[Mark07]

https://www.theguardian.com/technolo...ic-car-layoffs

According to this report, Apple have scrapped development of their electric car.

Unless my memory is playing tricks on me, I'm sure Dyson and Google (let me know if i'm wrong) had also planned to launch EV's which has never been delivered.

Why do you think disrupters are struggling to break into the market?
What do you think this means for the EV industry?

[NMNeil]

It may just be that Apple are struggling in general.
https://www.reuters.com/technology/a...gs-2024-02-01/
And their latest virtual headset is not exactly flying off the shelves at $3,500 a go, add to this the idiots
https://www.theguardian.com/technolo...t-video-report
It's a smart move to shelve new products until they get their core business sorted.

[Rolebama]

Just a thoght: It costs millions to set up a production line for any newcar, so there has to be a much better than evens chance of selling enough units to make a profit. It seems that 'legitimate' methods of obtaining enough of the heavy metals are inadequte. Consequently, rather than getting involved in the more questionable side, some manufacturers may be preserving their image by not getting involved with the dark side.

[NMNeil]

So EV's are the dark side?
And as for the heavy metals involved, such as lithium and cobalt, is that ever mentioned when talking about cell phone, laptop, power tool and all the other portable devices that use lithium based batteries?
But in the meantime I'm sure there are those who demonize the cost to the environment caused by making EV's but make no mention that any such environmental damage pales into insignificance when compared to the cost of powering of ICE engines.
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/shell-se...ills-1.2002498
Some of the pollution caused was even so bad they made a movie about it.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1860357/

[Mark07]

I'm no economist, but personally, I think the EV marketplace would benefit from a few 'cheap' options to push the prices down. A new EV still seems like a pricey option to me, an electric Fiat 500 can set you back £30K.

I imagine that it's an extraordinary task to create an electric car from scratch, even with the resources of Apple - supposedly generating profits of over $100m each day. I admit, I thought that their track record of innovation and deep pockets could have produced a disrupter in the car market - albeit, not a cheap one.

However, perhaps this news could indicate that traditional car companies are taking electric cars seriously enough that Apple et al's potential market share has shrunk to the point that the investment isn't worth it.

[Drivingforfun]

Not that I think the industry is worried about my opinion but I am still unconvinced that electric vehicles are "the future".

I am not saying oil is the future either.

I am just saying I think the future will be a fuel source that doesn't completely alienate the huge swathes of the population that live in flats or terraced houses without a driveway.

[NMNeil]

As already discussed the movement now is to stop wasting valuable land just to park cars and increase public transport, so driveways are no longer needed. And as for the charging at home argument, how many houses have a petrol pump so they can refuel at home. At a guess it's none as they just go to a petrol station to fill up, so EV's can do the same to recharge.
Open war been declared on the private car all over the world, ICE or EV, it doesn't matter.

[Rolebama]

Sorry, I should have been clearer. The 'dark side' I referred to above was in relation to using child slave labour to mine the minerals. Apologies for misleading.

[NMNeil]

Understood, you mean the same child slave labour that's used to mine the minerals and metals that go into cell phone/laptop and power tool batteries; or is that different?
Then there's the electronics industry that uses gold, where children mine the gold and are exposed to toxic mercury in it's extraction and die from mine cave in's. How about cigarettes where child labour is used to harvest the tobacco and the children suffer from nicotine poisoning simply because of the quantities of tobacco they handle as well as the toxic insecticides sprayed on the tobacco.
The list of industries that use child labour is very long, but you get the point.
Don't select one item to demonize only because it's used in EV's when the same item is used extensively elsewhere and everyone looks the other way.
Sorry for the rant.

[Rolebama]

NMNeil: I watched a TV prog some years ago about how the old CRTs were sent to third-world countries to be farmed for the precious metals, and fridges and freezers. So I have been aware for some time about the use of slave labour and toxins. Unfortunately, I have the failings of the majority of the human race in that if I don't see it, it makes it very easy to forget or ignore. As for your 'rant' comment, it wouldn't be a bad thing if we all did to the people who have the power to change things.

[Mark07]

Originally Posted by Drivingforfun

[...] I think the future will be a fuel source that doesn't completely alienate the huge swathes of the population that live in flats or terraced houses without a driveway.

This is such a good point.

If i couldn't charge my laptop, phone etc at home I'd need to rely on micro-charging sessions when i'm out and about.

But on the flip side, there is a commercial opportunity as the locations that have charging infrastructure are more likely to get my business. For example, I would be more likely to do my weekly shop at a supermarket where i can also charge my car, or go to a restaurant where i can do the same.

If we were able to go back to the days of the Model T, I imagine there were refuelling considerations that needed to be factored into a journey.

Who knows, as the tech develops, perhaps EV's could have solar panels on the roof to provide assisted charging.

Could that kind of development be a game changer?

[Santa]

I also see on the BBC website that; "Sales in China of Apple's iPhone fell by 24% in the first six weeks of 2024 compared to a year earlier, according to research firm Counterpoint."

[NMNeil]

Originally Posted by Mark07

If we were able to go back to the days of the Model T, I imagine there were refuelling considerations that needed to be factored into a journey.

Back in the day there were no petrol stations, you bought a 2 gallon can from the local chemists, but the wealthy would have petrol tanks installed at their homes and one of the big suppliers was Bowser, and the name is still used to denote liquid storage tanks.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/291093284477
The surprising thing was that they had no pump, but relied on filling the storage tank with water, and as they did the petrol floating on the top was forced out.

[Rolebama]

The petrol station local to me in the 60s had a tank up on stilts, and petrol was gravity-fed to the 'pumps'. Underground tanks and pumps were installed in the late 70s, and the original overhead tank was used as an advertising billboard until the late 90s, when it was removed when the station was rebuilt to incorporate gocery shopping.