Apple has lost its touch

By Christopher Reyes
BUSINESS EDITOR
@cd_rey

The Apple Watch is a bad product.

It is an amazing piece of technology; There is no denying that. It represents the absolute best engineering and technology available today, but it takes more than that to inspire people to adopt a new product, even when it comes from one of the most beloved companies of all time.

It can’t do anything that couldn’t be done better by pulling out your iPhone and using that instead. Do consumers value convenience so much that they will spend $350 so they don’t have to reach into their pocket and pull out their phone? I don’t think so.
What problem does the Apple watch solve?

When the iPhone came out, Apple had a clear target consumer in mind and solved a common problem. The internet’s popularity was increasing by millions daily. People wanted to be constantly connected and have easier access to the web. The iPhone made people say “wow.” The same is not true of the Apple watch.

Before I got a smartphone, I remember being jealous of my friends who did. If one of my friends got an Apple watch, I would probably just make fun of him.

Apple products have always enabled people to do more than they thought possible. The iPod put your entire music collection in your pocket. It was groundbreaking. The most innovative feature of the Watch, mobile payments, essentially turns your wrist into a $350 credit card. And that will only happen if the infrastructure is put into place, which, as of right now, is looking unlikely.
The watch cannot change the industry landscape like the iPhone did to the cell phone industry. Smartphones appeal to everyone. How many people does the Apple watch appeal to?

I cannot imagine businessmen replacing their Rolex watches with the Apple watch. Nor do I see a fashion mogul trading in his Cartier. The average Joe isn’t going to replace his $35 Timex for something 10 times more costly.

People want their watches to be unique. Most people wear them more for the fashion than for the utility, and the Apple watch does not look that good.

I think this product will end up the same way Google Glasses did. It is incredibly cool but otherwise impractical and improbable as a widespread trend.

Perhaps this signals that Apple has run out of ideas. After all, the iPhone 6 has been mocked for its ‘new’ features that other phones have offered for years. Perhaps Steve Jobs took the magic of Apple with him when he died. Tim Cook has a lot to live up to, and so far he has not.

To me, the Apple watch is not innovation, it is a gimmick.