Funnily enough, those three stages are completely understandable when the design is actually innovative.
People don't like what's good - they like what they know! That's why there are millions of people who will claim that McDonalds burgers are excellent. I've seen people turn their noses up at tender, perfectly seared fillet steak who will wolf down a bag of chicken nuggets and lick their fingers afterwards. There's no point telling them they're wrong - they like what they know and the know what they like!
The same is true for art and I consider great design to be akin to art. People like what they grew up with or what is normal and standard for their cultural/socioeconomic sub group. That's fine but it takes really great art and really great design to bring about something new. That's why you absolutely MUST design from function first. Aesthetics will mislead you. No, that's not right - aesthetics are also from function - designing based on what you think LOOKS GOOD will mislead you. That's how you end up with instantly pleasing but equally instantly forgettable designs like those seen in most high end smartphones.
When you do design from function first and you eschew the bubblegum rubbish in favour of something that will stand the test of time, those designs often leave people cold at first. People are hooked on fashion so they want something like what they know but... you know... more! A faster horse! But then, when people get over the shock of the new, they start to calm down a little. Then someone shows it to them - properly, and explains why it is the way it is. Suddenly, if they're relatively enlightened people, they will start to get it. The thing that looked odd and random before is now merely a signal of the excellent design that underpins the object. Without knowing the function the form seems strange but things that are functional are always beautiful when you really understand them. Then they get excited. Then they want it!
Nobody will be studying the Samsung Galaxy S3 in future lessons on industrial design but there will be a whole module based on the iPhone 4/4S. The GS3 looks nice but it's boring nice. It's cold beer to the iPhone 4's aged scotch. It's something designed by committee and put together by a talented team who's brief was to design something that looked nice. They succeeded. But the iPhone 4/4S and this new iPhone by the looks of it, were clearly designed by a team with a higher minded brief. The antenna band may have had it's flaws but those flaws were fixed. The steel band and the glass back allowed for a rigidity and strength along with a clean, polished, high quality finish that, to this day, no one has yet surpassed. Sure, some newer phones may out-spec the 4S but that's just technological progress. No one has yet fundamentally out-designed the 4S.
You can argue about laundry list of features all day long. For me, here in the UK, LTE is a nothing feature. NFC might have some interesting uses but it's not a deal breaker. But I love great design and when that great design goes into a mass market product that I can own that's even better. This isn't a luxury sports car, a yacht or a $10000 Bang and Olufsen sound system. This is a smartphone that I can buy and use and I'm just some guy on a decent but not exceptional wage working in an office. Nobody makes products like this that are within the reach of normal people. I look around at all the things I own and nothing comes close to the quality of design and engineering that I get in my Macbook, my iPad and my iPhone.
Let the philistines fondle their plastic slabs and compare spec sheets. Whatever makes the knuckle draggers happy. Their chipsets will be obsolete next year, even before then, but great design stays great. I know which one I choose. A thing of beauty is a joy forever.
