Apple 2008: From Mindshare to Mac Share

Macs continued to gain market share against Windows PCs, the iPhone sold nearly 7 million units in a single quarter, and the App Store emerged as the killer application for the next-generation computing platform.

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For 2009, Wall Street is nervous that the global economic crisis will invade the Apple orchard and kill the crop. But 2008 brought a bountiful harvest. I present to you Apple 2008, in chronological order. If there is some important event you think should be on the list, please add it in comments or send to me by e-mail.

[Editors Note: Chronology is more complete from April, when I took over Apple Watch.]

January

• One week before Macworld, Apple introduces new Xserve supporting Intel Quad-Core Xeon processors. Several storage vendors offer new products supporting Xserve, including Nexsan. On the same day, Apple announces new Mac Pro models, also supporting Quad-Core Xeon processors.
• At Macworld, Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveils the MacBook Air, which is ultra-thin and lightweight on features but heavy on price.
• Also at Macworld, Apple introduces Time Capsule for home-network backup, iTunes movie rentals and a lower-cost Apple TV.
• iPod nano goes pink, with new color.
• Apple delivers strong fiscal 2009 first-quarter results: revenue of $9.6 billion and net profits of $1.58 billion—or $1.76 per share. Apple ships 2.3 million Macs—for 44 percent year-over-year unit growth and 47 percent revenue growth—and 22.1 million iPods.
• Weeks after launching Office 2008, Microsoft issues a security warning about privileges being granted to other users on the computer.

February

• Apple introduces new iPhone and iPod Touch models, bringing iPhone to 16GB capacity for $499.
• Aperture 2.0 debuts, as Apple continues major changes, including less bloat and better performance on less-powerful Macs.
• First major Leopard update of the year releases: 10.5.2.
• Gray market iPhone sales start showing significant uptake.
• In related announcements, Apple unveils Xsan 2 but drops Xserve RAID, as the company seeks to simplify its storage offerings.
• Pioneering Mac rumor site ThinkSecret shuts down, following settlement with Apple. It's a sad day for journalism and a black stain on the company's image.
• Whoa, iPod Shuffle price drops to 49 bucks. A 2GB model sells for $69.
• New MacBook Pro models feature multitouch pads. Oh yeah, Apple revs MacBook, too, but there's no cool touchpads.
• Apple misses self-imposed deadline for releasing iPhone 2.0 SDK.

March

• Better late than never: Apple releases iPhone 2.0 SDK to developers. The idea: Ramp up applications ahead of the update's midyear release.
• Apple promises full Microsoft Exchange sync capability with release of iPhone 2.0 software expected around the same time as iPhone 3G. Apple releases the 2.0 beta to developers.
• Apple claims 100,000 iPhone 2.0 SDK downloads in just six days.
• New AirPort Express model goes 802.11n.
• Apple releases Safari 3.1 for Mac OS X and Windows.
• Apple's Windows Updater brings Safari 3.1 browser to unsuspecting PC users. Is it a Trojan horse?
• Aperture 2.1 releases, with major changes, including new plug-in architecture. This isn't a point-one release, it's a freaken' new version! Can you say Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 2 competition?

April

• CD death watch: NPD retail data reveals that Apple is now the United States' largest distributor of music, exceeding Wal-Mart. Who says people will only steal music online, huh?
• Final Cut Server ships.
• Incoming freshmen at Abilene Christian University can choose either free iPhones or free iPod Touches. Who says there's no value in education?
• Enterprises begin warming up to the iPhone as a legitimate mobile platform. SDK is a major reason.
• Forrester Research report shows how bad Apple's enterprise computing credibility is. Forrester ignores its own positive Mac numbers and says enterprises won't likely buy Macs.
• Apple buys chip maker P.A. Semi. Uh-oh, is Apple going to make its own chips for portable devices and Macs?
• Apple posts bang-up fiscal 2009 second-quarter results, as revenue grows a whopping 43 percent year over year. Highlights: $7.51 billion in revenue, up from $5.26 billion a year earlier. Net profit jumps from $770 million a year earlier to $1.05 billion, or 87 cents and $1.16 earnings per share, respectively.
• It's official: Gray market iPhone sales are huge.
• Apple releases new iMacs, whose prices drop in some geographies because of the weak U.S. dollar.
• Rumors start that the second-gen iPhone will be available subsidized for $199.

May

• Apple introduces movie purchases the same day as DVD releases. Yeah, yeah, but what about rentals?
• Vodafone agrees to distribute the second-gen iPhone in 10 countries. Other carrier deals will make the mobile available in about 70 countries by year's end.
• HBO content comes to iTunes, but with higher per-episode pricing than other content.
• Apple U.S. retail market share reaches 14 percent and two-thirds for computers selling for more than $1,000.
• New York Times Reader comes to the Mac via Microsoft's Silverlight.

June

• My MacBook Air review calls the portable light on performance.
• The Worldwide Developer Conference kicks off big, before Apple kicks out the press: Steve Jobs unveils the iPhone 3G.

• Apple reveals that the iPhone 3G will launch on July 11 in more than 20 countries.

• The subsidized iPhone 3G rumors were true—$199 for the 8GB model. But hefty AT&T data fees mean buyers will pay more over the life of a contract compared with the original iPhone.
• Steve Jobs' thin appearance—gaunt, I say—during the WWDC keynote raises questions about his health.
• As the iPhone 3G marketing glow subsides, people start to question the device's battery life.

