“One of my colleagues in the ex-Forrester Mafia is Paul Callahan, who rightfully questions why Apple’s iPhone doesn’t support high speed, third generation (3G) phone networks and/or High Speed Download Packet Access (HSDPA; who comes up with these absurd and untypable acronymns?). Instead, iPhone only supports the ubiquitous GSM/EDGE standard,” Carl Howe writes for Blackfriars’ Marketing.
How argues that there are three pretty compelling drivers for this conservative decision:
• The exclusive Cingular deal
• The bundled apps
• Built-in WiFi
Howe writes, “Apple went conservative on the phone network since it was, after all, their very first phone. If this one works and sells well, they’ll get to do more versions with more bells and whistles, just as they did with the iPod. If it didn’t work because of some glitch or chip availability problem with the high-speed networking gear, they wouldn’t sell any, and that would be that for Apple phones. Which decision makes more business sense?”
Howe writes, “Even using good old GSM/EDGE technologies, my prediction is that Apple will sell every single one they can build for the next 18 months. Those that just have to have high-speed can wait for iPhone 2.0. But for the majority of phone users, iPhone is plenty drool-worthy as it stands.”
Full article here.
Related articles:
RealMoney: Apple just blew up the whole damn mobile-phone supply chain with its new iPhone – January 11, 2007
ZDNet: Hands on with Apple’s iPhone: ‘elegant, ravishing, simple, sleek; impeccable & intuitive UI’ – January 11, 2007
Apple iPhone FUD campaign begins – January 10, 2007
Nine ways Apple changed the face of consumer electronics yesterday – January 10, 2007
Analysts and investors applaud arrival of Apple iPhone – January 10, 2007
Top 10 things to love and top 10 things to hate about the Apple iPhone – January 10, 2007
How Apple kept the iPhone top secret for 30 months – January 10, 2007
Hands-on with Apple’s iPhone – January 10, 2007
The only thing really wrong with Apple’s iPhone is its name – January 09, 2007
Is Apple building ‘The Device?’ [revisited] – January 09, 2007
Analyst Bajarin: Apple’s iPhone and Apple TV are industry game changers – January 09, 2007
Time: ‘iPhone could crush cell phone market pitilessly beneath the weight of its own superiority’ – January 09, 2007
Analyst: Apple iPhone should be given its own category – ‘brilliantphone’ – January 09, 2007
Cingular to use Synchronoss Technologies’ platform for Apple iPhone – January 09, 2007
iPhone photos from Apple’s Macworld Expo booth – January 09, 2007
Enderle: Apple’s iPhone is going to do very well – January 09, 2007
Apple debuts iPhone: touchscreen mobile phone + widescreen iPod + Internet communicator – January 09, 2007
FUD Alert: Analyst – I am pretty skeptical Apple’s iPhone can succeed – January 11, 2007
The Register’s Ray: Apple ‘iPhone’ will fail – December 26, 2006
Analyst: Apple iPhone economics aren’t that compelling – December 08, 2006
CNET editor Kanellos: ‘Apple iPhone will largely fail’ – December 07, 2006
Palm CEO laughs off Apple ‘iPhone’ threat – November 20, 2006
