Not only do they not compete with Fortnite, but Apple's market share is nowhere near what Microsoft's was. With Microsoft, there weren't reasonable/common alternatives. Definitely not the case with iOS.

One way to easily get around this (which is also pretty common for EVs currently) is leasing. Many lease because the technology is changing so quickly that they don't want to lock in to something that "feels" obsolete in a couple years. But additionally, when you leasing the leasing company takes that subsidy out right off the bat (since they will obviously qualify for it) so you can just buy at the end of you lease and you never needed to qualify for the tax credit to still reap the benefit of it.

I commented this lower, but I've seen more iPad Pros about with the attached keyboard (basically Surface clone) lately. Wouldn't be surprised if they are going to push that as the next Air (or at least they see the Air as a competitor to the iPad Pro).

Given the iPad Pros that I have seen about with attached keyboards (mimicking Surfaces), I would be they see the Air as competition to that and are just going to try to push the iPad Pro + keyboard as the new Macbook Air.

At my previous employer, we used HipChat. I'd say it was helpful mostly because we had a pretty new team with lots of questions. Since most weren't pressing, they could just ping the whole group on chat. Progressively, the newer folks could field more and more of the questions. Only when they didn't have an answer did more senior people jump in and help. I found that much more preferable than having people stopping by my cube all the time to ask questions.

A lot of times I see them as just an add-on to the experience. There have been games I've really enjoyed and wished there was more once I completed the normal story items. After that, it can be fun to have a list of additional things to try to accomplish after the developer-built pieces are complete.

How does that jive with the whole line of Amazon Fire devices? Aren't those pretty much devoid of all things Google?

I disagree about your first parenthetical. A US-centered map splits Asia, and having grown up in America, my experience is not that those are common. Most (if not close to all) of the world maps I have seen have split in the Pacific Ocean, which creates a view were Europe is mostly centered.

Better yet, cans of spray tan!

But that kinda defeats the whole purpose. While selection is nice, one of the big selling points to ordering stuff online is that it comes to you. If I have to go pick it up, where's the advantage over just going to a brick and mortar store that carries what I need?

The only advantage that I've heard that makes sense is the protection from crappy/cheap replacements. Given the hazards we've seen just from cheap aftermarket usb-c cables, it is pretty conceivable that a shoddy battery could have catastrophic results.

Imagine the S7 fiasco, but because of a wave of popular knock-off batteries. Technically, Samsung wouldn't have done anything wrong, because the batteries are at fault, but Samsung's name would be the one most smeared in the sensational news stories about the exploding phones.

This may be true, but excludes all the additional BS that they do. Discontinuing skinning/bloatware/etc. would certainly reduce costs.

This mentality totally baffles me. Walk into a normal restaurant, and I would be unlikely not to see at least one person on their phone. Do you not realize how easy it is to "covertly" record a video on a phone? Do you get this irrationally angry every time someone is on their phone? That is so ubiquitous that it would actually be much easier to video you or take photos with my phone because it wouldn't get your attention.

This is the sentiment I don't understand. I also seem to rarely see it come up in console vs. pc discussions. I'm primarily a console gamer. Not because I think it is better, but because of the environment. Why would I want to sit in a desk chair staring at a computer (like I do all day) to game, when I can be much more comfortable on my couch with a larger TV and surround sound? And apparently this makes me immature? I could never get into PC gaming as much because I was much more comfortable in the console gaming environment. I don't see how maturity is even a factor here.

Except those are false comparisons. This is more similar to if car makers started making cars tinier and more cramped, then called the original sized cars "spacious" and started charging a premium. They aren't providing more for the extra cost, they are reducing the standard while maintaing the price and then raising the price for those seats they can't reduce (i.e. emergency exit rows)