For Verizon customers, any iPhone seems good enough
Dan Mead, left, chief executive of Verizon Wireless, and Tim Cook, chief operating officer of Apple, announced on Jan. 11, 2011 that Verizon Wireless will carry Apple's iPhone in New York City. Credit: AP
Apple is notorious for its tendency to parade a new product months before a brand-new version hits shelves. This has often been the source of anti-Apple sentiment, as well the transformation of a new buyer's gadet-glee into regret.
But with the release of the iPhone 4 on Verizon tomorrow, even the clear indication from Apple itself that the iPhone 5 is in the works for a summer release hasn't stopped eager customers. Verizon apparently sold out of its stock of iPhone 4 preorders in less than a day.
It's baffling that so many people would eagerly jump on the Verizon iPhone with the fifth installement only months away, but maybe the iPhone's allure is so strong these days that people who have been barred from the phone for five years just don't care that it will soon be outdated.
You can't claim that people simply don't know that the iPhone 5 is soon to be released, or that Apple doesn't tend to pull this move all the time. Any tech blog or gadget review will point out this nature of the company's buisness strategy, and a number of Verizon iPhone reviewers, from the NY Times' David Pogue to Wired.com's Brian X. Chen have clearly highlighted the release of the iPhone 5.
It may seem hard to believe because it blatantly ignores economical thinking, but it could be that the fresh coat of competitiveness between Verizon and AT&T, which will no doubt reach record highs when the iPhone is delivered to those who preordered it, is clouding the minds of customers. The new Verizon commerical takes a razor-sharp stab at AT&T by first satirically stating the iPhone's vast superiortity before bluntly asking viewers if their network can actually use it to make calls.
With reviewers raving about the Verizon iPhone's superior call-making, it does seem to have the temporary step-up on AT&T. So Verizon customers really may not care about the iPhone 5, but just want to relish in five years of smug revenge in the making.
It's not yet confirmed whether the iPhone 5 will have simulataneous AT&T and Verizon release, but considering the fact that Apple has mastered the production of both GMA and CDMA iPhones makes it hard to believe there would be any hurdles. So until this summer, Verizon users can sit back and make pretty crisp calls. But whether they've done the research and know of the iPhone 5 or they're unfortunate enough to be in the dark, Verizon customers with a preorder under their belt may only have a small window of enjoyment.
