how many Thunderbolt ports each system will receive.

The iPad 2 launched today with great fanfare and a solid, if not modest, hardware update. Apple's hardware team showed us how they can industrial engineer like no one else, delivering a razor thin iPad 2 — which is even thinner than the iPhone 4. The iPad 2 shows us Apple's hardware prowess, but a few major pieces were missing amongst the mix.

The iPad 2 sports the same resolution screen as iPad 1, humble camera specs, and ho-hum software updates — for now. The big reveal in hardware and software looks to be on the horizon, arriving in the in iPad 3.

 Apple introduced a new connection port called Thunderbolt with their Macbook Pros Last Month. Thunderbolt has replaced the Mini Display Port and will replace USB and Firewire over time. Apple will need to refresh their Macintosh product line-up to add this new port to keep the sales figures up.

The Mac Mini went through a major redesign this last summer. The new version uses Apple's unibody manufacturing process that was first used on the Macbook Air in 2008. Since the mini's redesign is less than a year old, Apple is unlikely to do another overhaul this year. When is the next Mac Mini refresh likely to happen? The table below shows previous release dates, introduction date, and length of time between between updates.

Apple's announcement to end production and sales of XServes on January 31, 2011 was a sad day for many Apple IT professionals. To read about the frustration it brings to the Mac community you need to look no further than Apple's own discussion forum on the topic.

One person in the forum said, "This is so unlike Apple, pulling the rug out on us - it's more like a MS move, sounds like they're slipping." Another lamented, "This is horrible news for any ACN out there. We fight tooth and nail to convince business and enterprise that Apple is a valid contender. How OSX Server is "real UNIX' and how Apple servers are more cost effective for licensing and support... To then have to sheepishly explain we have no rack-mounted option, no hot-swap drives or redundant power, no LOM, no actual 'server' - it's embarrassing and destroys Apple's presence in the server room." So this begs the question, does Apple need to be in the Server market? Yes.

Anyone who has a smart phone or is thinking about a new smart phone knows about Apple's iPhone. It is the biggest name in the smart phone market.  When a new customer decides to buy a smartphone, they first decision to make is if they are going to get an iPhone, or look for another brand.

The biggest threat to Apple is losing their name recognition. They could lose it if another company were to dominate the mobile space (like Microsoft dominated the desktop starting with Windows 95). Lets take a look at the major competitors and see if they are capable of dominating of mobile operating system.

Despite our earlier report of Final Cut Studio and the MacBook Pro arriving in April (notwithstanding Sandybridge taking a slight “detour” to market), there is no indication that FCP has been thrown off its pace, and it is rapidly approaching its launch — with one of its largest updates ever.

The MacBook Pro may very well join the launch, shipping in late April/early May. We continue to hear the new MacBook Pro will arrive with higher resolutions screens, increased battery life, a thin chassis that follows the format of the MacBook Air — and no optical drive. One 15" legacy MacBook Pro model will remain, gaining internal updates only, for those believing they require an onboard optical drive.

Now that Microsoft has successfully inked a deal with Nokia, MeeGo and Symbian are all but dead, leaving Nokia with a new master from Redmond, Washington. Both Nokia and Microsoft needed this deal regardless of the costs, as it delivers Nokia a partner in the OS world and Microsoft a level of credibility in the smart phone market place.

Microsoft's never been good at competing against opponents of equal weight. Rather, Microsoft's typical game is to bully their way into a market over time by outspending the competition. But this business model is expensive as seen in their entertainment division, and it failed with their Windows CE, Plays for Sure and HD-DVD initiatives. When Microsoft is standing toe-to-toe with other giants, we don't suggest placing your bets on Mr. Softie.

HP's OS Bowl 2011 is quite a work of creative fantasy. I must admit, I really didn't see Kramer, errrrr, Jon Rubinstein having the imagination to put together such a work of fiction, but there it is (based on Jon's bracket, I certainly hope he doesn't put good money down on any March Madness basketball tournament, because the way he think's he'll be in big trouble).

Now every good piece of fictional writing has some truth sprinkled in, and this is the case when Jon outlined the battle between Windows Phone 7 and RIM's Blackberry.

There's been much barking recently between Mark and Karl in the last several podcasts, and with iPad 2 nearly upon us, it's high-time these guys lay it on the line.

So it's time to throw down the gloves and have it out. Without further ado - Mark vs Karl iPad 2 Predictions: (queue drum roll please...):

The Mac App Store is leveling the playing field for developers. It does not matter if you are big or small, anyone can get on the front page of the Mac Store. No longer do developers need to pay big money for distribution partners and sales agents. While the Mac App Store continues to grow, so will those who have their applications in its store.

Applications now will compete on price, quality and feature set instead of back room deals and marketing agreements. Developers will still need to get the word out about their applications, but this will vary depending on how big the developer is.

