Is Apple still Apple?
Vincent Speelman
What can you say about the lack of innovation at Apple?
In 1998 Apple developed the first iMac, the first personal computer that was usable by others than experts. After three years, in 2001, Apple came with the revolutionary iPod. Capitalizing the trend of bringing your music with you, the iPod became a big hit. In 2006 Apple again broke records by releasing the Macbook Pro, Macbook and Mac Pro. Three computers that integrated intel chips and crisp designs to enter the market in a revolutionary fashion. Only one year later Apple massively disrupted the phone industry. Apple launched the iPhone and iPod Touch, the first smartphone that was a commercial success. The innovation trend kept going on when in 2008 the Macbook Air was launched, bringing to market a product that could do exactly what everybody wanted, using your laptop the whole day without charging. This new Macbook was once again revolutionary. Only two years later, in 2010, Apple amazed the world one more time with the release of the first ‘flat’ pc, the iPad.
Apple was amazingly innovative, they changed the technological landscape and the way we use technology more than one time and the kept amazing the world. As one can read, I am an Apple fanboy by heart. I have an iMac, Macbook and an iPhone, I have been hypnotized by their amazing, smooth and well designed and aligned products. What seems evident is that I will try to convince the reader that Apple is the only religion and that one must convert. But, as one can read in the title, nothing is more far from the truth. My religion is slowly turning sour.
It all started with the release of the iPhone 4S. As a once proud owner of the iPhone 4 I expected a real change after four iPhones, but nothing happened. Apple improved their iPhone a little bit by improving the processor, the camera and the software. However incremental, they called it the best iPhone yet. At this very point i lost faith and turned to Samsung. A few years later, with the release of the iPhone 6, Apple showed signs of a new innovative spark by changing the phone drastically. They released a new Macbook Pro which did exactly what I and most people wanted. They delivered a very fast computer with an operating system that could work with programs that originated from Windows, the PC was really fast. Even better, the iPhone 6 and the Macbooks and iMacs worked in tandem like never before. My love returned, and my heart in the form of the Apple logo began beating again.
Sadly, what I first identified as a spark of new innovative power turned out to be the last scream of a dying giant. With the release of the iPhone 6s and iPhone 7, the iWatch, newer Macbooks and iPads something became clear. Apple called them the best of their versions yet, while they only improved small things, relaunching the exact same products at a much higher price. I can now say, I am finally awake, I can now see Apple’s true motive. Apple is no longer the innovative giant inspired by Steve Jobs. It is now a brilliant marketing giant feeding of previous innovations, squeezing their customers for their last dime. Vision, long-term thinking and true innovativeness are replaced by consumerism, inertia and greed. Apple is no longer Apple, and it breaks my heart.
Maybe a thought about the future, what should apple do in you opinion and how could they turn the tide?
From 2004 Apple only knew rising revenues, their innovative power rewarded them, time after time. In 2016, for the first time ever, Apple did not show the same amount of growth like they did in the years before. Is this a sign of a falling giant? I don’t think so. In 2015 Apple had a revenue of 233.72 billion US dollars, while in comparison, Google had 74.54 and Microsoft had 93.58. Apple is massively successful, even now. How is this possible? Why do consumers keep buying Apple’s products?
From my perspective there are two reasons for this. The first is that Apple is close to being a genius in marketing, which is strengthened by their massive budgets. This strategy allows Apple to convince and hypnotize consumers into buying their products. Think about this in a different way, Apple use their marketing to lure people in, just as the witch lured children in with her gingerbread house. Once inside, it is impossible to get out, which is reason two. Apple uses a so-called lock-in model. Each Apple product reinforces each other. This goes further than just the iPhone working perfectly with your Macbook. Every app is connected, passwords are forgotten using Apple’s keychain, old e-mail clients are set aside and Safari takes over as a web browser. Once you use this perfectly aligned system, it becomes incredibly hard to go back to Windows or Android as one has to exert a considerable effort to do this.
So how can Apple use this to regain their former glory? Apple should try to be Apple again. Their marketing power and lock-in model prevent them from dying right now, but only because their products are still good, just not innovative. This strategy is at this point feasible, but not for long. Apple needs to jump into new trends, invest in a new ways of using phones, or even make products that we don’t even know we want. Being innovative, disruptive, that is being Apple. And being Apple means being not as big as Apple now is. To truly innovate again, Apple should create a new R&D department, outside of their current culture of greed and expected high profits.
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