Mac addicts: Thoughts on today's keynote?

Shit, thought we were talking Big Macs and I love them bastards!

 

Just got home from work and have been eagerly awaiting this thread.
It looks cool, no doubt.
But $500? How many average joes have that kind of scratch for a phone?
And since the initial demand will be high, there won't be any discounts like you normally get.
Also, some of you touched on this, the Iphone can be the greatest device ever, but if you live in an area with crappy Cingular coverage, the Iphone becomes an overpriced Ipod.
Plus, a cell phone is more advance than a MP3 player.
There can be more that can go wrong with a phone than a music player.
I'm also curious to how much the monthly fee will be for data service as well as voice.
The average cell phone bill is around $50, can a 20-something swing the $500 phone and $75 (to pick a figure) a month for service?
No thanks, I'll stick with my Verizon Wireless Treo.
Plus, you get the idea Steve Jobs could put an "I" in front of shit and people would kill for it?

 

Who can honestly pay $50 a month for their phone service? If so, I'd love to find out how.

 

Patchs, don't most of the smart phones (Treos, Blackberries, etc.) start at $500? I'm guessing that price will drop rapidly after the first month or so. I suspect by this time in 2008, you'll be able to get a first-gen iPhone for $100 or so.

 

So, is this something with which you could plug into your iMac laptop (which would also run OS X or better) and, theoretically, transmit a story when you have to cover a game waaaaaaayyyyy out in the boonies???

 

My Treo 650 cost $250 and that was before the price came down.
Palm just introduced a new Treo that sells for $199.
And it plays video, MP3s, goes on the Net, etc.
I really doubt you'll see an Iphone that cheap, unless it's stripped down.

 

The Treo can be hooked up with a laptop and can be used to transmit a story.
Of course, if there's no coverage in the boonies....

 

There has been a lot of talk that Apple doesn't want the companies to discount these phones so they'll be able to retain the value of their brand. I seriously doubt the price will drop dramatically after just one month.

More likely it will take a few years, just as it did with the ipod. IIRC, the 20GB ipod was once priced at $500, then worked its way down to its current price of $250.

I'm hoping that this will drop the price of a Treo I can use for a couple of years. Then, once Apple improves the storage space and battery life, gets all the kinks worked out, I'll go for the Apple.

And there's no way you're getting a data package for this phone for less than $100 per month.

 

True, but on Cingular.com a Treo 750 is listed at $649 ($399 with a contract signing and mail-in rebate). And the Cingular 8525 is $549 ($399).

 

The 750 just came out and is a Windows Mobile device which means it's geared towards corporate types.
Check the Treo 680.

 

My wife and I, for Christmas gift to each other, recently invested on a $2,900 IMac desktop system.
24-inch screen, lots of good features
We love our Mac.
Once you leave Windows and try this stuff, it's a quick addiction.
All Mac products, across the board, I will now trust.

 

With apologies for the threadjack...

Does that mean that the cellphone cards my paper just invested in won't work in podunk? (Note I didn't say Podunk, which might have perfectly good cell coverage. ;D) I thought they were supposed to save us from being stranded somewhere without normal dialup or wireless access.

My Verizon contract is up, and I've got the $100 "new every two" rebate so I'm thinking about splurging on a phone that normally would be out of my budget.

A phone that gets e-mail would be cool, though neither my work nor personal accounts are compatible with The Boy's Verizon phone.

What should I look at? A CrackBerry? Or should I get whatever's free (cute pink RAZR?!?) and invest in a cell card for my iBook instead?