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Keeping the iPhone Secret

Macrumors said:
In some cases, Apple crafted bogus handset prototypes to show not just to Cingular executives, but also to Apple's own workers.
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This may be the case, but I highly doubt it. In creating something as new (for Apple) as a phone, and going after a wholly new user interface, I'm sure that there were scores of different designs/form factors studied during the design process. And many of these would go through prototyping in order to work out issues of ergonomics, usability, and durability. With today's technology of rapid prototyping it's becoming easier to try out design variations than it ever has in the past. That being the case, I believe that the "bogus" models that some at Cingular and Apple have seen, were merely a few contenders among a myriad of design alternates that were run in parallel by Apple.
 
twoodcc said:
wow, so they basically lied to cingular and their own workers? i guess that's one way to do it ....
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Well ya, apparently they HAVE to do it because people still leak info even though they we're told not to. I'd do it too if I were Jobs. And anyone who knows Apple knows that thats their whole thing. The secrecy. No one knows anything except some bleak rumor and then suddenly BAM! New product! And then we're all amazed.
 
I really hope that they will open it to third party developers. There is just so much opportunity for this phone to impact a variety of areas that they would be kind of shooting themselves in the foot. Closing up the iPod makes sense because there isn't a whole lot you can do with it besides play music and/or use it as an external hard drive. A gadget like this, however, can be manipulated and implemented in so many different ways that to NOT exploit its potential would be... (hyperbole escapes me at this moment, sorry.:p )
If they added a way to edit documents, work with Outlook, sync wirelessly, and a 3rd party docking station that allowed keyboard, mouse and small screen and I will ditch this POS Gateway at work and never look back (except to look back and laugh at my Gateway-stricken colleagues)
 
asphalt-proof said:
I really hope that they will open it to third party developers.
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I have the same hope. I can see why initially they'd not wanting others messing with it as that might cause user-usability problems and derail the initial experience of the first folks to get one.

But if the iPhone is running some version of OSX, wouldn't that mean that the X-Code platform could or would work to develop apps for it?

Cordially,
BG
 
buddhagoth said:
I have the same hope. I can see why initially they'd not wanting others messing with it as that might cause user-usability problems and derail the initial experience of the first folks to get one.

But if the iPhone is running some version of OSX, wouldn't that mean that the X-Code platform could or would work to develop apps for it?

Cordially,
BG
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I expect they did use XCode. But are apple going to offer developers the other requirements such as SDKs, documentation el al. If iPHone runs on non intel hardware then they've got other requirements too..
 
I agree that perhaps it shouldn't be opened at first. Afterall this is a breath taking product that has certain expectations of its users (based upon the demos). If an app derailed from the specific uses or the overall brilliant experiences when using the device, then the device no longer seems as "cool", or "hip"......
 
Stella said:
As good products as Apple release, I'd hate to work for them.

Companies must strike a balance between their needs and the needs of employees. Life is not all work work work and one that revolves solely around your employer.

A happy employee is a productive employee, mostly!

However, it is impressive how Apple kept it all a secret.

I hope the employees and their families didn't suffer too much due to over work etc.
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I expect they are well compensated...if they weren't, people wouldn't stay.
 
moving on ...

Honestly I´m kinda confused about the ongoing "this & that" about the whole iPhone thingy ! The iPhone is fantastic and I can´t wait till it is out there but instead talking about the whole time of the "how´s, when´s & why´s" in connection to the iPhone ... what about the rest of the "roadmap" ? What about iLife 07, iWork08 ... a new MacPro, Leopard and on and on ... ?

Wouldn´t hurt to squeeze some questions about the other coming products in while you´re at it, investigating the "IPhone Case" ;o)
 
Why I would not get an iPhone for a while

Why I would go for a new iPod over an iPhone for a while:
(1) If I were going to spring 600 bucks on a "convergence" device, I would want something that would actually replace my ipod - all 23 gigs of my music/photos/video podcasts. I mean, it is widescreen with brilliant video - but only 8 Gigs? Perhaps as a nano replacement it works...But it is no full ipod replacement with only 8 Gigs of memory...
(2)Apple tends to wildly exaggerate battery life, so if they say 5 hours -I take it with a grain of salt and wonder - what if it is something miserable, like 2 in real world conditions? Without a user-replaceable battery, it has to have some good battery life unless you want to be saddled with a charger at home, work, car, etc...
(3) If I so much as glance at my ipod screen, it scratches - hopefully it is more smudge-scratch proof than it seems...

Finally, the software is closed - so you have to wait for Apple to release a "widget" that you could really use but Apple hasn't released it yet.
 
mmmcheese said:
I expect they are well compensated...if they weren't, people wouldn't stay.
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I hope they were - but money isn't everything... you need a life.

paja said:
http://www.engadget.com/2007/01/11/iphone-and-lg-ke850-separated-at-birth/

The LG was announced long before the iPhone.

The LG has already won a design award. Did Apple rip off LG?
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I've seen that link before - looked at the pictures and assumed I was looking at all iPhone pictures ( I didn't read the text ).

