People Come Out in Droves to Line-up for iPhone on Apple's 'iDay';
Too Early to Tell How History will View/Record June 29th, 2007
| by Joe Leo, Columnist |
A 'GIANT' iPHONE: An employee from San Francisco's Westfield Shopping Center takes a visit to the Apple Store on his 15-minute break, almost in awe of the huge iPhone on display in the window. We'd say that only in San Francisco would you find an iPhone on steroids--get it?--but all Apple Stores have these huge iPhone mock-ups on display. (Shoot, if Apple sold those models, we'd camp out for two weeks just to get our hands on one! Wonder what size that would come in... 500 GB and 1 TB?). [PHOTO: ©2007, J. Leo]
continued... from: previous page
So what of that future customer base? The majority of Windows-based PC users who are still PC users, but slowly getting a taste of the Mac culture? Well, we get a little taste of that ourselves.
Contreras and Perez say they're not Mac users and the only thing they have right now from Apple are iPods--and now, an iPhone--with Contreras owning an iPod video (which you know already) and Perez, a nano. When asked about possibly making the full switch over to the Mac platform, they both said they might, Perez adding that he's always wanted a Mac notebook.
At least, it's a start.
Since they're PC users, we wanted an unbiased take on Apple changing the game (market) with the iPhone--which by the way, was an early birthday gift from Perez to Contreras, and since they're at AT&T (Cingular Wireless), could only get one--and they both seemed to agree that Apple is on target. "It's the new thing... music, sharing, [the digital lifestyle]."
On the iPhone itself and what it has going for it as a stand-alone product, Davis at the Apple Store says, "My sense is, like other Mac products, it's simplicity of use / ease of use. I think it's going to have an impact, but it won't take away from the Blackberry market (yet). The platform will be hard to copy [but Apple(?)] will build upon it over time."
He adds, "Eventually, it's the way the industry will go."
Though from different computing backgrounds, one PC the other Mac, all three first-in-liners from Bay Street, Emeryville agreed on one thing during the course of the interview. Remember, they were on opposite sides of the street and interviewed at different times.
"It's totally different from anything else out there," say Contreras, Perez, and Davis.
[We'll post more pictures from our coverage of "iDay" either later today or later this week.]
Ad: Compare iPhone prices at MacPrices. Prices, calling plans, resellers, and coupons. Now on sale! Current promotion: $50 off iPhones from AT&T and free shipping from Apple!