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In a new interview, Apple's hardware chief John Ternus and marketing chief Greg Joswiak discuss the philosophy behind the MacBook Neo, Apple's biggest failures, and the future of spatial computing.
The MacBook Neo has been on the market for a month and has become a surprise success – boasting the best launch week ever among new Mac buyers. In an interview with Tom's Guide, John Ternus and Greg Joswiak now offer insights into the device's development, speak candidly about past Apple failures, and hint at the direction for future products.
Apple executives rarely give in-depth interviews that go beyond product announcements. The conversation with Tom's Guide is an exception: Ternus and Joswiak reflect on Apple's culture of learning from mistakes, explain why the MacBook Neo isn't a cheap notebook, and offer a cautious outlook on the upcoming smart glasses.
MacBook Neo: Quality instead of cheap compromises
Ternus clearly differentiates the MacBook Neo from its competitors in the same price segment. The competitors' devices are made of plastic, they can be bent, and the manufacturers have cut corners on every detail to drive down the price. Apple's approach is different: not cheap, but affordable with high quality.
The MacBook Neo was designed from the ground up, utilizing technologies like Apple Silicon and decades of expertise in developing Macs, iPhones, and iPads. Ternus emphasizes that Apple never wants to ship inferior products – the MacBook Neo proves that a low price and Apple quality don't have to be mutually exclusive.
Apple's biggest flops: MacBook Air and Apple Maps
When asked about Apple's biggest failures, both executives respond with remarkable candor. Joswiak cites the first MacBook Air from 2008: an iconic design that nevertheless sold poorly. Apple isn't perfect and makes mistakes – what matters is how it reacts to them.
Ternus points to the infamous launch of Apple Maps in 2012, considered one of the biggest PR disasters in Apple's history. However, the team wasn't discouraged and has worked continuously on improvements over the years. Today, Apple Maps is an excellent application – an example of how perseverance can turn a rocky start into something great.
The message from both managers is the same: Failures are part of the process. What counts is the willingness to learn from them and move on.
Smart Glasses: It's only a matter of time
Joswiak also commented on Apple's plans in the wearables sector. Without specifying a concrete timeline, he described the merging of the digital and physical worlds as inevitable – precisely the core idea of spatial computing. He left open the question of when the Vision Pro would become a lighter, more practical pair of glasses, but emphasized the inevitability of this development.
This information aligns with reports from last week that Apple is currently testing at least four different smart glasses designs and is aiming for a launch in late 2026 or early 2027. (Image: Shutterstock / Kit Leong)
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