Apple's iPhone Is Misnamed

As everyone now knows, the iPhone trademark is owned by Cisco. We (Cisco) had hoped to reach an agreement to share our trademark with Apple, yet they decided to use the name without our agreement, so we, unfortunately, are having to go to court to stop them from using the name. We still hope we can reach an agreement, but when your neighbor steals your property, you have no recourse other than to call the cops and file a complaint. Full Cisco statement at: http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2007/corp_011007.html

For a tick-tock and more rationale for the suit, please read our SVP and General Counsel Mark Chandler's blog entry here: http://blogs.cisco.com/news/2007/01/update_on_cisc os_iphone_tradem.html

He states, in part, "this is not a suit against Apple's innovation, their modern design, or their cool phone. It is not a suit about money or royalties. This is a suit about trademark infringement."

It is not a computer. A computer would imply that it is open with a developer's program where cross platform apps could run. It is a smartphone in a walled garden - the iGarden.

Ya got a good point there, Todd.

Perhaps this is what Palm was trying to do with the "LifeDrive" but never got the traction.

http://www.palm.com/us/products/mobilemanagers/lifedrive/

I looked into the Palm Lifedrive the last time I got a PDA, and it certainly could have been great things, but had a bad reputation for stability. Add the fact that Palm kinda stopped developing the OS a few years ago.

People complain about the features that were sacrificed to make room for the features that were incorporated, such as the small hard disk.

I think Steve's team learned from the iPod. Look how quickly and how many times the storage capacity of the iPod doubled. What did it start out as? 5GB or something?

The sacrifices he made are largely those which will be recouped as technology like data density moves ever forward, which will let us take better advantage of the features included. By 2010 we may not even be using hard drives or flash memory.

I think Apple should call it the "iCom" short for command center and communicator. What do you think Mr. Jobs?

You all are smoking Apple Dope. This is a phone, not a life changing event. Furthermore, given that it is closed, it is essentially the same as
my 1997 Nokia Phone and HP PDA. No, the HP was extensible....

Frankly, this is a decent industrial design but that's all. Plenty more innovation out there on
the phone front.

Mr. Jobs sells good Dope.

Think of the computer tablets on Star Trek Next Generation. If we don't see an 8x10 inch one of these replacing your basic iMac, call me a dope.

Open? That comes tomorrow. This is the beginning of something big.

Actually Rob, Todd is wrong Mac OS X is built in and as such the API's are most likely the same or similar. expect plenty of 3rd party applications.

I agree. Jobs actually is taking the plunge to bring the digital experience a whole lot closer. Others (Read RIM, Nokia, Palm etc.) were focusing on a narrow aspect. Apple has raised the bar of user friendliness and the kind of technology you can pack into a 135gm plastic and metal case!

From what I read, they are ushering the "digital experience" a whole lot faster and better that the others, who have been playing safe so far.

Trust me you are going to see sales of intelligent phones slowing down quite a bit.

I don't understand the motive behind the Apple company; shouldn't they have already discovered that the trademark "iPhone" is owned by Cicso prior to the news conference?

Actually, Rob was right, it is a computer, though currently running a limited OS X, it could be opened up to fuller development. And, second, the trademark infringement "lawsuit" has just as much to do with Cisco homesteading the iPhone label with what is already becoming a passe device. I agree with Rob that iPhone should be avoided. The Apple Phone, with the small Apple logo (similar to the Apple TV logo) would be the best way to identify Apple Inc. products, especially with the recent Apple corporate name... ahem.. adjustment.

I think it is wonderful that Apple has joined the fray with their offering. It means more competition, thus, better products at the end of the day for users.

I guess you can compare it to a computer, but it resembles an old 486 vs a Pentium 4. No real comparison. Let's rather call it what it is, a smart phone.

