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Apple CEO Tim Cook Teases 'Great Innovation' in Product Pipeline on CNBC's Mad Money
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While spending millions on marketing (hint android wear has spent almost nothing) to multiple different industries and heavily spending time and money to push it to the fashion industry (that's mostly forgotten it), and having the Apple logo on it.
Let's not kid anyone. The device is not bad, but to claim a run away success cause it sold more than unadvertised competitors that don't have the Apple logo on it is disingenuous.
Apple brand loyalty does exist and does heavily influence sales.
The real measure of success will be long term sustained sales. Not just the initial flash sale on launch.
And if you look at the "Other revenue" category from last quarter which includes the watch, Apple TV and accessories, and seen almost no growth in this sector over last year, that does not paint a great picture. Cause if it's selling as amazingly as you believe, then either accessories or Apple TV has tanked. Include recent reports that the watch lost market share, Implying either shrinking sales, market grew faster by selling other watches, the watch has not been a run away success. More like a tepid response after initial momentum of brand loyalty.
Based on Steve's vision and execution: iPod / iPhone / iTunes / iPad /....
5 years in what are Cook's game changers?
Everytime Cook talks about all of the exciting innovation coming his nose grows. By the end of the interview he broke the camera lense. Breaking news! iPad Air Pro Retina 3s just released...
I do believe that someone within the executive ranks has a relatively clear picture of Apple’s stagnation.
However the sheer volume of income that still exists provides a buffer that allows many insiders, and legions of the faithful to continue to cling to denial and fantasy.
While extinction isn't imminent, Apple as they were once known, will eventually show signs of decay. Once revealed, the rock star aura Apple once bathed in will vanish in an instant.
Suddenly with no more cache than PG&E, Apple's mainstream status will be as obvious as the light of day.
I just want to see them deliver the future today.
Big leaps. Not this incremental nickel & diming.
There's so much potential for massive, meaningful, technological innovation, and Apples the one company that can afford to make the big strides. I know Apples matured, but if you want timid conservatism where product is designed by accountants and lawyers, the computer business is a lousy place to do it. Get into the automotive business instead...
Oh. Crap.
Big leaps. Not this incremental nickel & diming.
There's so much potential for massive, meaningful, technological innovation, and Apples the one company that can afford to make the big strides. I know Apples matured, but if you want timid conservatism where product is designed by accountants and lawyers, the computer business is a lousy place to do it. Get into the automotive business instead...
Oh. Crap.
Timmy's pipeline is clogged.
Seriously though, this bozo needs to get fired before he does even more damage to Apple.
The iPod was a fail... Until they added Windows support. Remember, no Windows support for iTunes or the original iPod in 2001, which is when that undying iPod forum thread is from. It honestly is hard to see the iPod becoming an important product if it continued to rely on being sold to only the Mac OS 9 and early Mac OS X userbase.
The iPhone, if you didn't see that as a success right on first glance, you were dense as hell.
The iPad, yeah it's still just a oversized iPhone. They failed to really take advantage of that nice big screen in a more meaningful way (have you seen the icon spacing on the larger iPad Pro?), while acting like it is more capable than your phone (largely it is not) or can do all of the important things/most used things a desktop does for people (it cannot). Maybe people are satisfied with their iPads and just aren't upgrading, but I think this is the real reason why the iPad is in a downward tailspin.
The idea that you can't call a new Apple product a fail just because people have (and were proven wrong) in the past is oversimplifying things way, way to much. If you look for patterns hard enough, then you might find them. Doesn't mean they are realistic though. Accomplishments, status and influence (success) in business are NOT honorary degrees. You do not get to keep it for life.
(edit)
Also, I'm not (as well as others on here) just here to bash. We're worried about the state of things. We really, REALLY like our Macs and our iPhones. No one wants to go back to the niche days of Mac OS (OS 9 and early Mac OS X), the days where Apple had to plead for software developers to develop for its platforms.
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Why do you think I bought a 5K iMac to replace my 5 year old mini? The mini is terribly underpowered and the Pro is almost 3 years old... at least the 5K comes with a 5K monitor, which alone is worth the price of admission.
Well in Apple's defence, past a certain point, older tech get more expensive to keep making. Have you priced out DDR2 ram recently?
It would probably lower Apple's manufacturing cost if they did update the pro.
The Apple Watch is an entirely new product category and it was entirely thought up and designed under Cook's watch. It is packed with innovation like force touch and haptic feedback which did not exist in consumer products before it. You may not like it but it has been fantastic for me. Cook is a cheerleader for Apple. That is his job. What do you want him to say? "Our products are evolving nicely, you will like them"? Also, the iPad is the best tablet available and basically every review of tablets admits this. The iPhone is one of if not he best overall smartphone available and almost all reviews admit it. I don't feel they are over promising and under delivering at all. Macs need attention. Bad. But it's pretty much certain that is imminent.
