Time names iPhone "Invention Of the Year"

by Paul Miller posted Nov 1st 2007 at 11:06AM

Apple's "love it," "hate it" or "hack it to pieces" iPhone is Time's "Invention Of the Year," following up last year's YouTube win. Nothing more to say about this thing that hasn't been said a million times, but don't worry, Time is careful to retread it all just in case you've been in a coma since January.

Filed under: Handsets, Apple, iPhone OS

Tags: apple, invention of the year, InventionOfTheYear, iphone, time

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Highest Ranked

patrickwvu @ Nov 1st 2007 11:55AM

How is the iPhone considered an invention? Maybe an innovation, but I don't think Apple invented anything in their design.

Highest Ranked

Ian @ Nov 1st 2007 12:43PM

Time should rename its award as "Innovation of the Year", since neither the iPhone nor YouTube is an "invention" in the conventional sense.

And as for iPhone's win this year... it gets a grade of A- for its smooth integration of functions, but a D+ for its missing functionality.

Highly Ranked

Eric @ Nov 1st 2007 1:07PM

Time is retarded, like patrickwvu said above, the iPhone is hardly an "invention". Yes, it could be the "Innovation of the Year".

Highly Ranked

Ack @ Nov 1st 2007 2:18PM

Note to self:

Cancel Time Magazine subscription.

2 year old tech that doesn't even MMS is innovative?

Neutral

LiSa @ Nov 1st 2007 2:56PM

ok if it wasn't official before...it's definitely official now, THE IPHONE IS OVERHYPED! what is WRONG with the united states?! (i can just hear taiwan/japan/all of europe LAUGHING at us!) invention?? didn't the touch screen user interface come out in the 90's?? i mean honestly Time...WHAT were you thinking? steve jobs and CRAPPLE MUST have paid someone off to pull that title, either that or gave them a hell of a lot of unlocked (returned) iphones. i am truly disappointed.

i agree with you 100% Ack...no MMS...no title deserved. there are a thousand other cell phones and devices out there that deserve this title...sure as shit shouldn't be this heap of garbage.

Neutral

GoodWill8675 @ Nov 1st 2007 3:16PM

oh fahh, youre all just jealous because you didnt win Invention of the Year and the fact that you dont have an iphone

Neutral

ThePhwner @ Nov 2nd 2007 9:25AM

How about "Flop of the year"? Missed sales targets, lack of content, firmware issues galore, walled development environment... How is this the innovation of the year? Sure its got a touch screen, but my E61 can run Apache and Python, as well as run all manner of 3rd party apps, and so on.

I'd really like a solid analysis of why this thing is so revolutionary. Apple was not the first to have a touch-screen, WiFi-enabled, media-capable Smartphone. Our device lab has a bunch.

Neutral

Servoisgod @ Nov 2nd 2007 4:55PM

Congratulations Apple!!! You invented a cell phone...huh?

Time. If you want, I have a whole drawer full of phones that are older than the iPhone and have more features...you might be interested for next year?

:)

Neutral

spamfast @ Nov 6th 2007 11:27AM

RE: TFA
Reason "3. It will make other phones better" is pure BS.
"AT&T gave Apple unprecedented freedom to build the iPhone to its own specifications."
O RLY?
"Now other phone makers are jealous."
OK...
"They're demanding the same freedoms."
Good luck with that...demands are lovely.
"That means better, more innovative phones for all."
YaY
I liked this comment from further in too:
"The iPhone gets applications like Google Maps out onto the street, where we really need them."
I'm just glad we don't need GPS, 'cause that could be a problem.

Hey, I think it's a cool device and all, just back off on the BS. All full up here.