iPhone 4: First Impressions for Marketers

“It’s so thin!” exclaimed one of my colleagues as I unboxed the new iPhone 4 yesterday – 24% thinner than the iPhone 3GS, in fact. Yes, thin is in with Apple’s latest magical device, and the overall effect is fairly dramatic.

In terms of design, Apple is to electronics as Audi is to cars. Like Audi’s most recent models, this latest iPhone goes in a slightly blockier design direction than its predecessors. I wasn’t wowed by it straight out of the box, but it feels better in your hand, which is good for those few occasions when you’ll actually use it as a phone. Changing an icon like the first iPhone and 3GS is a challenging proposition, so Apple deserves some credit for going in a different direction, especially when that decision results in greater utility for the end user.

Still, the aesthetics of the case are unlikely to stand in the way of anyone wanting the iPhone 4, especially when the screen resolution is so much clearer. Thankfully, my particular model seems to have been spared some of the screen defects that others have noted. Looking at the home screen next to that of the iPhone 3G makes me feel like my vision had just improved – all of sudden the screen isn’t so blurry anymore.

Leaving aside the specs of the much-discussed retina display and the much-dissected glass used for the screen, this major step forward will make the iPhone 4 a far better platform for not only consuming media but also producing it. Even the photos I shot on the iPhone 3G’s 2.0 megapixel camera look sharper and brighter on the iPhone 4. How long will it be until we see a music video or feature-length film shot entirely on the iPhone? Answer: probably not long.

Along with the improvements to the display, the feature set and performance upgrades are the real story here. With newfound slimness comes far greater speed. My aging iPhone 3G seemed positively sluggish by comparison. And in my limited trial, the enhancements, such as unified in-box, app switching and multitasking, all worked as advertised (I didn’t have a chance to get any FaceTime).

So, what does this mean for marketers? Mark my words, iPhone usage will skyrocket. The epic pre-order snafus will do little or nothing to dampen consumer enthusiasm, and I frankly don’t see tiered data pricing as a significant near-term impediment for sales or usage either, although network issues with AT&T are sure to crop up. But fortunately for those in-market smartphone buyers who want to opt for another carrier, there is a bumper crop of highly capable devices. For example, Verizon and Motorola just yesterday launched the new bigger and badder Droid X, and the battle between Apple and Android is only going to get more intense. It’s entertaining to watch, but the key takeaway for marketers is that it will drive more consumers to smartphones and the mobile Web, and in turn, make mobile a more viable marketing platform.