All of us have pitch little sayings we’ve picked up through the years; often tidbits that help guide us through our lives (for better or worse).
One that came from my Aunt Tera is one you may have read here and there. “Nothing improves without change.” That saying is difficult to refute but may have been watered down a bit in an era where every year products become new and improved.
Alright, if nothing improves without change, and Apple changes the iPhone every year, then is it perfect yet? If not, why not? If so, how? Generally speaking, iPhone is near to perfection. Perfect? No. But getting there. Apple is a technology gadget maker that rolls along on two wheels. Disruptive innovation and iterative innovation.
The original iPhone was disruptive to the entire smartphone industry more than a decade ago. Since then, all smartphones have come to mirror iPhones; slabs of glass with rounded corners. Internally, iPhones are closer in performance to a super computer from just a few decades ago. From display to storage to camera to connectivity, today’s iPhone and many of the premium models from other manufacturers are, well, almost perfect.
Yet, nothing improves without change. Does perfection mean improvement is no longer possible? That’s why iPhone is almost perfect; the leaps of improvement are getting shorter every year, though one can argue that Apple does a better job of moving new features into the mainstream than other gadget makers.
For example, fingerprint scanners were nothing new when Apple launched Touch ID. The difference between Apple’s fingerprint scanner and those that were around for years is that Touch ID actually worked well enough that customers used it. We can say the same thing about Face ID. Facial recognition is nothing new, but one that works instantly on a handheld mobile device is the one that iPhone competitors are trying to copy and have yet to succeed.
Without giving it much thought, iPhone X’s camera produces DSLR-like photos, and video better than HD television.
What additional changes would take iPhone closer to perfection? I mean, other than having Apple pay me to use the device. How about removing the Notch? Sure, you get used to it and it isn’t all that distracting, but when you see it you still think, well, ugly; as if Beyoncé had a third eyebrow.
You’d get used to it.
Apple’s iterative innovation keeps the progress bar moving forward while we wait for the next great thing in disruptive innovation.
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