“There are signs that something interesting continues to unfold within Apple when it comes to wearables,” Neil Cybart writes for Above Avalon. “While the tech industry’s response to wearables remains lukewarm, with Facebook, Microsoft and Google showing greater interest elsewhere, Apple has been thinking very differently about where consumer trends are headed. With the Apple Watch launch in the rearview mirror, Apple’s bet on wearables will grow, not shrink. Silicon Valley is underestimating wearables while Apple has spent the past four years planting the seeds for doing the seemingly impossible: moving beyond the iPhone and positioning itself as the driver of the next technological era.”
“If going by business textbooks, Apple should cut iPhone pricing in an effort to expand market share and chase growth, especially in emerging markets. However, there are clues that Apple not only has little interest in that strategy, but has already been thinking of new products in an effort to move beyond the iPhone,” Cybart writes. “Management is aware that iPhone growth will not continue indefinitely and that at a certain point Apple’s resources will be better spent coming up with new products that can do an even better job at making technology more personal.”
“Apple has been laying the groundwork for its vision of a world where our growing dependency on smartphones actually creates possibilities for new devices to enter the equation, similar to how smartphones didn’t replace laptops and desktops but began to handle certain tasks once given to larger and more powerful PCs,” Cybart writes. “The only way for Apple to plant the seeds for a post-iPhone era is to ship a product that seems woefully inadequate for replacing the iPhone today, but remarkably intriguing in how it can make technology more personal. The goal for this new product is not to ‘replace’ the iPhone, but instead to be able to handle a growing number of tasks once given to the iPhone.”
Tons more in the full article – very highly recommended – here.
MacDailyNews Take: If you’re wearing an Apple Watch and/or if you’ve been reading us since we strapped on our Apple Watches some nine months ago, Cybart’s piece rings very true.
Apple Watch saves time. And, we don’t mean that in a small way, we mean that in a big way. 😉 (Thanks, Steve.)
Small bits of time saved throughout each day equal big time savings each day. Time is our most precious commodity.
Lost time is never found again. — Benjamin Franklin
That’s why we wear Apple Watches, they give us the gift of time.
Back at the end of April, with just a week of having Apple Watches strapped to our wrists, we wrote:
Already, we feel naked without our Apple Watches on our wrists. Already we notice people staring at their iPhones (real and pretend) everywhere and understand that Apple is going to change the world again. It’s like driving a car while everyone else is being pulled in buggies by horses. We hardly look at our iPhones compared to our pre-Apple Watch days, plus we’re saving so much time!
Two months ago, on the occasion of our fourth week with Apple Watch we wrote:
Our iPhone usage is way, way down and, consequently, our iPhone battery life is way, way up (from about 40% left at the end of a typical day to over 65%). We put our Apple Watches to bed every night with about 30-35% battery remaining.
One additional thing to consider: We have iPhone 6 Plus units. 128GB. We are Day One iPhone users for every new model. We’re now using the iPhone (directly) so much less often that any Apple Watch-compatible iPhone might suffice. The next iPhone will need to offer something(s) might attractive to get those who’d normally jump to the latest and greatest iPhone, but now find a lot of their attention has shifted from iPhone to Apple Watch, to make the leap.
Of course, we’ll get the next flagship iPhone as usual, but it’s not a stretch to think that Apple Watch might impact serial iPhone upgraders. At this point with Apple Watch, a smaller model iPhone already looks much more attractive to us. So, we’re (again) seeing a raison d’être for SMALLER iPhones: You can just squirrel it away. Apple Watch use will very likely affect iPhone buying decisions for many going forward.
In a nutshell: Before Apple Watch, we used our iPhones all the time and wanted the largest display and longest battery life possible. After Apple Watch, we use our iPhones less and size/weight (easy to carry) have become much more important to us; a smaller iPhone battery wouldn’t hinder us now with Apple Watch.
Luckily for Apple, only some 20% of U.S. iPhone users have currently upgraded to iPhone 6/Plus (and there are millions of potential Android switchers coming off contracts every day), so there is a lot of headroom for iPhone 6s/Plus sales this fall and for a long time thereafter.
It’s rather amazing how dramatically the Apple Watch has affected our iPhone usage after just one month. Eventually, Apple Watch will likely change the dynamics of iPhone model sales.