South Africa

There are so many other names for this device. It's so much more than a cell phone so why limit yourself to the iPhone name especially when you don't own the trademark. I'm guessing they tried tons of names, but nothing sounded better than iPhone

iPhone is such a square name anyway. They should have called it iPhod or iFon with one of the weird accent symbols that no one but the foreigners know how to use.

It occurred to me that maybe the "iPod Phone" or whatever you would want to call it, is not going to be called the iPhone when all is said and done. It would have been inconceivably dumb for Apple to let the name iPhone get away to the copyright office if it wanted the name. So here's my contrary theory... in the time between now and release in June, Cisco will balk and there will be alot of publicity. Then Apple will call it the iPod Phone because after all, it's an iPod not just a phone. More publicity. Publicity. Publicity. Publicity. That's Steve Jobs' middle name, isn't it?

Have you noticed that the enclosure for the iPhone doesn't mention the word iPhone at all? Perhaps that's just pending the Cisco suit, but more likely I think it's because the device, as you say, is more tablet PC than mobile phone.

Todd, Apple hasn't announced it's closed to third-party developers yet. Many other smartphones (Tréo, Windows Mobile, Symbian) sport open platforms. There's plenty of time in the next six months to announce development tools.

So it does everything my iPAQ 6515 does but less. Less buttons for controlling it and 1/100 th the programs to run on it. Yup, it’s an Apple all right.

I have the Treo 700P... all of the iphone and more... I have no desire for the iphone, the Treo700 has ALL of the iphones capabilities PLUS evdo speed... why they stuck with 2.5g is beyond me???

I don't get it.. I can already watch TV.. listen to music, take pictures, use Bluetooth, WiFi and EV-DO on my phone... How's this a "revolution?"

Hype, hype and more hype.

Great idea,iphone, it is not a phone ,it is a computer in hand

We've seen this product before. Ho-hum. They call it a phone, but really c'mon, let's call it what it really is. It's a freakin PDA. Or more specifically it's a PDA-phone. Old stuff. Nothing new there. I live in South Korea, and there's so many products here that do all the stuff this so-called iPhone can do, and they do it better, with more memory, and for a cheaper price. And what's with the button-phobia of Jobs? It's GOOD to have tactile real buttons on a phone. You are supposed to be able to operate it one-handed. Specially when texting or dialing while on the go. Duh. And who wants to wipe off greasy prints all over your shiny new 500 dollar phone every time you use it?

I’m left with the feeling that Cisco sat on the iPhone trademark, up to and including renewing their trademark filing just days prior to passing the sell by date, in the hopes of leveraging Apple, dare I say extort, into an interoperability agreement which would benefit Cisco far more than Apple. Anyone with a brain knew that Apple would do a phone and would likely call it an iPhone. Steve Jobs may be arrogant, but he isn’t dumb. Besides, he beat the Beatles. Are you saying Cisco is bigger than The Beatles? Which would make Steve bigger than… Jesus? Wow, with all these metaphors we’re going to need a scorecard. I say good for Apple, let Cisco sue. I want an iPhone.

it has a built in virtual keyboard!
with keys LARGER than that of the blackberry or palm treo's

to use it in landscape you just TURN it and it understands.. let's see your laptop do that!

"We (Cisco) had hoped to reach an agreement to share our trademark with Apple, yet they decided to use the name without our agreement"
...and an "agreement" for how much $$? Come on Cisco, admit it: you purchased the name a few years ago to get some royalties on it a few years later. Not a crime, but surprising from a company that's supposed to be made of innovators, not people living off royalties on others' (e.g., Apple) innovations.

The iPhone runs OSX, an open source OS based on BSD Unix, and Apple supports all OSX development with XCode, their FREE code development system. It is indeed a computer, and it will be very EASY for developers to write apps for iPhone. Apple is usually pretty good about providing APIs for all of their hardware and firmware technology. Open - by all means.

No, Todd does not "have a point there," since NO details on the accessibility - or lack thereof - are public at present. This is almost certainly because public documentation of APIs at this point would reveal far more about the phone's innards and workings than Apple wants to share at 5 months prior to release.

