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Milking the iPhone
- notadoc 10y agoApple is the iPhone company. Everything else is somewhere distant down their priority list, or not on any list at all, and unfortunately it shows.
- victorvation 10y agoI wouldn't say it's unfortunate. The majority of my (and many peoples') personal computing is done entirely on an iPhone and therefore improvement upon it, either incremental or innovative or otherwise, is always welcome.
- khedoros1 10y agoWell, and the majority of my (and many peoples') personal computing is done on something other than a phone. It's unfortunate when people get left behind by a company they like. I think Apple's got the ability to go two directions at once. Giving some love to non-iPhone hardware doesn't mean that they'd have to slack off on the iPhone itself. In the past, Apple's strength has been their cohesive ecosystem. They seem like they're continually dropping parts of it while letting other parts wither.
- tensor 10y agoThe masses rarely use professional grade equipment because they don't need them. That's not a reason to stop producing or improving tools for professionals. Sure, the market size smaller, but with these tools the world stops working. For many of us, Apple computers represent the best tool for our jobs. Sure, we can use Linux or even Windows if forced to, but it will mean a less efficient and enjoyable working experience.
- simonh 10y agoThat's very clearly not true. In just the last couple of years they have worked very hard to enhance the Mac OS line. 5K displays years before anyone else, even developing custom controller chips. Wide colour gamut displays on laptops and desktops Continuity to tie in the Mac and iOS systems. Integrating a complete hardware subsystem with it's own OS and display in the form of the Touch Bar. Going just a little further back they introduced the Fusion Drive, a custom flash/disk storage system adapting enterprise style tiered storage in a consumer package. To support this thesis you'd need to show that other companies have been successfully advancing their platforms with better implemented, better thought out technologies and were thus leaving Apple behind. But where are these advanced features in other desktop and laptop systems that are leaving Apple in the dust? The only thing the PC market has that MacOS doesn't is touch screens which barely anybody actually uses. Which solution seems to have the most thought and effort put into it, slapping a commodity touch sensor on a PC screen and calling it job done, or the Touch Bar?It's too early to tell how well adopted the touch bar will become, but nobody can accuse Apple of leaving touch interfaces for laptops unaddressed.
- 127001brewer 10y agoIt feels like cracks are forming at Apple's edges. The company is straining to push out hardware updates. Supply issues are getting worse. Apple is reportedly moving away from selling beloved products like stand-alone displays and wireless routers. ... I stopped reading at this point since this will be another "Pile on the Bad News for Apple" type of hyperbole.
- headcanon 10y agoIt starts that way, but had an interesting perspective on Apple's business strategy later on in the article. I would recommend reading the rest.
- 127001brewer 10y agoOkay, I did read the rest of the article and, unfortunately, it's still a disappointment. For Apple to remain relevant in the future, the company will need to attack itself. Management will need to risk its own ecosystem. ...also agree and it seems like Apple has been doing this because, as stated in the article, of the lack of attention other products (and services) have recently received. Milk the iPhone today, and then figure out what comes next. I agree with this and fully expect Apple to do so, but where are the novel insights (that haven't been re-hashed from other recent sources (such as Bloomberg, Six Colors, etc).
- benmcnelly 10y agoBut... you can become a Above Avalon member and get access to figures and estimates behind the math!
- notadoc 10y agoQuite the contrary, Above Avalon is a relentless Apple bull and one of their many apologists. Good analysis overall, but it's typically with some variation of "this is greatest" with some hint at a greater big idea just around the corner.
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- rcarmo 10y agoI read this as far as the "apple watch with mobile connectivity" pipe dream and moved on. Yes, some day that will be feasible. At current power ratios, not soon, and believing otherwise betrays utter cluelessness.
- EddieSpeaks 10y agoTrouble with the iPhone users is that they don't know about other brands. Even the main competition. The Gear S3 Frontier manages mobile connectivity and superior UX with a supposed 4. Day battery life
- r00fus 10y agoTrouble with other brands? Or are people just not interested because it runs Tizen and has mediocre ratings? The real crux is I'm simply not going to pay my carrier another $5-20 subscription for another client device.
