There have been a few articles recently asking whether or not Apple upgraded the iPhone “enough” with the release of the 3G iPhone.
It’s a valid question, but when I review everything that’s happened in the past year, I’d have to say yes for now.
We need to compare what get with the new model that we didn’t have in the original and it’s true that the list is relatively short:
-
3G data connectivity
-
Integrated GPS
As far as anyone’s been able to tell, the rest of the hardware architecture remains unchanged. There’s no OLED, there’s no Wi-Max, no 802.11n, no 5MP camera, no \insert dream feature here\. So I guess from one point of view we have the right to be disappointed.
On the other hand there’s one very important feature that can’t go unremarked: The price was cut in half. I see that as a very attractive feature that would have been impossible to accomplish if they were busily loading up the iPhone with a stack of new hardware components.
As it stands, Apple went directly to the core (sorry) of the complaints and addressed them. You want high speed wireless access? Got it. You want a true location aware features? Got it. Everything else is software and we’ve got that too.
Now the rest of the features they’ve been feverishly working on are all software and as such both v1 and v2 iPhones benefit. That’s another feature that’s worth reflecting on.
Apple has just sent a very clear message: This is a platform worth investing in. We will continue to develop upgrades for your investment unlike the pile of traditional phones that need to be replaced with every major Windows Mobile upgrade since the firmware is simply unable to cope with the new version.
Your current iPhone is not a throwaway investment. It’s still perfectly viable and you are going to get a pile of new features for free.
This is also perfectly in keeping with Apple’s strategy of moving conservatively and in manageable increments while moving into new markets. The iPhone is a remarkably stable generation one platform and Apple needs to push this product out with a reputation for reliability for at least two years before they can do anything truly risky that might compromise the device. So I don’t expect anything earth shatteringly new over the next 18 months from the iPhone. Product [RED]? Highly probable. Video-conferencing? Doubtful until they get buy in from the telcos who’s networks will take the pummelling.
The next year, two years is going to be all about growing the platform first and foremost.