Breaking News!!! Apple iPhone

[stevew]

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Computer Inc. Chief Executive Steve Jobs on Tuesday introduced an eagerly-anticipated Apple-branded mobile phone with a touch-screen that combines features from the company's popular iPod music player.

While Apple watchers were expecting details on an Apple smartphone able to play music, make calls and perform other functions, the announcement at the annual Macworld conference still helped push the company's shares up more than 5 percent.

Jobs did not give immediate details on the pricing of the phone or its availability, but his speech was expected to continue until 11:00 a.m. local time. The phone will use the network of AT&T's cellular unit, Cingular Wireless.

The move also could help Apple bolster its dominant position in the market for portable digital media devices. The iPod now commands more than a 70 percent share of the U.S. market for MP3 players, as the devices are also known.

The new 11.6 millimeter phone includes a 3.5-inch wide touchscreen display with multi-touch support, 2 megapixel camera and 8 gigabytes of storage. It runs Apple's OS X operating system.

Jobs also said another device that allows users to stream movies, music, photos, podcasts and TV shows to their home entertainment systems would ship in February. Dubbed "AppleTV," the 40 gigabyte machine will cost $299, the same price Jobs forecast back in September.

Jobs also said movies from Paramount films would be sold in on Apple's iTunes online music store in addition to titles from Disney.

Apple has sold more than 70 million iPods since they were introduced and consumers have bought more than 2 billion songs for about 99 cents each on iTunes. More than 220 television shows are also available on iTunes.

Apple shares rose $4.30 to $88.77 following the announcement.

[stevew]

http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/2007/01/dsc_0182.jpg

[rkmsuf]

that's a farging colossal phone

[Senator]

This IS breaking news!!

[cartman]

Pricing is $499 for a 4GB iPhone, $599 for 8GB. And as the article states, only through Cingular. Well, at least until the first unlock code comes out, then any GSM service.

[Logan]

That screen looks like it would crack in about 3 seconds.

But I don't care if the thing had free NFL Sunday Ticket and played it flawlessly...I would never use a phone that only had Cingular service. Their service is pathetic around here.

[wade moore]

That screen looks like it would crack in about 3 seconds.

But I don't care if the thing had free NFL Sunday Ticket and played it flawlessly...I would never use a phone that only had Cingular service. Their service is pathetic around here.

I'm completely tied to Verizon because it is the only one that gives good service in my house.

[Passacaglia]

500 for a phone? My LG cost $50, and for another $30, I was able to put a miniSD 1 GB card in it.

[albionmoonlight]

that's a farging colossal phone

For some reason, I have this image of snopes.com:

RUMOR: Steve Jobs and the Apple Corporation have discovered a race of Giants and are arming them with colossal technolgy so as to facilitate their takeover of the world.

STATUS: FALSE

This rumor appears to have started with a photograph taken in early 2007 in which . . . .

[AgustusM]

can anyone think of any worse kept "secret" then this???

[Logan]

can anyone think of any worse kept "secret" then this???

That Google is going to take over the world.

[AgustusM]

http://www.apple.com/iphone/phone/

official website. I normally hate all things apple, but damn that is an impressive phone.

[Subby]

Nice merging of iPod, phone, camera, organizer - with a bigger screen for movie/show/video viewing.

Looks pretty good to me.

I CAN NOW TALK *AND* WATCH MOVIES WHILE DRIVING!!!!

[Neuqua]

I want one.

[cartman]

My 2nd Gen 40GB iPod (which I only use 6GB of) and my RAZR are both getting a bit long in the tooth, and the idea of only carrying around one device instead of two is pretty appealing...

[AgustusM]

Built-in Advanced Sensors
iPhone’s accelerometer detects when you rotate the device from portrait to landscape, then automatically changes the contents of the display, so you immediately see the entire width of a web page or a photo in its proper landscape aspect ratio.

that is pretty damn cool.

[Coffee Warlord]

That. Will be broken in 30 seconds of carrying around in my pocket.

Sigh. Give me a PHONE. Not a freakin' fashion statement.

[oliegirl]

I'll consider getting one when the price comes down and they provide it to Verizon customers...

[Deattribution]

Whoever gets one first can let me know how your new giant sized phone is when they air deliver it via dual helicopers on your front lawn.

