The Idea Blog

May I draw your attention to fascinating article in the current Wired about the development of the iPhone. It’s long, behind-the-scenes and a wonderful view of the trials and tribulations of true innovation.

It’s hard work, this innovation stuff. Here’s my favorite example: “To ensure the iPhone’s tiny antenna could do its job effectively, Apple spent millions buying and assembling special robot-equipped testing rooms. To make sure the iPhone didn’t generate too much radiation, Apple built models of human heads — complete with goo to simulate brain density — and measured the effects. To predict the iPhone’s performance on a network, Apple engineers bought nearly a dozen server-sized radio-frequency simulators for millions of dollars apiece. Even Apple’s experience designing screens for iPods didn’t help the company design the iPhone screen, as Jobs discovered while toting a prototype in his pocket: To minimize scratching, the touchscreen needed to be made of glass, not hard plastic like on the iPod.”

Now, of course, there are rumors of improvements (and here) coming out of Macworld 2008, as well as the inevitable service issues. All seems well in order.