That's Right. Already this thing is being called the Jesus Phone. Why? Well it is the killer hardware application. That gadget multiplication going on in our lives, where we tote around a laptop, cell phone, ipod, and pda has been substantially simplified. For many people, the iPhone promises to consolidate those gadget needs down to one device.
Watch some of the amazing stuff this bad boy can do. Watching these for the first time made me hop off my ergonomic chair and run in place. I was that giddy. Beyond the ultra coolness, impressive specs, and swiss-army knife functionality there are a lot of big issues to be dealt with here.
1) The initial cost of the phone $499 is with a two-year service deal with Cingular. What if you don't use Cingular? How much does an unlocked phone cost, and what can the iPhone only do on a Cingular network?
2) How can basic documents be accessed. For the business user it is real important that this thing can read and edit MS Office files as well as open pdfs. If you can't pull up a spreadsheet, play a powerpoint presentation, or edit a proposal, this things power is recreational.
3) How will third-party software development work? Could it run VLC so that I can watch the latest episode of Lost that I recorded with my DVR?
4) The big question underlying points 2 and 3 is what exactly does it mean that the iPhone runs OS X? It seems unlikely that a 4 GB product will have the full version of 10.4 which clocks in at well over a GB itself.
Much of this can be dealt with once the product starts being reviewed. Of course if the whole reason for this unveiling was just to pre-empt the FCC approval, then the thing won't be working for reviewer calls for some time.
Posted by matt at January 9, 2007 4:16 PM | TrackBack