Samsung unveiled it’s new Galaxy S4 smart phone this week, but it’s not the only tech company that’s gaining ground.
Check out: 14 Tech Products Taking a Bite Out of Apple
Photo: Screenshot from Samsung.com
Tuesday Talkback: Will you upgrade to the iPhone 5?
Hey Tumblr! We have a pretty self-explanatory Tuesday Talkback today: Are you shelling out for the much-heralded iPhone 5, or saving your hundreds for better things? (Bonus points if you have an old-school flip phone or something. I would like to hear from you.)
I’ll go first: I have an iPhone 4S, and I don’t plan to upgrade until I get a new phone through my plan next year. Why, you ask? I mean — why not? There’s nothing wrong with it and I’d rather spend my discretionary income on cupcakes or something.
What about you?
USA TODAY: Apple sets record, becomes the most valuable company ever at $621 billion. With a B.
So, in case you were wondering, Apple is now worth roughly 414 million MacBook Pros.
Millward Brown just came out with its 2012 report on the world’s most-trusted brands. Topping the list: Apple, IBM, Google and McDonald’s. (McDonald’s?!) Facebook and Mastercard also saw a big boost from past years.
This is not a tech bubble.
… and other lessons from Wall Street and Silicon Valley.
What We’re Reading, 3/19/2012
It’s Monday again, for better or worse, but we’ve got some good reads to get you through it. On our collective radar this afternoon: Apple’s dividends, Ben Bernanke, and how the weather could be warming the economy.
“Apple to Pay Dividend, Plans $10 Billion Buyback,” by Jessica Vascellaro and Mia Lamar (The Wall Street Journal). Apple’s on a bit of a news-making streak this month: After releasing the iPad3 last week, the company announced this morning that it plans to pay its first dividend since 1995.
“The Villain,” by Roger Lowenstein (The Atlantic). Lowenstein’s lengthy profile of embattled Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke describes a man calmly — and successfully — striving to save the economy.
“Obama’s Evolution: Behind the Failed ‘Grand Bargain’ on Debt,” by Peter Wallsten, Lori Montgomery and Scott Wilson (The Washington Post). Last summer’s debt talks, as seen from the White House back rooms where they began to fall apart.
“Is the Weather Helping the Economy?” (All Things Considered). We all know the weather impacts our moods, but a University of Pennsylvania economist suspects it skews economic data, as well.
“Prime Time’s Class Warfare,” by James Wolcott (Vanity Fair). “Wolcott argues that television today reflects changing income inequality — the really rich and the rest,” writes reporter John Miley. John’s take: “Well, there’s certainly no more Sanford and Son.”
Read anything interesting this morning? As always, send us a tweet!
Apple holds enough cash and cash equivalents to buy Dell, Yahoo, Motorola Mobility, Activision Blizzard, Best Buy AND Netflix.
This morning the tech giant announced it will use some of that $100 billion reserve to pay dividends for the first time since 1995 and begin a $10 billion buyback program.
(Source: The Wall Street Journal)
That’s a lot of iPads. Also a lot of good reasons to keep your Apple shares.
