Steve Jobs returning saved them from bankruptcy and gave them a second wind in the early 2000s, but that era is long gone. When he passed in 2011, Apple again started a downhill slide into what it is today, one of the most anti-consumer companies in the world. They're literally leading the fight against consumers rights to ownership and repair of their devices and treat their own customers like yesterdays garbage. They're again stuck in a position where they can't innovate and are doing everything they can to lock in users to a walled garden so they can't escape, and lock 3rd party vendors out so they hold all of the cards.
I wish folks would stop parroting "Steve Jobs was divine perfection" myths.
Many of the trends you're complaining about now started during his golden age. Who do you think put so much trust in Jony Ive and was happy to go with ever slimmer designs that had reduced ports and expandability? Remember, the original MacBook Air came out in 2008. Conversely, I'd say that Apple has had a few breakthroughs since 2011. The Apple Watch was the first smartwatch to really resonate with the public. AirPods and the wireless chips that have driven them helped Bluetooth audio take off. Even the 5K iMac is a notable innovation, since until then greater-than-4K displays were both unattainable for non-pros and usually required kludges (like grafting two display signals together) to work.
It's also rather amusing to see complaints that Apple is 'back' to the walled garden when its software is the most open it's ever been. You can get Apple Music and Apple TV+ on a whole host of devices ranging from Android hardware to smart speakers. Smart TVs not only support those apps, but platforms like AirPlay 2 and HomeKit. You can even use third-party routers for secure HomeKit features, and HomePods support Spotify streaming. Yes, devices like the Apple Watch and HomePod are clearly meant to reward those who invest fully into the Apple ecosystem, but I find it baffling that you'd claim that Jobs' era was somehow more open.