The Economist magazine, which usually is very perceptive about global business, takes a divergent path by offering a hollow analysis of the Apple iPhone in its article “Apple pipped: The iPhone may already be outdated” [From Economist.com dated 13 April 2007. I sum up their argument as based solely on the data bandwidth of the phone, in the short term slower GSM (Cingular’ EDGE) versus the Helio Ocean (VE-DO).
It is noteworthy that The Economist spends their last four paragraphs discussing WiMAX, which is far from an option–much less a market winner, for many years. Although various MVNO (Multiple Virtual Network Operator) wireless providers may capture future market share, it seems unlikely that Earthlink (the service provider of the Helio has an upper hand.
The Economist seems to forget that music resides on home computers and laptops, synchronized to a mobile device, such as an iPod or mobile phone. They seem to forget that mobile telephone use is still dominated (and may continue to be dominated) by low-bandwidth services, such a voice calls and Instant Messaging (IM) or Short Messaging Service (SMS).
I am a big fan of rapid response time and a subscriber to the Economist, but this article is off the mark. It is almost as if the authors don’t understand how people use mobile phones – and I mean even the “young trendsetters who appreciate the ease of use and cutting-edge design.”
I am certain that I would enjoy an Apple iPhone, but I am pleased with both my mobile telephone, a Nokia N80, and wireless carrier, T-Mobile, despite the lower GSM bandwidth. Find the article at:
http://www.economist.com/daily/columns/techview/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9022169
