Trillion dollar company. Supposedly some of the best minds in the world. And this is what they spend their time vide coding? For so many years now Apple has spend way too much time focusing on convenience apps and solving non-issues, while lagging and having to pay for advanced software like search and AI.
I am not saying there is zero value here. Just saying it is strange to see Apple focused on this type of stuff.
During the era you mentioned, Apple was the undisputed king of hardware, both in dev laptops and mobile devices, as well as music entertainment with iPods (roughly 360 million units sold lifetime, peaking at $4 billion per quarter in 2008). I might be wrong, but that is no longer the case.
According to the 2025 Stack Overflow survey, macOS sits at 31.8% among professional developers while Linux distributions (Ubuntu 27.7% plus others) have caught up or surpassed it depending on the workflow. There are viable alternatives now, with more developers using Linux laptops and ditching their Macs. Similarly, iPhone market share outside the US tells a different story: North America 53.5%, Europe 34.1%, Asia only 15.8%. More people are buying from the second-hand market or switching.
Apple transformed themselves during the iTunes-iPod-iPhone era. But iTunes was fundamental to them scaling to where they are today. Without that software, they would not be here. iTunes had structural lock-in. You could not switch devices without losing your entire library. Can you truly say that about any software they produce today? Most users just delete the default apps that come with their Macs or iPhones.
Now they are releasing things like Pass Designer and Journal, apps for users that barely exist, solving non-issues. Compare that to iTunes, which was for everyone. Outside the US, Apple is no longer a must-have gadget. And I wonder, if the next killer app does not come from them, what happens when the ecosystem becomes optional?
aabbccxyz · · focus · HN ↗
I am not saying there is zero value here. Just saying it is strange to see Apple focused on this type of stuff.
oblio · · focus · HN ↗
They've been paying for search for 20 years while making probably $2 trillion in profits (not revenue!) during the same period.
Perspective matters.
aabbccxyz · · focus · HN ↗
During the era you mentioned, Apple was the undisputed king of hardware, both in dev laptops and mobile devices, as well as music entertainment with iPods (roughly 360 million units sold lifetime, peaking at $4 billion per quarter in 2008). I might be wrong, but that is no longer the case.
According to the 2025 Stack Overflow survey, macOS sits at 31.8% among professional developers while Linux distributions (Ubuntu 27.7% plus others) have caught up or surpassed it depending on the workflow. There are viable alternatives now, with more developers using Linux laptops and ditching their Macs. Similarly, iPhone market share outside the US tells a different story: North America 53.5%, Europe 34.1%, Asia only 15.8%. More people are buying from the second-hand market or switching.
Apple transformed themselves during the iTunes-iPod-iPhone era. But iTunes was fundamental to them scaling to where they are today. Without that software, they would not be here. iTunes had structural lock-in. You could not switch devices without losing your entire library. Can you truly say that about any software they produce today? Most users just delete the default apps that come with their Macs or iPhones.
Now they are releasing things like Pass Designer and Journal, apps for users that barely exist, solving non-issues. Compare that to iTunes, which was for everyone. Outside the US, Apple is no longer a must-have gadget. And I wonder, if the next killer app does not come from them, what happens when the ecosystem becomes optional?
oblio · · focus · HN ↗
I would argue it never was except for a few early iPhone years.
As far as I can remember (going back 30+ years) Apple's moat was the US.