Allison Symes

Dr. Wanda White

ENGL 1103-092
25 November 2013
The Popularity of Apple Products in America
If one were walking down the street, through the hall, or any other populated area in the
United States what is it that they would see? One would see people talking, texting, playing a
game, listening to music, or maybe surfing the Internet on their mobile devices. They also might
start to notice a pattern: most of these mobile devices are some generation of Apple,
Incorporateds iPhone. The focus of this research project is to investigate the popularity of Apple
products in the United States.
History of Apple, Incorporated
In 1976, Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs founded what would eventually become Apple,
Incorporated. (Johnson, et al). The company name came from Jobs. He had grown fond of
visiting a small apple farm that was owned by his friends, and he would even sometimes like to
help out working on the farm. Later, the name Macintosh came from one of the designers
working at Apple, and the designer who created the first Macintosh computer. His name is Jef
Raskin, and the name simply comes from the fact that his favorite type of apple is the Macintosh
(OGrady). Wozniak originally pitched his computer idea to Hewlett-Packard, but they were not
impressed (Johnson, et al). However, this did not discourage him, and when he was introduced to
Jobs, and they put their minds together to make a great product. The first computer they made
was called the Apple I. What made the Apple I so appealing was that it used standard
television display. Most computers in this age did not have a display at all. The Apple I was also

easier to fix if something went wrong with it, because there were less computer chips; it is what
made the computer the most notable and popular. This chip reduction strategy also made the
computer cheaper than other ones on the market. Wozniak was not excited about starting a
company, but Jobs eventually convinced him because they could at least tell their grandchildren
they started their own company. After the Apple Is success, Wozniak used the money earned
from it to start building the new and improved Apple II. The Apple II included graphics that
displayed color (which was technologically advanced for the time) and had a built-in keyboard.
Wozniak and Jobs were having a difficult time coming up with enough money to make a
sufficient amount of the computers, but they eventually convinced Jobs friend Mike Markkula
Jr. to co-sign a loan and they were able to put it out on the market. The Apple II was wildly
popular and sold millions of units (OGrady). Part of its success was being able to use their
software skills to make their products different from others on the market (West, et al). It was so
popular that the company made two successors out of it, the Apple IIe and the Apple IIGS. The
Apple II was even credited for being the first personal computer, or PC. After the release and
success of the Apple II, they company finally became incorporated in 1977.
The company was originally called Apple Computer, Inc. but the company dropped the
computer in 2007. They made this change to show that they are moving towards focusing on
all types of consumer electronics, not just computers (Johnson, et al). Also in 2007, Apple
introduced the first iPhone, which also became wildly popular. Although it contained many
features standard to other phones on the market, the things that made it different were what made
it so popular. The biggest feature that made consumers want to buy it was that the Internet
browsing experience was so close to that of a personal computer. It also included a full touchscreen, with no physical keyboard, a larger screen than most other phones on the market, and full

iTunes capabilities. It sold 10 million units in 2008 worldwide, which was about one percent of
the worldwide market share (West, et al).
Features of Apple Products That Make Them Popular
Many people in America own the products that Apple, Inc. releases, but sometimes, it is
hard to tell why. They are not always as flashy and advanced as other products on the market at
the first glance, so why are they so popular? There seems to be one outstanding quality that
answers this question: simplicity. Apple products are all about the superior ease-of-use,
seamless integration, and innovative design. Apple products, specifically the software and
operating system of the MacBook computers, are not susceptible to viruses and hackers because
they are highly secured, unlike Windows and other operating systems. This prevents consumers
from worrying about viruses and the security of their product; they can be assured it will not be
broken in to.
Another feature of Apple products that exemplifies the simplicity of their products is the
iCloud (Johnson, et al). According to the Apple website, iCloud lets you access your music,
photos, documents, and more from whatever device youre on. Its easy to set up and use.
iCloud is even made available to Windows operating systems for consumers who do not own a
separate Apple device or computer. The website also explains the feature of the iCloud that
allows users to find their lost devices that are set up with iCloud, and how the service allows
seamless sharing of content. Another feature that demonstrates Apples simplicity is Siri. Siri
allows users to talk to their device to execute various commands the phone can do, including
opening apps, searching for places and information, posting to social media applications,
checking the weather, setting reminders, getting directions, and sending texts. Not only can it
perform all of those tasks, it can even perform the tasks if the user talks to it in regular, everyday

speech. The consumer does not have to make sure they are saying a specific set of words in order
for Siri to process their command (Apple).
Finally, since Apple products are so popular on the market, many of the applications
being released are written for the Apple operating system, which means Apple users do not have
to wait for the latest or newest applications on the market (Wooley). Having the latest and
greatest of applications reinforces Apples popularity. Apple as a company also makes it their
focus to bring the best user experience possible. They have reported that they are committed to
bringing the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative professionals,
and consumers around the world through its innovative hardware, software, and Internet
offerings (Johnson, et al). This just shows that as a company, they are dedicated to figuring out
how to bring the absolute best product to their consumers.
Apples Marketing Strategy
Although Apple products have several features that make them extremely popular, that is
not the only thing that attributes to their success. Apple spends millions of dollars every year on
advertising and other marketing resources. In 2009, Apple spent $501 million in advertising
alone. One of their most popular strategies of marketing is upon the release of a new product,
which is usually every six months to a year, they release a marketing campaign along with it.
This helps the release of the product stay relevant in customers lives because it is immediately
after the product is available to buy. These methods have been so useful that some of their
advertisements are still being talked about today -- specifically the 1984 Superbowl commercial,
where Apple parodied George Orwells 1984 to symbolize Apple and Microsoft users. Microsoft
users were blindly following Big Brother, who represented Microsoft as a company, and Apple

