Ah , the Consumer Electronics Show . Home to bright electric refrigerator , video games , self-propelling technology , and a whole lot of technical gadgets and junk . It ’s risky enough sifting through all the news from the solace of my own agency — I just billow a sigh of relief that I have n’t need to actually set foot at the show in almost a decennium .
And the ground that I ’ve been able to avoid the Las Vegas Convention Center is because Apple is n’t really a presence there . Oh , sure , there are stack of companies developing iPhone add - ons or showing off their new apps , but Apple itself does n’t attend in any official mental ability . That ’s in orotund part because the company is utterly capable of making its own plash whenever it want to , just by calling a press event .
But another big reason is that Apple just does n’t see itself as a “ gadget ” purveyor that needs to compete with any of the other companies at the show . Because when it comes to CES , gadgets are a circumstances of what draw the eye .
Vapor where?
While there are plenty of gadget at CES that are available for leverage — or soon will be — the overriding feel of the show is often a bit like those construct cars that auto society always seem to jog out : something that looks implausibly slick and cool , but will never in reality be a merchandise that you’re able to purchase . That ’s diametrically opposed to Apple ’s own philosophy , which is to in general not eventalkabout a production until it ’s in reality quick to embark .
Vaporware is one of a few types of products that seem to grab most of the newspaper headline from CES , another being the kind of kitschy nonsensical thing that even the tech fancier like to express mirth at : saucy hairbrush , saucy pet feeders , even impudent underclothing . In some ways , CES commence to feel like a technology flea market — and not thesuper nerdy but kind of cool sort where you may find old vintage technology .
That ’s just not the figure of speech that Apple wants to further to its client and potential customer . Its brand has been , at least for the last decade , about elegance , luxury , and understated cool . That no longer calculate with cavernous exhibit halls full of ugly gaming PC and citizenry hawking stamp battery pack by the dumpster load .
Commodity market
Many gadget of the kind you see at these tradeshows also have a whiff of commoditization about them that Apple would in all probability like to avoid . Think of television after television that gets rolled out at CES , all with the latest and nifty stats and buzzword : 4 thousand , HDR , SUHD . ( Just in case you were wondering why Apple never decided to get into the TV marketplace . ) It ’s all about the revolving doorway of the newest and most updated gimmick , and that ’s just not the way Apple rolls .
In fact , Apple ’s been trying to get off from “ speeds and feeds ” since back when the Mac ’s PowerPC processors were constantly being stacked up against their Intel rivals . Such quantitative comparisons are ultimately ineluctable : in the mobile market we ’ve moved from talking about processors and memory to silver screen size , battery life , and camera megapixels . Obviously , it ’s a lot concentrated to stack up qualitative comparisons of usability and design than to just simply equate two numbers and say one of them is bigger .
Go go gadgets!
That ’s not to say that Apple entirely shy forth from the appliance space . Two of the companionship ’s most recent products , the Apple Watch and AirPods , could easily be described as “ appliance . ” Apple , of class , would plausibly rather see them as luxury products , little different from an iPhone or a Mac .
So is Apple in the appliance business , despite its best efforts ? Crazy as it might fathom , I might reason Cupertino should makemoregadgets . I ’ve been intrigue by some of the standards that Apple has pushed , like AirPlay and HomeKit , but those protocols have now and again been restrain by lackluster or dim support from third company . Apple could execute the way by acquire its own products using those technologies — eating its own dog food , as the expression go . ( In the subject of AirPlay speakers , the company might also realize how … uh , sub - par some of its implementation is . )
Not to mention that Apple ’s allegiance to create best - in - class gismo would help provide exemplars for third - party gadget to live up to . That ’s one reason I ’m still lounge about by the rumored death of the AirPort cable : they might have been commoditized widget , but heck if they weren’tgoodones .
Apple ’s for certain not about to turn on its blackguard and begin exhibiting at CES ; that would be idiotic at this stage in the plot . But with the AirPods and the Apple Watch , perhaps it can remember that the best thing about “ contraption ” is that quite often , they ’re just plain playfulness .
