What Device Should Apple Conquer Next?

I think most people will agree that Apple, as a whole, makes products that are very well designed. Two of their most elegantly designed products would have to be the iPod and the iMac. Of course the rest of their product line is also sleek and modern. Small features like the placement of ports or the MagSafe powercord combine with larger features like the back-lit keyboard or built-in camera to produce a really stunning bit of design. The end result is a very elegant piece of hardware.

This of course begs the question “what else could Apple improve?” Clearly Apple has a top-notch design team, so wouldn’t it be interesting to speculate on what other current technologies they could improve upon? Here are two very popular electronic devices that need Steve Job’s magic touch.

Cell Phones
The sad fact is that I have used multiple cellphones from several different carriers and each has sucked. Now, what makes this so frustrating, is that each phone has sucked in different ways. One has a speakerphone but a poor screen. One has a great menu but the buttons are difficult to use. The camera functions on many phones are implemented in annoying ways, making what could be a useful feature more of a hassle than it needs to be. Overall, I have yet to find one phone that excells in all areas.

And this state of affairs is rather strange considering how prevelant cellphones have become. One would think an enterprising company would do their best to create the best phone possible in hopes of dominating the market. But instead, something completely different has occurred. Since consumers have the ability to keep their phone number when switching carriers, the main selling point has become price and not ease of use. No one is really trying to make a better product, they are only trying to make one cheaper and with more features. Thus consumers have no reason to stay loyal to any particular company.

Wouldn’t this be a great market for Apple to turn on its head? Now, I am not advocating that they become a carrier themeselves, but rather a producer of cell phones. Nor am I in the camp that feels that all Apple needs to do is turn the iPod into a phone. I am rather against that stupid notion. The iPod works so well because it does one thing very well, playing music. Bolting a phone onto the iPod won’t create a sensation, it will create an embarassment. What I think Apple should do is incoporate the same principles that make the iPod sucessful into a phone. Features such as a very crisp screen, slim form and a minimum number of easy to use buttons. Make it white and incorporate the click wheel only if it adds to the phone, not because the iPod has it too. Apple has a chance here to produce a product that can sell at iPod like prices and yet reach and even larger market.

TVs
How about TVs? If you are an American you probably own several. You also probably have several different remotes, each more confusing than the last. How many buttons are on the average TV now? At least 20 for a cheap one and near 40 or 50 on the most expensive TVs. Isn’t that a bit overkill? Are TVs really that complicated? To put the number of keys on your average remote control into context think about it like this. The most complex of computers, running the most powerful of operating systems only uses a keyboard of about 50 keys. So why should your TV, which isn’t nearly as complex, require an input device with 30 buttons? Much of this complexity could be removed if only an efficient design was chosen in the first place.

Now, I don’t think Apple should drop everything and start making TVs anytime soon. However, if they ever looked around and wondered what market to go after next, then this is the one I would recommend. I want my TV to do more than what is currently is capable of. Apple can put a video camera in the screen of a laptop, why can’t someone add one of those to a TV and turn it into a video phone with a 42” display? Why can’t I use my TV as giant digital picture frame? The technology exist, so why doesn’t any company push the boundries of what a TV can be? It seems like adding color was the last big leap the industry took. Ever since then they have just been trying to make them smaller.

The last great design company might want to consider getting into other markets, if for no other reason than to bring its innovative touch to some industries greatly in need of creativity. Where has all the magic gone? Does it only exist in Cupertino?