Verizon taking direct shots at the iPhone with new ad campaign

Why did you buy an iPhone? You complain about it and the lack of features, yet a little reserach shows what features phones have and don't have.

 

No one is posting about the strangest thing about this commercial...

LucasArts owns the rights to the word droid?

 

I guess Apple's marketing reeled him in, like they did for every iPhone user out there.

 

it is amazing how much disdain this device creates. I truly do not understand it.

 

Most of the people that enjoy the iPhone always mention they had it jailbroken. I don't see that as one of the "perks". That is like saying xbox 360 is better than PS3 because you can burn games for the xbox. You shouldn't have to get it jailbroke for it to be a great phone. What if it couldn't be jailbroke? How good will the phone be now?

One area where Apple is head and shoulders above the rest is their app store. So what if apps cost money? Guess what? The market for Android apps have apps that cost money too. And I don't think the Android Market is close to having the quality apps of the Apple app store. Don't get me wrong, there are some very good apps already for the Android.

 

I find it so funny when Apple fanboys are confronted with the fact that the iPhone doesn't multitask and their cookie-cutter response is "I don't need multitasking, that's what computers are for".

I can do this with my Palm Pre all simultaneously:
- Set up my touchstone wireless charger in the car so all I have to do is put it down when I get in and it automatically charges itself;
- Stream Internet radio and play it back over the car audio system using A2DP or aux;
- Simultaneously plot directions/find businesses with the built in Sprint Navigation app, with turn by turn directions. When I am approaching the next turn, the phone turns down the music to inform me of where to turn.
- If a call comes in, I can take it without having to exit my GPS navigation. As a plus, even if I don't have a bluetooth microphone, the phone's speakerphone mic is powerful enough for other people to hear me clearly while driving.
- After I hang up the call, music/radio automatically resume from where they stopped, and voice directions continue. Who needs an expensive car navi/entertainment system?

While not driving (for obvious safety reasons) I could also do the following at the same time as the above:
- I get instant notification of a couple of incoming emails without interrupting what I'm doing. If I don't want to read it now, I can just ignore it. When I'm ready to read it, I tap the notification bar to open my inbox in a new card.
- One email contains a link ... someone commented on my Facebook photo. I tap the link to view it and a new card opens without shutting down my email.
- Someone emails me to ask for an update on a previous request. I start typing the email but I can't remember exactly what they asked for, so I swipe to the email card, find the previous email they sent, read it and then swipe back to the email I'm composing.
- I then open the camera app to take a picture of what they're asking for. Lighting's a little poor so I use the flash. I then swipe back to the email I'm composing and attach the picture I just took, then send the email.
- I want to check my Twitter feed, so I open Twee/Spaz and read. At this point I have perhaps 7-8 cards open, all running simultaneous applications.
- A tweet contains a URL. I tap the URL to open it in a new browser, and when I'm done, I just swipe back to Spaz to continue reading my feed. Heck I could even swipe back and forth if I needed to do a double take or something.
- A couple of work emails come in. Instead of closing down Spaz, I simply swipe back over to the email card to read them.

Sure ... nobody needs multitasking on a phone.

 

^^ That's great for you, but you have to realize most people are NOT looking for their mobile device to essentially be a laptop replacement. The power mobile users should and usually stick with the Blackberries. The iPhone is a phone that is designed and marketed as a phone for so many different demographics. It is easy to use which appeals to the casual users and can also do enough things for more power users as well. Yes, it cannot multi task and doesn't do email as well as a Blackberry, but those are features that it has never claimed to do or be superior at. They pimp the app market, and for good reason as well.

EDIT: And if you really want multi-tasking on the iPhone, you can jailbreak it and install Backgrounder which allows you to keep apps running in the background. It doesn't do it out of the box, but I would expect anyone that would need multi tasking on their phone to be somewhat comfortable enough with technology to be able to install this.

