Tag Archives: money

$100 bill gets a makeover

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On Wednesday officials unveiled a new design for the $100 bill.  Mr. Franklin joins pals Lincoln, Hamilton, Jackson, and Grant in the fight against counterfeiters.  The new $100 note includes the following security enhancements: A 3D Security Ribbon that nearly cuts the bill in half at the center contains images of bells and 100s that move and change from one to the other as you tilt the note.  The ribbon is woven into the paper, not printed on it.  The Bell in the Inkwell, located on the front of the bill to the right of Franklin, changes color from copper to green when the note is tilted, an effect that makes it seem to appear and disappear within the copper inkwell.  On the back there’s a new vignette of Independence Hall featuring the rear, rather than the front, of the building.  The Franklin portrait and the vignette have been enlarged and the oval around them has been removed.  Also on the back you’ll find a large gold 100; it helps those with visual impairments to distinguish the denomination.  The bill retains several enhancements from the last update including the portrait watermark, the security thread, and the color-shifting 100.  The new $100 notes will begin circulating on February 10, 2011.  Look in the gallery below to learn more about the visual security enhancements; after the break there’s a short animation that highlights the bill.    Welcome to the club, Franklin.  Washington, where you at?

[Via NewMoney]

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Apple reports 2010 Q2 earnings: $3.07b profit, Macs up 33%, iPods down 1%, iPhones up 131%

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As another quarter of the year flies by, Apple posts its positive earnings.  Check it: Apple posted revenue of $3.07 billion profit on $13.5 billion in revenue.  (Compare this to one year ago, Apple posted revenue of $9.08 billion on $1.62 billion in revenue.)  Says Steve Jobs: “We’re thrilled to report our best non-holiday quarter ever, with revenues up 49 percent and profits up 90 percent.”

Here’s a breakdown of each product category.  Apple sold 2.94 million Macs during the quarter (representing a 33 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter); 8.75 million iPhones (representing a 131 percent unit growth); 10.89 million iPods (representing a 1 percent unit decline).  Since the iPad was just released into the market, it’s too early to tally those numbers.  But overall, Apple has done it yet again!  Money in the bank, ya’ll.  Jobs looks to the future: “We’ve launched our revolutionary new iPad and users are loving it, and we have several more extraordinary products in the pipeline for this year.”  Cough–iPhone 4–cough.

The stock market responded graciously to the earnings announcement.  Apple stock (APPL) closed at an all-time high of 259.22, jumping nearly six percent from the previous day.

[Via Apple]

Apple reports 2010 Q1 earnings: $3.38b profit, Macs up 33%, iPods down 8%, iPhone sales double

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Apple recently announced their first quarter financial results and per usual, they made quite a hefty profit.  $3.38 billion to be exact (or $3.67 profit per share).  They brought in revenues of $15.68 billion.  Note that these numbers are up from last quarter’s profit of $2.26 billion on $11.88 billion in revenue.  More to the point, this is the best quarter they have ever had.  Let’s break it down by product: Apple sold 3.36 million Macs (representing a 33 percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter), 8.7 million iPhones (representing 100 percent unit growth), and 21 million iPods (representing an eight percent unit decline).  No surprise there; iPod sales have been declining for some time now.  Note that this decline factors general iPod sales; iPod touch sales were up 55 percent.

According to the earnings PR, “The new products we are planning to release this year are very strong, starting this week with a major new product that we’re really excited about.”  *Cough–Apple Tablet–cough.*  Sorry, I was just clearing my throat.  Might as well throw in a possibility of seeing the next iLife, iPhone OS 4.0, and maybe even witness AT&T’s iPhone exclusitivity fall by the wayside to Verizon.  Remember to check back here tomorrow night for all Apple announcements.

Every quarter seems to surpass the last financially for Apple.  With Steve Jobs at the helm, what else more could you expect?  The man is an inspiration, and his company is his vision.  “Apple at the core, its core value, is that we believe that people with passion can change the world for the better.”  Watch as Steve Jobs (in shorts!) motivates the industry in a video captured about ten years ago when he returned to Apple.

[Via Apple; Engadget; Gizmodo]

Apple: What recession?

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Today Apple held their fiscal 2009 thrid quarter conference call with investers and analysts.  Apparently Apple had the “best non-holiday quarter [in terms of] revenue and earnings.”  From their official press release:

The Company posted revenue of $8.34 billion and a net quarterly profit of $1.23 billion, or $1.35 per diluted share. These results compare to revenue of $7.46 billion and net quarterly profit of $1.07 billion, or $1.19 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Gross margin was 36.3 percent, up from 34.8 percent in the year-ago quarter. International sales accounted for 44 percent of the quarter’s revenue.

Apple admitted that “we expect traditional MP3 players (read: iPod classic, nano, and shuffle) to decline over time as we cannibalize ourselves.”  Basically, Apple points out here that all iPod models (except for the touch) are “walking dinosaurs.”  Apple sees the iPod touch and iPhone continuing to dominate the market well into next year, while the traditional iPods will continue to decline in sales.  More from the offiicial press release:

The Company sold 10.2 million iPods during the quarter, representing a seven percent unit decline from the year-ago quarter. Quarterly iPhones sold were 5.2 million, representing 626 percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter.

If you’re wondering about Mac sales: Apple sold 2.6 million Macintosh computers during the quarter, representing a four percent unit increase over the year-ago quarter.

Other notable mentions include…Apple on its relationship with AT&T: “I think it’s an excellent relationship and we’re very happy with it.” …Apple on the netbook rumors: “At this point we don’t see a way to build a great product for this $399, $499…for this kind of pricepoint unit. Some customers, maybe many customers buying these become disappointed and disenchanted buying these.”  …Apple on the recent tablet rumors: “…without discounting anything for the future, I think most customers buying a portable want a full-featured notebook.”  And “many people won’t be happy” with the crappy experience of a netbook, so Apple is “only going to play in something that’s very innovative that we’re very proud of.”

The title of the official press release summarizes it best: Apple Reports Third Quarter Results – Best Non-Holiday Quarter Revenue and Earnings in Apple History.  Way to go, Apple!

[Via Apple; Engadget; quotes from Gizmodo]