A few months back I lamented the proliferation of iPhone look-a-likes including the Storm 2. Since then I’ve been equally dismayed at the number of Blackberry clones on general sale, especially on pay as you go deals.
I’m a great iPhone and Blackberry fan but the constant aping of those brands by other players is making the mobile market more than a little dull.
Both Apple and RIM succeeded with their phones because they dared (or at least seemed) to be different from everything else available at the time.
The ‘me too’ clones in question all look nice enough on a superficial level but add nothing to the mobile landscape. We need more handset makers prepared to innovate and challenge assumptions and fewer prepared to ride on the coat tails of existing successful designs and ideas.