Here in the UK it’s not uncommon for the iPod Touch to be described as “all the best bits of the iPhone” with the less-successful parts (the non-3G phone, the relatively-poor camera, and of course the carrier lock) omitted; Needham & Co analyst Charlie Wolf is willing to go one further, however: he’s claiming that Apple gave up 1.5 million iPhone sales during Q4 2007 by releasing the Touch with its almost-iPhone feature set, and moreover knew exactly what they were doing.
“If the company is successful in this endeavour, it would provide a compelling upgrade path for the estimated 85 million people who already own iPods. And it could attract new users to both the iPhone and the iPod platform as well. The company appears willing to risk the cannibalization of a significant number of iPhones to accomplish this” Charlie Wolf, analyst, Needham & Co.
