The Link between the World's Best Phone(iPhone) and the World's Best Beer (Guinness)

In a little less than a week (July 11) the new version of the iPhone will be introduced. The tagline for the new product is "twice as fast, half the price." I've had my original iphone since it came out and have been a very satisfied customer. So I will be one of the first customers because the changes are significant. The network goes from EDGE to 3G (for the non-technos that means moving from about 125K character downloads to something approaching slow broadband) - although the 3G network looks to be mostly in urban areas in the US (and much better deployed outside the US). But the new phone also has a bit more capacity and GPS (although the current map system which uses triangulation off cell towers is pretty slick) and some improvements in searchability. The new feature that I am most interested in is called MobileMe which is an exchange server for the phone and all your other devices (Laptop, Desktop). As I said in an earlier post being able to keep all your contacts and emails and calendars in alignment is an important function. The new phone will also allow third party applications - and some of those look pretty good. So all in all this looks like a good upgrade - well worth the price (which as they say has been reduced).

But the press has begun to cover the start of a line at the Manhattan Apple store. The first five in line are there for other purposes - not just buying a new tech device. They call themselves the WhoFarm. Their leader admits “We’re here to restore the edible landscape. We want to bring seeds of change back to the White House.” It seems the group's objectives include asking the 44th president to plant an organic farm on the White House grounds. They freely admit that their real goal is to break the Guinness record for standing in line to buy something.

Apple is very good at building hype for their new products. And as I said, I will be one of the first to buy the new phone. In honor of these fools who want to have their name in a book, I will also probably host a toast to my new phone with a Guinness.