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Facebook Smartphone a Dumb Idea, Says Farhad Manjoo

Posted by timothy on from the it'd-have-to-have-a-pretty-fancy-gimmick dept.

beaverdownunder writes "Farhad Manjoo examines Facebook's rumoured entry into the smartphone market, concluding, 'So what would be the point in using the Facebook phone? Well, remember, it will be cheap. But so are lots of Android phones. If Facebook makes a phone, then, the device will necessarily spark a battle for the low end of the phone market, with each company offering ever-cheaper devices in the hopes of cashing in on some future advertising bonanza. If you're looking for a cheap, ad-heavy phone based on a dubious business model, you should rejoice. Otherwise, try to stifle your yawns.'"

5 of 128 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Disagree by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    So is Coca-Cola and McDonalds but I sure as hell wouldn't buy a phone of either of them.

  2. The FacePhone may be a dumb idea . . . by PolygamousRanchKid+ · · Score: 5, Insightful

    . . . but consumers are even dumber.

    --
    Schroedinger's Brexit: The UK is both in and out of the EU at the same time!
  3. who is Farhad Manjoo by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    And why should I care what he thinks?

  4. Caring what Farhad Manjoo thinks a Dumb Idea by MasterPatricko · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Says random Slashdot poster

    --
    I'd tell a UDP joke, but you may not get it. I'd tell a TCP joke, but I'd have to keep repeating it until you got it.
  5. Re:Disagree by AngryDeuce · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I had the same problem for the short time I was in a commissioned sales position. I simply could not sell people products and service packages that I knew they did not need, a fact that put me squarely on the shit list of the higher-ups in the department. I underwent a lot of "sales training" and "workshops" at their command, the main gist of them being "whatever the customer tells you they need, you tell them they need more and don't stop until they're so pissed off that there is a danger of losing the sale entirely."

    As a customer, the "hard sell" always just turns me off, and I've seen first hand how much it turns off the bulk of the general public, so I really wonder where the hell people are seeing the success that warrants this mindset being pushed in the first place. Is it really worth one customer being upsold if we're alienating five other customers in the process? I guess it is to some people, but not to me...