An ode to innovation

A complaint rippling through the pundit-sphere over the past year is that Apple has lost the ability to innovate. The echo chamber’s insistence of Apple’s inability to delve into unexplored territory has culminated in the rumor that Apple has initiated steps to replace CEO Tim Cook. Stock prices have plummeted, and critics gleefully prognosticate Apple’s slow slide back into the obscurity of the days before Steve Jobs‘ return.

Is there any validity to these claims? Has Apple truly lost their mojo? For an answer, let’s look closer at the core issue- innovation. By definition it is the act of introducing something new or unknown, and Apple has made their incredible fortune not both new products and the careful cultivation of the ecosystem behind them.

Apple earned the innovator title from the inception of the organization. The cobbled-together home brewed Apple I through the first Macintosh, the company was a trend setter in home computing. After floundering they righted the ship with the introduction of new product lines- the iPod, iMac, and OSX.

Skip forward to today: Apple has reaped the benefits of innovation well. New hardware such as the iPod line, iPhone and iPad, and software associated with it (iTunes and iOS) along with steady incremental improvement to their core Mac lineup have resulted in Apple being one of the wealthiest corporations in history. What has set pundits off has been the apparent lack of new products since the untimely demise of former CEO Jobs.

While Apple has continued to release new versions of their products on a regular basis (including the iPad Mini), those products are incremental refinements of existing devices or services. The iPhone improves with each version, becoming faster, more powerful, and with more screen real estate. The iPad has slimmed, gained cameras, increased in power and split into two product sizes. The core Mac lineup has evolved as well; the iMac has slimmed and been given a performance boost, the MacBook Pro lineup has split to include the Retina models, and the Air versions have been refined enough to be some of Apple’s best selling laptops. Where are the new, groundbreaking products to keep Apple ahead of competitors?

Time has dulled our sense of perspective. While Apple has been at the forefront often, groundbreaking products take years to develop and hone. Even though there have been numerous trendsetting releases they haven’t come at regular intervals, and have been separated by more time that is readily apparent. The product that appeared to spark Apple’s explosion was the iPod, first released in 2001. The iPhone didn’t make an appearance until 2007, followed by the iPad in 2010. By that timeline alone Apple is well within their typical product development window, even discounting the continual refinement of both hardware and software.

Then there’s the Mac lineup. One could consider the MacBook Air as an innovation; the physical form was unheard of when it was first released and competitors have flocked to create similar devices. The evolution of the MacBook Pro should be kept in mind when evaluating innovation as well; the construction and components of Apple’s premier laptops have set industry trends as well culminating in the Retina models, with their stunning display and solid state internals.

In comparison, the PC hasn’t changed much in the past ten years. Components have improved- processors, graphics, memory, and other internals have grown in power and speed, but the actual form and function of the PC hasn’t truly altered in a very long time. Until recently, input was via a keyboard and mouse (or similar device), with the computer consisting of a tower and monitor. There were a few all-in-ones similar to Apple’s iMac, but they were a small minority of the PC market. Yet no one championed the lack of progress or innovation in the PC market. The attempt by Microsoft to create a uniform interface across all devices (handheld and PC) via Windows 8 is a prime example of the peril of poorly implemented change; consumers have by and large shunned it to the point that Microsoft will be releasing a service pack to undo the most drastic changes to the operating system: the once-named “Metro” interface.

So what of Apple’s other competitors? Samsung has been heralded for their products, and they do have a very successful line of handsets. Yet Samsung’s innovation has been more of a hyper variant of what Apple has pursued in improving the iPhone. Samsung has offered a wide variety of products, some with massive screens (even one that needs a stylus), some with a hardware keyboard, and units that sport Android and Windows operating systems. Yet what groundbreaking innovation have they offered? The sole differentiating factor has been screen size (which Apple has notably followed with the slightly larger iPhone 5), but no true paradigm shift or new product categories. The ‘shotgun’ approach of releasing a wide variety of products has served both Samsung and Google well, but it doesn’t fit the concept of innovation that Apple has been faulted for lacking after the passing of their iconic CEO.

While I’d love to see a new product line released (what tech addict doesn’t like shiny new things?) the criticism Apple has faced is unwarranted. If we are to believe the recent claims of Tim Cook that new product lines will be introduced this year, Apple will have continued to follow the same timeline of innovation that has served them since the turn of the century.

