Apple CEO Tim Cook hints at ‘new product categories’

When the Apple rumor mill starts turning, some exciting things come out. While some of the more far-reaching ideas like a holographic keyboard for the iPhone or a partnership with Playmobil to create an Apple Retail Store Playset turn out to be pranks, others, create brand new markets. After all, the iPad started out as a rumor of a tablet computer. 

According to ComputerWorld, this week Apple CEO Tim Cook fanned the rumor flames dramatically. During the quarterly earnings call on Tuesday, the executive hinted that the company would be introducing "exciting new product categories" starting this fall and continuing through the end of 2014.

"If I could imagine the new categories I'd be Steve Jobs and not me, there's that problem," Roger Kay, the president of Endpoint Technologies Associates, told the news source. "When they talk about new product categories, I'm just thinking about all the things you can Apple-ize in some way. Your Apple car? Your Apple refrigerator?"

Apple is no stranger to creating or revolutionizing product lines. Just look at the tablet, smartphone, digital music and personal cloud markets. However, with the company announcing the rare drop in profits, maybe it is time to create something new.

What the products will be is anyone's guess. There has been much speculation about the iWatch or smartwatch. However, Kay pointed out that those already exist. Another often talked about, possible product is the Apple TV Set, which would be a television with applications, internet connectability and other features.

Maybe Cook's hint was more about changing a product line than creating one. Either way, only time will tell. Regardless of the product, by partnering with an IT consulting company, any business can get a hand with a Mac integration if the device is something that every business needs.