Like many of you, I've been watching coverage of Steve Jobs Macworld keynote (still live as I write this) - he's just formally announced the iPhone (smartphone), running Mac OS X and with a fingers-only interface. A competitor to Symbian OS/S60/UIQ? Wonder how they'll keep the battery life sensible? Comments welcome!
Read on in the full article.
From the preliminary specifications, this looks like the kind of concept phone Nokia and Sonyericsson have had for a while. The all touch and dynamic menus. Looks like Apple decided to take that risky plunge.
Certainly it looks impressive but i wont believe it till i see it in live action. The OS X I'm sure is obviously a cut down version of it bigger sibling a la Windows Mobile.
Its a shame that now every other manufacturer will want to emulate Apple because of the popularity of the brand name and the voluminous sales it will garner from this device. I still look forward to the N95.
p.s.... Steve, you forgot Linux and Windows Mobile in that list. 😃
I have a feeling it'll be more of a rival to Windows Mobile and Palm, that it'll appeal to the computing-oriented nature of the American smartphone market rather than the phone-oriented nature of the rest of the world's smartphone market.
The problem Apple may run into with making their OS mainstream is what pretty much speyed the original Mac: they refused to license it or the OS to other hardware manufacturers, so they all went and made PCs instead which eventually became cheaper, faster and (with Windows 95) more or less just as easy to use as a Mac.
If Apple had announced a smartphone OS without announcing an iPhone, I'd be a lot more optimistic about its future as a mainstream product, because Apple has a tendency to keep its OS to its own hardware.
hardly...
Apple has literally moved the goal posts. Symbian has instantly been shown to be a combined bloatware and vapourware. As Steve Jobs said - all the other smartphones aren't too smart - how true.
As I've previously posted - other than a better camera/vidcam, the Symbian phones don't show any real advantage over the SonyEricsson T630 - after all one can hardly use any of the other 'smart' stuff as they aren't accessible easily given the form factor.
Good on Steve Jobs - perhaps now Nokia and SE can stop patting themselves on the bag and give me a real Revo replacement.
BR
"Apple has literally moved the goal posts. Symbian has instantly been shown to be a combined bloatware and vapourware. As Steve Jobs said - all the other smartphones aren't too smart - how true."
Eh? I don't really see any logic behind what you're saying, it's sort of reminiscent of the hype surrounding the PSP ("It's a Playstation so it must be revolutionary!"😉.
How can Symbian be vapourware if it's sold 1 phone, let alone 100 million phones?
How can you know now that Apple have "moved the goal posts"? Because Apple made a phone which no one has seen or used? Because Steve Jobs says current smartphones aren't good enough? Neither of those things mean anything in themselves.
You're also missing the point of what I said about the original Mac, which is that quality and sales success are two totally different things:
The Mac was actually better, much much better than its rivals, it was by far the best designed home computer at its launch with by far the most easy to use OS. It really did move the goal posts in terms of useability, and all modern home computers copy what the first Mac did. But the Mac failed commercially because Apple didn't licence it, so everyone bought PCs instead even though they were harder to use, because they were cheaper and had more software support. When the PCs got Windows 95, for most people there was no longer any reason to buy Macintoshes. The Mac sank into a niche because Apple refused to let other hardware makers clone it legally, and the same thing could happen to the iPhone.
The market doesn't automatically reward the best quality product, it rewards the best quality product with the best price, best distribution and in some cases the best support. If you can't afford a product, or you can't find a product, or it somehow doesn't have enough third party support (e.g. a Macintosh on its own won't run Windows software) then the quality isn't enough to make you buy it.
The iPod doesn't require software or operator support, Apple can deal directly with the customer without involving anyone else. But smartphones DO require both of these things an awful lot, most software is written by third parties and most phones are sold through operators. Working with other companies is something that Apple and Steve Jobs have been very bad at over the past 20 years, which is why I'd be worried if Apple doesn't license their phone OS to other manufacturers.
You miss the point that the more functionality you put into a device, the less instantly easy to use it tends to be - it's a natural law. Admittedly, by using a touch interface they have more scope for interface intelligence, but at the expense of possible fragility and reliability etc.
Steve
Well, if the Symbian phone makers do scramble to make an 'iPhone wannabe' (I was only yesterday talking about a RAZR wannabe!), then surely SonyEricsson have the upper hand... UIQ3 is already a touch interface... Oh and they just bought it up for themselves...
Krisse,
I wasn't replying to your post .. they overlapped I suppose 😊
With regards to my vapourware comment - Symbian hasn't IMHO lived up to its promises to its vision and also to us (me in particular). As such its vapourware to me since for the life of me I can't see a lot of difference between a S60 and a T630.
Selling millions doesn't mean that the phones were used as they were meant to... as a smartphone.