Todd *might* "have a point there" if "there" is 5+ months from now and Apple is not making APIs available. My guess is that they will, and that Todd is wrong.

Interesting point, Todd.

I have no idea at all why a computer would imply all of that, in fact, it never occurred to me that openness "defined" computer.

In fact, it doesn't.

Sorry, Mr. Earnhardt, but anyone with an IQ above room temperature knows Steve Jobs has had an oldschool phone phreak streak in him from Day One (the graphic of the iPod with the rotary telephone dial on it fits perfectly into that context) and has been itching to do something related to telephones since the beginning of Apple. Once Apple started using the names iPod and iBook and so on, it was inevitable that they would extend the branding to a phone product.

Thus it's pretty clear that Cisco is essentially engaged in trademark trolling, attempting to latch on to Apple's success and ride the coat-tails and potentially pre-empt Apple from having complete branding consistency.

That is, CIsco comes across as whiny and petty on this one.

Drop the lawsuit and stop being a trademark troll. Linksys can find a new name for its own product that's more consistent with its own branding to date. How'bout BluePhone. Make the color match all those Linksys boxes, and it even has a vaguely phone-phreakish implication to it (remember the Blue Box?).

Otherwise, if Cisco insists on hijacking Apple's brand theme, Cisco is going to take a major PR hit.

Computer:

A computer is a machine for manipulating data according to a list of instructions.

Todd is confused. Computer does not imply open, however I am sure Apple will eventually open the platform; allowing anyone with xcode to write apps will do nothing but sell more phones.

Also, this is not a traditional smartphone, which had for the most part been nothing but a phone bolted onto a PDA. This is the best iPod ever created, with a disruptive new interface for accessing ALL of your media, not just entertainment.

"We (Cisco) had hoped... http://blogs.cisco..."

Cisco is into spamming links now? How pathetic.

Eventhough Steve Job started the 'i' thing with the iMac, Cisco registered the iPhone name first therefore legally it is theirs (despite losing out in originality). What else can Apple's iPhone be called if Apple can't win the lawsuit? MacPhone? iPDA? Apple Phone? iApple? iDevice? iCall? Whatever it is, Apple can do better in coming out with a catchy name like they did when they came out with 'iPod' for their mp3 player.

I think Todd's a little off base. A computer is a machine. It performs according to programmed functions. It neither matters to the computer, or is it aware of whether or not a *programmer* wants an open platform.

As far as development goes, I think that will come in time. The thing's not even getting released until June. If they released any developer tools before they even announced the product (in the extremely competitive electronics market), they would put their product at risk.

The bright side to it all is that it's running on an OSX platform... which means that a lot of Mac developers already have the basic stuff in their toolboxes to build apps for this device.

Eric

Ho hum. Why is it that when Apple announces a new product (that they won't be shipping for six months), everybody trips all over themselves to praise it? It's a PDA phone. Big deal. Seen 'em already, for years now. Ooh, it's thin. All that says to me is "pathetic battery life." (I know they're claiming 5 hours of talk time, but when was the last time you got anywhere near what a manufacturer promised?) I'll take a thicker unit with good battery life anyday. Oh, and speaking of batteries, I like to have a spare handy just in case I'm doing a lot of talking and can't charge my phone. Oops, can't do that with the Apple, the battery is sealed inside. And when the battery dies, you get to send your phone back to Apple and pay them a ton of money to get it replaced. Lame, lame, lame.

I'm not saying you couldn't give me one...please do! I'll sell it on eBay and make a lot of money. Which I'll then spend on a usable phone, plus have a ton of money left over to buy other toys with.

Rob Hof, the whole point of the iPhone is that it doesn't have a keyboard. Why in the world would you ever want one ?

It IS a computer. Your forgetting that the word computer is a very general word.

I would like to remind you of the very first computer. MASSIVE, and all it did was add, subtract, multiply, and divide.

