Apple’s past week was dominated by two things: iPhone X and boatloads of cash.
On Friday, the company started selling its long-awaited iPhone X, and just a day prior, it announced another strong quarter with billions of dollars in profit and hints that its business may be turning around in the critical China market. Add that to the fact that Apple’s shares hit an all-time high, and for CEO Tim Cook and company, it was a good week.
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Read on for the biggest news over the last several days:
This is Coins2Day’s latest weekly roundup of the biggest Apple news. Here’s last week’s roundup.
- Apple on Friday started selling the iPhone X, a smartphone that comes with a new design that ditches the physical home button to leave room for a bigger 5.8-inch screen. The handset is the first from Apple to come with a Face ID facial scanner to verify the users’ identity and give them access to the smartphone’s software. It also has wireless charging. So far, it’s selling about as well as Apple had hoped (it’s currently unavailable for immediate shipping from Apples online store).
- In a commentary this week, I discuss why Apple’s iPhone X isn’t really a “revolutionary” new smartphone, as Apple ceaselessly brags. But I also explain why that’s a good—and profitable—thing for Apple.
- Some reports this week said that Apple’s Face ID scanner has trouble verifying user identities when its camera and sensors are facing direct sunlight. Some experts who weighed in on the problem to Coins2Day weren’t so sure that users would actually experience the problem.
- That didn’t take long. While a shipment of iPhone Xs was en route to an Apple store in San Francisco this week, thieves got into the truck and stole 300 units, according to local police. A witness said “three unidentified suspects” made off with $300,000 in merchandise.
- Best Buy announced a policy reversal this week after making some customers angry by charging them $100 more for an unlocked version of the iPhone X than the regular retail price. Best Buy said that it was selling the unlocked iPhone X for a higher price because the “convenience” of letting customers choose from a variety of carriers came at a cost (in such cases, the retailer would not receive a commission from the carrier that the customer chose, as is the case with phones sold on contract). Ultimately, it decided to stop selling iPhone X off contract and is offering monthly installment options through carrier networks.
- If you own an iPhone X, you may have noticed that automatic previews that show some content from a text message or Facebook message are not displayed. It’s because Apple turned off the feature on the iPhone X to improve security and stop snoopy bystanders from seeing what you’re talking to friends about. You can turn the feature back on in the operating system’s settings pane.
- Apple posted outstanding earnings on Thursday, with revenue growing 12% year-over-year and profits soaring by 24% to $2.07 per share. My Coins2Day colleague Jonathan Vanian broke down the earnings and discussed five big takeaways. Check out his analysis here.
- Apple’s stock hit an all-time high this week of $174.26 per share. The jump put the company’s market cap at about $900 billion, as it inches ever closer to become the first trillion-dollar company.
One more thing… Looking for some tips on how to get the most out of the iPhone X? Here’s a handy list of tips you should check out.
