The Apple Watch and MacBook Event Was a Giant Experiment
And we’re all parts of it.
Apple always commands my attention when it holds a media event, but today’s event has had me thinking since shortly after it started. And that hasn’t happened probably since the iOS 7 introduction at WWDC 2013. At the beginning, I was fairly positive I was going to be hugely tempted to buy an Apple Watch and perhaps even splurge on the stainless steel model. By the end, I was certain about holding off until the second-generation presumably next year. There are a few reasons for this.
Watch Thoughts
What’s most underwhelming about the Apple Watch isn’t the pricing or anything Apple announced today, it’s what Apple didn’t announce. I felt confident that Apple held off unveiling a lot about the Watch back in September for today’s big day, as did John Gruber when he wrote his initial take on it.
But Apple didn’t hold off on very much at all. What we saw today was the full details of pricing and availability for the Watch and little else. There were no new hardware or software features. What Apple unveiled in September truly was the Apple Watch in its entirety, save for third-party applications, which I think Apple is heavily relying on to entice users more than any single feature. That’s what is disappointing to me. Apple Watch very well could be the most well-executed smartwatch to date, but it doesn’t feel like an innovational stride forward, and definitely not leaps and bounds ahead of the competition like the iPhone was in 2007.
Battery life is also generally disappointing for now. All-day usage (albeit arguable about what that should even mean) is fine, but how am I supposed to track my sleep as advertised if Apple recommends I charge it every night?
I’ll buy one eventually, I’m positive, but I think I’m skipping this year. The price for the stainless steel model is the one upside, as I thought it’d be more expensive, and apparently so did a lot of other people. I might just spring for that one. For now, I have my heart set on a Fitbit Charge for only $129 to hold me over, tracking sleep and fitness until I throw north of $600 in the furnace for an Apple Watch.
And a frenzy is already starting among my peers and in the media about the $10,000 Apple Watch Edition and particularly the $17,000 model. It’s solid gold, folks. That’s what typical gold watches cost, and those other ones only just tell time. How primitive.
MacBook Thoughts
Everyone thought this 12-inch MacBook was going to be a new MacBook Air. Nope. After seeing it today, the branding is very weird. The MacBook was originally placed as the mid-tier MacBook between the Air and the Pro when the Air debuted. Now “MacBook” is the low-end MacBook. Confusing. Plus, based on size and specs, it should really be branded as the MacBook Mini or something of that sort.
As a consumer, I’m thoroughly disappointed with this notebook. As a technology enthusiast and journalist, I understand the purpose of this notebook. But first my human-natured problems.
The omission of all ports except for a headphone jack and a single USB-C is just idiotic. Since USB-C acts as a charging port, HDMI port, USB port, etc. that means I can’t hook up HDMI while it’s charging or plug in a flash drive to make an HDMI presentation because the port’s already in use. I might be able to get behind the idea of having to buy all new accessories if the MacBook had multiple USB-C ports, but there is only one. And this wonky, $79 adapter is not the answer to that problem. USB-C also effectively eliminates MagSafe, one of the most compelling features of the MacBook’s hardware.
Including a 480p FaceTime camera in 2015 — especially with a Retina display—is a senseless move, too.
Those complaints aside, I understand Apple’s goals. Today’s MacBook is very much like the MacBook Air in 2008: expensive, ballsy, controversial, and experimental. And underpowered, if you count the 1.1GHz Intel Core M. It’s also in my mind a direct response to the moderate success of Chromebooks in almost every aspect except for price. Just look at the marketing on the product page. It’s for people who almost entirely live wirelessly.
I suspect that in the coming years, Apple will slowly iterate on this MacBook to make it more powerful, add more USB-C ports (and possibly the MagSafe back to it) and probably end up discontinuing the MacBook Air altogether. The Air is just sticking around as the mid-tier laptop until the new MacBook is independent enough to take its place.
The Experiment
From a very limited vantage point, neither the Apple Watch nor MacBook make any sense for consumers or for the company. But everything about today’s event screamed that Apple is in the midst of a huge experiment.
I don’t think Apple truly knows where the Apple Watch is headed, nor do they know where this new MacBook is headed. Both are pretty new territory. No one knows whether people will spend money on the Apple Watch and whether it’s the next big thing in consumer tech. If they do spend money, it’s uncertain how much they’ll spend, which model they buy, which strap or straps they buy, what they’ll primarily use the watch for, how often they’ll use the watch, if it’ll replace the iPhone during day-to-day usage, and so on.
Much is a mystery about the MacBook. Will people buy this thing even though it has almost no ports? Will people get fed up with the Force Touch trackpad or the single USB-C? Will people dislike the lack of MagSafe? Is it too underpowered for the masses? Is it too overpriced?
The Apple Watch and MacBook’s futures are both entirely dependent on how customers react to them over the course of this year. Sure there’s backlash now, but the initial reaction is almost never indicative of sales figures when the devices release. I expect Apple to refine and reimagine the products over the next few years to respond to consumers’ responses, almost as if the products have just entered a public beta. Today is the beginning of one big cycle of communication.
