iPad – Can Apple’s new gizmo match iPhone’s success?

Success with ipod, apple Inc. intends to repeat that enormous achievement by launching its new gadget, iPad. This tablet which looks like flat gigantic iPhone with 25cm high definition color screen has more useful feature compared to smartphones. iPad may basically be a hybrid of somewhere between a MacBook and an iPhone (The Economist, 2010).

After the launch of iPad on Wednesday, 27 January, the share price of Apple has gone up significantly. For instance, after the pre-launch speech on Monday, the shares went up by 4 percent to $211.26 on Nasdaq in the early Tuesday trading (Reuters, 2010). The rumors said that the iPad will be on the market by 1st of March and will cost between $600 and $1000 (The Vancouver Sun, 2010). However, Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple Inc., stated that iPad’s price will be as low as $499 in order to bridge the gap between smatphones and laptops.
Apple Inc. continues to gain shares in the large market while generating large amount of cash at the same time. On its December quarterly report, the sales of iPhone was doubled from a year ago amounted to 8.7 million (Reuters, 2010). Although Apple share price reacts positively to the launching of iPad, will this Steve Jobs’s new baby set a magical sales record?

Eating Fast Food = Losing Weight

Obesity has been long time correlated to high consumption of fast food containing not only huge amount of sodium but also plenty unhealthy fat. But, can you believe this surprising fact that fast food promotes weight lost? If you love quick meals at fast food restaurants and you are looking for an effortless weight loss plan, The Fast Food Diet might be for you!!
As we know that more and more fast food chains compete to promote their healthier menu, such as McDonald’s mixed salad, Subway’s whole wheat sandwich, and many more. Therefore, you can still dine out in your favorite fast food restaurants by making smart choices and be selective and careful about the portion size (WebMD, LLC., 2010). The fast food restaurants’ unhealthy image can also be reduced by recruiting healthy figures for their spoke persons. For instance, Subway landed its choice to a contestant on ‘The Biggest Losser’ while Taco Bell recruited a 27 year old business consultant who consumes up to 8 times Taco Bell menu a week and has lost 54 pounds (The New York Times Company, 2010).
Dr. Stephen Sinatra, a cardiologist and the author of ‘The Fast Food Diet’, mentioned that while consuming fast food, people all the good, the bad and the ugly. Again the main point is by portion control and making smart choice what to put into your mouth. Soda is bad, juices are not better either; go for no calorie drink. Just by omitting the soda or sweeten drinks, you already reduce 200 calories from your diet. So, shed those unwanted fats and fit into your old jeans by trying this easy and no pain diet.

Online Shopping Trends

Amazing facts about online buyers:

63 percent of people shopping online are women.
99 percent of the internet users in South Korea have shopped online.
One out of four online shoppers buys airline tickets via internet.

Japan Airlines Files for Bankruptcy

Japan Airlines, one of the Asia biggest corporations, filed for bankruptcy protection with debt amounted to $26 billion which makes this the largest
bankruptcy in Japan’s history outside the financial sector (USA Today, 2010). Despite of the fact that the Government will give loans and cash up to $10 billion to support its operations, JAL will not only shed a third of its staff, but also cut 31 flight routes both domestic and international in three-year time (Economist, 2010). Moreover, this bankruptcy might show a direct impact to the members of Oneworld Airline Alliance, including British Airways (Times Newspapers Ltd., 2010).

The JAL shares has fallen more than 90 percent since the market was first open after New Year which makes the market value of JAL is approximately $150 million (Thomson Reuters, 2010). Even though JAL is now worth less than one Boeing 747, According to USA Today American and Delta Airlines still want to not only partner with JAL but also plan to invest up to $2 billion in both loans and cash. This leaves a big question why would the two largest U.S. carries invest such a big amount of money?