2013 is, so far, what might be considered a year of regrouping for Apple. The company has seen huge success in the PC, smartphone and tablet markets, but it’s also pushed those about as far as they can go: Incremental improvements, not revolutions, are what we can expect for the Mac, iPhone and iPad from here on out. Meanwhile, the next big thing — the iWatch, the iTV, whatever — is still on the horizon.
To outsiders, it looks like Apple has stalled. Far from it. You only need to look at the changes Apple is making with iOS 7 to see that Cupertino isn’t standing still, and the company has signalled that it is committed to the future of OS X for at least the next 10 years. That said, all the products Apple is set to announce next month — the iPhone 5S, the iPhone 5C, the iPad mini 2 and the iPad 5 — are just sequels to what it’s already done.
People are getting impatient for the next major Apple revolution. And it’s not just outsiders. A new report suggests that Apple’s own board of directors is “deeply concerned” about Cupertino’s perceived slackening in the pace of innovation.
The report comes from Fox Business News correspondent Charlie Gasparino, who says reliable sources have told him that Apple’s board is worried Apple hasn’t released any innovative products recently.
“That concern is basically manifesting into pressure on Tim Cook to innovate — do something fast,” says Gasparino. But that’s not to say Cook’s job is on the line. The board, according to Gasparino, is “100% behind him.” But they’re hoping that in being 100% behind him they can push him to move faster.
It’s hard to say what is going on within Apple, but my guess is that even as fast as it has grown recently, Cupertino simply couldn’t keep on releasing new products at such breakneck speed and work on the next big thing at the same time. I really do believe that the iWatch — and to a lesser extent, the Apple HDTV — are products Apple is trying to push out for 2014. But at the same time, Apple’s board is right: Cook can’t coast on past successes and innovative products forever, or the company will lose its momentum.
Source: Fox Business
Via: Macworld
