Apple now the biggest stock of all-time

Not that market value means overall value (it's more a measure of faith in future performance), but hints of a rare stock split and the upcoming 'new' iPhone and continued tablet domination is probably driving the current rise and will feed immediate future rises, whether deserved or not.

Apple doesn't need to release new products to have stock prices rise, their products are so poorly made that they will have repeat customers regardless, and apple customers don't care about new features, bigger screens, good battery life, reliable connections, or anything else really. Just stick an apple label on there and it will sell. I've often thought that Samsung should buy the rights to use those stickers on their old devices...the ones they can't give away for free with contract...they are better than the $300 iPhone in every way, so paying $100 per Apple sticker would be a $200 profit margin increase on these old phones.

The only reason Apple's stock continues to rise is because they continue to re-purchase their own own stock. It's how they get banks to loan against what they feel is a sizable collateral, or what I'm calling a bullshit virtual figure.

It was like a discussion I had with someone earlier... xnonsuchx? If Apple liquidated or the share holders cashed-out, they would be in some REALLY sorry assed shape.

Originally posted by LordRuss:

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The only reason Apple's stock continues to rise is because they continue to re-purchase their own own stock. It's how they get banks to loan against what they feel is a sizable collateral, or what I'm calling a bullshit virtual figure.

It was like a discussion I had with someone earlier... xnonsuchx? If Apple liquidated or the share holders cashed-out, they would be in some REALLY sorry assed shape.

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Sorry shape Russ? I'm not a fan of their products but very hard to compete with their business. They still have $120 billion in cash, and at least another $50 billion in other assets. At $170 billion, they would still be one of the top 50 largest companies in the world.

Originally posted by DVDBack23:

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Sorry shape Russ? I'm not a fan of their products but very hard to compete with their business. They still have $120 billion in cash, and at least another $50 billion in other assets. At $170 billion, they would still be one of the top 50 largest companies in the world.

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I'm certainly not arguing the point you're making. It's the $430 'virtual' billion they're bragging about... & then, if in a worse case scenario - had to liquidate, how far into that $170 would they take a hit?

But you see, YOUR figures are much more worldly, grounded. Actually something folks with a high school diploma can understand, not this pressurized cabin filled with dog farts traveling at sub light speeds toward Uranus that NASA is hoping to god they got the math right.

It's like going into a knife fight with the biggest knife & believing you aren't going to ever get cut. Or blindly think that by chance you'll get damaged by your own blade. That's just plain unrealistic.

Still, by your figures, it's dangerous as hell to go around waiving your johnson to the world like your almost 4 times more than can be actually delivered (the folks at Apple or those supposedly representing them). Seems to me to perpetuate a type of fraud.

Begrudgingly, even at $170 bill, I've still given Apple their credit for having made their money. I just obviously don't like their methodology, products or business practices.

Apple has some things going for them but not much. At an initial glance, their products are quite high quality. It's the long-term reliability they fail on. Both my iPod Touch 3 and iPad 2 have dropped considerably in battery life, and the software is horrible to use. Very bad file management(actually, none at all) very few features. Extremely poorly programmed. The release of iOS 5 introduced something that cuts battery life in half. I went from 12+ hours on my iPad to about 3 just from going to iOS 5.

They simply did not design their products to last at all. They expect customers to simply junk everything and buy a new product every year. At $600 for my iPad 2, I'm not so willing to do that. It's already fast enough, already has enough storage. But they're going to slowly start dropping support for it like they did the iPod Touch 3 and expect the drained battery life to frustrate me into a new product.

And now every single product advertises some horribly designed "App" in the commercial. It's like society as whole has been brainwashed. I bought my iDevices for the hardware, but the hardware is the one thing they don't want you to keep.

Originally posted by Estuansis:

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Apple has some things going for them but not much. At an initial glance, their products are quite high quality.

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I agree with you on everything except one small detail... your initial statement. That their products/devices are high quality. Don't get me wrong, I could very well be misreading you.

Design wise, rounded corners & the ability to hold your working component is Design 101. If you can't make the thing immediately comfortable to hold for hours on end what's the sense in owning the thing... Am I right? But that's the ONLY reason Steve Jobs existed. He could draw boxes with round corners & folks loved the idea.

But my interpretation of 'high quality' kinda got smudged. Maybe back when stuff sat on a desk & didn't get moved around a lot, sure, Mac stuff could be considered quality. It's when they became mobile that I tend to want to argue.

After having worked for a college engineering department & a pawn shop on all kinds of computers, both Mac & PC, stationary & mobile, the Macs simply aren't 'rugged'.

Dings, hickies, twists, turns, unremarkable flatulence, they just don't seem to hold up like their competitors. Pretty much like you were saying in the rest of your comments, which has always left me with an impression as Apple being a lesser manufacturer in the computer/multimedia market.

Sorry to be long winded & I didn't want to raise your hackles. It's just that I've never quite seen Apple & 'high quality' ever quite gelling. Kinda one of those "something money can't buy"...

Key phrase being "At an initial glance" :)

Have had to make several "rigged" repairs to my iS*** and am starting to look at laptops again. The lack of useful software and the general stupidity of the community are starting to wear thin.