iPhone - so...what's the deal? - Page 4

DaveF · 06-27-2007, 08:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kirk Gunn

Probably don't expect to sell out because no one in corporate america (i.e. - where you can expense your phone) can purchase one. If it's not compatible with Microsoft ActiveSync or the Blackberry client, it will be a tough sell beyond retail. Perhaps retail will be enough (gotta believe the margin is insanely high...), but I can't imagine that as a great long term strategy considering the price point.

Until a few executives buy themselves iPhones and then tell their IT staff to "make it so."

Ted Todorov · 06-27-2007, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaveF

Until a few executives buy themselves iPhones and then tell their IT staff to "make it so."

Yeah, there was a hilarious WSJ article, quoting various IT/MIS people swearing they'll never allow the iPhone into their company and threatening any "rogue users" who dare buy it. I sure hope some of their CEOs get iPhones -- who's the rogue then? It reminds me of the IT/MIS people's frantic efforts to keep PCs out in the early 80s...

Anyway, my guess is that it's going to be a huge success, because after all the corporate smart-phone sector is tiny compared to the overall market, and that's where the iPhone is competing. I think a lot of people are viewing it as Blackberry, etc. competitor because it has much of the same functionality -- but Jobs & Co. see it as a way to open a new world to regular cell phone users, and they feel that people will be willing to pay the asking price. Well, we'll see soon enough.

Ted

Adam Lenhardt · 06-27-2007, 10:37 PM

The iPhone won't compete with the Blackberry market simply because it lacks a tactile QWERTY keyboard. In that world, efficiency is more important than elegance.
The big question will be how many people in the general market are willing to pay smartphone prices for smartphone services many probably don't need.

Michael_K_Sr · 06-27-2007, 10:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adam Lenhardt

The iPhone won't compete with the Blackberry market simply because it lacks a tactile QWERTY keyboard. In that world, efficiency is more important than elegance.
The big question will be how many people in the general market are willing to pay smartphone prices for smartphone services many probably don't need.

There will eventually be Blackberries with virtual keyboards. They don't keep the same style forever. I hear people bitching on an almost daily basisabout how small the Blackberry keyboards are now compared to the old models. How the Blackberry keyboards have been "Treo-ized". How the SureType keyboards suck. It's only natural that their progression will lead to a virtual keyboard at some point.

Ronald Epstein · 06-28-2007, 04:38 AM

Regarding the keyboard....

Every single review of the iPhone that has been
published so far pretty much says the same thing....

The keyboard was a nuisance to use at first, but after a few
days, users were able to use it as fast and efficiently (or more
efficiently) as other standard phone keyboards.

As an owner of a Blackberry, I'm not entirely happy with
their keyboard. It is small and cumbersome but my typing
speed has improved with time. I can't imagine the virtual
keyboard being any different, and I agree that in time, all
phones will be using the same technology.

DaveF · 06-28-2007, 05:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adam Lenhardt

The big question will be how many people in the general market are willing to pay smartphone prices for smartphone services many probably don't need.

I think a decent market of under-30 "youth" will emerge.

Where the Crackberry is a power tool, a mover-and-shaker status symbol, a business need, the iPhone is (supposed to be...) cool. It's an iPod. It's a movie player. It's a phone. And it's not geeky or complex looking like a Treo. It's something that a 25 year old with a decent job, no mortgage and a wife can afford (cheaper than a PC, same as a PS3).

And people are prone to buying things they "don't need". Look around here at those with $600 in a PS3 game player. Or thousands in DVDs. There's lots of money to be spent on fluff. Frankly, HTF is a monument to spending large amounts of money on non necessities. If Apple taps into the youth market, it could be a huge success.

ErichH · 06-28-2007, 05:44 AM

Membrane keyboards over the past few years seem cheap to me, so I reverted back to a noisy but fast alps key switch (Matias Tactile Pro)
It will be interesting for people like me to adapt to no positive feedback on a keyboard. My use will be much less than a business traveler, but if any portion of the virtual board feels like it needs uneven pressure, I'll have a problem.

My very young neice and nephew fly on any small book or cell keyboard, so it's probably just my heavy work hands getting in the way.

I noticed in one review, a guy was really hammering the buttons and keys, and in another the reviewer seemed to have a very light and fast touch.

Kirk Gunn · 06-28-2007, 06:14 AM

Quote:

. I sure hope some of their CEOs get iPhones -- who's the rogue then? It reminds me of the IT/MIS people's frantic efforts to keep PCs out in the early 80s...

What wireless e-mail capabilities does the iPhone have besides web browsing ? Pain in the arse to hit webmail.corporateurl.com and type in a user/pwd every time you want to check mail....

Craig S · 06-28-2007, 07:06 AM

Quote:

If it's not compatible with Microsoft ActiveSync or the Blackberry client, it will be a tough sell beyond retail.

It's being reported that Apple is in talks with Microsoft to license the Exchange ActiveSync protocol for iPhone.