Well, it’s finally here: Steve Jobs is onstage announcing the iPhone at this moment. Follow the action at Engadget.
I’ll have more thoughts on it later, but my initial reaction: shiny. And that’s about it.
Update: Wow, not sure where to start. First, I don’t think you can think of this as a phone, really (nor does Michael Mace). It’s about the most kickass iPod yet, with some phone functionality added in, along with a web tablet. That’s both an asset, but also a potential hurdle. It’s an asset because it’s freed Apple from the phone-centric thinking that, at time, plagues other handset vendors. But it could be a big hurdle, because it looks like it’s tipped the balance too far away from “phone” and too much to “other stuff” for many people’s liking.
While the touchscreen’s cool and interface novel, I think it’s going to be way too complex for most people’s tastes (granted Jobs did say Apple just wants to take 1% of the handset market). Jobs decried things like the complexity of dialing phone numbers on current handsets — but is having to call up a virtual keypad, or tap your way through a contact app with your finger that significant an improvement?
The internet functionality looks pretty slick, as do the widgets. But my concern in this area is how open the device will be to third-party development. That struck me as odd, since Apple and Jobs usually go to great pains to play up to developers. Pretty much all he said along these lines was that the iPhone runs OSX — what what’s that mean, particularly for external applications? I’m also concerned that the iPhone won’t fit in to the existing ecosystem, and will be essentially closed off to mobile developers.
I’ve got a lot of questions about this device, and the Apple site doesn’t offer much guidance. I’m also very skeptical about the durability of the iPhone — it doesn’t seem like the sort of thing that will take very well to the typical abuse many mobile phones receive on a regular basis, in particular being carried around in pockets (I’ve already got echoes of the first run of iPod Nanos in my mind).
All that aside, the mobile industry’s gotten a tremendous boost today. While most of the iPhone’s features aren’t nearly as revolutionary as Jobs seems to think, the iPhone’s going to get a ridiculous amount of press that will — if nothing else — inform people that all these things are possible on a mobile phone, though they may at first have the impression that they’re possible only on an iPhone. Mobile media has just gotten a huge boost; the mobile internet has just gotten a huge boost.
Of course, alongside that, Apple’s thrown down the gauntlet. As much as the iPod was already the bar for media playback functionality on mobile handsets, those comparisons will now shift to the iPhone: does it play music as well as the iPhone? Videos? Photos? (Of course, on the flip side, the iPhone’s going to get “writing SMS on this is nowhere as easy as my old Nokia”) That’s going to be a challenge for handset vendors, but it’s one that should benefit us users. There’s a big opportunity here for the industry as a whole: Apple’s opened the door, and I’m not convinced it’s going to be iPhones that go flying out, especially at $500 or $600 after subsidy and two-year contract.
[…] Read Carlo Longinos post about the iPhone instead. Couldn’t agree with him more. […]
[…] […]
Agreed on the sentiment that the mobile industry has gotten a boost today, most especially in the mobile UE area. I’m believing that this fundamentally sets a strong precedent where a manufacturer has enough clout to get Cingular, a tier 1 carrier (a US tier 1 carrier, anyway), to take a backseat to and let the OEM (Apple) drive; both on the handset user interface and in the content area.
Open questions abound, but my full take on the iPhone announcement is over at Idlemode.
Cheers.
[…] Do I think the iPhone will end up being a revolutionary device that transforms mobility. No idea. I leave speculation about things like that up to people like Omar and Carlo, who have proven themselves much more insightful when it comes to overall market understanding. Me, I understand pretty much just technology and how to make it do stuff. And around the iPhone I haven’t picked up anything yet. […]
Steve said he’d be happy with 1% of the market. We can drop children and seniors as they won’t be interested in this advanced device. This means the target user is 20-35. These users won’t have a problem with an innovative interface, won’t have a problem with turning the device to use the keyboard.
I can already see people using the full keyboard to send messages. If the keyboard is as responsive as they said it is, I’m sure it will ease the SMS writing and the number of messages will keep growing. People with a blackberry can’t leave without it anymore. If you get used to this keyboard, I suspect it’ll be the same.
Anyway count me in the list of early adopters… If only I lived in the US!
