Everybody loves the Woz.
And what’s not to love? Steve Wozniak is a one-of-a-kind genius who invented the personal computer. He’s a millionaire who spends his money having fun, rather than trying to control the world. He’s a practical joker. He’s an iconoclast. And he’s a nerd’s nerd and a geek’s geek who believes in technology and the power of change.
But even the biggest Woz fan has to admit: The man loves the spotlight.
And the main way he grabs it is by saying what nobody expects him to say.
Sure, Woz has engaged in all kinds of publicity stunts. For example, he was on Dancing with the Stars.
Woz has always been a character, but now he’s a character in a violent iOS game called “Vengeance: Woz With A Coz.”
Even though he doesn’t need to, he stands in line to get every new iPhone and iPad.
And Woz loves Oz: The Silicon Valley icon, who helped make Silicon Valley what it is today, says he intends to move to Australia. His Los Gatos home is reportedly up for sale.
He even has his own baseball card, for some reason.
But most of his press comes from the unexpected things he’s constantly saying.
The most recent unexpected claim being reported in the press is that Woz said Microsoft is now more innovative than Apple.
That’s not what he said. But what he did say was that he’s noticed and also fears that Microsoft is trying harder to innovate and go in new directions, while Apple has lately just been improving existing products.
He’s said that Microsoft’s new products are so good, it’s as if “Steve Jobs was reincarnated at Microsoft.”
The comment reminds me of Woz’s claim that Android is better than iPhone at some things, and that Windows Phone apps are “more beautiful” than iPhone apps.
Woz is on record of accusing Apple of being “arrogant” and having overpriced and disappointing products.
He claims his favorite gadget of all time isn’t an iPhone or an iPad or even the Apple machines he designed and built, but instead the transistor radio he owned as a kid.
He said he “hated” the Apple-Samsung verdict, which found in favor of Apple.
Woz famously sided with Kim Dotcom, and said the piracy case against him threatens Internet innovation.
He claims to have cried at Mike Daisy’s one-man show about The Agony and the Ecstacy of Steve Jobs, which is about Apple’s factory workers in China. He even urged Apple CEO Tim Cook to see it.
So does Steve Wozniak make all these unexpected statements to shock and surprise and ultimately to get press?
Or is he just a boldly independent guy who really says what he believes?
