New cellphones I bought!

[PSmith08]

I would like to point out that both of those Nokia products are, to my eyes, significantly cooler than most of the cell 'phones available in the US.

MT, if that very same phone with the exact same specification had been released by some completely unknown (but perfectly technologically capable) Korean or Eastern European manufacturer, very few people would touch it. It would be the same unit, but it wouldn't have the cool factor that some very clever marketing has bestowed upon the Apple brand. Now don't get me wrong: much kudos to the marketeers - they did their job and did it well. What I object to is the fanboy cult that surrounds a big brand like Apple. At the end of the day, they make computer-based products and sell compressed digital music. So do loads of other firms. But the way some people worship everything by Steve Jobs and his boys borders on a cult.

If you like their products and they work for you (they don't for me - and yes, I have tried them), great. In my experience, the minute you level any kind of criticism at some die-hard Mac users, they tear strips off of you and say you're living in la-la land. It's a f**king computer, for Christ's sake! And having a pop at PCs doesn't make Macs any better. That's just a cheap, lazy argument.

Rant over. Nothing personal, you understand?

As to this, well, I use a Mac - and it has its benefits and drawbacks, just like I am sure the iPhone does. Save for the touchscreen, the iPhone is pretty much competing in the smartphone category with RIM's BlackBerry products (I use a Verizon 8830), Samsung's Blackjack, and Motorola's Q. That's stiff competition, and at Apple's pricepoint, they've pretty well driven the major consumer source out - young adults with some disposable income. The iPhone isn't just an iPod, it has the need for service contracts and other costs. It might be a fashion statement, like the iPod, but it's too expensive to be much of a success in Apple's target demographic - at first, anyway.

[mahlertitan]

MT, if that very same phone with the exact same specification had been released by some completely unknown (but perfectly technologically capable) Korean or Eastern European manufacturer, very few people would touch it. It would be the same unit, but it wouldn't have the cool factor that some very clever marketing has bestowed upon the Apple brand. Now don't get me wrong: much kudos to the marketeers - they did their job and did it well. What I object to is the fanboy cult that surrounds a big brand like Apple. At the end of the day, they make computer-based products and sell compressed digital music. So do loads of other firms. But the way some people worship everything by Steve Jobs and his boys borders on a cult.

If you like their products and they work for you (they don't for me - and yes, I have tried them), great. In my experience, the minute you level any kind of criticism at some die-hard Mac users, they tear strips off of you and say you're living in la-la land. It's a f**king computer, for Christ's sake! And having a pop at PCs doesn't make Macs any better. That's just a cheap, lazy argument.

Rant over. Nothing personal, you understand?

i understand, i don't like mac either, i am still a PC user, but I really enjoyed some of the Apple products. Ipod for instance is a hit not because the so called "big brand" Apple, people bought it because it was stylish, good, and durable. I think the samething can be said about the iPhone, sure, there is a cult following out there for iPhone, but I doubt that majority of the people were attracted by it solely by the brand.  I aslo doubt that some korean/eastern european can come up with a sophisticated piece of device like iPhone, it is quite astonishing how many functions the iPhone has, and at the end of the day, we all just want the best product, and i think Apple has consistently provided consumers with the best.

[PSmith08]

we all just want the best product, and i think Apple has consistently provided consumers with the best.

That might be, possibly, debatable. For example, gapless playback on iTunes and the iPod was only recently made available. This is not solely of interest to the small percentage of serious classical listeners, but also to people who like records like Pink Floyd's The Wall. Native support for FLAC and Vorbis is still only available through third-party plugins or converters to WAV/AIFF. Until the EMI deal, iTMS music was 128 kbps (which is generally fine for my purposes, but still not quite my cup of tea) and loaded with DRM (which generally isn't fine). Apple has made billions providing tech-savvy fashion-conscious young-to-middle adults with a simple-enough interface and product. Still, there are some consumers who would disagree with Apple's being the best.

This from an iMac user who takes his iPod everywhere.

[Mark]

Ipod for instance is a hit not because the so called "big brand" Apple, people bought it because it was stylish, good, and durable.

Trust me when I say that a combination of clever, emotive marketing/advertising and the novelty of offering something new to the mass market was the real reason why the iPod sold so well at its original launch. It was certainly stylish in the eyes of some (others, myself included, thought it looked like a child's toy), but 'good' is a word you'll need to qualify, and 'durable' it most certainly wasn't. Dozens of tales of woe abound about iPod owners dis-satisfied with the materials from which several generations of the device were made, and particularly about the poor-quality battery and the exorbitant costs of replacing this. Things may have changed since those dark days, but that's how it was.

