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Comment by gtrealejandro | Hacker News Reader

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MKBHD's point is that this would have worked the way you describe it a decade ago, but is Apple's brand and fans the same as they were back then? At some point doing something like this just makes you look greedy and out of touch.

If Microsoft had tried to sell a "limited edition" zoom sock for $220 it would have produced a lot of mockery and no sales.

> but is Apple's brand and fans the same as they were back then

Yes Apple is still an up-market brand. You can be a luxury company that sells products that start priced in the middle while offering high end stuff that also sells very well... or better, iPhone 15 Pro Max was their top selling individual item last year, not the standard iPhone 15.

Having a subset of the influencer/trendmakers who buy only the high end stuff helps push up the brands popularity. Even if it's only more novelty stuff like this.

This 'sock' is a very loud fashion item that will show up in celebrity photos and youtube videos.

It worked with liquid glass in the same way.

I think there is a difference between having fanboys and having fanboys + great products.

Apple continues to grow and dominate the market.

Apple is not Microsoft.

You're both right. You're describing it from Apple's point of view, he's seeing it as a normal person who isn't one of the marks.

True, but that doesn't make it any more ridiculous. It is exactly this 'exclusivity' vibe that has always turned me off from Apple as a company. It's just some gear, and instead they want you to believe it is a whole different world when you're using their devices. People even use it as a filter to determine each others' social worth.

Spot on! It's exactly how you sell a $200 t-shirt. You put it next to a $900 t-shirt.

Rory made an excellent remark about how Rolls-Royce stopped showing their cars at car shows and instead shifted towards private jets and yachts events.

As he put it - when you're shopping for a $100M yacht, a $2 car is almost an impulse buy.

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