Archive for the ‘iPhone’ Category

Support for Mac and its users still limited

Wednesday, September 26th, 2007

Up until this week, my bank was Sky Bank. Sky Bank was recently purchased by Huntington and they officially switched over to Huntington this past Monday. The transition seemed as though it would be smooth. That is, until I received an email regarding my online banking for Huntington:

Step 1: Verify System Requirements

Browser Requirement
Internet Explorer 5.5 and above

Operating Systems Supported
Windows 2000
Windows XP

Alright, that’s going to be a problem. I do have a MacBook Pro which has the ability to run Windows. That doesn’t mean I want to fire up Windows every time I need to check my bank account online. I don’t run Windows unless I absolutely have to and it’s just convenient to have the ability to do my online banking from the Mac OS.

I got a call from a Huntington online banking specialist asking why I hadn’t set up my online account. I let them know I am a Mac user and inquired as to what my options were. After checking with his manager, here is what he told me: “We advise that Mac users find access to a Windows based PC. Your other option is to contact Apple and talk to them about a workaround.”

Huntington Bank is not a small company. They have the resources to provide support for the Mac if they choose to. I understand that Windows users still make up roughly 90 percent of the population. Why alienate a potential market of users who are growing yearly though? Especially when you look at an average Mac user.

It never ceases to amaze me that this is still an issue. Five or even three years ago, maybe. With the growing number of users and interest in Apple, the iPod and iPhone, it just doesn’t seem to make sense. From a customer service standpoint, well, larger companies seem to do this all the time. From a marketing standpoint… I guess they just didn’t think it through.

Needless to say, if anyone knows of a bank that supports Mac online, I’m looking ;)

Posted in Apple, Mac, Marketing, Viral Marketing, iPhone, iPod | 5 Comments »

iPhone price cut, new iPod Touch introduced and Steve Jobs makes amends

Thursday, September 6th, 2007

The new iPod Touch and iPod Nano

I’m going to have to rename my blog soon to “Apple Man” or “Mac Daddy” or something clever… It doesn’t help that I haven’t had a chance to post in weeks due to vacation and heavy project load, but the fact of the matter is, it seems like Apple/Mac stories and reviews have dominated my posts recently.

Anyways…

Let’s start with the first issue that hits me personally: Steve Jobs announced yesterday that the price of the 8GB iPhone would be nearly cut in half to $399 while the 4GB model is discontinued altogether. The 4GB model getting axed was pretty much a no brainer… who’s not going to pay an extra $100 for twice the hard drive space? I personally don’t know anyone who even entertained the thought of buying the 4GB model.

Now the price cut of the 8GB is another story. I’m not going to lie and say that it didn’t completely annoy me when I found out initially. I stood in line for hours and paid the full $599 less than 10 weeks ago. Had it been 6 months to a year later, I’m sure I wouldn’t have cared at all.

After giving it more thought and letting the sting wear off, I put it into a marketing mindset:

  • Anyone who was going to buy the iPhone by now for $599 has already done so (sales have pretty much dropped off). Time to get the rest of the market who potentially wanted to buy but thought $599 was a bit too steep.
  • It also helps that most people who already bought have been raving about it so this price cut could potentially open the flood-gates again.
  • Also, I know it’s the beginning of September, but Christmas is not too far off (I received a text from my sister on Sunday asking me what I want for Christmas, I swear!).

    • Jobs and Apple also released the new iPod Touch which seems to be the iPhone minus the phone. It has some other limitations (no mail capabilities, maps, stocks or weather), but essentially it gives people the ability to have an iPhone without having to switch carriers or deal with AT&T. It also has the ability to connect to WiFi where available which gives users the ability to get on the web via Safari. The one thing it does have that I’m pretty envious of is a 16GB model.

    One of my main reasons for buying the iPhone was having the ability to check mail from my phone so the iPhone to me personally would still make the most sense. Who wants an iPod and a separate phone anyways?

    The new iPod Nano came out which is pretty incredible as well. It’s about as compact as you can get while still having the ability to watch video. It also has the Cover Flow capability of the iPhone and other iPod models. At $199 for the 8GB model it has a ton of value considering all its capabilities and compact size.

