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Apple's new high-end product: the polishing cloth
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Apple
Apple has shown it all once again.
"Can't innovate anymore, my ass," as Cupertino's poet in residence Phil Schiller once said.
Monday evening proved it: Apple doesn't fool anyone when it comes to design, specifications and of course the price.
Steve Jobs would have lost a tear on stage if he had been able to experience that.
We're not talking about the new MacBook Pro.
With that, the company stayed below its potential, at least the 16-inch version is thicker and heavier than the one from 2019 - as if it were a journalist after one and a half years of home office and too little exercise.
No, Apple's new flagship product is significantly slimmer, only available in chic white, and only a small, unlit logo indicates the brand - typical Apple understatement.
It wasn't even shown on stage, just posted on the Apple website.
It is also called quite unpretentiously: polishing cloth.
Impressive backward compatibility
Apple promises "abrasion-free material" that "every Apple display, including nanotexture glass, should be able to clean gently and thoroughly." The list of supported devices is impressively long: even seven-year-old iPhones and iMacs and even eleven-year-old iPods can handle the cloth. This is how backward compatibility works today. Extensive tests have to show whether Android smartphones or laptops from other manufacturers can also be cleaned with Apple's iLappen.
The polishing cloth costs 25 euros.
Of course, this is more than direct competitors such as Hagemann optics in Berlin-Marzahn require.
Still, at this price, there is an Apple product for everyone.
As an accessory, it could quickly become a must-have of the season.
If the chip shortage slows down iPhone production, the polishing cloth could still save Apple's Christmas business.
It remains to be seen whether the company is already working on a larger and more expensive version.
A polishing cloth Max or Polishing Cloth Pro, or a leather version designed by Hermès would only be logical and a way for individualists to stand out from the crowd.
One more thing: Apple's imagery is never random, everything is a message.
Therefore, after Tim Cook's appearance on the wild meadow in Apple Park, speculation can be made as to which surprise product will soon come from Cupertino.
Most analysts, however, agree: Apple will probably bring a lawnmower onto the market.
