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Above Avalon - Apple Analysis. From Wall Street to Silicon Valley - Technology
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Above Avalon: Apple Releases Second Wave of Apple Intelligence, My Initial Thoughts on Visual Intelligence, Image Playground Beats Expectations
With iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, and macOS Sequoia 15.2 now out, the second wave of Apple Intelligence features has gone live for the U.S. and localized English for Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the UK. For many Apple users with supported hardware, this second wave
Above Avalon: Spotify 3Q24 Earnings, Disney 4Q24 Earnings
Hello everyone. Today’s update will take us to streaming land as we circle back to earnings from Spotify and Disney . The two companies reported earnings within the past month. An Above Avalon membership is required to continue reading this update. Members can read the full update here
Above Avalon: Google “Unveils” Android XR, Samsung “Unveils” First Mixed Reality Headset, Everyone Is Copying Apple
For today’s update, we will discuss Android XR and Samsung’s new Android XR headset. The discussion will roll over into tomorrow’s update as well. An Above Avalon membership is required to continue reading this update. Members can read the full update here . (Members: Daily Updates are accessi
Above Avalon: Apple Places Retail Bet on Saudi Arabia, Vision Pro Wins Innovation of the Year Award, Vision Pro and Watching “TV”
Today's Above Avalon Daily email contains the following stories: Apple Places Retail Bet on Saudi Arabia Vision Pro Wins Innovation of the Year Award Vision Pro and Watching “TV” Happy Tuesday. Information regarding Above Avalon Gifts 2024 has been posted to AboveAvalon.com at th
Above Avalon: Jeff Bezos Focusing On AI at Amazon, Sundar Pichai Talks Woke Culture
Hello everyone. Over the past nine and half years of daily updates, we have only talked about an interview that took place at the NYT Dealbook Summit in NYC once – in 2021 when Tim Cook (virtually) spoke. This year, Jeff Bezos and Sundar Pichai sat for interviews with Andrew Ross Sorkin. We will t
Above Avalon: A Deep Dive Into Tim Cook’s “Big” Interview With Steven Levy
Steven Levy, writing for WIRED, is out with a comprehensive interview with Tim Cook . Levy has been covering Apple for decades. He was one of the original iPhone reviewers in 2007. Today’s update will be dedicated to discussing the interview. An Above Avalon membership is required to continue r
Above Avalon: Apple’s 2024 Holiday Ad Goes Viral, Elon Musk Warming to Apple?
Hello everyone. It feels good to be back into the full swing of things. Given the way the calendar falls this year, we only have three weeks of updates remaining in 2024. It feels like those three weeks are going to fly by. Above Avalon Gifts 2024 will launch next week. This is the one tim
Above Avalon: AAPL Hits All-Time High, AAPL Valuation Metrics, Observations on Big Tech Valuation
We begin today’s update with my thoughts on AAPL shares hitting all-time highs. The discussion will then turn to an examination of AAPL valuation metrics (forward P/E, EV/FCF, and free cash flow yield). In addition to looking at Apple’s valuation metrics, there is value found in taking a broader loo
Above Avalon: Tim Cook in China for Third Time This Year, Trump Threatens 10% China Tariffs, Amazon Invests Another $4B in Anthropic
We kick off today’s update with my thoughts on Tim Cook’s third visit to China in 2024 and what appears to be political maneuvering and massaging tied to President Trump winning a second term. The discussion then turns to Trump threatening a 10% tariff put on Chinese goods. We conclude the update wi
Above Avalon: DOJ Provides Proposed Remedies for Google Antitrust, Indonesia Goes After Apple, Apple Selling Ads Directly on Apple News
We begin today’s update with my thoughts on the U.S. Department of Justice’s proposed remedies for the Court to consider in its case against Google. The discussion then turns to Apple and Indonesia going back-and-forth on investment negotiations. The update concludes with Apple’s ads push on Apple N
Above Avalon: Amazon Unveils New Echo Shows, The Smart Home, Apple Stationary Display Rumors
Today’s update will contain some good old-fashioned product strategy talk. We will begin with Amazon, then shift more broadly to the smart home, concluding with my thoughts on some Apple product rumors. Let’s jump right in.
Above Avalon: Apple Releases Apple Intelligence Ads, The Controversy Surrounding the Ads, My Verdict
Hello everyone. We are going to shift back to talking product. Today’s update will be focused on Apple Intelligence ads, some of which are causing quite the stir online. The tentative plan for tomorrow is that we will talk screens in the home. Let’s jump into today’s update.
