Jonathan Ive Discusses Steve Jobs and Apple Watch in 'The New Yorker' Interview

[MacRumors]

Apple design chief Jonathan Ive has been interviewed in an exhaustive profile with The New Yorker, in which he discusses a number of topics ranging from Steve Jobs to the Apple Watch.

The interview provides a rare glimpse inside Apple's design studio at Two Infinite Loop at its Cupertino headquarters, as Ive shares some of his experiences working at Apple over the past few decades.

The iconic designer recounts how Jobs visited Apple's design studio upon returning to Apple in 1997 and quickly bonded with Ive, solidifying a longtime friendship between the two.

"During the visit, Ive said, Jobs 'became more and more confident, and got really excited about our ability to work together.' That day, according to Ive, they started collaborating on what became the iMac. Soon afterward, Apple launched its 'Think Different' campaign, and Ive took it as a reminder of the importance of "not being apologetic, not defining a way of being in response to what Dell just did." He went on, 'My intuition's good, but my ability to articulate what I feel was not very good--and remains not very good, frustratingly. And that's what's hard, with Steve not being here now.'"

Ive also claimed that the Apple Watch was conceived soon before the passing of Jobs, who died in October 2011 following a lengthy battle with a rare form of pancreatic cancer. Apple CEO Tim Cook added that Apple was looking at multiple categories of products at the time and thinking about which ones to do.

"The Apple Watch--the first Apple device with a design history older than its founder, or its designer--was conceived 'close to Steve's death,' Ive said. It's hard to build a time line of this or any other Apple creation: the company treats the past, as well as the future, as its intellectual property. But, in 2011, there may have been a greater appetite than usual for investigations of new products. One could imagine that executives were eager to act, in anticipation of grief, market upheaval, and skeptical press."

Ive went on to discuss how he believes that, while millions of people may be willing to use an iPhone that looks the same as others, the same mindset does not carry over to a wrist-worn device like the Apple Watch. Ive recognized a need for the Apple Watch to be highly customizable, with different sizes, watch bands and different alloys of aluminum, stainless steel and gold.

Ive's position was that people were "O.K., or O.K. to a degree," with carrying a phone that is identical to hundreds of millions of others, but they would not accept this in something that's worn. The question, then, was "How do we create a huge range of products and still have a clear and singular opinion?" [...] If variety was a perceived necessity, it was also an opportunity. "We could make aluminum, and stainless steel, and gold, and different alloys of gold," Ive said.

The full-length interview goes into further detail about Ive's design philosophies that went into creating the Apple Watch, alongside some interesting anecdotes and excerpts from other Apple executives such as Tim Cook, Bob Mansfield and Jeff Williams.

Article Link: Jonathan Ive Discusses Steve Jobs and Apple Watch in 'The New Yorker' Interview

 

[Santabean2000]

I wonder how long Ive will stay at Apple. Can't say I'm lining up for Apple Watch for G1, but the potential is there for future iterations.

 

[viorelgn]

Thanks for pointing me to articles like these; it’s not like I gander through the entire Internet on a daily basis, on the lookout for articles like these. Oh, and what are those notebooks? I’m sure Apple can make them thinner ¡ (speaking of thinner, whassup wit da fat iPhone?

 

[SteveJobs2.0]

I wonder how long Ive will stay at Apple. Can't say I'm lining up for Apple Watch for G1, but the potential is there for future iterations.

He will stay as long as he can. Nowhere else would he be paid as much as as he is at Apple despite some very questionable design decisions.

 

[Chad-VI]

Ive also claimed that the Apple Watch was conceived soon before the passing of Jobs,

Well, that's interesting

 

[jmgregory1]

The problem with getting into a fashion product, like watches, is exactly as Ive himself is noting - you not only need to have lots of options, but the thing he's not stating is that you have to change those options often.

The good thing about watches is that once you nail down the internals, change can just be made to the outward appearance. I still don't see the Apple Watch as a game changer, certainly not in the same way I saw the iMac, iPod, Macbook Air, iPhone, iPad. Those things were obviously going to be big hits because they changed the conversation in the market.

I can't help thinking about the 1960's and early '70's tv and movie depictions of communication devices that so often were wrist-worn devices. It just does not seem to me, to be a natural thing to talk to your wrist or do anything other than the occasional glance. I'm a huge watch fan, love my Seiko automatic that I've worn daily for the past 9 years and plan to keep wearing for at least another decade. But Apple is not convincing me that I should want, let alone purchase, an Apple Watch.

 

[maflynn]

He will stay as long as he can. Nowhere else would he be paid as much as as he is at Apple despite some very questionable design decisions.

I disagree, I think he can go anywhere he wants - I think any company will give their eye teeth for him.

