Most Betanews readers won't buy iPhone 4

On June 9, I asked: "Will you buy an Apple iPhone 4?" The answers are in via e-mail and comments. They are surprising, because they're so polarized. There aren't so many "maybes" among you as I expected. The majority of commenters are saying "No" to iPhone 4. The split is more two-thirds "Yes" among the people who sent e-mail.

I want to point out two differences from this post and others like it. Firstly, the comments are longer; I did less editing for space. Secondly, I only used comments or e-mail responses from people whose full names are clearly identified. However, the comments are still representative of them all.

Something else: There is no balance here. The majority of respondents say they won't buy an iPhone. Balancing out to get an equal number buying and not purchasing would be unfair to the respondents and would mischaracterize their responses. Perhaps a different group of readers, such as one of the Mac blogs, would be more enthusiastic about iPhone. Among Betanews readers choosing to answer the question, the majority aren't planning on buying iPhone 4.

Three trends emerge from this arguably unscientific survey of Betanews readers:

1. AT&T's network will keep away potential iPhone buyers or upgraders.

2. A surprising number of existing iPhone owners won't upgrade. That says something about current satisfaction with currently-owned iPhones and the limited appeal of the new model's features. Apple may already have saturated the market for existing customers, which is a typical phenomenon. It's never a question of if this happens but when.

3. Smartphone buyers have more choices during this iPhone release cycle than any other, and they are making them. Many respondents have recently purchased or soon plan to buy another smartphone.

Now for the responses:

Jerry Morton: "Nope, have an iPhone 3G that won't work at my desk, drops calls all the time. Can't see throwing away $300 for a new battery and new screen."

Justin Morrison:

Yes, and here are my reasons. First, I get a 21% discount at AT&T through my employer and in Birmingham, AL, all of the usual problems with AT&T are nonexistent, signal and speed are always good. Second, my contract is up and my jailbroken [iPhone] 3G will sell for around $300 on eBay so it will pay for iPhone 4. I want a Nexus One because I like Android and customization ( and Google products in general) but I can't get one for less than 529 dollars with AT&T. I'm desperate to upgrade from my old 3G so I might as well take this opportunity.

Robert Ballantyne: "No, not the iPhone 4, but when the cameras show up on the iPad, that may be enough for me to want one of those. Such an iPad, with a Skype landline-calling account and a bluetooth headset, would be all I'd need to travel. Some time ago I decided not to use a laptop when I travel, and now take only flash sticks."

Greg Figotin:

I would definitely buy IPhone 4 by many reasons. First, I'm iPhone user since 2007 and I do have all generations of this remarkable device. Second, it does have many features other phones [are] missing including its design as well -- 2 cameras, flash, etc.. Of course, AT&T is not ready to support all features of such a device, but, c'mon what provider is [that] perfect?!!! Verizon? Sprint? None of them!!! They are all greedy bustards ! At least AT&T supports besides phones IPads and has more towers than any other providers. And the last reason, if IPhone is not that remarkable device worth to buy, why you, Joe, and many other authors wrote numerous articles about it ?!!!!

Andy Gowen:

How to describe the iPhone 4? It is like having Pininfarina quality style added to totalitarian state control. The choice is 'You will buy one and you will enjoy it how we tell you' or not to get one at all. I can't fault people who say 'yes' as they will have the pleasure of owning that design. I just can't get over the idea of my phone owning me and for that reason if nothing else, I can't buy-in to the Apple state. Freedom may not be as pretty but at least it belongs to me.

Shannon Coolican:

I will be buying an iPhone 4 when it comes out in July up here in Canada. I currently have an iPhone 3G that I have been very happy with. I was blown away by the recent Keynote and all the awesome features this phone will have. It really is a no brainer for me. BTW, I also have an HTC MyTouch running Android 1.5. When it comes down to it, I really am an 'app' fiend. My current iPhone 3G is jailbroken and I have much more than than allotted 11 pages of apps. The new folders feature in iOS 4 will be a real blessing for me. It goes without saying that I will be buying the 32GB version. I really wish there was a 64GB version as I would have ponied up for that in an instant.

Robert Johnson:

I want a device that will let me create and edit office documents. Store those docs in the cloud. Wirelessly syncs with my PC. Talks to my XBOX by letting me play some of those games on my phone. That's why I will not be purchasing an iPhone. I will continue to use my Moto Droid (which I got for $20 w/new contract) until Windows Phone 7 comes out. I don't care about 200,000 apps or even 50,000 apps. I want a device that will not only be beautiful to use, but will allow me to stay productive and connected. On another note, I sense the same desire to not be left out. But I suppose there is a stronger part of me that enjoys being different and not 'looking like everyone else'.

Don Gray:

I am tempted by the new features present in Apple's latest and greatest toy, specifically the higher resolution screen and the front facing camera. Also like you [Joe Wilcox] my primary deterrent is AT&T's terrible voice network... Presently I live in Rochester, NY and am employed as a Research Analyst & IT Manager for an educational consulting firm...I've owned an iPhone 3GS for about the 18 months. The device has been great for staying connected to my work email and documents while I'm out of the office. It's also just plain fun to use. The downside, however, is the dropped calls. For the past 18 months I've suffered through several dropped calls a week; sometimes a day. This is in the area around my home where I have 4 bars of coverage. Two weeks ago I was finally fed up and went to Verizon and ordered an HTC Incredible; hopefully next week it will arrive.

Even though the new features to iOS4 and the iPhone 4 are tempting, I don't have confidence in AT&T's network or Apple's ability to design a high quality phone (strictly speaking to voice calls here). Verizon has the stronger network and as I don't have a home phone (who needs one these days) I want to know that I have reliable voice service. So in summary there will be no new iPhone in the Gray household this summer.

