And in order to know what a customer needs, you pay attention to what he feels/says (among other things of course).
And? For all we know, Apple could be the biggest company in the world by now. Had they only listened to those people.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Steve Jobs Interview on Apple's Success, Management and More
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Not really. Users couch things in terms of the past, in what's worked before. That's OK for refining existing products, but for new products or developing new markets, you can't depend on what the customer says--they're not trained in thinking of how to do things in a new or better way---that's the company's job!
Always? I disagree. It depends on the circumstance. One person with a vision, a clear vision, is much better than a committee in many cases. Committee can be useful but again, depends on the circumstance.
This I totally agree with.
But, in my opinion, that's also something that Apple hasn't done lately. Take the MacBook Air for example. I don't think that people want a notebook as thin as possible. What people want is a notebook as portable as possible. Their one-dimensional focus on thickness is just the opposite of out-of-the-box thinking. I for one think that a small book is more portable than a sheet of paper (assuming same weight).
Why Apple TV Fails
It is SO obvious, UNLOCK the damn thing!!!!
Let me play all the video types I have including DIVX and XVID. Let me record live TV to bring back the VCR as a concept.
Unlock the thing, and you have a great product on your hands!!
It is SO obvious, UNLOCK the damn thing!!!!
Let me play all the video types I have including DIVX and XVID. Let me record live TV to bring back the VCR as a concept.
Unlock the thing, and you have a great product on your hands!!
faster horse
ford certainly revolutionised an industry that was not really going anywhere, but was going fast, but unfortunately, if you look at what ford became and what they are, there is very little innovation nor design philosophy. they make good cars in europe but about as inspiring as their american counterparts.
good quote, poor choice of company however to compare your innovative company to.
ford certainly revolutionised an industry that was not really going anywhere, but was going fast, but unfortunately, if you look at what ford became and what they are, there is very little innovation nor design philosophy. they make good cars in europe but about as inspiring as their american counterparts.
good quote, poor choice of company however to compare your innovative company to.
You may legally unlock your iPhone here in the U.S. It's a hassle, but you can do it. It's AT&T that insisted on locking the iPhone, not Apple.
No PDA?
"and again points to their decision not to release a PDA as an example"
What does he think the touch is? It's got email, calendar, internet access, stocks, maps, .etc. - and with the SDK potentially so much more. I'm much more interested in the touch as a PDA than as a movie/music platform - if that's all I wanted, then my PSP wouldn't be collecting so much dust. I'd get an iphone if I could use Verizon - but there's no GSM out here.
"and again points to their decision not to release a PDA as an example"
What does he think the touch is? It's got email, calendar, internet access, stocks, maps, .etc. - and with the SDK potentially so much more. I'm much more interested in the touch as a PDA than as a movie/music platform - if that's all I wanted, then my PSP wouldn't be collecting so much dust. I'd get an iphone if I could use Verizon - but there's no GSM out here.
ummm
"software that runs on a cloud, like iTunes..."
um Steve.... have you actually used iTunes lately? it's fast becoming the misnomer for "bloatware"... but that might be me, since im still fuming that ever since iTunes 7.0 ive had to wait on the order of a minute to open or close the program, and get momentary pauses constantly when navigating around my library, while all versions prior were snappy and responsive. they talk about the convergence and the digital library, they need to closely examine how iTunes and other iApps behave when you work with large amounts of data. people's libraries are only going to get bigger with time.
"software that runs on a cloud, like iTunes..."
um Steve.... have you actually used iTunes lately? it's fast becoming the misnomer for "bloatware"... but that might be me, since im still fuming that ever since iTunes 7.0 ive had to wait on the order of a minute to open or close the program, and get momentary pauses constantly when navigating around my library, while all versions prior were snappy and responsive. they talk about the convergence and the digital library, they need to closely examine how iTunes and other iApps behave when you work with large amounts of data. people's libraries are only going to get bigger with time.
The quote you agree with is essentially what the Ford quote really means.
Apple was trying to solve the problem of how to make a computer seem small without compromising on screen and keyboard size. The MacBook Air's thinness and footprint allow it to seem small by weight and by volume when carried (which is when most people want it to seem small), but feel large when it's being used. A computer with a very small footprint would seem small while it's being used, which is not what Apple thinks most people really want, even though many people think this is what they want.
Now, this may very well be exactly what you want, but just because Apple doesn't give every customer what they want does not mean that they are ignoring their customers.
autrefois
macrumors 65816
I'm glad there's a voice of reason on Henry Ford here. While he certainly did some good things for industry, overall he was an absolutely horrible boss (very anti-labor), actively supported the Nazis, and is not someone I would go around quoting. If I did, I might say something like "Although Ford was no role model, he did have a funny quote..."
That said, it is interesting to see this article and some of Steve's points of view on his company and the industry. I like that they are thinking of things that they personally would like to have and do with technology, instead of trying to find out what the experts think is going to be the next big thing. By the time you figure out what the people want, someone else is already doing it. The fact that they can balance this with Steve's concern for design and "art" (which he mentions again in the article) is what's amazing in my opinion.
