New iPad mini: Apple’s lack of innovation

October 27, 2012 at 7:00 pm (Apple) (Apple fail, Apple innovation, Apple loses touch, iPad mini fail, new iPad mini)

So Apple has finally announced what has been on the rumour mills for the past few months – the iPad mini

It actually doesn’t look too bad and has a decent screen size – much more usable than the Google Nexus 7, the Samsung Galaxy Tab or Blackberry Playbook. And I’m sure when you have it in your hands, like all Apple products, it will feel like a solid piece of kit, well made and oozing quality.

However, the excitement pretty much ends there. There’s no retina HD display, no new features – we’ve seen it all before with the original iPad. Sure, it’s a handy new size and I think a welcome one, considering the bigger 9″ iPad is quite heavy in your hands. But there’s really nothing else to it. I’m considerably underwhelmed by Apple’s attention to the manufacturing – the ‘beautiful aluminium/glass enclosure’, ‘it’s incredibly thin’ blah, blah, blah. Honestly, Apple needs to realise that we are not all nerdy nor anoraks. Sure, it’s been put together really well but that’s not the USP that users are looking for – it’s not all about looks – we get that! Lets move on! We want the iPad to do things that no other tablet can do. We want new hardware features – or has Apple run out of innovation?

Personally, I feel that the effects of Steve Jobs’ are slowly fading off the company. It hasn’t launched a single innovative product since Jobs passed away – it’s all been about a higher resolution screen or slight modifications in design. There’s nothing new coming to us from Apple – nothing creative, nothing that makes our daily lives more easier, nothing that really changes the way we do things. Come on, Apple! Where’s that spark we all admired you for?

Apple needs to return to its creative roots and start to jump ahead, rather than releasing versions of the iPad that just keeps it ahead of the competition – and the competition ARE catching up; it won’t be long before Apple loses out to the momentum of other manufacturers and is relegated to a niche market, as delivered by Microsoft many years ago with the PC. The current seniors of Apple – Tim Cook and Phil Schiller – are, to be blunt, just not inspiring. I don’t feel excited by their ‘amazing’ announcements – mere empty words. I just don’t feel like I’m intrigued to see a presentation by Cook or Schiller – they don’t have the imagination that Jobs had and this is starting to show in their products. The launch of a new ‘thinner’ iMac is just testament to that. Apple has suffered over 75% drop in sales for the iMac, compared with the same quarter last year – a sign of Apple’s slow demise?

I sign off, unthrilled, uninspired and underwhelmed.