The Big Question: Apple is on its way to become Microsoft, but can Microsoft ever become Apple?

• By Shamsher Singh Bhullar

• 7th October 2015

Before you lose yourself in the title, let me inform you that Microsoft has launched an extensive range of toys, leaving most of us surprised. Microsoft isn’t really NSA when it comes to keeping secrets (Snowden would think otherwise though), and yet, they manage to grab a few eyeballs here and there after their annual event. So, let’s get down to the specifics; Microsoft opened us up to a new Surface Pro Tablet (Alright, calm down iPad Pro), a couple of Lumia phones (Quiet! Nexus), and another Microsoft Band fitness (Yep, they still produce these). However, Microsoft went a notch further in challenging Apple’s idea for a smart keyboard with a tiny convertible laptop dubbed as the Surface Book.
However, let’s talk about Microsoft’s numbers. Today, close to 110 million devices are running on Windows 10, more than a century of game play streamed in terms of years, a billion questions for ‘Cortana’, 1.25 Billion downloads from the Microsoft App Store, and an enthralling 400% increase in developer revenue since the new version of Windows was rolled out. For the sake of not being too mathematical, let’s just ignore the fact that there are 8 million PCs that are already using Windows 10.
Make no mistake, these numbers do not mean much in the World market. For a consumer, this is nothing but a long string of numbers that do not support his momentum in Temple Run or Subway Surfers. Microsoft, with all its surprises can attain a respectable position in the world market, yes, but can it rival its biggest competitor when it comes to mobiles and tablets? Will the world ever be crazy for Surface Pro as they are for iPad Pro, even with the latter being an overpriced digital commodity? Apple, with its desktops and the recently launched iPad Pro, took the fight to Microsoft. A sweet session of browsing and game playing on iPad Air can convince anyone to dump their desktops so deep that they never have to worry about them again. Apple is well on its way to become Microsoft, but can Microsoft ever be Apple?
For the ones who managed to escape the complexity of this title, here are few things to ponder upon? What drives Apple today, or what drove Microsoft yesterday, to the pinnacles of success and an expansion rate that defied every business model there ever was?
The past, the present, and the future, are written by the ones who dare to innovate. Apple has been successfully doing that. Even with little roadblocks, it has managed to retain the attention concentrated upon the brand worldwide. Microsoft has some hope with the new version of Windows doing well, but it’s not the engine of the car that is failing them, it’s the car itself. Apple, well you guys have managed to design a pretty good car, just keep that engine running. Apple is what Microsoft meant to us in the 90s, and the eye raising question is, who will own the next decade of technology worldwide?