- jsjohnst 10y agoApple didn't invent the smartphone either. Smartphones existed for years before, Apple arguably just was the first to make something that the "masses" would want to use. Same thing will likely apply here too.
- coldtea 10y ago>The Gear S3 Frontier manages mobile connectivity and superior UX with a supposed 4. Day battery life The 4 day battery life (closer to 3 in practice) just about sums its benefits over the Apple Watch. Less features and not as well made, less applications available, and stuck with Tizen. Not so great connectivity options either. As for the condescending "they don't know about other brands", well, I've followed Tizen development since forever, with Rasterman involved in it et all.
- mikestew 10y agoI'm painfully aware of other brands, furthering my resolve to stick with iPhone for now. Had a Samsung Gear, the wristband one. That's the one that made me swear off Samsung. I work with a variety of Android phones every day. Though I can see reasons one might want something from that platform, I'm still sticking to my iPhone. What you choose to label as ignorance others might call "making the choice that suits my needs". I mean, I don't even have cable/satellite TV and I've seen a Samsung ad. I can't imagine your average consumer has no idea of other offerings.
- Jenya_ 10y agoFive years later, Apple has expanded the iPhone line to include five models, two of which are last year's flagship versions. Here in Moscow (at Apple Premium Reseller site) it has eight models, down to iPhone 5s (which I resently purchased as a gift for a paltry price of about $344). http://www.re-store.ru/apple-iphone/ http://www.re-store.ru/apple-iphone/ If someone don't know what an Apple Premium Reseller is, here is some info: http://www.apple.com/in/buy/apr/ http://www.apple.com/in/buy/apr/
- usaphp 10y agore-store.ru is not an official apple store. They can sell an iphone 3g, it does not mean Apple itself is selling that model. On apple.ru they have the same 5 models as they do here in US
- Jenya_ 10y agoThe difference is mostly a technicality, taking into account that I referenced an Apple Premium Reseller site. The iPhone 5s is not discontinued yet and that was exactly the point of the article (mass-production of cheaper iPhone models).
- mikeash 10y agoAre you sure they're not just selling leftover stock of the 5s?
- Jenya_ 10y agoOn the box of purchased iPhone 5s it says - manufactured October 2016. http://www.gadgetsnow.com/tech-news/Apple-denies-it-is-discontinuing-iPhone-5s-6-and-6-Plus-in-India/articleshow/54176034.cms http://www.gadgetsnow.com/tech-news/Apple-denies-it-is-disco...
- mikeash 10y agoCool. I had no idea they did this sort of thing. I just assumed that what they showed on apple.com was it. Searching around, I can still find a bunch of discussion about buying it new, now that I know to look for it.
- B1FF_PSUVM 10y agoMicrosoft - alas - is not competing anymore with Apple and Google on consumer devices. Huge vacuum there, something's bound to happen.
- kps 10y agoNot explicitly mentioned but presumably intended is the reference to Steve Jobs' 1996 statement: “If I were running Apple, I would milk the Macintosh for all it's worth — and get busy on the next great thing.”
- deleted 10y ago[deleted]
- charlesism 10y agoI'd say Apple Watch is less "next great thing" and more "Apple Newton." One of the first things Steve did upon his return to Apple was kill the Newton.
- 3stripe 10y agoThe article mentions two industries that Apple might pivot into: wearables and transportation. But I don't think Apple's industry focus will ever shift. Rather their/our definition of what 'personal computing' means will continue to evolve as the technology does. An iPhone is a personal computer. An Apple Watch wants to be a personal computer. Apple won't ever stop being a personal computer company. It's just that some day, a personal computer will be precisely that: a computer inside a person, integrated as software and hardware. A human iOS. Surely that is the ultimate endgoal, and not an aluminum car (with a charge point under its chasis) that can talk.