 

And how do you know this? Do you have marketing research that says "most people don't want to be able to use a mobile web browser and twitter app at the same time"? And there is no Blackberry capable of doing the above either.

 

Considering the twitter apps on the iPhone allow you to view links, photos and youtube videos without exiting the app, I don't know why I would need to have that research.

If people cared that much about multi tasking, they wouldn't buy the phone. I like to think if they cared enough, they would spend 5 minutes doing some research.

 

Wrong.

http://www.apple.com/iphone/business/

Spoiler

 

G1 owner. I rooted the phone to access multitouch and saving apps to sd card. The multitasking is extraordinary, being able to run stopwatch, facebook, GPS tracking, and whatever webpage I want to access at any given time. the iphone is smooth as silk though, and their video recorder is awesome. My brother has an Iphone, and I have the G1. When comparing them, we both find things we like and don't like about both phones. I will stick with my G1 though. Android is getting better by the day.

 

No, people don't do research because they're either lazy or simply uninformed. They think the iPhone is the end-all-be-all of smartphones. Most people don't even know that multitasking is possible, and those that do don't know how great it is because they've never had a chance to experience it and they're bus being inundated with "there's an app for that" ads. People buy the iPhone because they see the shiny ads and they see that everybody and their mama's buying one these days, not because they don't care about multitasking.

 

I've yet to meet anybody who didn't love their iphone.

But the ad was good. It's an ad, not a comprehensive comparison of phones. I'd expect them to highlight their advantages. If coverage is your thing, maybe their phone/plan is better.

 

I have the $5.99 Wap-Tastic plan on my T-Mobile account using my Nokia e61i. Been looking to change to an iPhone and if you are having success with it on that plan, I am sold. Where did you get your iPhone? Do you think it is worth it to get the latest and greatest 3G model?

 

I also don't get why some are so bent on dogging people who are happy with their phone and/or provider. If someone's happy with their iPhone, great. The only thing I've noticed with it is iPhoners wishing they had better coverage. The Ad is hitting AT&T in the sweet spot.

That said, iHating is silly to me, if only because of the way we all should tip the hat to Apple for forcing the field to improve. The iPhone's GUI is sleek and blew the mobile industry (except for maybe RIM) out of the water. Catch up. The capacitive screen is still the best out there. Catch up. The App Store really opened up new possibilities that weren't available before. Catch up.

Verizon's app/media store has been pathetic and borderline insulting. That doesn't change without the Apple App Store taking the world by storm.

Maybe you don't want anything to do with team Mac, but the industry would likely still be a stagnant mess if it weren't for them.

I've got an almost 3 yr old LG enV that I haven't swapped out. I'm still happy with it, but have been itching to upgrade all year. So far I haven't, because Verizon's catalog is awful and I'm not personally taken with Blackberries. I don't want to get locked into an enV Touch for 2 years. I'd leap at an iPhone if they offered it (and they might next year). I'd leap at a Pre (next year). I'd be all over an Acer Liquid, but the chances of it going to Verizon are almost nil. Omnia II is a resistive touchscreen (and WinMo) - no thanks. The Sholes/Droid is currently my only real hope for 2009.

I'm not especially enamored with Verizon's emerging cost spikes, either. They're looking to put the hurt on data plans.

I honestly expect Wal-Mart's $45 all you can cell buffet to be a major player over the next 6 months. Even if you have to deal with their 2002-era hardware.

 

Actually, just the opposite. I don't know about major corporate clients, but we have about 4 phones at the company I work for, and we host our own MS Exchange server for email. We have tried Blackberries and various other phones, but the setup time is usually excessive and difficult on all of these. Typically, we would spend 2-5 hours trying to get the email functioning properly on these devices. At $120/hr, that translates to a cost of $240 to $600 for a new device. With the Iphones, the first one we Exchange email set up took about 30 minutes, and the additional ones, about 10 minutes. That translates to a setup cost of about $30 each. In addition to that, they have been extremely reliable. Several of the other phones we tried in the past were not as durable. We haven't had a battery die yet.