I wonder if the marathon Monday morning meetings are why product launches, updates, etc. often come on Tuesday? I don't know if the meetings were general knowledge before, but now whenever something comes out on a Tuesday, I'll be imagining what happened in Monday's meeting.
Ya. Makes you think a LOT about all the posts and demands in these forums lol. No offense to anyone, but I think there are quite a few people in here that regularly ask for a faster horse
uh, read a bit closer, shockingly I was NOT talking about the iPhone, I was talking about the Apple TV which Steve mentions in the article as a failure
You obviously don't know much about Ford.
Yes, they do design practical boring cars but they also lead the industry in innovation in their prototypes, design plants, and engineering departments.
They create some of the best race cars in the world. Their design plant has more state-of the art equipment than any other. Ford consistently wins automotive design awards every year.
Their latest Ford Shelby prototype machine is a work of art. Discovery channel HD has a great feature documentary on the design of the Shelby and the award winning design experts that Ford utilized throughout the world in it's creation. Very impressive, from concept to computer aided design to state of the art laser carving of ceramic casts for the prototype machine.
Well hell, just because a toilet was built in a state-of-the-art facility and designed using the highest standards of engineering doesn't mean it's gonna flush any better. Or that people will buy said toilet. The average consumer doesn't care about the technology behind a product.
One area Ford (and other American automotive companies) is really lacking is marking and brand image/awareness. Maybe they could learn a thing or two from Apple.
Not in the context it was brought up. Steve Jobs' interpretation is this: "I alone know what everybody needs and everyone else is an idiot. Ford knew what everyone needed and everyone else was an idiot." And that's not true, everyone knew they needed faster means of transportation. And Ford listened to them and found a way to produce for the masses. It's comparable to everyone knowing that people need more Mac configuration options (e. g. screen resolution, antiglare/gloss etc.). But Apple knows that they don't. I will not buy my next MacPro (currently G5 4x2.5) from Apple. Because I can't configure a silent, entry-level (quad core, say 2.4 or 2.6 GHz) Mac with decent upgrade possibilities ($1500).
MacBook Air: A second USB port would not have changed much in terms of size, probably 0.0001 mm. It was a bad compromise that everyone could have pointed out to them.
"feel large when it's being used": You mean like Apple keyboards? With a lot of space everywhere to make it feel larger?
Innovation: Another example is the iPhone keyboard. Apple engineers are actually the ones who can only think faster horses. They have multi touch available and all they can come up with is a minimized desktop keyboard? Why is there a backspace button? People could just wipe out characters on screen. Shift could be replaced by a gesture. Buttons could be rearranged, space bar shortened, and some lesser used characters put to different screens. Then fast-switch between keyboard layouts like you do on the home screen. The space gained would then allow for bigger buttons. Eventually, people would be able to type much faster. And what have they done? They built a car and added the ability to drop horse sh*t because that's all they could think of.
That was exactly my reaction when I got to that line. Apple isn't going to produce a PDA? Apple is already producing a PDA.
Maybe it means that a PDA is okay, as long as you don't call it a PDA.
What about Passion?
You guys reject the idea of building something that you would use, that you love, that you think other people would like? Come on... The primary method of creativity at Apple is that you gather people who have the same passion for Apple that everyone else does. These are the people creating and developing ideas and products for Apple. It does not say that Apple never listens to consumers because last time I checked their track records show it does listen to consumers. Whether how much or how little can be debated but certainly NOT what defines Apple.
Why listen to consumers all the time?
To develop and innovate you need someone who is competent, intelligent, confident, and with a stylish appeal. If you read about people with these types of qualities, their known as masterminds, and they believe they can develop something that surpasses the expectations of the public. Then, you have a bunch of other people copying your ideas to make a profit from your innovation, and you have a bunch of consumers criticizing what else your product should do and if you don't listen to them, you are hated?
Some people express so much ignorance, I pity them. Is that arrogant?
You guys reject the idea of building something that you would use, that you love, that you think other people would like? Come on... The primary method of creativity at Apple is that you gather people who have the same passion for Apple that everyone else does. These are the people creating and developing ideas and products for Apple. It does not say that Apple never listens to consumers because last time I checked their track records show it does listen to consumers. Whether how much or how little can be debated but certainly NOT what defines Apple.
Why listen to consumers all the time?
To develop and innovate you need someone who is competent, intelligent, confident, and with a stylish appeal. If you read about people with these types of qualities, their known as masterminds, and they believe they can develop something that surpasses the expectations of the public. Then, you have a bunch of other people copying your ideas to make a profit from your innovation, and you have a bunch of consumers criticizing what else your product should do and if you don't listen to them, you are hated?
Some people express so much ignorance, I pity them. Is that arrogant?
Perhaps you should re-read the article:
You might not be the specific customer that Apple caters to, but to suggest that Apple ignores its customers is not rational. I think you find yourself in a position of having to defend some strong statements you made early in this thread - statements which you haven't really thought through.
Lots of people think they've got a better way to do things. I'm sure you sincerely believe that what you've written here represents some kind of user-interface breakthrough, but I'm guessing a lot of people (including me) see your ideas as a perfect illustration of why the customer often doesn't really know what will ultimately work.