When Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) unveiled the iPhone in January 2007, it probably knew that its marketing and influence were ripe to make that product the "must have" wireless handset. Indeed, it's turned out that way, with Apple quickly entering into the top-five companies in the wireless phone business.Since then, the copycats (if we can call them that) have released on touch-screen phone after another. Some are good, some mediocre. Sprint Nextel Corp.'s (NYSE: S) impending release of the Palm, Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM) Pre may be a very good contender to actually compete head-to-head with the iPhone.
Not to be outdone, recent wireless laggard Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT) just unveiled the Evoke handset this week that looks like a combination of the Pre and the iPhone. Yes, those icons look eerily similar to the iPhone's home screen and the slide-down keyboard looks like Palm's unit. It's neither, although we need to give Motorola a dose of credit. But that's it -- just a dose.
It's amazing this company has survived this long. It's had a great history of firsts in the handset biz, but besides the highlights, it has not made a consistent string of winners recently -- and at the same time, competition has heated up beyond the boiling point. What is Motorola expected to announce at this week's CTIA conference? Probably nothing, and from the last few years of turbulence, this is par for the course.
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