impact. Before very long, there were
iPods that cost £249, then £99, and
inevitably a slew of imitators.
But no imitator could replicate the
iPod’s success. Microsoft famously
tried with the Zune player, but
despite a look that was extremely
reminiscent of the iPod, it never
panned out. You could argue that
Microsoft was late to the party, but
that doesn’t quite explain things.
It’s not just bad designs that Apple
rejects, it’s also bad user experience,
down to subtle things that most
companies barely even notice.
The bottom line is the Zune player
didn’t deliver the seamless experience
that the iPod did. The iPod’s drag-
and-drop
simplicity was
a large part
of its appeal
and it likely
wouldn’t have
succeeded
without it. The
same goes for
the iPhone’s
multi-touch
user interface.
Apple’s price
tags may
be high, but
so are the
expectation it brings for not just the
design but also the ease of use. Few
companies can deliver an experience a
seamless and delightful as Apple can,
and millions of people are willing to
pay a little extra to get it.
Or in the case of the AirPods Max,
a lot extra. Call it the Apple Tax if you
must, but the price tag of Apple’s latest
headphones, much like the AirPods
Pro, aren’t high for the sake of being
high. From lightning-fast pairing to
spatial audio and quick auto switching
between devices, the AirPods Max
deliver an experience that’s basically
unsurpassed in high-end Bluetooth
over-ear headphones, and that’s
before you even hear them.The problem with the Microsoft Zune wasn’t the design, it was the UX.