The InformationWeek -- Blogs
Digital Life

Topics:   Digital Life : Mobile

  • Email this page E-mail this page
  • Print this page Print this page
  • Bookmark and Share
  • icon

iPhone Hype: I Just Don't Get It


Posted by Mitch Wagner, Jan 10, 2007 01:36 PM

Reading up on the Apple iPhone, I'm not seeing what's so exciting about it, and I'm even tempted to say that the thing is going to sink like a lead balloon and everybody who's jazzing about it now is going to feel foolish in a year. It's a cell phone that's also an iPod that does the Internet and takes pictures. Why is that exciting? I already have a cell phone and an iPod, and my cell phone -- a 14-month-old Palm Treo 650 -- is Internet-enabled and a cameraphone too. I grant you there will be a huge attraction, for some people, in combining their iPods and cell phones into a single device. But, still, nothing about the iPhone is convincing me it'll slay dragons.


Dan Warne writes about the phone's liabilities on APC. He headlines the article "Top 10 things to hate about the Apple iPhone," but includes the phrase, "Don't get me wrong. I want an iPhone as badly as the next guy," because he wants everyone to know that he is not a heretic, he knows the iPod is a magical device that will make the lame walk and clear up pimples and other facial blemishes. But, still, the device does have flaws, he notes: the battery life is poor, the battery can't be replaced, and it can't synch via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, despite being enabled for both technologies.

He also notes a point that caused me to raise an eyebrow: Everything is controlled by the touchscreen. Hardware buttons are much better navigation tools than a touchscreen, for the simple reason that you can feel them. You can feel where they are, you can feel when you have successfully pressed them. Touchscreens rely entirely on visual feedback. If you're not looking at the touchscreen, or only half-looking, as many of us are when we use the cell phone, then you can't tell what you're doing.

Michael Gartenberg at Jupiterresearch notes the iPhone is not an open platform -- it's not extensible -- you won't see any third-party software on the iPhone, only Apple software.

Also: It's not available until June. Valleywag asks: "When did Steve start showing vaporware?"

You can hear my skepticism in my podcast discussion with Sharon Gaudin, our reporter on the scene at Macworld. She's had a chance to see the iPhone, and spend the day at Macworld, and she can barely contain her excitement. I'm talking to her from 500 miles away, and I'm, all, "I have a Treo. I have an iPod. So?"

On the other hand.

I'm relying for my information on other people's articles, and articles don't really convey a few things that sell electronics: Elegance, sexiness, and ease-of-use. That's how Apple conquered the world with the iPod, they created a sexy, easy-to-use device. And the iPhone appears to have those qualities, according to Engadget,, which got a quick hands-on. (The reviewer, Brian Lam, used his demo time to call his Mom. That's cute.)

Dave Pogue at the New York Times spent an hour with the iPhone, and, as usual, does a great job reviewing it based on that short time. He says the phone "feels amazing in your hand" (which points to the elegance and sexiness thing), and finds a few strong points and weaknesses.

To tell the truth, I'm more excited about Apple TV than I am about the iPhone.

« Why More U.S. Tech Jobs Could Be Lost To India In 2007 | Main | The Scourge of CES: The Content Crisis »



Sign Up Now
For InformationWeek News Alerts




This is a public forum. United Business Media and its affiliates are not responsible for and do not control what is posted herein. United Business Media makes no warranties or guarantees concerning any advice dispensed by its staff members or readers.

Community standards in this comment area do not permit hate language, excessive profanity, or other patently offensive language. Please be aware that all information posted to this comment area becomes the property of United Business Media LLC and may be edited and republished in print or electronic format as outlined in United Business Media's Terms of Service.

Important Note: This comment area is NOT intended for commercial messages or solicitations of business.




 
Digital Life Video

 

  1. Sequential Programming: Like Eating Peas with a Straw.
  2. Biomolecular device using self-assembled DNA nanostructures?
  3. Coreinfo v2.0: A Simple Utility to Understand the Manycore Complexity in Windows


Join The InformationWeek Group On LinkedIn


                           


  1. Too Much Netbook For Too Litl?
  2. Sprint And T-Mobile Headed The Wrong Direction
  3. More Reasons Why Linux Misses The Desktop
  4. Windows 7 Is Broken, So What?


  1. Florida Hospital Dials Up iPhones For Nurses
  2. Is Antivirus Software Dead?
  3. Securing The Cyber Supply Chain
  4. CIO Profiles: Christopher Rence, Chief Information And Business Transformation Officer Of FICO
  5. InformationWeek Analytics Research: Federated Search
  6. Practical Analysis: The Fastest-Growing Security Threat

 

  Ars Technica
Boing Boing
Channel 9 Forums
CRN Blogs
Dr.Dobb's Portal: Blogs
Engadget
Gizmodo
GrokLaw
  Lifehacker
Schneier on Security
Slashdot
TechCrunch
Techdirt
Techmeme
Valleywag

  DECEMBER 2008
NOVEMBER 2008
OCTOBER 2008
SEPTEMBER 2008
AUGUST 2008
JULY 2008
JUNE 2008
MAY 2008
  APRIL 2008
MARCH 2008
FEBRUARY 2008
JANUARY 2008
DECEMBER 2007
NOVEMBER 2007
OCTOBER 2007
SEPTEMBER 2007