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When Steve Jobs returned to Apple as CEO, he found a lot of variations of Mac getting developed. There was Mac for this, Mac for that, separate Mac for everythi

When Steve Jobs returned to Apple as CEO, he found a lot of variations of Mac getting developed. There was Mac for this, Mac for that, separate Mac for everything. He asked one question to the people developing, “If I had to buy one for my nephew, what would you recommend me?” He got several options. Then he asked, “If I had to buy one for my nephew, what would you suggest from the ones you just suggested?” He got more fine-tuned answer. He kept asking this question until a lot of the variations were rejected. Then he went up to the board and drew a 2x2 matrix. On one axis, he wrote, “Personal” and “Professional”. On another axis, he wrote, “Desktop” and “Portable”. He concluded that Apple would make only four variations of Mac, and they would shut down development of every other variation. Steve always went for 'less'. While current leadership released 2 versions of phones, many versions of the iWatch, Steve always wanted the company to focus of a subset of users. The simple flaw in present Apple's mindset is 'lack of focus'. First time ever, I am disappointed by the Apple. And yes, Steve would have fired every 10th person for the glitch in the live stream and the Chinese woman.

callum85 12y ago
The Chinese woman?
a_c_s 12y ago
The iPod is a great counter-example: there have been times Apple was selling 4 different lines of iPod at a time, most of which came in an array of colors. The apple watch basically comes in two sizes with an array of 'colors' (metals) and watchbands. The difference between that and the history is that each iPod has a clear niche. The problem Apple was having with such a selection of products is that it was hard to figure out which one should be purchased as they didn't have clear, differentiating roles.
snowwrestler 12y ago
This is just wrong. Jobs oversaw numerous variations in size, color, and specs during his time at Apple. The iMac came in like 5 colors at one point. And remember this was a desktop computer! Laptops in different sizes and colors; iPods in different sizes and colors, with Apple-branded accessories (remember the "socks" Apple sold for them?); iPad covers in multiple finishes and colors, etc. You just need to do your research before posting on something that can be easily looked up.
krrrh 12y ago
I've seen a lot of people making this point about lack of focus wrt the watch, but I don't understand it. There is only one Apple watch, with no variation in storage or other internals. Like the iphone it comes in three finishes, in this case steel, aluminum, and gold. The straps have zero functionality other than aesthetics, and the mechanism for easily swapping them is brilliant. Watches are jewelry. People who wear them usually own more than one and wear different ones based on the rest of their outfit. The Apple watch is more a more useful device if you wear it every day, and making multiple styles of watch bands makes it easier and more natural to do this. One watch for every occasion.

callum85 12y ago

The Chinese woman?

a_c_s 12y ago

The iPod is a great counter-example: there have been times Apple was selling 4 different lines of iPod at a time, most of which came in an array of colors. The apple watch basically comes in two sizes with an array of 'colors' (metals) and watchbands. The difference between that and the history is that each iPod has a clear niche. The problem Apple was having with such a selection of products is that it was hard to figure out which one should be purchased as they didn't have clear, differentiating roles.

snowwrestler 12y ago

This is just wrong. Jobs oversaw numerous variations in size, color, and specs during his time at Apple. The iMac came in like 5 colors at one point. And remember this was a desktop computer! Laptops in different sizes and colors; iPods in different sizes and colors, with Apple-branded accessories (remember the "socks" Apple sold for them?); iPad covers in multiple finishes and colors, etc. You just need to do your research before posting on something that can be easily looked up.

krrrh 12y ago

I've seen a lot of people making this point about lack of focus wrt the watch, but I don't understand it. There is only one Apple watch, with no variation in storage or other internals. Like the iphone it comes in three finishes, in this case steel, aluminum, and gold. The straps have zero functionality other than aesthetics, and the mechanism for easily swapping them is brilliant. Watches are jewelry. People who wear them usually own more than one and wear different ones based on the rest of their outfit. The Apple watch is more a more useful device if you wear it every day, and making multiple styles of watch bands makes it easier and more natural to do this. One watch for every occasion.