The year 2011 may be called the most delayed release date year in the history of cell phones, tablets and smartphones.
At CES in January, Verizon announced four 4G LTE smartphones, the HTC Thunderbolt, Samsung Droid Charge, LG Revolution and Droid Bionic. The release dates were not announced then. However rumors first reported the HTC ThunderBolt release date to be in February because it went on presale at BestBuy on February 7. The actual release date of the HTC ThunderBolt was March 17. During CES the Droid Bionic was expected to have a second quarter release date and now we are expecting it in September. The Samsung Droid Charge was expected to have a mid April release date and was not launched until May 5.
When the Motorola Xoom tablet was released in February, the 4G LTE
upgrade was said to be coming shortly. That update won't be available
until September.
The most used saying in all of the announcements was "coming soon."
The current AT&T webpage for the LG Thrill 4G says coming soon while leaked screenshots show a release date delayed until August 21.
The
updates to Android 2.2 Froyo Samsung Galaxy S smartphones in the United
States, were promised when the smartphones were released in the summer
and fall of 2010. By December 2010 resources were saying that the update was "coming
soon." The first update for the Samsung Vibrant didn't come until
January 21. The update date for the Samsung Captivate was February 24. The Samsung Epic 4G started getting an update which was pulled until
March 21. The Samsung Fascinate received an update on April 20.
Smartphone enthusiasts get anxious waiting for updates and new smartphone model release dates. On our Facebook wall commenters use foul language.
The carriers now such as Verizon and AT&T don't announce release dates until a few days before availability.
We started seeing ever-slowing releases starting with the BlackBerry
Storm in 2008. Verizon released the first touchscreen BlackBerry in
order to have in time for holidays which turned into a marketing
nightmare. Glitch after glitch had to be corrected which turned into
hours and hours of customer support time. The BlackBerry Storm was responsible for a storm of returns and bad experiences with Verizon Wireless.
Releasing a device before the device or network is ready is costly on
all fronts. Early release dates are even more costly than dealing with a never-ending stream of
rumors from leaks that aren't supposed to leak in the first place.
The software updates take what seem like forever, because each update
has to work with the smartphone, the carrier's network and then the
bloatware from the carrier. Then after that there is testing.
The testing is very important because it often leads to the update being pulled if it doesn't work.
Yes buyers and owners get frustrated by not having a solid release
date. The release date factors into the buying decision of say "Should I
buy the iPhone 5 or wait for the Samsung Galaxy S II or Droid Bionic?
Buyers are tied to their smartphone and table choices for two years. That's a major commitment nowadays. Buyers are angry but not as angry as they would be if they bought a smartphone or tablet that didn't work properly.
The only good news in the whole saga of the ever-changing release date,
is that it keeps reporters busy trying to figure out what the real
release date will be.
Update 08/01/11 -- Today, there was a new rumor suggesting an October release date for the iPhone 5, which we call "déjà vu all over again." One of our commenters noted that the technology is not moving as fast as our standards. Reality keeps creeping in.
Very good point - that does make sense. I just wish I would have never heard about the Droid Bionic because now I'm just frustrated and stressed out. Some of these phones I'm better off being in the dark about - that is until they actually have the phone available in the store. It would be better for my health.
I have been a software developer for a long time working on many R&D projects. There is a reason for all of these delays. This market is evolving faster than companies can ready the hardware and software for the marketplace. The competition that is driving this sector is very high. The rush to market by several companies has been almost overwhelming. It has been very difficult to get a dual core processor to work with a 4G LTE radio. The iPhone 5 is so slim, the dual core processor was initially overheating. Battery technology is lagging. And to think that we are only a few months away from higher resolution HD screens, quad core processors and a faster 4G LTE network. Expect the delays to continue...
Thanks for your input. The problem really is that the technology isn't moving as quickly as our desires. We all want it now instantly and the developers have to figure out how to to do it.
One of the best moves Steve Jobs made was that the original iPhone didn't use 3G. Apple came out with a 3G model later.
I also suspect that there will not be a 4G LTE iPhone, yet either.