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If this "essentialism" were to be consistent, I would assume there would be only one iPhone rather than what, five?

It's a model with merit, but it's not a holy thing that it sometimes is made out to be. It's still, rather obvious perhaps, subordinate to making profits.

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Apple currently markets iPhone 4 and iPhone 3G. Compared to their competitors, some which have hundreds of available cell phone models, Apple's product lineup is extremely lean.

It's a way of doing business that's proven to be exceptionally successful. Not only in terms of profit but also creating products that ignite passion in consumers.

I agree with everything you said, but I don't think it contradicts what I was saying.

Another key aspect is that even major software updates tend to work reasonably well on previous generations of their devices. For instance, an iPhone 3GS can run the latest version of iOS, and Apple's one-year OS development cycle isn't obstructed by a carrier's two-year contract cycle.

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