iPhone launch grips US techies
2007-06-15 14:34
Las Vegas - US technology gurus spoken to on the fringes of the ongoing Symantec exhibition in Las Vegas were at least unanimous on one point. They reckon that none in the US telecoms industry is more deserving of the hype master moniker than Apple CE Steve Jobs.
Given global consumers' reception to Apple's iconic iPod offering - a gadget that's grown to become the modern generation's must have music gadget, Jobs is perhaps deserving of this title.
And in two weeks' time, when the US' eagerly-anticipated mobile phone hits the shelves, Apple's promise to deliver a cut-throat handset that's certain to shake the global mobile industry will yet again be put to test by the usually unforgiving US telecoms consumers.
Apple has been guarded on the exact number of iPhone handsets that will be offloaded in the US market, but analysts familiar with the company's uncanny product launches say that consumers anxious to lay their hands on the iPhone in far-flung markets such as South Africa may have to wait longer than eights months before the product gets introduced in those markets.
It's expected to fetch between US$ 500 to $600 (R3 650 to R4 380).
Says Dan Jol, a Michigan-based software developer: "Like many of my friends, I waited long before I could lay my hands on the iPod and the truth is that it didn't disappoint. I've for the last six months resisted the temptation of changing my handset. It'd better be worth the wait."
Among its features, the iPhone combines a mobile phone, a digital media player, and an internet device into a sleek package with a soft-touch screen.
Timing's wrong
"The phenomenal success of the iPod has raised the bar for Apple. Every other product coming out of the Apple stable will have to be measured against that standard. With the hype that's been created around the product, I personally think that the odds are heavily stacked against Apple. The timing is all wrong," he says.
London Hale, the global alliance manager at computer group Dell, says though there has been so much hype created about the iPhone, the product still largely remains an enigma.
"All I've been hearing are the fussy things about what the phone can do. I've not seen even a dummy of the phone. I know of people that have travelled thousand of miles to attend Apple exhibitions with the sole motive of at least seeing a dummy of the phone."
Whatever the motive for keeping the iPhone product details stacked in the Apple boardroom, Hale - like many enthusiasts - have been kept guessing.
"I'm more interested in comparing the differences in functionalities of my handset and those of the iPhone," says Nevada based software developer, Malcolm Hill - brandishing his E65 Nokia phone.
- Finance24