I agree that under Cook they seem to be nickel and dimming customers for everything (hard drives in 2015....) but Jobs did that a lot too. That's Apple. We have all known it for years.
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All I know is that when I joined this forum long ago, I quickly turned into an all Apple household starting with iPod and iMac and then iPhone, Airport Extreme and Expresses, Macbooks, AppleTvs and iPads.
Today, the phones and routers have been replaced with Android and Netgear and and I have an Android Wear watch. The only Apple product outside of a Mac I have bought in the last several years is an iPad Air 2. And when the AppleTVs are not supported anymore, I'll probably go Roku. I was a die hard. They lost me by standing still. But I'll still never use a Windows PC.
Today, the phones and routers have been replaced with Android and Netgear and and I have an Android Wear watch. The only Apple product outside of a Mac I have bought in the last several years is an iPad Air 2. And when the AppleTVs are not supported anymore, I'll probably go Roku. I was a die hard. They lost me by standing still. But I'll still never use a Windows PC.
Depends on which Pro, I bought the Early 2015 MacBook Pro 12 inch with Broadwell processors which is still current. Yes, the 15 inch is still out of date.
I'm fairly sure the lack of a traditional headphone jack is not for the purpose of making it waterproof - more likely so that apple can charge a premium to companies to make lightning-compatible headphones/accessories.
Apple needs to do this to accelerate Apple Watch growth. Untether it from iPhone, provide Windows support so you can manage and sync your data through iTunes. You would be surprised how quick it explodes. Start the iPhone 7 with 32 GBs and eliminate the 16 GB in all the high end models except the SE. Also increase the minimum free storage to 10 GBs. I only have 2 GBs I believe left out of my iCloud. 3D Touch needs to be everywhere include the kitchen sink. Its too timid in iOS 9. Add an additional USB C port to the MacBook, it needs it and drop the price. Its not worth it when you can get more value with Retina MBP 13 inch.
ok Tim...
First, I made no comment on the quality or usability of the watch. I think it's well built, despite a few oversights and issues. My comment is on the business success, that's it.
Two, smart watches have been around in some form for a few decades, in various degrees, with some minor success, and a lot of failures. It is way too early, after only one quarter of good sales to say whether or not the it's been a success or not, and I admit that my current predictions are based on what's available now from numbers and market reaction.
Third, I'm pretty sure cook said the idea of the watch was thought up under Steve jobs.
Fourth, I expect him to deliver. End of story. If you're going to claim for year after year that "we've got the best pipeline ever" and " the most innovative products ever", you have to eventually deliver. Something he has not done.
So I expect him to shut up and put up now instead of doubling down on cheerleading. Because enough cheerleading without deliver is disenfranchisement for me, a tech fan who for most of my life has followed this companies products.
I'd love to have cook as my COO. He's proven he can make things happen, as long as someone else has the ideas.
Saw the edit, yeah Apple has always had a premium price. Commonly know. As the Apple tax. Sometimes it can be excused, but eventually, if you nickel and dime too much, and enough potential purchases are lost because of it, then someone has made a big mistake. I think we're on that cusp of returning to the days where the app,e tax has become too much. Especially when Apple keeps parroting how filthy rich they already are. "We have 200m in the bank! But give if we can't make 40% profit, we'll just cut out features to make up for it!
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Yes, I know, which is why I said "America (for example)" and then went on to talk about market saturation here and how Apple has a plan to enter and dominate markets around the world.
Who's sales targets? Yours?
How do you know what their sales target is? They never shared numbers AFAIK. Also, they aren't a small company trying to hit quarterly goals only. They have a 1, 3, 5, 10 year plan. Apple Watch plays into that.
- Look, you and I are the same person when it comes to taste. I don't want the Apple Watch either in its current state. I did not buy one.
- But you have to understand Apple is in it for a long play. How?
- Apple is part of a supply chain. (By the way, this is Tim Cooks strength and original role at Apple.) Why is Supply Chain important?
- Apple has a vision for a thin, instantly fast, beautifully designed and displayed Apple Watch that supports and complements the Apple ecosystem, and more importantly mega-digital lifestyle we're headed in, let alone already in. This is the watch that is so amazing you and I would buy it in a heart beat. In other words, this Apple Watch is magic.
- Unfortunately the technology (to make that watch) did not exist 10 years ago. So Apple waited until we were close enough.
- Apple applied enough reasonable pressure on suppliers and themselves to create the technology we have in Apple Watch Version 1. Apple knows it's not "Amazing!" but it's "good enough" for version 1.
- Why is Version 1 important? Because Apple has to start. Start what? Start the supply chain. Apple has to start selling a product so that they can reinvest the profits of that product back into the supply chain and their company so that R&D and manufacturing dept. of all companies can innovate on a granular level and develop new tech, which makes the new watch better.
