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IPhone Will Fail in a Late, Defensive Move (2007)

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Re: IPhone Will Fail in a Late, Defensive Move (2007)

#4
post #2

The original 2007 iPhone was ridiculously good. It's five years later and it still feels ahead of its time. There's no way Apple would put that amount of effort into their version 1.0 if it was just a "defensive" move.

What about iOS feels ahead of it's time? iOS is showing it's age in my opinion. With Contracts and Charms in Windows and Intents in Android, I feel cramped and limited every time I use iOS (where Twitter integration is "magical" and things like Instagram are necessary). Even with ICS and it's makeover and hardware acceleration it's hard to give iOS the "magic" edge these days.

That having been said, it's of course very popular and better received on average than Android (I think ICS adoption will help with this), and dooms-day articles like this are silly when written and fun to look back and laugh at.

Re: IPhone Will Fail in a Late, Defensive Move (2007)

#5
post #3

i wonder if he still works in tech journalism!!

That's the thing. These guys never go away. They keep getting paid to write flawed versions of the future that will never come to pass.

That's why I don't put any weight in anyone who has "analyst" or "tech journalist" in their credentials.

Re: IPhone Will Fail in a Late, Defensive Move (2007)

#6
Hindsight, of course, is 20/20--but to be fair to this journalist, there were some very real reasons to think the iPhone wouldn't really succeedn (at least not in an industry shifting way). At the time, the carriers maintained almost full control over the whole ecosystem and if entrenched players like Nokia couldn't force their hand on anything, what reason did people have to believe Apple could? Moreover, the initial price point was exorbitant for a phone in that day--and people should remember that the real explosion of iPhone sales didn't happen until the 3g brought about the subsidized model.

What was underestimated was the public's desire for a smart phone catering to people as people not people as employees.

And let's not forget that it brought about a "touch-revolution." In 2007, all the anti-Apple group could talk about was how "without a physical keyboard, it's just going to suck."

With all of that said, reading this piece suggests the author was more drumming up pageviews by presenting a contrarian view than actually writing an article he believed in.

Re: IPhone Will Fail in a Late, Defensive Move (2007)

#7
post #3

i wonder if he still works in tech journalism!!

That's the thing. These guys never go away. They keep getting paid to write flawed versions of the future that will never come to pass. That's why I don't put any weight in anyone who has "analyst" or "tech journalist" in their credentials.

Don't forget that there's a whole segment of these guys who are basically paid to get it wrong--being the one guy who says, "this obvious winner is going to fail" attracts a lot of eyeballs.

Remember, being a pundit isn't about being correct; it's about getting people reading what you write.

Re: IPhone Will Fail in a Late, Defensive Move (2007)

#9
This one hits all the bullet points for clueless Apple punditry, including calling Apple a cult and asserting that people will buy anything Apple makes, however stupid and useless. Nothing has really changed in this regard, there are still tons of bloggers and other assholes lazily tossing out the same old talking points about Apple selling overpriced toys to vain idiots.

Re: IPhone Will Fail in a Late, Defensive Move (2007)

#10
post #3

i wonder if he still works in tech journalism!!

That's the thing. These guys never go away. They keep getting paid to write flawed versions of the future that will never come to pass. That's why I don't put any weight in anyone who has "analyst" or "tech journalist" in their credentials.

His job is to write something that people will read. And here we are, five years later, reading what he wrote. It looks like he succeeded. :)
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