The Apple Watch is scheduled to go for pre-order later this week, with release slated a fortnight later on April 24th. The way Apple has gone about advertising and preparing for the device’s roll out – with a two-week try-on period running at retail stores throughout the pre-order phase – it’s clear that the company believes this product could be as big if not bigger than the iPhone was in 2007, and while some commentators have echoed these sentiments, there’s plenty of contrasting skepticism. An interesting archive takes us back to the period of the iPhone’s launch, and throws up some intriguing, oft hilarious initial reaction to the smartphone that changed everything.
Apple Watch is certainly dividing opinion, and with the iPhone, iPad and other mobile hits to live up to, it’s natural that criticism would be aplenty. Even though the iPhone has been a rousing success – sales have increased exponentially right up to the present day – it did arrive to a mixed reception, and a comment thread on Engadget has just been dug up by Reddit user Intensely.
Among the critiques, many couldn’t seem to get their heads around the touch-based interface, the fact that it had taken Apple so long to come through with a smartphone, and the clear deviation from the market trend of running with the clamshell / flip form factor.
Negative comments included my personal favorite: “Touch screen buttons? BAD idea. This thing will never work.” And the rest, as they say, is history.
There are other gems too, such as “I’m not impressed with the iPhone. As a PDA user and a Windows Mobile user, this thing has nothing on my phone. It sure is good at what it was designed for, a phone that entertains and talks… other than that, I dont see much potential. How the hell am I suppose to put appointments on the phone with no stylus or keyboard?! I can sync it with my computer, but when Im on the go, I cant do either!”
This one is pure gold: “Yay, the widescreen Video iPod is here…. But, yea, a touchscreen? And, whats the battery life on that thing? Huge 3.5 inch display = no room for batteries = not good for battery life.”
Not everybody was so quick to pour scorn over Apple’s new direction, with one commenter suggesting that the iPhone “could get Apple into double diget [sic] marketshare.” The company still has plenty of competition from Android manufacturers, namely Samsung, but given its lack of mid-to-low-end coverage, the Mac maker’s market presence is very impressive indeed.
If you have a bit of time, then the whole archive of comments is definitely worth a little look through, and serves as a reminder that one cannot judge the Apple Watch until after it has made its debut. The idea of everybody using wrist-worn computers seems a little baffling right now, but after the success of the iPhone and the iPad, it’d be jumping the gun to suggest that the wearable market can not make a similar impact.
(Source: WebArchive)
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