steve jobs

To 4S or Not 4S, That is the Problem

By Mark Evans in Apple/iPod No Comments Tags: , , ,

Apple, Apple, Apple. So brilliant, seductive and alluring.

The hits keep coming and the new products keep on getting released, even if they are just minor upgrades to the previous product such as the iPhone 4S.

Even though there was disappointment, the 4S wasn’t a iPhone5, it’s still something new from Apple, which is always a good thing for the growing Apple Nation.

The question is whether we’re strong enough to resist the temptation to upgrade. Is getting the new thing irresistible, or should we live with what we’ve got.

The iPhone4S called out to me yesterday when, coincidentally, my battered and bruised 3GS fell on the floor. The glass panel shattered, bringing on agony but, at the same time, the ecstatic realization that it had created a window of opportunity to get a 4S. It was like a spiritual Steve Jobs had lightly pushed my 3GS off the shelf.

So what to do, what to do? Spend $300 or $400 on a 4S, or hold onto the 3GS given saving money seems to a good thing these days. Or should I buy an iPhone4 that the carriers have slashed prices on to move out excess inventory?

The back and forth when considering Apple products is agonizing. One minute, a 4S is a slam-dunk; the next minute you decide not to jump on the bandwagon.

In the end, I got the 3GS fixed. For now, I have a functional iPhone again, which will suit my needs and, as important, provide some more time to decide whether to get the 4S.

Steve Jobs Picks Perfect Time to Leave

By Mark Evans in Apple/iPod 2 Comments Tags: , ,

Steve jobsAn adage that I’ve tried to live by is “always leave a good time” based on the idea that exiting on a positive note is better than skulking out the door. It’s like leaving a party when it’s still raging as opposed to leaving when there’s only a few people sticking around, the music has been turned off and there’s no beer left in the fridge.

In many respects, Steve Jobs has picked the perfect time to leave Apple. The company has become a cultural, technological and business monster with an aura hand-crafted by Jobs over the past decade. Apple is firing on all cylinders, seemingly unable to do anything wrong. The iMac, MacBook, iPad and iPad have established Apple as the world’s coolest brand and a design titan.

But where does Apple go from here?

When you’re at the top of your game, it can be a huge challenge to keep getting better. Arguably, the only place for Apple to go may be down given the competition over the horizon from players such as Google and Samsung.

On one hand, it would be probably be pretty cool to be Tim Cook, who is replacing Jobs as Apple’s CEO. On the other hand, Cook may have the world’s toughest job. Every move he makes, every new product and every quarterly result will be scrutinized and compared against the Steve-o-Meter. No matter how well Cook performs, it may never be good enough.

But that’s the reality of replacing an icon. There is no way you can compete so Cook needs to put his head down and let Apple continue to be Apple.

One thing that will be interesting is whether Apple employees, including Cook, will be allowed to enjoy the spotlight. During Jobs’ reign, he was the centre of attention, and it was rare to read about some of the other uber-talented people who were driving the company’s product development and marketing. Maybe Jobs’ departure will give them a chance to shine.

Jobs will be missed, although it doesn’t look like he’s disappearing. That said, no one is irreplaceable, even Steve Jobs. Apple will continue to roll along but it may never enjoy the same kind of amazing momentum it has seen over the past five – with or without Jobs as CEO.

For some more thoughts on what Apple means without Steve Jobs, check out this good piece of analysis by Econsultancy. Wired has a story on why Cook is the best choice to lead Apple.

Forget About 3D TV, I Want My Apple TV

By Mark Evans in Apple/iPod 3 Comments Tags: , , , ,

How many rabbits can Steve Jobs pulled out of his magical Apple hat?

Since the iPod’s launch in late-2001, Apple has been steadily introducing new and improved products that have transformed it into the world’s most exciting and leading consumer electronics company.

The launch yesterday of Apple TV is another example of Apple’s ability to disrupt well-entrenched markets with something that may not be revolutionary but it’s bound to make an impact based on its design, functionality and, of course, the magical Apple aura.

Designed to stream television shows, videos and movies off the Internet or via a personal computer, the new Apple TV (aka the hockey puck) is simplistic yet it has the potential to be disruptive. At $99 (or C$119), it’s a product lots of people will if only because it’s from Apple, it’s cool and it will easily change how you watch TV, movies and videos. Heck, I’m going to buy one, and I’m someone who has steadfastly resisted buying an iPad because it’s been impossible to justify.

The another interest aspect to Apple 2.0 is how it puts the spotlight on another part of the TV world: 3D. For months, the TV industry has been aggressively trying to convince consumers they need a 3D TV, even though the amount of programming available is minimal right now. At a time when many consumers are upgrading to large-screen plasma or LCD TVs, the TV industry is trying to force us to take another step forward that consumers aren’t prepared to take.

Apple, on the other hand, is appealing to couch potatoes in a different way. Apple’s approach is providing consumers with choice and the ability to easily take advantage of all the content on the Internet. It is appealing to how consumers want to watch what they want, when they want, which is a powerful proposition.

My sense is Apple TV will be a smash-hit with units flying off the shelves because Steve Jobs will convince them it is something they need to have because it will make their lives better and more enjoyable. Whether or not they need one is another question but Apple, in many ways, is a master of getting people to believe there are things they wand, and then there are things (such as the iPod, iPhone and iPad), they need.