According to Apple's track record, the iMac lineup is due for a refresh this spring.  This update will focus on bringing the iMac up-to-date with the latest technology and prepare it for Lion 10.7.  This will be a minor update, with a major one expected sometime around January 2012.

Apple has been updating their iMac line around every 8 months with major updates coming out every 27 months. The next iMac update is due out this March. The last major update was the 27" iMac which came out in October 2009.  As Apple usually has one or two minor updates between their major releases. The last minor update was in July 2010. Although Apple has been known to update the iMacs more frequently, Apple is focused on a major update to the MacBook Pro line instead. This update will focus in on three areas: Sandy Bridge, SSD, and a high resolution display.

John Gruber of Daring Fireball came out with a big piece of news, claiming iPad 2 isn't likely to receive a retina display similar to that of the iPhone - don't place your bets quite yet.

Siting sources, Gruber believes the current iPad display (1024 x 768 resolution) is what will also be found on the iPad 2. Countering Gruber’s claims, Engadget maintains a retina display is coming to the iPad 2. So who should we believe? First, let’s start with a few facts, followed by some reasonably sourced information that delivers a different side of the story.

Yesterday the world read about Steve Jobs "stepping back" from the day-to-day operations at Apple to tend to his health.  Tim Cook, who took over for Steve when Steve took a leave of absence to fight pancreatic cancer, is back at the helm.

However, this time we have not been told what specific ailment has caused Steve to step back to focus on his health. Is it a return of the cancer? Is it a virus or bacterial infection (since his immune system may be weak)? We don't know. What we do know is that Jobs will keep his CEO status and remain involved with Apple at the strategic level but not the day-to-day. Yesterday in Germany the knee-jerk reaction to this news dropped AAPL 8%. Today in the U.S. the reaction is similar, but also somewhat muted.

Apple may be preparing a massive move that will propel Safari from niche browser to market leader. The move to merge Safari and iTunes into one software solution appears long in the works, which may arrive this fall at Apple's usual iPod special event.

Apple acquired the streaming music services company, lala, for $80 million in December 2009. The purported purposes for such an acquisition was for Apple to spearhead the way towards taking iTunes towards an online service, accessible via any browser, and away from a desktop software solution. That may no longer be the case.

Apple's app store is pulling away from the rest of the app stores as the place to introduce new applications to the world. Only if the application is successful, will it be ported to another platforms. The App Store not only makes it easy for users to find the best apps, it also gives developers a unified platform to build and sell their apps.

While Android begins to dominate the smart-phone market-share, it has no clear app store. Google Android Market is the official app store for Android, but there are as many app stores for Android as there are phones running it. Most device manufacturers have opened up stores for their own devices to increase their revenue. Amazon has created their own App Store for Android to compete with Google. With all these app stores, which one do you choose?

The talk of the town is Apple's big iPhone 4 deal with Verizon, but Google also came to the table yesterday with a little announcement of their own. Google delivered an under-the-radar announcement, stating they will be dropping support for the h.264 codec in favor of their open source WebM codec.

Google claims their Chrome browser dropping h.264 is about supporting open standards. If Google were truly concerned with supporting open standards, why does the proprietary Flash still ship with Chrome as a preinstalled plug-in? As John Gruber of Daring Fireball points out, the hypocrisy is thick.

Apple's launch of the Mac OS X App Store appears to be an instant success. Apple was on center stage Thursday with their iWork apps ready for download, but one application made available today from Apple caught everyone off guard —Aperture.

The arrival of Aperture on the App Store isn't a just a shot across Adobe's bow, that doesn't do Apple's move justice. What Apple did to Adobe's Photoshop Lightroom software is equivalent to hundreds of cannon rounds being fired upon a ship at point blank range. T-GAAP asked Adobe PR if any Adobe apps were heading to Apple's App Store, but we did not receive a response. But it gets worse for Adobe.

According to Fortune, this past Thursday Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray released a research note on Apple, Inc.

In the release, Munster delivers a 2011 Apple roadmap that made us sit up and take notice. It wasn't just one or two ideas that were mentioned — but virtually all of them. Some of these predictions just seemed a bit too close to home for us to ignore. It brings to mind how, and where, Piper Jaffray (and perhaps other analysts) acquire their information? Let's take a closer look at Piper's predictions:

It may be the last day of calendar year 2010, but it's Apple, Inc's fiscal Q1 2011, and it looks to be a pretty hot one Jobs and company. The December quarter may very well be a record for many of Apple's devices:

• 20+ million iPhones estimated to be sold
• 4+ million Macs (a first for the company)
• A record number of iPod touch's sold
• iPads breaching the 6 million mark

What calendar year 2011 may hold?

Many analysts and inside-the-beltway tech journalists believe Android is going to be the new Windows that dominates and controls the world as we know it - Don't count on it.