Above Avalon: Microsoft 3Q24 Earnings, Amazon 3Q24 Earnings
Hello everyone. In today’s update, we will go over Microsoft and Amazon earnings. We will modify our earnings review methodology a little bit to make it possible to cover both in the same update. An Above Avalon membership is required to continue reading this update. Members can read the full u
Above Avalon: Meta 3Q24 Earnings, Three Takeaways From Meta’s 3Q24 Numbers, Three Takeaways From Meta’s 3Q24 Earnings Calls
Hello everyone. We will continue our Big Tech CY3Q24 earnings reviews with Meta. We will first go over my big picture overview. The discussion will then turn to over my takeaways from the earnings release and earnings conference call(s). An Above Avalon membership is required to continue reading t
Above Avalon: Alphabet 3Q24 Earnings, Three Takeaways from Alphabet’s 3Q24 Numbers, Three Takeaways from Alphabet’s 3Q24 Earnings Call
Hello everyone. We are going to try something new with Big Tech 3Q24 earnings reviews. After going over a very big picture overview of what each company reported, we will then discuss three takeaways from the numbers (i.e. the earnings release) and then three takeaways from the earnings conference
Above Avalon: Apple’s Capex-Light Business Model, Apple’s Excess Cash Position, Apple Buyback vs. Apple Dividends
Hello everyone. The initial plan was to begin going over Big Tech CY3Q24 earnings. There are a few new ideas worth trying out to get caught up quickly and efficiently. While we will still do that, a few incoming questions from members late yesterday led me to change the schedule around. For the pa
Above Avalon: My Notes from Apple’s 2024 10-K
Hello everyone. Today’s update will conclude our Apple 4Q24 earnings review. We will go over Apple’s 10-K filing for 2024 . There are a few remaining comments to go over regarding Apple’s share buyback. We can do that tomorrow. Published at the end of the fiscal year (Apple's fiscal year ends in S
Above Avalon: Reading Between the Lines of Apple’s 4Q24 Earnings Q&A With Analysts
Hello everyone. We will return to reviewing Apple’s 4Q24 earnings. Here’s what we have discussed so far: Last Friday: Big picture thoughts / comparing Apple’s results to my expectations. Monday: Focus on revenue growth. Tuesday: Focus on Apple Services. Thursday: Examine A
Above Avalon: Apple 4Q24 Earnings Review: A Few Apple Services Surprises
Hello everyone. For today’s update, we will address another Apple question that has generated buzz within financial circles: How is Apple’s financial performance being impacted by Services? There are a few surprises to uncover. Let’s jump right in. An Above Avalon membership is required to conti
Above Avalon: Reviewing Apple’s 4Q24: What Is Apple’s “Real” Growth Rate?
Hello everyone. Welcome to a new week. Much of our focus this week will be given to reviewing Apple’s earnings. As we discussed last Friday , even though results were close to my estimates, there is value found in drilling down into some of the numbers and specific business lines. In addition to
Above Avalon: President Trump Wins Blowout Election, Impacts on Apple, Tim Cook’s Key Role
Hello everyone. We are going to take a detour and talk about the U.S. presidential election. A second Trump term will present more work for Apple, although the resulting upside is significantly greater than what would have been found with a Kamala Harris presidency. Let’s jump into today’s update.
Above Avalon: Apple Unveils Updated MacBook Pros, My AAPL 4Q24 Estimates
Hello everyone. We are at that point of the week where some triage is needed. There is a lot of stuff unfolding and not enough time to cover it all. Big Tech earnings are now in full swing. We will discuss earnings from Apple competitors in due time. For now, our attention is needed elsewhere. Pro
Above Avalon: A Different Kind of Apple Product Unveiling, The Updated iMac, Apple’s Mac Pitch to Windows Users
Hello everyone. This is shaping up to be a busy week. On Monday, Apple unveiled an updated iMac. As we will discuss shortly, Apple has pointed to more Mac news coming down the pipeline this week. We also have Apple Intelligence launching on Monday. On Thursday (Halloween), Apple reports FY4Q24 e
Above Avalon: Navigating Through More Apple Vision Pro Production Noise, Vimeo Launches App for Apple Vision Pro
Hello everyone. We will wrap up the week in Apple Vision Pro land. In what has become an unfortunate trend, Apple Vision Pro misinformation continues to swirl online. Let’s jump right into the first story. An Above Avalon membership is required to continue reading this update. Members can read th
Above Avalon: Apple’s “New” Product Naming Nomenclature, More on Disney / App Store IAP
Hello everyone. There was one follow-up to yesterday’s discussion regarding Disney and the App Store that we will get to today. We begin with an observation that occurred to me last week when Apple unveiled the iPad mini. An Above Avalon membership is required to continue reading this update.