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It’s not all bad news for iOS 6 Maps

While the overall impressions for Apple’s new homegrown Maps app hasn’t been flattering, it’s not all doom and gloom for the vilified geolocation service.

Even before its release pundits had covered Apple’s efforts to cobble together their own mapping service. The incentive to do so is multifaceted; the wealth of data that comes from user’s activities alone would make the mapping service worthwhile. There’s also the alleged disagreement between Apple and Google as to who would have the most control over the interface, and the inability to build in turn by turn voice directions as Android‘s version has. While the acquired and leased data have been adequate for my uses here in the US, users have been very vocal of their displeasure of how inaccurate Maps has been, culminating in an open apology from Apple’s CEO Tim Cook.

AppleInsider brings some much needed good news for iOS 6 Maps in a recent article. While the data for the cloud service in most of the world has been of questionable accuracy at times, apparently the new Maps app has been warmly embraced by Chinese users. The app lacks spoken turn by turn navigation and the eye catching 3D flyover features, but makes up for this with its unparalleled accuracy. This competitive advantage is due to the scarcity of companies collecting mapping data in China (the article cites 11, with half of those only available to government institutions).

While I have no doubt that iOS 6 Maps will improve quickly, for the immediate future I’ve opted to rely on third party solutions for my navigation needs. The iTunes App Store even recently created a new category specifically for navigation apps in response to the perceived need. It is encouraging to see that given accurate data iOS 6 Maps can not only be usable, it can excel.

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New directions in Apple customer service

One of the factors in my switch to Apple products was the level of customer service afforded, both online and via my local Apple retail store. I’ve had only one hardware related issue to date with the myriad devices (and there have been quite a few) I’ve purchased, but a short visit to my local retail outlet resulted in my faulty device being swapped out by the manager. No questions, no hassle, just friendly and quick help- something few retailers have been able to provide at all, much less to the level I was afforded.

To continue this positive relationship with their customers MacRumors reported recently that Apple’s online store will be expanding their support via chat (traditional text chat, screen sharing sessions, and online sessions to help set up new devices) to include the UK, Germany, Spain, and Brazil. US customers have already been able to access these advanced online support features, helping those that lived in a market area without an Apple retail store. 

Unfortunately MacRumors also brought us news of changes at Apple retail stores that could have a negative impact on customer relations.  The report reflected news of reductions of part time staff and cutbacks in staff hours on the heels of an admission by Apple that they had “messed up” in adjusting their staffing formulas for retail outlets that would have resulted in significant cuts to staff.

The changes are thought to be the result of the departure of former retail head John Browett who had campaigned for the focus of the stores to be customer satisfaction, while new CEO Tim Cook is thought to favor a more financially-focused approach for the retail operations. While the retail outlets should undoubtedly produce a profit, I’ve always felt that an organization that specializes in premium products such as Apple should provide an overall atmosphere to reflect that commitment. Much as BMW uses their comprehensive maintenance program to reinforce their brand image as a quality product, Apple should (even at the risk of losing out on some profit) focus on providing the best possible customer experience. The shift to using profit as the primary statistic to evaluate store performance is in my opinion a mistake, but I’ll defer to Mr. Cook’s business acumen. Time will tell if the change in strategy will be successful.

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Mercy killing- Apple set to end Ping

Testament to the truism that no one gets everything right, Apple is finally acknowledging what almost everyone has felt about their social networking effort in iTunes by abandoning Ping. The feature will be missing from the next major update to iTunes. The effort was Apple’s attempt to join in on the social networking craze of 2010, and from its release was an instant failure. The concept was to allow iTunes users to follow their friends and favorite artists, keeping you up to date with announcements and exposing you to new music via previews of tracks your friends were listening to and Top Music selections in the iTunes Music Store. The platform felt more like disguised advertising than a social network, and the few users that did join in didn’t have many peers to share with.

My first though after it popped up post-iTunes update was “how do I uninstall this?” The vast majority of iTunes users apparently felt as I did: there are already plenty of social network providers that are larger and arguably better, so why not leave this to the people who do it for a living? Apple has apparently seen the wisdom of this strategy, and according to AllThingsD will be relying on partnerships with social networking titans Facebook and Twitter to do what Ping couldn’t.

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