Another iBrick in the wall...

COMMUNICATION

In the last month, I have had a reasonably full and free run with the Apple iPhone. I have inspected, tweaked, played around with the iPhone like it was my own.

Twice I almost walked into stores in the US, on the east coast and west coast, credit card in hand, ready to flash and buy. At the last minute sense prevailed and I walked out, saving $399 (it was $600 two months ago).

The problem is not the iPhone. It's an enticing product. The problem is with its maker Apple that seems to be messing up expectations here. And in doing so, its potentially losing customers like me for ever, at least for this product.

Let me explain how. First, I do understand Apple's agenda of linking the product to strong service revenue streams with operators. But it so happens that there is just one operator, AT&T. This restricts supply and offering. Moreover, it has spurred rivals like Verizon to tie-up with LG to launch an iPhone response called the Voyager. But that's Apple's problem, not mine.

Apple is fending off the developers as well. The firm (along with AT&T) has given dozens of reasons to keep them out, but none of them tell me, in crystal clear terms, why a hardware company is getting so edgy about software.

Sure, things are going to be different going forward, but really, how different. After all, other phone makers seem to allow developers to create applications and they run fine without "potentially gumming up the provider's networks," to quote Steve Jobs.

Which by the way has opened the doors to rival handset makers like Nokia to pile on. The Finnish mobile phone giant has begun putting out posters that attack Apple's closed door policy towards the iPhone development.

"The best devices have no limits," and "Phones should be open to anything," say the posters which show a photograph of an open lock. There is no direct reference to iPhone here but I don't recall similar battles over handsets in the past.

And the unrest in the mobile tech user community is rising. One user has even filed a $1 million suit against Apple for dropping phone prices, thus robbing him off the gains he could have made on re-sale.

Others are upset at Apple for warning them to not upload any software onto unlocked iPhones as that would result in the phone's becoming iBricks!

As for me, I could have bought an iPhone and got it unlocked, as some friends have done. Despite all the scares, it runs quite well in India, including the Google Maps where you can "tease" the maps back and forth.

But my friend says he is not sure whether its worth the effort. So what could have been a simple mobile phone purchase has turned into a prospect of losing $399 at one go. No wonder iPhone fans in India want to know, "Apple ji, unlock kiya jai?"