Apple may have already sold a good number of smartwatches donning bright-colored straps since the product’s launch in April last year, but it still hasn’t won over one of its most famous past executives. ‘I think the Apple Watch is beautiful, but it doesn’t have enough utility to be something that I feel I have to have at this point in time,’ said former Apple CEO John Sculley in interview with TheStreet. Sculley, who served as Apple’s CEO from 1983 to 1993 and is the author of ‘Moonshot!’, doesn’t own an Apple Watch but does have a few suggestions on what the product needs to win him over. First, says Sculley, the Apple Watch has to be disconnected from its dependence on the iPhone. ‘When you go jogging, I don’t want to carry my iPhone and Apple Watch to count the steps — Apple will solve this though, they are good at that kind of stuff.’ Second, Apple should consider tapping into the consumer interest in smart messaging such as Facebook M, which lets users quickly message their friends and also serves as a virtual personal assistant that can complete tasks such as booking flights. Says Sculley, ‘Whether it’s WeChat or Facebook M, we are starting to see a move to an era where messaging could be an intelligent assistant, and that could be a perfect application for the Apple Watch if they can incorporate it.’ How the Apple Watch is performing absent such more advanced features is anyone’s guess as the tech giant hasn’t disclosed the product’s sales. Apple said sales of its smartwatch met its expectations in the most recent quarter. But, speculation has been rife that sales of the product have been sluggish since launch as consumers don’t yet see a need for one. According to research firm Canalys, Apple shipped 12 million smartwatches in 2015. The pace seemed to slow, however, into the end of the year: In November, Canalys reported that Apple had shipped 7 million smartwatches since it launched in April. Research company IDC estimates the Apple Watch will command about 49.4% share of the smartwatch segment in 2016, with unit sales reaching 14 million. Nevertheless, Apple does have other products and services beside the Apple Watch that continues to generate huge revenue and profit. ‘We remain confident in Apple, and will continue to hold this name for the long term — Apple isn’t simply a hardware company, it is an ecosystem that engenders long-term loyalty and constantly innovates on behalf of its customers,’ said Jim Cramer and Jack Mohr of Action Alerts PLUS in a recent note. Action Alerts PLUS owns shares of Apple. Sculley remains a loyal Apple producer user. ‘I don’t think an Apple lover has to have every product, but the ones I have and use I love,’ said Sculley, who is particularly fond of the iPad Pro. TheStreet’s Brian Sozzi reports from New York City.
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