To iPhone or not to iPhone?

Apple's little device is getting a whole lot of hype. I mean A TON. And the company has got everything riding on this thing.

No buttons - just a touch screen. Incredibly long battery life, particularly if all you do is take calls. But even if you use the internet, it'll run for a whole day without being charged...which means it will meet most people's expectations in that regard.

Mix in the fact that it is ALSO an iPod and you've got something.

Until you find out its $500-$600.

Then you pause, take a deep breath, and find you're still considering it.

The iPhone is going to sell like crazy. It doesn't matter that the phone doesn't do anything too revolutionary. It, like the original iPod, will nail all of the basic features, do well on the new stuff, and crush the competition in the marketing arena.

Just go read any business press or even any mainstream print or internet media. You, without a doubt, will see something about the iPhone.

That's the sound of that Apple marketing machine just getting cranked up. Count on seeing some sort of crazy TV ad right before the June 29th launch, with all the bloggers singing the praises of Steve Jobs (including this blogger).

The guy's just smarter than almost everyone else. I'll go ahead and give him the advantage heading into a critical time at Apple. With the competition having caught up, in most regards, to the iPod in the MP3 player market, Apple's got to blaze a new trail ... and if this one doesn't work, they'll lose that luster of invincibility they've got going and, with the brand hurting, they'll have opened the door to all sorts of problems.

The iPhone simply HAS to work for Apple. And I'm thinking it will.