Above Avalon: Netflix 3Q24 Earnings, Netflix and the Scripted Content High Road, Disney Moves Away From App Store In-App Purchase
Happy Tuesday. We will kick things off with Netflix's earnings. The discussion will then turn to a noteworthy development on the App Store front regarding Disney. Let's jump in. An Above Avalon membership is required to continue reading this update. Members can read the full update here . (Me
Above Avalon: Thoughts on the Tim Cook Profile in WSJ Magazine
Yesterday, WSJ Magazine published a Tim Cook profile (the piece is available via Apple News+ here ) for its annual Innovators issue. Cook, along with a few other recipients, will be recognized at the WSJ's 14th Annual Innovator Awards next week. Apple smartly used the profile to put the spotlig
Above Avalon: Apple Pay Turns 10 Years Old, Apple Pay and the Long Game
With Apple Pay’s 10th anniversary coming up this Sunday (unveiled on October 20th, 2014), Apple decided to give its decade-long mobile payments and wallet effort some PR attention. We go over my thoughts on Apple Pay at 10 years. An Above Avalon membership is required to continue reading this upda
Above Avalon: Apple Updates the iPad Mini, Apple Intelligence and Device Support, A Different Way to Think About Apple Intelligence
Hello everyone. On Wednesday, Apple unveiled an updated iPad mini . We will begin today’s email with my thoughts on the iPad mini and the update. The discussion will then evolve into a few thoughts regarding Apple Intelligence. An Above Avalon membership is required to continu
Above Avalon: Hodinkee Sells to British Retailer, Hodinkee and Apple Watch, The Luxury Watch Downturn
Happy Tuesday. It’s good to be back after a long weekend. Today’s update will have a watch theme as we revisit some odd developments that have unfolded in the mechanical watch world. It’s difficult to not make some connections between the developments and Apple Watch momentum. An Above Avalon mem
Above Avalon: Thoughts on Apple’s NBA All-Star Weekend Film in Apple Immersive Video, Apple Immersive Video and Sports Questions, The Big Picture
Hello everyone. For today’s special Friday edition of Above Avalon Daily, we are going to wrap up our Apple Immersive Video discussion. We had very good reason to believe that Apple was going to release an Apple Immersive Video film for 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend. Here was a tweet of mine
Above Avalon: Apple Releases First Scripted Film in Apple Immersive Video, Thoughts After Watching “Submerged,” The Future of Video
Happy Thursday. Two hours ago, Apple released “Submerged,” its first scripted film captured in Apple Immersive Video for Apple Vision Pro. Earlier this week, I pre-screened “Submerged” along with a new Apple Immersive Video film of the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend. My initial impressions from “Submer
Above Avalon: Meta Admits Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses Are Used to Train AI, Meta’s Achilles' Heel, Smart Glasses Used for Doxing
Following Monday's discussion regarding Vision Pro apps, we will stay in smart glasses / headsets / spatial computing land for today's update. A news story out of Harvard involving Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, face search engines, and large language models caught my attenti
Above Avalon: Apple’s “Cozy” WWDC, Vision Pro Apps, Vision Pro and App Bridges
We will kick off a new week of updates with Apple Vision Pro and apps. The discussion looks at a small event Apple held at Apple Park last week for developers. We then look at Apple Vision Pro apps and the idea of app bridges. Let’s jump right in. An Above Avalon membership is required to contin
Above Avalon: A Few Thoughts on Apple Vision Pro Passthrough, Google Has Juno Pulled From App Store, Microsoft Discontinues HoloLens 2
Hello everyone. Some follow-up to our Apple/OpenAI discussion from Monday. The Financial Times is reporting OpenAI asked companies investing in its latest capital raise to not back rival companies. If true, that could have played a role in Apple backing out of an OpenAI investment. It is not nec
Above Avalon: Oura Talks Smart Ring Financials, Smart Ring Hesitation, The Button’s Resurgence in Tech
Welcome to October. We will kick off a new month by discussing Oura and smart rings. We haven't talked much about smart rings in these daily updates. The most recent discussion was found in the February 27th update (Samsung's Galaxy Ring and sketchy Apple smart ring rumors). We will conclude t
Above Avalon: Apple Reportedly Backs Out of OpenAI Investment, Apple Dials Back on Blockbusters, Silicon Valley vs. Hollywood Confusion
Hello everyone. Welcome to a new week. Today’s update will focus on two news items that came across my radar over the weekend. We look at my thoughts regarding the latest Apple / OpenAI investment rumors. The discussion then turn to movies and what appears to be some bad framing on the part of Bloom