• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Exclusive

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

An hour in the Oval Office with President Trump Fortune Editor-in-Chief: Alyson Shontell sat down with President Trump in the Oval Office for an hour. Tariffs, Intel, AI, Boeing, Iran—and the question every CEO eventually has to answer: who's next?

What I’ve learned since the Apple event

By
Adam Lashinsky
Adam Lashinsky
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Adam Lashinsky
Adam Lashinsky
Down Arrow Button Icon
September 13, 2012, 3:27 PM ET

CEO Tim Cook at the event

FORTUNE — The facts and figures are all out from the iPhone 5 launch on Wednesday. The consensus: Apple didn’t change anyone’s world. But they’re going to make a lot of money!

Here are some additional thoughts:

Apple’s secret-keeping abilities are being challenged. Nick Bilton of The New York Times quoted me in a brief post suggesting Apple (AAPL) isn’t any good at keeping secrets anymore. His evidence is that photos of the new iPhone 5 and the date of Apple’s event itself leaked many months ago. True that. I’d quibble with a couple strains of the argument, though. First, though the meat of the event leaked, there were elements that didn’t. I heard no chatter that the event would include new iPods and a refreshed iTunes Store. On the other hand, the rumor mill also had Apple releasing a smaller iPad, which didn’t happen. More to the point is how much this matters. I devoted a chapter in my book to secrecy, and there’s no question it’s an integral part of the Apple culture. Still, as I told Bilton, with Apple becoming a massive global company, the relevance of product blogs declines in relation to the size of Apple’s customer’s base. The vast majority of Apple’s customers will be basing their decisions on their reactions to the typical Apple marketing maneuvers that ground into gear Wednesday, not to fanboy analysis of Apple product sites. I have asserted that Apple’s ability to enforce its code of silence will degrade as a natural result of its size and increasing complexity. The unanswered question is how much it matters.

MORE: Mobile users to carriers: ‘Give me my unlimited data’

Expectations for Apple are sky-high. The consensus is that Apple’s presentation was, in the words of Breakingviews.com, a “snooze.” But that’s largely because incremental improvements are never as exciting as earth-shatteringly new products. Still, it will be easy to measure if Apple lives up to the demanding business expectations everyone has for it. For example, Maynard Um, a research analyst with Wells Fargo, told clients he expects sales of the iPhone 5 will exceed those of the iPhone 4S last year because Apple is launching with more cell-phone companies around the world and in a shorter time frame. Apple announced that it sold 4 million units of the iPhone 4S in the first three days it was available, thus setting up a high bogey for itself to beat.

Sweating the details. Apple also unveiled new headphones, or EarPods, and revamped “Lightning” connector cord, which is smaller and reversible. Wells Fargo’s Um noted that accessories typically carry high margins for Apple. This is hum-drum, of course, but it also points to how Apple rakes in the cash. Greg Joswiak, an Apple product marketing vice-president, told me after the event the adaptor Apple will sell to help connect your old cords to the new devices will cost $29. If you’re like me, at some point, you’re going to need a few of those.

MORE: Apple’s iPhone 5 unveiled: What the analysts are saying

Fanboys yawn, investors applaud. Wall Street liked Apple’s incrementalism, especially after having an opportunity to digest it. By midday Apple’s shares were up 2% Thursday, or about $14 a share. That’s about $13 billion in additional market value. Ho-hum. At $684, Apple’s shares remain laughably cheap. They are worth about 13 times what investors expect Apple to earn in its 2013 fiscal year, a low multiple for a company growing as fast as Apple. Bernstein’s Toni Sacconaghi raised his price target on Apple’s shares to $800 from $750.

About the Author
By Adam Lashinsky
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in

Women’s representation on boards of directors falls below 30%—but there’s one bright spot
NewslettersMPW Daily
Women’s representation on boards of directors falls below 30%—but there’s one bright spot
By Emma HinchliffeMay 18, 2026
12 minutes ago
Attendees sit to watch a speech during the 2023 Consensus conference in Austin, Texas
CryptoCryptocurrency
A strip club scandal at a major crypto industry event triggers sponsor backlash
By Jack KubinecMay 18, 2026
17 minutes ago
data center
AIData centers
Communities are blocking billions in data centers. Big Tech has wagered $1 trillion otherwise
By Nick LichtenbergMay 18, 2026
42 minutes ago
trump
EconomyCurrency
China will remain an ‘incomplete superpower’ until it can catch up with U.S. financial might, market veteran says
By Jason MaMay 18, 2026
2 hours ago
David Solomon
SuccessCareers
Goldman Sachs’ CEO once scooped ice cream at Baskin-Robbins—he picked up a second job at McDonald’s after his dad gave him a time management lesson
By Preston ForeMay 18, 2026
2 hours ago
griffin
AIBillionaires
Billionaire Ken Griffin used to dismiss AI as ‘garbage.’ Here’s why he changed his mind—and why he’s ‘depressed’
By Nick LichtenbergMay 18, 2026
2 hours ago

Most Popular

Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
AI
Microsoft AI chief gives it 18 months—for all white-collar work to be automated by AI
By Jake AngeloMay 16, 2026
2 days ago
The top foreign holders of U.S. debt may soon dump Treasury bonds and bring their money back home, potentially spiking borrowing costs
Economy
The top foreign holders of U.S. debt may soon dump Treasury bonds and bring their money back home, potentially spiking borrowing costs
By Jason MaMay 17, 2026
1 day ago
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
Politics
The Bezos family just donated $100 million to help achieve one of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s top campaign promises
By Jake AngeloMay 12, 2026
6 days ago
'No one was coming to save me': How Reese Witherspoon built a $900 million company from a problem Hollywood wouldn't fix
Success
'No one was coming to save me': How Reese Witherspoon built a $900 million company from a problem Hollywood wouldn't fix
By Sydney LakeMay 17, 2026
1 day ago
SpaceX heads into a record-shattering IPO with the 'deepest moat that exists today' as investors vow to 'never bet against Elon'
Innovation
SpaceX heads into a record-shattering IPO with the 'deepest moat that exists today' as investors vow to 'never bet against Elon'
By Jason MaMay 16, 2026
2 days ago
Gen X is the most indebted generation in America. Their employers can fix that
Commentary
Gen X is the most indebted generation in America. Their employers can fix that
By Mary MorelandMay 17, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.