- This is on all fronts, from battery technology, to processor, to display tech, to materials, to software, to Bluetooth, to GPS, to LTE and WIFI, to NFC, and so on. Not only does each component have to become smaller, not only does each component have to become faster, each component has to become more efficient and drain less battery. Theres a crazy universe of technology in there, designed by humans (not some AI).
- In other words: Apple has to fund the rate of innovation, and it has to do it as a faster and more powerful way than Samsung et. al. competitors.
- How does it do this? First by starting. Starting means it goes to the well called "early adopters." Early adopters are a small fragment of the overall market that are willing to deal with any lack of refinements and any current pain points in exchange for the chance to stay competitive or ahead of the tech curve. Early adopters fund the early growth of companies, or product devisions, or product lines.
- Apple then takes that money, reinvests profits into creating Version 2, making it a bit better, then Version 3, and at some point in that curve, its going to make a jump to a larger market—and thats when Apple's growth in that product category explodes. You saw this maybe with iPhone 4 or iPhone 5. It's called The Chasm. You can't jump the Chasm with a version 1 product. Apple did not jump the Chasm with iPhone 1, and they didn't do it with iPod 1.
- So for you to say that "no it will not be a success" is to ignore this model and the fact that Apple is a master at this model.
- Anything can happen. Earth could be destroyed by an asteroid tomorrow. Samsung could announce free energy. But given the pattern of things you have not given this conversation much to disprove all the information I have given to you.
- Again—I feel you. I didn't buy the Apple Watch either, but thats because I tend to not be an early adopter of Apple products (or anyone's products). I usually buy around the Chasm where the product becomes amazing. And that's where Apple is headed (I predict 2-3 years time)
The 'Reality Distortion Field' died with Steve Jobs. With Tim Cook we have the 'Mythical Product Pipeline'. Doesn't have quite the same ring to it does it?
All joking aside, though, I don't recall any products languishing for so long without some real updating under Steve Jobs. Hell, he'd get tired of a design and have his crew designing new ideas for that reason. Jobs was a visionary, for sure, but he was also an Uber-competent CEO who realized that even if the Mac isn't the Biggest piece of the puzzle anymore, that its users still deserve the attention of their computers receiving updates - besides annual buggy OS's I mean.... I really believe under Jobs that when the trashcan Mac Pro was released, they'd have kept some type of tower system, even if it were a Mini-tower for users whose needs the trashcan doesn't really meet. Like audio professionals who don't ned two mac daddy graphics cards but DO need expandability, PCI ports, drive bays, etc..... Cook doesn't seem to grasp that reality. Because at the end of the day he's still just a beancounter...
All joking aside, though, I don't recall any products languishing for so long without some real updating under Steve Jobs. Hell, he'd get tired of a design and have his crew designing new ideas for that reason. Jobs was a visionary, for sure, but he was also an Uber-competent CEO who realized that even if the Mac isn't the Biggest piece of the puzzle anymore, that its users still deserve the attention of their computers receiving updates - besides annual buggy OS's I mean.... I really believe under Jobs that when the trashcan Mac Pro was released, they'd have kept some type of tower system, even if it were a Mini-tower for users whose needs the trashcan doesn't really meet. Like audio professionals who don't ned two mac daddy graphics cards but DO need expandability, PCI ports, drive bays, etc..... Cook doesn't seem to grasp that reality. Because at the end of the day he's still just a beancounter...
If I can't change simple stuff on my phone like default apps. stock app deletion, themes then I don't &^$&ing care about what's coming down the pipeline. I've had iPhone since the 3G and I am flat out bored with it. Sadly I am seriously thinking about switching to a more user controlled experience..
And Apple has delivered but people expect way too much IMO. It's as if everyone expects Apple to deliver another iPhone-like disruptive device overnight.
The last 5 years has brought a ton of innovations: 3D Touch, Force Touch trackpad, Touch ID, Apple Pay, continuity/handoff, Apple Watch, dynamic 4 speaker stereo system, true tone display, Apple Pencil, Smart Keyboard, Mac Pro, Swift, ATV4, Research Kit, HomeKit, CarPlay, etc.
Sure, they may not be the next iPhone, but what other company comes close? Like Cook said, in a few years, Apple Watch will become big. iPad and iOS will become more powerful and start growing again. VR/AR is in the pipeline. So is Apple Car.
The smartphone market isn't going away anytime soon. Apple is in a great position if people can actually see the bigger picture and not get carried away by short term fluctuations in the market... it was only a quarter ago that Amazon was completely done. This quarter, they're a Wall Street darling. Amazing when you consider how Apple makes in a few days, what takes Amazon 3 months. When people overreact, it's usually a great money-making opportunity.