- netule 10y agoUsing your own logic, why couldn't an autonomous vehicle be a personal computer? The basic function of would be transportation, but what it would do better is integration with other Apple products and computing while on the move. I just don't see transportation and personal computing as being mutually exclusive.
- Animats 10y agoApple is going nowhere in automotive. Nor should they try. The profit margins are much, much lower than Apple is used to.
- toasterlovin 10y agoMobile phones have negative margins. Unless you're Apple.
- mortenjorck 10y agoFor the Apple Watch to actually start to steal more use cases from the iPhone, a huge change in user interfaces has to happen. Since touch input is really only useful for yes/no choices on a watch, voice becomes the primary channel – and Siri will have to become vastly more context-aware and able to carry out complex, multi-step tasks before that can happen. If Apple's new AI push succeeds, this will happen, but the company has a long path ahead.
- rsp1984 10y agoWhen it comes to catching the next big wave, an Apple Watch with cellular connectivity may end up representing the single biggest game-changing device Apple has shipped since the original iPhone. It would be that big of a deal. I don't think so. For that to happen there would have to be a quantum leap in user interfaces and right now I don't see any technology on the horizon that could provide that leap. Watch screens are too small for anything but displaying simplistic stuff, let alone letting the user meaningfully and fluidly control the device. Voice interfaces have been tried for decades. They mostly failed. People are comfortable with them in very private environments (e.g. cars) but not when others are around (for good reason). I think the author is right to conclude that Apple thinks we're still firmly in the smartphone era.
- JumpCrisscross 10y ago> I don't see any technology on the horizon that could provide that leap What about above-device "floating" gestures, e.g. Project Soli [1]. Gesturing above instead of on the device means much more space in which to do things. [1] https://atap.google.com/soli/ https://atap.google.com/soli/
- news_to_me 10y agoThe problem with "floating gestures" and the like is that they're even less tactile than touch screens, which I would argue is the biggest downside to touch interfaces. With the smartphone, the touch screen offered a ton of potential and flexibility, but I don't think the same can be said of "floating" gestures.
- erelde 10y agoOn the other hand the biggest downside to touch interfaces is that you're essentially always hiding what you're interacting with. If I could have floating gestures in front of my desktop I'd be very happy. Scrolling a page by waving my hand while leaning back in my seat. I think someone made something like this with Kinect.
- boznz 10y agoAs the number of MBA's increase I'm thinking their next big product will be the iBank :-)
- fnordsensei 10y agoIt'll be interesting to see what they come up with. A phone and a watch doesn't make for much of an ecosystem, and they do seem to be leaving much of the rest by the roadside at the moment. For every piece of the puzzle that they drop they become potentially easier to replace.
- amelius 10y agoBy the way, what will happen to the Apple Watch? Is this going to be developed further or will it become abandonware?
- TheOtherHobbes 10y agoApple can't afford to drop it yet. It will be refined for another iteration or two. It may or may not be dropped quietly a few years from now - possibly with Tim Cook. Watch has been a huge and very expensive misstep. IMO Apple should have tried to own the home automation market, with secure, high-margin, high-quality products linked into the Apple ecosystem and built with some measure of AI and smart collective decision making - the kind of thing Nest tried to do, but never quite got right, and which the other players in that market (Belkin, etc) don't have the smarts to try. Watch is a mistake because it's not useful in the way that classic Apple products are. It can do some mildly interesting things, but the whole point of an Apple product is that you're supposed to dream about owning it because you can do more with it than without it. Watch doesn't do that. It's a fashion accessory, not a powerful tool that happens to be beautifully designed. So even if it's refined physically - thinner, etc - it's never going to be a huge success unless someone in Cupertino works out how to change that.
- toasterlovin 10y agoHow was the Watch a "huge and very expensive misstep"? The analyst estimates I've seen point to them having sold over ten million units at > $250 each. That would make it a multi billion dollar business.
- quicklyfrozen 10y agoPerhaps opportunity cost. Apple has limited design and engineering resources (seemly at least partially by intent) so they've had to sacrifice in other areas to develop the watch, and so far only seen modest returns.
