Sour for Change… or Got a Point?
I read an article today at Wired concerning the Cult of Mac and it’s got me thinking.
Does the author have a point that the Cult is seeing the time of its passing? iPhone is getting the attention of Apple developers who were working on the new OS X upgrade. Is the change in focus for the worst? Personally, I don’t think so.
While I missed the days where geeks brought in their computers to the Genius Bar and mingled as their babies were being fixed up, I don’t think the current state of affairs really mean the possible end to the Cult. I think it’s just evolving. The focus had always been on computers but that’s changing. Just look at “Japan”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_mobile_phone_culture and “Europe”:http://69.93.14.237/technology/euro_mobile_07.cfm.
OS X is the unacknowledged killer app that propelled the company back to prominence among its core audience — computer users, not gadget freaks.
The core audience bubble is expanding. It doesn’t just encompass computer users anymore. In the past, I’ve mentioned that I’d always think I’d get a Mac. However, being attached to the PC for gaming, it just didn’t seem likely I’d ever take the leap. The “Halo Effect”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halo_effect may just be mumbo jumbo, but I did have an iPod before getting my MacBook. It was because of being a gadget freak I made the switch. Or maybe it was the Intel switch Apple did…
Mobile technology is the future. At least with the way things are going. People will do more as the technology matures. I can’t wait for the day I can use my cell phone to make purchases or scan barcodes with my cell for added personlization or make use of services.
And, personally, I’d rather do all that neat stuff with an iPhone.
Yeah, we’ll have to wait a while for Leopard, but I think it’s worth the wait. Tiger already is so much better than Windows (XP since I haven’t really played with Vista, but come on, it’s still Windows). And if iPhone launches sooner, rather than later, that’s much more time they can get the first generation model to the public and work out the kinks that millions of users will undoubtedly discover.
As for the griping about the Genius Bar and waiting? Seriously, “make a reservation online”:http://www.apple.com/retail/geniusbar/. It did wonders for me.