SEE ALSO:
Juniper: Apple Watch has already cornered the smartwatch market – January 12, 2016
Apple COO: ‘Apple Watch marks the end of single-function wrist devices’ – January 7, 2016
Fitbit either doesn’t understand Apple Watch or hopes consumers won’t; neither is good for the company – January 6, 2016
Fitbit exec calls Apple Watch a ‘toy,’ Fitbit shares crater more than 13% after unveiling Apple Watch Sport knockoff – January 5, 2016
It’s official: The Apple Watch is destroying the so-called competition – November 20, 2015
As Apple Watch sales ramp, Swiss watch makers suffer biggest slump in six years – November 19, 2015
Apple Watch models take top four spots on 10 most-wanted smartwatches list – November 18, 2015
Apple Watch is 2016’s hottest holiday gift – November 18, 2015
Apple has already sold more than $1.7 billion worth of Apple Watches – October 29, 2015
Strategy Analytics: Apple Watch sells 4.5 million units in Q315, takes 74% global smartwatch market share – October 28, 2015
Apple Watch users are abandoning traditional watches – September 15, 2015
Over 1 million Apple Watches already sold in China – September 3, 2015
Apple Watch already dominates smart-wearables market, says IDC – August 28, 2015
IDC estimates Apple sold 3.6 million Apple Watch units in Q2 – August 27, 2015
Best Buy CEO: Apple Watch demand is ‘so strong’ that we’re expanding sales to all 1,050 stores – August 25, 2015
Swiss watch exports decline most since 2009 – August 20, 2015
Apple Watch takes 88% of total smartwatch revenue – August 14, 2015
Apple Watch kills a entire industry in three months – August 12, 2015
U.S. wristwatch sales post biggest drop in seven years after Apple Watch debut – August 7, 2015
Apple Watch dominates smartwatches with 75% market share – July 28, 2015
Juniper Research: Apple is world’s #1 smartwatch maker – July 23, 2015
Canalys: Apple ships 4.2 million Apple Watches in Q2 to become world’s top wearables vendor – July 21, 2015
Apple Watch satisfaction is unprecedented at 97%; beats original iPhone and iPad – July 20, 2015
Non-techies love their Apple Watches even more than tech users – July 20, 2015
Apple Watch is Apple’s most successful product debut ever – June 1, 2015
Not buying into carry eight freaking devices that require me to continue to charge in order to gain a few seconds of precious time – getting real tired of Apples lame ass vision – failure to produce a Apple TV that dominates and rocks the universe like iPhone did, tired of hearing about how the campus is going, tired of the rumours regarding automotive advancements and tired already with Apple watch. Its still freaking chucky and over priced. Respond all you want Apple fanboys… all still holding on are lemmings strong out as apparent stock holders here. Big deal. The real deal in innovation is Apple creating insanely great products. And still they do – but – the vision is being blown apart paying its people far too much for bs work. Apple internal is in decline and Tim knows I am right. A lack of vision in the higher area. Apple is doomed.
Obviously, you do not own an Apple Watch. You don’t get it at all, but don’t let that stop you from mindlessly commenting, by all means.
DDD – that’s like a big boob, am I right?
“Apple is doomed”. How many time have I read this…?
““Apple is doomed”. How many time have I read this…?”.
We read it 366 days out of a year.
Nothing is new.
Plus for how many years have we read this? I was an Apple fan back in the late ’90’s. There was actual ligitimate reason to think Apple was doomed back then. These proclamations now just make me laugh.
For the record, I was 99% sure back then that Apple would make it. They just had way too many good ideas and innovations to die away. Everybody loved Dell, but Dell never invented or created a thing! Maybe they created a system of realtime cobbling together existing parts, based on demand, the cheapest way possible and selling them easily to the consumer, I’ll give them that one innovation. But did you ever see them come up with another? Not me. Apple actually creates a lot of cutting edge tech, both back then and today. Plus today Apple has the biggest boatload of cash on the planet.
Apple is not doomed.
Only the short-sided blind or hate filled monger would think so.
Wow! I didn’t realize 2016 was a leap year. Extra day of Apple stuff!
… sounds like the gripes from an ex-Apple inc. board member, who realises that Search could be next in the cross hairs!!!
I’m so glad you are on the case and are having strategy discussions with Tim Cook. Apple is saved.
Oh, well-endowed one, you are the stereotypical troll. You tell us what we should think and then call us “lemmings” for daring to disagree.
Do you actually think that your approach is effective at swaying anyone’s opinion? You are wasting your time. We do not think that Apple is perfect. We also recognize that some recent Apple releases have had weaknesses that could and should have been addressed pre-release. But we do not expect perfection – we simply expect honest effort from Apple to do its best and respect its customers. Even when Apple falls short of its ideal, it is still one of the best companies around.
This kind of visionary change requires transformational thinking which is in short supply at Apple. If TC had it you would not have a non-entity like Netflix making a pulp of the Apple stock in 2015. Who stopped TC from starting a rival movie/TV shows streaming service? Didn’t Apple give away this lucrative business on a platter to Netflix? Why was Apple watch introduced without a killer app? What has Apple to offer for home automation? Launching Apple TV without any TV channels? All these things do not say much about TC’s ability to do great things in the future. He will just muddle through.
So, wearables are the new new thing? Sorry, but I’m just not interested. I don’t want to lug around more devices and I’m not really that trusting of Apple, or any other multibillion-dollar company to get their tech increasingly closer to myself. I like to be me which is something only I can do. I feel that Apple (and others) are more about fomenting dependence now, not assisting excellence.