| by Joe Leo, Columnist | November 17, 2006 |
continued... from: previous page
Ratigan's second guest, also from Apple's side of the court (that's why we think CNBC made a mistake in acquiring two guests from the same side because it didn't allow for unbiased analysis from both fronts), was Arnold Kim, founder of the news site, MacRumors.com.
Kim's response seemed to hit the nail on the head. He mentioned that there were mp3 players on the market long before the iPod came out, but because of Apple's innovation and approach, "...they stormed the market..." and now command it, having turned out a winning product and model in the end that consumers can't get enough of.
Innovation at the heart, things that set it apart from the competition. Apple's feather in their hat. The double-edged sword.
The MacRumors.com founder was confident that the "iPhone" could do the same, so as long as it was able to follow the same model that Apple used with its iPod product line. This answer satisfied CNBC's Ratigan, and at that point, that was the final thought which ended the segment.
End of story. Well, not really, but turning over now to PBCentral.com's analysis.
Remember, we said in another article that innovation is what drives Apple and puts them at the top of their game when compared to the competition. Arnold Kim of MacRumors.com corroborates this fact in his analysis and answer to CNBC's Dylan Ratigan. If Apple plays their cards right, they will also be successful again with their new "iPhone" product, provided that it is driven by that "innovation factor."
AppleInsider.com reports that the "iPhone" will arrive in early 2007 and that it will sport a two megapixel digital camera underneath. They even go so far as to call it "Apple's iPod cell phone" inferring that it will truly be an iPod from the inside out, something CNBC's Ratigan brought up during the commentary portion of their Apple segment (on how this phone will be nothing more than another iPod on the market).
"If you build it, will they come?" Do people want to buy a cell phone built around an iPod, that also has a digital camera in it? ("Been there, done that").
Without taking sides here, let's point out that there are already products on the market from various companies such as Samsung, Motorola, and Sanyo-- just to name a few --which have those three things rolled into one: a cell phone that plays music and takes pictures/video clips as well.
As Ratigan was quoted earlier in this story, "What's the innovation?" What will make this new product sell? More importantly, WILL it sell? No one, from PBCentral.com to Apple themselves, has the answer to that last question yet. Though, we'll argue that Apple knows and has that answer to the first question. The innovation.
Two words here: Newton and Cube. Remember those? Probably only die-hard Mac aficionados. (Though, the latter we think everyone will remember). These were two products on both ends of the spectrum.
The Newton, Apple's PDA product, was an innovative invention but did not sell very well and failed. It was an idea ahead of its time (funny, look at how PDAs are regarded today). People reading this now probably don't even know what we're talking about.
With the PowerMac G4 Cube, which was "oooohed and ahhhed" when it debuted, was the smallest computer Apple had ever produced before the Mac mini came out. It packed a PowerMac G4 tower into a small, well, cube. It was a sight to behold. But...
As innovative and awesome as it looked? The product failed too. (The double-edged sword).