Why I would NOT buy an iPhone

I am a huge fan of Apple Computers as a company and Steve Jobs as a business leader. I have used Apple products in past. An iPod and a Macbook. Both times I was ecstatic and getting them was such an important event that I had blogged about them.

Coming on to iPhone, everyone around me in India is talking about iPhone now. So much so that you can pre-book it with two major operators - Airtel and Vodafone (Hutch).

I have been wanting to get one ever since Steve Jobs launched it in one of his SteveNotes. For me, iPhone has revolutionized the way mobile phones are looked at. It is the first time when a mobile phone is being looked at just more than a communication tool. It had become an entertainment tool. An accessibility tool. A tool that was intuitive and was easy and fun to use at the same time. You could leave your home with just one iPhone and nothing else and you could still be fine. Why wouldn't you want to have an iPhone?

Few lessons for marketers

1. Hype is an interesting thing. The way an Apple product is hyped, it can put all the marketers and movie makers to shame. But too much hype can kill it.
   
2. Mass marketing could be a bad thing. I would not want to see every Tom, Dick and Harry carry an iPhone and trying to look uber-cool. I know at least 10 people who have been tracking the iPhone for about six months now and would not buy it just because everyone else would have it.
3. Price it right. At 31K, in India, it is out of reach of most of the people. Even the ones that are SEC A1. Even the ones who were waiting for it eagerly. Like me.