I think the iPhone was very much a status symbol; like a wristwatch was back when they were mechanical. The glamor is gone from it. Just like the mechanical watch gave way to the cheap electronic watch. It was no longer worth the price difference to get a mechanical watch when you could have an equal or better product for a fraction of the money. And, like the attempt to make mechanical watches sell as luxuries by adding diamonds and gold, I saw a phone case that cost more than my house and cars together. (It was for sale in Saudi Arabia.)
As far as iPhones go, the bloom is off the rose. It’s just a commodity now. iPhone pricing in China has fallen precipitously as a result. (China’s markets are a bellwether for status symbols.)
boy I have to tell you that the apple watch is quite the status symbol among the twenties and thirties set.
What I love is how users of iPhones and other Apple products are always proudly preening when they have an appointment for help at the “genius bar”.
As if they themselves are somehow geniuses needing to go into a store for help in using their tech products right!
Good news for Buick, then.
I do think it is funny how I can get a watch for under $100 bucks that will tell me the correct time, day, date, atmospheric pressure, and lots of stuff and needs only a new battery every couple years. A Rolex has to have the accurate date input manually 6 times a year.
“Just like the mechanical watch gave way to the cheap electronic watch. It was no longer worth the price difference to get a mechanical watch when you could have an equal or better product for a fraction of the money. And, like the attempt to make mechanical watches sell as luxuries by adding diamonds and gold...”
Now just hold on thar...
Watches are my one guilty pleasure. Wearing a watch isn’t about knowing what time it us. Also you don’t need diamonds or gold as there are stainless steel mechanical watches that sell for 10’s of $thousands, and people virtually line up to buy them. A run-of-the-mill entry level Rolex will set you back around $5k. A Patek Philippe dealer won’t even talk to you unless they know you, even if you are waving cash under their nose. Haute horology is not going away anytime soon.
That said, I got G-shock watches for my nephews for Christmas 2017. They thought they were cool, but they don’t wear them.
As far as iPhones go, the bloom is off the rose.
The other day a 7th grader at the school I sub at showed me his new iPhone Xr that he got for Christmas. Now I’ve known this kid for at least the last five years. Nice kid but a bit on the wild and crazy side. Who would give a 14 year-old boy a $750 phone? Just doesn’t make sense to me.
If one has to choose between Google's evil monopoly and spy infrastructure (Android), or Apple's commitment to privacy, I will pay the premium. It won't always be that way, I suppose, but for now Guck Foogle.