A better metaphor might be that of the battle, and the war, long since won, and the victorious army having spent most of the last ten years getting lazy and soft as it forgets why it won in the first place, still reveling in the fading glow of glories past - while, somewhere, an upstart as yet unknown to the world makes ready to dethrone it in its turn.

It's a shame. The only smartphones I've ever had have been iPhones, and I don't want that to change. But I'm not seeing much reason lately to believe that Apple can continue going from strength to strength.