Apple- Yesturday, Today, and Tomorrow

[GroundZeroX]

Where do you see Apple going in the next few years. Do you think Apple is the same company it was 10 or even 15 years ago? What do you think is Apple's biggest mistake?

[thisbechuck]

I think in the short term, Apple's biggest mistake is clinging to the G4 as long as it is. Hopefully, the next few months will reveal Apple is acknowledging this...

[Ugg]

Persuing the digital hub, expanding throughout the world, solidifying its market in film software and becoming more like Sony.

I think few tech companies are anything like they were ten years ago but Apple has been pretty consistent with its product and its approach.

Not expanding fast enough outside the borders of the US.

[Giaguara]

the only thing that does not change is that everything changes. apple is not what it was years ago, whatever it means, and it will not be what it is now or what is what before, after some years.

[Koelling]

It blew my mind reading macosxhints.com today and someone wrote about cocoa not being very "Mac like" but I guess in some ways it's not. He was refering how carbon apps such as iTunes will live update the scripts folder and he was being very nostalgic in general.

But people who hold on to distant memories of Macintosh aren't very Apple like, because Apple has always been about change, bleading edge and a little risk. I think that embracing NeXt was a good idea and whatever is to come will distance some, welcome others and life will go on. I'm not saying that the future will be good if Apple says so but I'm saying they have a pretty good track record thus far.

[Jack Hammer]

i think apple will always be around and probably always about anywhere from 2-8%.

i think the PC industry in general is about to move into it's modern age soon during the next economy spike.

by then (5 yrs from now), tech will be more standard and the new ideas and innovation from Apple will truly be adopted. i think lifestyle is a legitamite guess and peripherals will have a lot to do with it. i think the ipod will eventually change into (or evolve seperately from) something more Newtonish but of course with the Apple twist to it.

Think about it. Ipod is already a A+ mp3 player. The ipod is a D organizer presently. If they made the iPod an A organizer in the next few years, they can have a tremendous product in their hands.

Also, currently mMode phones are very close to being easy to use IMO. I have a AT&T Mot 720 and i find it ok, but the potential i see in it are exponential. If Apple can streamline the process with their own phone, and software...i see this as important as the Music Store. Owners of GSM phones with the mMode type features like games and software that download to the phone know what i'm talking about. It sucks now just like Pressplay and iListen did but if Apple got their hands on it and made it brilliant...watch out.

I do not see Apple making home Audio devices. I have seen people making their own iPod rigs connected to the home audio and they seem to have no interest in another big audio box clogging their equipment when a plug and their ipod save space, effort and is cheap (to turn your portable player into a home audio device as you already use the iPod for portable usage).

I see Apple finally moving into the next generation of processing with a new processor but how much damage has the G4/Mot done already and how big can IBM be in terms of development and the roadmap for the 970? How fast does the processor ramp and will the processor be *FASTER* than PCs at any given time? Remember Avis commercials where they work harder becauuse they are #2? Well Apple is #2 and their processor does not work harder. They need a clear cut advantages instead of BS like they currently have. Winning Wintel converts easily is imaging Apple store salesmen saying "This G5 performs exactly 15% faster than the latest Intel processor and here is a flyer with benchmarks as well as website links to independent benchmark scores where Apple beats every wintel score in every major category".

But Apple it will always be around and we will always enjoy owning and speculating about the future.

[LVzardoz]

Opinions from MacRumors.com:

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[fryke]

Please don't link to other forums' threads (according to site rules, it's not nice to do it, anyway...), we have enough people with enough opinions on board. ;-)