Mac360

Apple • Mac • iPhone • iPad • News

  • Home
  • News
  • App Reviews
    • iOS App Reviews
    • Cheap Mac Apps
    • Mac App Reviews
    • Mac Tips & Tricks
  • Archive
    • iOS App Reviews
    • Cheap Mac Apps
    • Mac App Reviews
    • Mac Tips and Tricks
    • News and Comment
  • About
    • Contact Mac360
    • About Mac360
    • Mac360′s FAQs
    • Got Apps For Us?
    • Privacy Policy
    • Service Terms Agreement
    • Copyright Notice
  • Follow
    • RSS Atom Feed
    • Comments Feed
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
  • Writers
    • Alexis Kayhill
    • Bambi Brannan
    • Carol Miller
    • Jack Miller
    • Jeffrey Mincey
    • Kate MacKenzie
    • Natalia Nowak
    • Ron McElfresh
    • Tera Patricks
    • Wil Gomez
  • Blogs
    • Bohemian Boomer
    • McSolo
    • NoodleMac
    • PixoBebo
    • TeraTalks
  • Sitemap
  • Saturday, May 25, 2013

How Apple Has Captured The Essence Of The Mac In The iPhone And iPad

Wednesday, November 28, 2012 | Kate MacKenzie Posted In News and Comment

iPhoneThink back to those glorious days of yesteryear when the Mac rules the world. Wait. That never happened. The Mac has always struggled to remain relevant.

It was the Mac’s problems that nearly caused Apple’s early demise in the mid-1990s. If Microsoft still owns nearly 90-percent of the personal computing world, why isn’t Apple dead already? What did Apple do better than other computer companies?

The Mac Became The iPhone And iPad

What made the Mac special? The graphical user interface? Probably not. Even Windows and Linux are point and click. Apple made sure the Mac OS got out of the way while we worked and played.

The essence of the Mac as we know it is usability. Maybe the Mac just works, but where it has really shined through the years is in usability. The Mac is easier to use for nearly every task.

Apple didn’t wither away and die because there were enough Mac customers to keep the company afloat until the next great thing came along. After all, the Mac didn’t reach the current level of prominence until the iPhone was launched.

Apple’s claim to fame has been to create products that users actually want to use; whether software, Macs, or iPods. That’s what Apple does best.

The essence of the Mac, that personal usability, has been successfully transferred into the iPhone and iPad. Both devices are instantly usable in ways not easily replicated, and certainly not exceeded, in Android OS, or Microsoft mobile devices.

That’s the secret to Apple’s success, that Mac-like usability, and it’s been embedded into the company’s entire line of products, from iPod, to iPhone, to iPad.

Likewise, Apple’s renowned ecosystem of services and apps, perform with singular purpose. Usability. iCloud does what it does, but out of the way, almost unseen, to store files, sync files between devices.

Apple made it Mac-like easy to buy music on iTunes (still easier than any online store, despite the long list of products Apple tries to sell). The iPod was the easiest to use portable media player.

The iPhone was the smartest smart phone, not because it did more, but because it was instantly usable. No stylus. No iPhone for Dummies book. All you needed was a finger and navigation became a joy, not a pain.

Somewhere deep within Apple’s organization chart are a few individuals charged with interface design. Despite a few hiccups, burps, and blemishes, OS X and iOS remain the most usable of operating systems on computing devices.

Apple has managed to extend the essence of the Mac– that user friendly usability– into new devices that evoke similar emotions and loyalty.

What of Google’s Android OS, or Microsoft’s Windows (RT or Metro interface)? They, too, evoke their respective companies and reflect previous products, and fall short of Apple’s famed usability.

It’s already a stated fact that Android OS users don’t use their devices to the same degree as iPhone and iPad users. Microsoft’s new Windows Phone interface, those floating and flipping tiles, is different, but not better than what iPhone and iPad users consider to be the standard of mobile device interface design.

As Google, Microsoft, Nokia, RIM, and even Samsung have learned, that personal usability, that essence is not easily copied into other devices.

Read A Related Article

  • Mac OS X Mountain Lion vs. Windows 8: Why It’s Not Déjà vu All Over Again
  • Silence Of The Shopping Lambs: A Few Words About How Apple Is Special, Samsung Is Not
  • It’s An App World: How Apple’s Class Warfare Is Destroying Google And Amazon
  • What The iPhone Is Doing To Android Is Exactly What The Mac Did To Microsoft’s Windows

The Apple Villagers

Tera says, Yes, There’s A Better Way To Find, Use, And Manage Contacts On A Mac. It works. Ladies and gentlemen, it's Mashup Time: Add A Paint And Drawing App To A Screen Snapshot App And You Get The Paint + Snap App.

