“Where does Apple go from here? The question lies at the heart of the media and industry buzz that so often surrounds a company adept at surprising and confounding even the most jaded observers. It’s particularly pressing in light of the oblique reference to a ‘new product transition’ made by Apple Chief Financial Officer Peter Oppenheimer during a July conference call with analysts,” Arik Hesseldahl writes for BusinessWeek.
“So I am left wondering, what might Apple have under its belt to surprise and delight customers over the next 6 to 24 months? Indulge me while I consider the prospect that at least for the foreseeable future, Apple has done virtually everything it could reasonably be expected to do, given consumer needs and the current state of tech and the economy. There are only so many world-changing moments that even Apple can create,” Hesseldahl writes.
“The Web is rife with rumors that Apple will next introduce a device that bridges the gap between the iPod touch and the Mac—a machine that’s one part mini-mobile PC and one part media and entertainment device. The idea seems obvious to anyone who’s used the iPod touch for e-mail and Web-browsing but wants a larger screen. While other PC companies like Dell and Asustek build mini-notebooks, Apple could best them all, or so the argument goes,” Hesseldahl writes.
“But then what? As obvious as the path to a tablet device seems now, I have trouble imagining the next obvious path that Apple might follow in 2009 and 2010. In fact, the company may very well be nearing a product plateau. And here’s the real kicker: That may not be a bad thing,” Hesseldahl writes.
“I’m not suggesting that Apple should slow down and take a breath on the innovation front. Not at all. The company now operates within substantially wider borders than it did when it unveiled the first iPod in 2001. Rather than widening those borders even further, there lies within them plenty of room for important, even if not world-changing innovations—not to mention scope for expanding Apple’s business,” Hesseldahl writes.
Full article here.
Even more stunning than Hesseldahl’s complete lack of imagination is his decision to spotlight it in an article for BusinessWeek.
There’s an old Wayne Gretzky quote that I love. ‘I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.’ And we’ve always tried to do that at Apple. Since the very very beginning. And we always will. – Apple CEO Steve Jobs, January 8, 2007
iRobots, iMissile, iHome, iCar….
Here is few ideas
Voice-actuated, HD visor display handheld.
When?
I am thinking UP! And maybe iControl-the-world
People who have been watching Apple have been saying the same thing for years, but somehow they always manage to wow and amaze us.
If this guy knew what was next, HE would be CEO of a big successful tech company. Thus, he’s not.
The author needed 7000 words by Wednesday afternoon.
MW: waiting as in still waiting for credible information.
“There are only so many world-changing moments that even Apple can create,”
wanna bet he said that before OS X?
and again before the iPod?
and again before the iPhone?
wanna bet he use that line a few more times?
Nothing wrong with going for evolution instead of revolution for a while. I think Snow Leopard isn’t a bad thing at all. Same goes for the iPhone software updates,
Actually Heseldahl is a good and sensible writer and knows Apple quite well. It’s just an opinion and not a negative one.
“The author needed 7000 words by Wednesday afternoon.”
He had used “very” 1,300 times but his editor caught it.
Kidding. Hesseldahl usually writes better than this.
What we need if foe Apple to show the home entertainment crowd how simple this coud be.
I have been waiting since Apple created Firewire for someone to get rid of all the cables between AV and TV components.
1 wire from each to a central controller, controller talks to the component and adjusts its controls accordingly, you then pick up tour iPOD Touch \ iPhone and tap the Apple AV button, this brings up a set of buttons for what you want to do. If you press radio, the tuner powers up and you get a list of stations (and maybe the song that is playing on that station) press it an you are listening to what you want, or press Movie, the BD, TV, and surround sound are activated, you are presented with the Disk menu on the iPod and away you go.
At this point in time there is no reason anyone should have to spend hours trying to organize and connect the spaghetti mess of wires that is at the back of most AV units.
Correction:
What we need is for Apple to show the home entertainment crowd how simple this coud be.
Give the guy a BREAK! He didn’t say “there’s nothing left for them to do.”, he said HE doesn’t know what their next miracle will be. He gave them full credit for everything since the iPod – and, what was wrong with crediting the iMac? – and supposed they would continue to wow us … he just didn’t know HOW. Let’s see … Dell doesn’t know how, MS doesn’t know how, HP doesn’t know how. Heck, they don’t know how Apple wowed them this past DECADE, much less how they will do it over the NEXT one. A lot of the conversation HERE is about what we expect Apple’s Next Great Thing will be. Even after they give us clues! So. Go easy on the guy. He’s in good company and he isn’t trying to pull anyone’s leg over it by trying to suggest he knows something he doesn’t.
Jeff …
Sent the proof reader home early today, eh ?
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One Guy in Finland …
iHooker
Change the World™
BC
iGovernment
because governments lack innovation…
Oh, I think there are lots of new directions open to Apple, viz:
* a major push into the Enterprise, including a headless small tower Mac (“brick”?) and virtual servers
* Mac on wheels – bringing embedded OS X into the automotive sector. I mean, would you really want count on a “crash prone” Windows to control your vehicle functions?
* Touch Pro – a guaranteed hit within the medical profession, the retail sector (e.g. those doing inventory), etc.
That’s just off the top of my head.
mw: “head” – really!
“iHooker”
Just don’t pick up the T.J. iHooker.
Fifty bucks wasted listening to the next TekWar sequel in Esperanto and a truly painful rendition of “Rocket Man”.
“Where does Apple go from here?” Arik Hesseldahl writes for BusinessWeek.
answer: fix ‘MobileMe’.
Boy, us Apple Fanboys are a sensitive bunch.
Hesseldahl didn’t say anything negative about Apple. He just doesn’t see the next really big thing on the horizon for Apple and instead suggests that Apple push the evolution and improvement of their products so they capture even more market share. Is that such a bad idea?
“Everything that can be invented has been invented.”
— Charles Duell, Commissioner of US Patent Office, 1899
“I have trouble imagining the next obvious path that Apple might follow in 2009 and 2010. In fact, the company may very well be nearing a product plateau.”
— Arik Hesseldahl, Writer for BusinessWeek, 2008
@ Dutch E
Yep.
This is why Arik is writing about companies instead of running them. It’s not his job to innovate, just to describe innovation when he sees it. That’s okay, though. Apple will do its job and Arik will do his.
The change from Apple Computer Inc. to just Apple Inc., the iPod, AppleTV, iPhone
Apple is going for the consumer electronics space now and that area is limitless…..
iDesk is what I would like to see. Touch screen iMac laid down flat. No more keyboards, no mouse, no monitors.
Check apple patients
They have goggle/glasses as a new viewing mode
Talk/touch interface
Smaller and faster computers
I’d want some form of always wearable computer
in one word….”iCrap”
When you are sick of the same old sh*t day in and day out.
I never liked Wayne Gretzky. GO FLYERS!!!