Oh my.
Oh my oh my!
I think I already know my position on Apple and the marketplace. I’ve been testing it with a few people this evening.
I think we’ve witnessed a watershed. A turning point. That’ll do it.
All I need to say is look at the N95, the pinnacle of Nokia’s engineering prowess. Stick it next to the iPhone. It just doesn’t compare. Symbian and the N95 just isn’t in the same stratosphere.
Gosh.
And it’s got OS X on it.
I just…….. can’t………..gosh it’s exciting isn’t it? 😉
So if you’re a mobile phone operator, there’s one of two ways you can react.
First of all, walled gardens, £3 quid 30 second ringtones, £3 quid 150 pixel photos, useless music stores — all dead. Game over. Nice. Yes there’s a few years before it’ll actually start to hurt, but let’s be clear, a device like the iPhone completely removes the need to ponce about with your operator’s shit. And I do mean shit. Don’t even think of trying to keep your data charges where they are. So, yes, thanks for coming. You’re now a bit pipe.
Second, if you’re lucky enough to be already marching down the path to unlimited data a la T-Mobile and Three, the future is possibly a little brighter. You can afford to embrace such devices and open standards. (I mean open in the context of the suddenly hugely limiting existing mobile operating systems). I can actually visualise Three offering an iPhone on contract and inviting users to download the X-Series pack, a series of valuable, useful and exciting programs to your iPhone. Whether Apple will tolerate devices being hawked in this fashion, who knows. T-Mobile’s web ‘n walk strategy fits beautifully with the iPhone and iPhone-style devices.
Oh, and if you’re quick, maybe you can convince Apple to give you an exclusive in your geographic area; a) to strangle the market and drip out the iPhones to maximise profits and b) to try and control an immediately completely uncertain and fast developing strange new landscape.
If you’re a handset manufacturer, well, the word ‘handset’ says it all. Next. Thanks for coming. There’ll always be a market for your £3 quid Nokia ‘handset’ but the future is — and always was — devices much like the Apple iPhone. There’s simply no excuse. The iPhone components are public. Apple didn’t engineer them, as far as I’m aware. They went out and bought’em. Got’em knocked together where appropriate. As the phrase goes: Designed by Apple in California. But not MADE in California. They’re knocked together in the Far East. Which is precisely where Mr & Mrs SonyNokiaSamsungEricsson should have been. Where the hell were they? They’ll need to catch up pronto. I mean pronto. Question is: How can you easily chop and change when your biggest customers are shitscared mobile operators desperate to try and control a marketplace that they simply can’t hope to ever control.
Oh dear yes, the E90 is going to be laughable. The N95, as commented by nadnad earlier, nice handset, shame about the fact it’s obsoleted before even launched. Symbian itself, the lauded and flexible operating system, looks absolutely ridiculous compared to a functional OSX on board. Don’t get me started on the possibilities with Apple developer communities and capabilities that this offers users of the device.
I don’t think the iPhone is the be all and end all. It’s simply just the beginning. Even Mr Gates predicted something similar in his book, Business at the Speed of Thought. Only, his Windows Mobile system, which, by the way is neatly consigned to the dustbin this evening, couldn’t quite compete.
All of the above is conditional, to an extent, on the Apple iPhone device performing as spec’ed. As long as it doesn’t suffer from Windows SLOW Mobile rubbish delays and performs consistently without ugly surprises, it looks like Apple Computer have done a very, very good job.
This is Mobile 3.0. or 10.0. We jumped quite a few stages.
Yes it’ll be a while before we can verify it actually works. Yes it’ll take some time for the devices to hit the market.
I’m confident that 100% of Apple iPod customers will demand the iPhone. Whether 100% can actually afford one? Well that’s a different story. However, pricing at or near the top end cost of an iPod guarantees some phenomenal sales, I’m sure.
Tons more in my mind….