The New Hotness

 

It almost pains me to say it, being the Microsoft zealot that I am, I definitely want an iPhone. It is the prettiest device to come out in a long time which is no surprise from Apple….and that is what it really boils down to - UI. User Interface is what makes the iPhone plain and simple. Even knowing that if I had one I couldn’t replace my smart phone because the corporate aspect of the iPhone sucks. My practical side says that every piece of functionality it can do, my Treo can do as well - My treo can email, text, call, listen to mp3 with my 2gb SD card (I could go to 4 to at least be comparable to the low-end iPhone), and surf the web on AT&T’s crappy Edge network. I even got the visual voicemail thing down by using callwave , and I am still convinced  that the typing experience will be better on my phone. Yet I find myself gazing at the iPhone in awe.

It is because of how apple does it - not the specific functionality. I want to fly through menus with my finger, and rock out on a super huge screen using a slim little device I can put in my back pocket. I want to “pinch” a screen to zoom in, and flick up and down to scroll. I want big pretty glassy buttons….at least that’s the marketing whore in me talking. I would have to use it for a week to really decide, but it is all about the UI. I think every developer, project manager, architect, or CIO responsible for creating software or hardware should take a moment to reflect on the hype going on right now for the iPhone, and even remember back to the iPod…or iMac, and consider how important UI is to the overall sucess of a technology product. Whether it is a consumer or corporate product - people want ease of use; people want sex appeal. 

Make your next app the new hotness!