[JimDabell]

The iPhone is a once-in-a-generation product. Virtually no company ever creates a product this successful. Why are you treating that level of success as if it’s the new norm that Apple must repeatedly reach in order to keep up?

What happens if they don’t catch the next wave? In that case, they will still be wildly successful. They’ve already had the iPad, which is the clear winner in the tablet market. They’ve already had the Apple Watch, which is the clear winner in the smartwatch market. They’ve already had the AirPods, which is the clear winner in the earphone market. None of these are the one-in-a-generation products that the iPhone is, yet they are all massive successes that bring in tonnes of money.

Apple will probably never have a hit as big as the iPhone ever again… but that’s perfectly fine and not at all incompatible with massive success and huge profits.

[genmud]

Blackberry?

Nokia?

[JimDabell]

No, the BlackBerry wasn’t even close to being the same magnitude hit as the iPhone.

Nokia is a company not a product. They’ve released a tremendous number of products, none of which came close to the iPhone.

We’re talking about a product that captured greater than 100% of the profits for the entire smartphone market one year. That brought in more revenue than most countries. How often does that happen?