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The Apple Strategy in One Single Word
12 Jan
There’s a single word that summarize the recent apple strategy.
And the word is Absence.
- iMac
- no printer port
- no floppy disk (in 1998!)
- iPod Shuffle
- No screen.
- Mac Mini
- No monitor
- No keybord
- No mouse
- iPhone
- No keyboard
- No stylus
Do you notice something?
Apple removes things.
And give to the user what he needs, with simplicity embedded.
Other companies are always trying to add new features to their products
Our new mouse has 5 full-customizable buttons and 3 weels!
they add tons of useless features, but nobody thinks to remove the old (s)crap!
Do you realize that Microsoft “A Breakthrough Computing Experience” Vista comes with MS Paint installed? The same MS paint you used with Windows 3.1!
That’s ages ago!
They add, add, add and what you get is a stupid 7gb OS with MS Paint! And I don’t want to think about the code inside their DLLs…
In HW and SW markets things change really fast… devices and patterns move at such an hight rate that well established standard become old in few years… Companies should learn that what was good 6 months ago now it’s useless and can be removed to expand and explore new stuff.
So, the next time you’re doing Product Development and brainstorming about your new product or your new sw release, don’t ask “What can we add to make our product better” as the first question, try something like
What can be removed from our product to make it better?
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12 Responses for "The Apple Strategy in One Single Word"
Correction, it’s not quite the same MS Paint. Windows XP gave it an upgrade in a few features, including the ability to save JPEG’s, and the ability to have a canvas other than 640×480.
So there.
Wow, amazing! you can also save in PNG!!
The body is the Bhodi-tree.
The mind is like a mirror bright;
Take heed to keep it always clean
And let not dust collect upon it.
Perhaps Microsoft is not so good at mirror-cleaning
People get so accustomed to “features” that they fail to realize when they really don’t need them anymore.
Apple teaches the way of Wabi-sabi…
good designers thinks “what to add more”, great designers “what to eliminate more”
http://cameronmoll.com/
I’d extend this definition of Apple strategy to “Discipline” as in “design creativity with discipline”. It’s easy to be creative. It’s easy to have discipline. Truly great art and engineering is always a combination of creativity and discipline.
@Oracolo: you’re always a wonderful source of knowledge
@mantra: good point. Discipline helps creativity to avoid becoming chaos.
Sadly, I really lack in discipline
It is not the absence by itself. It is choosing to remove a single component (keyboard, stylus or mouse) in order to be able to find creative and alternative solutions to that component.
It is a very good strategy to force new technologies, indeed…
Or, simply, to make more room for really important components.
I’m waiting for the tablet pc with two touchscreens, and you can turn one in a keybord when needed
By the way, this post reminds me an old quote from Antoine de Saint-Exupery:
“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”
Thanks Franscesco & Oracolo cause I didnt know about Wabi-sabi before reading this article..
I just tasted Wasabi
[…] Wow! I found a way to write a second post (after the one about the Apple Strategy) with the word “iPhone” in […]
iPhone without phone = iPod Touch
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