The human mind is an intriguing beast! What makes us make the decisions we make? Well if I knew the answer to that question I would be writing this article somewhere on a beach in Belize or Thailand instead of Naptown, but that is here no there. The ultimate question we always face in everyday life is delayed gratification…i.e. waiting for something you truly desire or instant bliss….i.e. substituting your primary desire with a more accessible less satisfying alternative.

So I pose the question to the Nation of Hypeness - what type of iPhone user are you?

*Let me premise this first by saying there is no difference in iPhones besides the cosmetic White or Black Finish

Instant Bliss -  Buying a Black iPhone 4

The black iPhone 4 is readily available for purchase right now and you can fulfill your desires of video calling, tweeting, and depositing checks all from your iPhone instantly by plunking down the necessary dough. The black version of the iPhone 4 is slick, elegant and many people put a case on their iPhones so the color would be a mute point to many. This need for casing your iPhone is exemplified by the “antennae-gate” issue! Furthermore, with over 3 million sold and only 1.7% being returned I say that the best smartphone out there (according to Consumer Reports, even though they won’t recommend it) is satisfying to almost every owner. However, how many people were pressured into buying a black iphone 4 that wanted a white one because of the need to have it NOW?

Delayed Gratification – Buying a White iPhone 4

As the Great White Hype continues and the release date for the white handset slated for the ambigious “later this year”, iPhone users are put into the pressure cooker. I will be the first to admit that I am waiting for the release of the White iPhone 4, but I know many iPhone and soon-to-be iPhone users that have caved to the unrelenting siren song that is the Black iPhone 4! If you don’t already own an iPhone and you wanted the white one I can understand the defection and purchasing of it’s black counterpart, but let me drop some words of wisdom from a past iPhone purchase.

My first iPhone was actually black, but when I saw this magical Ivory Beacon of individualism on the ear of some patron at the Herman B Wells library, I knew then that in all its glory the cookie-cutter (not in a derogatory sense, I currently own a black iPhone) black iPhone would never fulfill my desire to be unique and different. So after plundering the wonderful city of Bloomington for days on end, I finally located a white iPhone ! I regretfully had to dip out of my Drugs in America Class and shot over to the AT&T store that claimed to possess the white 32 GB iPhone I had madly been searching for. After the exchange, return and $50 fee for switching I finally had my primary desire! The feeling was pure ecstasy, and it didn’t stop for weeks because everytime I was at a party or social gathering I would always get that question that every individualist wants to be asked “It comes in white?”

So my question for the Nation of Hypeness is this: What type of iPhone User are you Instant Bliss or Delayed Gratification?

Also as a side note here…those of you with a black iPhone 4 that wanted white, I have something special for you!  Spend $250 for a white painted front and back glass piece as well as a new Retina display (WARNING:  YOU HAVE TO TAKE YOUR IPHONE 4 APART YOURSELF AND VOID YOUR WARRANTY!), which I do not recommend.  Your other option is to buy a newly found case that is clear on the sides, to show the impressive aesthetic of the antenna, and the back of the case is painted exactly like the white iPhone 4.  I recommend the white case, which I am purchasing after this post, it’s a case that is only 1mm thick and you can enjoy the looks of a black AND white iPhone 4!