- DarthMader 10y ago
- djyaz1200 10y agoApple needs to do one thing to reassert their dominance for the next decade... allow users to easily connect iphones to displays and keyboards. Iphones easily have enough CPU to run a simple desktop for the average email/websurfing/video consuming public. Why even buy a desktop or laptop if you could just plug in your phone and have all your documents/programs right there along with high speed internet. No brainer.
- grzm 10y agoI don't think they're even that far off given Bluetooth connectivity and AirPlay. There are some OS things to tweak: I've definitely noticed UI issues using a keyboard with an iPad, for example. But then again, the size of a laptop is no longer much larger than the IO devices: screen, keyboard, and trackpad. Advantages of having a single device is likely data and configuration, or possibly separation of domain, such as work and home. If this is largely sync'd, how much use will there be for these separate devices other than form factor?
- djyaz1200 10y agoAgree, lighting ports on iOS devices also offer a lot of flexibility. Apple's processors also offer far more power than is needed to just run a phone. They seem to be converging towards this.
- Malic 10y agoOh, you mean like this? (Only with an iPhone vs. a MacBook) http://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2008/01/timely-apple-patent-introduces-imac-like-docking-station.html http://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2008/01/timely-a... Apple has been thinking about something like this for a long time.
- tammer 10y agoThis article is been written dozens of times, over three decades. It hasn't proven true yet.
- macintux 10y agoI think you're reading a different article. For three decades Apple has done what he's describing.
- rezashirazian 10y agoThere is still room for improvement on the iPhone. Everything from battery life, camera to storage and other usability improvements. I would love to see an iPhone with 1TB of space. It would make it more likely for me to purchase all the app/movies/digital services Apple wants to push instead of dealing with iCloud or endless "Phone is full" messages.
- MicroBerto 10y agoOne big sign of dysfunction at Apple is that their main competitor released phones that literally explode, and Apple was still unable recapture any foothold, while said competitor is successfully reloading as we speak.
- draw_down 10y agoWhat is "foothold", in this context?
- toasterlovin 10y agoWhat were they supposed to do after the Samsung exploding phone debacle that they didn't?
- coldtea 10y ago>and Apple was still unable recapture any foothold According to whom? The results for this quarter (after Samsung took back the Galaxy) will be published early next year...
- coldtea 10y agocase in point: http://appleinsider.com/articles/16/12/07/new-research-data-shows-iphone-at-top-of-sales-charts-by-vendor-across-most-of-the-world http://appleinsider.com/articles/16/12/07/new-research-data-...
- hobarrera 10y agoReading the article reminded me that I don't really get the fuzz around iMessage. It's an iOS-only messaging system (meaning that the majority of the people out there can't use it), and it limited to only certain carriers (it works on only 3 our of 6 in my country, AFAIK), narrowing the audience even more. Yet, even though it's double-niche, Apple seems to be putting effort, and features into an app, that, apparently, very few people out there can use (I don't personally know anybody how has both and iPhone and a carrier that supports iMessages, me having only the former).
- zippergz 10y agoObviously it depends heavily on where you live and who you are friends with. Here in a major city in the US, virtually all of the people I exchange messages with are on iMessage. For the tiny minority who aren't (I just skimmed my message list and I found exactly three), it pretty gracefully degrades to SMS.
- hobarrera 10y ago> Here in a major city in the US That's my point. If you're a global company targeting major US cities, you're missing out about 80% (might be more, might be less) of the world. Of course there are people for whom this is useful, but that doesn't mean it's useful for most (or even a large percentage!) of the people out there.
- HappyTypist 10y agoOut of the last 10 people I talked to, 6 were on iMessage, 1 SMS, 3 messenger.
- kalleboo 10y ago> and it limited to only certain carriers You don't even need a phone to use iMessage - it works just as well with an iCloud account name or on a Mac. I don't know what the carriers in your country are doing to the phone to break it (blocking it to preserve SMS revenues?). I've also traveled extensively and never had problems with iMessage so I'd wager your country is an outlier. iMessage is not even blocked in China.
