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psmith2.0
Mr. Vieira
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Tennessee
 
2012-10-25, 13:25

Quote:
Originally Posted by Wyatt View Post
I expect they will do this. It occurred to me on the day of the announcement that the price was higher than some expected simply to leave room to keep this one around at a lower price after some future model is released.

I don't expect it to be a retina display just yet, but we can duke that out in Speculation & Rumors when the time comes.

As far as colors go, that's what the Smart Cover is for. There are enough SKUs already. They don't need to introduce even more. (Personally, I'm drooling over the thought of a 64 GB black mini with the lime green smart cover.)
Ooh, you're right. I wasn't even thinking of the manufacturing angle! Once you start to do the "manufacturing math" (carriers x capacities x just two colors), Imagine the manufacturing, shipping, stocking complexities. (and headaches) that could result if you added 3-5 colors to the mix.

That could very well be the reason colors have never come to the iPad and iPhone? It's probably enough of a logistical chore dealing with the 18(?) variants they have now.

And the case/sleeve industry is so huge (Apple's own, plus the bazillions of others), its just easier to acquire color that way if one chooses. Way more options to match specific tastes and styles anyway. Apple's version of green or pink might not be the one a customer has in mind. But, chances are, Speck, InCase, RocketFish, Marware, etc. offer something that appeals to them.

With the iPods not having to break out to carrier-specific models, I suppose that keeps the required versions down enough that its easier to say "make three million blue nanos and a million of the green touches... ".

It's when you get into the "I want a 64GB blue Verizon, but they only have the Sprint in stock, and it's just 32GB...they have 64GB, but only in pink and silver..." that the wheels fall off and all hell breaks loose. Can you imagine how hard it would be to walk into a store and actually get the capacity, carrier and color you're after? Hell, it's tough enough sometimes, as is, with just the first two.

I think I'm the only person in town who uses their iPhone without a case. I see iPhones everywhere these days, but almost always in a colorful third-party case of some sort. Apple probably says "why kill ourselves with 3-5x the manufacturing lines when most people are going to have it covered up/hidden anyway?"

I don't know if case usage applies to iPads as much, but since these models also involve the cellular variants, Apple's thinking is probably the same. More opportunities for QC issues, mismatch, making sure each carrier has enough of each color (in addition to capacity), etc. And when you factor in "wifi-only" and "wifi + cellular", as is the case with iPads, you've just automatically added another layer/element to the mix.

Someone more clearheaded than yours truly do the math, factoring in:
- wifi and wifi + cellular
- three capacities (16, 32, 64GB)
- three carriers (AT&T, Verizon, Sprint)
- six colors (matching the current iPod offerings...black, white, blue, green, yellow, pink).

I can't count that high!

Yeah, the materials across the lines are the same (the aluminum and all). I'm sure Apple could do it...if they wanted. I just believe more reasons exist to not fool with it, in these two particular models. Can't be a coincidence that the two devices with the extra manufacturing/shipping/stocking concerns haven't broken out into colored versions in the three and five years they've both been in existence?

Hard to screw up/complicate black and white.

I bet if you could get a couple of drinks into Cook or Schiller, they'd pretty much cop to this.

Last edited by psmith2.0 : 2012-10-25 at 13:57.
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