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Some iPhone afterthoughts
After working late on Friday to post all the iPhone launch materials, Saturday morning a dear friend called who had moved away to Dubai. He realized that there wasn't a chance in hell that he would get his hands on an iPhone any time soon, but wanted to talk to somebody who did. (That, and he has finally succeeded in hacking around Dubai's VoIP ban). The iPhone beckons around the world.
Aside from some activation flaws, the iPhone launch went without a glitch. And as a hack, I can't help but appreciate the whole PR-side of the opeation. Microsoft had to fly in Xbox gamers to a hangar and create an artificial shortage of Xbox 360 boxes to create a media and bloggers frenzy.
Apple didn't need a fancy PR agency to make its iPhone look cool. Users lined up all by the themselves and Apple just provided free water. Nobody complained about wasting days waiting for the device – not even after they realized that there were plenty of iPhones to go around.
But to the initiated, it must have looked like an awkward exercise. Minutes before the iPhone went on sale, a person walking by asked me what all the fuss was about. He obviously hadn't heard about the iPhone. "Is it free then?" he asked in an attempt to understand why people would line up for more than 24 hours. He was speechless when he learnt that in addition to waiting, the people in line would have to shelve out $500 to $600.
But again, nobody complained. It was all about the experience. Many iPhone buyers had to part with their new line-friends after they paid for their devices. It was just like a really cool 2-day rock concert. Nobody wanted it to end, but it did nonetheless.
July 2, 2007 at 11:06 PM | Permalink
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