One of the first things Steve Jobs did when he came back to save Apple in the late 90s was reduce their PC product range to the “four product matrix”. Instead of having an offering for every single segment of the market (executive, geek, soccer mom, teenager, single dude … ad infinitum) they reduced it to four products: Laptop and desktop, each available for home and work. Simple. Brilliant.
When my 19 month old daughter recently started testing my iPad’s durability I decided to assess the monetary implications of any potential damage caused by her enthusiasm. When I found the page, I got confused. So many iPads. Why don’t they just have an iPad and iPad mini? Why five different products? Which one is for a Star Wars-socks wearing hipster wannabe?
When I bought my iPad 2 life was simpler. Now it feels like choosing a mobile phone plan. Are the MBAs taking over Apple again?