- mark_l_watson 10y agoI have a difficult time imagining the apple watch becoming a hit product until it can shine a holographic images like R2D2 in Star Wars could. Even then I have my doubts. Every article predicting hard times for Apple, Microsoft, Google, or Facebook has the same flaw: not considering how many decades of runway these companies have if their business hits a rough patch. The thing I am most excited about is integration of all a user's devices, and Apple has a good start on that. Apple could end up adding iCar and iHome to their product line.
- cocktailpeanuts 10y agoI think the R2D2 hologram is cool but the problem is, it will probably come from another type of device. It could be a autonomous nano-drones, it could be in the form of an augmented reality device, etc.
- IgorPartola 10y agoHeh. Rim's BlackBerry was nowhere as good as the iPhone is today (yes I know physical keyboards are the best; nevertheless), and they lasted for what, two decades after their product was clearly not as good as all the competition. Apple is doing way better at this point. Yes I think they dropped the ball on iPhone 7: it introduced very little new stuff, and this is their innovation year. But they are not screwing up, just innovating very slowly. I am not happy with the 7, but my feelings aside, it won't kill the brand.
- coldtea 10y ago>yes I know physical keyboards are the best; nevertheless Citation needed, especially when it comes to mobile use. The tactility might be good, but touch keyboards are much more flexible and let you free up tons of real estate for more screen in apps that don't need a keyboard. Shouldn't that tradeoff be considered before one declares what's best?
- rebootthesystem 10y agoThe next step is, in my humble opinion, obvious but not trivial in execution. It is also a perfect "Innovators Dilemma" scenario. The next iPhone needs to be a Mac computer in your pocket and have the full functionality of a Mac. One thing that is painfully missing from iOS is multiuser support. It is unbelievable that, so many years later, I can't hand my iPhone or iPad to a friend, co-worker, my kids or someone at a meeting and have them be in "guest" mode or some mode where I can exercise complete access control to information and apps. Today, if you hand your unlocked iOS device to someone they have full access to anything that isn't locked out specifically by an app. And, even at that, your entire device is exposed. The other improvement would be more granularity in selecting what lives outside and inside the lock screen. I work in an ITAR environment, which means my phone needs to have a password in order to prevent access to my ITAR email and calendar. NOTHING ELSE ON MY PHONE requires that lockout. I can't even hang-up the damn thing while on a call without entering a password because the damn lock screen locks out everything. This is ridiculous. If I had the aforementioned multi-user mode I could setup a "work" user to deal with my ITAR stuff and a "me" user to expose what I want and how I want it. There is no good reason I can come up with to have my friggin calculator live behind a password. I should be able to define what I want on each side of that wall. Finally, and this would be the killer app, the new your-iphone-is-a-mac device should have the technology necessary to bring up the MacOS interface on any computer any time. In other words, when I go to work, I should be able to connect to my Mac-in-my-pocket device and bring-up MacOS on a window on my Windows 10 machine. It should be painless and seamless. If it requires a little USB device, that's fine. The phone should have a slot for this device to be stored so it can go with you anywhere. Pop it out, plug it in and you are in business. This should also work on traditional Macs. Now your phone is your real personal computer, everywhere. It could even use the touchscreen as the trackpad if necessary. The other huge evolutionary step if they took this path would be to allow full file system access. Maybe there's a distinction between MacOS and iOS apps. The iOS stuff can remain sandboxed while the MacOS apps enjoy full file system access. Finally, the phone's physical UI needs to evolve. This business of overloading a precious few buttons is nonsense. Double click, triple click, the volume button is this and that...etc. Insane. Most people have no clue because most people don't operate that way. What the iPhone desperately needs is something like an edge mounted wheel or, even better, a two dimensional sensor (like the mice that image an amplified version of the table to determine how far you moved, only this one would image your thumb). Something like scrolling through your address book or apps could be a single handed, single finger operation. Many years