Hacker News: apparent

New comment by apparent in "Couple Stalked by eBay Settle for $56M"

apparent — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 04:46:00 +0000

> The Steiners were bombarded with anonymous material including deliveries of live cockroaches and a bloody pig mask. They were threatened online. Much of the material they were sent, including a funeral wreath and a book on surviving the loss of a spouse, suggested imminent death. The security team was on the verge of breaking into the Steiners’ garage to put a tracker on their car when the plot was derailed.

I guess this is why the settlement is so large. These actions are beyond the pale.

Couple Stalked by eBay Settle for $56M

apparent — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 04:41:37 +0000

Article URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/28/technology/ebay-settles-stalking-case.html

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49106176

Points: 2

# Comments: 1

The Rise of Million-Dollar Companies with Just One Employee

apparent — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 04:32:33 +0000

Article URL: https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/the-rise-of-million-dollar-companies-with-just-one-employee-f36a77c1

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49106136

Points: 4

# Comments: 0

New comment by apparent in "The coolest use for the Vision Pro"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 22:52:27 +0000

Does she use hers for anything else? Do you ever use them with guests, or does the lens/glasses issue prevent that?

New comment by apparent in "The coolest use for the Vision Pro"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 22:07:13 +0000

So you have two, one for you and one for your wife? What is it like watching a movie next to someone, with both of you wearing headsets?

I would have been much more likely to get one when I was unmarried, but now with a family it greatly reduces my use cases since I don't watch content alone (except when doing the dishes, when I am largely focused on the real world task in front of me).

New comment by apparent in "Apple Upgrade"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 21:00:06 +0000

Can you explain how Apple would make money in the medium-term (let alone long-term) if they used this feature on fully-paid devices?

Also, they have now officially said it won't even be used on leased devices. [1]

1: https://www.theverge.com/tech/972063/apple-upgrade-program-n...

New comment by apparent in "DoorDash Takes to the Sky with Its Own Drones"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 19:52:45 +0000

There weren't a lot of details regarding rollout. Does clearing this one hurdle allow them to roll out across the US? I would think that states or local governments might have rules that could prevent this. For example, there are safety concerns, noise concerns, and privacy concerns. And for those thinking about the long run, there are employment concerns, as this will undoubtedly put some people out of work.

New comment by apparent in "Apple won't turn on any 'restricted mode' for missed lease payments"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 17:37:29 +0000

> Klarna spokesperson Clare Nordstrom tells The Verge that if customers miss three payments in a row, the company will “terminate the lease agreement and the customer will need to pay the full outstanding balance.”

Considering this is the outcome they landed on, I wonder what negotiations led to the inclusion of this code in iOS27.

Apple won't turn on any 'restricted mode' for missed lease payments

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 17:35:48 +0000

Article URL: https://www.theverge.com/tech/972063/apple-upgrade-program-no-restricted-mode

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49100531

Points: 2

# Comments: 1

New comment by apparent in "Chip stocks slide in US and Asia as AI jitters rattle investors"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 08:44:45 +0000

I wasn't referring to the purely financial angle. I meant that whatever news is driving this apparent valuation change could have impacts on other companies (like ones that are having to cope with the chip shortages).

New comment by apparent in "The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 03:31:55 +0000

> If the contract is no longer in good standing, Apple’s system services can place the iPhone in “Restricted Mode,” which blocks access to most apps until the payment or contract issue is resolved, while keeping a small set of apps available.

New comment by apparent in "Delayed Gratification – Proud to Be 'Last to Breaking News'"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 03:05:53 +0000

I used to listen to and read NPR. Since about 2015 they've been slipping, and at an increasing rate. After submitting several corrections, none of which were heeded, I have stopped taking them seriously. An outlet that does not correct clear-cut falsehoods is peddling a narrative, not reporting news.

New comment by apparent in "Chip stocks slide in US and Asia as AI jitters rattle investors"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 03:02:12 +0000

So is this good news for the companies that have taken a hit as AI stocks have climbed, and semiconductor shortages have rattled investors?

New comment by apparent in "The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade"

apparent — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 01:47:53 +0000

That gets it backwards. They're not doing this because they want to make devices that are less compelling purchases, but they are aware that their coming pipeline will in general not as be compelling to potential upgraders as in the past. This is largely because the category has matured, and people don't feel the need to upgrade nearly as often as 5-10 years ago.

By getting people to be default-subscribers rather than purchasers who may decide to upgrade, they improve their odds of keeping a larger chunk of their hardware revenue stream.

New comment by apparent in "The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade"

apparent — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 23:14:14 +0000

What do they do to your Mac if you don't make payments?

New comment by apparent in "The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade"

apparent — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 22:29:58 +0000

Interestingly, Apple is apparently going to be able to nerf the devices if the customer misses a series of payments. [1]

Presumably this ability means that Klarna has a lower risk of nonpayment, and is willing to accept a smaller cut of the total price from Apple.

1: https://9to5mac.com/2026/07/21/ios-27-code-suggests-apple-co...

New comment by apparent in "The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade"

apparent — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 22:27:39 +0000

> You know those financially irresponsible people don’t need this program, right? They would have used a credit card to buy it with much worse terms

I thought of this also. The question is whether they will now spend even more on the phone since they won't be paying as much in interest. If so, it's savvy of Apple to suck up that difference instead of letting it go to credit card companies.

Presumably Klarna's share is lower because Apple is rumored to be able to nerf these devices if a series of payments are missed. [1]

1: https://9to5mac.com/2026/07/21/ios-27-code-suggests-apple-co...

New comment by apparent in "The iPhone Upgrade Program is being replaced by Apple Upgrade"

apparent — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 22:25:26 +0000

> So the goal of the program is the same as every other similar one - they want to turn a one-time device purchase into a perpetual monthly revenue stream, while keeping ownership of the asset at the end.

Yep, which reduces the need to make new devices notably better than old ones, since you'll always have a steady stream of customers coming off their leases.

New comment by apparent in "Apple Upgrade"

apparent — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 21:43:46 +0000

OK cool, well LMK what the reason would be for Apple to ever do that, and I'll be happy to walk through your thought experiment about how fanboys would love to have their devices nerfed.

New comment by apparent in "Apple Upgrade"

apparent — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 21:20:09 +0000

What an interesting analogy. What would Apple stand to gain by nerfing phones that customers had already fully paid for? Is the theory that Apple would hold the devices hostage until more payments were made? That would seem to be an unmitigated disaster for the company.

With batterygate, there was a plausible reason for Apple to do what it did, but also self-interest that could have caused it. Here, there is no remotely discernible self-interest that would lead Apple to nuke its reputation by holding fully-paid devices hostage.