The most recent Apple event was all about the Experience

So the Apple Event happened back in March, and it’s taken me a while to collect my thoughts on this one. For sure there was the usual compilation of new products and awesome looking videos and speakers who describe the products which are impossibly ecstatic about their subject matter. This is the typical type of thing that we have seen time and time again. The difference is that instead of just having their products be the theme of the event the theme was about the experience of apple. I find it interesting because while they have been selling the Apple experience for years, but they have been doing it in such a way that is different this time. Previously they have used their products to sell the experience; now they are using the experience to sell the products. The main themes that I found to do this in five different ways;

1) Security and Privacy – They had a HUGE emphasis on privacy and Data security. Much of the focus of this was centred around Apple Pay and Apple Card. I like the fact that they are putting so much emphasis on personal security because when dealing with people’s money, being secure is something we all want to have. I like the fact that they have baked into the software the ability to track your spending and figure out your budget. The beauty of this is that this information is not synced to Apple’s servers; it’s only held on your device. I’ll be honest; I like that Idea. I don’t know if I’m going to sign up for an apple card when they come out, but just the fact that they are so dedicated to security and privacy is something that I enjoy. I’m not 100% on how they will be able to transfer data from device to device, say if you buy a new phone will you be able to transfer your data? I will have to wait and see like everyone else.

2) Focus on complete service – Apple has always been big on having you ultimately in their ecosystem. They have always been about making sure they can keep your attention on their products and use their products for everything. Now they have figured out how to reach you in the two ways that they hadn’t so far. They have created Apple News. In the digital age in which we live traditional newspapers that get delivered to your door don’t have the same relevancy as news media that you can access digitally do. I have mentioned that I use a service called Feedly daily to get my news fix. It’s got to the point that I was receiving newspapers daily and wasn’t looking at them because they didn’t have the information that I wanted or needed. This is what Apple is trying to tap into and keep you captivated with the news that they can bring you. Bear in mind; they are not producing their news service, instead of providing the platform that News outlets can show their content. What I do find interesting is that while they now have apps for your podcasts, your music, your books and now your news, they are all different apps. In my head it would make sense that they would want to have all that media in one spot in a well-organised app, but I suppose they are trying to avoid digital clutter which I can understand.

3) Connectivity – They spent quite a bit of time rolling out all the features of the new and updated Apple TV app. the most important of those being that it would now be available on all Apple devices. This would mean that if you started watching a movie on your phone on a plane, you would be able to go home and pick right up where you left off without having to start from the beginning. This along with Apple’s policy of having all apps being synced that I reported on at the beginning of April shows how committed Apple is to make sure that you have the same experience no matter what device you’re on.

4) “Everything+” – The new services that Apple put out at this event were very cool, but what was interesting was that each service had a free and a paid service. The Plus versions of everything had cooler features than the normal service. I find it interesting that Apple has taken the concept of streaming music and have gone nuts with streaming. They are streaming magazines, TV, and Music, but never missing a trick to make some more money by saving premium features for their “+” Services.  

5) More celebrities than you can shake a stick at – No Seriously. There was an insane amount of people who showed up to do promos for the various shows that are going to be showing up on Apple’s streaming service. The full list was Steven Spielberg, Jennifer Aniston, Reese Weatherperson, Steve Carell, Jason Mamoa, Alfre Woodard, Kumail Nanjiani, Big Bird and Cody (of Sesame Street), JJ Abrams, Sara Bareilles and Oprah Winfrey. And that was just the people speaking! I have read stories about a wide verity who was in the audience for this presentation. Now that Apple is producing its content it seems to have no problem trotting out the celebrities that they are working with.

Funnily enough, there was no rollout of any new hardware. This event was all about the service model and demonstrating how Apple’s ecosystem is a complete model. With Apple introducing it’s new video and news service (as well as their premium models) Apple is working diligently to complete the Apple Experience. As an Apple user who is deeply rooted in the ecosystem, to begin with, having access to a variety of services with one account is undoubtedly convenient.

I look forward to seeing what the pricing is for Apple TV+ and I will happily report back when I have more information there. For now, I might play around with Apple news and see what features it has.

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Did you see the Apple Event? What did you think?

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