Apple product features are no longer a mystery, and that’s OK

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TIME:

The fact that yesterday’s bash wasn’t full of startling twists presumably helps explain why it prompted lots of stories declaring the event, and even the iPhone 5 itself, to be a disappointment. Product rollouts aren’t action movies. Surprises are nice, but they aren’t the ultimate goal — at least if the idea is to sell lots and lots of gadgets and make lots and lots of money. Surprise has no inherent relation to quality or popularity.

It will be interesting to see if this “lack of secrecy” regarding the details of the iPhone 5 are an anomaly or the new standard operating procedure for Apple.



  • JDSoCal

    I’ve been wondering if all the leaks (no offense, Jim) and lack of surprises reversed the typical “buy the rumor, sell the news” effect. Kinda freaked me out when we were down $20 on M-T, since I had planned on the typical pattern, but all’s well that ends well.

    I am concerned that the meme these days seems to be that Apple is behind in technology. I would love to see some big new feature next time. What’s up with those haptic patents, Jim?

    • http://twitter.com/Moeskido Moeskido

      Look at the byline. Jim didn’t write this post.

      • JDSoCal

        Yes, but Jim leaks like a sieve. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

        • http://www.yourmaclifeshow.com/ Shawn King

          “Yes, but Jim leaks like a sieve.”

          Really? That comes as s surprise to those of us who pay attention. Could you point to some evidence that “Jim leaks like a sieve”?

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Sebastian-Paul/1186812355 Sebastian Paul

    Well, technology in this case means display size, which they wo’t increase just to stay on par with Samsung (It took them 5 years to increase the size of the display for the first time, doubt we’ll see 4.3 inch or whatever displays before 2017 – if they’ll ever increase it again) and NFC, which is mostly useless outside of the US and its functions can be emulated via geofencing and other techniques.

    With the other stuff, performance of the cpu, gpu, wireless module, they are on par with the best or even better.

    Even if they released a haptic touchscreen in their next device – those saying that Apple lacks in technology will just ignore that fact or say that nobody needs something like that.

  • http://cjensen.livejournal.com/ CJ

    One thing really surprised me, and I haven’t seen it reported much.

    The new iPod Touch now has feature parity with very newest iPhone. Quality camera, CPU, GPU, everything. The Nintendo DSI is toast.

    • http://twitter.com/RoadRacer DT

      Yeah, I think the only spec that’s lower is the CPU/GPU (A5 vs. A6), but everything else, including I believe the display details are the same.

      I totally agree about dedicated game devices, especially when you factor in a couple of considerations:

      1) The game/content is so much cheaper on an iOS device. I can’t believe how many outstanding games are $1-2, and even high end premium titles you can generally score for $5 if you keep an eye on sales. It doesn’t take many purchases to make an iPod Touch much cheaper than handheld game machines.

      2) An IPT does so much more. Messaging, email, a fantastic music player, iTunes (for simple access to media), maps, notes, reminders, Netflix, IMDB, Kindle, etc. (I’m not totally sure about what is/isn’t available on the DSI/PS-whatever, but I’m sure it’s much less than the iOS market)

      • Jasper

        The fact that the iPhone — a smartphone ferchrissakes — has a 100% (or even if they were fibbing and it’s only near-100) sRGB screen is reasonably insane. So it’s not a wide-gamut near-100-percent-aRGB[1], but it is still very significantly better color reproduction than any other computing device except for the relatively high-end desktop monitors[2] and the very occasional high end laptop.

        The fact that the iPod Touch has the exact same part with the same in-cell touch sensor and the same gamut and the same resolution and the same viewing angles is just unbelievable.

        [1] I am now taking bets on when wide-gamut heads to iOS.

        [2] By which I mean the cheap end of the IPS/*VA crowd, as opposed to the TN monitors that fricking everyone has.

    • Fabio

      Not the same chip, the touch has the A5, so it’s one generation behind

  • http://twitter.com/PXLated PXLated

    The smartphone is now 5-6 years old and I doubt there is anything revolutionery going forward, all is incremental (even voice & payment systems). Apple probably won’t try to keep incremental tech secret but I’m betting they do on any new product categories.

  • http://ComicsPundit.com/ Shawn L.

    The iPod lineup changes/updates seem to be well kept secrets.

    Then again, there’s less FCC interaction, fewer technologies that have to be outsourced or licensed, and the tech press is looking for whatever is in its obsession currently, and the iPod line is not there (not to mention any leaked product designs for the Touch could easily be mistaken for iPhone designs.

  • Relentlessfocus

    Custom designed core on A6 CPU for seriously improved speed AND efficiency, unique in-cell technology screen allowing thinner and lighter phone while improving the touch responsiveness, unibody construction creating a strong light and rigid shell, unique dynamic antenna allowing multiple band use in a small space with improved signal reception and eliminating the death grip. Nope, no surprises here folks, keep moving….

    • http://twitter.com/forty2j Jim McPherson

      “Improved speed & efficiency” was assumed and required.. they’d get lambasted for plugging in the same A5. The rest were known before the announcement. This is what we mean by “no surprises”.. when we watch/read about an Apple announcement, we like our jaws to drop, not to nod and say “ok, heard that.. yep, that leak was right.. yep, knew about that..”. (And yet, we can hardly stop ourselves from reading the leaks..)

  • http://twitter.com/jimmortensen jim mortensen

    Where’s the link to the original Article? The title link just leads back to this post.

    • http://www.yourmaclifeshow.com/ Shawn King

      No idea how/why that broke but it’s fixed now. Our apologies for the inconvenience.

  • http://twitter.com/forty2j Jim McPherson

    I can honestly say that I was going to buy whatever telecommunications device Apple put out this year, but I was disappointed by the lack of surprises in the reveal. I found myself clinging to details like the improved color saturation, because that was all I hadn’t heard about yet.