Nationwide iPhone shortage reported; 3G model soon?
LAS VEGAS--All of a sudden, it has gotten a lot harder to find an iPhone.
A few weeks ago, New York iPhone shoppers noticed that Apple's Manhattan retail stores were running low on iPhones. Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray, during an intermission in his three-part series on why Apple is the coolest ever, called up 20 different Apple stores across the U.S. and confirmed that the shortage extends nationwide. Apple's online store reports a five- to seven-day wait on iPhone shipments.
A shortage of iPhones could mean a faster model is coming soon.
(Credit: CNET Networks)There's usually a couple of reasons for a product shortage. One, demand is outstripping the ability of a company to supply the product. That's probably not the case here, since Apple's had no problems supplying iPhone demand since the inital weekend it went on sale, and there's no indication that demand has spiked in the last couple of weeks. Apple did announce the iPhone 2.0 software in early March, which might have pushed a few people over the edge, but the software itself won't be available until June.
Two, a glitch somewhere in manufacturing or the supply chain is screwing up distribution. Munster assigns a 20 percent likelihood to this possibility; there might be a problem with the touch screen or other sensitive piece of equipment that hasn't come to light yet.
The third reason is that the company is intentionally clearing inventory ahead of a new product launch. This happens all the time in technology; in Apple's case, we saw it just before the launch of new MacBook Pros in late February. Munster gave this possibility an 80 percent chance of being the cause behind the shortages.
The 3G version of the iPhone is what everyone is waiting for, and the inventory problems might be an indication that it's just around the corner. There have been scattered reports of a 3G model arriving anywhere from May to September (Personally, I'm betting on a September iPod/3G iPhone event, if anybody wants that action), but if the inventory problems are really related to the pending launch, that means it could be here a lot sooner.
One potential roadblock with this theory? The Federal Communications Commission has to approve all mobile phones sold in the U.S., and they tend to leak the results of their testing on their Web site. Apple CEO Steve Jobs said that was one of the reasons Apple announced the original iPhone in January of 2007, before launching it in June.
So, if Apple really were gearing up for a 3G iPhone launch soon, perhaps by June's Worldwide Developers Conference or the release of the iPhone 2.0 software, it's either going to have to announce that model, or let a gadget-hungry public discover it first. However, the problem with announcing it first and shipping it later is that iPhone sales could screech to a halt in the weeks, or maybe months, until the 3G model is ready.
What's a marketing executive to do?
Tom Krazit writes about the ever-expanding world of Internet search, including Google, Yahoo, online advertising, and portals, as well as the evolution of mobile computing. He has written about traditional PC companies, chip manufacturers, and mobile computers, spending the last three years covering Apple. E-mail Tom. 
Come on people, stick to your sources and stop reading the blogs
of people who don't matter in the industry...
But this phenomenon of anxiously waiting for the 3G iPhone is perfectly normal and usual for a device that lacks features that most smartphones have for years already.
between March 30 - April 4. It actually shipped the next day and we
had it yesterday. It actually took longer for it to move from China to
Texas than the so-called delay.
Think of all the loyal apple customers who bought the iphone, many will want this feature that should have been included when the iphone first came out, so they will have to pay apple more money and I can't think of a single reason apple would do this. What possible benefit would it be to apple to have their customers pay them more money. Well the non-replaceable battery is probably ready to die anyway.
as it was.
2) The REPLACEABLE (by Apple) battery is good for 400-500 FULL-
CYCLE charges. That means you'd let the battery completely
discharge before charging it up again. Most of us don't let the
battery completely die before charging....thus the life is extended
way beyond the minimum.
is not because AT&T has a weak 3G network (They actually have a
very large and powerful one), but because the 3G chips use a LOT
of power, which is what Steve Jobs even said when he unveiled the
iPhone in January 2007, and speaking as a iPhone owner, i am
extremely satisfied with it and my battery still preforms better than
any of my previous phones batteries.
Or, maybe not?
Apple is always 1-2 years behind where I think they should be as a company.
as a company."
Maybe they'll hire you so that you can point out the obvious to
them. Then they can explain the hundred different reasons that
the "obvious" isn't.
3G chips use a lot of power. The Chinese knock-off of the
iPhone is bigger, heavier, and, well, isn't nearly an iPhone,
especially when it comes to what makes an iPhone special - the
software.
But then again, I'm sure you could point out that just anyone can
write software like this.
BTW every iPhone that is purchased is a vote in support of the Chinese govt. beating the crap out of Tibetan monks. I often wonder how many iSheep have a "Free Tibet" sticker on their vehicles.
LOL, what a dumbphone.
sad Microcrap cannot come up with anything worthwhile.
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- by buy_3g_iphone April 28, 2008 8:51 PM PDT
- I am people even noticed the iphone shortage .... With the announcment of the new 3g iphone , I dont suppose people will want to go with the old iphone (except for the price advantage) ....
- Like this Reply to this comment
-
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