Why Magsafe is the ultimate sign that Apple is losing it!
The recent introduction of Magsafe to the MacbookPro 14 and 16 inch models is a clear sign that Apple is losing it. Yes, you heard it right. Apple has just downgraded itself to an ordinary company just by introducing this new feature. I am going to tell you why in this article.
Apple has just downgraded itself to an ordinary company
I am a big Apple fan since many years. I am not claiming to be one of the very first users but I felt in deep love with Apple when I got my hands on a Macbook in 2008. What fascinated me was the quality, craftsmanship and particularly the focus on the right things. My company “Fitrockr” runs entirely on Apple products and we are extremely happy with it.
Let me give you an example why Apple was so special to me. Many years ago, I read an interview with an Apple employee who was tasked to develop the most innovative external monitor for the Macbook. That employee staffed a team with the best engineers and brightest minds in the world and worked day and night to create the Apple Cinema Display.
At that time, it was the largest and most innovative monitor on the market. When the team finished their prototype, they called Steve Jobs to review it. They were very excited how Steve is going to like it. They felt quite comfortable to present their work as they clearly created a very innovative product that utilised all modern components that you could use, such as LEDs.
Steve Jobs entered the room, looked at the monitor and asked them: “why does it have an on/off switch” and walked out.
Why does it have an on/off switch?
This statement hit the team entirely off-guard. All the hard work was not recognised, instead a tiny seemingly unimportant feature caused a negative review. But for Apple, it was not a tiny unimportant feature. It was Apple’s DNA to question things and make it better even though nobody was complaining about it. Why does a monitor need an on/off switch? Right, it doesn’t! It is a relict from past times but kept over years because nobody questioned it. But Apple did!
What does this has to do with the Magsafe? Well, the Magsafe was introduced in 2006 and it was a great innovation. It was the smallest charging plug and with the help of a tiny magnet its use and experience was unmatched. Everybody loved it.
Then in 2015, the Magsafe was scrapped in favour of the new USB-C standard. While millions of users complaint about this move, it was the only logical thing to do. USB-C charges not only the Macbook, it also connects it to a display (while charging with the same cable at the same time!) and to any other third party device for charging and data exchange. USB-C was and is the one-fits-it-all global standard cable needed for everything. Why keep the Magsafe as an additional cable that can only do one thing which the USB-C cable can do as well — charging? Right, there is no more reason. The Magsafe has become the relict from past times when USB-C was introduced. It has become the “on/off switch of the monitor”. And that is why Apple scrapped the Magsafe.
In 2021, Apple has decided to bring back the Magsafe. But why? USB-C is still the global standard one-fits-it-all cable that charges your Macbook. You can even decide on which side to charge it as a Macbook has USB-C ports on each side. No more cable/mouse issues independent whether you are left- or right-handed.
But Apple still decided to reintroduce the Magsafe and the only reason is that users liked it so much in 2006 and kept demanding it even thought there is no more reason to have it apart of nostalgia.
Unfortunately, Apple seemed to have changed its DNA and did what any other ordinary company would do. They build what users are willing to pay for. Apple has not asked itself whether it makes any sense. They saw the opportunity to make money out of it even if it is a completely stupid request of its users.
The ultimate outcome is that Apple will earn millions more (which they surely do not need) for selling Magsafe accessories, millions of Apple users seem to be happy carrying an additional cable that does the same thing as the USB-C cable that they are already carrying and I am truly sad that Apple lost its magic to build uncompromising products. Last but not least, the Magsafe consumes a port which could have been an additional USB-C port that would have added much more value.
I think this is just the start. In the future, we will see Apple more and more running after customer requirements instead of innovating products and features that customers did not even know they wanted.
Thanks for reading my personal thoughts. Let me know what you think about it. Happy commenting :-)
About me
I am the CEO of FITROCKR, an online fitness & research platform that lets users connect their fitness tracker to compete in Social Fitness Leagues and allows organisations to conduct data analysis based on wearable data.
