The importance of iTunes for the iPhone success
Just a reflection on an aspect of why the iPhone is so successful that I don’t think is talked about enough: the iPhone is the first mobile phone that lives in symbiosis with your computer. All other mobile devices I’ve used have been disconnected from the rest of my digital life. They could be synced, but only if you really tried and could endure some of the horrible software for it. That the iPhone basically does not work without syncing and managing it through iTunes makes it an integrated part of my digital life - a smaller device that carries a subset of the content and functionality of my main work tool. Apple claims they’ve “re-invented the phone”, but that reinvention I’d say is more about the natural connection to the computer than the functionality of the device itself. The OS, interface and touch controls are fabulous, but just like with the iPod a lot of people don’t seem to understand the importance of connecting the mobile device with limited functionality to a full computer desktop environment where it can be managed and connected to the important data that lives there. This is what makes the iPod and the iPhone killer products - they are part of a small ecosystem of how you manage all parts of using it. And yes, I know this is not new knowledge, I just think it is not talked about or focused on enough in reviews and product comparisons and talk about iphone killers from other companies. A similar device is not enough - you have to make an iTunes killer as well.
