STEVE Jobs, the Chief Executive of Apple Computers is never shy of inventions and last Tuesday at the Macworld Conference and Expo in San Francisco, United States he introduced what is being generally described as a revolution in the smart phone business sector of the mobile technology market.
Job who had earlier stunned his guests with surprise change of company name from Apple Computers to simply, Apple Inc. said the world would henceforth look at smart phones with a different views following Apple's introduction of its mobile phone device called iPhone.
"After today, I don't think anyone is going to look at these phones in the same way," Jobs said on a live webcast.
iPhone is a three in one technological creation that allows you to make calls, surf the internet — sends and receive e-mails, and also plays music and video download. It was described in the official apple webpage as "a revolutionary new mobile phone that allows you to make a call by simply pointing your finger at a name or number in your address book, a favorites list, or a call log. It also automatically syncs all your contacts from a PC, Mac, or Internet service. And it lets you select and listen to voicemail messages in whatever order you want — just like email."
With an estimate over 6 billion global smart phones sales figures annually, (most of it in North America) Jobs told the Macworld Conference audience that Apple only seeks one per cent of that total figure. Whereas Apple are new to phone business, it is reckoned that the iPhone as a device would easily catch up in the market. It combines existing iPOD technology with other existing products to truly make it unique.
Jobs stated that Apple was already looking in the direction of Hollywood studios where Paramount Pictures have agreed to add its films to the iTunes Store and that the firm had developed a device called Apple TV that streams video files from iTunes to a television set wirelessly.
"iPhone combines three products — a revolutionary mobile phone, a widescreen iPod with touch controls, and a breakthrough Internet communications device with desktop-class email, web browsing, maps, and searching — into one small and lightweight handheld device. iPhone also introduces an entirely new user interface based on a large multi-touch display and pioneering new software, letting you control everything with just your fingers. So it ushers in an era of software power and sophistication never before seen in a mobile device, completely redefining what you can do on a mobile phone," explained Jobs.
The iPhone simply redefines style in mobile technology in several ways other than its tri-functionality.
"iPhone features the most revolutionary user interface since the mouse. It's an entirely new interface based on a large multi-touch display and innovative new software that lets you control everything using only your fingers. So you can glide through albums with Cover Flow, flip through photos and email them with a touch, or zoom in and out on a section of a web page — all by simply using iPhone's multi-touch display.
"iPhone's full QWERTY soft keyboard lets you easily send and receive SMS messages in multiple sessions. And the keyboard is predictive, so it prevents and corrects mistakes, making it easier and more efficient to use than the small plastic keyboards on many smartphones."
The iPhone would not be available in U.S market before June, and for Nigeria and rest of Africa it is certainly isn't going to be available before 2008 when Apple plans to make it available outside the United States and European markets. For a asking price of 499 dollars (about N63,872) for a unit of the four gigabyte model and 599 dollars (about N76,672) for the eight gigabyte model, the iPhone berths in the high end of the phone market, but would be a handy tool in 2007 and beyond.
The iPhone is also not expected so soon to push Apple into contention for the phone technology market with established names like Nokia, Motorola or Samsung. Jobs prediction of 10 million sales figure by 2008 is just a modest admission of the herculean tasking of getting a firm grip on its foray into the telecom industry.
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