[QuikSand]

http://www.progets.com/simpsons/pics/Professor%20John%20Frink.gif

Well, sure, my phone looks impressive, don't touch it, but I predict that within 100 years, phones will be twice as powerful, 10,000 times larger, and so expensive that only the five richest kings of Europe will own them.

[DaddyTorgo]

Built-in Advanced Sensors
iPhone’s accelerometer detects when you rotate the device from portrait to landscape, then automatically changes the contents of the display, so you immediately see the entire width of a web page or a photo in its proper landscape aspect ratio.

that is pretty damn cool.


that's a lot ado about nothing. my phone does that already.

[Flasch186]

now if only Apple buys Sirius my Sirius stock should frickin' boom!!

[dawgfan]

I usually find Apple products over-rated/over-priced and am highly annoyed at the attitudes most Mac-users hold, but at first glance this smartphone is very, very impressive. The real test will be actually using it and seeing how well the touch-screen functionality works, and how durable it is.

[Passacaglia]

My 2nd Gen 40GB iPod (which I only use 6GB of) and my RAZR are both getting a bit long in the tooth, and the idea of only carrying around one device instead of two is pretty appealing...

That was my thinking when I got my phone a few months back...you can have this stuff already, and cheaper.

[TroyF]

My concern is in airplanes. I do a ton of traveling and if there is no way to turn off the phone from and leave the MP3 player on, it's useless in a plane.

[lordscarlet]

My concern is in airplanes. I do a ton of traveling and if there is no way to turn off the phone from and leave the MP3 player on, it's useless in a plane.

My Smart Phone (Cingular 8125) has a mode for when you're on a plane.

[cartman]

That was my thinking when I got my phone a few months back...you can have this stuff already, and cheaper.

True, but I'm beginning to think that having the device run on OSX will be worth the price of admission.

My concern is in airplanes. I do a ton of traveling and if there is no way to turn off the phone from and leave the MP3 player on, it's useless in a plane.

Since it does run on OSX, I'd be very surprised if you wouldn't be able to simply turn off the service that runs the phone portion of the hardware.

[Cringer]

yeah, it's a nice phone. Too bad it's Apple and Cingular. Oh well, just like everything else Apple makes, something else will come along that does the same or more, for less. And I won't have to be stuck buying on iTunes.

[lordscarlet]

yeah, it's a nice phone. Too bad it's Apple and Cingular. Oh well, just like everything else Apple makes, something else will come along that does the same or more, for less. And I won't have to be stuck buying on iTunes.

1) They said they will be working on one that works on other services
2) Like the Zune?

[Coder]

And I won't have to be stuck buying on iTunes.

Not sure about the other stuff, but you sure don't have to buy music on iTunes to listen to it in an iPod.. I haven't bought a song on iTunes and my 80 Gb iPod is at least half full by now.

[cartman]

yeah, it's a nice phone. Too bad it's Apple and Cingular. Oh well, just like everything else Apple makes, something else will come along that does the same or more, for less. And I won't have to be stuck buying on iTunes.

1) They said they will be working on one that works on other services
2) Like the Zune?

There is nothing in the hardware of the phone that keeps it from working with any GSM provider. There is just some sort of software key on it that will only allow it to work with a Cingular branded SIM card. This is referred to as "locking" the phone to a particular provider. This is easily overridden, and I'm sure that the fix will be out the same day as the iPhone. You will also probably be able to buy an unlocked phone to use on any GSM service, but the price will probably be $200 to $300 higher.

[cartman]

Dola,

Lost in the shuffle of today's product announcements is that Apple is dropping 'Computer' from the official company name. It'll now just be Apple, Inc.

[lordscarlet]

There is nothing in the hardware of the phone that keeps it from working with any GSM provider. There is just some sort of software key on it that will only allow it to work with a Cingular branded SIM card. This is referred to as "locking" the phone to a particular provider. This is easily overridden, and I'm sure that the fix will be out the same day as the iPhone. You will also probably be able to buy an unlocked phone to use on any GSM service, but the price will probably be $200 to $300 higher.

I know this. I'm referring to a non-GSM version.

[lordscarlet]

Dola,

Lost in the shuffle of today's product announcements is that Apple is dropping 'Computer' from the official company name. It'll now just be Apple, Inc.

Hell, I think Apple TV was lost in the shuffle. :) (Not that I think it's very noteworthy, and only would be if it were a PVR)

[cartman]

I know this. I'm referring to a non-GSM version.

