Research Areas

Home / Press Releases / Portable CE / Are Apple and the iPad Falling Behind Competitors in User Interface Technologies?

Press Releases

Are Apple and the iPad Falling Behind Competitors in User Interface Technologies?
Date: 12 March 2012

The release of the new iPad brought a number of incremental upgrades but also raised interesting questions, as Apple’s competitors aggressively incorporate a number of advanced user interface technologies at a faster pace. IMS Research believes Apple will need to embrace embedded vision-based technologies in its next product releases in order for the company to maintain its competitive edge.

Though Apple is largely credited with bringing touchscreen interaction to the masses thanks to the iPhone, other user interface technologies to complement touch interfaces will become increasingly important. Competitors such as Samsung and Microsoft have steadily begun integrating these technologies in recent releases and several more have products slated for debut in the next year, as competitive differentiators to employ against Apple. These technologies will also become commonplace in the years to come. According to the IMS Research report, “Next Gen User Interfaces: Touch, Gesture, Motion, and Voice – 2012 Edition,” yearly worldwide shipments of devices with next generation user interface technologies are forecast to grow to nearly 3.8 billion units in 2015.

The new iPad was absent Apple’s now-trademark Siri voice assistant, which debuted with the iPhone 4S and was widely expected to be integrated with the new iPad. Regardless of Apple’s reasons, voice control and assistance is very much a part of Google and Microsoft’s strategies going forward, with Google expected to debut Google Assistant in 2012 and Microsoft continuing to develop and expand its TellMe speech technologies across Windows 8, Xbox 360, and Windows Phone platforms.

Beyond voice recognition and control, however, Apple’s competitors are also more aggressively deploying camera-based gesture recognition applications. Microsoft has already shown its commitment to gesture control with the Xbox 360 and upcoming Windows 8 platforms, along with gesture-friendly common interfaces across devices. Windows 8-based laptops and tablets incorporating gesture control with either standard or enhanced front-facing cameras are debuting this year. Android-based smartphones and tablets incorporating gesture control will debut in volume in late 2012. In the home video arena, where Apple has significant aspirations, Samsung is only the first of several major consumer electronics companies to debut camera-based gesture recognition this year in its Smart TVs. Vision-based applications are thus expected to be a competitive differentiator going forward. Microsoft has already begun utilizing facial recognition with the Kinect for Xbox 360, and Google also has launched facial recognition in Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Though these are rudimentary implementations, they are only the start for these two competitors. Applications beyond facial recognition are steadily being refined for deployment over the next year.

With aggressive upgrades in processor power in each product generation, Apple seems well-positioned for this battle. According to Jeff Bier, Founder of the Embedded Vision Alliance (www.Embedded-Vision.com).  “Vision algorithms require powerful processors.  By boosting CPU and GPU performance in the new iPad, Apple is enabling developers to potentially deploy exciting new embedded vision capabilities, such as gesture recognition, augmented reality, and health monitoring. Embedded vision technology enables consumer electronics products to be much more intelligent and responsive, and will be an important competitive differentiator.”

According to Paul Erickson, senior analyst at IMS Research, “Next generation user interface technologies continue to evolve, and 2012 will see a number of advancements from Apple’s competitors in the areas of user experience, voice control and embedded vision, particularly gesture recognition. As the new iPad did not introduce any significant new progress in this regard, the competitive pressure now falls upon Apple, perhaps beginning with the upcoming iPhone 5 launch, to bring iOS devices into competitive parity with some very aggressive competition.”

Share this Press Release

Share
Contacting Us

Jonathan Cassell
Senior Manager, Editorial
jonathan.cassell@ihs.com
Direct: + 1 408 654 1714
Mobile: + 408 921 3754

Or

IHS Media Relations
press@ihs.com
Direct: +1 303 305 8021

About IHS Inc. (www.ihs.com)

IHS (NYSE: IHS) is the leading source of information, insight and analytics in critical areas that shape today’s business landscape. Businesses and governments in more than 165 countries around the globe rely on the comprehensive content, expert independent analysis and flexible delivery methods of IHS to make high-impact decisions and develop strategies with speed and confidence. IHS has been in business since 1959 and became a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange in 2005. Headquartered in Englewood, Colorado, USA, IHS is committed to sustainable, profitable growth and employs more than 6,000 people in 31 countries around the world.

IHS is a registered trademark of IHS Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Copyright © 2013 IHS Inc. All rights reserved.

©2013 IHS. All Rights Reserved