    *I started writing this post last night, and since then Steve Jobs has issued “an open letter to iPhone owners” on the Apple website. In summary, he received an outpouring of complaints concerning the price drop and explains the reasoning. At the end, he offers every iPhone customer a $100 store credit at Apple.

    Way to go Steve, you did the right thing. Nothing worse than alienating not only the loyal Macheads that have never even considered using anything else, but more importantly, the people that could potentially make the switch after buying the iPhone. A hundred bucks doesn’t go very far at an Apple store, which could also equate into converts using their credit towards making that switch with that new shiny iMac that just came out less than a month ago.

    Posted in Apple, Evolution, Mac, Steve Jobs, Viral Marketing, iMac, iPhone, iPod | 1 Comment »

    Apple’s world domination only started with the iPhone… Next: iMac

    Tuesday, August 7th, 2007

    Steve Jobs has a master plan for Apple: world domination. The iPhone was the beginning of the end for the PC and Windows. Am I jumping the gun here?

    I don’t think so.

    As I’ve already stated, the iPhone could be the first step in Steve Jobs’ master plan to start turning the tables on Microsoft’s lion’s share of the market. His next step: Release the Kraken! er, I mean the new iMac. (a solid Clash of the Titans reference never hurt anyone)

    It even matches the iPhone, if not surpasses it, with its stunning look and design. It’s a brushed metal flat screen monitor with a computer in it. A fast computer. I’m not going to geek out here, but take my word for it… you’re not going to find anything like it out of the box.

    So what does all this have to do with world domination? Well, let’s take a step back here. Back on June 29th, the mighty iPhone was released. Sales? One million plus in about a week. Is this just a coincidence that such a slick looking, powerful Mac comes out less than two months later? Probably not. That’s just about enough time to let those PC users who bought an iPhone get acquainted with the easy to use Mac operating system that just so happened to be included with the iPhone. Sounds like just the right time to strike while the iron’s hot.

    Is it also coincidental that I found this link on the Apple website? It may have already been there, but if it has I haven’t seen it.

    I’m not going to discount the fact that students will be heading back to school, that’s always a good time for a new iMac release. It’s really just great timing all around putting the two factors together. Actually, there’s a third event that will be happening in less than another two months (see a trend here?): the release of Leopard, the revolutionary operating system that will make Vista look like your old TRS-80.

    Steve Jobs is well on his way to world domination. If we want to go even farther back, the iPod sure can be argued as the real beginning to Apple’s run, but I think the recent chain of events starting with the iPhone could be the tipping point. Only time will tell.

    Posted in Apple, Evolution, Mac, Steve Jobs, Viral Marketing, iMac, iPhone | No Comments »

    7 Reasons I love my iPhone (and you should too)

    Friday, July 6th, 2007

    1) Mac OS. Everything just flows the way it should. There’s something to be said for intuitiveness. There’s a natural progression of getting from point A to point B. I guess I’ve been spoiled having already been a Mac user, but this is the first thing I hear from people who convert from Windows to Mac, “Wow, I never knew it’d be this easy. I wish I would have switched a long time ago.” For those Windows users who purchased an iPhone… let the resentment begin. I personally think this might be the tipping point that could bring Windows users over in droves… we’ll see. (Maybe Jobs’ plan all along?)

    2) Checking email. Before this phone, I sat with envy at lunch, networking events, conferences, and anywhere else I couldn’t be in front of my computer, as others had the luxury of checking their email. In most cases it’s something that can wait till I’m back at the office, but those couple of times it can’t… well worth it. If nothing else it’s peace of mind.

    3) Calendar. Now, my last few phones had a calendar function. I use iCal. Why would I want to enter all my appointments and events twice? Answer: I don’t. Especially when it’s clunky. I use iCal for a reason (see Mac OS above).

    4) I can finally text message! I never got the hang of spelling out words while filing through each key on a regular phone keypad. It made more sense for me to just call someone. The virtual keyboard that the iPhone offers has made me quite comfortable at texting by actually finding the letters where they should be! Mind you, this is my first mobile device with an actual keypad so I can’t compare the virtual keyboard vs. a “regular” one (I wasn’t going to waste my money on something running Windows).