Gotcha.

But with only Sprint and Verizon on CDMA in North America only, and the rest of the world on one of the 4 GSM frequencies, I would be surprised if we saw a CDMA version soon. And it will be a while before a non-Cingular branded iPhone is available on T-Mobile or AT&T, since Cingular evidently ponied up $150 million to be the exclusive US Vendor. Not sure for how long. I think it was 6 months that Cingular was the only place you could get a RAZR.

[Emiliano]

Looks very good. Any word on the Euro release? I'm guessing that with this Cingular exclusive, it gets released in the US first. I hope they'll release it no-brand over here, I've always hated branded phones.

[Coder]

Looks very good. Any word on the Euro release? I'm guessing that with this Cingular exclusive, it gets released in the US first. I hope they'll release it no-brand over here, I've always hated branded phones.

Swedish newspapers are saying fall 2007.

[cartman]

Looks very good. Any word on the Euro release? I'm guessing that with this Cingular exclusive, it gets released in the US first. I hope they'll release it no-brand over here, I've always hated branded phones.

It looks like O2 is going to be the exclusive provider in Europe to begin with. If I remember, then that means they will be Wind in Italy?

[Emiliano]

It looks like O2 is going to be the exclusive provider in Europe to begin with. If I remember, then that means they will be Wind in Italy?

I guess. I just checked their site, and they're advertising the i-Mode technology, which is Wind-exclusive here. I'm not 100% sure, though.

[Easy Mac]

So I take it the $500 pricetag is including being subsidized by Cingular? Most smart phones are 100-200 cheaper with a contract than buying straight out, but i'm assuming the iphone isn't. I'm content that outside of the Itunes part, my current phone can do all the same things (though the screen is only 240x320 and not as sharp), but I'll be damned if I won't get an iPhone anyway.

[Easy Mac]

A cool comparison of its size

http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/09/apple-iphone-sized-up-and-compared-to-treo-750-moto-q-and-bb-p/

[Emiliano]

High quality images (http://www.appleinsider.com/article.php?id=2370) of the iPhone.

Wow.

[cartman]

I wonder if that really is Steve Jobs' phone number. Look at the 4th pic down after the text. LOL!

hxxp://www.engadget.com/2007/01/09/the-apple-iphone/

[dawgfan]

I wonder if that really is Steve Jobs' phone number. Look at the 4th pic down after the text. LOL!

hxxp://www.engadget.com/2007/01/09/the-apple-iphone/
I'm going to guess that's Apple's phone number.

[dawgfan]

I'm going to guess that's Apple's phone number.
Checked and confirmed.

[Coffee Warlord]

http://www.pvponline.com/images/2980.gif

[Easy Mac]

And just like that, I don't geel like getting the iPod phone.
http://www.tuaw.com/2007/01/09/iphone-will-not-allow-user-installable-applications/

It seems you can't install any apps on it, so you can only do what Apple wants. I was hoping it was a real OSx install, so I could throw some fun stuff on there. Imagine if I could have skype on that thing. It looks slick as hell, but its too locked down.

[Easy Mac]

http://www.tuaw.com/2007/01/10/cisco-sues-apple-over-iphone-trademark/

And now Cisco is suing Apple over the iPhone trademark. Seems Apple didn't sign the paperwork for the name in time, and Cisco said FU

[cartman]

http://www.tuaw.com/2007/01/10/cisco-sues-apple-over-iphone-trademark/

And now Cisco is suing Apple over the iPhone trademark. Seems Apple didn't sign the paperwork for the name in time, and Cisco said FU

So I guess the transitional name is iPwned

[RendeR]

I don't understand why all these tencho-hippy toys are always supposed to be "breaking news"

its a gizmo, get a grip.

[RendeR]

I don't understand why all these tencho-hippy toys are always supposed to be "breaking news"

its a gizmo, get a grip.

[stevew]

I don't understand why all these tencho-hippy toys are always supposed to be "breaking news"

its a gizmo, get a grip.

The title was an homage to some old post about a one gig nano that was deemed "Breaking News!!!" Sort of an inside joke thing, if you will.

[sterlingice]

http://www.progets.com/simpsons/pics/Professor%20John%20Frink.gif

There's just something that makes me feel all is right with the world when you're using Professor Frink quotes.

