Hello! And welcome to our Friday column, Worst of the Week. There’s a lot of nutty stuff that goes on in this industry, so this column is a chance for us at RCRWireless.com to rant and rave about whatever rubs us the wrong way. We hope you enjoy it!
And without further ado:
Well, I guess it was bound to happen, though I thought for sure I would never see it in my lifetime. Apple released a product that did not immediately make everything else in the same category obsolete. And maybe even more surprising, it actually seemed to anger people for not being advanced enough.
Seriously?!? We are talking about Apple here.
It seemed that no matter where you turned there were comments questioning why Apple would unveil the iPhone 4S, instead of a more advanced device that everyone had dubbed the iPhone 5. Words like “What the … ?!?” “How could they?!?” and “I need a hug?!?” were sprinkled liberally across the Internet and all forms of electronic media.
(With all the hootin’ and hollerin’ you would have thought that Apple launched the successor to the Kin One and Two.)
Now, I typically hate to defend megaultrasuper-sized companies due to my inferiority complex, and in particular Apple, but this e-anger was insane.
The insane part is that on an annual basis, Apple never hints towards what it plans to do when it unveils its latest iPhone device. This in turn leads “experts” and those with “inside sources” to go nuts trying to guess what that next device will be like, and in order to get any sort of attention those guesses need to be more outlandish than the previous one. And for some reason when these crazy ideas don’t actually appear, everyone questions why Apple failed to make the latest device.
Claims that the device would sport a larger screen, new shape, elephant tusks, teleportation capabilities and “smell-o-vision” only went to fuel the fire of those whose outlook on life literally rises and falls with what Apple is set to announce next. (I can only guess that for these people, the iPad caused some awkward moments.)
(Speaking of which, what about all those “experts” and “inside sources” that were incorrect with what Apple was going to launch? Were they simply lying? Were they given bum information? Don’t they know that the information they claim to be legit impacts the lives of millions of people who plan the time they will spend with their families with Apple product launches?)
What Apple did was what it has already done with the previous Apple 3; it rolled out an updated version that while not very different from the outside, provided a more refined and powerful user experience for the masses. Sure, those that follow all things Apple are not happy with incremental advances, but then again those people aren’t the masses. (Though some might say they do have “mass.”)
Plus, with the iPhone 4S having the same form factor of the iPhone 4 people that do choose to upgrade will be able to re-use their Bedazalled phone cases. Plus, my guess is that while people might feign interest in wanting to have the latest and greatest hardware components, all they really care about is that Apple logo. That proof is the number of iPhone 3GS devices AT&T Mobility continues to sell at lower price points.
One thing Apple did do was to bring the iPhone to a greater percentage of the domestic market by providing a version to Sprint Nextel, though for some reason decided a T-Mobile USA version was outside of its reach at the moment. Must have been a little trickier to tune the current HSPA radio to the 1.7/2.1 GHz bands needed for T-Mobile USA’s “4G” network than it was to include CDMA capabilities for Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel. Or maybe there is another reason … .
Of course, very little of this will matter next week when the iPhone 4S is set to launch. There will still be those fans that will camp outside their local Apple stores in an attempt to be the first to get their hands on the device, though the more likely reason is so that they can score some face time on the local news that will inevitably cover the launch as a real news event. I do hope this news coverage also shows customers walking right into a carrier-owned store right next to that Apple store to pick up an iPhone without having to go through the exercise of breaking out their camping tents, and even more importantly not showering for several days.
So, I say good on you Apple for sticking to what you do best. Ignoring the e-masses and instead making products that you know the real masses will risk their hygienic health to get their gritty hands on.
OK, enough of that.
Thanks for checking out this week’s Worst of the Week column. And now for some extras:
–Verizon Wireless should be commended for a recent press release showing that perhaps there is a sense of humor tucked somewhere inside the walls of that often all-to-serious company. That release was entitled: “Florida’s first 4G LTE C.O.W. is born.”
(Should be noted that I slightly modified this headline by taking out all the extra capital letters as it seems that many feel press releases are immune from the basic principles of English grammar.)
Well done.
–Just received last minute word from T-Mobile USA that they would not be offering the BlackBerry Curve 9360 in the “merlot” color finish. Well, there goes my Christmas list, though some wine does sound good.
I welcome your comments. Please send me an e-mail at: dmeyer@rcrwireless.com.
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