Analysts weigh in on Apple profit drop

Apple has announced its first drop in profits for the past decade, prompting some to question the future of the firm – as it has a history of innovating and trend setting over a few years and then stagnating. Vanessa Barnett, technology and media specialist at Charles Russell LLP has spoken up about it.

“It's interesting times in technology right now.  For a number of years Apple really did ‘kick ass' in terms of the quality of its products, the design, the usability – and the hype.  But in the last couple of years we have seen the rise of both Android as a phone O/S and Samsung as a ‘cool' consumer technology company,” she said.

Apple could do with something new and impressive. Fanboys haven't cried at an Apple conference since the original iPad. 

However Barnett also draws attention to the potential for those who dislike Apple to come out of the woodwork and voice their opinions now their prophecy if downfall appears to have come true. “It's fashionable right now to say Apple's on the slide.  But at the end of the day, they have good people, good ideas and there's still a big bit of Steve Jobs in the company's DNA.  I'd call this a blip not the beginning of the end.”

In a surprising move however, Barnett also believes the current legal battleground that is the mobile industry will actually not last forever, suggesting that: “The patent wars will settle down, new products will be launched and the rise of Apple will begin again. It may not be as overpowering as at the time of Steve Job's but anyone who's thinking about writing them off is probably engaging in wishful thinking.”

KitGuru Says: Interesting thoughts, sort of what I'd expect for Apple. I imagine it's influence will wane with the growth of Android and it'll re-emerge with something that's well marketed in a few years time and we'll repeat the cycle. Apple never dominated smartphones and tablets because it created something new and revolutionary, it just did it with panache and style. 

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