SI

[ISiddiqui]

That's way too expensive. You aren't going to get the buisiness folks away from their Blackberries and Treo's (which run Microsoft office apps) with this and I'm not sure the common phone buyer will shell out that much cash for one.

[Hurst2112]

I would bet that the next generation of ipods will start to incorporate the iphone features.

New ipods will have both a hard drive and the touch interface of the iphone. just a guess.

[John Galt]

The title was an homage to some old post about a one gig nano that was deemed "Breaking News!!!" Sort of an inside joke thing, if you will.

RendeR no like joke. RendeR SMASH!!!!!!!!

[kcchief19]

I love people. I walk in to the Apple store here in town yesterday and two guys walk in behind me. They go up to one of the employees and ask if the they have any iPhones in yet.

[cartman]

I love people. I walk in to the Apple store here in town yesterday and two guys walk in behind me. They go up to one of the employees and ask if the they have any iPhones in yet.

Was this the reason you were at the Apple store yesterday?

:D

hxxp://sf.metblogs.com/archives/2007/01/entire_apple_store_pranked_wit.phtml

[Cringer]

I love people. I walk in to the Apple store here in town yesterday and two guys walk in behind me. They go up to one of the employees and ask if the they have any iPhones in yet.

Among the problems I am reading around the internet with the iPhone is that it does not come out until June. People are wondering why Apple announced it so early and speculation is that perhaps Apple had a heads up on someone else putting out something very much like this soon.

[cartman]

Among the problems I am reading around the internet with the iPhone is that it does not come out until June. People are wondering why Apple announced it so early and speculation is that perhaps Apple had a heads up on someone else putting out something very much like this soon.

The reason for announcing it so soon is that they had to file the paperwork for FCC permits, so they couldn't keep it a secret anymore, since those applications are public record.

[Hurst2112]

Among the problems I am reading around the internet with the iPhone is that it does not come out until June. People are wondering why Apple announced it so early and speculation is that perhaps Apple had a heads up on someone else putting out something very much like this soon.

From what was said in the keynote address, the FCC has to sign off on it. That has something to do with the delay.

Even if I were to get one, I wouldn't want to be one of the first. The screen will probably have some issues. I can see people complaining about the interface not being as smooth as they thought. Battery life issues as well. I want one, but will probably wait till my contract is up in Dec.

I have an 8525 to keep me busy right now.

IMA geek

[Ksyrup]

Hurst! Where ya been? Seen the news about Rush's new album?

[Butter]

Hey, Apple's come out with something else I can't afford! Hooray!

[Hurst2112]

Hurst! Where ya been? Seen the news about Rush's new album?

I've been around. Yeah. I've read Neil's little 'blog' about tracking.

[moriarty]

There is nothing in the hardware of the phone that keeps it from working with any GSM provider. There is just some sort of software key on it that will only allow it to work with a Cingular branded SIM card. This is referred to as "locking" the phone to a particular provider. This is easily overridden, and I'm sure that the fix will be out the same day as the iPhone. You will also probably be able to buy an unlocked phone to use on any GSM service, but the price will probably be $200 to $300 higher.

Are we sure about this? I was reading on one techie site where they said the phone was on the "Edge" network for Cingular which is by most accounts a crappy non 3G network, and it wouldn't necessarily work on Verizon's/Sprint's network. I'm not too into the cell phone details but just checking.

[cartman]

Are we sure about this? I was reading on one techie site where they said the phone was on the "Edge" network for Cingular which is by most accounts a crappy non 3G network, and it wouldn't necessarily work on Verizon's/Sprint's network. I'm not too into the cell phone details but just checking.

It definitely won't work on Sprint or Verizon, since they use CDMA as their protocol, and Cingular uses GSM. Once unlocked, it would work fine on T-Mobile or AT&T network. 'Edge' is Cingular's marketing term for their wireless data protocol that utilizes GSM, which has decent speed, but nowhere near 3G speed.

I'm certain that a future version of the iPhone will support 3G, due to the impressive audio/visual capabilites of the phone, and the fact that 3G is pretty much established everywhere else in the world, except for the US. But 3G is starting to be rolled out more and more in the US.

edit: changed Cingular to Verizon in the first sentence

[ISiddiqui]

Well, Verizon doesn't have a GSM network, so it wouldn't work for Verizon anyway.

