This week’s Apple Breakfast column includes all the Apple news that you missed in a quick roundup. We call it Apple Breakfast because we think it goes great with a morning cup of coffee or tea, but it’s cool if you want to give it a read during lunch or dinner hours too.
The iPad: Where was it all wrong?
Apple’s record-breaking quarter appears to be evident if you look at the top numbers. But even the most flourishing gardens have weeds, and (at risk of mixing my metaphors) the most obvious fly in Apple’s Q4 ointment was the performance of the iPad.
The iPhone and Wearables both increased 10 percent while the Mac was up 25 per cent. Services also saw a 5 percent increase over the previous quarter, but the iPad fell by an alarming 13%. (It’s not a one-off, either. The iPad was not up Also available in Q3.And In Q2And Q1.) That’s a hole in Apple’s finances worth a little over a billion dollars… which is probably less damaging for the company than it sounds but remains a worry.
With a staggered launch schedule and self-cannibalizing product map that’s as annoying as it is It can be confusing, the iPad doesn’t need competitors. Apple has taken over the task of killing it.
The iPad is not the Mac–as much as Apple would like it to be–and a fluid, complex range simply doesn’t work. We are aware that iPads were designed for light-usage customers, and light-usage people need them. Signposts clearly that tell them which product to buy—which is exactly what the iPad range is unable to offer.
The new 10.9-inch iPad, rather than offering a compelling update to the budget iPad from 2021, instead invades the mid-market territory of the iPad Air, which itself invaded the iPad Pro’s territory when it came out. With iPads launching at seemingly random times throughout the year and rendering each other redundant the moment they do, the best bet is to simply buy the newest… but there’s no guarantee it won’t itself be surpassed the following month. Customers are unlikely to queue at their local Apple Store for any of these reasons.
The iPad was supposed be the solution to the post-PC dilemma. The changing face of smartphones. At one point, they were so popular that they created a new category called phablet. The changing reality of working on the mobile, which many assumed would have replaced the laptop years ago. Apple wasn’t the only company to wrongly believe that the tablet was the future, but no one else has worked as hard to make it actually happen.
The fact that consumers don’t, in fact, want to trade in their laptops and phones for a single converged device isn’t Apple’s fault, and with the benefit of hindsight, we can see that the iPad was never really destined to take the iPhone’s place as the company’s revenue leader, as Apple evidently hoped it would. Many of us desire something larger than a tablet that can be used for work and something smaller to carry around in our pockets. The tablet is seen as something that fits in between. Customers use it to stream Netflix, surf the internet, and play a few video games. The iPad’s market as a core device and as a device for work was not as large as the company believed.
However, a smaller market can still be valuable and Apple does not like to make a loss. Apple has proven to be a great steward of that money. Apple’s iPad dominates the tablet market as well as Apple Watch, which is a leader in wearables. Indeed at times tech fans worry that the ease with which the iPad beats rival tablets has made Apple risk-averse; if you’re number one, why try harder?
Tim Cook thought of what the iPads would be used for. Buy a Xiaomi Pad 5? Worse yet, people can buy nothing and then watch Netflix on the go. A disappointingly small market becomes a little smaller.
Trending: The top stories of the week
Apple reports Another record quarter, Jason Snell reckons Booming Macs and shrinking services aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.
The iOS App Store can be found here Advertising suddenly seems to be everywhere. And it’s probably Going to get worse.
A TikTok video viral proves we’ve all been Our iPhones are incorrectly charged. (Possibly.)
Samsung just released this: Amazing privacy featureThe iPhone We urgently need your help.
Mysterious: The charging port located on the New iPadIt is possible to USB-C disguised lighting port.
Rumor mill
Apple could launch a Large 16-inch iPadThe date is late next year. This would be Apple’s most expensive iPad.
Apple confirmed that it is not a rumor but a fact. future iPhonesWill Switch from Lightning-to-USB-C.
And here’s Everything you need to understandAbout the iPhone 15It will likely include a USB C port.
Podcast of the Week
iOS 16.1 and iPadOS 16.1 have arrived, along with macOS Ventura. On this episode of the Macworld Podcast, we talk about these new OS updates, and we also talk about the price hikes for Apple’s subscription services. Stay tuned!
Each episode of Macworld Podcast is available online Spotify, SoundcloudThe Podcasts appOr Visit our site.
Software updates, bugs & problems
iOS 16.1Included is a fix to a scary Zero-day iPhone security flaw.
Critical patches are waiting for your Mac even if you’re Ventura Upgrades Not Recommended.
Apple finally Released iOS 15.7.1With Important security patches.
The company warns however that iOS 15 and macOS12There are still devices that could have “known security issues.”
The new iOS/iPadOS 16.2 beta brings our first look at Apple’s all-new Freeform app.
Over a billion devicesThis week, Apple updates We round up Every app and OS version updateApple has released.
Did you find the Classic Mac OS Easter eggHidden in Ventura?
And with that, we’re done for this week. If you’d like to get regular roundups, sign up for Our newsletters. You can also subscribe to us Follow us on Twitter for breaking news stories. We hope to see you Saturday. Enjoy the rest of your weekend and stay Appley.