Indeed, it initially seems that Apple did rip them off.
 
Today in the Chicago Tribune (maybe yesterday's), right there on the front cover was an article about the iPhone. I'd like to get one when it comes out. Since I don't have a cell phone, I think it's about time.

As for a user removable battery, I think that would be a good idea. It'll let you keep using the iPhone for a while, plus I'd like it to have SOME depth to it. I have a US video iPod and it's kinda hard to hold since it's small compared to my hands.

I'd also like to see a tablet Mac; something like PADDS on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Deep Space 9 & Voyager. Preferably with a docking station so you can use it as a monitor.
 
every time i see steve thanking the families for the sacrifices apple employees make, i get a little sad. family time is important.
 
Stella said:
I hope they were - but money isn't everything... you need a life.
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True. Actually, it seems money has very little to do with happiness. And how do money help you when your wife or housband leaves, or your children believe you don't love them. (I have a friend whose father had to travel a lot because of work. To make a long story short, something potentially bad happened to my friend over a couple of days. I told his father, but my friend actually didn't believe me later when I told him how worried his father had been. My friend didn't believe his father could ever care. That's really sad.)
 
unbelievable, somebody want to work for a company lying to its own employee as well as partner? does it have so little faith in their own employee?

This is how a close source world becomes, ridiculous.
 
garfield2002 said:
I am glad to hear that Apple has sucessfully tightened security. With the large amounts of leaked information in the most recent set of product releases I was starting to worry that Apple was losing its' touch. As long as the announced products continue to live up to expectations, this type of business model is great. I say this becuase, even though there are 5+ months until the release of the iPhone, the product seems tangible and real. This is in sharp contrast to other companies who RUSH to announce a product that may never see the light of day. Good job Apple. :)
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I do not understand why this amount of secrecy is good.

I rather think it is bad for the prompt securing of relvant trademarks such as iPhone. Apple could not claim it since this would have give away their precious secret.
However, everybody knew that something was in the making, so it was quite easy to be first to grab the most probable name for the device and make Apple blead. I guess they speculated on a small company doing it. To bad it is Cisco now that was so quick to realise what they have in their hands...
 
EagerDragon said:
I been in a lot of companies + the goverment, where your location and what you are working on is not allowed to be discussed with family or friends. They get used to it (family) or you wind up in divorce court.

Lets see ..... 3rd wife now, starting a nice collection, LOL.
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Me and my family got used to it. My father's been working for a defense contractor since before I was born (25+ years). I've never known of what projects or systems he's been working on and for a long time didn't even know where he worked. All he would say is up north. All with good reason since every few years they are required to take a poly test and have to pass.

The company (several actually) decided to open it's secure door for one day and only one day for a family day. Going into the building was nothing out of the ordinary (except for the armed military guards at the entrance to the facility. It all looked like a normal office building for the DC area except for one conference room with 3 foot thick vault doors. It truly did look like the conference room from the X-files. I mean, same beautiful long wood table with low lighting and a string of chairs around the outer edge of the room. The only difference was the abnormally large projection TV that was showing all the unclassified satellites above the Earth (it looked like a garbage dump up there).

But the iPhone. Yeah, I'm pretty impressed that they seemed to keep it a secret for so long. And I sure and impressed by the device. Good grief it's beautiful.
 
Detektiv-Pinky said:
I do not understand why this amount of secrecy is good.

I rather think it is bad for the prompt securing of relvant trademarks such as iPhone. Apple could not claim it since this would have give away their precious secret.
However, everybody knew that something was in the making, so it was quite easy to be first to grab the most probable name for the device and make Apple blead. I guess they speculated on a small company doing it. To bad it is Cisco now that was so quick to realise what they have in their hands...
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They've had the trademark for 10 years, no? I believe few suspected Apple would call their product iPhone 10 years ago, let alone make mp3-players and phones...
 
Work, work work...Not

No one said the Apple employees working on the iPhone NEVER saw their families, Poff. Scandinavians have a perception that everyone ought to have half a year off and work 4 hours a day, and have the employer pay for everything. Everywhere else it's a little different--sometimes you have to put in overtime. If you're a salaried employee (the lower people you're concerned about) you get compensated for the time at time and a half, double time or triple time, so it's not such a sacrifice as you seem to think. And executive employees are compensated to include extra time they may have to put in occasionally.

It's called "Work" not "Play", and you have to do it to survive.
 
clevin said:
unbelievable, somebody want to work for a company lying to its own employee as well as partner? does it have so little faith in their own employee?

This is how a close source world becomes, ridiculous.
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Are you kidding? Apple tells their employees they need to keep what they're working on a secret. Obviously they fail at that and "rumors" leak out (which changed recently after a couple of lawsuits by Apple).

Apple trusted it's employees, and some of them failed. Thus, they can no longer be trusted. I don't see the complications here...and it's not like Apple locked them up to prevent them from seeing family and having a normal life. Way to blow it out of proportions.
 
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