The s60 can't replace a Palm or Psion adequately no matter the claims. It's not mobile computing as per the original vision of the phrase.
I don't think Apple needs to work with the networks. Here in Asia - none of the phone companies works with the networks. It's only true in US and Europe.
I read somewhere that Nokia etc are secretly hoping that Apple is a "minor" success - as it releases them from the telcos grasp and can finally design a phone to please the consumer as opposed to pleasing the telco.
Apple is able to do it without the telcos as its brand is currently strong.
Apple's deal with Cingular was agreed upon with zero interference from Cingular. IMHO as consumers we should cheer on that!😊
BR
I think its a great product. The design is just fantastic! That alone makes the device unique.
However the whole announcement is abit of a preaching to the choir thing. The functionality side is actually me too rather than anything new. 'Revolutionary' is abit much. But its definately flashy UI wise not but i dont think it can get simpler than s60 for the usage. The apple UI seemed more complex.
A 21st century newton, but in a good way!
WOW! Where to start? Just looking at the pictures I can see a bright future for the iPhone, how will the software/hardware be for real... we'll have to wait and see, but if this is anyway close to what Jobs has just demoed, my S60 phone (E70) will be going in the bin and I will be unwrapping a shiny new iPhone.
Things like visual voicemail - a no brainer when you think about it. The touch interface makes SonyEricsson look like amateurs. 11mm thick, you can slip it into a jacket pocket. At last people who understand human factors.
The potential hurdles? Battery life, buggy software and crashes. Hopefully since apple have embedded experience they will understand that crashes and reboots are a no-no on phones, we'll see. No 3G? Seems a bit silly in Europe, but if it has EDGE and WiFi, it might not be a big deal.
If this works as promised, I can see it eating Symbians, Microsofts and the Sony PSPs lunch! The first smartphone to make it really big...?
I can not see anywhere the mention that it supports native third party apps and there doesn't seem to be any developer's section on the iPhone page. So we don't know yet whether this is a smartphone or not. Regardless, the UI looks freaking great. I can't wait to see this thing in action.
Steve,
IMHO, how complicated a product gets, depends on the number of drill downs.
The old Nokias used to be so easy to use as they had consistent and easy to use drill downs across almost all their phones - not anymore.
A few years ago, Jobs walked into a phone shop to buy a phone, he walked out empty handed. He said they were all too difficult to use.
Rumour a few months ago is that they iPhone was so late in coming out because Jobs wanted 1 click and definitely no more than 2 clicks from each function.
BR
Hopefully this will kick Nokia et al into making a better UI for phones. Series60 UI isn't particular efficient nor attractive.
Apple have just raised the bar regarding design and UI , just like they did with Mac OS and PC ( box ) design. Other cell phone companies will now have to follow suit.
The iPhone looks excellent, though very expensive.
sovind wrote:
Rumour a few months ago is that they iPhone was so late in coming out because Jobs wanted 1 click and definitely no more than 2 clicks from each function.BR
I'd rather a phone worked like a phone imo. I could get my mum to use an S60 phone. I doubt i could get her to use the Iphone. It definetely destroys S60 on looks tho. S60 is very boring looking sadly. Design/style wise this ui looks great.
Just looking at the iphone site:
It's the little things that impress you. The way the network operator is relegated to the top left of the screen. Why do most phones have the network operator in a massive font size? Most of the time this isn't going to change. The proxomity sensor to switch the screen off when you are speaking with the phone at your ear - genius, saves battery and avoids accidental button presses.
4Gb/8Gb of storage, 135g about the same as a UIQ phone, but much thinner. Wonder what kind of battery they are using?
"Hopefully this will kick Nokia et al into making a better UI for phones. Series60 UI isn't particular efficient nor attractive. Apple have just raised the bar regarding design and UI , just like they did with Mac OS and PC ( box ) design. Other cell phone companies will now have to follow suit."
S60 has already been responding, with the N95 looking a whole lot more attractive and hopefully more intuitive.
"Follow suit"? Not really. Apple's design is pretty whizz bang for the whole touch-screen market, but I think there's a vastly bigger market for something smaller and more robust. And (FX: bangs gong again] with a screen you can actually read in sunlight.
Still, all competition is healthy and I'd love it if the iPhone caused the S60 and UIQ folks to apply a lot more thought into minimising button presses and clicks.
Steve
fdxd wrote:I'd rather a phone worked like a phone imo. I could get my mum to use an S60 phone. I doubt i could get her to use the Iphone. It definetely destroys S60 on looks tho. S60 is very boring looking sadly. Design/style wise this ui looks great.
If anything I would say the opposite. You thing S60 is simple because you use it every day. I handed my 6630 to my brother who works in technical support and he couldn't work out how to get to the menu screen. This is a major failing for a mobile phone!
