I've used many players and cursed them all until I got an iPod shuffle 1st gen and suddenly things Just Worked. I owned four iPods in total and never had any problems with them. Not once. It was the time when Sony had their proprietary software AND proprietary headphones and to call the experience "hot mess" is a major compliment. This is actually one of the reasons I complain about Apple Music/iCloud so much – because I got used to perfection (which I still experience when using my 4th gen iPod Mini that syncs – OH DEAR – with a cable) and with iCloud I just get frustrated most of the time. I wouldn't say they were lucky with iPod, they took their time and when they released it – and once iTunes went past the teething stage – it just swept everyone else off their feet because of perfect mix of software and hardware. I remember when Microsoft did a poll "who is going to buy a Zune in the coming year" and the result was "nobody, but some of us are getting new iPods".
iPhone was similar. Despite my initial doubts – I was one of those "who would want a phone without keyboard?!" people – it changed people's lives, and it changed what a smartphone used to be. (And killed Crackberry.) It was magic compared to other companies' efforts. It wasn't pure luck. They took a MAJOR risk and won the jackpot – deservedly so.
In the last years I haven't felt the magic. It might be simply because there isn't much more that can be done unless they come up with a whole new category of devices like Google tried and failed with Google Glass. I have no interest in a smartwatch of any sort. I have no interest in a Macbook with one port and that keyboard even if it weighs 100 gram. It's not another "I miss Steve" post, I don't think Steve would have had a lot of revolutionary ideas in 2016 either. Apple put computers in our pockets, bags, on our desks and sofas and made the experience – at least until Mavericks, I can't speak about iOS as I don't use it – amazing in the time when Windows made people curse and cry. Adobe keeps on updating Photoshop, Illustrator etc. by moving options around and pretending it's a new version with LOTS of new features. Until a new revolution happens – chips under the skin? a phone that reads thoughts? built into an earring? – the "Apple is doooooomed with bean-counter at the helm" is going to happen all the time. (And probably when iChip comes out Apple's stock will drop anyway, because why not.) It's time of iterations and failures at the moment. Apple is making "me too" products but really everybody is. The VR glasses make people nauseous. Self-driving cars cause accidents and will cause them until ALL cars are self-driving.
Everybody has great ideas here, upgradeable laptops, new Mac Pro, new Thunderbolt Display, new everything, but they are iteration ideas. iPhone 7, Watch 2, Macbook Early 2016. iPad Pro isn't going to change the way humans use devices, whether it is a PC replacement for many or not. It's still an iPad, just with some new features, a pencil and better speakers.