These are some great guitars played by some of the world’s best.

While many have questioned the post-Steve Jobs fate of Apple, the company continues to hold its spot as a top technology brand across three mainstream categories, according to findings from the 2013 Harris Poll EquiTrend (EQ) study. In its first full year under Tim Cook’s stewardship, Apple took home repeat Brand of the Year distinctions in three categories – Computer, Tablet and Mobile Phone – in the annual study, which measures the perceptions of 38,500+ American consumers on more than 1,500 lifestyle, product and service brands across over 155 categories.

Well that settles it, Apple is doomed.

During his company’s quarterly earnings call today, Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg discussed how Instagram will be monetized. The answer isn’t too surprising: there is a big expectation for the app to one day be profititable, and advertising will be the name of the game.

Not a big surprise. You are the product being sold.

You could almost go through this article line-by-line and pick it apart, but let me just grab a couple of sections.

First of all, the headline makes a statement: “Apple becoming a follower, not a leader,” but the story asks a question:

Instead of leading, will the company increasingly become a follower?

So right off the bat you have no idea what you’re talking about. The author of the article, Andrew Mayer, then asks:

So if thing are great then why should Apple be thinking about bigger screens?

Well, because innovative companies are always testing larger and smaller and wider and thinner screens to see what works best for its customers. It’s called R&D.

Samsung’s Galaxy S4, with its 5-inch screen, has become the fastest selling Android phone in history.

You’re kidding right? First of all, those are not sales to customers, but shipments to the sales channel. Samsung “shipped” 10 million phones in a month. Apple sold more than 5 million iPhones in three days. See the difference there Andrew? Funny you didn’t mention that.

Although Apple has modified its stance, it’s clear that the iPad mini is not quite the device we would have seen if Jobs was around today.

Oh Andrew, please explain what Steve Jobs would have done, please. As an “interactive design consultant” you must know exactly what Steve would have done. Enlighten us please.

In response, Apple is releasing a new version of its operating system in the fall.

No Andrew, Apple releases a new operating system this time every year. Even the slightest bit of research would have shown you that. You could have fallen on Google’s servers and that would have popped out.

The end of the article is where Andrew shows his true brilliance.

That still leaves us waiting for the next big thing. What Apple needs most are bold new ideas, not bigger iPhones or iPads.

Andrew, show me a company that doesn’t want “bold new ideas.” Can you think of any? No, me neither.

I don’t even want to link to it, but here it is.

Realmac has been making great apps for years; Ember is another great example of why they’re a successful company.

Not a big surprise, but I always feel bad for the workers. I hate seeing anyone lose their job, especially when it’s because a company is being mismanaged.

Dan Nosowitz for Popular Science:

The Apple TV costs $95 on Amazon–a lot more money, sure. But you get a lot more for your money (great interface, stellar hardware, support for the enormously popular Apple store, the combination of apps and a slinging feature), and it’s also important to remember that these gadgets can help you get rid of cable entirely. An Apple TV costs about as much as one month’s worth of cable. Suck it up, guys. It’s not that expensive.

This isn’t to say that I’m not excited by Chromecast; I think slinging is exceptionally cool, and I think it’s great that this hardware so cheap and small. But I don’t necessarily think that a device that does exclusively slinging, no matter how cheap it is, is a viable option for most people. It’s best as part of a larger whole.

I agree with Dan. Google basically implemented Apple’s AirPlay, but that’s all Chromecast does. People expect more from an entertainment device in their home and this doesn’t give it to them. That’s not to say Google won’t sell a lot of them—they will, but that initial interest will fade because it doesn’t solve the problem we have with cable TV using a simplistic solution that everyone can use.

UPDATE: As many people have pointed out Chromecast isn’t like AirPlay at all. It only streams video from that you pass from your phone, it doesn’t actually stream the content from your device. Honestly, I don’t get this device.

I’ll watch a free Slash concert any day of the week.

What Globe Telecom is adding is what they call iToolbar. It’s basically an opportunity for them to track what you do, and inject ads into the sites you go to.

That’s just sleazy, but the best part is their answer to whether they will push unwarranted advertising.

Dustin Earley for Android and Me in June:

I can’t find one person who has been using the Nexus 7 for an extended period of time, and hasn’t seen a massive downgrade in performance. Just what kind of downgrade are we talking here? I cannot pick up my Nexus 7 without experiencing problems like a lag of ten seconds, or more, just to rotate the display; touches refusing to acknowledged; stuttering notification panel actions; and unresponsive apps.

No wonder people don’t go online with it, they can’t even get it to work.

The developer site still isn’t live, but at least you can see the status.

I just can’t imagine doing this, but I’m sure there are a lot of people that would.

Typical day in Canada.

This is kind of sad. Clearly lots of stuff going on behind the scenes though.

Nathan Conyngham:

Just say No. Don’t use fluffy, doublespeak language. Just say it.

No.

Sometimes it is the right thing to do.

Yes, the articles saying Apple is doomed are back, but Bryan Chaffin takes one to task for clearly not paying attention.

The entire industry appears to be shifting away from that bi-annual schedule and to a more consumer friendly seasonal emphasis. This is evidenced by the slowing growth of both smartphones and tablets on a quarter-over-quarter basis according to some of the latest device shipment data. My conviction is not that we are seeing saturation but seasonality. There are other factors at play which I will get into.

Great stuff from Ben Bajarin, who’s predicting a big uptick in PC (and therefore Mac) sales soon.

Wow, that’s huge.

I think we’ve all suspected this happens at some stores, but not doubling the price. At least I didn’t think they went that far.

You have to love these instruments. Take a look at the strat for $560—incredible.

Very cool that he still has the packing slip.

This is really sad.

Very nice looking Les Paul. I still want one of the Slash Appetite Les Pauls.

Ben Balser shows you three ways that Apple’s two professional apps work together.

These guys already got funded, but there’s still a couple of days to get in on it.

Another great story on how the iPhone and Apple developers are helping those with accessibility needs.

Holy shit, that’s just incredible. Thanks to everyone that subscribes to Amplified with me and Dan Benjamin—we appreciate it.