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How the US Lost Out On iPhone Work

Hugh Pickens writes "Not long ago, Apple boasted that its products were made in America. Today, almost all of the 70 million iPhones, 30 million iPads and 59 million other products Apple sold last year are manufactured overseas. 'It isn't just that workers are cheaper abroad,' write Charles Duhig and Keith Bradsher. 'Rather, Apple's executives believe the vast scale of overseas factories as well as the flexibility, diligence and industrial skills of foreign workers have outpaced their American counterparts so much that "Made in the U.S.A." is no longer a viable option for most Apple products.' Apple executives say that going overseas, at this point, is their only option and recount the time Apple redesigned the iPhone's screen at the last minute, forcing an assembly line overhaul. A foreman immediately roused 8,000 workers inside the company's dormitories, and then each employee was given a biscuit and a cup of tea, guided to a workstation and within half an hour started a 12-hour shift fitting glass screens into beveled frames. Within 96 hours, the plant was producing over 10,000 iPhones a day. 'The speed and flexibility is breathtaking,' says one Apple executive. 'There's no American plant that can match that.' Apple's success has benefited the U.S. economy by empowering entrepreneurs and creating jobs at companies like cellular providers and businesses shipping Apple products. But ultimately, Apple executives say curing unemployment is not Apple's job. 'We don't have an obligation to solve America's problems. Our only obligation is making the best product possible.'"

3 of 1,303 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Yeah...but by FreeCoder · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    What's the problem really? You don't need to buy a house just to move somewhere. If Asian people can do it, why can't US people? It's just a matter of not wanting to do it and general laziness.

  2. Re:Yeah...but by Joce640k · · Score: 0, Flamebait

    You don't understand: Americans need their own house with home theater, man cave, and 10,000 feet for all their electrical appliances and weekend parties. And a triple garage for their cars/ATVs.

    And they need it all from working a few hours a day without getting their hands dirty.

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  3. Re: Yeah...but by SerpentMage · · Score: 1, Flamebait

    Wow you sound like an old European! I remember that in the past America used to be the land where people would just pick up and move from one place to another. Granted it was in the US, but now that the Americans might have to get out of their comfort zone and all hell breaks out. Sorry, but American's have become too laid back, too much resting on their laurels!

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