Why this Machead won’t be getting the iPhone… now

Apple punishes early adopters. There’s just no way around it. I am as slavish a Machead as they come. I run out and buy their new gear. I’m on my third iPod, and that’s out of five generations of them. I buy the latest iLife update, even if it adds two GarageBand sound effects and an extra iDVD template that I won’t use anyway. But Apple has trained me now: if I buy the first version of a new product, I will regret it. I have the first iPod – look at the battery problems that had, and how reluctant Apple was to address them (halfheartedly as they did). Early adopters should be rewarded – we pay the most and help establish the market for a product, after all. We should get upgrade discounts or trade-in rebates or something. Anything besides regret. Apple has a deliberate strategy – make no future product announcements so you won’t cannibalize your own sales. That’s fine. But I’ve learned from that strategy, too. There will be a better iPhone soon enough. I can wait.