"The iPhone is not cutting-edge technology," or so said Stuart Carlaw, wireless research director at research firm ABI Research. In a report titled "Smartphones and the OS Market," the firm said that the iPhone will bring increased attention on some technologies, but that it, "will not revolutionize the market."

The firm conceded that the iPhone is a "significant evolutionary step forward," but insisted that the device will not be seen as revolutionary. In a have-your-cake-and-eat-it-too moment, however, the report concluded that the iPhone will, "certainly change forever the way handset manufacturers think about their design philosophies."

The company added that another significant change represented by the iPhone is its integrated, all-Apple package. In addition, Apple’s use of a touch screen will result in more sensitive touch screens coming to market, and accelerometers will also get more attention.

In the end, however, ABI Research concluded that, "The iPhone’s effect on the market will be similar to that of Motorola’s RAZR It will spawn a number of look-and-feel-alikes and will be seen as a benchmark for future design. One thing for certain is that the product is not intended to be an enterprise device, so its impact will be most keenly felt in the high-tier feature phone market and in the emerging prosumer market segment."

The research report covers the broader category of smartphones, though the company’s announcement offers the above iPhone-centric angle.