Matthias Thoma, infovestment
The big show is over, Apple’s stock is priced close to its all time high, but….
…the Apple Fanboys and -girls are not as enthusiastic about the latest iteration of the iPhone as was expected from what happened after prior Apple i-device debuts. Last year the Fruit people pulled of selling consumers the iPhone 4S as a ‘new’ device, telling people it really only shared the shell with its predecessor but otherwise is an all new phone. Such a nifty trick only works once. While there is certainly a good deal of innovation and technical progress in the new iPhone 5, it is not the great leap forward one should expect after more than 2 years of selling a phone with the same form factor.
Apple played it safe. The iPhone 5 looks like an elongated iPhone 4S. Most changes are under the hood. But if you are a tablet owner, then a movie 16:9 screen or faster processor really do not do a lot for you. If you are an avid iPhone photographer, then much of the new capabilities of the iPhone 5 can be substituted with third party Apps.
So really there is not much in there a smartphone user really really needs. And the fact that Apple has such a solid and high quality manufacturing means that your current iPhone 4 or 4S probably still looks like new.
Beyond the first adopters and devoted fans this iPhone may have a tough time selling well in later months. Competitors like HTC, Samsung, Motorola and even Nokia have received a gift from Apple yesterday by allowing them to close the technology gap. Apple has to come up with a real Wow device next autumn or risk losing its dominant market position.
Matt Thoma // www.infovestment.com // www.infovestment.tv
infovestment 