I’ve been an Apple since I can remember; wayyy before it became cool. Their products (basically just desktop computers back then) just always worked better, longer, and safer than PCs. Sure, they were more expensive, but you got what you paid for.
You still get what you pay for with Apple, but now what you are paying for is sexiness, not quality. The new lines of laptops, ipods, and accessories that Apple is putting out are all sexy as hell. There’s just one problem: they don’t work that well! Batteries die and software gets outdated way too quickly. Reception drops and sound pitches in and out. The devices get harder and harder to use…
Sexiness will always have a place among consumers who can afford to pay for it, but it’s quality that will win the mass markets in the long-term. Apple has become so self-absorbed in keeping its branding and positioning ahead of the game that it has dropped the ball on its actual product offering. When you sacrifice functionality for irrational appeal, it’s hard to keep everyone on board.
People will always buy Apple, but what brands worry about is will more or less people buy. I can tell you that out of the past three Apple products I’ve bought, I wouldn’t recommend a single one to a friend, all because they just don’t work well. And, honestly, I’m not even the person Apple should be worried about. The global marketplace for technology is exploding, and these are consumers that will be far more worried about functionality. Sexiness only brought Apple to the top when it was built on a foundation of quality. As soon as that foundation weakens under the pressure of a quality-conscience mass market, the Apple will crumble.
