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Let me present you with a business scenario: you know what your biggest rival and industry leader is going to do. In fact you’ve had a good idea for the last few years. Do you:
a) Beat it to the punch with a top notch alternative to gain market share and damage its plans
b) Have a half hearted attempt at making a basic alternative and hope for the best
If you are logical, sensible and even remotely business savvy you opt for a). If you are
Let’s fill in the gaps. The elephant in the room is Apple and what rivals have known for years is Apple is planning an iPhone with a larger screen. In fact for the last 12 months leaks have consistently revealed the iPhone 6 will have a 4.7 inch screen. That’s big for an iPhone, but ‘mini’ compared to the 5+ inch behemoths Apple rivals have at the top of their phone ranges.
So it presents a simple, but invaluable opportunity: make smaller versions of your flagship 5+inch devices to combat the impending iPhone 6. Given their names (S4/S5 Mini, G2/G3 Mini, One/One M8 Mini) and screen sizes (4.3in to 4.7in) Apple rivals appear to have done exactly that... but they haven’t.
First released in 2013, these Minis (above) copied their big brothers’ designs and stole their names but they were cheap knock-offs. Disappointing lower-midrange handsets with their screens, chipsets and cameras all compromised but with exploitatively high price tags in excess of the superb Nexus 5. Not only did they not attract iPhone owners, but in being no better than other midrange handsets the manufacturers already had on sale, they risked diluting the brand image of their more illustrious namesakes.
One year and, despite lukewarm reviews and disappointing sales, lessons have still not been learnt. The heavily leaked S5 Mini, G3 Mini and One M8 Mini again all drastically cut the specifications from the recently released Samsung Galaxy S5, HTC One M8 and (also heavily leaked) LG G3. They are destined for more lukewarm reviews and disappointing sales, will not attract iPhone owners and continue to risk diluting the brand image of their larger namesakes.
It is a terrible waste. The iPhone 6 will be the most significant form factor shift in iPhone history and with it comes a very real risk that Apple will not get either the hardware or software right. After all a major rethink of iOS could be on the cards, particularly with the back button currently positioned in what will be a hard-to-reach top left corner.
What’s more it is extremely frustrating because one manufacturer with next to no traction is actually showing Apple’s biggest rivals how to do it right. The
If only Sony were not trying to come from so far back. Having desperately tried to rebuild itself since its past collaboration with
All of which means Apple’s potentially divisive iPhone 6 is set to get a free run (and probably even two generations) to get things right when it launches in the next few months. Given the troubles Tim Cook has faced since he took over from Steve Jobs he won’t believe his luck. Meanwhile Apple’s biggest rivals should hang their heads in shame .
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