Tobias Lind:

I might actually buy one! I have never owned an Apple device ever, and I'm currently using (and in love with) Android. But the new iPhone's screen seems fantastic, and I'm actually quite fed up with lousy cameras as well. It was 5 years ago I had a decent camera in my mobile phone (Sony Ericsson) -- all my newer phones have had really crappy cameras. I'd also love to see the UI flow smoothly like butter without any hiccups ever (Android is getting better and better, but it's really not there yet).

And I'm quite disappointed in the low quality apps on Android Market. Ninety-nine percent of them are sooo ugly and crappy! And what finally made me even consider an iPhone now is multitasking. A smartphone without multitasking is a joke, so with iPhone 4, Apple is back in the game. And I don't live in the US, so I don't have to worry about AT&T. :)

Nicholas Gerstenberger: "Nope, won't buy it, won't switch to AT&T. I wouldn't even buy it if Verizon ever gets it (unless you paid me a big chunk of money, then I'll just cancel, or buy a newer Android phone, sell the iPhone and then pay off my credit cards). ;)"

Stephen Schwartz:

Yes, definitely, 100%. I love my 3GS, I loved my 3G, and I can hardly wait until June 15th to order my 4. I know people are not happy with the data plan from AT&T, I'm fine. I'm grandfathered. And concerns about the screen shattering, Otterbox will be releasing their case for the iPhone 4, so I'm not worried about that. As I said, I can hardly wait. I love the addition of folders, multi-tasking, dual-cameras, HD video. Also the increase in speed, the new A4 processor (I played with the iPad and the response and speed are great), and the extended battery life. It's a choice. Upgrade, buy new, or don't get it at all. It's up to you. Apple doesn't care, but they are wetting your appetites and hope you do buy new or upgrade. Good luck on your decision.

John Crane:

I'm not buying an iPhone 4, but I must admit that the iPhone is getting more tempting with each new model. I like the camera in the iPhone 4, but I don't really need another camera. I've got two digital cameras already and one of these also takes videos. I will probably buy a smartphone sometime this year, but I am waiting to see more of what the competition has to offer on AT&T. I like the Zune HD and would like to see a good phone running Windows Phone 7.0. I personally have never had problems with the AT&T network, except when calling from the road in Western Wyoming, but in the cities where I travel, there is no problem. I live in Texas.

Kevin Baron:

One hundred percent yes. I get to keep my unlimited data plan, not like I use it. But if I should use data alot more the plan is there should I need it. I have a iPhone now and just love the darn thing. I was never much into mobile gaming until the iPhone came along. I've been a iPhone owner for 2 years and could not be happier. I live in a area with very good AT&T service, which helps. iOS or whatever you call it just has always felt more friendly to me then other phone OS's. I've used Android, and while it is nice, it's not iOS...No one phone can make everyone happy. But for me the only phone that does it for me is the iPhone.

Keith Watt:

I won't be paying my annual dues this year to remain in the Apple Fan Club. I bought the 1st Gen iPod Touch back when it was released in late 2007. Now, not even 3 years later, Apple has left it for dead. To be sure, it's a great little device. I rely on it to get through my 3-4 hour a day commute. It's actually perfect, not a single complaint about it, thus I've no desire to get rid of it and go spend another $200. Yet, if you're not buying a new device every year, you're essentially out of the Apple Fan Club and can forget about being able to play new games, or use new software features. Thanks Apple.

Ron Miller:

Absolutely!!! I'm a gadget lover, but have never owned a smartphone. The reason is that I work from home and use so few minutes per month. I paid $100 for a pre-paid T-Mobile plan 3 years ago, and the past two years I paid $10 (for the whole year!) to keep my minutes alive. However, I can't hold out any more and the AT&T cheaper data plans have won me over. I don't care about streaming video, so 200MB per month is more than enough for me. I actually applaud AT&T for the limited plans -- bandwidth is a valuable and finite resource, people should pay for what they use.

The Android phones look great, and there are definitely some apps for Android that I would love to see on the iPhone (maps with turn by turn directions and Google Voice to mention a couple). However, I really like Apple products (I have a Mac Pro, iPad 3G, iPod touch, many other iPods), and I like the Apple polish and the amazing apps in the app store. Killer features for me on the new iPhone include video conferencing, HD video recording, improved motion sensors, new screen, thinness, battery life, processor speed.

Chris Schuchmann:

I have AT&T and I want nothing to do with the iPhone. I love my Nexus One and I love AT&T for the most part. I wish the iPhone owners could switch to other networks, and bring their network congestion problems with them.

What new does the iPhone 4 have to offer? Nothing -- there is not a single new feature on the iPhone 4 that hasn't been done by someone before (mainly Nokia). The only thing Apple has done is convince AT&T to carry the additional features like video calling. I might add Europe has had this for years and in fact Nokia implemented video calling before the first iPhone was even released. Of course while enabling these new features, AT&T has now also enabled this new feature called capped data -- thank you very much Apple.

Instead of capping data AT&T should charge per the minute for video calling. I say this because video calling is a feature that adds no real value and is sure to be abused by teenagers. And I say abused because it...directly affects everyone else who pays for the service. I don't want to be unable to send an important email or text message because little 14yo Sarah is talking to 15yo Julie down the street on video phone, especially when they could just walk and see eachother. What other awesome completely useless data hungry feature will Apple implement next on the iPhone, BitTorrent? I can picture it now kids downloading the latest episode of Lost and So you think you can dance.

Marcos Tos: "No, I'm not. I own an iPhone, and even some things are cool, it's always the same, and I'm tired of the limits of Apple. I will change for an Android or [BlackBerry]."