The iPhone has landed on the cellular phone like the proverbial 800 pound gorilla. It is hip and smart and in a word ‘cool’, the kind of ‘coolness’ in a portable smartphone device usually reserved for something found in Paris Hiltons’ clutch.
This kind of instant perception in the general media– of a device that everyone would want, one that could render all other competitors obsolete is usually reserved for well, Microsoft.
However, not even Microsoft these days seems to be able to generate that kind of buzz.
Take the Zune for example. Interestingly enough, the Zune seemingly isn’t even the iPhone’s target market– but the sophistication, finish and general coolness of the iPhone swatted the Zune to the curb like a piece of brown glowing rubberized roadkill.
Microsoft really seems to have screwed the pooch on that Zune. In the words of one bospdaug member the iPhone made the Zune look “like a product from 1978″.
Zune could be done. I don’t think Paris would be caught dead with one (especially the brown one).
The Smartphone market is however seemingly the iPhone’s actual target. One slide in particular that Steve put onscreen at the MacWorld keynote lined up all the ‘usual’ smartphone suspects in a row, the pained expression on their tiny screens and chicklet keyboards made them seem like they were facing a firing squad.
Given that the iPhone exudes coolness, one thing that struck me about the iPhone launch was that there was absolutely no mention of the T-Mobile Sidekick, a longtime favorite in the ‘cool’ non-business smartphone market.
There are a lot of similarities, at least on the surface between the iPhone and the Sidekick. Both are easy to use integrated systems with mail, SMS, camera, calendar, music player (hey, no IM on the iPhone, but the Sidekick has an AIM client) and most importantly they share a ‘coolness’ factor.
The Sidekick II (and now III) have made their mark by being the darling of the hip Paris Hiltonesque jetset for just the reason of the ‘cool’.
Once Paris and her friends had a Sidekick (and especially after it was hacked) pretty much anyone with even the slighest delusion of being ‘hip’ had to have one.
The iPhone, truth be told seems to be scads cooler than the Sidekick. The Sidekick has a much worse screen, no iPod support, a not so great camera, and less sophisticated applications… none of the smooth animation and buttonless navigation of the iPhone.
Will the iPhone lure the ‘jet set’ to ditch their Sidekicks and get iPhones just for the ‘coolness’.
I bet it will, and I bet Apple is guessing the same thing.
