People Want iPhones (Who'd Have Thunk it?)

We're not surprised. Obviously. Apple plays the product cycle and media hype engines to perfection. Still, it's interesting to see Electronista's take, based on ChangeWave data:

A mid-June study from the research group has 14.4 percent of those tracked looking to buy some kind of smartphone within the next 90 days, a record high and a large jump from 11.2 percent in March. Of these, a full 44 percent now plan to buy an iPhone compared to 30 percent just three months earlier.

As the above graph shows, Palm went from 4% to 8%, BlackBerry from 37% to 23%. Android, Nokia, and Windows Mobile weren't shown

Other device makers likely know this, explaining why we're seeing so many iPhone-style devices hitting the market. TiPb still thinks it's more than a set of features, however. Sure, iPod halo and Apple brand help, but in the end the iPhone is all about usability and user experience for the consumer market, and that's not as easy a task to duplicate.