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Okay, let me say that I don't have any real information.But I'm convinced that Apple will get into the mobile phone business within the next 18 months.
Why? Well, there's some logic, and there's also some amateur psychology involved as well. First it just makes sense. Apple is making a ton of money off of the iPod. They've already made that first step into the consumer products category and have seen how successful it has been for them. The iPod mini is really close in form factor to a modern mobile phone, so the experience in designing and building a new device like that could be used as Apple wades into the mobile phone market. Those are the logical thoughts. They're already making the iPod, a phone isn't that much of a leap (sorta), so it just makes sense, right?
The psychology part is this: Steve Jobs has a mobile phone. I'm not sure which mobile phone it is, but he's definltely got one. And he hates it. He curses at it every day. He hates it like he hated the original IBM PC. He hates how hard it is to add contacts and make calls and he cringes at the web experience and the Java games, if he's even bothered to try them. He holds it in his hand during long trips and admires some things about it, but knows *he could do it better.* He knows that if Apple decided to make a mobile phone, it would be the most intuitive and elegant mobile phone in the world. And he wants that phone. And what Steve Jobs wants, Steve Jobs gets. Not much to argue here.
Okay, so the problems are many of course. Apple has no experience in the mobile business, and not only is the technology tricky to get right (we all know of popular phones that *suck* at sound quality and drop calls all the time, even from big manufacturers), but the business is cut throat as well. Getting your mobile phone out there means making deals with carriers and competing with giants like Nokia, Motorola, Samsung and Sony Ericsson.This is no easy trick.
Unless of course you partnered with one of those established players. Now this is the big question: Would Apple be willing to create a device which shares a logo from another company? Steve admires Sony quite a bit and any comparisions made between Apple and Sony seems to make him happy. However, I'm sure he sees them as a direct threat to his business, so I doubt he'll partner with them (even though Sony Ericsson phones have been the ones used in the iSync images for years now). I think the deal with Motorola to let them play iTunes music on new Moto phones is the key to this. Motorola is run by an Apple alum, is an American company known for its technology prowess, but doesn't have any competing products to Apple. It seems like a perfect fit. Apple iPhone, powered by Motorola technology. Can you see it?
On the other hand... If little PalmSource can create new phones on demand for its new Cobalt OS from Asian white-label electronics manufacturers, then why couldn't Apple? I'm sure they could buy the same integrated chipsets from Texas Instruments or Qualcomm as anyone else does, develop the same wireless networking stacks they need or buy them from Linux vendors like MontaVista, and port them to a small version of OSX. What Apple can't build, they buy. That's what they did with the iPod - the OS inside was created by a company called Pixo.
But here's another prediction: Apple's penchant for not going with the status quo (think PowerPC chips) makes me think they'll go with CDMA technologies first - ostensibly due to the superior call quality and data rates. Apple calls up Qualcomm, asks for the chipsets and the software stacks to get them going, makes a deal with Sprint and Verizon (who'd be insane to say no) to launch their phones and poof: instant iPhone.
Suddenly Symbian and Microsoft have a viable competitor to their platforms. That is if Apple decides a smart phone is the right way to go - they may reject it as unneeded complexity. But let's assume they realize the value in creating a powerful mobile platform. A phone that's as elegant and easy to use as an iPod, but with advanced services provided by perfect integrated synching with Mac.com and your PC. Add a little magic sauce like an integrated 4GB drive and iTunes integration, or something I can't even think of yet, and you have a massive hit. Over night, the high-end for mobile phones would evaporate. There'd be all the other guys fighting over the $99 or less freebies you get at your local phone shop, and then there'd be Apple lording over the premium mobile market. Much like they've done with the iPod over the past several years.
Do you see it? I bet a group at Apple is furiously working on this now, but running into a million headaches, so it'll be another year or more before it happens. Even experienced manufacturers like Nokia take 18 months to launch a new smart phone. Maybe it'll be announced during early 2006, ready for the market in Christmas at the end of that year. It would rock if it was sooner, but regardless, I'm convinced it's going to happen. Apple can't help but see the opportunities for a huge mobile phone hit, and Jobs isn't going to be willing to use a smart phone from any company besides his own.
Just my predictions... your thoughts?
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Posted: 2004-12-02 14:50:21
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There was an apple proto once.
