What inspires the techno-geek to trade in his current iPhone for the new iPhone 4S? Does he have several hundred dollars burning a hole in his pocket? Is he anxious to tie himself into a two-year contract to a particular carrier? Even the geekiest among us recognize those as disincentives.
The iPhone 4S's "must buy" feature is "Siri, the built-in personal assistant that responds to your voice in a soothing, robotic female tone." No longer must you key in your Internet requests. Siri will schedule your meetings, text your friends, give you GPS directions, rate restaurants, preview movies, and more. You simply "speak to the phone". In fact, Siri is a female version of HAL, the computer from "2001, A Space Odyssey", presumably without the homicidal tendencies.
But here's the feature that clinches it for the techno-geeks out there. When you say "Thank you" to Siri, she responds with "That's nice of you to say" or "Your wish is my command." The guys who were ignored by girls in high school, who spent their collegiate nights playing "Dungeons and Dragons" instead of partying at the frat house and who spend their workdays typing out computer code in a lonely cubicle can now flick out their iPhone and have a conversation with a "soothing female voice". That is certainly worth a couple hundred dollars and a two year contract. Better yet, Siri ends the conversation with "Your wish is my command". Even Joe Jock from high school never heard that from Tiffany the Cheerleader.
Steve Jobs, you saved the best for last. Thank you from geeks everywhere.
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