We try not to be mindless promoters of the next cool gadget. Really. That said, there are some technologies that represent a sea-change in the evolution of information management. They can't be ignored.

The mobile communications appliance we have all waited for debuted yesterday at MacWorld. As a result, Research In Motion's stock dropped about the same amount as Apple's climbed. If you have not seen the new iPhone yet it is worth taking a moment to visit the Apple website for a tour of its features.



The iPhone first is a beautifully designed piece of consumer electronics. It represents an evolution of the ideal that drives this remarkable company: think different and think simple (funny how billions of R&D investment can result in such a simple, easy to use device). In cultural theory terms, its lineage owes much to the boomer generation's embrace of a technological future as represented by Stanley Kubrick's seminal film, 2001. The black obelisk in that film - a perfect, black rectangle - represented in iconic form the combined intelligence of a superior race that through its technology begins the evolution of human intelligence (for you creationists in the audience the obelisk can represent god - your choice).


Image from, appropriately enough, Hackers At Large

Kubrick understood the maxim that sufficiently advanced technologies resemble magic. The iPhone is that technology. Its easy-to-use interface and high-res screen combine cellphone and a usable Internet browser in one small, elegant package.

Of course, since Canadians live in a no connectivity competition zone, very few of us can afford the ridiculous charges this phone will generate for Internet access. It is time for an upstart competitor - Virgin, are you listening - to throw open the doors to affordable mobile Internet access in this country. Maybe the iPhone will drive the opening of the Canadian communications market.

The iPhone will open up multi-billion dollar markets for mobile information services. Developers will love it. Microsoft, on the other hand, won't. The Mac OS pretty well drives a spike through Windows Mobile. Is Microsoft still around? Someone at MacWorld said installing Vista might kill your computer. That can't be good.

Other important news from MacWorld is Apple's embrace of green manufacturing. The company announced it will recycle all its products through its world-wide network of stores. Want to recycle your Mac? Take it back to any Apple store. Watch this film for more information: