OPINION: Apple Watch sales have reportedly plummeted like someone scrawled the word Lumia on the box. Chris Smith chimes on the week’s biggest, and not so big tech stories… like celebs on Tinder and the most exciting external battery pack in the world ever.
Apple Watch sales are falling off? Of course they are…
Apple has finally got watch stocks fully replenished, but apparently people don’t want to buy it anymore. According to reports this week there’s been a 90 per cent drop off since the fabled pre-order surge.
But, you know what, even with the long wait endured by pre-order customers, I’m unconvinced the demand was ever that high in the first place.
Apple has yet to release official sales figures, which it is more than happy to do when the iPhone bursts out of the gate. This leads me to believe the scramble to get an Apple Watch could simply be attributed to low inventory.
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I’m still to see a single person outside of the tech fraternity wearing an Apple Watch and I’ve seen loads of people with BlackBerrys in the last couple of months.
(UPDATE: Saw one on Saturday!)
Apple is likely to disclose sales figures during its next quarterly financial report later this month. That’ll certainly be one to keep an eye on. Something tells me Wall Street might have something to say about it…
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Microsoft Lumia must now become more like Surface (and Nexus)
Like most of the company’s recent decisions (see last week’s column) Microsoft’s plan to severely cut back on the number of smartphones it releases is grounded in solid reason. This more considered approach is likely to see just a handful of Lumia phones arrive in 2016 and here’s why this is a good thing.
With just a few devices at various pricing tiers, Microsoft can tell third-party manufacturers ‘here’s what can be achieved.’ If Windows 10 and its promise of Universal apps lives up to its potential then Redmond just might be able to lure back the likes of Samsung, HTC and LG. If phone makers don’t bite, they don’t bite, but for Microsoft there’s much less liability involved this way.
Let’s not forget 7,800 folks are now out of work and $7.6bn has been written off as a result of this week’s decision, which is a terrible indictment of Microsoft’s seriously misguided Nokia purchase.
But that was the previous regime’s bane and it’s now up to the current leadership to right the ship. This seems like the best way to go about it.
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Tinder has got love-seeking celebrities ticked off
The great thing about modern tech is that it’s all encompassing. Everyone can get a smartphone, from the best to the worst, and enjoy largely the same experience with any given app.
Which brings us to Tinder. This week we got word celebrities and professional athletes will be granted verified profiles on Tinder, just like Twitter. Apparently celeb users like Katy Perry and Josh Groban get way less matches as people just assume they’re being scammed (99.9 per cent of the time, they probably are).
C’mon man! As if fame, money and good looks aren’t enough to get them all the sex, they’re going to steal all the swipe right action too? That’s just not cricket. Still, at least for regular old singletons seeking, erm, ‘romance,’ it’s actually worth having a punt every time you see the blue tick. You never know, do you? Someone’s gotta win the lottery, right?
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New battery pack has got me pumped for USB-C!
I’ve never been excited about an external battery pack before (has anyone?) but the new Reach Go from MOS (pictured above) has me pretty jazzed.
For months we’ve been told about the new possibilities Type-C USB will open up, but this is one of the first accessories to truly spell out those real world benefits.
The new Apple MacBook (2015) was a turn off largely due to the loss of the trusty MagSafe charging connector. However, with the $99 Reach Go’s 15,000mAh battery I could fully replenish the notebook three times and do so at the same speed as a mains connection. Did I mention I could do this while also juicing up a smartphone or tablet? And all without going anywhere near a wall socket?
Well, seeya MagSafe. It was nice knowing you.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
