- I’ve argued that Apple has become boring under Tim Cook compared to the Steve Jobs era.
- But there’s a good reason why Apple hasn’t drastically changed its successful products: reliability.
- Apple may not be leading many industry innovations lately, but its beautiful products have become classics.
In the past, I’ve argued that Apple products have become boring because Apple seems to have lost its way with useful product innovation. On the one hand, it offers gratuitous iPhone features such as memojis and on the other, Apple created cutting-edge hardware and software for the Vision Pro, a product nobody needs and solving problems no one has.
Meanwhile, Apple has been neither a leader nor a follower on useful smartphone innovations such as folding phones, which allow users to have both a small phone and a larger screen in one device.
But the truth is, there’s a very good reason why Apple doesn’t do drastic changes to its products: slow, steady and reliable products are keeping Apple on top.
To be fair, under CEO Tim Cook, Apple has had several big hit new products: Apple Watch and Air Pods, come to mind. Although I’ve also argued that both of those are really iPhone accessories since Watch won’t pair with a non-iOS device. While Air Pods will work with others, they are really designed to work best with Apple products.
Still, compared to the Steve Jobs era, in the Cook era, Apple does not often release new products that are radically different from previous versions. It tends to focus on making incremental improvements to existing products.
Is that boring? Yes, as many in the tech press besides me have also noted. But it also means that Apple products are very consistent and therefore very reliable and hold their value. That’s rather important.
Users want consistency. They don’t want to learn new ways of doing the things they already do, just because the device maker is attempting to be novel by moving everything around. (Microsoft has often been accused of that.)
While Ferraris are cool cars, the farthest thing from a boring product in any way, most of us will never buy one (VCs who funded Humane’ Ai Pin excluded). Most of us will spend our money on a Honda sedan or a Ford truck or, if we have the budget, a BMW or Tesla. We’ll choose something that looks good, is reliable, safe, functional for our needs and will hold its value over time. Ever try to trade in your Android phone? You’ll likely get far less for most models than you would if you had traded in an iPhone.
One thing I know from my years as a market researcher and my time working at Apple during the Jobs era, is that the vast majority of users won’t pay money for flashy new tech that doesn’t add something useful to their lives.
The industry is buzzing, for instance, about the new Humane Ai Pin, a $600 gadget (plus a $24 monthly subscription fee) that is intended to be a smartphone replacement. It clips to your clothes, has been showcased by fashion models in Milan and looks super cool. While this device may have been developed by former Apple employees this is the most un-Apple product I have ever seen. It’s another product looking for a solution, and, with its camera and use of AI, is a privacy conundrum, too. I predict it ends up in the gadget hall of shame next to Juicero and Microsoft Kin.
In contrast, Apple products are designed with a minimalist and modern aesthetic and most importantly (Vision Pro aside) a user’s needs. They are made with high-quality materials and have a sleek and stylish look. Because Apple doesn’t change much over time, the iPhone’s design has become classic and iconic. Same for the Macbook.
Examples of other classic products with looks that haven’t changed much over time include the Rolex Submariner, which today still looks pretty much the same as when 007 wore his in the 1962 film Dr. No. Another example: the Porsche 911, the Coca-Cola glass bottle, Sperry Docksiders. I could go on, but the point is clear. Iconic designs sell well for decades. Goofy designs usually don’t.
But in Apple’s case, it can even make goofy products look cool. Apple has made walking around with what appear to be cigarette butts sticking out of people’s ears cool. The AppleWatch Ultra is kind of big and clunky but the watch is so aspirational that it’s become popular even with people who aren’t the target market of runners, explorers, divers and the like.
It’s worn on the wrists of people like me who just like the fact that it’s lightweight, has a large screen, great battery life. And it also makes people who see it on me think I’m the kind of person who free dives when not trekking across the Sahara (at least I think it it does).
Still, as much as I, and millions of others, admire Apple’s product design aesthetic, that is not what has made Apple into the tech giant it is today. When people discussed who could be the heir to Apple after Jobs, the most talked about person was Jony Ive. After all, he was Steve’s “soulmate.” He also gave us nutty things like $10,000 Gold Apple Watches, the infamous butterfly keyboard, and devices so minimalist the designs were changed immediately such as the 2009 Apple Shuffle.
But no, it was then-COO Cook who ascended, the man who made Apple’s corporate mechanisms run on time, its master of the supply chain. Cook wasn’t known for creating new Apple products (and despite some successes, still isn’t). He isn’t the most dynamic speaker. In fact, his presentations can be kind of dull.
What he did do was take Apple to a $3 trillion market cap and made it the most valued company in the world. The truth is Apple can be less innovative and more incremental because it commands such a large and loyal user base who benefit by products that remain steady.
There is, of course, danger in being too classic, too slow to change, especially in the tech industry. Apple already needs to catch up to parts of the industry it once led but now trails, like AI. (I’ve previously argued that Siri is still a mess compared to Google Assistant).
And yes, when it leans away from serving users and towards greed (like prioritizing ads in its app store) or protectionism (like its petty walled garden that still won’t let Androids interoperate with iMessage), it’s inviting trouble.
But ultimately, even if you find Apple products boring rather than classic, they are a great choice for those looking for long-lasting, high-quality, user-friendly, reliable technology. Apple doesn’t have to be the Ferrari if it’s the Ford truck.
Michael Gartenberg is a former senior marketing executive at Apple and has covered the company for more than two decades as a market-research analyst at Gartner, Jupiter Research, and Altimeter Group. He is also an Apple shareholder. He can be reached on Twitter at @Gartenberg.
