Despite losing its key innovator and frontman Steve Jobs to cancer last year, Apple is continuing to truck on with high-end products and a pipeline of consumer ready ideas. After the launch of the iPhone 5 and with the iPad Mini rumored to be in the works, reports show that the company is doing better than ever.
The Malay Mail does a brief breakdown of what made Steve Jobs such a great innovator and a key asset to the success of Apple over the years, as the company celebrated the former CEO with a one year anniversary memorial service for Jobs.
According to Tim Cook…
“One of the greatest gifts Steve gave to the world was Apple,” … “No company has ever inspired such creativity or set such high standards for itself. Our values originated from Steve and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple. We share the great privilege and responsibility of carrying his legacy into the future.”
And carrying that responsibility is exactly what Cook and crew has been doing at Apple. The company launched the iPhone 5 to resounding success despite a few hiccups here and there. They’re not just doing numerical releases of Jobs’ already established brands, they’re also branching out with new ideas as well such as the rumored iPad Mini which is expected to be announced soon for a holiday release this year.
The streamlined combination of releases and announcements throughout the year has managed to keep the world’s most valuable tech company soaring in the stock department, with a 70% increase in value over the past year and a valuation at $600 billion dollars.
Not everyone is seeing the fireworks and confetti, though. Global Equities Research’s Trip Chowdhry takes a Debbie Downer approach to the scenario, saying…
“Our research is indicating that probably this is the peak for Apple,”…”We think that skill has now left Apple, and Apple may be the new Microsoft, coming with good enough products like Microsoft does. Perfection may not be the hallmark of Apple as Steve Jobs is no more.”
Only time will tell if the company can continue on its win streak following the loss of Jobs. It will be interesting to see what the company has in store throughout 2013 and 2014. Some industry insiders speculate that Jobs already had many unfilled ideas that Apple are keeping in the wings and will roll out when necessary to keep their momentum steady.