More than 10 years ago, when Gmail was first born, Jeff signed up early enough that he was able to snag [nickname]@gmail.com as his address. As years passed, this seems like less of a coup: it seems that people who shop at Best Buy love using this address as a throwaway. [More]
early adopters
Early Roku Adopters Get Amazing Surprise In The Mail
By 4.16.13
Roku, makers of tiny boxes that stream paid and free content to your television, is a company that has made much of its success on happy customers who evangelize to others. For companies that want to learn how to do that, here’s a lesson. Some early adopters who bought the very first Roku in 2008 received a present in the mail this week: a free Roku 3 with a nice hand-signed card. [More]
Some iPad Accessories Won't Be Available Until Weeks After Ship Date
By 3.17.10
If you pre-ordered a WiFi iPad and you were hoping to use one of those snazzy keyboard/charger/display stands Apple showed off at the January unveiling, you’re going to have to wait a few extra weeks, as it’s one of a few iPad accessories that won’t be available until after the April 3 ship date for the plus-sized iPod Touches. [More]
AT&T Will Expand iPhone Upgrade Window For Early Adopters
By 6.17.09
In preparation for the phone’s launch on Friday, AT&T wrote today: “We’ve been listening to our customers. And since many of our iPhone 3G customers are early adopters and literally weeks shy of being upgrade eligible due to iPhone 3G S launching 11 months after iPhone 3G, we’re extending the window of upgrade eligibility for a limited time.”
AT&T Rep Tells iPhone-Crazed Customers To Cancel AT&T Contract
By 6.9.09
Arnie and his wife have a fever, and the only cure is more iPhones. A shiny new iPhone 3G S to replace the clunky old 3G iPhones they’ve been forced to use, to be precise. Frustrated that the cell phone business insists on subsidizing the gadgets by only offering a sane price to new customers, or customers willing to upgrade, Arnie called AT&T. That’s when he stumbled on a solution that’s almost hilarious in its simplicity.
Stop Making Fun Of Me: Confessions Of An Early iPhone Adopter
By 7.2.08
Those of us who bought iPhones when they came out haven’t been very popular over the last year. We’ve been viewed as impulse-buying fanboys who got suckered into paying to beta-test an incomplete product on an inferior network. Then Steve Jobs sold us out. Now our co-workers won’t stop making fun of us. I bought my iPhone on June 29th, I still love it, and I can’t wait to buy a new one next week. Inside, my reasons why.
The First Batch Of One-Year iPhone Warranties Are About To Expire, Or Why You Shouldn't Be An Early Adopter
By 6.28.08
Hey, Apple fanboys! Yeah, you, the ones who stood on line foaming at the mouth so you could be the first to buy those precious little pocket diamonds that didn’t sell out. Your limited one-year warranty expires tomorrow, so break your phone while you can. As for the rest of us, let’s look back at a year of the iPhone and remember the perils of being an early adopter…
It's Official: Early Adopters Are Jackasses
By 6.19.08
A new study by Mindset Media and Nielsen Online has created a better profile of gadget lovers who tend to buy new technology early and often—and it’s no longer believed that they’re just “wealthy young males.” Instead, the early adopter type tends to score high in leadership and assertiveness, but low in modesty.
Great Idea: Website To Let You Share The Cost Of Fad Gadgets
By 1.25.08
David Pogue thinks the Pleo dinosaur is meh. He’s seen it all before with Aibo, and despite all the “it’s so lifelike!” ad and editorial copy devoted to it, the charm wears off pretty much the same day you buy it: “My surprise, though, was my kids’ reaction. They thought it was really, really cool—for the first half-hour.” He’s proposed a new website idea where you’d sign up for the latest Hot New Thing coming out of CES, Toy Fair, Macworld, etc., then pay an ever-shrinking percentage of the original sales price to own it when your turn came in line.
iPhone Price Chopped Already, 8GB $200 Cheaper
By 9.5.07
Consumerist always advises that eager beavers take a moment to relax and think before running out to buy the next new thing.
Suburban Early Adopters Locked Into 75 Year Contract With ISP
By 5.22.07
Erika Hodell-Cotti, who lives on Sunstone Court, says she cannot work from home because her Internet connection frequently fizzles out. The teenagers who live next door play online Xbox games at friends’ houses where speeds are faster. Dozens of neighbors have installed satellite dishes on their roofs and backyard decks, fed up with cable channels that sometimes dissolve into snowy static.
Whoops! Residents pay their ISP “OpenBand” a not-insignificant $149 a month for these services as part of their homeowner’s association fees. Ah, the perils of early adoption. —MEGHANN MARCO
