So... It's been a while since my last post. Since the passing of Steve Jobs... I couldn't ignore an epiphany I just had. It was so good, I had to write it down. So good in fact, that it could only come from the mind of Skippy.
I have a theory about first generation Apple products within the past 10 years.
The original iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, and AppleTV all had 3 things in common. I don't see the AppleWatch being any different.
1) Core lacking feature made it in to the second generation.
2) The following model was overhauled, and outlasted the original.
3) Support for the first gen product saw premature EOL due to specs.
...
The original iPhone...
1) Lacked 3G at a time where Edge networks were on the way out.
2) Was replaced with the iPhone 3G, and the original metal design was scrapped for the plastic 3G. The 3GS after that kept the same form-factor
3) Was kicked to the curb and stuck on iOS 3 fairly early, whereas the iPhone 4 got iOS 7 and the 3GS got iOS 6. By that logic, the first iPhone should have gotten iOS 4. (And the 3G, iOS 5, but neither happened.)
The original iPod Touch...
1) Lacked a speaker, which was odd for a device that was basically an iPhone without a phone. Thinness was the winner over the speaker.
2) Was replaced by the 2nd gen iPod Touch with the rounded back and black antenna spot. The black bezel was also dropped, and this design again lasted through the 3rd gen product with higher capacity.
3) Once again, the original iPod Touch was abandoned at iOS 3, but the second and third generations followed suit at iOS 4 and 5, respectively - unlike the iPhone.
The original iPad...
1) Lacked cameras, but this wasn't a big deal at the time.
2) The iPad 2 was again a total redesign. It gained cameras, a better speaker, much better internals, and third party accessory manufacturers had a field day with this design because the size and style lasted not two, but three generations.
3) This was possibly the biggest sting on the list. The original iPad would only last through iOS 5 and then get snubbed. Meanwhile the iPad 2, released a year later, is still current on iOS 8.
The original AppleTV...
1) Was a complete departure from the AppleTV 2 and 3 that would follow, so really, the complete concept of the original was scrapped.
2) The AppleTV 2 was a total redesign in and out, in every way. Instead of containing a HD for storing content, the redesign was a box meant from streaming content hosted by another device.
3) Didn't even run what was considered "iOS", so support its unique OS was knocked off fairly quickly. The small black design that we know now has been the only other design since the original.
...
Even the first generation of Intel iMacs, MacBooks, and Mac Minis with the Core Duo follow this path slightly, but that was Intel's release schedule at work. The original Mac Pro even got the cold shoulder because of specs.
Some people are going to disagree with me, I know, but the list I just made is an example of how Apple tends to snub first-generation products to favor the redesign after the product takes off.
The AppleWatch will see a substantial overhaul in its second generation. This is a small market segment, in which Apple is fantastic at either creating from nothing or dominating and where the market exists, no matter how small at the time. That market will boom when the iProduct comes out, because that's just how it works.
I have a theory to go with that as well...
...
Apple likely designs the dream product they want. AFTER THAT, they design the first generation. A bulkier, more-feasible version of their dream product that could hit the price-point and release date they want. That version of the product is released. The dream product they dreamed up is then released, but as the "second generation" product, after the first is kicked to the curb due to its unique design and lower specs. By the time component costs go down, they add in the missing feature to the second generation the following year, and people end up getting everything they wanted from the first generation.
Apple isn't stupid. They don't leave features out because they didn't get to it. Those features are obviously planned. They hold back to leave you wanting more, and they're right every time. I also believe the AppleTV was the exception to that philosophy due to a market shift in streaming rather than buying. The original AppleTV was simply a victim of the time.
I wish I could get some insight to really, officially prove all of this, but for now, it remains just that - insight. Speculation. Which is what brings us all here. The rumor community around Apple exists (see, MacRumors) because of this company's obsession over secrecy - which actually, might be the most genius, well-thought-out concept around.
Everyone thinks they know about Apple, because very few of us actually know so very little.
