Tilting at straw men

Knowing that I closely follow the mobile platform wars, a friend forwarded a link to a report critical of the iPhone by the Strand Reports.

You can’t download it, but if you add yourself to their junk email list (as InfoWorld and other sites do) you will be sent it.

However, here is an excerpt of what the report claims to say:

In the report we take a close look at the 10 largest myths about the iPhone:

1. The iPhone drives data traffic into mobile operators networks
2. The iPhone helps operators attract new customers
3. The iPhone is good business for mobile operators
4. The iPhone is dominating the mobile services market
5. App store is a huge success that has revolutionised the services market
6. There is money to be made by developing applications for the iPhone
7. It is iPhone customers that are generating the majority of online mobile surfing traffic
8. The iPhone has a large market share
9. The iPhone was the first mobile phone with a touchscreen
10. The iPhone is a technologically advanced mobile phone

Similarly, I could write my own list

1. Barrack Obama (or name some other politician) has a 100% approval rating
2. Barrack Obama will rule for the next 20 years.
3. Barrack Obama can walk on water.

These are all straw men, just as most of the Strong report list are straw men.

What’s the point of debunking myths that no one believes? We know the iPhone market share is continuing to grow, but it’s only a minority of smartphones which are a minority of all phones.

Sure, if someone thinks the iPhone is a Jesus phone that can cure cancer, then they’re a fool. But is this really a significant fraction of the country, let alone industry professionals?