Android is exploding on eBook readers, tablets, phones, HDTV's and probably quite soon, refrigerators and hairdryers. So long as the buzz word "Android" is on a device, that's all that'll matters and Google seems more than fine with that approach. But will that make Android a winner? And what is a so-called "activation" anyway?...

Here's a shocker - Apple's on a tear lately. iPhone's, iPad's, even Mac's, their sales are exploding. Apple has had the uncanny ability to push their financial figures north, defying the growth rules which mandate Apple must flatten out the larger they become. Will Apple succumb to these laws? Perhaps, but it's not likely to occur in 2011 based on recent estimates. According to DigiTimes, Apple's on pace to ship more than 20 million iPhones in 2011, along with new iPads shipping in the quarter. Throw in a newly rumored 65 million iPads for the new year and 2011 is covered.

Apple will defy Wall Street in 2011, but what will Jobs magically produce to keep the numbers piling up for 2012?

Next year, Apple will be bringing the best iOS features to the Mac in their next OS update codenamed Lion. Apple is taking iOS features like App Store, App Home Screens, Auto Save, Full Screen Apps, and App Resume on Launch and bringing them to the Mac. These features will be modified for the Mac interface and will all be welcome additions to the Mac. It is only fitting for Apple to reciprocate and bring Mac features to the iOS.

The iOS can benefit from Mac features as much as the Mac can benefit from iOS features. Apple will need to modify these features to make them fit the iOS and its users. Apple was successful at bringing copy/paste and multitasking to the iOS, now it is time to bring more of those features. Let's look at the top 5 features that Apple should move to the iOS from the Mac.

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) has become the trade show for new computing products to the latest in remote control vacuum cleaners. To summarize, CES is an absolute circus, but it's a must-attend show for any business serious about the the markets in which they play — unless that business is Apple, Inc.

Since Apple exited MacWorld Expo in 2009 it has shunned industry trade shows and opted to conduct their own media events. Why share the stage when a spotlight can be had? Last year Apple waited for CES to blow by — with all the half-baked tablet announcements. Then on January 18, Apple issued invitations to their special event: "Come see our latest creation". This special event took place on January 27, where Apple amazed all with the iPad. This year proves to be no different. Apple will not be holding a special event prior to CES.

Could Apple switch to AMD processors as they move the Graphics Processors Unit (GPU) into the Central Processor Unit (CPU)? Historically, GPUs have always been on a card at the end of a bus inside your computer. That may start to change as both AMD and Intel are bringing their GPUs into the Central Processor Unit (CPU). AMD could have the edge in this new battle with the expertise they received from the purchase of ATI.

Intel introduced the iSeries processors this year that are based on the Nehalem microarchitecture. These i3, i5, and i7 processors are big, fast and expensive, which is both a positive and a negative. Intel has gone after the high market with these chips, but they have left an opening for AMD in the middle and low segments. This kept AMD in the game even though Intel still commands an 80% global market-share. Intel chips are faster, but AMD offers a better value for the price.

Adobe Flash has been the King of the castle for website animation, video and other "hip and cool" things for about a decade. Yet, ever since Apple released the iPhone and then the iPad without Flash support, the future of Flash has been in question.

Monday Apple released iAd Producer — free for Apple developers. iAd Producer helps generate "Beautiful, motion-rich iAd content” using HTML5, CSS3 and JavaScript. This new application should significantly help developers spend more time on their creative tasks and less time on the technical aspects of getting their iAd to work. But what if Apple were to take one more step?

Not too long ago Apple started building a new sales model. Apple made a shift when selling a new iPhone, as they continued to offer the dated version of the iPhone, but at a lower price point. The forthcoming iPad 2 launch is believed to be no different.

Apple first started this sales model with the release of the iPhone 3GS at $199, while the iPhone 3G stayed in the lineup, dropping to $99. Apple repeated this product positioning with their iPhone 4 launch, slotting the iPhone 3GS to $99. How successful has this sales model been? Apple never reveals a breakdown of iPhone sales by model, delivering only a total number of iPhone sales per quarter, but iPhone 3GS is AT&T's third best selling smart phone (coming in behind a Samsung Android and the number one selling iPhone 4).

One thing not found at One Infinite Loop is mediocrity. Since Steve Jobs returned to Apple their success has been built upon designing and executing excellence. Excellence is found in the iOS — an OS designed just for touch systems. Excellence is found in the Mac Book Air with its super thin sleek design, long-lasting battery life and solid state drive. No matter what Apple product you consider, that product has excellence built-in.