Dictionary.com:
Also called processor. an electronic device designed to accept data, perform prescribed mathematical and logical operations at high speed, and display the results of these operations.

As you see the iPhone could be put under this category.

Now, in regards to the iPhone itself. I believe it is a remarkable phone, and has pulled the trigger for a new generation of phones. Just like Apple had successfully done with the iPod.

About the name, I think it was slightly unprofessional for Apple to just use a name that someone (Cisco) has already claimed and paid money to copyright. There are several names that the phone could have been given, such as sPhone, iTel, iPHN (in the style of motorola).

I believe Apple has another big hit on their hands, and they will bring in loads of green on this phone. It will become just like the ipod, and replace the RAZR as the most wanted cellphone.

My two cents.

Regardless of what happens with Cisco suit, Apple's new gizmo will forever be known as the iPhone. Mission accomplished.

John why are you talking about your suit against Apple? Nobody cares. Why would we read your link? Who cares if you win and Apple has to change the name or pay you bags? Just why?

Whatever happen to Mr. Jobs! The moment the computer really becomes the perfect machine, they decide to strip it off their own name --Apple Inc., Who?-- and start creating new names for the device everyboody is been working on but they are the first ones to get: the Universal Device, A.K.A, the computer. You are right: it is missnamed. Now they are in problems looking for a new word when they should stick to the one they already got right: iPod. That should be the name for the device they pretend to name iPhone today. They got it perfect the first time. With it we officially arrive to the era of ubiquitous information on an individual basis: a handheld computer connected wireless to the world with the perfect interface: no keys, but a screen that can become everything: the perfect Black box. And what a cool look!

They can use the name EyePhone instead of Iphone, because it creates shines in eye when anyone looks at it.

malimeer@gmail.com

I saw the phone and am lusting for it. After years of verizon's nickle and time clunky software on a motorola razr--- I can't wait!!

The first think I did this morning is google ways of getting out of my contract.

My last machine lust was in 2001, for the ibook duel usb. This is better.

Having the ability to browse, read e-mail, listen to music, and watch videos has been quite awhile a standard feature in many leading phone vendors' products, even in many "non-smart" Nokia Series 40 phones. However, there has been no hurry in the press to call those as computers. So if Steve Jobs likes to to call his creation a phone, let's do as he wishes and compare them accordingly.

I saw Jobs' keynote and a lot of patting Apple on the back. iPhone is a weak name, not worth fighting over.

The whole "i" prefix is overdone, like "e" was in 1998.

I suggest a new name: "MyPod" (you heard it here first)

BTW: take a look at the Zune R&D lab:

http://www.realityadz.com/view_video.php?viewkey=b408017b62254211691b

Have fun.

Wow. I think Hof's reaction is poorly stated and not well thought out. "A freakin computer!" As others have pointed out... we don't really know what that means and so what? My Palm Pilot 1000, Blackberry, 25 year old HP 10c, and Axim x50v are all computers and all enjoyed varying levels of success for different reasons.

The only things we know about Apple's iPhone that make it compelling at this point are iTunes and entertainment content. Maybe it will succeed on these merits alone as an uber-iPod that has a little more utility.

Beyond its "iPodness" it's difficult to say what will drive its success. I'm not convinced that they will need to open it up for third party developers as they've done pretty well with their culture of design strength and technical propriety. They will, however, need a solid corporate email client, good performance as a phone, and reasonably good durability and quality for the iPhone to be successful.

At this point, the device is a total unknown and not worthy of the level of enthusiasm it's received.

It's Very Late Dude........ It Became a History....Even If Apple will change the Brand Name to something like iCom or iCell still people will call it iPhone.

It would seem that the only innovation Cisco is capable of is squatting on a catchy name. The Linksys phone is just another dull piece of plastic that blends in with the rest of the boring cell phones.

