Signaling the End for Apple

(Image by William Iven from Pixabay)

Apple. A single byte undid many years of work. A single bite ruined another fate for humanity. So it comes to this, after many years of hard-fought battles.

Humble Beginnings

Apple began with humble beginnings. Their first breakout computers had my father wielding an Apple IIe into our home. It occupies a sizeable part of the dinner table until we found an old desk to hold it. The dual 5.25-inch floppy drives and monitor gave us our first computer. Our home has seldom been without one in the days since. I loved that silly computer and the text-heavy games.

My uncle Larry, a professor of geology at Berea College, taught us a few tricks about the drives. We could double our capacity on the large floppy disk. By using a hole-punch to notch the other side, we made the disks double-sided. The college assembled and used Apple computers on campus. He was and still is an advocate for their products.

Some forty years have since passed. My uncle retired, and my son is now a senior at the school in Kentucky. They now issue Dell laptops to all students to use for their four years on campus.

Steve Jobs

Steve was the heart of Apple. Not "the" brains, though he was plenty smart and part of the cerebral awesomeness. He realized the beauty and simplicity of the product were important.

(Image by Lenalensen from Pixabay)

The iPod quickly replaced the Sony Walkman in many circles. It just works. It wasn’t long until iPhones were a possibility, yet people weren’t keen on virtual keyboards. The Blackberry was king, and the Motorola smart-phones were hot on their heels. Then something happened - Apple released the iPad.

The iPad looks to us like an oversized iPhone. It didn’t when released. It looked like a miniature television you could hold in your hand and use with the internet. It holds records for its reliability and sales.

The iPad remains one of the leading computer tablets in the US. Amazon has tried to bridge the gap. Their Kindle is a less expensive e-reader/tablet combination. They are two different animals. They look similar, yet are different. It’s like comparing a zebra and a horse.

The iPhone

People became used to virtual keyboards. Enter the iPhone — it was a smash hit! The iPhone remains one of the most prolific smart-phones sold around the world.

(Image by Jan Vašek from Pixabay)

Computers

Apple is a computer company. We often forget this as we look at their phones and iPads. They make a slick computer. It is appealing to the look and feel of its users. It isn’t the cheapest computer out there. They make it to work together with the software and architecture. Developers must meet Apple's stringent parameters in interaction with hardware. There are very few third-party vendors who make parts for Apple.

(Image by LaPorte from Pixabay)

The iMac transitioned into a beautiful all-in-one desktop computer. Models come with a 21 or 27-inch monitor as part of the system. The wireless mouse and keyboard are available to complete the minimalist, ultra-modern look. Their laptops went from plastic cases to all-aluminum for rigidity. The ability to recycle cases meets their "green" initiatives. They are lightweight and very portable.

I have a mid-2012 MacBook Pro. It has all the lights, whistles, and bells — complete with a CD/DVD combo drive. It’s a beautiful laptop. The keyboard is very responsive and meets my tactile expectations. It is very comfortable to type on for extended times.

The 13" Macbook Air and all new models come without a CD/DVD drive. They have fewer USB ports and are even lighter. My next laptop will be a Macbook Air, as I do not need the raw processing power of the MacBook Pro.

The M1 Chip

Apple has produced its new processor, the M1. This microprocessor replaces the Intel chips in the newest Apple computers. The M1 is the most powerful chip Apple has created. It’s also the first chip tailored for the Mac. According to Apple.com, they optimize the M1 for Mac systems where small size and power efficiency are important.

A system on a chip. The M1 brings powerful technologies into a chip with unified memory architecture. It sports both improved performance and efficiency. This is the first personal computer chip built with 5-nanometer technology. It’s packed with 16 billion transistors. The M1 is “the world’s fastest CPU core in low-power silicon. It's also the world’s best CPU performance per watt.

The M1 has the world’s fastest integrated graphics on a personal computer. It has breakthrough machine learning performance. The new chip increases battery life up to twice as long as earlier Macs. The chip builds on the design and innovation of the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. It’s a whole new ballgame for portable Mac computers.

Is this the end for Apple

The M1 may signal the end of Apple’s reliance on Intel. They’ve had a wonderful run, but the M1 appears to be the answer to Apple’s quest for better performance. It also provides these results with much less energy. Intel still makes a very impressive microprocessor line and is likely to develop a similar chip with better performance.

Apple has it and Intel doesn’t. Is Apple the Research and Development arm of the U.S. computer electronics industry? I don’t think so, but they still build a product line that just works. They appear simple, and they do the job for which it designed them.

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