“Perhaps the product that most closely approximates the iPhone’s future is the venerable Selectric typewriter, from International Business Machines Corp,” Adam Minter writes for Bloomberg. “When IBM introduced the device in 1961, electric typewriters had already been around for decades. But the Selectric upended the business by enabling faster typing and the changing of fonts, thereby boosting productivity worldwide. The technology also came packaged in a sleek, minimalist case quickly recognized as a landmark in industrial design.”
“In principle, the iPhone is becoming something similar: a tried-and-true model that simply matches customer needs. In Malaysia, where I live, one authorized reseller is promoting the iPhone 6 with a big red sign that promises ‘Amazing Phone, Amazing Price,’ with no reference to the model name or vintage,” Minter writes. “A clerk told me that the phone is selling well, especially to younger customers who can’t afford a newer model but appreciate the iPhone’s reliability compared to most Android phones. Although not flashy, this approach should remain profitable for Apple for some time, and help pay the bills as it transitions to the next big thing.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple sold a record 78,290,000 iPhones last quarter. That’s 78,290,000 iPhones in 98 days; 798,878 iPhones per day; 33,287 iPhones per hour; 556 iPhones per minute.
The iPhone SE is a tried-and-true model that matches some customers needs, but there is plenty of room left for innovation in the iPhone. Anyone who claims otherwise doesn’t grasp the full extent of iPhone sales and, to put it bluntly, simply lacks imagination.
The iPhone has many, many years of life in it and, at the top of the line, remains very innovative with extremely high sales and unmatched ASPs.
I think the smartphone is still in the early innings of the game. I think there’s lots more to do. — Apple CEO Tim Cook, January 31, 2017