You can give an iPod to anyone and within 15 mins they will have figured it out. I can see ease of use being a major selling point of the iPhone.
I can't read the screen in sunlight on my E70 too well!!
Yes, it is healthy competition, as much as I like Symbian, it needs to raise its standards.
Nokia needs to implement better software - Calendar, email ( IMAP4 support sucks ) on its ( non communicator ) phones.
The only thing I'm concerned about the iPhone is the lack of one handed operation - which is what I didn't like about my P900, and the reason why I chose E70.
"Whizz FX" i.e., eye candy is very attractive for people.
slitchfield wrote:"Hopefully this will kick Nokia et al into making a better UI for phones. Series60 UI isn't particular efficient nor attractive. Apple have just raised the bar regarding design and UI , just like they did with Mac OS and PC ( box ) design. Other cell phone companies will now have to follow suit."S60 has already been responding, with the N95 looking a whole lot more attractive and hopefully more intuitive.
"Follow suit"? Not really. Apple's design is pretty whizz bang for the whole touch-screen market, but I think there's a vastly bigger market for something smaller and more robust. And (FX: bangs gong again] with a screen you can actually read in sunlight.
Still, all competition is healthy and I'd love it if the iPhone caused the S60 and UIQ folks to apply a lot more thought into minimising button presses and clicks.
Steve
slitchfield wrote:And (FX: bangs gong again] with a screen you can actually read in sunlight.
What is the problem with the screen is... it not a transflective LCD?
slitchfield wrote:Still, all competition is healthy and I'd love it if the iPhone caused the S60 and UIQ folks to apply a lot more thought into minimising button presses and clicks.
Steve
That is the point! Good competition, that help all users have better devices😉
True. I am all for competition. S60 are pretty good but there is always room for improvement. I want to see some improvements in the Iphone itself (giev HSDPA and 5MP camera!). S60 need to look cooler lol :P
Specs:
Technical SpecificationsScreen size 3.5 inches
Screen resolution 320 by 480 at 160 ppi
Input method Multi-touch
Operating system OS X
Storage 4GB or 8GB
GSM Quad-band (MHz: 850, 900, 1800, 1900)
Wireless data Wi-Fi (802.11b/g) + EDGE + Bluetooth 2.0
Camera 2.0 megapixels
Battery Up to 5 hours
Talk / Video / Browsing
Up to 16 hours
Audio playback
Dimensions 4.5 x 2.4 x 0.46 inches / 115 x 61 x 11.6mm
Weight 4.8 ounces / 135 grams
Definitely a new sheriff arrived in town and lots of people are running for cover while other choose to live in denial. The iPhone is clearly a paradigm change � love it or hate it.
Steve, I think you ought to begin practicing OS X now as it is the future!
Cheerio,
dovale
"Steve, I think you ought to begin practicing OS X now as it is the future!"
Doncha just love the Apple fanboys? OS X on the iPhone doesn't seem to have much in common with OS X on the desktop - it's 'Windows Mobile' all over again. And Symbian has already been shipped on 100 MILLION smartphones and rising. The iPhone only aims to sell 10 MILLION in 2008, over a year from now.
I'm not dissing the iPhone, but please have some perspective. You won't see these things in phone shops or available on contract in the UK for a long, long time to come.
Steve
I think the iPhone does has a lot of potential, especially in the high-end smartphone market that is targeted by the SE P990's, the Nokia Communicators and the BlackBerry's and the high-end S60 devices.
This is the market where one talks about a few million devices, not the mass market that is targetted by most S60 devices. So its' success should be measured against p990, Commie and Blackberry sales, not against the lower-end S60 device sales.
Another device that is now in very deep trouble is the Nokia N800. It is very similar to the iPhone, just missing the GSM bits. But it doesn't have the wow factor the iPhone has and it isn't that much cheaper either.
The the OS. OS X has the same advantage compared to Symbian OS that it is a well-known computer OS, just like Windows. I haven't yet been able to find any technical details, but it appears to me that at the OS API level the iPhone version is the same or very similar to the Mac version. The UI is probaly different at the API level as the UI doesn't look much like the desktop Mac UI. This means that there will be a big developer community for the iPhone, that will be up to speed very quickly.
They might face the problems that OS X is still a desktop OS, with the resource-wasting attitude prevalent there. OTOH, all phones now have much more memory that even a few years ago, so this Symbian advantage is slowly getting smaller.
Anyway, expect lots of good-quality software being available for the iPhone very quickly.
I think the iPhone is a very interesting device for high-end phone users and I expect that it will do very well in that market. It might even make the high-end market bigger just because people will want to buy it because of the looks, and not caring about the high price (this is what happened with the iPod too. There were lots of cheapo MP3 players around before iPod).
