According to the latest estimates, the average age of a new car in the United States is 12.2 years. In other countries, it may be longer, and that means many vehicles are even older, yet they are still on the road in decent enough condition. Sure, they probably require constant maintenance to run, and that maintenance can be expensive if you’re not a do-it-yourselfer. But the average price of a new car is $48,o00, largely because of tight supplies of chips from Asia, and the fact that so many of you prefer SUVs, crossovers and trucks to “old fashioned” sedans. My first new car, an Opel coupe bought in 1967, cost me all of $2,100.

How time flies when you’re having fun.

But in the tech world, we need more or less instant gratification. An older gadget needs to be replaced on a fairly regular basis to keep up with the times and the latest apps. It used to be two years for a smartphone, but it’s now 3.5 years at trade-in according to published reports, but iPhones last far longer, usually.

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Note: It’s been a while since I’ve posted in this space. Part of this was due to my physical issues, the worst of which involved surgery for what is called a pseudo aneurism in my right leg, which occurred on August 1st. The procedure required three blood transfusions to deal with a low blood count condition. I spent three nights in the hospital, and I am currently running around with what is known as a wound vac to help the healing process along. A nurse comes three times a week to check things out. The condition has also killed my endurance, so I am easily fatigued. But getting better.

So what about the title? Is Apple no longer an interesting company, worth following with lots of enthusiasm as before?

One thing is clear about Apple under Tim Cook He knows how to manage the company with finesse and he made it a powerful money making machine with market caps in the stratosphere. Even at times when other companies have trouble selling product, Apple manages to push more and more iPhones into owner’s hands. It almost defies gravity.

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It’s fair to say that Tesla has continued to confound expectations. Few new car makers survive, and a number of older brands have faded. Try, for example, to find a new Plymouth, Pontiac or Oldsmobile, for example. When I was young, there were also such nameplates as Rambler and Studebaker. In fact, my dream car as a teen was the Avanti sports sedan, which actually continued in production for a number of years after Studebaker faded.

When Tesla introduced the Model 3 with a, then, starting price of $35,000 plus shipping, it seemed tempting. After all, charging an EV’s engine is far cheaper than a tank of gas, even when gas was reasonably affordable. Oil changes and other routine maintenance that is required for internal combustion engines were history. It was mostly about brakes and tires.

Indeed, if you drive a lot, what you save on gas might indeed cover the added cost of an EV.

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Followers of history might remember the historic words spoken by President Ronald Reagan during a speech he delivered in Germany in 1987, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!”

Now it doesn’t matter your political persuasion. Those six words remain highlights to convey a heartfelt message about a country’s freedom. But the concept of a wall doesn’t have to be physical to be potentially harmful.

Take Apple Inc.

Apple has always been an outlier in the PC industry. When other computer makers choose MS-DOS and, later, Windows, perhaps because they didn’t have the talent or wherewithal to build their own operating systems, Apple went its own way. For better or worse, it also meant that you were forced to buy an Apple product to use Mac OS, as it was known in those days.

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