Apple's new iPhone. most overpriced least useful gadget yet.

[Dukkha]

http://money.cnn.com/2007/01/09/technology/apple_jobs/index.htm?cnn=yes

SAN FRANCISCO (CNNMoney.com) -- Consumers will finally get the chance to own an iPhone, a mobile phone that plays iTunes and surfs the Web, electronics maker Apple said Tuesday. The device will retail for between $499 and $599.

Company chairman Steve Jobs, speaking at the company's annual Macworld expo, called the iPhone, which will be available in June, a "revolutionary mobile phone" that will feature an iPod, phone and what he called an "Internet communicator."

The phone, which runs the Mac OS X, will come in two models -- a $499 version with 4 gigabytes of memory and a $599 one with 8 gigabytes.


So for $600 I gan get a phone which holds 8GB of data equal to a few albums of music and 1 movie. Or I can get an 80GB iPod for $349.00 which can hold an entire CD collection and a few movies, and add to it any number of cell phone averaging $50.00. Plus the quality of both will be superior. Whenever one device tries to function as many i.e. phone + music player + video player + camera + Internet browser etc..., it doesn't do any of them as well as a dedicated unit.

Apple missed the mark with this one. Too soon for this technology and no bang for buck.

[evlbstrd]

1. Where'd you get an iPhone already?

I assume you have one, since you know it sucks.

[Deja Q]

2. Seems evolutionary. Any PDA Smart Phone can do that,

cost less, and use MP3 files that aren't tethered to anybody's DRM.

Apple is lenient with their DRM policy, but it's still a leash.

Also, all the music collection I care about is on 3.2GB of space. At 160kb compression as I'd never hook my PDA up to a big stereo or anything.

I think they should buy the rights to 'Plastic Fantastic Lover' to promote their new innovative evolutionary product. I see nothing revolutionary about it, except it's the "been there done that plus iPod DRM".

People whine at Microsoft for copying others' products (myself included), so I don't see why Apple should be immune.

I'm also trying to fathom where and when I'd want to tote around 300GB worth of movies, that can't be copied because of copy protection anyway -- does this mean Apple is violating DMCA law as for in order to use the thing they have to provide means to circumvent it? :evilgrin:

[Pierre.Suave]

6. What?

did you read your post?

How will you fit 300gb of anything on the iPhone that only has 4 or 8 gb of storage?

[Deja Q]

11. Sorry, the mind was flipping through different iPod products

When I got to 300MB of movies, I was thinking of the video iPod - though I think the internal drive is only 80GB... it's all a bit stupid, really - portable DVD players w/7" LCD screens costs less and sure do look nicer than the 1" iPod screen.

[Pierre.Suave]

12. yabut...

you got to carry your DVDs around with you.

[evlbstrd]

7. You aren't married to Apples DRM.

Rip CDs to mp3. They work with iTunes/iPod/iPhone. Personally, I would find the video feature less than useful. But real email and web browsing on a phone are pretty cool.

[TommyO]

17. My Tae Kwon Do instructor found a great use for video

on the iPod! She has a DVD with all of our forms on it, we ripped them and converted them for use on the iPod. Now if we get stuck on one of the higher forms, a quick check of the video gets us moving again!

[evlbstrd]

22. Ain't it cool?

That's a great, creative use for an iPod.
People bash 'em, but I'm a huge Apple and Steve Jobs fan.

[TommyO]

16. Funny, I have plenty of non-DRM'd MP3s on my iPod

and I suspect some of them will find space on my iPhone. Up until now I've been a cell phone Johnny-come-lately. I didn't get my first phone until five years ago, and I'm only on my second phone, but the iPhone has enough features to make me an early adopter.

[Pierre.Suave]

3. What a bunch of bunk

you forgot a part. You have to carry around your ipod and phone, switch from one to the other if you are, for example, listening to a song and your phone rings, then switch back.

Personally, I want one, and I want one bad.

it also has a 2.0 megapixel camera, Wi-Fi and EDGE capability as well as bluetooth, It runs on OSX, and uses safari, a full featured web browser.

http://www.apple.com/iphone/

edit: plus, this could also take the place of carrying a laptop around.

[Little Wing]

4. Let's look at your numbers

Most people don't have a CD collection greater than 4GB when in mp3 format, and 4GB is more than your laughable "few albums" anyway. So yes, you could have an uncompressed DVD at 4.7GB plus an entire CD collection on your iPhone, plus a email client, phone, wireless internet browser

...that's just like, your opinion man

[crispini]

5. I think it looks awesome.

I've been waiting for the Omni Gadget, and I think this may very well be it. :bounce:

[Book Lover]

8. Hello? When was Apple ever cheap?

Oh, that's right - when they allowed 3rd party manufacturers access to the hardware and software. Then Steve came back and pissed all over that parade.... My problem with the device is its size - too large for my taste.

