After three iMacs, an iBook, and three iPods I definitely consider myself a Mac guy. Having had an original iMac running both Mac OS 8 and OS 9 gives me some street cred I believe. I've had great success with their hardware and the Mac OS X operating system has a great user interface with the power and security of Unix at it's core. I was serving the kool-aid to friends long before the iPhone was introduced and successfully converted several of them from PC to Mac-dom. It's many of these friends and family members who have heard me heaping praise on Apple that question why I'm using Android. Sometimes I fear they think me a hypocrite.
Truth be told, I'm not a hypocrite and I've always told people they should use what they want and what they like. There was no way in 1999 that I was going to convince any of my hard-core PC Gamer friends that they should switch to a Mac. Some people need a PC because of specific software they need to use for work or school, some people scoff at the price of Mac hardware, and others (my mother-in-law included) try a Mac and just don't get it because they're too set in their Windows ways.
Simply put, I didn't buy in to the iPhone initially because I didn't want to switch to AT&T. Now that Verizon carries them, I would again consider an iPhone except that I personally like my Evo 4G better. I'm also a user and a big fan of most of Google's services (their kool-aid is a different flavor) so the Android OS makes more sense and makes accessing my information easier and more seamless hence the purchase of my Xoom (the fact that it was $200 less than a comparable iPad didn't hurt either).
Yesterday I stopped in my local Best Buy and out of curiosity I picked up an iPad 2 they had on display. Light, apparently well built, a familiar user interface, apps that seem well developed. As I held it I got the same feeling from the device that I got the first time I used or held many of my Apple devices, a feeling noticeably absent from my Xoom. I then stepped over to the Apple computer display and checked out the new MacBook Air ultra-portable laptop computers. Light, apparently well built, a familiar user interface, apps that seem well developed. That feeling...
That feeling is why I'm posting tonight. I think that feeling is why Apple continues to succeed. Can you actually engineer feeling? Do they teach feeling at engineering school? Can a product developer pick up a product or a piece of hardware and decide what feels right and what doesn't?
In the automotive world there have been many manufacturers who have done everything in their power to surpass the the BMW 3 series automobile. Many have come close...building cars with all the necessary equipment, features, power, and luxury...many for less money. But nothing comes close to the Ultimate Driving Machine according to automotive journalists. Owners and fans of the marque agree...there's just something about the way a BMW feels, the way it drives. This feeling is ultimately what made BMW famous for making fantastic automobiles. The unfortunate (or fortunate, if you're a BMW accountant) side effect is that you also have non-drivers, non-car lovers, non-car fans...that buy BMW cars simply because they want to appear to be well off, stylish, or trendy. They don't get the feeling of the car, they just use it as an appliance. As such, people who get the feeling...who really enjoy the feeling of a well engineered automobile...are often shunned as wanna-be's who want to appear well off, stylish, or trendy.
I think that is what has happened with Apple. They have engineered some amazing products that have that feeling that so many of us gadget-lovers crave. They have also become the hardware of choice for people who want to appear smart, trendy, well-off, and stylish. With the demise of the HP Touchpad and Google's acquisition of Motorola Mobility, the entire tech blogosphere is searching for the answer to one single question. Who will dethrone the iPad?
My answer? No one. Because although my Xoom has better specifications, and my Evo is more practical to use with Google services, neither of them have that feeling that we gadget-lovers crave. Until any of the Tablet manufacturers figure out how to engineer that feeling, they will never catch the iPad just as no one has surpassed the BMW 3 series since 1975. Oh, and did I mention that Apple is working on the iPad 3? It's all about that feeling...
JQ
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