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I still don't understand why there are _4_ lines • air • pro • mini • and "regular" As a potential buyer this has gotten far too complicated for a product and

I still don't understand why there are _4_ lines • air • pro • mini • and "regular" As a potential buyer this has gotten far too complicated for a product and company that is about simplicity and making decisions simple for their customers. And isn't super confusing that the Air is probably now faster than the Pro (with the A14 vs. A12)?

tshaddox 6y ago
I think the only reason it's confusing now is that the new iPad Pro looks virtually identical to the smaller iPad Pro. The form factor, display size and resolution, and weight are essentially identical. The key differences are that the Pro has LiDAR, an additional ultrawide camera, a 120 Hz display, FaceID, and larger storage options, while the new Air has a new (and potentially faster) chip and TouchID built into the power button. The chip generation offset isn't all that uncommon for similar Apple product lines with staggered releases, and in this case both chips are staggeringly fast and are very unlikely to be a bottleneck for iPad workloads!
hellomyguys 6y ago
Definitely a bit confusing, but I imagine consumers like having options at almost every price point.
rgovostes 6y ago
When Jobs returned to Apple, he mocked the insane number of Mac models that the company had at the time and showed a grid of 4 products with two axes: consumer vs professional, and portable vs desktop. https://images.macrumors.com/t/RMh3opIDBtVaaNXx0L_ntSxfO34=/1600x0/filters:quality(90)/article-new/2019/07/steve-jobs-2x2.jpg https://images.macrumors.com/t/RMh3opIDBtVaaNXx0L_ntSxfO34=/... The current product catalog is a far cry from that simplicity. For instance, the iPad Pro comes in two sizes. Inexplicably, customers need to choose between a 32 GB and 64 GB model of Apple TV 4K. There are 5 models of iPhone currently offered.
- snowwrestler 6y ago
  This gets dragged out every time someone comments on Apple's product strategy today, and it's just not relevant. Apple 20 years ago was a company in crisis and Jobs helped impose much-needed focus. As they climbed out of crisis, they expanded their product portfolio. The iPod alone violated this famous grid, and if you look back, over time there were a ton of overlapping products, versions, options, and accessories in the iPod category. Why? To fill out all the price point tiers and deny competitors ground from which they could establish differentiated products and grow from there. Jobs himself installed this strategy, and Apple continues to execute it to great success across all their product lines.
basch 6y ago
the naming may a bit confusing across products (xl vs pro vs +), but I think 4 is probably the sweet spot. The first three being cheap, light, fast. And the fourth being more of a sister miniature product. the "regular" needs a consistent name across products, and it should probably become the cheap line with previous gen parts. the ipad and the iphone s could become the iPad Core and the iPhone Core, that give you the Core experience of an Apple product without the frills of a Pro line, or the weight shaving and high end chipset of an Air.

tshaddox 6y ago

I think the only reason it's confusing now is that the new iPad Pro looks virtually identical to the smaller iPad Pro. The form factor, display size and resolution, and weight are essentially identical. The key differences are that the Pro has LiDAR, an additional ultrawide camera, a 120 Hz display, FaceID, and larger storage options, while the new Air has a new (and potentially faster) chip and TouchID built into the power button. The chip generation offset isn't all that uncommon for similar Apple product lines with staggered releases, and in this case both chips are staggeringly fast and are very unlikely to be a bottleneck for iPad workloads!

hellomyguys 6y ago

Definitely a bit confusing, but I imagine consumers like having options at almost every price point.

rgovostes 6y ago

When Jobs returned to Apple, he mocked the insane number of Mac models that the company had at the time and showed a grid of 4 products with two axes: consumer vs professional, and portable vs desktop. https://images.macrumors.com/t/RMh3opIDBtVaaNXx0L_ntSxfO34=/1600x0/filters:quality(90)/article-new/2019/07/steve-jobs-2x2.jpg https://images.macrumors.com/t/RMh3opIDBtVaaNXx0L_ntSxfO34=/... The current product catalog is a far cry from that simplicity. For instance, the iPad Pro comes in two sizes. Inexplicably, customers need to choose between a 32 GB and 64 GB model of Apple TV 4K. There are 5 models of iPhone currently offered.

snowwrestler 6y ago
This gets dragged out every time someone comments on Apple's product strategy today, and it's just not relevant. Apple 20 years ago was a company in crisis and Jobs helped impose much-needed focus. As they climbed out of crisis, they expanded their product portfolio. The iPod alone violated this famous grid, and if you look back, over time there were a ton of overlapping products, versions, options, and accessories in the iPod category. Why? To fill out all the price point tiers and deny competitors ground from which they could establish differentiated products and grow from there. Jobs himself installed this strategy, and Apple continues to execute it to great success across all their product lines.

basch 6y ago

the naming may a bit confusing across products (xl vs pro vs +), but I think 4 is probably the sweet spot. The first three being cheap, light, fast. And the fourth being more of a sister miniature product. the "regular" needs a consistent name across products, and it should probably become the cheap line with previous gen parts. the ipad and the iphone s could become the iPad Core and the iPhone Core, that give you the Core experience of an Apple product without the frills of a Pro line, or the weight shaving and high end chipset of an Air.