“We’re going to see a lot more cool stuff in the tech world in 2012, from quad-core phones to tablets that can talk to slick cloud apps built on HTML5. Startups will show us things we never knew we needed and tech giants will seize opportunities to give us the tools we’re begging for,” Jason Hiner writes for TechRepublic. “No matter what size they are, the smart companies will take risks, be bold, and buck conventional wisdom.”
“The flip side of that is the inertia and inaction that happens at big tech companies because they’re afraid of messing up a good thing,” Hiner writes. “This leads to a lot mistakes, including some that end up dooming the company. Just ask RIM and take a look what’s happening to BlackBerry. Look out, because we’re about to see some important blunders in 2012.”
The three biggest tech blunders destined to happen in 2012:
1. Google will fail to standardize Android: The situation is a mess. It’s going to be very difficult for Google to reel its partners back in, and although Google has made some half-hearted attempts at standardization, it’s clear that Google is much more interested in getting Android devices in the hands of as many people as possible as quickly as possible. The experience of the user once they’ve already bought the device is a secondary concern.
2. Microsoft will miss PC-mobile convergence: Microsoft’s biggest opportunity in mobile is PC-mobile convergence where smartphones will eventually be able to replace a desktop computer by wirelessly docking into a keyboard, mouse, and monitor. Bill Gates envisioned this over a decade ago, but Microsoft is unlikely to seize this opportunity out of fear that it would cannibalize sales of Windows and the company wouldn’t make as big of a profit on each sale.
3. Apple won’t extend Siri across its product line: Instead of getting Siri in the hands of more users, Apple will most likely keep Siri limited to the iPhone 4S, the forthcoming iPad 3, and then the eventual iPhone 5. Instead of using this tool to push the technology world forward, Apple will treat it like a cheap gimmick for selling more phones and tablets.
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: #1 and #2 are likely. #3, not so much. Will Tim Cook bring Siri to as many Apple product users as possible or will he use it as a carrot to sell future versions of iPhones, iPads, and/or Macs?
It might not matter. Even if he does the latter, he’ll still be bringing Siri to well over 100 million users this year. Remember: iPad 3 is coming and people upgrade their smartphones rather frequently; contracts are running out on non-Siri iPhones every day. That said, if Cook wants to tack on 50+ million Mac users to the Siri brigade, we’d more than welcome the move. Also, don’t forget, Siri is still in beta (and already seems to be improving). When Siri’s ready to exit her beta stage, she’ll surely show up on a wider variety of Apple devices.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “GetMeOnTop” for the heads up.]
