“What does Apple’s iPhone have in common with the failed Apple Newton of more than a decade ago? Nothing. Yet,” David Haskin blogs for Computerworld.
Haskin writes, “But I was reminded of the Newton lately and how, despite its current hot streak, Apple doesn’t have an unblemished record when it comes to introducing innovative new devices. And the company may well be making some of the same mistakes now as it made in 1993 when it introduced Newton.”
“Apple seems to be repeating the cycle again with iPhone, developing what is undoubtedly an advanced product with a remarkable interface and overcharging for it. A recent survey found that a minuscule number of consumers would pay $500 for a 4 GB iPhone. It’s a good reminder that, for all their noise, Apple fanatics truly are a small percentage of the overall technology marketplace,” Haskin writes.
Haskin writes, “Besides overcharging for iPhone, Apple faces significant competition, something it didn’t face in 1993 when it launched Newton.”
“It’s also becoming clear that Apple may be suffering from excessive hubris. That is evident by its strong demands on its partner in the U.S., Cingular/AT&T. The demands, including a slice of the cellular revenues and control of the sales channel, were so strong that Verizon Wireless turned the deal down,” Haskin writes.
Haskin writes, “I’m more convinced than ever that, after an initial frenzy of publicity and sales to early adopters, iPhone sales will be unspectacular. If Apple doesn’t respond quickly by lowering the price and making nice to AT&T, which surely will be ticked off, iPhone may well become Apple’s next Newton.”
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “sketchtrain” for the heads up.]
There’s so much wrong with this — from reliance on tiny survey’s that asked undisclosed questions to Verizon-planted stories about how they “turned down” the iPhone — that we’re not even going to bother. Rest assured, Haskin’s opinion has been duly iCal’ed for future reference.
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Apple airs iPhone teaser ad during Oscars – February 25, 2007
Apple preps 3G iPhone model for Europe – February 25, 2007
Apple’s iPhone pricing: too high or too low? – February 24, 2007
Survey shows Apple’s iPhone a tad too expensive? – February 23, 2007
The once-mighty Palm Inc. doomed to decline and failure – thanks to Apple’s iPhone – February 23, 2007
Palm CEO can’t stop talking about Apple iPhone – February 19, 2007
How Steve Jobs played hardball in iPhone deal with AT&T (Cingular) – February 17, 2007
RUMOR: Apple iPhone 4GB for $299, 8GB for $399 with 2-year AT&T contract? – February 16, 2007
Telstra exec tells Apple to ‘stick to its knitting’ as iPhone looms – February 15, 2007
Digit takes a closer look at Apple’s iPhone – February 14, 2007
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RIM co-CEO doesn’t see threat from Apple’s iPhone – February 12, 2007
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Please, David Haskin, in the name of Apple bashing…flush and get the hell out of there..
..and for the love of God turn the fan on.
I am going to buy one, and i didnt buy a newton, so in my eyes, its not a repeat of the newton.
Haskins is a bufoon, and I have just two words for him..
iPhone, bitch!
The Newton was never a mistake, maybe Sculley’s folley!? Prescients of Sculley were egotistically didained by Jobs. That doesn’t diminish the magnitude of the Newton’s futuristic PDA qualities. Besides the fact that it wasn’t his baby, Jobs made a descision not to continue in a field that for a time became a commodity market. Maybe he’s now ready to claim the field as his own………
People paid $400 for an iPod when it first came out, and it didn’t do anything but play music (and iTMS wasn’t in existence then, either).
I carry a Palm ($250 w/TomTom GPS), Razr (~$150 18 months ago), and sometimes my iPod Nano ($250 for 8GB). That is $650, for those who are counting. I would LOVE to have one device, like the iPhone.
It would be PERFECT if Steve would add GPS capability.
I suspect GPS will come once 3G is more widespread in the U.S., rather than trying to have a lot of people trying to access the web, e-mail, and GPS navigation over Cingular’s 2.5G EDGE. The bandwidth just may not be there yet for GPS.
BTW, you don’t have to get an iPhone right when it comes out. Simply wait until your current mobile phone contract expires, then switch.
The main difference here is that even if the iPhone tanks (which I don’t think it will), they can still pull the phone part out of it and sell an amazing iPod music/video/photo player. Which they will most likely do shortly after the iPhone premieres.
I will purchase an iPhone when my contract is up with Sprint is up and they fix some of iPhone’s limitations(most likely in the 2nd generation). I might have to purchase two…my kids really like it too. We all recently converted from Windows….and bought a MacBook Pro….
I am a graduate computer science student writing my Thesis on OS security…and have seen many recent converts in our department by many Professors and students…with is Unix capabilities and Ease of use…My kids and I keep fighting over who gets to use it.
I am buying another Mac, most likely the Mac Mini in March when leopard is released for my kids and wife to use….Then I can have my MacBook Pro all to myself.
The only NEWTON mistake was not having an modem to connect to the internet or other computers.
Newton… Newton…. Newton…
Can you find one on eBay that has all of the goodies to buy – NOW?
