Forrester Research has released “a new report that imagines the Apple products of 2013. But rather than predict Apple jet packs or other outlandish new directions, the research firm uses the company’s recent history as a guide to forecasting,” Nick Wingfield reports for The Wall Street Journal.
“Forrester’s conclusion: While much of Apple’s great successes have been mobile products such as the iPod and the iPhone, the company will seek to colonize rooms throughout the home,” Wingfield reports.
“Among the new products Forrester predicts Apple will create are wall-mountable digital picture frames with small high-definition screens and speakers that wirelessly play media, including photos, videos and music, stored on a computer elsewhere in the home. Such products already exist, but Apple could put its own twist on them — for example, by adding its design panache and a touch-sensitive screen that lets viewers flip from image to image with a finger swipe, a la the iPhone,” Wingfield reports.
“For the bedroom, Forrester envisions an Apple “clock radio” that pipes in music and other media across a home network. Possible, too, is an ‘AppleSound’ universal remote control, also with a touch-sensitive screen, that lets users browse their music collections and change the songs playing through their stereo as they stroll around the house,” Wingfield reports.
Full article here.
More info about Forrester Research’s US$279 report, “The Future Of Apple Inc. – By 2013, Apple’s Product Mix Will Make It A Credible Hub Of The Digital Home,” by J.P. Gownder and James L. McQuivey here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Winston” for the heads up.]
Who pays these people for this crap?
@Macintosh
Yes, I agree, but what you’re proposing is the next step beyond what I imagined, and Apple would still have to deal with the cable networks or other content providers to obtain all the content. In the ideal world all content would be available, including old content broadcast years ago (all the PBS Mystery Series, for example), and those of us who are mystery buffs could watch mysteries all day long if we desired. Similarly sports buffs could watch past or present sporting events, history researchers could search through old newscasts, political conventions, etc., etc.
I would add that Apple often just integrates and improves usability — the first iPod, for example — rather than totally changes something. In fact, I think this is usually their modus operandi. They simplify a complex system and at the same time add an element of style and innovation (a mouse, a click wheel, a multitouch screen). Aside from the original Mac and maybe the Newton, I’m having a hard time thinking of anything they introduced that was completely original.
I think this guy’s article is a little late.
“For the bedroom, Forrester envisions an Apple “clock radio” that pipes in music and other media across a home network. Possible, too, is an ‘AppleSound’ universal remote control, also with a touch-sensitive screen, that lets users browse their music collections and change the songs playing through their stereo as they stroll around the house,” Wingfield reports.
Anyone seen this:
http://www.chumby.com/
Touchscreen, Alarmclock, music, podcast, weather, photo viewing socail networking, news, sports, videos, games.
Forrester comes up with three likely products and envisages three distinct hardware solutions. I don’t think that Apple would approach it in that way.
Consider the digital picture frame. Essentially it needs a touch sensitive display, loudspeaker and an AirPort connection. The bedroom device also needs a touch sensitive display, loudspeaker and wireless and of course the smart remote control needs a touch sensitive display and wireless too – the speaker wouldn’t be a disadvantage.
In some examples, you’ll need a display about the size of a paperback book, for others, an iPhone sized display would be more convenient.
The bottom line is that if Apple also sold a medium sized touch tablet, then there would be two products of different sizes, each of which could be used as a universally configurable device. Whatever you need in the way of switches, sliders, knobs and displays can be emulated by software. Having just a tiny number of products with those products being designed for maximum versatility means that they can be manufactured in colossal quantities and sold for unfeasibly low prices. They would be found everywhere and if they can accept apps from the iApp shop, just like the iPhone will, then Apple would control a platform which would find uses everywhere.
My main gripe with this article is the time scale. What I’m proposing could happen this year, we don’t need to wait until 2013.
I want that digital picture frame now.
@Basil Ganglia:
I just can’t picture Steve Jobs wanting to work with yet another entity to get the content from the movie studios / TV networks, when Apple could essentially become a quasi-cable network but strictly On Demand (downloading via iTunes). I guess that goes along with what I meant by “changing it”, and what you meant by “integrates and improves usability”.
The ideal world you mentioned would not only be amazing, but would be good for the studios / TV networks to make some more money from content that is sitting on a shelf somewhere collecting dust. I’m sure that’s what Apple’s long term goal is…
Let’s get some Airwolf, Knight Rider, and some old Mike Tyson fights on there. Maybe some A-Team too. Ha.
@Macintosh
OSX will be so chocked up with crap by 2013 that they’ll have to abandon it and base their new OS on something else (just like they’ve done in the past).
How about OSXI with a “rock solid” Vista foundation?
Any other guesses which OS Apple with mangle next?
Why do these so-called analysts get paid money to make stupid “predictions?”
If you look at their track record, it sucks!
Stop giving these guys so much credit. None of them deserve it.
The bloggers are actually MORE accurate than these so-called experts.
“It has been estimated that if every household in the US had one of those digital picture frames, another 3 average capacity power plants would be needed to be built to power them all.
What is going to power all this new gear from Apple?”
Dear qka,
Well isn’t it obvious? The hot air generated from chat sites will be used to generate electricity. And there are many examples on this site already!!