I think it’s a bit lost between markets (video player, music player, phone and camera/picture manager in 8Gb? for $500 2yr contract? hmmmm) and as you say, that does make it not so much a phone. It’s got some great little features, mainly taken from other sources and put into one place in a nice package - my camera has had an accelerometer for ages, Ericsson did the proximity sensor years ago, S60 has Safari browser, etc. Hopefully it will give the industry a boost and we can all grit our teeth when the mainstream media say how revolutionary it is, and hopefully it will kick the incumbents into better UI practices. Won’t be buying one myself though.
More throughts at http://techype.blogspot.com/2007/01/ipod-iphone-igetsuedfortrademarkinfrin.html
[…] After Apple’s announcement of the iPhone yesterday at Macworld Expo, a plethora of news sites have had abundant reporting and commentary on the topic. Mobileindustry.biz, Mobilegamefaqs.com and Wireless Gaming World covered the basic story in their daily news roundups, but other sites like Maccentral lent an editorial slant with their editorial, Analysis: iPhone a ‘wake-up call’ for the industry. Mobhappy.com gave us a two-part look, called Finally, the iPhone (here’s part 2) in which they discuss the phone’s interface, questions about the phone’s performance, and market share:My gut feel verdict on the iPhone though, is that it’s be like the Sex Pistols of the music industry. Hugely disruptive, headline stealing and immensely influential, but ultimately, others will come along who’ll take the good bits, dominate the market and make most of the money. I hope it’s not true, as I’d love to see Apple take nice slice of the market on a long term basis. Their design flair alone would make that a fine thing for us all.The world is still just learning about what the iPhone can do, and most mere mortals haven’t even held one yet. The inevitable gaming options have not yet become clear, but it is clear that if the iPhone doesn’t inspire a major leap forward for gaming on mobile devices, little else can. Don’t forget that we took a look at the iPhone’s promise for gamers the day before the announcement. […]
“I’m believing that this fundamentally sets a strong precedent where a manufacturer has enough clout to get Cingular, a tier 1 carrier (a US tier 1 carrier, anyway), to take a backseat to and let the OEM (Apple) drive; both on the handset user interface and in the content area.” - yeah right
Just wait till they really start talking to cingular - half of the features gone.
The screen will get dirty in a matter of hours and it will be almost impossible to clean since now you touching it not only with your face but with hands too. Os on the phone nothing new, widgets useful but easy to implement , what so revolutionary about not having buttons and having email, web browsing, photos, videos, running myspace…
announcing full web support… This just proves that they don’t know a thing about mobile, wait until a happy customer who just paid 500 and signed 2 year contract fires up this breakthrough safari thing types in cnn.com and… guess what he is going to do next
I was looking for one little feature at least a mention of it or that its coming in the future, the one that will set this device apart, but as i was thinking not even one word…
Don’t you guys know that change usually come from factor not the form. You want to reinvent the device that connects people find a new way to connect them zzzzz…
You all say you are mobile professionals but i read all of this: mobhappy, mobilecrunch , open gardens i am sorry but you guys amateurs. Why you write all of this I have no IDEA
First lesson, you don’t need to have GPS capabilities in the phone to be able to offer location based services all it takes is the carrier upgrade. UK already has it on all nets http://www.mxtelecom.com/uk/lbs and US is coming and who ever think it’s not must be crazy.
[…] Finally, the iPhone. Se comenta que muchas de las cosas que hace el iPhone las pueden hacer otros teléfonos. Pero, la atención que reciba el teléfono de Apple dará a conocer a muchos las posibilidades de los nuevos teléfonos móviles (aunque muchas personas creerán que esas cosas sólo se pueden hacer con un iPhone). […]
[…] Finally, the iPhone The internet functionality looks pretty slick, as do the widgets. But my concern in this area is how open the device will be to third-party development. That struck me as odd, since Apple and Jobs usually go to great pains to play up to developers. Pretty much all he said along these lines was that the iPhone runs OSX — what what’s that mean, particularly for external applications? I’m also concerned that the iPhone won’t fit in to the existing ecosystem, and will be essentially closed off to mobile developers. […]