The Tech section of USA Today
published an article on March 17, 2016, with the headline: ‘Apple Watch isn’t a
smash hit, but it could be a sleeper.’ What does ‘a sleeper’ mean?
Oxford Dictionaries defines ‘sleeper’ as ‘a person who is asleep’ or ‘a
thing used for or connected with sleeping’ or ‘a film, book, play, etc. that
eventually achieves unexpected success after initially attracting very little
attention.’ The latter is the definition used in this article. In this case,
the subject is technology – the Apple Watch.
The article commences by stating that the ‘Nearly a year ago, Apple Watch
was released to great fanfare, with many in the tech press expecting the
digital smartwatch to become the next must-have gadget’ – which means that it,
indeed, the watch was expected to sell well. However, this seems to contradict
the definition, which states that initially the item attracts little attention.
But, the article states that ‘the sea-change in public behaviour—say
everyone tethered to their wrist rather than bending over their phone—just
hasn’t happened.’ The article provided a quote from technology analyst with
Piper Jaffray, Gene Munster, saying that ‘it’s taken time for people to
understand how to get the most of it.’ This confirms the definition – the watch
has attracted little attention initially.
After it was released in April 2015, the Apple Watch still hasn’t gained
much interest. Apple has not released sales figures, which is an indicator that
it hasn’t sold as well as its iPhone, iPad, and computers (Apple regularly
publishes these sales figures).
The article continues by stating that Gene Munster thinks ‘over time, it
will be a sleeper.’ The author concludes with: ‘Just like the iPad and iPhone,
which grew substantially in the years after its launch, analysts say the watch
will see pickup in the coming years.’
Scorecard for the USA Today
headline is 100%. The author reinforces the word ‘sleeper’ in the article – and
interestingly adds that the watch will ‘take time’ to gain sales. It’s all
about give and take. Of course, all watches give time, but this one will take
time.
MARTINA NICOLLS is the author of:-
The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends
(2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan
Curse (2009).
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