A key element of making a new product a success is customer retention. If someone buys the product once, you hope that they’ll consider buying a newer version when the time comes. So even if you succeed in converting lots of new customers, if they go elsewhere next time, a company’s chances for long-term success […]

It has become extremely tiresome repeating the same old criticisms against faux analysts and journalists who think they actually know something about Apple, Inc. This is particularly true when it comes to their soaring sales and profits. This past quarter, however, the reality was somewhat closer than you may have expected. Total revenue for the […]

As you regular readers know full well, I have been seriously considering whether it makes sense to buy an iPad. I have one now, courtesy of Apple. It must be returned shortly, since that’s how their editorial loaner program works. But what about the future of Apple’s tablet computer, and will it survive after the […]

It’s very easy to tell a company what you want them to build and what features to include. Apple gets huge numbers of wish lists from you and me — and then goes off and does its own thing anyway. Actually, despite what some might claim, Apple really and truly does listen to its customers, […]