September 2013 Archives

The animation in the iOS 7 Clock app is gorgeous, and it addresses my long-standing gripe about the minute hand motion. Older versions of clocks would move the minute hand once per minute in a herky-jerky motion which didn’t match the beautifully designed motion of the second hand. All of them sweep in the live Clock icon, too!!

The iOS 7 version moves the minute and hour hands right along with the second hand in the smoothest, most incredibly-lickable animation I’ve longed for.

It’s the little things, and they got this one right… finally.

[Ironic—or coincidental—that it took a lessening of the realism of the clock face itself to get the realism of the clock mechanicals right, isn’t it?]

Some blogs are asking, “Why is Apple making the iPhone 5c? Who’s the target audience?”

Remember this headline from a year ago?

Foxconn Exec Says iPhone 5 Is the ‘Most Difficult Device’ It Ever Made

And remember this headline from the not-too-distant past?

iPhone sales up, but Apple profit margin falls

Still wondering why the 5c exists and the 5 has been canned? If so, I’ll connect the dots for you.

How many assembly workers did you see in the manufacturing video for the 5c? Hint: None. That’s because robots—which don’t require food, rest, or suicide prevention nets—are doing more of the 5c assembly process than was possible for the 5. They’re faster, they’re more precise, and they make the 5c much less expensive to manufacture than the 5.

The net result? Higher margins on what is, essentially, an identical product to the outgoing 5. The colorful cases and shells are just the excuse to make the new product.

So, let’s answer the first question: who is Apple targeting with the 5c?

Investors.

[As of noon today, Apple stock is down 5% meaning that investors don’t feel all that targeted.]