Apple is getting more and more popular. In my opinion, they are now bigger than Microsoft. Well they are at least more popular and covered more in the media. That is another story and yet very much the reason why Apple's hand has been forced lately. In January, Apple announce the much rumored iPhone. Heck even that name was forced. The iPhone was talked about so heavily, first on the Apple fanboy sites, and then in the main media, that Apple would have been stupid at that point to name it something else. Heck, they were forced to do a phone in my opinion.
Let's back it up a bit though. Apple has changed the music industry so greatly it has garnered millions of followers and I'm sure millions of haters. As a result of being so huge, being the top dog in an industry, all eyes are on them. They move an inch and it creates massive waves in the industry, and at the very least in the media. So enter Apples Fall 2006 release of their new iPod nano. Revolutionary? No. Yes it looks cool. Yes Steve has a magical quality to his presentations where everyone is awestruck. There wasn't much there. If Apple didn't deliver, their stock holders would get mad, stock price would drop, etc, etc. So they were forced to show something before it was ready. Out comes the iTV, now known as Apple TV. Steve gave a demo and the media was buzzing. The stock holders were happy and the price went up. Apples arms were twisted and hands were forced to show a product about 5 months before its release.
Jumping ahead to January of 2007. The second week of January is normally when MacWorld is held in San Francisco and Apple makes some cool product releases. The first week of January is CES, where the rest of the Consumer Electronics industry makes their new year announcements. However, this year was a little different, CES was held the second week of January, at the same time as MacWorld. Enter the media to twist an arm and force their hand. Apple was expected to perform, to deliver, and to overshadow CES. So what did they do? They showed a product that is 6 months out, the iPhone. Apple doesn't do that. Not normally. Apple is so big now they are being forced to deliver huge and great things.
They should they do great work and deliver great things. They shouldn't be forced to announce things when they aren't ready. Heck who knows if Apple would ever have done a phone if it weren't for the press talking about how great a phone from them would be. Thus creating expectations from their fans and stockholders.
Well it's been over a month since Apple announced their iPhone, and the more I look at it the less impressive it is to me. The magic of Apple's announcements is being diluted from time. More and more phones that have these features are entering the market. Making it look like any other smart phone. Time has allowed more and more comments and assumptions to be made, both good and bad. I think Apple messed up here. Big time. Apple did the same thing in the phone business as what Motorola does. They announced a product way too early. It makes noice at the announcement, the press loves it and does nothing but talk about it and then gets distorted. By the time it comes out the press is over it and on to the next thing. Thus so are the consumers. For Motorola, this has ended with lost momentum at the time of launch and lot's of time for competition to catch up. Which in the phone industry is amazingly fast. Heck, just look at all the MotoRAZR knockoff's from companies like Nokia, Samsung, LG, etc. They all have a RAZR phone. The phone industry isn't creative, they copy each other when one comes up with a new idea. The iPhone already has a knockoff, the LG Prada phone. Which really isn't a knockoff, it's just proof that the industry was going where anyway. I'm sure Apple caught wind of this movement and this gave them another reason to announce the iPhone early. By doing so they don't look like a "me too" product in the phone industry, but an innovator that everyone is following.
Don't get me wrong, I love Apple. I want them continue to create revolutionary products and change industries. The iPhone will do that and is doing that, but for other reasons than design in my opinion. My only hope is that they no longer let their hand be forced, by the industry, the media, the fanboys, and their stock holders. That they go back to what made them so big in the first place. That they take it inside, be secretive, and announce their products at launch. Take the world by surprise. The way Apple used to do it. Brilliant.
-Colin
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