iPhone Experience

So, I got myself an iPhone. Pretty predictable to anyone who knows me or reads this rarely updated blog. I had pretty high expectations going into it, and a pretty good idea of what to expect, and I wasn't disappointed. I'll leave it to other bloggers, posters, and websites to detail owning and using the actual device.

I'm more interested in the experience around the launch. I admit, I was lame and had a feeling supplies wouldn't be scarce, so I waited til around 9PM to go to the Palo Alto "flagship" Apple retail store and, sure enough, spent 30 minutes finding parking and 10 minutes in line and purchasing the actual device. So, nothing really exciting there. I did enjoy talking with coworkers who were online whilst inline (not much to do when you're in line at an Apple store, really, except email, IM, and browse the web), and there was quite a bit of email on the topic on enthusiast mailing lists at work, but somehow I just didn't get swept up into the experience itself. I did enjoy watching it, though.

Some people think of it as the coming of a new age of cell phones (admittedly, I do think this will change the industry). Others think of it as a crass demonstration of the worst aspects of capitalism (admittedly, there is some ugliness when you think about just how spoiled this shows some parts of the world are compared to those parts that are much worse off). In the end, though, I think it's just people doing what people do and pursuing the things that matter to them and that give them joy.

One thing that did strike me was Robert Scoble at the Palo Alto store and his impressive 36 hour campout. It paid off -- he got to be first in line, had some nice publicity (even making the cover of the San Jose Mercury News). What really struck me was that he did it with his son, and that they had the opportunity to meet some great people like Andy Hertzfeld, Bill Atkinson, and other Silicon Valley luminaries who also visited to get their own iPhones. Most striking was that he did it with his son, Patrick; sounds like they had a great time, and I'm sure both will look back on it fondly years from now, long after the iPhone is a relic of the first step out of the seemingly prehistoric time of cell phones. Their experience is a nice reminder of some of the human aspect of this spectacle. It isn't just about the iPhone, it's also about the people.