No iPad Fever? What’s Wrong with You?

By Mark Evans in Apple/iPod 5 Comments Tags: , , ,

I’m not going to opine on the launch of the iPad; there’s more than enough news reports, commentary, tweets, opinions and bubbly bullishness to go around. And then there’s the 700,000 iPads that have been snapped up since Friday.

Instead, I’ll make a short commentary on power of the Apple Aura (the URL is still available). Perhaps more so than even the iPhone, Apple has managed to capture the imagination of just about everyone with the iPad. Even if you’re a Luddite, it’s difficult, if not impossible, to escape the shock and awe of Apple’s much-anticipated iPad launch.

There’s the oh-I-can’t-wait excitement, the media and blogger fawning, and the obligatory and oh-so-passe line-ups in front of Apple stores. Note: Who are these people who line up for hours and days? Haven’t they got anything better to do with their time? What is it about being first other than saying you were first?

Unlike any other consumer products company in the world, Apple has the power to create seismic changes in consumer markets. Whatever Apple and Steve Jobs serve up, the world gobbles up because it’s cool and hip to be seen as part of the Apple wave.

As for whether I would get an iPad, the answer is not yet. I’m not much of a first-generation product purchaser, and I’m not sure if an iPad would be over-kill given I already own a MacBook. Like any digital animal, I’m definitely curious about the iPad but far more impressed with its overwhelmingly positive reception.

For what it’s worth, Boing Boing’s Cory Doctorow is one of the few people who has declared his lack of interest in buying an iPad. Everyone else seems to have swallowed the iPad hook, line and sinker.

iPad: Bad Name, Lots of Potential

By Mark Evans in Apple/iPod 2 Comments Tags: , , ,

ipadThere’s certainly no lack of commentary, opinion and conversation about Apple’s ultra-anticipated tablet computer, the iPad.

First, it’s a terrible name for lots of reasons; the iSlate or iTablet would have been better choices. As for my take on the device itself, it’s pretty interesting, particularly as an e-Reader, but the real story is how the iPad could evolve in the future.

In the scheme of things, the iPad is simply Apple dipping its strategic toes in the water. It lets Apple get into the tablet computer market, and probably selling millions of units to a growing customer base. In the meantime, Apple will continue to work on adding features to the iPad, and evolve it into a device could go far beyond it being a cool way to watch movies or read books.

For example, the iPad could be a key part of a home entertainment system that connects computers, televisions and the Internet in a user-friendly package – something that the consumer electronics market has been salivating about for years. The iPad could be the always-on device that provides consumers with instant access to the Internet than a laptop or home computer. The iPad could be the way that Apple extends its domination from music to books.

The iPad could also morph into lots of different things based on where Apple wants to focus on, what developers create around it, and what consumers want. This is a far more exciting proposition than the device that Steve Jobs unveiled yesterday.

For more thoughts, check out David Pogue’s review in the New York Times, Daring Fireball, which also takes a big picture view of the iPad, while Alex Payne has a different and though-provoking post in which he describes the iPod as “disturbing”.

Apple Tablet: Bestest, Coolest, Greatest Thing Ever!!!!

By Mark Evans in Advertising/Marketing 2 Comments Tags: , , , , ,

newtonThe high-tech world goes gaga for new and shiny products. It’s how the industry manages to convince people to purchase things they have already have, things they don’t really need, or things that they’ll probably buy in time.

The marketing mantras include “smaller”, “more powerful”, “mobile”, “better designed”, “faster”, “more capacity” and, of course “more features”. This convinces many people to pay full-price for new products, while getting nothing or pennies on the dollar for their perfectly good old products.

That said, the frenzy of excitement over the Apple Tablet is unreal. In 15 years of writing about the high-tech industry, I’ve never seen the the market froth at the mouth so much. The only comparison I can make is it’s like how teenage girls get when they finally get a brief view of the latest teen heart-throb.

So, it didn’t surprise me this morning to see TechCrunch at the top of Techmeme with the headline that Steve Jobs has apparently been saying that the Apple Tablet “will be the most important thing I’ve ever done”. TechCrunch’s Mike Arrington hasn’t heard these words directly from Jobs but “but we’ve heard it multiple times second and third hand from completely independent sources” so chances are Jobs probably said them….or maybe not.

In any event, the stage is now perfectly set for Jobs to unveil the Apple Tablet (or not) on Wednesday when he makes his annual state of the union/here’s something new and wonderful speech. If Apple does, in fact, unveil the tablet, you should take great care around any Apple stores in the coming weeks because the MacNation will be a rapid state.

If Apple doesn’t launch the tablet, it’s not necessarily a bad thing for Apple. If anything, it will just get the MacNation on more of an alert as they’ll shift their attention to the next possible launch window.

If any event, it’s clear the Apple Table is, in fact, the great thing since sliced bread…or not.

(Note: The photo above Apple’s infamous Newton tablet computer).

More: Mathew Ingram, GigaOm’s freshly-minted writer and part of the mesh gang, has a post about how the launch of the Apple Tablet will likely instigate a fight with Amazon (and its Kindle) for content creators and distributors.

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