At WWDC 2023, on June 5th, Apple will attempt to do for mixed-reality headsets what it’s previously done for personal computers, portable media players, tablets, smartwatches, and smartphones. No everyone is convinced Apple will be able to do so.
Mark Gurman for Bloomberg Businessweek:
Despite Apple’s track record, an air of doubt surrounds the device, expected to be sold under the Reality name. It will run on a new xrOS operating system and cost about $3,000. Billions of dollars of investment into computers you wear on your face from the tech industry’s largest companies and well-funded startups have yet to produce a breakout success.
The device [Apple CEO Tim] Cook will present, say people familiar with a development process that spread over seven years, has deviated far from his initial vision. Initially imagined as a pair of unobtrusive eyeglasses that could be worn all day, Apple’s device has morphed into a headset that resembles a pair of ski goggles and requires a separate battery pack… After initially setting its sights on a lightweight pair of augmented-reality glasses, Apple gradually drifted toward something that felt more like existing devices because of technological constraints, the desire to get a product on the market and internal disagreements.
Despite his strong views, Cook wasn’t deeply engaged in the specific design of the headset, say people who have worked with him. This was notably different from Jobs, who was famous for imposing his strong design sensibilities onto Apple products, down to the feel of a touchscreen or the shade of blue used in a Mac app icon. Cook, in contrast, made his name overseeing operations and has never been known as a “product guy.” His more distant approach was consistent with his role in the development of the Apple Watch and AirPods. “The closest Cook gets to product development is a demo,” says one of the people. “But even then, he’s not the type of guy who says it should do X and not Y. He’s the complete opposite of Steve in terms of having strong opinions on the minutiae.”
“It was very clear what the iPhone and iPad would do, but the watch meandered all over the place,” a person with knowledge of the product says. “The headset will be similar, but there is hope that third-party apps will save it.”
MacDailyNews Take: An air of doubt has surrounded every Apple product ever launched.
This product will be an important piece of Cook’s legacy which so far is largely about iteration of products developed or, in the case of Apple Watch, begun under Steve Jobs.
See also: Contrary to popular belief, Steve Jobs knew about Apple Watch – February 13, 2023
As we repeatedly said, don’t expect expect Apple’s headset to be laser-focused on precisely the right things as launch:
The glaring lack of a visionary who is immersed and invested in product design who is a single point of approval – Steve Jobs – means that early adopters have to take Jobs’ place en masse to perform similar functions – albeit over a significantly longer period of time – à la Apple Watch. – MacDailyNews, March 28, 2023
“Tim is not a product person.” – Steve Jobs
The Apple Watch certainly found its way – we, the users, were the Apple Watch alpha and beta testers, collectively standing in for Steve Jobs, doing much of what the singular genius would have done before release by brute force and sheer numbers after release. It took four generations of Apple Watch, but we’re here now and we wouldn’t trade the experience for anything! The same goes for Apple Glasses! — MacDailyNews, January 31, 2020
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It’s all still speculation until Apple says it’s real. Would be funny if there’s no mention of a headset next month.
Bloody hilarious
Far from the first time Apple has shipped a platform without a killer app.
In fact, it’s the norm.
The iPod had MP3s. The iPhone had the web as its killer app (and later discovered apps were its killer app).
Aside from that, none of these hardware platforms had a killer app at launch:
Apple ][
Mac
iPad
Apple TV
Apple Watch
A partial list of Apple’s Biggest Failed/Flop Products. Remember any of these?
The Apple Newton
Apple Pippin
Round Mouse
The Apple Macintosh Portable
The Power Mac G4 Cube
The U2 iPod
Apple eMate
Macintosh TV
eWorld
The Apple III
FireWire
Apple Lisa
20th Anniversary Macintosh
iTunes Ping
MobileMe
Performa x200 Series
iPod Hi-Fi
The point is Apple has plenty of history of introducing products that flop. Many of their greatest successes were predicted to flop, such as the iPad. Steve (the dunce) Ballmer even predicted that iPhone would fail because it was over priced.
Personally, I’m not excited about this new headset. But maybe I’m simply a future customer who doesn’t yet know yet what I really want.
Steve Jobs once said, “Some people say, ‘Give the customers what they want.’ But that’s not my approach. Our job is to figure out what they’re going to want before they do. I think Henry Ford once said, ‘If I’d asked customers what they wanted, they would have told me, ‘A faster horse!’ People don’t know what they want until you show it to them. That’s why I never rely on market research. Our task is to read things that are not yet on the page.”
Patience. Time will reveal all.
The product has not morphed from a pair of light weight glasses to ski goggle form factor…. These are two different products…. and according to rumors the glasses should be out in a couple of years or so .