Not the title of a theological thesis but my attempt to dissect the pop culture's addiction to multi function do-it-all gadgets.
Next week the most hotly anticipated news (outside of which continent Angelina Jolie might go shopping for her next kid or the Papal visit or a Royal wedding) is the next unveiling - of the iPhone from Apple of course!
While the device has come to signify a sexy departure from what any old telephone could do it is admittedly also a cult symbol - a legacy of what human ingenuity has accomplished with lot of mature engineering and marketing savvy. The world is addicted to smartphones (an acceptance of sorts that the dumb generations have gladly subscribed to) just like they were to a Radio with AM and FM and a cassette player built in just four decades ago.
Akio Morita did to the audio listening experience that no man had done before with his invention of the Sony Walkman and gave people the possibility to carry their music with them. Since then the media and storage equivalents have been on a Moore's trajectory constantly improving in both efficiency and size (inversely proportional to each other).
Today the smart phone symbolizes for many not just a gadget with music, internet, cellular phone, text, camera, recorder, radio, notepad, gaming device and remote control in a nifty handheld but an actual magic key to gain acceptance in a society that is attached to it like a seriously conscious bald man would be to his toupee.
It is a must have for the new generation and boomers alike that don't want to feel left out of the conversation. It is also getting to the point where traditional media and established payment methods are getting sweaty palms. They have taken notice of the shifting dynamic.
People read their news and watch their TV shows on a handheld. People communicate through alternate (personally I am yet to see the light) channels like FB and Twitter and Youtube. They also apparently want to enhance and complete their shopping experienc through this 'all in one' device.
The talk of Near Field Communications (NFC) coupled with abilities to use electronic coupons as well as access to on the go merchant offers has marketers and their downstream ecosystem salivating. But I do suspect that the addicted brethren are going to use and lose some of the concepts that are now being touted as worth while as sliced bread or the polio vaccine.
For one their are inherent challenges in what engineers call the last mile of communication where the connectivity of the phone device to a compatible reception has the potential to be jeopardized due to interference and capacity limits (worse if its hacked); as well as the reliability of power to operate the device all the time (it would have to if it is so mutli functional as to survive as THE new swiss army knife (remember that the knife did not need a cell signal or power - same with today's plastic tender - you swipe and you go - it survives the rains and the heat and you could lose it and not worry about it).
Having these eggs in one electronic 'smart' basket could end up being more than the 'dumb' marketer bargained for!
Next week the most hotly anticipated news (outside of which continent Angelina Jolie might go shopping for her next kid or the Papal visit or a Royal wedding) is the next unveiling - of the iPhone from Apple of course!
While the device has come to signify a sexy departure from what any old telephone could do it is admittedly also a cult symbol - a legacy of what human ingenuity has accomplished with lot of mature engineering and marketing savvy. The world is addicted to smartphones (an acceptance of sorts that the dumb generations have gladly subscribed to) just like they were to a Radio with AM and FM and a cassette player built in just four decades ago.
Akio Morita did to the audio listening experience that no man had done before with his invention of the Sony Walkman and gave people the possibility to carry their music with them. Since then the media and storage equivalents have been on a Moore's trajectory constantly improving in both efficiency and size (inversely proportional to each other).
Today the smart phone symbolizes for many not just a gadget with music, internet, cellular phone, text, camera, recorder, radio, notepad, gaming device and remote control in a nifty handheld but an actual magic key to gain acceptance in a society that is attached to it like a seriously conscious bald man would be to his toupee.
It is a must have for the new generation and boomers alike that don't want to feel left out of the conversation. It is also getting to the point where traditional media and established payment methods are getting sweaty palms. They have taken notice of the shifting dynamic.
People read their news and watch their TV shows on a handheld. People communicate through alternate (personally I am yet to see the light) channels like FB and Twitter and Youtube. They also apparently want to enhance and complete their shopping experienc through this 'all in one' device.
The talk of Near Field Communications (NFC) coupled with abilities to use electronic coupons as well as access to on the go merchant offers has marketers and their downstream ecosystem salivating. But I do suspect that the addicted brethren are going to use and lose some of the concepts that are now being touted as worth while as sliced bread or the polio vaccine.
For one their are inherent challenges in what engineers call the last mile of communication where the connectivity of the phone device to a compatible reception has the potential to be jeopardized due to interference and capacity limits (worse if its hacked); as well as the reliability of power to operate the device all the time (it would have to if it is so mutli functional as to survive as THE new swiss army knife (remember that the knife did not need a cell signal or power - same with today's plastic tender - you swipe and you go - it survives the rains and the heat and you could lose it and not worry about it).
Having these eggs in one electronic 'smart' basket could end up being more than the 'dumb' marketer bargained for!
interesting perspective- use it and lose it?
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