"But finally, you can get a glimpse of how one day you might actually be able to carry your digital life in your pocket."...ummm, you've been able to do that for years...on the Pocket PC platform. Yes, the Apple phone (iPhone is a Cisco trademark and product) has definitely set the bar for the next level of handheld computers that are also phones, but there's no core functionality here that hasn't been in PPC phones for literally years now. Don't get me wrong, if this phone lives up to the demos, it's incredible, but it's the next step in an existing market not an innovation.
I can't wait to see what this does to push forward the design of the next models.

It is a computer. Since when did having to be an open system become a requirement for that? Besides, we still don't know if Apple will post SDKs for the phone yet or not. Cross-platform apps? How much Mac software can XP or Vista run? Apple's Widgets are pretty much based on JavaScript, HTML, and CSS - all those technologies are pretty open and documented on Apple's Developer Connection web site.

Well if you call iphone a "COMPUTER" then there are already many available with Windows and Symbian OS which already do a great job at what iphone is claiming to. Nokia, HP, Motorola, Samsung, Blackberry already have products to get the job done. I dont know what the author is trying to point to here!!!! any guesses!!!!

Rob, if you call the the Apple iPhone, a "freaking computer", i guess you have never ever seen a computer at all :D

i wish BW.com, would at least proof read articles before putting them on the net.

Nothing new here folks. Look at the Ipaq phones that have been around for years.

"The thing's a freaking computer!" Why are you so excited? How exactly is that different from Microsoft based Smartphones? Or a PDA with a phone built in (e.g. XDA) Apple now has a competing device but does it have a competing set of developers tools, documentation and support. The device is but a small part of the puzzle. Sure it's "cool" but that's just what Apple does well. So many questions remain unanswered.

mediavidea asks 8 questions about the importance of the iPhone. Is the iPhone really a revolution?
http://mediavidea.blogspot.com/2007/01/apples-iphone-8-important-issues.html

Should have named it "iMobile"...wait, sounds too similar to T-mobile right?

A computer is an electronic device that runs software (ok, there's more to it ... but for simple purposes). Just because YOU aren't allowed to write programs for it doesn't mean it's not a computer. The thing boots with an OS and is subsequently able to run any number of applications (programs) written for it. It has multiple communications busses and a nice pool of RAM in addition to a large capacity storage.

They should call it the "iZone", rendering the Zune and the iPhone nom de guerre useless.

This DOES work as a computer, because in households like mine, I'd rather have this than a second computer. Why? It's a phone, it is a nice way to browse articles like this online, and it's a great way to listen to music in the car/office.

With the web browser, you have all the third party apps you need! I am troubled at reports that it won't run java or flash, but with all that storage space, I assume this will be added in sooner or later.

John ...

Go ahead and tell me with a STRAIGHT face that Cisco using the name Iphone, wasn't a marketing idea to take advantage of the "I" apple has put on all it's products that have all had tremendous success.

So ... I guess Cisco wouldn't have minded the ''I '' rubbing off on them ...

Cisco beleived that adding the I would maybe make people associate their Iphone to other cool APPLE MADE I products ...

to claim that apple stole your property is VERY deceptive ...

Apple is obviously going to prove this in court ... so obviously you guys are hoping on an out of court arrangement ...

Well ...

who knows, maybe you'll get a drop of wine from the bottle Apple is drinking ...

But don't be a hypocrite ...

Yes, as many commenters note, this is hardly the first mobile computer. My point was that I'm betting Apple has much more in mind here than the iPhone name implies.

There are so many comments her to the effect "my _______ already does that", but it is clear that (1) none of those making the comments are at Macworld and have seen it in person, and (2) most have probably never used a Mac.

The reason people get excited is because Apple has proven that they can make products that perform the same functions that exising products do, but do them much BETTER. Baed on the premium price, you can apply a term from economics and say that Apple's products deliver more "satisfaction", and thus justify their higher prices.