Another issue for us is the varying levels of user expertise. I don't have to troubleshoot or teach anyone how to use an Iphone after the initial setup. This has never been a huge problem, but an annoyance nonetheless. When you have a non-tech business with a lot of different types of people, some are just not great at figuring these things out.

Iphone also has some productivity apps that I'm not sure if other platforms currently have. We have a twitter feed on our website, so people can post photos of ongoing work very easily with the iPhone. We also use Basecamp as a project management tool, and we use the iPhones with this as well. Add to that things that our employees buy/use themselves like Evernote, which is excellent for keeping notes that automatically sync to the users desktop and web portal.

 

OK I'm not here to create flame war but I recently bought an 3GS model and now I know why millions have bought one: Its simple, intuitive and user friendly with all its features properly showcased. Again the features that I think are great might seem nothing new to you but remember I am among the millions that went from a flip phone like the Razr to a smartphone in the iPhone, so a lot of this stuff looks really cool.

1) The phone is high on sex appeal with the sleek renowned Apple design.
2) 3G is awesome with very good speeds and reception in Houston so far.
3) Touchscreen is pretty responsive and once you get used to the keyboard then its great leap in technology.
4) GPS is awesome I get to track maps, location within apps, no need for Garmin.
5) The text messaging interface is neat, everything organized and stored like a chat session with one click photo sharing.
6) The app store is the real USP, has become the de facto platform for development of new software.
7) Also its a freaking iPod if you forgot, which is the best gadget of the 21st century.

Again all you people may be right the iPhone lacks the specific features you want but then again this phone was designed for mass consumption and not tailored to high tech users who what all the advanced features. Overall my opinion is very high on this phone for it delivers in term of design, function and content.

 

One other thing - on every phone that i have owned so far, the buttons start malfunctioning after about 1 to 1.5 years. Then it is a steady decline to compete uselessness. I shouldn't have that problem with the iPhone, and I'm hoping it isn't replaced with another equally annoying problem.

 

JeopardE, I'd like to point to the question I posted before. Have you ever used an iPhone or owned an iPhone over a period of time? I mean, I can see where the gripe could be with the original one (that one had too many flaws that firmwares couldn't fix it all) but the newer ones aren't. that. bad. I repeat-- they. aren't. that. bad. You can go straight to a conclusion that I'm an Apple fanboy but I'm wondering what basis do you have for verbally chastising a phone you either have never owned or have never even used extensively. That's like me going out and saying the Pre sucks without ever using one.

I, too, get email notification without any interruptions with the iPhone. When I'm ready to read the email in my gmail in box, I tap the mail icon to open my inbox.

An email contains a link and when it's clicked on it goes to Safari. To you, it might be akin to a chinese water torture test because you have a new page opening up. I'm sorry to say but my Blackberry 8900 does the same thing so it's not only a specific weakness for the iPhone. This is more to the testament that Palm has done their R&D for the past few years for the Pre than anything else and they deserve kudos for that.

I've never had to encounter this situation before but this is also something that Palm spent good time developing. (I'm not going to deny innovation when there is obviously a lot there on Palm's part)

 

Well it's never been enough of a problem for them to switch phones. You might value multi tasking a lot, but I highly suspect most phone users do not. The phones simplicity and easy to use interface wins a lot of customers over.

How many people do you know had the iPhone and ended up switching because they simply just did not like it? I can honestly say I don't know of any and have not heard of any either. I'm sure you might know a few, but Id bet a strong majority still have their iPhone.

And my intentions aren't to knock your phone or some other phone. I could care less what other people use. In fact, I was a G1 user for a long time, and never did understand people's obsession with iPhones. I ended up getting one, and I was instantly hooked. I don't see myself switching anytime soon, either. The iPhone isn't for everyone, but it sure does what a lot of people need their mobile devices to do, very well.