It has been said many times that Steve left a roadmap for Apple for years to come. Is the Apple Watch a product Steve wanted? Is it based off of his vision for it? I'd tend to say yes. Apple needed new territory to enter considering how long it's been since the iPad introduction, and at this point in time a Watch makes sense albeit it's not as big of a deal nor as innovative as the introductions made under Steve.
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Is the Watch a Product Steve Wanted to Sell/Is It His Vision?
- Thread starter MICHAELSD
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The question I have is whether any of these products are "refined" to the level Steve would have required for them to make it out the door.
For example, the camera sticking out on the iPhone 6. I don't know how bad it is, but just the idea of it seems like it is a sin.
For example, the camera sticking out on the iPhone 6. I don't know how bad it is, but just the idea of it seems like it is a sin.
Well, Tim Cook has been quoted saying that the Apple Watch has been in development for three years. Steve passed away in October, 2011. I find it hard to believe that Steve didn't have some sort of input on it - the idea of producing a smart watch, the overall concept, thoughts on its potential capabilities, etc.
You know what, I know it's a bit of cliche to say "Steve wouldn't have allowed this or that" and despite it being said a lot about a lot of trivial matters for the last few years, I've always avoid saying it.
Until now.
For me, the Apple Watch doesn't solve any compelling enough genuine problem that people have in their lives right now, and it doesn't have enough of a reason to exist in the way that the iPod, iPhone and iPad did.
The watch is actually seems a little too bulky to be inconspicuous, battery life is obviously going to be fairly poor, like many of Apple's products will have built in obsolescence, and it doesn't really give you any utility that your iPhone doesn't already give you.
In my opinion, whilst Jobs may have been fine with playing around with a watch in Apple's labs, and even though I think that the end product is beautifully designed for sure - I don't think he would have allowed it to see the light of day.
Until now.
For me, the Apple Watch doesn't solve any compelling enough genuine problem that people have in their lives right now, and it doesn't have enough of a reason to exist in the way that the iPod, iPhone and iPad did.
The watch is actually seems a little too bulky to be inconspicuous, battery life is obviously going to be fairly poor, like many of Apple's products will have built in obsolescence, and it doesn't really give you any utility that your iPhone doesn't already give you.
In my opinion, whilst Jobs may have been fine with playing around with a watch in Apple's labs, and even though I think that the end product is beautifully designed for sure - I don't think he would have allowed it to see the light of day.
If you said that the world needed all three of those things, then you'd be the only person on Earth who got it right.
All I can remember about the iPod (when it first came out) was "how much $$$??" or "4GB???" and "it's huge!!!"
On the iPhone all I heard was "how much $$$?" and "an onscreen keyboard? no thanks." and finally "EDGE only? pffft."
Then of course, the iPad. everyone said "I already have a laptop." and "it's not compelling enough" and "where's the external storage option?" and finally "it's just a big iPhone".
The iWatch is no different. It solves a lot of genuine problems and creates solutions to problems people didn't even know existed. The health monitoring features, for example, are going to change the way people interact and monitor their health.
How can you say this? This is the biggest Apple contradiction I've ever read. People said the EXACT same thing about the iMac and iPod, and there are even quotes and articles to prove it. You can still find articles from 2007 saying the same for the iPhone.
If anything, the Apple watch has more innovative potential than the other devices and look at what they've become. The watch has literally been the same device for centuries while only advancing through material and status, not functionality (other than efficient ways of keeping time). Google watches and Apple watches are maybe going to change that, and I hope they do.
It solves nothing. I find it hilarious how fanboys keep bringing up the ipod/iphone/ipad argument WHILE IGNORING THE MOST CRUCIAL PART: How different they were, and how they solved usability issues. The ipod had a much bigger screen then other mp3 players, had the wheel, and the user interface. This solved some usability issues as the mp3 players at the time were just plain crap. The iphone was 3.5 inches versus the normal size of 1.5-2.5 inches that other phones had at the time, and was a complete multitouch screen while most other phones had physical keyboards. This solved usability issues by making it easier to type, while keeping a large screen, and made it simpler with the app system. The ipad was also completely multitouch while most tablet devices used pens, and had keyboards. This solved usability issues as multitouch is so much simpler then a pen.
These ideas made the devices a hit, as well as solved a few usability issues. The Apple Watch doesn't solve the main reason of not getting a smartwatch: The cell phone in your pocket is so much more advanced and so much more usable! The ipod, ipad, and iphone did not have this issue because they are different markets. The ipod came at a time before smartphones, and the iphone was a phone while the ipad wasn't. When they were released they were big steps above other devices, in design and usability.
And usability is one of the biggest reasons why Steve's ideas took off.
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To quote from Walter Isaccson's biography of Jobs:
They developed not merely modest product advances based on focus groups, but whole new devices and services that consumers did not yet know they needed.
Maybe the Apple Watch is just a device that we don't yet know that we need?
They developed not merely modest product advances based on focus groups, but whole new devices and services that consumers did not yet know they needed.
Maybe the Apple Watch is just a device that we don't yet know that we need?
You're speaking with the benefit of hindsight. At the time, most of the people didn't realize that these problems were in fact problems. The iPod/iPhone/iPad were all heavily criticized at first, and then became the standard for the industry. It's easy to look at something many years on and understand why it was a hit. It's much harder to look at it before it's even released and determine whether it will or won't be.
And yet people at the time bashed those items for their differences. The apple watch is a me too item, try again.
The Apple Watch is a me too item? Name me one monster hit smart watch. Yeah? I didn't think so. Pebble is probably the best known, and is a very different kind of smart watch than Apple or Google are trying to sell. Every Samsung watch has been a dud, LG isn't much better. The Moto 360 has been high profile but disappointing in real world use, which has stifled adoption.
Apple wasn't the first company to make computers. They weren't the first company to make phones, or MP3 players, or tablets. They're rarely the first to market with any type of device. What they excel at is taking a device that already exists and shifting it 90 degrees so that people want it. Not just the type of device, but Apple's version specifically. Apple's actually into the smartwatch game quite early.
I don't know if this thing will be a hit or not, but neither do you. So we can come back here in a year or two and see how we did.
LOL! You wanna talk usability? When's the last time you tried to change the time on a digital watch? Or use the stopwatch feature? Or change time zones? Also, those who run, cycle, lift (mself), etc are getting sick of lugging around bigger and bigger smartphones for music.
Pretty sure
Watch solves a lot of usability issues with today's watches AND exercising.In a couple years you'll be eating this post.
None of this has anything to do with whether or not the watch is a me too product. In fact, the idea that none of the watches you mention are successes, gives credence to the argument that the
Watch might not be successful. What does it do that the others don't? What feature is present that separates it from the rest of the market? That is what makes it a me too product. The big three i's that everyone mentions had features and ideas from the start that separated themselves. This watch doesn't as of yet. I hope, and believe, the launch event will have that feature.
I personally don't feel that it will sell well. Maybe because it's the first gen. Or maybe because it's a little expensive but the question is why do I need it? Do I really need to respond to my phone/message from my wrist. I'd rather pull out my iPhone and view it on a much bigger screen so having a watch for me seems a little counter intuitive. With that being said, I must say that I want the Watch. Although I don't need it and probably won't buy it. I definitely want it. Why? Pure aesthetics. But I'm sure that reason alone won't draw me in.