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> Brand new screen digitiser technology in the iPad Pros that also puts them several years ahead of any of their competitors.

What technology are you talking about?

> mobile processor designs putting them years ahead of any of their competitors in yet another technology category.

Are you talking about the A10 Fusion? It's the fastest single-core processor, but according to https://www.pcper.com/reviews/Mobile/Apple-iPhone-7-and-7-Pl... the Snapdragon 820 has a faster GPU and the Kirin 950 a better mutli-core score in Geekbench. So I wouldn't say that their mobile processor design is years ahead (it's more that iOS doesn't need more than two cores and therefore they can really optimize single-core performance).

> A new variant of iOS (Watch OS) that's now powering two completely different product categories.

How is this any different than Android Wear?

>What technology are you talking about?

The way the pen and screen work together, and the screen sandwich layering that significantly reduces parallax between the pencil tip and image.

Regarding processor tech I was mainly thinking of the move to 64bit and secure enclave which completely out-manoeuvred the competition.

I'm not saying Apple is the only company innovating, Android Wear is a credible and innovative alternative that's holding its own in the market.

> Regarding processor tech I was mainly thinking of the move to 64bit and secure enclave which completely out-manoeuvred the competition.

Why is the move to 64 bit so important, but the move to 4 cores isn't? I don't really see why 64 bit makes sense for < 4 GB RAM devices and I also bet that no one can really tell the difference performance wise.

This is also the first time I hear about Secure Enclave. TouchID isn't that secure anyway (https://www.ccc.de/en/updates/2013/ccc-breaks-apple-touchid), so I really don't care how the fingerprint is stored.

Pass codes aren't perfectly secure either. Someone can see you type it in, or infer it from finger smudges. If your criterion for accepting a technology is perfection in all circumstances you're not going to find many technologies that satisfy it.

It's not the addressable memory that is important about 64bit, but the modern instruction set that came with 64bit that makes the processor faster.

it depends on what qualifies as "innovation". The bar you set is so low that literally every new "feature" (Reversible iphone connector!) can qualify.

Watch OS has nothing innovative about it that Android Wear doesn't already have, and is not taking off in the market.

3D Touch is a technological marvel but a useless feature for usability. It hasn't taken anymore than Samsung's "hover over the phone" touch has.

I can't comment on the colour gamut tech or the screen digitiser tech, but what exactly is Apple doing there that is leaps and bounds ahead of other display/tablet manufacturers? Do you have any links that compare these?

> * Custom screen technology leap-frogging 4K displays directly to 5K, at a full-system price below that of a 4K screen alone from competitors at the time.

It's literally just a rebadged LG display.

Does Microsoft make their own displays? How is this relevant?

"3D Touch" is something thar was in the Nokia E6-00 in 2011. Force-feedback touchscreen is not new, and much like capacitive touch-screens I suspect it was R&D'ed by Synaptics and Apple happened to be their first mass-market customer.

Apple can use their formidable logistics (few variants bought in huge quantities for several years) to be first-to-market with these improvements. The same logic probably applies to their Hi-Def smartphone/laptop screens, I don't think they made fundamental R&D in that space, but signaled early to manufacturers they were ready to pay for them. This makes them appear as innovators, while allowing their competitors to offer cheaper alternatives a few months later (where they invariably outdo Apple spec-wise after a year or so, so clearly the tech is coming from the manufacturers, who were just waiting for their next-gen to become economically viable). That is no small feat, and has a positive impact for the industry, but I would not call that innovation.

Would you mind elaborating on points 3-5 for me?

I haven't heard about #3, I guess I don't understand 3D Touch's hardware specs enough to know what you mean with #4, and I just don't believe #5.

Apple's ipad pro/pencil is better than the previous industry best (Wacom) by a wide margin. It's more sensitive, better ergonomics (narrow diameter, not plastic), much lower initial activation pressure. Paired with a much better display in a more portable package at similar price to a Cintiq companion. Professional artists are flocking to it in droves.

From my facebook feed where I follow artists from AAA game companies: Blizzard, EA, 343, etc.

Interesting. I'll have to give it a try. I've been against a screen + drawing surface combo up till now, my Intuos Pro has met my needs pretty well. But I'm always down for more precision.

Do you get all your tech knowledge from marketing material?

And what is specific to Apple about wide color gamut displays? These types of displays have been common for years.

Apple didn't invent 5k screens.

Are any of these displays on tablets/laptops? No, they aren't because they usually require bulkier CFL backlights.

Apple also didn't invent the micro harddrives in their iPods. So what?

Actually yes, this was the main reason I moved from apple. I was looking for a new laptop and apple still used a 1400 something resolution as a standard with a 1600 something as an upgrade. Most windows oems used full HD panels at that time and some of them 99% ore more adobeRGB. I was forced buying an ugly laptop because apples screen tech was years behind, even now the air has a ugly and very cheap low resolution panels.

Apple was really good at making basic consumer ideas work not at inventing stuff. Most inventions (by apple, MS) are based on older ideas. Don't get the invention religion anyway, who cares if apple was first or not. Just use wat you like

Are the 5k displays actually Apple's? It would be a strange move to exit the monitor business if they actually pioneered some new display technology.

None of the standard connector specs has the bandwidth to support a 5K signal at the same level of quality, so they can only do it in an all-in-one system until the public standard connector tech catches up.

This is only half true. Current external 5K displays require two DisplayPort cables.

this is just Apple wanting to be being ahead of the standardisation curve again... a la ADC (Apple Display Connector).

How many ADC monitors are out there now??