There hasn’t been anything important in life lately. Lots of things sucked, though, but I’ve learnt to let go of those adversities, or at least not mention them, lest they affect other’s mood. But in just a few hours one of the most exciting events will take place: Apple’s “Wish we could say more” keynote. It’s been rumoured that the latest iPhone as well as an iWatch will be unveiled, so perhaps I should express some of my thoughts here.
First, it’s been said, and even confirmed, that the new iPhones will be bigger — 4.7” and 5.5” to be exact. A lot of Apple fanboys will be so disappointed because Steve Jobs used to say that a phone must be fit for single-hand use. Enlarging the iPhone screen is like hell freezes over.
Well, in Apple’s history there were quite a number of moments when hell froze over: switching to Intel processors, iPods played videos, iTunes worked on Windows, etc.. So it’s not entirely surprising that there would be a larger screen iPhone. I’ve always said when a large screen is coupled with software that is fit for single-hand use, we can have a larger iPhone. And that’s exactly what Apple needs to address in the coming keynote.
Second, it’s about the design, and the design leaks. In the old days Apple was absolutely secretive about their unannounced products. It was quite a big shock when the iPhone 4 got into hands of a Gizmodo editor and got published. Pushing time further back, we see that an old rumour site Think Secret was forced to shut down after publishing rumours about “a new Mac” (which was later identified as the Mac mini). They didn’t even have the pictures of the actual product! People used to joke that those who leak Apple rumours would be executed by Steve Jobs. Well, this is apparently no longer the case. We see Apple product parts on the web a few months before product launch. These days we even see working products (on the contrary back when iPhone 4 was leaked the device couldn’t be switched on, and no one knew about the stunning retina display until Steve announced it). Why does this happen? And on the other side why have we never seen parts of the iWatch? In short, most probably the iWatch isn’t made in China. Yes, the Chinese is the culprit of all the modern day evil.
Aren’t you a Chinese, Kevin? No, I’m not. I’m a global citizen who believes in democracy, equality, freedom and civic responsibility, who happens to live in Hong Kong.
OK, back to talk about Apple. A third thought on the upcoming event is whether the iWatch, or smartwatches, will become a new necessity, a global phenomenon, like the iPod, the iPhone, and the iPad? What I mean is that before the iPod/iPhone/iPad, music players, mobile phones and tablets existed, but it was Apple that reinvented them into something no one could have imagined. Watches have existed for a long long time; smartwatches nowadays basically are useless. Will Apple be able to make smartwatches a new necessity?
This question poses a dilemma. Many think only Steve Jobs, the modern day Thomas Edison, could have done that. If the new Apple can do that too, Steve Job’s legacy would be diminished. But on the other hand, I sure want to see something groundbreaking. After all, if money can buy happiness, why not?
