Its alive! Its alive! You can almost hear CEO Steve Jobs yelling from the back of a dimly lit lab at Apple headquarters. While his masterpiece has been created and is in his infant stages, he, like Dr. Frankenstein, may have created a monster.
Let me rephrase that, your PR and advertising people may have created a monster. Becoming the most anticipated device this side of the Milky Way, any glitches or minor issues experienced by first-generation iPhone users are sure to cause more than a little indigestion for people who have shelled out part of their pension to buy the computer. hand. and change service provider.
Most iPhone doubters are immediately retracted by some Apple fan who points to the iPod as an indicator of the iPhone’s assured success faster than Newton can say, the return of the common iPhone doubter. However, both arguments take a backseat to another catchphrase: first generation. While the iPod may be more popular than Luke Perry in the early ’90s, let’s not forget that it was, at best, a cast member of Surreal Life before it was introduced to Windows and its problems on the Internet were resolved. later generations.
Where the problems in the first generation iPod and the potential problems in the first generation iPhone differ is the fact that there were essentially no expectations for the original iPod. From what we knew, it was another attempt at a decent mp3 player by a computer company that had lost its luster over the years, and little else. The iPhone, on the other hand, has become a cultural phenomenon. As you read this very article, there’s no doubt that a group of techies are gathering food and supplies to stock their tent for the next three and a half days outside in the heat in front of an Apple store.
You can imagine the joy they’ll feel when they fill their cellophane-wrapped cardboard box with the heirloom they’ve been wanting for the past six months. Unfortunately for Apple, you can also see the disappointment on their faces when any minor item on the device doesn’t live up to expectations or has a glitch; and for someone who has been psyching up for that moment for several months, there is at least one element that is sure to disappoint.
It’s very possible, some would say likely, that Apple will come up with a very good phone. But very good, frankly, is not good enough. Apple has put its baby on a pedestal that can’t afford only good reviews. In the words of Wayne Campbell (of Wayne’s World and SNL), what the iPhone should do is “Something extraordinary. Something big. Something mega. Something copious. Something spacious. Something cajunga!” to meet the expectations of millions of Americans who have already expressed interest in adding it to their mobile repertoire.
With reviewers salivating at the chance to boo and applaud the “second coming” of mobile, chances are we’ll find out by Friday night whether the iPhone is a hit or will replace Screech as the bad boy. on the upcoming season of Celebrity Fit Club.