 

[MacFather]

Deleted.

 

[Steve121178]

He will stay as long as he can. Nowhere else would he be paid as much as as he is at Apple despite some very questionable design decisions.

It's not all about money. Hard as that is to tell some Americans.

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I would like to hear Steve Jobs's opinion on this matter.


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You might have to wait a while for a response...

 

[sdz]

I would like to hear Steve Jobs's opinion on this matter.


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Such an awful design. Protruding camera and those antenna bands

 

[Glideslope]

I disagree, I think he can go anywhere he wants - I think any company will give their eye teeth for him.

Also, quite possibly their 1st Born as well. Design is or is not innovative, questionable in the eye of the critic, and most definitely subjective. He will stay at Apple as long as Tim let's him be himself in the back row of the event. Mark Newsom's hiring was very helpful for Jony's state of mind.

 

[DakotaGuy]

Soon afterward, Apple launched its 'Think Different' campaign, and Ive took it as a reminder of the importance of “not being apologetic, not defining a way of being in response to what Dell just did.”

Mr. Ive look me straight in the eyes and tell me you didn't introduce a 5.5" iPhone Plus in direct response to what Samsung did.

 

[AppleScruff1]

Think Different, now everyone's the same. 1984 is here.

 

[WannaGoMac]

I still don't get why I want/need a "smart watch" Maybe one day if it can replace the smart phone completely, otherwise I look forward to Apple showing me why I have to get this (or any) smart watch...

 

[the8thark]

I think the concept is amazing. I really like the idea of a smart watch.
The downside to me is it being tethered to your iPhone in your pocket. I don't think the tech is there to cut the rope and have a fully on it's own functioning smart watch. But once that day comes, sign me up for an Apple Watch.

Of cause on that day the Apple Watch will become a PC. A computer with no intermediate device required (like an iPhone in this case). And it will join the iPad, iPhone and many other products that are the changing face of PCs.

Post PC is ********. The PC will live on. Just now we have new types of PCs. iPads, iPhones are PCs. And one day the Apple Watch will become a PC (when it's iPhone reliance is gone).

 

[Jsameds]

I would like to hear Steve Jobs's opinion on this matter.


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Personally I'd rather have a better camera that protrudes ever so slightly than a flush one that takes inferior shots.

With a case on (which most people do anyway, and if you don't then you really should) it renders the problem moot.

 

[szw-mapple fan]

I love in depth pieces like these.

 

[the8thark]

I still don't get why I want/need a "smart watch" Maybe one day if it can replace the smart phone completely, otherwise I look forward to Apple showing me why I have to get this (or any) smart watch...

And I think that's a new weakness Apple is having. Apple will always pump out the amazing products. But most of the products we can see a need/want for them. Even if we do not buy them we can see how we would use them. Even the Mac Pro, which I have zero chance of buying any time soon, I can still see what I'd do if I ever owned one, ie imagination.

But with the Apple Watch, all that is not there. At the moment all I can see is the Watch mirroring the iPhone's screen to the watch. Both tethered together via wifi or bluetooth or whatever. I need to have two devices to make the watch good. An iPhone and the Apple Watch. That's one more Apple device I want to have on my person while I am walking around.

Apple need to give us a concrete reason as to why we need this item. People do not buy Apple products because they are hip or cool or a fashion accessory even though it might seem so. People buy Apple products because they believe they need them and their lives are incomplete without them. The Apple Watch does not do this yet. Not in product design or in Apple's marketing of it. Maybe in the future it will.

 

[sdz]

Personally I'd rather have a better camera that protrudes ever so slightly than a flush one that takes inferior shots.

I'd rather have a slightly bigger devices that has more battery stamina and takes superior photos.

 

[Ciclismo]

Some of the opponents to the smart watch use arguments that seem very, very familiar - just replace "watch" with "phone" and voila:

I still don't get why I want/need a "smart phone" ... I look forward to Apple showing me why I have to get this (or any) smart phone...

 

[Jsameds]

I'd rather have a slightly bigger devices that has more battery stamina and takes superior photos.

Buy a battery case. Both problems solved, and it keeps your phone in good nick too.

 

[Mac Fly (film)]

The really interesting parts of the interview is how many times criticism of cars arises from Jobs to Ive to Newson.

 

[mkeeley]

He's so annoying to read, even more so to listen to him.

 

[SusanK]

I would like to hear Steve Jobs's opinion on this matter.


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Me too. Seems like whenever they are about to lay an egg they hide behind Steve.

 

[TMRJIJ]

He's so annoying to read, even more so to listen to him.

Why did you read this article? It is titled: "Jonathan Ive Discusses Steve Jobs and Apple Watch in 'The New Yorker' Interview"
More Importantly, why did you post that you annoyed by his words?