Nope. why???
Demand… Demand… Demand…
Such a schite product is stilll in demand. Hmmmmmmmm…
iPhone… everyone complains about expensive…
Reality… any other “phone plus PDA plus almost music player plus internet connectivity (as in BS)” is going for $900 to $1500. CASH…
With a contract – half that. YEP – Apple is way out of the ballpark on this one. Yep…
Haskin is so good at finding the shite in the pile – maybe he needs to go to Iraq and find the missing WMDs…
My review of this article – he must have had a wild M$ hair up his ar_se to sit down and write this one. Cheech…
IPhone = kicking Palm in the huevos before it even started and it ain’t even close to over… Who else will double over?
MDN = hair
Nothing to see here. Move along.
“Rest assured, Haskin’s opinion has been duly iCal’ed for future reference.”
I love this MDN, great quote. Love the new verb…”to iCal” or “iCal’ed”….maybe the spanish version could be…”iCalar”…i.e. “asegurense que la opinión de Haskin ha sido debidamente iCalado.”
Love it.
What does Apple Steve Jobs and friends and Apple 1993 have in common? Nothing!
What does David Haskin of back then and David Haskin of now have in common? Everything, still the same moron.
A sure sign of a useless article is one that tries to make an analogy between the Apple of today and the Apple of yesterday. These two have virtually nothing in common anymore. This is a dead wringer for an out-of-touch writer, or a misleading one. The sins of the old Apple have been completely absolved, and any mistakes Apple is making today are new ones. Apple’s current management pretty much holds the old Apple in contempt, and is definitely not going to emulate it.
Apple’s competitors keep hoping that Apple will trip over itself as it consistently did in the past. But it is just not happening anymore. And those competitors are fearfully realizing that they will finally have to compete, something for which they are woefully ill-prepared.
Verizon???
The last thing Verizon is, IMO, is an early adopter of anything. Heck, my Razr can’t even download ring tones from my new iMac.
Verizon will adopt and embrace the iPhone when it’s five to ten years old.
Haskin’s bias is so strong that I can see his head up his ass from 10 miles away.
Don’t these people ever get tired of hearing themselves talk?
@John… I know, I had some cool ringtones I created and wanted to send to my razr with verizon also before I got my treo. You can email them to your phone though, and then save the file, then select it as a ringtone. I’m currently using “smooth” by Santana as my ringtone. (just the guitar solo)
Sorry to hear your income level doesn’t enable you to say that the iPhone is perfectly affordable and ‘great value’ Bad luck you and others who would if they could but they can’t…
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”long face” style=”border:0;” /> …because it will be for millions of people.
And the writer of this article is just so wrong that he must have written just to be controversial.
Well, Apple said if we can get the iPhone 1%. . . . Apple should pay attention to their -dust allergic- Mighty Mouse. Much more than 1% have -not- scrolling troubles with it !
Exactly the same argument was put forward for the iPod. The prices consistently went down as the hard drive capacity went up. What crueled the Newton was the hand-writing software/technology…it was poor. Over time this was corrected but it was all too late. By that stage the Newton had become the butt of late night variety television shows.
The iPhone will drop in price and after a couple of price reductions I might (I repeat, I might) be interested in buying one. However, this product doesn’t grab like it will many others because for me if I drop this sucker many applications go down the drain; or shatter on the ground, as the case may be. But that’s just my preference. The iPhone as a Newton…NOT!
Two things killed the Newton –
1. The flawed handwriting recognition that was lampooned in the Doonesbury comic strip.
2. John Sculley wasting too much time sucking up to the Clintons when he should have been running the business.
American analysts/journalists commenting on mobile phone market is hilarious, as they seem to forget there is a wider world out there.
THE AMERICAN MOBILE PHONE MARKET IS FAR LESS MATURE THAN JAPAN OR EUROPE!
Just because some survey says Americans won’t buy a $500 mobile doesn’t mean the rest of the world won’t. There are lots of mobile phone handsets for sale in Europe/Japan that cost more than $500.
@Swing Geezer.
If you think ” forcasting ” is a word, perhaps you would do well in the PC world. – Remember: In real life “Spelling Counts”
Game on.
Not a troll article though, more like a rectal spasm. Ffft…that she blows!
Well everyone I know (including windows user friends) want an iPhone.
As soon as it comes out in the UK im getting one for sure!
So what Apple’s record for successful products isnt flawless? I dare anyone to name a company that hasnt had at least one unsucessful product out in the marketplace.
At least Apple isnt Micrsoft – who has based their whole business model on copying other peoples inventions (very badly!) and who has a product success record that I can count on one hand.
The iPhone will sell – that’s a given!
here is some enterprises that continues to sell the newton:
http://www.jksalesinc.com/catalog/
and
http://www.gementerprises.com/newton.htm
now my question is: what is wrong with apple if the newton isn´t totally erased?
iphone it´s not going to have the same destiny has newton because its not a pda,now if newton was a cellphone that was a difrent history; in the future we still going to see the same things and some new things,like the apple television,witch is now possible.