portrayed as the heroic and revolutionary Winston. This was a huge success for the company,
and they have been doing well in advertising ever since.
It may seem as though Apple spends a lot, possibly even too much on advertising, but it
is comparable to the amount that other companies spend. Microsoft spent $1.4 billion on
advertising in 2009, so Apple spends less than most other companies in its field. Another thing
that makes Apple commercials and other forms of advertisements so effective is that they market
them to people of all ages. They also advertise their products by showing it being used in every
day life, making it very appealing to the consumer, instead of simply showcasing the features
and technology. The Company simply seem to understand what will get people excited about its
product, and then executes on that vision. This approach keeps Apple as a leader in the
technology industry (Johnson, et al).
Apple Products vs. Android Products: Is One Better Than the Other?
Although Apple products are extremely popular in the United States, there are other
products on the market that are gaining popularity and could possibly become even more popular
than Apples iPhone. The products that seem closest to obtaining that status are smartphones
running on the Android operating system. The features that make Android products appealing are
their different designs, cheaper prices, and easy modifications (Johnson, et al). Android operating
system allows consumers to use memory cards, so they are not restricted to the amount of
memory given to them on their phone. Also, it has multitasking, which means continuously
running open applications in the background so that consumers can quickly switch between
applications. On the latest version of Android phones, consumers can open and use two
applications at the exact same time.

There are many features that make Android a great product, but one of the biggest
complaints against the Android operating system is that it is not as clean and polished as the
Apple operating system layout is. It also lacks the simplicity that Apple products offer because of
all the customization options that it contains (Wooley). However, Apple products also have some
complaints against them as well. The biggest of these complaints is the simple fact that Apple
products are so expensive for a product that accomplishes the same end goal. Also, some
consumers would like to see a bigger screen for the iPhones. There are also users who would
have liked to see a physical QWERTY keyboard instead of only touch-screen keyboard,
especially among those who send several emails from their mobile device. The iPhone also does
not support Flash technology, which limits the users mobile surfing capabilities when trying to
view embedded videos (Yoffie, et al).
Overall, it would be incorrect to say that an Apple product is better than an Android
product, or vice versa. It simply comes down to the consumers preference and budget. The
consumer has a choice between customization or simplicity, either being a wise choice.
Statistics in an American and Worldwide Setting
While Apple products are the most popular in the American setting, it may or may not be
surprising to find that it is mainly America that they are popular in. In a worldwide setting,
Android products are much more popular. According to a study published in International
Business Times, out of 227 countries polled, Apple was leading in 38 countries while Android
was leading in 135. The article explains the reason for this lead is because Android phones are
cheaper than Apple products, so Apple is leading in countries with consumers that have a high
disposable income. The article also showed that Android passed Apple in leading in the world
market in 2012, with Android at 23.81 percent and Apple at 22.95 percent. This means there was

only a slight difference, but it shows that Android phones are gaining popularity. However, it
continues to state Android runs 43 percent of all the worlds smartphones while Apple iOS still
runs one in five smartphones (Mahapatra).
Statistics also show that Apple products are most popular among teenagers. Yahoo!
Shopping published survey results that showed out of the top five most requested gifts among
teens, three are Apple products. The survey was conducted with teenagers of age 12-17. The top
requested gifts were the Apple iPhone at 32 percent, the Apple iPad at 24 percent, and the Apple
iPod at 13 percent. The survey did not, however, specify which generation of the Apple products
they wanted, but it can be assumed it was the latest generation. The article also mentioned that
there have been many naysayers who believe that Apple is losing its popularity, but this just
proves that they are still the most popular [in America]. The other two most requested gifts were
not even different phones from other companies; they were simply the PlayStation 4 from Sony
and the Xbox One from Microsoft. Even when adults were asked what products children under
the age of 18 would like to receive, the Apple iPhone, iPad, and iPod were ranked among the top
five. Overall, 88 percent of teens wanted an electronic gift, and 69 percent of those wanted an
Apple product. The study also shows that (not surprisingly) when broken down by gender, the
iPhone was most popular among girls. 41 percent of teenaged girls that were asked wanted the
Apple iPhone (Saltzman).
Conclusion
There are many different types of electronic devices out on the market today, many of
which are extremely technologically advanced. This research explored origins of Apple as a
company, features of their products, methods they use to advertise their merchandise, and a
comparison between the two most popular operating systems on the market to investigate the

specific reason(s) for Apples popularity. Overall, it comes down to the consumers personal
preference. The most frequent choice of consumers in America just happens to be from Apple.

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