ago I had a Motorola flip phone with a piggy back accessory (forgot the name) that included a rotary wheel with a push-to-select function. It was incredibly useful and fast. The iPhone also needs a few buttons the user can define. I want a real edge-mounted button to, for example, launch my RPN calculator. Maybe another button to launch the weather app, stocks or whatever. Physical buttons are good. Now, I understand the minimalist design thing. Fine. Provide an unencumbered interface and protocol entrepreneurs can use to interface with the phone and build such add-on products. By unencumbered I mean something like a simple high speed serial port with power, no licensing, no walled garden, no buying proprietary chips. The range of innovation this would spur would be massive. There's a lot they can do with the device and form factor. They need to get off this thinner, thinner, thinner bullshit. I don't want it thinner. I'd gladly have a device twice as thick as the current crop of iphones if it did a good portion of what I described above. People don't buy these things because they are thin. I am still on an iPhone 4S because there's nothing whatsoever in the new phones that is compelling or useful enough to spend the money on an upgrade. If Apple doesn't wake up they are going to find themselves up against new contenders that will eat them for lunch. I still have hopes for a fully desktop integrated Windows phone. Microsoft won't do it but that doesn't mean companies like HP won't pull it off and knock it out of the park. If someone shows-up with powerful fully integrated Windows PC in my pocket that can connect to the desktop (and more) I am launching this 4S into orbit and switching. I want Solidworks in my pocket and usable anywhere I go. I want computing that isn't tied to and locked to my desk. I want to own my data and not have it exposed on someone's cloud. I want the next evolutionary step in computing. It's about time. Who's going to do it?
- intransigent 10y agoWatch, and TV aren't defensive "moat like" structures intended to reinforce or barracade. Defense, in an industry like this, is vertical integration, so more like tools such as Xcode. The Apple watch is a luxury item and fashion statement. An advertisement and status symbol. It does not insulate or protect the appeal or practicality of other products. As an accessory, the watch promotes deeper investment, but it's adoption is niche. The walled garden and business partnerships of the app store to provide desirable mobile media and content that motivates actually using an iPhone for anything at all is the true moat and fortification surrounding the iPhone. As for attacking itself as an evolutionary leap forward, Apple would need to obviate its current product line with something better that reduces dependency on said products. Phone service and phone numbers may eventually become anachronistic. At which point, phones cease to be phones, really, but the name and the digital broadband connection will still be there. Maybe personal orbital satellites and sub-orbital high altitude personal drones will obviate today's concept of a handset? Does that sound silly, because I can't tell anymore.
- mctx 10y ago> More importantly, transportation is the gateway to the grand prize: housing. When contemplating a smart home, there is nowhere better to start than developing smart rooms on wheels. Is the author suggesting autonomous smart caravans?
- zappo2938 10y ago"It feels like cracks are forming at Apple's edges. " -- That literal describes my iPhone right now. The screen is popping out because the adhesive isn't holding so it is cracked all along the edge.
- snowwrestler 10y agoThe new MacBook Pro was greeted with the usual amount of bitching that accompanies any new edition of that product. But by all reports it is selling very well. And Apple exited displays and WiFi routers because they are shrinking commodity markets. Neither Apple nor their customers would benefit from Apple continuing to chase that. Apple pioneered the laser printer in the U.S. market and made a lot of money selling them. Nevertheless, they got out of the printer business when it became clear that printers were a commodity. No one today complains that Apple doesn't make printers. In fact if Apple started to, everyone would say they lost their minds. Thus it will soon be with displays and WiFi routers. So I'm having trouble buying the premise of the article.
- ryao 10y agoIsn't that the case with everything that they sell? Eventually, They will not sell anything if they stop selling products when they become a commodities.
- ricw 10y agoNot if they control the ecosystem (App Store, platform, hardware). They do of course have a formidable competitor in android that arguably currently has the edge..
