Macworld, as we all know is the platform that has always been renowned for fantastic crowds, scintillating keynotes and big surprises. It was the same place where Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO was standing with the revolutionary iPhone in the month of January. The official date of launch, the 29th of June has gone, and the hotly anticipated touchscreen phone is up for grab now.

What does the iPhone offer?

With the iPhone, Apple attempts to improvise over the traditional cellphone and the iPod - combining the virtues of the two - for a virtual inroad into the gadget market. The design hoopla seems to be absolutely true.

I won’t go into detail with the specs, anyhow, the iPhone comes loaded with a full iPod MP3 player with a wide screen, a version of OS X, true push e-mail, a 2-megapixel camera, and a 3.5-inch display with higher resolution than any current iPod. Of late, Steve Jobs has changed the perception of the iPhone from a mere mobile phone to that of a media-friendly device.

It offers visual voice mail functionality, internet surfing through a zoom and scan interface, rich HTML email interface including attachment support, a version of Google Maps, and widgets.

With the iPhone, Apple promises to introduce a new wave into the gadget fray. ‘Cool’ to stodgy Ma Bell - is how Steve Jobs the CEO Apple introduces the product punch line at AT& T, for the delightful creation that’s all-in-one mobile phone, Web browser and video and music player.

Apple wants you to shell out $499 for 4 GB model while $599 for an 8 GB plastic screened model, though it wishes to devise out scratch resistant and clearer glass screens soon.

Not at All Meant for the IT World?

What if someone advices IT executives to keep Apple’s iPhone out of their networks? Sounds strange but they have a reason for to support their viewpoint. The analyst firm Gartner is asking IT executives not to use iPhone in their networks. Gartner analyst Ken Dulaney cited:

We’re telling IT executives to not support it because Apple has no intentions of supporting (iPhone use in) the enterprise. This is basically a cellular iPod with some other capabilities and it’s important that it be recognized as such.

He further said that it is certainly a great device from the consumers’ point of view but has very less to offer for the business class. It neither has any security features such as firewall nor does it supports Microsoft Exchange or Lotus Notes. Moreover, the hefty price tag of $599 won’t be entertained by most of the enterprises. He says that there is no reason at all for employees to opt for the iPhone.

My two Cents on Gartner’s analysis:

Gartner has a point, literally. Moreover, without 3G, it cannot be a high speed internet device. One more interesting thing to note is that a 2G phone in the market won`t raise much cheers considering the fact that we have many 3G phones out there.

Those who are spoiled with 3G speeds over their BlackBerrys and Nokia will feel crippled with 100-130kbps speed. We are still not sure whether the Apple’s new claims over the iPhone battery are true to the core.

Lack of security features will definitely restrain enterprises to go for the iPhone. Enterprises will definitely look for firewalls in order to avoid unauthorized access.

For personal use, Apple iPhone looks to be the just right thing with those widescreen iPod touting touch controls for the music nerds but for a business user, it has nothing much to offer except than the Mac OS X and a large display.

Apple’s iPhone vs. others:

Some phones and devices that possess the Anti-iPhone mechanism are out in direct competition hitting the iPhone where it will hit the hardest - the market. There are many reasons, why you could opt for one of them if not the iPhone.

Although the iPhone enjoys a radiant display, natty profile, and an eye-catching design, there are many other handsets in the market that dare to stand against the Apple iPhone. The list includes Prada’s KE850, HTC Touch, Nokia N95, Blackberry Curve, Helio Ocean, and Samsung upstage. But, frankly speaking, if we leave the issue of ‘lack of 3G’ aside, the iPhone outshines all of them in a way or other. It touts a design class, which even the gorgeous LG Prada and the HTC Touch can’t match.

Current scene at the stores:

TechCrunch is reporting that iPhone buyers are flooding eBay with their new iPhones with bids starting from $1 and buy it now prices as high as $1500. I have no doubts about that and it was to happen. And yes, do you know the count of person-hours spent waiting in line for the iPhone at different Apple stores? It was estimated to be 111872 person-hours (or 4661 person-days, or 12.77 person-years). If you happen to live outside the States, there are a number of listings that are offering worldwide shipping. Check out this listing for an example.

Apple iPhone dissected at MacNN:

Apple iPhone waiting lines and demos:

Hype is High, Will It Live Up or Sigh?

Apple iPhone is no doubt a beautiful device that will surely be liked by all the Apple fans. Responsive to the limitations of the high priced iPhone - Jobs anticipates and targets a mere 1 percent of the cell phone market by the end of 2008. Thereafter, a similar iPod strategy will surely be employed herein too i.e. varying prices with device and storage size respectively. This is what apple is best at. Long-term future strategies are already ready.

But, let me make it very clear that it’s by no means a revolutionary phone as it was claimed by the company. It does give us a feeling that the touchscreen phones are the future but it doesn’t bring in any breakthrough technology, which Apple should be proud of. Anyway, I simply wish you a blissful experience with iPhone like you’ve had with your iPod.

Thanks: YouTube