Another way to state this is that Apple does not manufacture commodities. A commodity is an item that can't be distinguished from a competitor's product except for by price, delivery or something that has little to do with the product itself. For example, the Windows PC quickly became a commodity. Speeds and price were the only real differentiators, but in essence, one Windows PC was just like the next one. This commoditization significantly reduced the value of the PC Manufacturer while it raised the value of the Operating System. Apple was able to avoid being seen as "just another PC" by making its products different — better and special — through hardware innovation, design and software integration.

Trying to fit a desktop operating system in the tablet will never work. These tablets require a new operating system built around its touch display and power sipping processors. Microsoft has been trying to fit Windows into a tablet since 2001. Each time they have tried and failed. The last Windows tablet was the HP Slate, which topped out at 9,000 units sold. These HP Slates could not compete with the iPad three months ago, why does Microsoft think that these new ones will? It may still be up for debate whether Windows belongs on a desktop, but we know that it does not belong on a tablet.

The New York Times is reporting that Microsoft will be coming out with new tablets next month at CES. Before the iPad was released, Microsoft had almost no competition and they still failed. Now these new tablets will have to compete against the iPad. Apple has sold more tablets than anyone else combined. When these new tablets are released, the failures of Windows on the tablet will be obvious when compared to the iPad.

It's no secret people move in packs. Whether populations migrate to new continents or flocking to malls on Black Friday, it makes no difference, the masses will follow each other over cliffs if the herd moves that way.

Technologies that win the day are not lost on human behavior either. VHS vs Betamax, Windows versus Mac OS or the air-popper vs the superior oven roasted Whirly-pop popcorn, the masses consistently find themselves settling for the lowest common denominator as "good enough" often defeats better or best.

The biggest weakness of the iOS platform right now is the lack of a user accessible file structure. Without a file structure or Finder app, iOS devices can not be a complete mobile platform. Right now, Apple tells us that files should be stored in applications on the iOS. This may be fine in the short term, but over time Apple's current file strategy will turn into frustration as users try in vain to access all their files.  There needs to be a place to store, edit, and transfer those files from application to application. Organizing files into folders is a must on any computer platform. Without a directory structure, all those files will turn into a mess. Even Google's Gmail, which was supposed to be all about search, now has folders. So, we all must hope that the current app file storage is only a stop gap until Apple comes up with AirFinder for the iOS. This new AirFinder must be designed specially for today's mobile user. You don't just create, edit, and store your files on a single iOS device anymore. The files need to move with you as you go from device to device. This new Finder needs to sync between all of you computer platforms seamlessly, in the background. AirFinder will allow you to access these files at anytime and anyplace.

The strongest crop of productivity applications in the App Store right now have either added Dropbox or are planning to add it. Why is Dropbox so popular on iOS? It allows seamless transfers between your iOS devices and any other computer or device you have from Macs to PCs. This is exactly what a mobile user is looking for. With Dropbox, you don't need to sync your iPad or iPhone with iTunes to get your latest files. All your latest files will be accessible via the Dropbox cloud service. This turns the iPad into a major productivity device saving tons of valuable time. It is not only good for productivity, but also for application preference syncing as well.  I use 1Password by Agile Web Solution for password and private data storage. Dropbox allows me to sync that data between all my devices in the background. I no longer have to manually sync my valuable data between devices or even remember which device has the latest files. The list of uses for Dropbox can go on and on. Since Dropbox is not part of the OS, it does come with many disadvantages. One of those being, you have to add it your apps to use it.

Microsoft has been the golden child of the tech industry for a long time. And while there is no need to deeply rehash the last 30 years (we've all lived it or read about it ad nauseam), here is a quick recap before covering what's in store for Microsoft this decade:

MICROSOFT's HISTORY

• 1980's: DOS/PC revolution
• 1990's: Windows and Office revolution
• 2000's: Microsoft has no revolution
• 2010's: Microsoft cannot make up lost ground. The rest of the tech industry moves on.

MICROSOFT's FUTURE

• Desktop software continues to take a back seat to mobile solutions.
• Microsoft delivers Windows Phone 7, a product that holds no relevance in the marketplace. Win Phone 7 fails. Consider it the Kin III.
• Consumer and business mobile device markets continue to explode. Microsoft cannot keep up with Apple, Google, RIM and HP.
• IE continues to have it's market-share eroded, falling below 50% by 2015 with a sub 5% in mobile share. Silverlight becomes irrelevant in the face of HTML 5 and mobile apps.
• Microsoft is relegated to server and .net database solutions.
• Microsoft becomes the new IBM. A silent company working in the background of corporations and backbones, nothing more.

The year 2011 is looming over Redmond and tablets are poised for explosive sales. Whether you buy into Piper Jaffray's 40 million 2011 tablet shipment figure (23.2 million million of them iPads), or Gartner's rosy looking 54.4 million figure, the point is well made - 2011 is the year of the tablet and Microsoft is nowhere to be found. Unlike iPods and iPhones, tablets will make a profound impact on Microsoft's Windows stronghold.