For anyone to rebut comments from writers that are reporting from Macworld or have otherwise seen the iPhone in person is just stupid, as the value of Apple's products only becomes evident through use, not just a list of features.

By the way, my paper rolodex, dial phone, typewriter, calculator, and paper filing cabinet could accomplish most of the same functions as a laptop, PDA or cell phone, but what has more value?

They should call it the iWant. This device truly is a game-changer. The hype is organic.

Jobs has already said that they won't be allowing 3rd party software because they don't want anything that happens on the iPhone to jeopardize the "phone" capability of the device, and because they don't want it to be "unlockable."

We won't be seeing APIs for this any time soon.

search for David Pogue. on his blog he's answered some questions, well, here they are:

Can it be used with anything but Cingular? –No.

Is it an “unlocked” phone, so I can use it with a carrier other than Cingular? –No.

Will there be a non-Cingular version? –Not within the first two years.

Can I put my T-Mobile SIM card in it instead of Cingular? –No.

But what if I keep asking? Then will it be available beyond Cingular? –No.

Can it run Mac OS X programs? –No.

Can I add new programs to it? –No. Apple wants to control the look and feel and behavior of every aspect of the phone.

Does it run programs from Palm, Symbian, Windows? –No.

Does it connect to iChat? –No.

Does it have games? –No.

Is it ambidextrous? –No.

Does it have GPS? –No.

Voice recognition? Voice dialing? Voice memos? –No, although this could change by June when the phone ships.

Does it get onto the HSDPA (3G) high-speed Internet network that Cingular has rolled out in a few cities? –No. But Steve Jobs said a later version of the iPhone will — once there’s enough HSDPA coverage in this country to justify it.

Does the Web browser support Flash or Java? –No.

Will it play music over Bluetooth? –Unknown.

Can you change the battery yourself? –No. You’ll have to send the phone in to Apple for battery replacement, just as with the iPods.

Can it open Word and Excel documents? –No. (Steve Jobs says it can open PDF files, though.)

Can you use it one-handed? –Yes, for some functions. But overall, it’s less convenient than on a phone with physical keys.

Can I make a call while driving a car? –Not as easily as on a regular cellphone with programmed speed-dial keys. (Besides–MUST you?)

Does the camera record video? –Not yet. Apple may add this feature by June.

Does it connect to standard iPod accessories like car docks and speaker systems? –Yes!

Does it work overseas? –Yes. It’s a quad-band GSM phone, meaning you can use it in almost any country (for an added fee, of course).

Is there a Verizon version? –NO!!!!

Will they make a non-cellphone version–a widescreen touch iPod? –Nobody knows. Apple doesn’t leak product info until it’s good and ready.

That scrolling through lists thing is glitzy, but what if I have 3,000 names in my address book? –There’s also an alphabet “index tab” down the right side of the screen, so you can jump to another spot in the list.

Is there a calendar? –Yes.

Will it sync with Outlook? –No.

What about airplane use? –It has a airplane mode (wireless off), just like any cellphone.

Won’t the screen get smudgy? –It does, but you don’t see it except when the screen is off. The one I played with was pretty streaky, but wiping it on my sleeve cleaned it completely.

I saw Job's keynote address and what struck me was how revolutionary the user interface was when you compare it to other devices in the marketplace. Job's probably only scratched the service of what's possible with this new device. The iPhone is going to change the phone in much the same way as iPod has for music devices. I for one am looking forward to seeing how Apple leverages the iPhone's technology in other products.

BIG DEAL!!!, lot of phones(eg. SMT 5600,TMob- Dash) have the features of the iPhone even before the idea of iPhone was conceived by Apple. But the hype design and UI(in ways revolutionary) is what is going to drive people crazy for this phone.

iComm is a better name because of the communication, voice, wireless, synching features of the device. iMedia may be suitable as well...likely product will likely spawn Apple TV feature sets. The OS X OS is a stronger development platform than the PC has even! It might be my next desktop...

