I still believe the short lived tenure of John Browett as the head of Apple Retail is the largest black mark on Tim Cook's tenure as CEO of Apple. Horace Dediu takes a look at this situation today in a post on Asymco. His finishing question is the one I'd love to see an explanation to.
Kontra takes a look at some of the problems facing Apple with regards to software design. This is a very interesting read about some challenges Apple will need to address.
Hat tip to Daring Fireball
I think Asymco's Horace Dediu's work in looking at Apple's CapEx has been very interesting. Today he takes a look at Apple's recent annual report and evaluates what their 2012 and 2013 numbers mean. It does clarify what seemed to be a notably small increase for 2013.
Have a laugh on this U.S. election day with this Dilbert comic strip.
Microsoft has a tablet problem and I'm not sure they know it. This is a new problem. Just over 48 hours old actually.
Microsoft has been absent from the tablet space since Apple launched the iPad in April of 2010. That has just recently changed with the introduction of their Surface product.
The concept of this product has been billed by Microsoft to be one of ’no compromises’. That is, the user can have all the advantages of a tablet and a traditional computer in one device. You just need to decide which mode you want.
A very important part of the Surface concept is the cover keyboard. Microsoft all but tells you that you need to buy one to use the device. In the tablet interface, it's not entirely necessary, but it’s helpful. In the traditional space, it's a requirement. It seems likely that the creation of these covers and their almost full sized keyboards dictated the aspect ratio and size of the Surface.
The actual usability of this concept is open for debate. Reviews range from loving the concept to thinking it’s a disaster. It's very early, so improvements to the software and people's willingness to embrace the concept are likely. The Surface is a pretty large screened device when used as a tablet. Many reviewers have commented that the device wants to be used on a flat surface with a keyboard attached. Microsoft seems to be sending the same message in it’s advertising. In other words, it's not optimized for the tablet experience.
I believe it's this combination of size and optimization priority that will cause a problem very soon.
It's well known that Apple chose a different path when they created the iPad. They chose to differentiate the tablet experience from the experience of using an Apple computer. The operating systems share a common core, but they're totally separate. iOS apps don't run on OS X, and OS X apps don't run on iOS.
Apple launched the iPad with a 9.7" screen. They customized iOS to run natively on this screen in a 4:3 aspect ratio. In 30 months they've sold 100 million iPads. There are now over 275,000 apps built specifically for this screen. iPads have had a starting price of $499, with the year old model available for the last 7 months for $399. This is all well known.
Because no manufacturer has fielded a competitive tablet to compete with the iPad, Android manufacturers and Amazon have introduced smaller screened and cheaper devices. These products are thought to have sold well, although exact numbers are unknown. This market has never been thought of as anything but a discount space. It's a place a buyer can go if they can't afford a larger device or if the smaller form factor works better for your usage case.
That changed on Friday with the introduction of the iPad mini. This is a premium device with amazing build quality and it can run every app ever created for iPad. I'm certain this model will very quickly outsell the bigger iPad. Cheap Android models and the Kindle Fire will continue to sell because they're still cheaper.
I expect the smaller tablet market to surpass the sales of larger tablets within a quarter.
What's Microsoft's answer? I don't think they have one and that's a huge problem. To use the new Surface as it’s truly designed, a buyer needs to spend $600 for the Surface and a keyboard cover. You can enter the iPad ecosystem for $329.
Microsoft can’t scale down the Surface because that keyboard cover is so essentially a part of the user experience. A keyboard cover attached to an iPad mini sized device would be marginally useful. The other problem is getting around Windows 8 in the traditional desktop space. Already reviewers are commenting on how small many of the touch targets on the Surface are because they're obviously not optimized for touch. This same interface will be unusable on a 7” device.
Just when Microsoft is finally making a concerted effort to be a tablet player, the market is going to shift away from them. The folks in Redmond can't catch a break these days.
There's often a competition between first and best. The ideal is to be first and best. First can also pay short term dividends. Best, as long as you're not too much later than first, is the next preferred option.
I mention this in connection with the modern tablet market. In the large tablet space, Apple was first and best with the original iPad. They sucked all the air and profit out of the space.
In the smaller tablet space, Google and Amazon were first. This had short term benefits, but almost no profit.
Apple just entered the space this weekend with the iPad mini. They’re not too much later than first. They're also now the best. Time will prove this out.
I've been playing with an iPad mini for 24 hours now and I've got a few initial thoughts:
Apple has a hit on their hands. Even if not many people know it yet. The iPad mini is but the latest example of an Apple product that needs to be seen and touched in person to be appreciated. They've done it again.
Something got me thinking about computers today. Apple has been in the computer business for over 30 years now. If you asked 100 people about Apple's prices, 95 would use the word 'expensive' in reply. People who like and purchase Apple products have always seen value in their products.
Over the years, Apple's computer prices have gradually pushed downwards. You've been able to purchase an entry level MacBook laptop for $999 for a number of years. In the PC market, computer prices have been much lower for a long time. Prices beginning in the $300-$400 dollar range have been common.
People have called on Apple to enter the lower priced market for years. The last major push came when PC companies starting making netbooks. Apple resisted, saying the user experience was terrible.
Then, it happened. Apple created the iPad. While the form factor is different, there's no doubt that for many people the iPad is the best computer ever made. It's opened up the computing experience to people who were never comfortable before. Overnight, the price of an Apple computer dropped from a thousand dollars to $499.
When Apple introduced the 3rd generation iPad in March, they dropped the price of the iPad 2 to $399 and lowered the barrier of entry again.
Today, the iPad mini launches. Beginning at $329, the Apple computer market is available to more people than ever.
It's a remarkable time in technology, and if you don't take a step back every now and then, it's easy to miss it.
Don Lehman wrote a great post on his blog about the recent restructuring at Apple. It's a thought provoking piece and I suggest you read it.
Hat tip to The Loop
The absolute best news to come out of Apple's Monday press release was the elevation of Steve Job's "spiritual partner" Jony Ive to head of human interface design across all product lines. Apple's hardware under Ive is unmatched. Not just in the tech industry, but anywhere. It will be exciting to see where software design is headed under his guidance.
There can no longer be any worries about Jony's place at Apple moving forward. Tim Cook assured everyone that he has full confidence in Ive's abilities with this change.
I particularly like the takes of Ken Segall, Daring Fireball's John Gruber and All Things D's John Paczkowski on this matter.