... there is a cult following out there for iPhone, but I doubt that majority of the people were attracted by it solely by the brand.

Very true to say that features will be a big attraction for potential iPhone buyers, but not true to suggest that the marketing of iPod and Apple in general haven't played a big part in creating a media/consumer frenzy.

... I also doubt that some korean/eastern european can come up with a sophisticated piece of device like iPhone ...

I'm not sure if I'm more shocked by how insulting, or how racist this statement is.

... we all just want the best product, and i think Apple has consistently provided consumers with the best.

I think PSmith has dealt adequately with this already, so I'll quit derailing Harry's thread and apologise to him for so doing in the first place: Sorry, Harry.

[mahlertitan]

Trust me when I say that a combination of clever, emotive marketing/advertising and the novelty of offering something new to the mass market was the real reason why the iPod sold so well at its original launch. It was certainly stylish in the eyes of some (others, myself included, thought it looked like a child's toy), but 'good' is a word you'll need to qualify, and durable it most certainly wasn't. Dozens of tales of wor abound about iPod owners dis-satisfied with the materials from which several generations of the device were made, and particularly about the poor-quality battery and the exorbitant costs of replacing this. Things may have changed since those dark days, but that's how it was.

well, i don't know about others, but i bought my iPod nano because it received good reviews, not because i saw it on some commercial.

[bwv 1080]

As an aside I do not know whether to praise or curse Rob for how well the site works on my Treo.  Now I cannot escape this site at all.

[PSmith08]

I'm not sure if I'm more shocked by how insulting, or how racist this statement is.

Especially when you consider that a South Korean company has beaten Apple to the punch with the design and interface. LG's KE850 (the Prada phone) was released prior to the iPhone and has already won design awards. The KE850's counterpart, the KE970 Shine has done the same thing. The claim has been made, reasonably, having seen images of both, that Apple "borrowed" the iPhone's design from the KE850.

I think PSmith has dealt adequately with this already, so I'll quit derailing Harry's thread and apologise to him for so doing in the first place: Sorry, Harry.

Thanks. Harry did prove, to my satisfaction, that America never gets the coolest cellular telephones. His employees must be happy. 

[orbital]

well, i don't know about others, but i bought my iPod nano because it received good reviews, not because i saw it on some commercial.

Of course not  but again you don't know that.

I have no problems with ipod at all. I like their design in general. It's iTunes and Apple's forcing you to use it that ticks me off.

Thanks. Harry did prove, to my satisfaction, that America never gets the coolest cellular telephones. His employees must be happy. 

USA is generally the last region to get the cellphones for some reason  Well except for iPhone 

My replacement phone, the Blackberry 8100 pearl is pretty small and apprently it can do a lot of things, but the Browser application keeps dissapearing  I have to reregister with the network to get it back 

[Harry]

so I'll quit derailing Harry's thread and apologise to him for so doing in the first place: Sorry, Harry.

Its oke, my friend, this thread has reached 2 pages, amazing, and the content is interesting for me.

[Mark]

How iRonic:



I got this email just now. Shame I can't rush out and buy one ... given that they don't go on sale in Europe and the UK for months yet.

[mahlertitan]

How iRonic:



I got this email just now. Shame I can't rush out and buy one ... given that they don't go on sale in Europe and the UK for months yet.

i don't think i have the money to buy an iPhone, what happens if I break it? that's 599 bucks!

[Mark]

I know. Those prices are through the roof! Worst part for Europeans is that that price won't translate as a direct currency conversion when the phone is released over here, but will likely be much higher.

[Heather Harrison]

I must be one of the few people left who has never owned a cell phone.  To me, they seem like more trouble than they are worth - not to mention the cost (which could be better spent on classical CDs).

These phones are more my style:



They even work, although a bit of rewiring was necessary.

Heather

[Bonehelm]

I must be one of the few people left who has never owned a cell phone.  To me, they seem like more trouble than they are worth - not to mention the cost (which could be better spent on classical CDs).

These phones are more my style:



They even work, although a bit of rewiring was necessary.

Heather

  In terms of stylishness, I doubt even a company as big and popular as Apple could beat that one.