Dan Lyons on Apple’s Quarter

I wanted an Apple bear’s take on today’s results and the market reaction. I think Dan Lyon’s piece for ReadWrite was actually pretty reasonable. No hysterics, no grave dancing. But it kind of falls apart at the end:

Still, it seems Apple has hit a wall. It’s not just about sales and earnings, but also about innovation. It’s been years since Apple did something truly revolutionary. Rumors of Apple getting into the TV market continue to swirl, but so far it’s all just rumors.

iPod, iPhone, iPad. That’s the sort of Big New Thing that Lyons — and many others — are talking about. Only Steve Jobs could do those things, Tim Cook can’t. But look at the timeframe: iPod 2001, iPhone 2007, iPad 2010. Even during the era of innovation Lyons is pointing to, Apple spent six years between the first iPod and first iPhone. Again, why is it only Apple that’s expected to invent a time machine?

(Worth pointing out too, that Lyons didn’t see the original iPad as a breakthrough: “Jobs and his team kept using words like ‘breakthrough’ and ‘magical’, but the iPad is neither, at least not right now.”)

★ Wednesday, 23 January 2013