The Cisco suit brings a lot of public support behind Apple so it's not all bad. Joe Public really doesn't like to see an innovative company like Apple slowed down in the legal arena by slow moving, less skilled peers. I hope the roll out isn't slowed too much.

Apple's New Phone is a SPECIAL TELEPHONE for ELECTRONIC MUSIC. Last time i looked, apples have stems. hmmm. name... sound byte recognition,
cache, an APPLE STEM CELL.

an APPLE STEM CELL....

(of course, blackberries have stems too...
but that's a thorny issue...)

-Chuck Darling

Okay, here's the new name if Apple loses in court:
iPodphone

Have I missed something? If SJ & Apple were negotiating a royalty contract for the CSCO iPhone trademark, isn't that defacto an admission that the mark belongs to CSCO?

I think Apple would be fully justified in just calling this device iPod. They already have had a number of iterations on the iPod theme over the years - music player, photo viewer, video player, not to mention game machine and contact list.

I also like the name iPod for what it implies. For instance, in the aerospace world, a pod is a specialized detachable part of a spacecraft, used for carrying personnel and instruments. In other words, it is the miniature version of the mother ship. I've always thought that was a good analogy for what the iPod was: a portable version of the mother ship (a.k.a. Mac/PC). Really, this phone is just the next, leap-frog version of the iPod. So why not go with the name?

The iPhone (or whatever it will end up being called) will NEVER be as successful as the iPod for the following reasons:

1. Apple can sell the iPod to practically anyone on the planet. But for the iPhone, they can only sell to those who are on the GSM network. It alienates half of the population. It further alienates more people by giving exclusive to at&t (Cingular is rebranded as at&t).

2. iPhone has no 3G. Big mistake.

3. iPhone will not be available for sale until this summer. In the technology world, it is a very long time. I believe before the end of this year (or maybe sooner), the Asian manufactures will come out with similar devices at half the price.

For your information, I, as well as many of the PDA Phone users, am carrying a mini-computer already. I have the Verizon XV6700 and can do everything the iPhone can...ONE YEAR AGO. Yes, the iPhone has a different UI, but besides that, nothing is new.

If I have to get another phone, I would rather get the XV6800 than the iPhone.

Apple has got all the right to use their well earned brand name and their huge consumer loyalty built upon their macs and ipods and software. From this standpoint, the iPhone is nothing but a necessary step for the company. The question is why it didn't produce such a product before.
Furthermore, Apple has demonstrated how to be successful where others have not. When the mp3 music format got to the masses and became the No. 1 compression format for audio files, Apple recognized the people's desire to carry much more music than a few cds, instead a hard drive with thousands of songs. Apple saw this and gave the people a simple yet elegant little gadget they could carry around with them.
Apple was good at recognizing people wanted more music, more battery life, more portability for their media.
Apple did it while Sony and other consumer electronic giants were sleeping.
Then Apple came up with their online music store first too.
And then they convinced us that we could watch movies in a little screen too. Many people didn't think it possible, yet it is now a reality. And Apple sells movies online too.

Apple serves their customers well by producing the iphone, so that they can get all they have with the iPod already, but in very nice phone. Many Apple brand consumers will likely by the product simply because they have felt comfortable using Apple's products already.

Apple is only taking advantage of the power of their brand and their consumer loyalty, it's an asset many companies would like to have.

I agree with Mr. Hof, way too many people are missing what this iPhone really is. I won't go into details on everything that this phone can do,but I will point out that there is no other cell or smartphone that can delivery the Internet in the same way a desktop can, (none!), except this one.. And just that capability, in my opinion, will make the iPhone a winner. Step back a little, take a good look at this phone and the things it will be able to do,and you will realize, the phone has just been reinvented.

I think it was a nice move for apple to come out with the apple iPhone. The iPhone has most features consumers have been waiting to have. I also think the price will not deter people from buying the Apple iPhone. I even think they will sell more than the 10 million Apple iPhones they expect to sell within the next year.

