Posted on 10/10/2011 8:34:50 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
When Apple launched the iPhone 4S instead of the iPhone 5 last week, I initially thought it was a disappointment and a mistake.
If Apple had launched the actual iPhone 5, I thought, they'd have sold more of them.
And that's probably right.
If Apple had launched a radically new iPhone 5, more of the folks who currently own iPhone 4s would have upgraded, so Apple would have sold some more 4S units. As it is, the iPhone 4S is likely to appeal primarily to iPhone 3G and 3GS owners, non-smartphone owners, and non-iPhone owners, most of whom (like me) are presumably stoked to buy the iPhone 4S.
But viewing the 4S as disappointing ignores Apple's likely thinking behind it, which Asymco analyst Horace Dediu explains very clearly here.
The thinking is that most iPhone 4 owners are still bound by the 2-year contracts they had to enter into when they bought the iPhone 4, so they'll be less likely to now upgrade anyway (barring carriers waving those contracts, which they might have if Apple had released the "5").
So the 4S isn't aimed at these folks. It's aimed at the other three categories of iPhone 4S buyers:
* Pre-iPhone 4 iPhone users (~70 million of them)
* Non-smartphone users (1+ billion, who can now get a 3GS for free, if price is an issue)
* Non-iPhone smartphone users (Blackberry, Android, Nokia)
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
i have a 3 g iphone. contract’s up early ‘12.
i’m thinking of either waiting for the iphone 5,
or of going for the galaxy s2.
any ideas?
I believe they are waiting for LTE compatability. This is one area in which they are well behind most Droid phones. Verizon has a great LTE network, for the most part, but AT&T is significantly behind. I wonder if AT&T influenced the decision in their desire to not lose market share to Verizon?
I think Rush also had a good point.
AT&T and Verizon LTE networks are not established....but they will be shortly.
The iPhone 5 should be a true “world phone” that will run on nearly all networks worldwide.
I retire in December and my company 3 GS will go back to them. I look forward to peaceful nights without that goddam ding! I can’t turn it off because of emergencies, but to my mind it’s a goddam leash! I’ll be well rid of it. I will replace it with nothing.
I bet you can get the iPhone 4GS. It may be a while for the iPhone 5. The iPhone 4GS , like the 3 compared to 3GS, is way better compared to anything out there on the market too.
Even if the iPhone 5 comes out in a year. Last time Apple said that the 3 and 3GS buyers could upgrade and get the special rate for the phone.
I had a 3GS and a 4 and the 4 is way better. The 4GS should be a good fit for now.
Oh one more thing the iOS 5 comes out Wednesday. It has over 200 features, improvements, etc...
I still own a Dell PC, but have a iPhone 4 and iPad II. They are both great products and you will not be disappointed.
I think it’s a combination of the 2-year contract cycle and the fact that 4G really isn’t ready for primetime yet.
Let’s see how the dual-antenna 4S actually performs before we start lamenting how Apple trails some Android devices.
Nexus could be worth looking at.
It supposed to be the premier of the new Android Ice Cream.
The article seems on target, but I read an analysis that the new display wasn’t quite ready.
The 4S doesn’t do 4G so what’s the point?
I'm with you brother. My heart sinks every time my phone rings. It is always trouble. I don't understand the fetish for all these phones. I guess for most people, they are just toys and not used in their jobs.
Amen to that. Retired and don’t own a cellular phone of any kind. Leave me a message at home and I’ll decide if I want to talk to you. My wife is addicted, though. Gotta call me from the grocery store to see if I want Fiber One or Shredded Wheat.
The Gs2 will be almost a year old by then. Keep your eyes open for the new Ice Cream Sandwich quad core phones arriving in quantity about that time.
LOL....I already have the the 3GS....if I upgrade with your kit does that make my phone 3G super special?
Woman. I want a steak three inches thick and a baking potato that would choke a bull. I want sour cream, shredded cheese, bacon bits, chives, potato toppings and a pound of butter! Oh, and get a pound of bacon, too! hahahaha
yeah, i still have a dell xps 420.
i grew up with pc’s but the iphone has changed the world.
thanks.
Thankfully, I’m too dumb for a smart phone.
i was listening to leo laporte on kfi am 640 yesterday,
and he said he prefers the galaxy s2 to the iphone.
I was going to upgrade from my 3GS, but I will wait for the 5 now.
>>My wife is addicted, though. Gotta call me from the grocery store to see if I want Fiber One or Shredded Wheat.<<
That’s my husband.
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