14 DAY TRIAL // Despite kicking off to a seemingly slow start, 2014 has been littered with events that have once again set the Cupertino giant apart from competitors, from announcing what hopes to be the first genuinely wearable computer to its CEO coming out as gay, promoting gender and racial equality for all.
It hasn’t all been good, though. The iPhone 6 keynote was anything but a streaming success, and the Mac maker has entered the spotlight for its suppliers’ violations once again. All this, and everything else that mattered in Apple’s 2014, below.
Update on National Security and Law Enforcement Orders
One of the first notable things Apple did this year was to issue a “transparency” notice to the public, claiming that it wanted to be clear about the way it handles customer data in the face of a warrant.
In a PDF sheet posted on the PR section of Apple.com, the tech juggernaut revealed that it had been working closely with the White House, the U.S. Attorney General, congressional leaders, and the Department of Justice to make national security orders more transparent.
“We believe strongly that our customers have the right to understand how their personal information is being handled, and we are pleased the government has developed new rules that allow us to more accurately report law enforcement orders and national security orders in the U.S,” the company stated in January of this year.
The document specifically outlined National Security Orders, as well as Account Information Requests.
Tied to this initiative, Apple deployed iOS 8 months later with a padlock preventing law enforcement from accessing user data without their consent, something that upset the FBI.
Angela Ahrendts “starts anew”
A milestone moment not just in 2014 but for the last few years at Apple was when the company finally managed to instate a competent retail boss. After swapping several promising applicants who ultimately proved to be incompatible with the organization at 1 Infinite Loop, Tim Cook finally settled on Angela Ahrendts, a true leader and one of the best people to run operations with a keen eye on customer experience. Also, the iWatch was on its way and they needed someone with experience in luxury stuff to pitch it.
Ahrendts relayed her feelings regarding “starting anew” in an inspiring piece posted on LinkedIn.
Beats by Dr. Dre
One of the most widely discussed developments at Apple this year – and when I say “widely,” I mean by every major media outlet, not just the tech blogosphere – was the $3 billion (€2.45 billion) investment to engulf Beats Electronics, along with their online music service and the audio gear.
Apple hasn’t done much to reimburse its investment (yet), but Beats is now a big part of Apple’s culture, and the audio equipment has a very special place on the company’s online store. Rumor has it that the acquisition was mostly made for political and financial reasons, to ultimately boost iTunes sales. As part of the costly purchase, Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine became Apple employees.
Yosemite and iOS 8 debut (WWDC 2014)
This year’s developer showcase wasn’t too exciting for those eagerly awaiting new hardware launches, but for those who could be bothered to watch the stream knowing there would only be software announcements, the keynote was a success.
Apple officially lifted the cloth off the desktop and mobile OSes it had been working on for over a year – OS X Yosemite and iOS 8 – and rightfully demoed each one in part to the audience’s delight. Yosemite brought an all-new look and feel to the Mac, and some notable cross-platform stuff that further bridged the gap between desktop and portable. The new iOS introduced widgets, a killer Messages app, the aforementioned Continuity support needed to talk to Yosemite Macs, new power (under the hood) for developers, and new security features that upset the FBI but fell on the right ears with customers.
iCloud Drive was also introduced at WWDC. It’s a take on existing cloud services, like Dropbox and Google Drive, and essentially just groups content together in a folder, making it more accessible to the user. Apple should have done this a long time ago, but it’s better late than never.
iPhone 6 – “Bigger than Bigger”
Fast forward to September, Apple finally introduced the year’s most anticipated product: the all-new iPhone 6. Appearing like a star next to its personal bodyguard, the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus debuted to cheering crowds, despite Apple messing up the keynote transmission for everyone not present at the media event.
iOS 8 was also launched as part of the ceremonious unveiling, and as any user will tell you, it was a less-than-perfect upgrade experience. Apple had to issue four separate updates to alleviate some issues, and it still has to patch some more.
iPhone 6 brought the first true redesign of the handset in years: tapered glass, smooth edges, a protuberant camera, considerably larger displays, and more. The handsets also got their fair share of controversy. Most notably....
#Bendgate
Yes, Bendgate was a thing this year, so it needs to be mentioned on Apple’s timeline. The term “Bendgate” was coined by the media to designate the bending nature of the iPhone 6 Plus. As with every iPhone controversy, the press had its 15 minutes of fame, followed by a naturally-occurring muffling of the whole shebang.
Despite being somewhat true that it’s easier to bend an iPhone 6 Plus (even by accident) than many other handsets in its class, the claim that Apple’s iPhone 6 Plus bends in normal usage scenarios is utterly false. YouTubers made tens of millions of views with their so-called “bending tests,” and some reviewers still enjoy destroying units deliberately on video to this day.
Bendgate deserves its place in the hall of fame next to Scuffgate, Antennagate, and other gates that we’re too lazy to look up right now. But you can bet 2015 will spawn a new one.