[Cringer]

The reason for announcing it so soon is that they had to file the paperwork for FCC permits, so they couldn't keep it a secret anymore, since those applications are public record.

yeah, if i remember correctly it only took a little over a month from when Sirius filed their FCC paperwork for the Stilleto portable satellite radio (which has mp3 storage) for it to be released. 6 months seems a little longer then needed, but maybe cell phones take longer to approve, i don't know.

[moriarty]

There is nothing in the hardware of the phone that keeps it from working with any GSM provider. There is just some sort of software key on it that will only allow it to work with a Cingular branded SIM card. This is referred to as "locking" the phone to a particular provider. This is easily overridden, and I'm sure that the fix will be out the same day as the iPhone. You will also probably be able to buy an unlocked phone to use on any GSM service, but the price will probably be $200 to $300 higher.

Yeah, sorry I just realized you said any GSM network and Sprint/Verizon are CDMA. My bad.

[Easy Mac]

yeah, if i remember correctly it only took a little over a month from when Sirius filed their FCC paperwork for the Stilleto portable satellite radio (which has mp3 storage) for it to be released. 6 months seems a little longer then needed, but maybe cell phones take longer to approve, i don't know.

well, most of the "apps" on the phone were just jpegs, not actual programs. Seems they're still working on some things.

[Cringer]

Are we sure about this? I was reading on one techie site where they said the phone was on the "Edge" network for Cingular which is by most accounts a crappy non 3G network, and it wouldn't necessarily work on Verizon's/Sprint's network. I'm not too into the cell phone details but just checking.

hxxp://www.techweb.com/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=1RT1OCVNF0AGEQSNDLPSKHSCJUNN2JVN?articleId=196900200

Cingular's Edge network provides nationwide coverage at average data speeds between 75 Kbps and 135 Kbps, according to Cingular's Web site. By comparison, the CDMA EV-DO Rev A network being rolled out by Sprint has speeds of 450 Kbps to 800 Kbps. Sprint says its EV-DO network already covers several cities and will be deployed nationwide in the third quarter. Verizon Wireless also has rolled out network segments using CDMA EV-DO technology. The other major GSM provider in the United States, T-Mobile, uses Edge technology.

The iPhone also offers something of a departure for mobile phone service providers in that it has Wi-Fi capability, which can deliver high-speed data access. The phone reportedly switches seamlessly and automatically between Edge and Wi-Fi, depending on what's available. But users will have to find a Wi-Fi hotspot to use the high-speed capability.

Cingular says it will begin offering the Apple iPhone nationwide in June. Apple's decision to use Cingular's Edge (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution) underscores the ongoing battle between the European-developed GSM standard and Qualcomm's various CDMA flavors. While Qualcomm struggled for years to bring its CDMA technologies to market, GSM providers captured most of the worldwide mobile phone service provider market and they have moved to lock it up for the future.

When advanced CDMA technologies finally made it to market, they were more robust than most GSM offerings. Qualcomm says its EV-DO networks can reach peak data rates of 3.1 Mbps on the forward link, and 1.8 Mbps on the reverse link.

Cingular and other GSM-based service providers are working on technologies such as High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) to boost their network data speeds to at least parity with EV-DO, although they aren't expected to be available in time for the iPhone rollout.

Will data speed rates make any different to iPhone users?

One longtime Apple cheerleader, influential personal technology reviewer Walter Mossberg of the Wall Street Journal, heaped praise on the iPhone Thursday, although he mentioned it runs on the "relatively slow" Edge network. Mossberg has evaluated competing GSM and EV-DO technologies and has said Edge is a "drastically slower alternative that constantly reminded us that we were using a pokey mobile device.

[Cringer]

well, most of the "apps" on the phone were just jpegs, not actual programs. Seems they're still working on some things.

That makes more sense then.

[AgustusM]

http://www.tuaw.com/2007/01/10/cisco-sues-apple-over-iphone-trademark/

And now Cisco is suing Apple over the iPhone trademark. Seems Apple didn't sign the paperwork for the name in time, and Cisco said FU

I love this BTW after apple sent a bunch of cease and desist letters to podcasters for using the name "pod" serves them right - but I still want one of these phones, though I will probably wait for 2nd generation and all the bugs to get worked out.