- jmnicolas 10y agoI think the bitching is more general : why no 17" laptop, where are the new iMacs, the new minis, the new MacPros ? I really would like to enter the Apple ecosystem but 1- they're not making the computer I want and 2- prices are just ridiculous.
- simonh 10y agoApple gave up on trying to be a complete duplicate of the Windows PC market a long time ago. Yes they want to build a compelling ecosystem that will draw in and retain a broad audience, but they don't want or need to be a complete solution for everybody. So I think they're perfectly fine with leaving the 17" laptop market, and other niche categories, to other manufacturers.
- dpiz 10y agoSo tired of hearing about the iPhone and Apple products. Any chance they'll soon jump on the open-source train?
- bitmapbrother 10y agoWhat a terrible analysis. It's as if this blogger is oblivious to the world outside of Apple in which he lives in. And his prediction that the Apple Watch is their next big thing is ridiculous given the years of public disregard for these devices. The Apple Watch will always be a mediocre product with lackluster sales. Accept it for what it is and stop trying to make it into something it'll never be.
- coldtea 10y ago>The Apple Watch will always be a mediocre product with lackluster sales. Accept it for what it is and stop trying to make it into something it'll never be. Lackluster compared to what? Because in its field, watches in general, it's the #2 best selling watch. And in its niche, smartwatches, it's outselling the competition (Samsung, etc) by an order of magnitude or so. It also became a multi-billion dollar business just as it came out -- and it's only in it's 2nd release (it took more time for the iPod to sell the same amount of units). And of course, compared to the profits coming in, there's probably not even a comparison, as Apple is unique in having high profit margins whereas many else are selling commodity hardware on thinner margins. The main issue is people having unrealistic expectatations of what the sales of the Apple Watch should be. Obviously everybody has a smartphone (whether Apple or not), but very few will have a watch (whether Apple Watch or anything else). Heck, most people don't even wear an ordinary watch anymore. So, given that, and given that Apple never said "the Apple Watch will surpass iPhone / iPad etc in sales", they just released it as another product they do, it's incredibly successful. In fact it just sold more units this quarter than it did last year, so it keeps improving too.
- coldtea 10y ago>It feels like cracks are forming at Apple's edges. The company is straining to push out hardware updates. Supply issues are getting worse. Apple is reportedly moving away from selling beloved products like stand-alone displays and wireless routers. Meanwhile, Microsoft, Amazon, and Snap are gaining buzz with new niche hardware while Apple appears to be hanging back and resting on its laurels. So, business as usual? As I've been hearing the exact same things, only with more fanfare ("iPod Killer", "iPhone killer", "Macbook Air killer" etc.) for 15 years now...
- mrmondo 10y agoMy thoughts exactly, same old story since the start. Doesn't mean people shouldn't try though - competition and questioning your purchases are both very wise things to do, but to make hugely over generalised statements based on essentially no scientific or statistical proof is another.
- noir-york 10y agoWhat a terrible "analysis". Not worth the paper its written on. The series of questionable statements include: A phone in a watch is a game changer? Really?! Apple is the only one focusing on smartphones? "Android" is mentioned only twice and only in the context of Android users moving to an iWatch Phone. The claim that Apple Watch and TV are moats, but then arguing that WiFi routers don't really matter. Eh?
- pawadu 10y agoMost of their other articles follow the same pattern. It's like reading Grubers blog.
- gutnor 10y ago"When contemplating a smart home, there is nowhere better to start than developing smart rooms on wheels." would require some explanation. Even considering that Apple is looking seriously at wearable is debatable. You need to include the airpod as a wearable so that you have something else than the rarely updated Apple Watch.
- charlesism 10y agoApple's reputation has been sliding every year since Tim took over. At this point Apple can no longer rely on: - the press painting them in a good light. - customers evangelizing its products. - hiring, and retaining, the very best talent in the valley. Some of the changes have also boosted sales. If you're sacrificing your ability to compete in the future, short-term profit is just "operation was a success, but the patient is dead"
- noir-york 10y agoSpot on. Apple is not, say, your local car dealer where increasing sales is the goal. Sure, Apple needs to increase sales but how it increases sales and how it positions itself strategically to keep growing shareholder value is the key thing.
