It was Sept. 9, 2015. The audience sat at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco eagerly waiting to see what Apple had up its sleeve for the conference. After presenting the newest addition to the iPad family, the iPad Pro, Apple revealed something quite unexpected: the Apple Pencil. As soon as Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide marketing, uttered out the words “Apple Pencil”, the product was received with a burst of audible laughs. This reaction was attributed to the audience’s realization that Apple had just played into the infamous stereotype of capitalizing on everyday objects and inspirations by introducing pre-existing and everyday products with a new design and a different name. But on a deeper level, those present had just witnessed Apple going against Steve Jobs’ wish of getting rid of a stylus once and for all. This accusation quickly ignited articles and responses that mocked the new product and accused the technology giant of going against its co-founder’s wish of getting rid of the stylus. Jobs, during the launch of Apple’s first tablet, said that "if you see a stylus" on tablets, you know that the tablet makers "blew it.” Jobs believed the tablet makers, by including a stylus, would be depriving the user of the intimate experience the use of fingers provides. According to these critics, the new stylus, the Pencil, is going against the company’s ideology regarding tablets. And they could not be more wrong.
There seems to be confusion as to how Apple really operates. By regarding the presentation of the Apple Pencil as the capitalization of an everyday object, it is easy to label Apple as a purely profit-motivated company desperately seeking to increase its presence in our everyday lives. But first, let us look at the stereotype that Apple “lays claim to everyday inspirations.” It has been the company’s role, since its founding in Jobs’ parents’ garage, to provide the market with something consumers did not know they even wanted. The company takes a product, re-imagines it, re-designs it and, for all purposes and definitions, re-invents it. Since the Apple I, a computer single-handedly designed and hand-built by Steve Wozniak, the company has assumed and maintained this role inside the technology industry. Apple is not a company that invents technology, it is a design company that revolutionizes and makes unpopular products more attractive to potential users. It is evident this would be misinterpreted as capitalizing and branding everyday objects and selling them under a new name.
It seems as if people could not take this new product seriously, as if Apple was purposely playing into its stereotype in order to stir up some laughs during the conference. Why would an average person ever express the need for such a product? It must be noted, however, that the Pencil is not for the average person. It is trying to appeal to a specific group: graphic designers and other design professionals. Contrary to what one may be led to believe by the name, the Pencil is not an actual pencil. The Apple Pencil, then, should not be regarded as an attempt to lay claim on an everyday inspiration, but rather as the re-invention of an already present technological tool that targets and provides a specific type of users a unique and different experience.
Lastly, I would like to cover the issue that was brought up regarding Steve Jobs’ disapproval of the use of styluses in Apple tablets. It is important to note in this discussion the context in which Jobs expressed said disapproval. The tablet market, before Jobs’ introduction of the iPad and his statement on styluses, was dominated by Microsoft Tablet PCs, the use of which was largely governed by the stylus. Apple, regarding the use as impractical, inconvenient and (frankly) ugly, took a different approach towards the tablet’s input: using one’s fingers instead of a stylus. It is clear to see why Jobs would address disapproval of the tool, in order to advance Apple’s competitive advantage in the tablet market. After all, this isn’t the only time Apple has gone back on Jobs’ own impassioned claims. In 2003, Steve Jobs told Walt Mossberg there are no plans to make any tablets, because the keyboard-less form was a recipe for failure. Yet, just a few years later, Apple launched the iPad. In a world where industry and consumer demands change each day, people should not blame Apple for stepping back from past statements regarding potential future products.
Apple’s role in the technology industry is an important one. It provides users with what they ask for and sometimes with things they did not even know they needed. The Pencil is one of many responses by Apple to its consumers’ demands for the re-invention of a specific tool, and should not be regarded as Apple playing into a disproved stereotype nor as a backtracking contradiction to previous claims made by the company or its co-founder. After Jobs’ death in 2011, Apple has been struggling to uphold the co-founder’s vision for the company while not impeding the company’s innovative aspect. Before passing away, Jobs’ left the current CEO of Apple Tim Cook a piece of advice: “never ask what [Jobs] would do. . . Just do what’s right.” Today, Apple has upheld Jobs’ last wishes, and as evidenced by its latest conference, done what’s right.
Carlos Lopez is a Viewpoint writer.
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