The Top Seven Things The Cook Era Of Apple Should Offer [We Offer Up Seven Ways To Make The Cook Era Of Apple Distinct From The Jobs Era, From iTunes Original Programming To A Whole New iDevice]

Posted on TFTS by Steve Anderson on Monday, 29. August 2011 under: Computers & Computing, Mobile/Cell Phones, PCs, Notebooks, Netbooks & Tablets, xFeatured

We’ve made a lot out of the recent shakeup in Apple’s top brass. And it’s not surprising, either, as it’s a big deal. But we’re looking at the dawn of a new way of life for Apple here, and the Cook era is going to be a wholly different animal than the Jobs era. But there’s always an opportunity for new direction when it comes to a new reign at a major corporation, and so we’ve whomped up a list–a little early, too–to take a look at the top seven things the Cook era should be looking to do with its new tenure at 1 Infinite Loop.

7. Cloud connect everything, but remember its true place

Cloud computing is a great idea. Having access to cloud storage gives you an incredible versatility that allows you to augment your storage by keeping specific items available off-site when you need it. But as we all saw from the Sony network outage / hacking that we put up regular updates on over the course of two months, cloud computing must never be regarded as a primary storage medium. Local storage is a necessity, but cloud storage–whether for songs and video, or for photos, or anything like that–is an option that’s always worth having and should appear on every iDevice.

6. Keep up the marketing

One thing that Apple has done consistently well for some time now is their marketing. Their marketing has been engaging, accessible, and clearly product-driven for years now. From the dancing iPods to “if you don’t have iPhone” ads, Apple’s advertising is top-notch. And there’s no more I can recommend for them than to keep it up. They display, very clearly, why the products are worth the quality, and it’s one particular item that falls under the category of things not being broke that don’t require fixing.

5. Be seen continuing nearly every Steve Jobs project

Continuity, ladies and gentlemen, continuity is the biggest issue short-term that the Cook era faces. So in order to assuage that biggest fear about Apple’s immediate future, everything has to look business as usual. The iPhone 5, the iPad 3, the expanded Apple retail stores, the expanded Apple campus, everything. The more that Cook can do that was Jobs, the better the immediate future looks. But that’s why they’ll be needing the next item….

4. Introduce at least one completely new product by October 2012

And when I say “completely new product”, I don’t mean a new iPad. Nor do I mean a new iPhone or iPod. I mean a completely new product. A product no one has seen coming, or seen before. No earlier rumors, no buying another company, but something utterly off the radar. Just what that product could be, I don’t know offhand, but what this does is prove that the innovation that categorized Apple under the Jobs era will continue through the Cook era. That’s something that’s going to be absolutely necessary to fend off the biggest shock of all, the thought that somehow Apple will descend into mediocrity without Steve Jobs at the helm. Tim Cook needs HIS iPod, HIS iPhone, HIS iPad, to really show that he can do the job, and he needs it in time for Christmas shopping season in the shortest fashion possible. This year, not enough time, but next year…now that looks rational. However, there’s one thing that they could stand to cut back…

3. Dial back the lawsuits

And this is one of those things they could stand to cut back. Apple, especially recently, has been embroiled in a variety of lawsuits with everybody from competitors to their own suppliers to children. And if Cook were to settle a few of these suits, drop back the litigiousness a bit, it would represent a clear delineation between the Jobs era and the Cook era, showing conclusively that the Cook era will have its own visionary tendencies, instead of just blind parroting of Steve Jobs.

2. Reduce prices across the board

I’ve heard it more than once, one of the main things keeping people away from Apple products is their price tag. Any objective observer can tell that Apple prices generally surpass those of their competitors on most every front, the most notable exception being the iPad 2. And that represents the first step in something Cook et al should do: get the prices in general down. We’ve all seen the ads where a Windows PC of comparable performances slaps Apple upside the head in terms of pricing, and the ads are pretty well correct. Given the state of the world economy, a cheaper Apple would likely get some PC users to transfer, especially if the contents stay as top-notch as Apple is regarded for.

1. Launch the full Apple Television program

And I mean a full launch, too, not just the set top boxes, but the full televisions, the streaming iTunes program, and even beyond that. Here’s an incredible idea: iTunes original programming. The biggest issue facing a streaming program on iTunes is the availability of content. Anything Apple does in this regard, they’d have to do through the studios. And let’s face it, the studios are not wholly in favor of the entire streaming concept. This is where Apple’s resources can come into play, and give them a serious edge over the competition. A variety of programs only available on iTunes would give them an edge over Google’s YouTube, over Netflix…over anyone in the field so far.

And so, that’s our look at the top seven things that a Cook era at Apple should include. Some things are pretty simple, downright status-quo. And that’s okay; you don’t get as big as Apple without doing some things right. But there’s always room to grow, change and improve, and that’s what this list is meant to suggest. There’s no doubt that Apple’s going to do big things for years to come, and we’re going to be right there following every bit: every announcement, every rumor, every analyst suggestion.

But what did we miss? What did we fail to suggest? What would you like to see the Tim Cook era of Apple bring along? Head on down to the comments section and tell us what you’re dying to see!

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