It’s time to accept it: Apple won’t have another iPhone in its history

Neither the Vision Pro, nor the Apple Watch, nor any of the company’s other devices will be able to become the next iPhone. It’s time to accept it Apple isn’t going to release a product with that much impactdespite the fact that the company designs devices even more innovative than its smartphone.

The iPhone has become the center of the company’s ecosystem. It is Apple’s best-selling product.it has sold one billion units throughout its history. It is also one of the devices that attracts the most attention from users due to its features and one of the few Apple devices that receives updates every year.

This makes it the product that generates the most revenue for Apple. 200 billion dollars a year. No one else managed to achieve even half of the income.

In fact, over the past few years, Apple tried to replicate the success of the iPhone with different product categories.achieving good results, but none of them reached the iPhone. The category, which includes Macs and other home devices, generates about $40 billion a year for the company, according to Mark Gurman of the Mark Gurman Company. Bloomberg. iPad – another $25 billion.

Everything revolves around the iPhone

There is a clear reason why there won’t be another product like the iPhone: everything revolves around this product. The Apple Watch exists because of the iPhone. The Apple smartphone is also to blame for the success of some of the company’s services and platforms, such as the App Store or Apple Music. Even users buy devices like Mac for iPhone.

There are several product categories that Apple has tried to do something similar to the iPhone with – so far without success. Vision Pro this is the most recent example. Running completely independently of the iPhone, this mixed reality viewer was even touted as a future alternative to Apple’s device. However, Vision Pro did not have the expected success for several reasons. These include poor app compatibility, high price, or a design that is difficult for many users.

AirPodsthat exist thanks to the iPhone may be the product that comes closest to achieving the iPhone effect. It is not only a successful product, but also an industry pioneer. We can say that AirPods started the trend, since now all of Apple’s competitors have alternatives to these headphones.

Apple, in addition, he has big plans for AirPodsstarting with features aimed at improving hearing health – some of which were presented at the last WWDC conference. The company is also working on headphones with sensors and cameras to understand the environment and provide useful information to users. In any case, at least today, AirPods are also nowhere near the level of iPhone sales. For Apple, the headphones category generates between $10 billion and $15 billion in revenue.

Apple still has a slight chance in these product categories.

The Cupertino company has another opportunity with a product category that has a very promising future: smart home. In fact, Apple has been working on devices that provide better connectivity at home for some time now, and HomePods or the HomeKit extension are examples of this. Later, in addition, the company may release other devices for the home, for example, two smart displays.

It would not even be strange for a company from Cupertino to enter the market of humanoid robots that would be designed to help with everyday tasks – like Tesla with its Optimus robot.

Either way, these are all long-term bets. All of these categories can thrive, but none can match the impact of the iPhone. That’s why Apple is focused on improving its existing products for now, with iPhones increasingly equipped with artificial intelligence and better cameras, a more health-focused Apple Watch, and devices designed to improve productivity, such as the iPad with a foldable screen. This is the only way for their business to thrive as they explore new products.