[onehandle]

9. Check out the interface films at apple.com

This is why Apple is king of usability. I cannot Wait for June.

http://www.apple.com/iphone/

[Omphaloskepsis]

10. My credit card is so fucked..

I didn't even want a cell phone.

[Rob H.]

14. Those videos were really impressive

Looks like it might be time to finally replace my aging Nokia phone (seriously, it's practically steam-powered by comparison). :)

[begin_within]

27. The sick joke is that Apple's interface films about iPhone won't run on my Mac, even though

I have an eMac, with OSX 10.3.9, Safari 1.3.2, QuickTime 7.1.3 and QuickTime Player 7.1.3 installed, all recently and properly installed. When I click on the icons on the pages promoting iPhone, all I get is a message saying, "Download QuickTime to see more." With all Apple's whiz-bang technology, they failed to discover that I do have the necessary software from them installed on my computer made by them, to watch their promotional videos. That failure is a very, very bad sign for Apple - that their systems don't actually work as advertised. On top of all that, the text "Download QuickTime to see more" includes a link to download QuickTime, but that link is broken due to a typo in the URL.

[onehandle]

29. Safari is at version 2.0.4. eMacs were discontinued in 2005...

...introduced as the bottom of the line machine as far back as 2002.

OSX 10.3.9 isn't exactly current either. 10.3 is from 2003.

And yep. It's a computer, subject to requirements like any computer.

Here's the difficult path to locate the latest Quicktime:
http://www.apple.com/quicktime
Click on "Free Download."

[begin_within]

30. So their web site is ONLY SUPPOSED TO WORK WITH THE absolute latest VERSION OF EVERYTHING?

COME ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[seemunkee]

33. They've been crashing my browser

Can't watch them on IE or Opera.
Oh well its Cingular anyway.

[dpbrown]

13. Hey, look. It's an Apple hater...

:rofl:

I'm just glad I bought Apple stock back in 1997.

:hi:

[Dukkha]

20. uh, i've been an Apple user since 94

have owned 7 Macs desktops, 2 laptops, Apple printers, scanners, a ton of software which I actually know how to use professionally, still have the original 1984 Mac, and an iPod. Oh and was a reseller and a certified Apple professional. It took the iPod 5 generations to really get it right and the iPhone will go through several revisions and price drops before it's really ready for prime time. For now it's sole demographic is disposable income geeks who need the latest Sharper Image gadget.

so yes I think I know what I'm talking about. :eyes:

[qnr]

26. It's pretty funny, you make personal observations, and people that know nothing

what-so-ever about you assume you're an "Apple hater." I've been seeing it all over the place tonight.

Me, I don't hate Apple, I just don't spend more than maybe 2 minutes thinking about them or their products in an average month. Same thing applies to Microsoft and Windows products.

[merh]

15. Oh, I want one ...

Mac has always been years ahead of windows and gates - I wonder how Gates handled this news? :wow:

[TommyO]

18. Maybe the same way that Bush handled the news

of a Democratic Congress. Pouting, whining, screaming, crying, and a call to Babs for some tender love only to be told that it should have been Jeb.

[merh]

19. lol

:rofl:

[begin_within]

23. I think it's hilarious that it came only one day after Gates' keynote speech in Vegas

And nothing Gates said made the news, while Steve Jobs was all over the news today.

[grace0418]

21. My worry with that kind of stuff is "What if I lose it, or it breaks?" Instead of

being out of a phone, or an mp3 player, or a digital camer, I would be out of ALL of those things. That's like having all your kitchen appliances break on the same day. No thanks.

Besides, I don't treat my phone very well but I'm very careful with my iPod. I don't want to have to worry about a $500 phone. I want to be able to have it in my pocket at all times for work, emergencies, etc. I couldn't bring myself to just jam a $500 phone in my jeans pocket.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

24. I'd buy one in a heartbeat

[begin_within]

25. A major disadvantage is that it only works with Cingular. Deal killer for me.

[Rob H.]

32. A TON of people on the internets are saying the same thing

I've had T-Mobile for most of the time I've had a cell phone and never compared it to other companies. Is Cingular a terrible service provider?

Edit: typed a word twice. Oopsie! :P

[meegbear]

28. iDontCare

[deepthought42]

31. A $500-600 phone by Apple? No thanks.

I mean, the technology seems spiffy, but I'm just not interested.