The new iPhone launches in exactly one week and the buzz is well, inconsistent. It's certainly not the mobscene that it was during the initial launch, but this time it's a different group of people talking. At the initial launch all the Apple diehards came with kool-aid by the jug to pray at the AppleStore/iPhone altar. Recently business folks and power users have begun to take the iPhone seriously as a business tool, not just a toy that's capable of also making phone calls. Kevin Rose, of digg.com fame, talks about the launch and the rumored $200 price point here.
Everyone's weighed in on the importance of 3G. However I'd argue more people knocked Apple for not having it at launch then are now praising it for being available. Personally, I wouldn't even consider a phone without 3G so this is the first juncture I've seriously looked at an iPhone as a option personally. However, bigger than that is the iPhone 2.0 software that includes Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync. I wasn't sure this would ever get past the test phase given the obvious political issues at work between Apple and Microsoft. I can say personally that the iPhone activesync implementation works great! It's not quite as seamless as my Windows Mobile 6 device, but it's usable and probably perfect for most folks. It's still in beta, but you can check out more information and sign up to participate at the Apple.com Enterprise site.
I'm a die-hard Windows guy by most standards. However I wouldn't be at all surprised to see an iPhone in my pocket before the year is out. To be honest, the biggest roadblock now is AT&Ts poor network coverage as compared with my current provider, Verizon. The good news is I like AT&Ts pricing plans and data plans MUCH better than VZW's overpriced "solutions" so I may find my way over there eventually anyway.
NOTE: A colleague noted I'm a little vague above. I don't own and iPhone. However I have many clients in the iPhone 2.0 software beta and work regularly with their demo units to test and certify them in various communications scenarios.
Alex Lewis has been involved in the high tech industry for more than 15 years, from satellite antenna design to to executive IT management. He has been a co-author or contributing author for books on Exchange 2003, Exchange 2007, Windows 2003 R2 and Microsoft Technical Specialist Exam Guides. Alex is a senior consultant at Convergent Computing, an IT consulting firm specializing in Microsoft technologies. Alex is involved in many early adopter and TAP programs, working with new technology often 2-3 years before public release. Alex is also a CISSP and leads Convergent's Security and Unified Messaging practices in the field.
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