July

• An Apple Watch analysis of newly disclosed AT&T pricing information shows that new subscribers will pay hefty fees for family plans.
• Absolute insanity: Lines start forming outside some Apple Stores a week before the iPhone 3G launches.
• The day before the iPhone 3G launch, Apple releases iTunes 7.7 to support MobileMe and the new cell phone.
• Also released early: iPhone 2.0 software and the iTunes App Store.
• July 11 brings long lines outside Apple Stores, where activation failures greatly slow down purchases and force people to wait even longer.
• App Store dwarfs iPhone 3G for importance. Apple has created the emerging next-generation computing platform.
• Apple delivers yet again strong revenue results. For fiscal 2009 third quarter: quarterly revenue of $7.46 billion, up from $5.41 billion a year earlier. Net profit jumps from $818 million a year earlier to $1.07 billion, or 92 cents and $1.19 earnings per share, respectively.
• Ongoing problems plague MobileMe. The service clearly isn't ready for prime time.

August

• Long iPhone 3G lines continue in August, but are they artificial for marketing purposes? Probably.
• An Apple Watch analysis shows huge disparity between Windows PC and Mac average selling prices, with Mac ASPs actually rising.
• Apple's market capitalization ($158.84 billion) briefly exceeds Google's ($157.23 billion).
• MobileMe problems lead Apple to extend service free for 60 more days, or 90 total.
• Apple Watch prediction: The iPhone 3G, with Exchange support, will have a halo effect pulling enterprise Mac sales.

September

• My iPhone 3G review surprises: I can't recommend the device as a phone because of dropped calls and other telephony problems.
• Fourth-generation iPod nano releases in nine colors. Apple also debuts second-gen iPod Touch.
• Apple releases iTunes 8 with new nanos. Big new enhancement: Genius music recommendation feature.
• Gartner puts iPhone OS in fifth place for mobile operating shipments. The numbers are for the second quarter.
• Apple recalls iPhone 3G power adapters. Can you yell "fire"?
• Developers criticize Apple for denying Podcaster sale in App Store. Apple's lame reason: competition with the company's own products.
• Startling Apple Watch analysis shows that Apple's U.S. retail market share is 35 percent as measured in dollars. So one in three bucks spent on PCs at retail goes to Apple. Whoa.
• Sept. 29 stock crash hits Apple hard, but declines have been ongoing. In the 48 days since topping Google's market capitalization, Apple's valuation falls 37 percent.

October

• Apple starts the month by relaxing prohibitive iPhone developer NDAs, but the changes don't go far enough.
• A rocky stock market slams Apple hard, driving down valuation more than $70 billion since mid-August.
• On Oct. 14, Apple unveils new aluminum MacBooks and MacBook Pros using new sturdy and comely unibody enclosures.
• Apple raises MacBook prices, contrary to rumors of lower pricing ahead of the launch. The move seems risky given the dire state of the U.S. economy.
• An Apple Watch analysis reveals why the iPhone doesn't support Adobe Flash: Apple doesn't want it. Flash would let developers create applications independent of App Store, which Apple wants to establish as a mobile platform.
• Apple ends its fiscal year with lots of good news: 6.9 million iPhones and 2.6 million Macs shipped in the fiscal fourth quarter. On the earnings call, Steve Jobs reassures financial analysts about Apple's future, even as global economies move into recession.

November

• No news is news department: Apple won't release new iMacs as expected. Apple observers see the gloomy economy as a major reason.
• Apple releases fiscal 2008 10-K, which shows 38 percent year-over-year growth for Mac laptops measured in both units and revenue. Pretty much all growth numbers are double digits, with some categories more than 50 percent.
• Business smartphone users rate the iPhone 3G as "among the best" in a J.D. Power and Associates survey.
• California plaintiffs file a strange patent suit against Apple in Texas: for Web browsing on a mobile phone.
• Apple fails to quell complaints about DRM restrictions tied to new Mac laptops' DisplayPort. A software update lets video stream over non-DRM-supported monitors but otherwise leaves rights restrictions in place.

December

• Forum complaints reach a crescendo about a display defect affecting the newest MacBook Air model. Users see thin horizontal lines across the entire display.
• A misquoted Apple support doc causes talk that Apple now recommends anti-virus software. There is no policy change; so there is no confusion, Apple pulls the support doc.
• According to Gartner third-quarter phone shipments raise the iPhone to third place for smartphones, trailing leaders Nokia and Research In Motion.
• Following weeks of bullish projections, financial analysts begin accepting that slow holiday sales will negatively affect Apple's quarterly results. Uncertain: By how much.
• Apple announces next month's Macworld will be the company's last. But the announcement really veils the bigger news: Steve Jobs won't give the keynote.
• Steve Jobs' Macworld no-show raises more speculation that he is in poor health.
• My second iPhone 3G review reaffirms the first. The device isn't a good-enough phone, although it's a great data device.
• Wal-Mart starts selling iPhones, but not for the rumored cheapo $99 price. That distinction belongs to AT&T, which after Christmas sells refurbished 8GB models for $99 and 16GB iPhones for $199. While supplies last.

[Please send your tips or rumors to watchtips at live.com].

Posted by Joe Wilcox on December 29, 2008 7:14 PM