That’s right; Apple has unleashed a 30 minute infomercial for the (allegedly) highly anticipated release of the new iPhone 3G. The infomercial features a fittingly dorky looking guy in a black shirt explaining all of the “revolutionary” features of this “revolutionary” new gizmo. (BTW—If you had a nickel for every time this guys uses the word “revolutionary” you’d be as rich as…well…not Steve Jobs. But you could probably afford an iPhone. The monthly bill, however, is another story).
Although this lengthy ode to GPS, touchscreens and mobile email will likely inspire pornographic levels of excitement among techies eager to stand in line overnight for the pleasure of forking over a few hundred dollars to the Apple megastore, the rest of us are left to wonder: What’s the fuss all about?
The iPhone 3G’s “revolutionary” new features mean that it combines three gadgets into one package—namely a phone, widescreen iPod and “breakthrough internet communication device” (translation: mobile email, websurfing and creepy GPS map feature that knows where you are all the time).
Of course, this new status symbol and accompanying features come with a hefty price tag for the phone (starting at $200, but climbing higher) as well as the obscene monthly bills.
How necessary is any of this anyway? Most people probably spend the better part of the day parked in front of a computer screen at work, school or home, giving them plenty of time to check maps and email long lost loves. And while people with hands-free devices feel the need to walk around constantly talking to someone on the phone, most of those conversations are so inane that they’re a waste of resources.
How many times have you been in the grocery store only to be surrounded by people mindlessly narrating their shopping list to the person on the other end of the line? Not exactly urgent stuff, really.
It’s nice to surf the web during a boring commute, maybe look up an address or download iTunes or free music downloads to your phone-pod on the go, but it’s not really necessary.
Do you really need to be hyper-connected every second of the day—and spend so much money to do it?
Maybe you do.
But I don’t. I’ve got a cheap-o cellphone for emergencies, a map in case I get lost and a computer at home to do the rest. I don’t have the whole virtual world of the internet in my pocket, but I do have a few bucks in my pocket and that’s more fun in the real world.
You can watch the whole boring iPhone affair here. Maybe you can view it on your old iPhone while you’re waiting in line for the new one.
Tell us what YOU think!
Do you have an iPhone? Will you buy an iPhone 3G? Leave a comment and tell us about it!
