Between China starting to freeze up when it comes to staffing American companies and Apple’s sheer saturation of the market at this point, investors have been generally concerned with the future of the company. After well-respected players pulled their stock, Tim Cook came out to talk about the stalling of sales and the future of Apple.
The CEO and the CFO of Apple weren’t going to take the accusations lying down of course, and they recently addressed their not-so-stunning quarter. They think that their new product launches will ensure their company remains strong and continues to experience growth.
While they’re not exactly unbiased, they also have a lot of evidence in their corner as to their superiority in the tech world. They didn’t entirely dismiss the concerns about China, but they did say they don’t foresee it being the problem people are imagining it to be.
Which brings us to the iPhone 7 as their potential saving grace for this year. The new iPhone is set to come out sometime this fall, and rumors about it have been all over the internet. While no one can confirm much of anything, it’s expected to have a better camera, faster processor and possibly even wireless charging.
Consumers can look forward to better photos taken with the iPhone’s dual-lens technology, expected to be even better than the iPhone 6. The sizes are likely to be the same as its predecessor the 6 and 6 Plus, and it’s expected to have several different versions for different types of users. The processor is expected to be next-generation, and the battery life is also expected in improve.
One thing to keep in mind is the patterns on which people buy their phones. When the features are sufficiently attractive enough, the public will make exceptions in terms of upgrading faster than they may have before. It’s based on both current and future predictions, and is not an exact science.
Apple continues to exploit the newest technology upgrades, and we may see better performance and features come out as early as next year, like better, thinner OLED display screens as opposed to the predicted 2018. We may even see a wraparound screen at some point soon, which essentially would mean more functionality and a better viewing experience.
If you’re planning to invest in Apple, it’s entirely normal to feel nervous at this point. While customers aren’t abandoning Apple any time soon, that also doesn’t mean you’ll see the growth you need to see for your portfolio. Even Tim Cook made it clear that based on last year’s numbers (nearly 30% revenue growth), 2016 is not going to be able to live up to that kind of hype.
Their next quarter is not expected to show growth, but that the autumn release should start to see things turn around.
One thing that Apple does seem to understand is improving upon the features people want on their phones and computers. Mac sales are expected to stay strong and even sport growth this year, and the iPad is still a popular product (though it should be noted that those sales are down overall.) India actually may be a source of profits soon, considering they’ve been slowly inching their way into the hearts of the people through the iPhone 5se.
The CEO reported that the Apple Pay, Apply Music and the App store also remained in good shape, up about 20% from last year. Also, Tim Cook has hinted at the product pipeline looking spectacular for the upcoming years. Apart from new phones, we may see self-driving cars out soon.
Apple products don’t always land with the public, but they land often enough that the company has the resources necessary to throw at the problem. The real question is how customers will respond in the short-term versus the long-term. If they hear that a better phone is on its way next year, they may hold onto their pennies until 2017.
However, the iPhone 7 promises features that people have been hopeful for, so we may just start to see faster upgrade cycles when it comes to Apple’s new smartphones. The continued future of the company is rooted in Apple’s ability to take the right risks at the right times, and so far they’ve shown a lot of aptitude for doing just that.
Regards,
Ethan Warrick
Editor
Wealth Authority