A computer for your wrist
The first all-new thing from Apple in years, the Apple Watch was launched and demoed with much fanfare at the same special event that saw the iPhone 6 make its incendiary debut.
Unlike competitor’s solutions, Apple’s looks like a jewel and works like a miniaturized iPhone that sits on your wrist, tracks your physiology, lets you access messages, email, and phone contacts, uses faint vibrations as notifications, lets you pay for things without pulling out your wallet, makes you look like Prince Charming with Digital Touch, and opens up a whole new world of opportunities for developers and end-users alike.
The watch, allegedly designed with a lot of help from Jony Ive’s dear friend and fellow industrial designer Marc Newson, hopes to become the most personal computer ever when it rolls out early next year. Pricing will start at $350 / €350 for anyone interested.
At the same media event, Tim Cook and his troops also unveiled their thinnest tablet yet, the iPad Air 2.
Retina iMac
Later on down the line, 2014 further yielded one hotly-anticipated product that creative and business folk wanted from Apple for years: a retina iMac. But it wasn’t just an ordinary Retina iMac. What Apple did was amaze the world with a 27-inch 5K Display, essentially rendering 4K obsolete before it could even become mainstream.
“Thirty years after the first Mac changed the world, the new iMac with Retina 5K display running OS X Yosemite is the most insanely great Mac we have ever made,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “With a breathtaking 14.7 million pixel display, faster CPU and graphics, Fusion Drive, and Thunderbolt 2, it’s the most beautiful and powerful iMac ever.”
The system retails for $2,499 in the US and €2.599 in Europe.
Tim Cook comes out as gay
Easily one of the most important moments not just in Apple’s 2014 but the entire world’s, chief executive officer Tim Cook perplexed everyone with a brutally frank essay for Bloomberg Businessweek that spearheaded the idea that we’re all created equal and should receive treatment from others accordingly.
“While I have never denied my sexuality, I haven’t publicly acknowledged it either, until now. So let me be clear: I’m proud to be gay, and I consider being gay among the greatest gifts God has given me,” Cook wrote.
Cook’s write-up is a must read for anyone, straight or gay, black or white, tall or short, outspoken or silent. His message, in short: everyone is different in that one way that they want to be accepted for, and this shouldn’t come between us and our mission to advance the human species.
Expanding social presence
This year, Apple has made a series of campaigns to raise awareness about its products through social media. As if people didn’t already know where to find the nearest Apple Store, or how to find their favorite iThings online. But hey, if they think it helps, sure we like it too.
One of the more notable such endeavors was the iPhone 5c Tumblr blog, the Tweets building hype for the iPhone 6 event, and the new Tumblr iTunes blog. Apple still doesn’t have an official @Apple Twitter handle, though. Tim Cook continues to be active on the microblogging service, and so do his fellow executives, albeit not so frequently.
Taking on the Enterprise
You might not know it, but Apple and IBM took the Enterprise by storm just last month with a massive library of apps and services tailored to serve key industries, including Travel and Transportation, Banking and Financial Markets, Insurance, Retail, Telecommunications, and Governmental Organizations.
The apps prepared by IBM for Apple’s platforms, with a lot of optimization from the latter, include Plan Flight, Passenger+, Advise & Grow, Trusted Advice, Retention, Sales Assist, Pick & Pack, Expert Tech, Case Advice, and Incident Aware, respectively. These apps promise to streamline operations in core aspects of each of the aforementioned industries, and beyond.
In 2015, Apple is expected to introduce a business-centric 12-inch iPad Pro.
Apple Pay, HomeKit, HealthKit, WatchKit
Apple Pay could deserve its own headline, but the contactless payment system is only just beginning to fledge. It works in some stores, while in others it doesn’t. It supports some devices in one way, and supports other devices in a different way. But one thing is for sure: for a new payment service that is only taking its first baby steps, 1% of the market is more than Apple could bargain for. It’s also coming in the Apple Watch this spring.
HomeKit promises to forever change the way we control our home appliances using our iPhones and iPads as remotes, while HealthKit is Apple’s first true foray in the Health & Fitness market. WatchKit enables developers to code programs for the upcoming Apple Watch.
All these “kits” are actually frameworks designed by Apple to ease the process for third-party developers to create specialized tools that work for the benefit of the end user, whether it’s for closing the garage door from your iPhone on your way out, storing crucial data for your doctor to review, or have the most important information on your wrist, ready at all times.
BBC documentary
Failing in the eyes of the public once more, Apple ends 2014 with a bit of controversy unfortunately. The BBC decided to air a Panorama special last week depicting some questionable practices employed at factories run by Apple’s suppliers in the Far East.
Despite sharing the blame with Pegatron for the violations cited in the documentary, Apple has been on the receiving end of most of the bad press surrounding these occurrences. The company will also have to clear out any doubt that it is importing tin from illegal mines.
All in all, 2014 has been an eventful year for the iPhone maker, and the sight of the Apple Watch in early 2015 promises to make next year just as exciting, if not more so, considering that we don’t have to wait until summer to experience a new Apple product.