Rory Cellan-Jones asks for BBC News, “Will customers really want to pay what Apple and O2 are going to charge the iPhone’s early adopters? And given the high price that the network and its customers will face, will the iPhone prove such a great deal?”
MacDailyNews Take: A clever ruse, Rory, but we see right through it. Apple is not going to drop iPhone prices in the UK the equivalent of US$200. Look at the new U.S. price, look at the UK price and factor in the VAT and cover for currency flucutations: the $200 U.S. price cut is already in the UK price. There is no “early adopter” price for the UK iPhone. Yesterday, Steve Jobs replied to just such a question, “I don’t think that’s going to happen.” (Of course, Jobs did cover his backside with the usual, “but in technology there are no guarantees” disclaimer).
Cellan-Jones continues, “The O2 website crashed soon after the iPhone announcement, apparently gasping under the weight of inquiries from excited customers.”
“Apple design flair and sheer useability which made the iPod such a big hit and has created such a buzz around the phone,” Cellan-Jones reports. “But Nokia – and O2’s rival networks – are bound to hit back with keen prices and new handsets as the Christmas sales battle gets under way.”
MacDailyNews Take: Oh, they are, are they? How are they “bound to hit back” exactly, Rory? With what? Based on what OS? Using which UI? Will they have iPods built-in? What’s that, Rory? Are you imitating a lonely cricket chirping or is it that you don’t have any answers? Apple has over 200 patents related to iPhone that are pending and granted which Apple CEO Steve Jobs has publicly stated that Apple plans to vigorously defend. Nobody’s “bound to hit back” with anything remotely comparable to Apple’s iPhone for years. This fact won’t stop some reviewers and marketers from telling you lies.
Cellan-Jones continues, “[O2], owned by Spain’s Telefonica, believes that Steve Jobs’ ‘magical’ handset will win it many new customers from its rivals. And judging by what happened to its website this morning, it may just be right.”
Full article here.