    5) The touch screen. Most reviews I have read list this as one of the drawbacks. I think it makes using the phone that much easier (and it’s cool). Sure, it gets smudged up quickly, but so did the screen on my last phone. Unless you can constantly see the reflection of the smudges, it’s not that big a deal. The screen is bright enough that even heavily smudged, you can see everything fine. Besides, it comes with a microfiber cloth that works extremely well at wiping clean whenever needed.

    6) Battery life. Yeah, that’s right, I’m listing this as something I love! Whatever problems they had when the phone was first unveiled back in January, seem to be gone now. Even using the video and music player, this phone lasted for hours. It probably helps that my last phone (Samsung A900) was a hog on energy and my battery tended to die on me daily only after a couple hours of use.

    7) Visual voicemail. How’d I almost forget this? (You could say I’ve saved the best for last, although the Mac OS is the biggest reason for me purchasing the phone in the first place.) I really don’t need to explain much here… A list of all your voicemails that you can listen to in whatever order you want or even delete before listening. ANYONE’s gotta love that.

    The phone has some drawbacks, but they pale in comparison to all the good points. In fact, I’d say I was being picky to even mention them. The biggest drawback has nothing to do with the phone itself but the network it’s on (AT&T). I’ll save that for a different post. Please, if you agree, disagree, or have reasons why you love or hate your iPhone, please comment below!

    Posted in Apple, Evolution, Mac, Steve Jobs, Viral Marketing, iPhone | 2 Comments »

    AT&T to offer iPhone… unless you’re already a customer

    Wednesday, June 13th, 2007

    I’m as excited as the next guy about the iPhone coming out at the end of this month. In preparation I made a call to AT&T to see what packages they’re currently offering because I’ll need to switch carriers. I’ve been a customer of their DSL and landline services for two years now and any time I’ve needed to call them, they’ve always pushed adding their wireless to my existing package for a special rate. Until I actually want to add it.

    The woman who helped me was extremely friendly and went out of her way to find out everything she could. She mentioned that with their promotions they don’t always get “the best phones”. After further investigation it looks like I’ll have to actually get the iPhone from Cingular or AT&T Wireless, (or whatever it is they want to call themselves depending on the situation) and sign up for a separate wireless package instead of packaging it together with my landline and DSL, which they’ve offered countless times before.

    This whole situation makes sense from one perspective… those looking for the latest technology usually don’t care about price so they’ll buy regardless. Does it make existing customers want to tell anyone they know about what a great company AT&T is, considering they’re not receiving any benefits for being an existing customer?

    In the grand scheme of things I’m not going to be losing any significant amount of money by getting or not getting “a deal”. Which on the other side of the coin means the same thing: it’s really not going to cost a company that much to make an existing customer feel like they’re going that extra mile for them.

    Short term: AT&T makes more money from people like me.
    Long term: I’m outta there the first chance I get – another carrier offers the iPhone and/or I actual have a choice for my DSL.

    Posted in Viral Marketing, iPhone | No Comments »

    iPhone… the next iPod?

    Monday, April 30th, 2007

    Critics so far have been relatively harsh on the iPhone. There are a myriad of reasons given why the iPhone is set up to fail (limited battery life, storage capacity and price are usually at the top of the list). So why would anyone stand behind this latest offering by Steve Jobs and Apple?

    What made the iPod so successful? The concept. Simple yet stylish. Ease of use. The driving forces behind Apple’s brand. It was more expensive than any of its competitors, yet people were willing to pay extra for these reasons.

    The iPhone is no different. In fact, it’s better. Not only is it stylish, it couldn’t be any easier to operate. It has the ability to run the Mac OS, which is a huge plus. Although the world is dominated by Windows users, learning how easy the Mac OS is might actually turn the tides. Being able to sync all your email and calendars with the iPhone makes it a must have for any Mac user looking for a mobile solution. Up until now, it has been impossible.

    The techologies built into the iPhone are revolutionary. It will set the bar for every other cell phone company. Once it hits the market, there will be no looking back. One year from now, people will be wondering how they ever got along without the functionalities that were introduced by the iPhone. They might not show up exactly the same in other cell companies’ offerings, but the basic concepts will be there.

    If this is only the first, what will it look like 3 years from now? Like the iPod, this is a simple, stylish, easy to use device that will only get better. Will it be as successful? Definitely.

    Posted in Apple, Events, Evolution, Mac, Steve Jobs, Viral Marketing, iPhone | 6 Comments »