Last week at WWDC 2023, Apple’s Craig Federighi had a positively joyous moment on stage with his triple-neck electric guitar, leaning into the notion that Apple is indeed the more fun tech giant, compared to Google. The event was equally electrifying for Apple as well, with the launch of its sci-fi-esque Vision Pro headset, which had its own “one more thing” moment.
Among those flashy demonstrations, we also got a peek at Apple’s software roadmap for the next year. And these software changes are a clear sign that Apple, despite the chill vibes it’s putting out, is consciously staying true to its real self — one that wants to tighten its grip on the ecosystem its users rely on, even if (or especially if) that means a worse experience for those on the other side of the fence.
Apple’s seamless cross-device connectivity really does make for an impressive demo. When you receive a call on your iPhone, you can take it on your Mac without even reaching for your phone. The AirPods automatically pair with all your Apple devices, with effortless handoff between them. You can use your iPad as a wireless display for your Mac, and again, the experience is seamless. There’s no shortage of examples of this “magic” that Apple fans swear by.
But things didn’t end up this way by accident. Ever since iCloud became the center of everything Apple, the company’s devices and services have been built more and more around intuitively accessing these resources. This approach makes business sense for Apple, as it can sell you more products and subscriptions. But more notably, it gives the users a sense of finesse with their gadgets that just work without a bunch of tinkering. This experience is easy to get hooked on and daunting to get out of, even if it means you’re forced to put up with some of the quirks (read: inconveniences) of Apple products.
As far as I can see, it was meant to be this way all along. And Apple is only doubling down on this approach with its latest WWDC announcements. iOS 17 introduced a cool new way of exchanging contact cards, shooting past old-fashioned physical business cards and even modern QR code-based alternatives. And of course, NameDrop doesn’t use open standards for sharing the details, and instead relies on Apple’s proprietary tech. In other words, anybody with an Android phone will once again come off as the uncool one among iPhone diehards.