As the hype around the iPhone launch gets to a fever pitch, a big question remains–who’s going to buy it? Mistakenly lumped into status phone category, the iPhone is actually aimed at a more savvy consumer.
Luxury phones are the latest status symbols. Big name brands in fashion came out with exclusive handsets such as Prada’s LG KE850 and the gold RAZR from Dolce & Gabbana, and that was just the beginning. Ami James of TLC’s Miami Ink partnered with T-Mobile to create the Miami Ink RAZR V3-Miami collection, designers Betsey Johnson and Anna Sui have created phones for Samsung and Vertu’s limited edition Ferrari phone is out in July. Brand-conscious consumers are increasingly willing to pay a premium price for such luxury handsets. For 
example, Vertu’s Signature Cobra (left) designed by French perfumers Boucheron retails for a staggering $310,000.
The iPhone is not being marketed as a luxury phone but rather as a mobile multimedia device, much like the Motorola RAZR (considered the “it” phone of 2005). In fact, all phones are these days. Samsung, LG, Sony Ericsson… everyone is saying that their phones can do it all. Nokia’s new slogan even urges you: “Don’t call it a phone.”
But while many phones do well on some aspects of the “multimedia” promise, the iPhone is the first to actually deliver the whole package. It is an ipod, video player, email terminal, mini computer with OS X, a 2 megapixel camera, alarm clock, Palm-like organizer, oh, and a phone. All with a 3.5″-wide touchscreen display.
Analyst Robert Semple predicts that empty nesters, single twenty-something professionals, dual income couples with more disposable income, and divorced women will be the core consumers of the much anticipated iPhone. Despite the price tag of the iPhone (there are $500 and $600 models), “about 19 million people in the U.S., or roughly 9% of cellphone users, are highly interested in purchasing the iPhone,” according to a recent M:Metrics survey [via WSJ]. Valleywag did their own analysis, adding rockstars, spoiled brats, and doubters to the list.
Right now, the world is watching as millions of Americans continue to line up in front of AT&T and Apple stores waiting to get their hands on the handset of the century (they go on sale at 6pm). The lines are filled with fanboys, attention-seekers, early adopters, and we’re guessing a lot of personal assistants.
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