Apple is preparing to shake up its product offerings in 2022 after a relatively quiet 2021. The company plans on adding new iPhones, AirPods, and possibly a new VR headset in 2022.
Although 2021 was Apple’s biggest year for revenue, it was not their most innovative year in terms of new products. But the company is looking to surprise its customers this upcoming year.
The company will likely introduce a 5G version of the iPhone SE towards the beginning of 2022, with a new iPhone 14 coming later in the fall. The company also has three new Apple Watches: a Series 8, a new SE, and a durable model for extreme-sports athletes.
New operating systems iOS 16 and macOS 13 are also anticipated this year. But the most hotly rumored product is Apple’s first virtual reality headset, codenamed N301 and its operating system rOS. While analysts predict the headset will arrive this year, the product has had a rough road: it was originally planned to debut in 2020, then delayed to 2021, and now, finally 2022 — if everything goes smoothly.
Microsoft overtakes Apple at the end of 2021
Microsoft overtook Apple to become the world’s most valuable company in October 2021. Apple shares dropped dramatically yesterday after their earnings report fell short of expectations, causing Microsoft to become the leading company in the world in terms of valuation.
Shares of Apple dropped roughly 4% on Friday down to 147.10 per share, making the company’s market capitalization $2.43 trillion. Microsoft’s shares rose 0.9% to 327.30 per share, making their market capitalization $2.45 trillion– just a hair above Apple, who previously held the leading spot for an entire year.
Apple was the first company in history to surpass $1 trillion in market capitalization, a landmark it reached over the last three years. But the company has been wracked with difficulties this quarter due to supply chain shortages, which have massively delayed the production of the new iPhone 13.
Apple missed analyst’s expectations for Q4, reporting 83.36 billion in revenue.
“This year we launched our most powerful products ever, from M1-powered Macs to an iPhone 13 lineup that is setting a new standard for performance and empowering our customers to create and connect in new ways,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “We are infusing our values into everything we make — moving closer to our 2030 goal of being carbon neutral up and down our supply chain and across the lifecycle of our products, and ever-advancing our mission to build a more equitable future.”
Microsoft recently debuted its latest operating system, Windows 11, in October 2021.
How chip shortages helped Microsoft get a step ahead
Apple was projected to manufacture 90 million new iPhones before the end of 2021, but Bloomberg has reported that the company believes that that number may be lowered by as much as 10 million.
Apple is one of the most powerful chip buyers on the planet and dictates the order of the global electronics supply chain. Despite their looming presence, the company is still falling prey to the supply chain issues that have dramatically impacted industries worldwide. Chipmakers have issued stark warnings that supply will not be able to meet the demand for chips into 2022, and possibly after that.
Apple sources the pieces of its phones from Texas Instruments and Broadcom. A TI chip that is currently scarce is used for powering the OLED display of the new iPhone. Apple is also dealing with shortages from different suppliers as well.
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