iPhone 3G

I am just now back from work; that would be a 15 hour day, but am so tired it isn't funny, but wanted to post a quick something given that today was a big day for us Apple enthusiasts.

So, after much conjecture, Apple finally released the 3g iPhone today, which is big news for us tech freaks. I have to confess that I am excited I will make it perfectly clear that I will 100 percent buy one on the first day of availability, presuming of course that their is availability. I am stoked by the speed (I already own a 3G phone and I have to say -- it is blazing fast) and the addition of GPS is a nice bonus as well. That said, I'm at the same time feeling a bit underwhelmed. This release was expected, and I kept waiting for the big payoff -- something -- that was completely unexpected, ala announcements past. Perhaps iChat availability, or a 32 gig drive -- something. Even the much anticipated Mac tablet would have been cool. Anyway, today's announcement featured no such "mystery" elements, which in turn led me feeling a little lacking. All that being said, I have to give credit where due, and the new pricing structure is very, very fair. At $199 for the 8 gig and $299 for 16, there's no thing that this thing was priced for volume. They will no doubt move lots of iPhones this Summer.

My last gripe of the day: it would have been nice if the product was available today, versus having to wait another month. I am equally disappointed that version 2.0, which was initially promised for May deliver, also won't be available until early July.

I have to say, for a company that admittedly makes kick ass products, they don't do a whole heck of a lot to engender goodwill. All of their announcements have some element that causes consumer frustration. At the end of the day, they are going to make what's certain to be one of the most interesting case studies in business history.