Fritzo
Lifer
Most people aren't experts in electronics. When you dumb something down enough, it because easy enough for the general population to use. At that point, market acceptance comes in. Apple did everything right:
1) Made devices look nice and easy to use (one control pad does everything)
2) Made a brand name for itself
3) Made them available at all major stores
4) Got in early enough to make the name iPod = MP3 player
5) Made iTunes easy enough for grandma to download songs at a decent price
The closest competitor to Apple at this point is Creative, and their MP3 players are superior, but they have a few flaws with their implementation:
1) Nobody outside the PC world knows who Creative Labs is
2) No advertising
3) No easy to use software to transfer music
4) No branded music store
For these reason, Creative's players will only be accepted by the electronic savvy, not the masses. The only companies that have the resources to counter Apple would be SONY and Samsung, but they don't seem to have any plans to do so.
1) Made devices look nice and easy to use (one control pad does everything)
2) Made a brand name for itself
3) Made them available at all major stores
4) Got in early enough to make the name iPod = MP3 player
5) Made iTunes easy enough for grandma to download songs at a decent price
The closest competitor to Apple at this point is Creative, and their MP3 players are superior, but they have a few flaws with their implementation:
1) Nobody outside the PC world knows who Creative Labs is
2) No advertising
3) No easy to use software to transfer music
4) No branded music store
For these reason, Creative's players will only be accepted by the electronic savvy, not the masses. The only companies that have the resources to counter Apple would be SONY and Samsung, but they don't seem to have any plans to do so.
