Will Apples Second Generation iPhone Buck the Trend?
Rumors around the much-anticipated second-generation iPhone release have been swirling for months. On Monday Apple (AAPL) finally gave the public what they’ve been asking for: a faster iPhone with more business-user functionality & some way-cool apps, all at half the price ($199, w/2-year contract). Analysts are already claiming victory for Apple, predicting they will beat their goal of 10million devices sold by the end of the year. But is there any precedent for “device 2.0” success in the mobile phone world? The answer is yes, but the outlook isn’t very bright. Below are two graphs showing consumer interest in each phone, indexed to the week of its launch. Both the Motorola (MOT) RAZR and LG Chocolate were considered breakthrough devices at the time of their launches. The RAZR2 and Chocolate – Black Cherry didn’t fare nearly as well. • By week 4, interest was about equal between these two devices. This is the peak of RAZR2 interest, while interest in the RAZR peaks later in week 9. T
