The Buzz: Nano Rocks, ROKR Flops
Analysts and bloggers alike sounded off on Wednesday's announcement of the ROKR iTunes phone and iPod Nano, Apple's replacement for the iPod Mini. While it looks like reception for the Nano has been more than positive, the same cannot be said for the much anticipated ROKR. Here is a sampling of what people are saying:
"The big news here in SF wasn't so much the iTunes phone but rather the iPod Nano...Pictures do not do this device justice. The form factor is amazing, this clearly fits in our mobile taxonomy in the invisible space. But it's a real iPod, with scroll wheel and a beautiful hi-res color display."
The real question is with a $199-$249 price for the Nano and a form factor that's so small and elegant, you could carry it and a RAZR in your pocket without noticing either, who is the market for the iTunes phone?"
- Michael Gartenberg, Jupiter Research
"I had the chance to see [the iPod Nano] the night before and hold it in my hands and just marveled at its small size yet powerful capabilities...This is the most important new iPod since the iPod Photo was released and will be the hottest product this Christmas. Apple's own timing for this launch, and the fact that they will be in channels WW by the end of this week virtually assures them that this will become the top MP3 player this fall."
- Tim Bajarin, Creative Strategies
"There is no doubt in my mind that the iPod Nano is a hit. Sleek sexy and signaling a move from the aging white ID to a more contemporary black this product is well priced and uses the successful iPod interface.
"Clearly [the ROKR] design is virtually all Motorola, with only the software UI coming from Apple...While there is a chance that loyal iTunes users could heavy lift this phone to large numbers it probably won't have the impact that an Apple designed phone might have had for all three players. Such a device may still be coming, but to us this phone simply doesn’t have enough Apple in it and that will limit its success."
- Rob Enderle of Enderle Group
"Grab a standard American business card. Now, get a pair of scissors and trim the long side of the card by 20%. That's all the space you need to hold over 1,000 songs, plus audio books, podcasts and photos if you buy Apple Computer's newest iPod model, the gorgeous and sleek iPod nano.
"The [ROKR] phone, which Apple didn't design, is chubby and lacks the iPod navigation wheel. And it holds just 100 songs. It's essentially a huge iPod shuffle with a screen."
- Walt Mossberg, Wall Street Journal
"Apple's got the cool factor down cold. Samsung's 512MB flash-based player is the YP-MT6X. Yeah, right, everyone is going to ask for that by name...Add up all the things that Apple is doing right and all the things Microsoft and its partners aren't doing right, and you have a recipe for iPod's success and competing products' failure.
"Maybe it's time for Microsoft and its partners to start talking about how Windows Media helps people get more out of their existing music investment; to emphasize the audio fidelity, for starters. There is plenty of opportunity for Microsoft and its partners to reset the agenda and snatch the marketing lead from Apple. Surely, Apple isn't the only company on the planet with good marketing ideas?"
- Joe Wilcox, Micorsoft Monitor
"Stack the iPod Nano against the ROKR and which would you take? My pocketbook is voting for the Nano right now. The only question now is whether to choose black or white?
"The Motorola ROKR E1 is here. And it's the image we've been seeing for months. I liked the fake iPhone images better—how about you?"
- Technolog blog Gizmodo
"Not quite the revolutionary advance in digital music we'd been led to believe had been coming, but it's an "iPhone" none-the-less."
- Technology community Ars Technica