- mrmondo 10y agoI'm not sure I really agree with the principle of the idea that apples products are getting worse in general. There's always some products that work, some that don't and some that don't at first - but do after refinement. For example, 2-3 years ago I thought OS X (now macOS) was really going down hill, far less stability, performance stagnation and no clear direction. Turn to 2016 and I think Sierra is the most stable and reliable macOS yet, also we now have much 'better' standboxing, protected core system storage, better battery life and an interesting file system on its way. Now, look at the iPhone 7+ - it's a great phone, it's in my opinion the best phone they've ever made, it's not perfect, the camera is good but it's still a phone camera and thus requires a lot of light and a nice clean lens to take a decent shot, its battery life is excellent compared to most other phones - you can quite happily go two days between charges unless you have something setup poorly (like a polling email account etc), iOS is more responsive and stable than ever, we have public and developer betas and finally Apple actually respond to bug reports from the feedback tool (not every time, but when it's something worth investigating). The retina MacBook is a lovely replacement for the MacBook Air, yes it doesn't have enough RAM and could do with a bit faster CPU, but it is a truly portable, usable machine. Since the introduction of the 5k iMac, there's been no turning back for me, I have an early 2015 model at work and late 2015 at home and they are simply a joy to work on, not just the wonderful screen but the CPUs are rarely maxed out, the upgraded GPU in my home machine easily plays any game I want to play. The bad is that the MacBook Pro is undeniably over priced if you want to spec it out, the Mac Pro is long overdue an update and they in my opinion should have retired the Air and offered a higher spec MacBook. On the software side of things, we have a larger than ever open source software community contributing software usable on OS X and the range and diversity of games available of macOS has grown at an amazing rate over the past few years, look at the titles on steam, gogs and the App Store - it was only 2-3 years ago you really had to use wine and friends to play such games. iTunes still kind of sucks, it's UI/UX is a lot better than when Apple Music first launched but the app is still very slow and heavy when you have a large library, but Apple Music itself has very quickly gone from being a wtf is this product to replacing Spotify for me thanks to its integration across devices, better streaming quality (or so it seems) and it's better range of full albums. Tldr; some things work, some things don't, I think things are better than ever regardless of failed experiments or some product lines that are outdated.
- cdevs 10y agoYou can milk a cat ? You can milk anything with nipples...
- norea-armozel 10y agoI think the more worrisome aspect of post-Jobs Apple is the fact that the software has taken a major nosedive on quality. Whenever I see someone break down the latest update of OSX or iOS it always seems like QA at Apple forgot to check something or didn't care. My own personal experience with iOS is from being a late comer after replacing my Galaxy S3 (yeah I'm not a fan of smart phones). What's funny is how clunky iOS felt and still feels even when compared to Jelly Bean Android. It's not like Android was great either but it's weird how the competition doesn't seem to care to beat them at least on responsiveness and intuitive workflow for navigating between apps and core functionality. It's just sad to see good hardware get bogged down by bad decisions on software.
- newscracker 10y ago> Consumers can pick and choose a range of Apple products that best fit their lifestyles. This is why Apple is very vocal about continuing to invest in the Mac. I laughed when I read these two sentences. Speaking of the Mac, there are hardly any Apple products that fit best for many consumers. Apple and the people who write about Apple may chant that "Apple is very vocal about continuing to invest in the Mac", but what's seen in retail and online stores says a lot about the "investment" not being helpful or useful for customers who have been with Apple for long. > … > However, Apple's handling of the Mac line has been increasingly questionable. Seriously, was "questionable" the best adjective that the author could come up with in this context? In my opinion, the right wording, based on facts as observed by consumers, should be, "However, Apple's abandoning of the Mac line and its usual tightlippedness has been mind numbingly incomprehensible and exasperatingly frustrating."