Will tomorrow’s release of the Apple iPhone SDK come anywhere near the levels of usefulness that start-ups and Fortune 500 companies need to create a business model?

I’m going to say no.

I’m also going to restate what I had mentioned a couple months ago and that is: Apple will not let you host your iPhone application on their ONLY method of global distribution unless you have a damned good and damned profitable application.

I’m personally very interested in the business applications piece since I’ve been looking for ways to a) use ONLY my iPhone for all facets of my life and b) connect my Bluetooth-enabled phone to the Web via the Mac.

Neither of these things will happen for a while, but I’m hoping that we can all benefit from a wide selection rather than grumble about a few and far between situation.

If you are one of the billion people in the world who accept the Apple method of control and, admittedly, the epitome of electronic distribution then Steve Jobs has news for you: they’ll handle your software applications for the iPhone and iTouch as well. No problem. They’ll take it all.

Why? Because that’s exactly what’s going to happen once the SDK finally reaches the masses and those masses clamor to strut their stuff.

Small development and creative firms will try to create the next $1.99 killer application and larger development firms will try to close the gap between business productivity and one of the coolest devices ever created.

Will this mean that there won’t be any freeware?

Of course not, but consider the stronghold of Apple in their distribution of electronic content. They’ll be certain to set strict guidelines surrounding QA, pricing and size than any standalone development shop. And, if they’re going to have the opportunity to charge you for their control, then they should implement best practices to refund or allow credit for items which do not meet specifications or the promise to customers.

The development community, as always, has the say on whether or not they’ll sign on for distribution with Apple. The choice to not join, however, would be detrimental to the bottom line. In reality, it could stop all means of getting the product out the door.

It’s not a good combination when you take new technology, an above-the-law carrier such as Verizon (full disclosure: I am a customer using a BlackBerry 8830) and a security division hell-bent on stopping the initial marketability from actually being delivered when you finally get your hands on it.

Think: Sidekick and T-Mobile.

Think: ATT (the old ATT Wireless) and Blackberry.

Think: Verizon and just about any phone they offer.

By hampering the functionality of a new technology, one is left with a novel but unfinished product. Why purchase the device? The lure is simply for people tied to the network who love the VCast option (why?) and can afford to upgrade, but don’t want to either a) pay to get out of their current contract or b) want to drop the extra $200 USD for the iPhone. With rebates, it was explained that I would be offered the LG Voyager for $199 without a 2 year commitment, but that information is far from verified.

I think the LG’s entry is a far cry from the beauty and well-thought interface (read: overall usability AND look and feel). As a matter of fact, when compared to the iPhone, the LG in this person’s opinion is downright ugly.

Too bad, LG. You had the time and the money to come up with something close, but this time it’s no cigar. Good luck.

Hello, music lovers.

The Apple iTunes WiFi store is open for business (I downloaded, installed and listened to music last night around 8:00 PM) and I have done everything I can to break it.

DANGER, WILL

We expect Apple to deliver us classy, beautiful, easy to use UI, and they definitely delivered.  This, my friends, is why the latest addition to my iPhone is dangerous. It’s too easy to just get what I want.

Now, I realize that’s the point. I know they’ve been sitting in meetings at APPL wringing their hands and salivating at the sheer thought of millions of people in love with their touch screens and their ability to show off to mall teenagers and corporate c-level geek-at-heart types. Good job.

In a matter of roughly 28 seconds I had searched for an artist (I went with Stone Temple Pilots because I was feeling old-school) and found the acoustic version of Plush (a great song that I don’t care to understand and perhaps one of the best acoustic versions of any rock song by the original artist. The closest thing to it, in my opinion, is In Your Eyes –originally performed by Peter Gabriel– and remade in the incredible acoustic form by Jeffrey Gains).

If you have an iPhone and a WiFi connection, go have some fun and spend a couple bucks. After all, why the heck did you buy that thing if you weren’t already sold on the abilities?

There are two very recent purchases that I’ve made (or made on my behalf) that have both become fodder for class-action-type melodrama:

• The discontinuation, and subsequent fallout of the 4Gb iPhone.
• The discontinuation, and subsequent fallout of the GM OnStar Analog Verizon Service.

They are not, however, being handled the same way. For those pining away for retribution at the hands of Mr. Jobs and company, this comes as a good piece of news. For those who are flat-out annoyed and willing to throw their pencils at the windows of the Detroit Uppities, well, you’re out of luck.

You see, Apple decided that even though it did something within it’s full spectrum of rights as a corporation, they bowed to the consumer and decided that they shouldn’t let this whole thing get out of hand. GM, however, said “hey, man. It’s not our fault we built this system based on an archaic and cheap, but useless technology just so we could get some phone numbers and cheap service costs from the nation’s largest carrier at the time….” (or something to that effect).

Apple didn’t do anything wrong. There are at least a couple hundred thousand people who disagree with me (including my business parter), but the fact of the matter is that they have every right to adjust to the market; this is exactly what they did.

They chose a pain point when they started the sales cycle and it went over just fine. People were so enamored by the clever technology that it made the purchase justified. So why isn’t it still justified? Because, of course, Steve decided he wanted to make sure that his goal of a million by Christmas was fulfilled and the only real way to do that was to cut the inflated price and “go for it”.

The other side of the equation is the side that’s actually the more irate: the ones who bought the 4GB model. To be fair, there were two reasons why people bought this model:

• Supply and Demand — The 8GB model was sold out on the day they decided to make their purchase and said, “Heck with it. I’m gettin’ a 4!”
• Pricing — This one is pretty obvious, and these are the ones who should be re-thinking their decision.

The $100 store credit is fantastic. They’ll give you the credit, Mr. and Ms. Irate, and you’ll go barging into their store and do what? Purchase more stuff. Not $100 worth of stuff. More than $100 worth of stuff. Brilliant.

While you’re there, pick me up some new ear buds.

The fallout isn’t bad and, to be fair, and to quote my friend Carl, “They would have forgotten about it in a week, anyway”. Yup. They probably would have.

Apple didn’t need to give out a store credit. Neither did Sony after I bought that $355 DVD player many years ago. (The price eventually went down to $74 at Wal-Mart.)

Just about anything you buy has the price risk associated with it and you should probably beware of any purchase situation. But, above all else, once you get it home and it gets a scratch, be smart.