History of the development of the Apple Newton - Case Study Example

Lecturer History, Development and Death of Apple’s Newton This paper gives a brief history of the development and collapse of Apple’s Newton. Newton is Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) device which was a brain child of the Apple Inc. it was launched in 1987 after inspiration by John Sculley who was then Apple Inc Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The name Newton was chosen because of its close resemblance to the company’s trademark. As an innovative company, Apple Inc was interested in producing a gadget that would revolutionalize the telecommunication sector.

For a long time, people had been using desktop computers which had been linked to lots of inefficiencies by the users.It was believed that the invention of Newton would be of great significance to the users. Unlike the traditional desktop, it would be much portable and easier to carry wherever one goes. This would be possible due to the fact that it was to be smaller with a size 8.27” X 11.7”. In other words, it would be the size of a folded A4 sheet which is fairly efficient and can be handled by an individual much easily.

Besides, it would be more preferable as it was to be equipped with a special user interface along side a cursive handwriting. These are features that were believed to make Newton be the only gadget of choice for everyone who would be interested in having a taste of personal computer.With enough resources, the management of Apple Inc would support its engineers and programmers to conduct an extensive research as they developed this product. Because of such a support, the development of the product began in a high speed.

At first, they introduced a brand called Figaro which was having the size of A4. After its launching, it was valued to be worth $6,000. It was a very admirable product with a large format screen, object-oriented graphics and a well-developed internal memory. Because of such developments, the company managed to realize large volumes of sales and increased profit gins up to the later years.However, as fate would have it, the development of Newton would be discontinued in 1987 when the company realized that it would not be viable at all.

Despite realizing a profit of $2 billion between 1987 and 1989, the company did not realize any success thereafter up to 1990. The other reason for the death of this product was the rise of Sakoman and Macintosh Classic, rival commodities which posed a very great challenge to its progress. Moreover, the company faced a stiff competition from other established firms such as Dell, Compaq and Gateway which introduced complementary products in the market. Lastly, Newton succumbed because it of project slippage to which it had fallen a victim.

In conclusion, the development of Newton was a brilliant idea. Even if it was to greatly impact in the society, it never did so. Its death came at a time when it was to be introduced to the market. Indeed, its fall should be used as a lesson by Apple and any other organization that needs to benefit from its innovations. Management is corner stone for the success of any organization. Had people like Scully and Sakoman become serious, Newton would be a force to reckon with in the technological sphere today.