This message was posted from a T68
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Posted: 2004-12-02 14:53:32
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Say hello to the exact same idea... even down to the words!!!
http://www.russellbeattie.com/notebook/1008182.html
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Posted: 2004-12-02 15:21:50
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On 2004-12-02 15:21:50, JoolsG4 wrote:
Say hello to the exact same idea... even down to the words!!!
http://www.russellbeattie.com/notebook/1008182.html
Yep thats where i got it from!
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Posted: 2004-12-02 15:23:23
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I thought you were trying to pass it off as your own idea by not quoting your sources and editing it here and there!!!
Steve Jobs Says There'll Be No Apple PDA
By Ed Hardy | Editor-in-Chief
Jun 8, 2004
Apple's CEO Steve Jobs spoke at yesterday's D: All Things Digital conference where he said once again that his company
isn't going to release a handheld or smartphone.
Apple's Newton line of handhelds were some of the first on the market, and the company's CEO John Sculley even coined the term "PDA." But the computer maker withdrew from the handheld market in 1998. However, at least once a year a rumor circulates that Apple is going to release a new line of handhelds to replace the Newton.
A new round of rumors started up in December, and in February a description of a supposed upcoming Apple handheld was published by Mac NET v2.
Yesterday, however, Mr. Jobs made it clear that Apple isn't planning to release a handheld. According to AppleInsider, he said that he is proud of both the products that his company has shipped, and is also proud of the ones it has decided not to ship, including an Apple PDA.
When someone in the audience asked for an Apple smartphone similar to the palmOne Treo 600, Mr. Jobs told the person he should just be happy with his Treo.
Not the First Denial
Yesterday's events are almost a mirror image of what happened a year ago. At last year's D: All Things Digital conference Mr. Jobs was asked about his company's plans for for portable devices, at which time he said
Apple was going to concentrate on making on making the Macintosh OS be able to synchronize with portable devices through its iSync software, rather than making a device of its own.
While Apple won't be a making a handheld per se, its iPod line of MP3 players offers many of the features handhelds do, like the ability to store and display contacts, calendar, and to-do lists. In addition, the latest version comes with a text reader and three games. However, the iPod doesn't have a touch screen or keyboard so users can't enter data directly into it. This must be synchronized from a desktop or laptop.
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This message was posted from a Mac
[ This Message was edited by: JoolsG4 on 2004-12-02 14:27 ]
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Posted: 2004-12-02 15:27:10
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hey it sounds good. have always been a great fan of Apple MAC. and the way Apple works it tastes as sweet as it is.
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Posted: 2004-12-02 15:27:40
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On 2004-12-02 15:27:10, JoolsG4 wrote:
I thought you were trying to pass it off as your own idea by not quoting your sources and editing it here and there!!!
My intention is never to pass off something as my own!..I edit some of the articles to make the discussion more understandable and relevant to the threads!I don't think its a big secret here that how i post my articles!..Suppose it is better that i should quote my sources and add a link to keep people like you happy!
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Posted: 2004-12-02 15:47:32
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axxxr is doing us a favor here by delivering these interesting reports, so can we just drop that, please.
About the Apple mobile phone, I think it's a very logical thing to do. They can continue with the successful trend they started with iMac and iPod. Everybody knows they make quality products so there'll be no problem convincing people. Looks like my wish for a smartphone with mobile MacOS will come true soon.
I'll be waiting...
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Posted: 2004-12-03 02:20:58
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On 2004-12-02 14:50:21, axxxr wrote:
They're already making the iPod, a phone isn't that much of a leap
I always thought of you as someone who knew something about phones...
The only thing similar between an iPod mini and a phone is it's size...
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Posted: 2004-12-03 11:49:51
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On 2004-12-03 11:49:51, Krubach wrote:
I always thought of you as someone who knew something about phones...
The only thing similar between an iPod mini and a phone is it's size...
By no means am i assuming that the ipod and a phone have any similarity!...We live in the age of convergance,so we could see a ipod with phone!Basically all im saying is that it would'nt be difficult or a big deal for that matter for Apple to produce a phone..And as boba said apple apparantly had a working prototype at some point!...But i am very confident in the fact that we will see a mobile from Apple at some point in the near future!...or maybe even sooner!
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Posted: 2004-12-03 13:33:25
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