At the risk of sounding like an Jobsian disciple, I'm not sure I agree. Sure, Apple may die, but it won't be because they are making devices. There's no question that the environment is king - and that's why I would argue that Apple has made such a comeback, and is so strong in the market now - it's not just about the box. They focus on how the OS and the hardware work together to create an environment. This may just be the kool-aid, but I don't think you can have the environment without the hardware and the software working together. AND I'm not trying to start an "apple is the best" or apple vs. windows, or apple vs. Linux, or apple vs. Android thing here... to each their own.I think Apple will likely die making devices rather than a technological environment.
I just see standardization moving to the forefront. To interact with ubiquitous technology, the winner is going to have the most open-feeling platform. That's why I see MS and Google having the edge. I don't want the coffee shop tables to be incompatible with the hardware on my wrist. Google and MS will care far less about that coffee shop table experience. Even on their own platform, from my experience, Apple's cloud is awful. My music collection feels like it has been randomly scrambled. Some songs are duplicated, and some songs are inaccessible from some devices.