For developers this device is also very interesting to write apps for, as I think the kind of people buying an iPhone will also buy software. After all, this is the same target market as the high-end SE UIQ phones and the Commies, and software for these devices always sold well, much better than S60 software.
The price isnt too bad. $499 with a 2 year contract, so �250 or �380, this is more than most existing Smartphones that are network subsidised, but less than buying the latest and greatest Symbian handsets outright. It certainly looks attractive compared to the various high-end Walkman and Music phones offered by SE and Nokia.
IMHO, the iPhone gameplan is exactly the same as the iPod gameplan (that worked). Bring out a desirable high-end product with innovate features, then once your brand is established and you have a reputation for quality and 'coolness', broaden the range with cheaper options. If they sell enough this year, you can expect a mid-range iPhone in 2009 that will directly target the S60 space. iPhone will be a huge threat to UIQ based phones, I guess the buggy and oft-delayed P990i has left the door wide open. Now it's over to apple to deliver and Nokia/SE to innovate.
iPhone inital target market: Busy professionals who don't currently own a Smartphone but might already own an iPod. Probably people who would have bought a RAZR or an Blackberry.
One thing I am looking forward to seeing is how fast it is. I have always been (and continue to be) disappointed by the speed of S60 and UIQ-based smartphones, and if they can get faster response times, it will be a big selling point. As another poster mentioned, the default apps (Calendar, Notepad, etc) supplied with Symban phones will need to improve massively. Nokia and SE need to face up to the fact that many Smartphone users will never download a new app for their phone and the days of supplying a Notepad app that does not include a search (for example) are at an end.
It will be interesting to see how the networks in Europe react to the iPhone - will they give it a warm welcome, or see it as a potential threat to their brands. Could there be another 'exclusive' with T-Mobile being the only network to offer iPhones? Interesting times ahead...
This isnt exactly like the Ipod. Before the Ipod most mp3 players were really rough all round. Ipod was one of the first to be the whole package(the real deal).
The Iphone isnt the whole package. Its missing 3G, HSDPA, better camera etc. With a June release the specs perhaps should have been better. Right now i am loving the style but i need to wait and see about the rest.
Thats what people said about the iPod - its too late into the market.
Apple say Europe in 4th Quarter - that isn't a long time.
Its never too late for a competitor to enter a market and make a serious impact.
If you look at Dashboard on Mac OSX, you'll see there is quite a stark similarity between that and the UI on the iPhone, also the demo on Apple's website.
Its not apparent yet whether on the iPhone -
- you can install 3rd party apps
If you cannot, I wouldn't call it a smartphone. Just a phone with a pretty interface and software.
As a previous poster said, people will live in denial.
slitchfield wrote:"Steve, I think you ought to begin practicing OS X now as it is the future!"Doncha just love the Apple fanboys? OS X on the iPhone doesn't seem to have much in common with OS X on the desktop - it's 'Windows Mobile' all over again. And Symbian has already been shipped on 100 MILLION smartphones and rising. The iPhone only aims to sell 10 MILLION in 2008, over a year from now.
I'm not dissing the iPhone, but please have some perspective. You won't see these things in phone shops or available on contract in the UK for a long, long time to come.
Steve
celios wrote:I handed my 6630 to my brother who works in technical support and he couldn't work out how to get to the menu screen. This is a major failing for a mobile phone!You can give an iPod to anyone and within 15 mins they will have figured it out. I can see ease of use being a major selling point of the iPhone.
Uh every colur screen phone has a single button for the menu screen.
Dont tell me only the Ipod is easy to use and everything else in existance is hard. Companies like Nokia do actually have a reputation for being easy to use.
Well, the e.g. concept videos Nokia presented in Nokia World better turn into reality pronto, otherwise the Apple UI may indeed (assuming it works as well as demoed today) be hard to beat in the TOP END (i.e. the expensive of the expensivest class) of the market in terms of innovation and possibly ease of use as well.
One does have to reserve judgement though until we see some pretty indepth hands on reviews of the thing, which we actually may not until closer to the release. One thing that strikes about the first live pics is that the thing is a "look but don't touch" case still.
fdxd wrote:This isnt exactly like the Ipod. Before the Ipod most mp3 players were really rough all round. Ipod was one of the first to be the whole package(the real deal).The Iphone isnt the whole package. Its missing 3G, HSDPA, better camera etc. With a June release the specs perhaps should have been better. Right now i am loving the style but i need to wait and see about the rest.
I am willing to bet that 90% of potential (i.e. not existing) smartphone buyers would prefer fast, easy and stylish to bleeding edge features. Apple are very much aiming this at the 90% I guess Nokia and SE can fight over the 10% of early adopters/existing users.
3G is not such a big deal, WiFi is a better option for surfing and EDGE gives enough speed for e-mail. Could the lack of 3G be related to power consumption?