[Subby]

I would get fired if I tried to replace my users' blackberries with this. :)

[kcchief19]

Among the problems I am reading around the internet with the iPhone is that it does not come out until June. People are wondering why Apple announced it so early and speculation is that perhaps Apple had a heads up on someone else putting out something very much like this soon.
The fact that it's not coming out until June was what got me about the people rushing in to see if they had. How many people rushed into stores two years ago to find out if they had any PlayStation 3 or Wii consoles in stock yet?

My thought: people are morons. That is all. :)

[Easy Mac]

Among the problems I am reading around the internet with the iPhone is that it does not come out until June. People are wondering why Apple announced it so early and speculation is that perhaps Apple had a heads up on someone else putting out something very much like this soon.

You mean like the LG KE 850
http://desktops.engadget.com/2007/01/11/iphone-and-lg-ke850-separated-at-birth/

http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/2007/01/iphone-vs-ke850-wm.jpg

http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/2007/01/iphone-vs-ke850-2-wm.jpg

[Cringer]

The fact that it's not coming out until June was what got me about the people rushing in to see if they had. How many people rushed into stores two years ago to find out if they had any PlayStation 3 or Wii consoles in stock yet?

My thought: people are morons. That is all. :)

So I shouldn't keep checking Wal Mart for my own personal Robocop? :(

[Daimyo]

If the iPhone name falls through they can always just call it Newton 2.0

[Oilers9911]

Remember the days when a phone was for making phone calls?

[ISiddiqui]

You call the iPhone the phone of the future? Pshaw!

http://nds3.nokia.com/pressphotos/public/global/corporate/rd/research_concept_02_low.jpg

http://nds3.nokia.com/pressphotos/public/global/corporate/rd/research_concept_03_low.jpg

All LCD as well.

[cartman]

Remember the days when a phone was for making phone calls?

I remember a couple of years ago and seeing listed as a "feature" for a cell phone "real time voice communication".

[Cringer]

Interesting article...

hxxp://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/11/technology/11cnd-apple.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 11 — Apple’s new iPhone appears to be the clearest statement yet of what Steve Jobs’s impact has been on consumer electronics.

It is not that he invents new technologies. He refines existing ones.

Mr. Jobs himself acknowledged that when asked during an interview on Tuesday whether he thought the iPhone represented a trend toward the convergence of computing and communications.

“I don’t want people to think of this as a computer,” he said. “I think of it as reinventing the phone.”

If the iPhone succeeds commercially, it will be new proof of Mr. Jobs’s power and influence over the world’s consumer marketplace.

Indeed, at times he seems to be able to defy gravity.

But while his design ideas have frequently been runaway successes, there have also been striking failures.

His Next computer, developed in the 1980s during his exile from Apple and originally intended for a college audience, was never able to break out of its small niche. (Despite being a commercial failure, the Next was used by Tim Berners-Lee to develop the original concept of the World Wide Web.) In a similar fashion, the Macintosh Cube, introduced in 2000, failed in the market despite being seen as an artistic breakthrough in computer industrial design.

Indeed, when the Macintosh Computer — which, like the iPhone, was designed by a small group shrouded in secrecy — was introduced in January 1984, it was received with the same kind of wild hyperbole that greeted the iPhone this week. But a year later, the shortcomings of the first-generation Macintosh cost Mr. Jobs his job at the company he had founded with his high school friend Stephen Wozniak nine years earlier.

In light of the iPhone’s closed, appliance-style design, it is worth recounting the Mac’s early history because of the potential parallel pitfalls that Mr. Jobs and his company may face.

Despite its high price of $2,495, the Macintosh initially sold briskly. But Mr. Jobs’s early predictions of huge sales (on Tuesday, in a similar fashion, he set a goal for the iPhone 1 percent of the world’s cellular phone market, or 10 million phones a year, by the end of 2008) failed to materialize.

The Mac’s stumble was in part because of pricing and in part because Mr. Jobs had intentionally restricted its expandability. Despite his assertion that a slow data connection would be sufficient, the gamble failed when Apple’s business stalled and Mr. Jobs was forced out of the company by the chief executive he had brought in, John Sculley.

[B]In a similar fashion, Mr. Jobs is gambling that people will pay a premium ($499 or $599) for the iPhone and appears to have sought to limit its expandability.

The device is not currently compatible with the faster 3G wireless data networks that are driving sharp gains in cellular revenues in the United States, although several Apple insiders said the phone could be upgraded to 3G with software if Apple later decides to do so.

Moreover, Mr. Jobs also appears to be restricting the potential for third-party software developers to write applications for the new handset — from ringtones to word processors.