I agree with sferris that the interface is what is revolutionary about the iphone. It is the future of how we will interact with computers.

iPhone....hiPhone..iPhoney....whatever, Apple is a super company with great ideas and I believe this is another one...well maybe..I have been using a Qtek 9100 for a while now and features wise....the iPhone is not even halfway there, but like Motorola's RAZR features are not what drives the consumer market..it's glitz and glimmer and I believe Apple is on the right track..the PDA..yep PDA known as iPhone is very attractive and I believe given Apple's reputation for quality I think the iPhone is a great marketing idea.

On a sore note:

On a realy hot day, my PDA phone's screen suffers badly from my sweaty face being pressed against the screen when I make a call (especially in those crowded areas where the noise level is high!!!!... I just can't seem to keep it clean...).not to mention my finger prints all over the screen (I kinda was ahead of Apple with the use of the fingers (finger nail) rather than the stylus to control iPDA!!!).

If you are wondering where I am going with this then consider me with an iPhone on a hot day jamming to some iTunes,pausing to chat to an iFriend and fighting with iSweat.

I just purchased a stud finder to hang pictures and what not and its brand name is the Zircon "iSensor(R)", so perhaps the negative commenters here should question Zircon's iSensor name as well? : )

As you may now know, Cisco is letting Apple use the iPhone name and we both agreed to collaborate on interoperability between our products, so, in my book, everybody wins. Keiretsu at its finest.

More info on the iSensor: http://www.zircon.com/SellPages/ScanAndSensor/ScanAndSensor/ScanAndSensor-iSensors.html

apple i phone is very handy and easy to oprate cell so its very very gud mobile . thanks regd capt nadeem wahaj karachi pakistan

Apple iphone will definitly change the way business is done. now you dont need to go to a computer to check emails, browse web, see for directons or print them out.

you dont need to go to a compute to check wiki or instantly check product prices. it does 90% of the simplified tasks a human does on the computer except complicated spread sheets and word documents.

Soon we will live in a different world

iPhone....hiPhone..iPhoney....whatever, Apple is a super company with great ideas and I believe this is another one...well maybe..I have been using a Qtek 9100 for a while now and features wise....the iPhone is not even halfway there, but like Motorola's RAZR features are not what drives the consumer market..it's glitz and glimmer and I believe Apple is on the right track..the PDA..yep PDA known as iPhone is very attractive and I believe given Apple's reputation for quality I think the iPhone is a great marketing

think it was a nice move for apple to come out with the apple iPhone. The iPhone has most features consumers have been waiting to have. I also think the price will not deter people from buying the Apple iPhone. I even think they will sell more than the 10 million Apple iPhones they expect to sell within the next year.

It is a computer. Since when did having to be an open system become a requirement for that? Besides, we still don't know if Apple will post SDKs for the phone yet or not. Cross-platform apps? How much Mac software can XP or Vista run? Apple's Widgets are pretty much based on JavaScript, HTML, and CSS - all those technologies are pretty open and documented on Apple's Developer Connection web site

It is a computer. Since when did having to be an open system become a requirement for that? Besides, we still don't know if Apple will post SDKs for the phone yet or not. Cross-platform apps? How much Mac software can XP or Vista run? Apple's Widgets are pretty much based on JavaScript, HTML, and CSS - all those technologies are pretty open and documented on Apple's Developer Connection web site

People complain about the features that were sacrificed to make room for the features that were incorporated, such as the small hard disk.

I think Steve's team learned from the iPod. Look how quickly and how many times the storage capacity of the iPod doubled. What did it start out as? 5GB or something?

The sacrifices he made are largely those which will be recouped as technology like data density moves ever forward, which will let us take better advantage of the features included. By 2010 we may not even be using hard drives or flash memory

iam useing apple iphone 3gs its is very nice and practical mobile browsing speed is very fast