Here's a secret from Kate. Free: Perfect Popcorn From Your iPhone. But the popcorn isn't free. While browsing in his sleep, Jeffrey found This Cheap Utility Does Easier What OS X Doesn’t Do Easily To Zip Files On A Mac. And back by popular demand is Calculator Tab+ The Mac Calculator App That’s Easier To Use Than Apple’s Built-in Calculator.

Bills Are Due

Mac360's app reviews, news, and not-quite-award-winning commentary are supported by your kind attention to the nearby sponsoring overlords and their messages of desperation and doom. Visiting an aforementioned ad overlord today helps us pay for a daily supply of fries. When you help out by giving attention to any sponsor during today's visit we're able to avoid the dog catcher. Hence, we appreciate your brief visits to these necessary overlords.

About Kate MacKenzie

I'm a 15 year Mac user from Brooklyn, New York and have followed Apple since the last century. My personal site, PixoBebo, is all about Apple. Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus.

« Next Article
The Most Expensive Mac, iPhone, iPad Business App Is Also One Of The Best
Previous Article »
Use Your iPhone To Create Animation In Your Favorite Photos With Cinemagram

Recently on Mac360

  • What’s The Latest Trend In iPhone Camera Apps? Fewer Features, Higher Quality
  • If Writing Is Dead Then Why Do Mac Users Have So Many Word Processors?
  • How To Send And Receive Faxes On Your Mac (all you need is a free app and money)
  • How I Spent Money For An App I Don’t Need, Didn’t Want, But It’s So Much Fun I Can’t Stop Using It
  • The Troubled World Of Apple’s Shameless Competitors (we need ‘I’m a PC, I’m a Mac’ back)
  • GIF Brewery: It’s Yet Another Easy Way To Capture A Movie Freeze Frame On Your Mac
  • PDF Reader Pro: PDF Reader Meet Note Taker. This PDF App Annotates And Speaks
  • On Apple, Samsung, Google, And Microsoft: How Big Money Makes For Strange Bedfellows

Follow Mac360

Follow Mac360 on FacebookFollow Mac360 via RSSFollow Mac360 on Twitter

Apple Villagers

  • Bohemian Boomer
  • McSolo
  • NoodleMac
  • PixoBebo
  • TeraTalks

Blasts from the Past

  • The Tale Of 3 Mac Apps Ready, Not Ready For Lion » The times are changing. No longer will Mac users stand in line at the Apple Store to get the latest ...
  • The Easy Way To Calculate Future And Past Dates » Allow me to go on record and state that I’m a sucker for app eye candy. Hey, that’s what...
  • 3 Ways This Mac App Makes iCal Fun To Use » As Mac users everywhere already know, one gals productivity app is another guys eye candy app. My hu...
  • 6 Easy Ways To Create Beautiful Photo Effects » One of the more notable casualties of Apple’s iPhone App Store success is the shortage of crea...

Follow Mac360 on Twitter

  • Where Are All Those Android Device Users And What Are They Doing With Their Devices? - http://t.co/yBCOL641sB #Mac #Apple #OSX about 21 mins ago
  • Is Big Brother Watching You? Here’s The Big Brother iPhone App That Watches What You Do - http://t.co/OOeHy62BK8 #Mac #Apple #OSX about 2 hours ago
  • Yet Another Look At The ‘Clear’ To Do App For Mac And iPhone (and why users love it) - http://t.co/un3pLVEaMq #Mac #Apple #OSX about 4 hours ago
  • How Apple Is Trying To Kill The Folder And Why We Should Be Upset About That - http://t.co/PXPcAIrr0K #Mac #Apple #OSX about 6 hours ago

Recent Comments

  • iggy pence on How Apple Is Trying To Kill The Folder And Why We Should Be Upset About That
  • Robert ANDERSON on How Apple Is Trying To Kill The Folder And Why We Should Be Upset About That
  • Mark on How Apple Is Trying To Kill The Folder And Why We Should Be Upset About That
  • City Dog on How Apple Is Trying To Kill The Folder And Why We Should Be Upset About That
  • Mac guru on How Apple Is Trying To Kill The Folder And Why We Should Be Upset About That
  • Mark James on How Apple Is Trying To Kill The Folder And Why We Should Be Upset About That

Return to top of page

Copyright © 2004 - 2013 Ron McElfresh, Honolulu, HI. All. Rights. Reserved.

Mac360 Sitemap | Mac360 on Twitter | Mac360 on Facebook.