Fair enough; "the world" might have been too broad a statement. The first-gen iPhone certainly had its share of critics, though, starting with the price of $500-ish (IIRC) when all other phones were subsidized by carriers in the U. S., and Edge connections speeds when 3G was becoming a thing.
But a quick flip to another Wikipedia page says it received mostly positive reviews, so maybe my bubble needs recalibrating. :-)
> the world thought it would flop
My personal bubble was absolutely raving about the iPhone. (Although I personally was heavily flirting with the Palm Pre at the time)