To be sure, this strategy has not limited the success of the iPod, which has become the defining hand-held consumer appliance and fashion statement in the last half-decade. The world of digital cellular phones, however, is rapidly becoming a simple extension of the world of personal computing. The leading handset makers — Microsoft, Motorola, Nokia, Palm, Research in Motion, Samsung and Sony Ericsson — are all pushing in the direction of making their devices increasingly look like PCs you can put in your pocket.

Mr. Jobs is moving in that direction, too, but it appears that he wants to control his device much more closely than his competitors.

“We define everything that is on the phone,” he said. “You don’t want your phone to be like a PC. The last thing you want is to have loaded three apps on your phone and then you go to make a call and it doesn’t work anymore. These are more like iPods than they are like computers.”

The iPhone, he insisted, would not look like the rest of the wireless industry.

“These are devices that need to work, and you can’t do that if you load any software on them,” he said. “That doesn’t mean there’s not going to be software to buy that you can load on them coming from us. It doesn’t mean we have to write it all, but it means it has to be more of a controlled environment.”

Software developers at Macworld Expo, the trade show where Mr. Jobs made the iPhone announcement, said they were taking a wait-and-see attitude about the phone. Several noted that much of the phone’s usability will depend on what added functions Apple decides to place in the version of the Safari Web browser that is part of the system.

If there is a Adobe Flash player available for the iPhone, and if it supports the Internet standards that are being widely used by the developers of a proliferating array of Web services, Apple’s decision to restrict software development may not matter.

Indeed, Mr. Jobs appears already to have made believers out of many industry analysts and independent researchers.

“He’s competing as he always has, as an integrated-consumer-device maker who lets other people deal with the rest of the stuff,” said Michael J. Kleeman, a former telecommunications industry executive who is now a researcher at the University of California, San Diego. “He gets to leverage other people’s capital investments.”

There are still a number of intriguing unanswered questions about the design of the system, and analysts said the real design of the device will not be fully comprehended until the iPhone is in users’ hands in June.

Is it a phone, a PC, or something entirely new? For instance, despite the fact that the phone has high-speed digital Wi-Fi capability built in, Mr. Jobs was coy about how that capability would be used.

During an interview on Tuesday, he said that Apple had not decided whether to enable a voice-over-Internet service like Skype — a potentially divisive issue for Cingular, the exclusive carrier for the iPhone, because it could come at the expense of cellular voice revenue.

Also, it is not clear how far Mr. Jobs will go in letting the device begin to replace the PC and Macintosh for users who have no need to sit in front of a desk or carry a portable computer.

It is possible that Apple’s chief executive has found a way to step into the chasm between the two worlds and profitably fill it.

“Apple is in a unique position to build a winning personal device that really fulfills the missing promise here,” said Michael Hawley, a software designer who is a former member of the M.I.T. faculty and a friend of Mr. Jobs.

[Oilers9911]

I remember a couple of years ago and seeing listed as a "feature" for a cell phone "real time voice communication".

You'd sure as hell hope it was a feature if you were buying that particular phone wouldn't you?

[RendeR]

RendeR no like sensationalized useless toys. RendeR no get joke RendeR SMASH!!!!!!!!



Fixed that for clarity, and for once you cracked me up John *chuckles*

[Cringer]

'Get your free iPhone, click here' adds already showing up. Nice.

[cartman]

Ten years since the announcement. Always fun to look back at these threads. :)

[digamma]

I would get fired if I tried to replace my users' blackberries with this. :)

HOW IS YOUR NEW JOB????!!!!????111

[molson]

And here's the launch reaction thread.

iPhone - Front Office Football Central (http://www.operationsports.com/fofc/showthread.php?t=59502)

[cartman]

And here's my 'alright boyz' thread

Alright boyz, here we go! Apple iPhone released - Front Office Football Central (http://www.operationsports.com/fofc/showthread.php?t=59512)

[QuikSand]

That moment when you see what you posted in an old thread... and approve.

[stevew]

that's a farging colossal phone


Lol.

[Subby]

I don't understand why all these tencho-hippy toys are always supposed to be "breaking news"

its a gizmo, get a grip.
Just your daily reminder that RendeR is, was, and always will be, stupid.

[Subby]

I would get fired if I tried to replace my users' blackberries with this. :)

Your daily reminder that Subby is, wa