My iPhone Review
So here is my two week perspective on my new favorite toy.
The Phone
The general operation of the iPhone is extremely well thought out. There is a clear sense that the designers of the iPhone put the core phone functionality ahead of all other features, sometimes to the chagrin of those iPhone developers who would like to run their apps as background processes.
Reception is satisfactory, and the speakerphone works fine, although it's definitely not in the class of my Jabra bluetooth speakerphone. The phone is generally fast, although on occasion, you are left with a craving for teh snappy. Most features are easily accessible from a few taps, although like my Windows phone, the Bluetooth control is buried within the settings. One nice touch is that when dialing or answering calls, you can actually choose the device on which you would like to talk.
One feature that I like is the alarm clock. It's easy to set, and it works. The built-in alarm on my Windows phone was flaky at best. I've been using a retired Nokia phone as my primary alarm clock for the past few years because it works so well (the unlimited snooze helps).
Boot time is slow, although it does seem to be a hair faster than Windows Mobile. The phone does crash occasionally with some third party software, but it still is much more stable than my Windows phone.
User Interface
There are only four hard buttons on the phone - power/sleep, volume, silence and home. Minimalist but effective.
On the software side, the user interface is intuitive, but I did have to watch the 30 minute video on Apple's site to learn some of the finer points of operation. Still, I managed to pick up most of the basics without reading a manual.
It's easy to dismiss the bouncy effects of the user interface as eye candy, but they do provide valuable user feedback. It's nice to know that the phone is working at responding to your inputs.
The Screen
The screen is absolutely beautiful. It has a weird look to it in the sense that it looks like it's a backlit transparency of a fake screen as opposed to a live LCD screen. It's hard to describe, but it just doesn't have the same look as other LCD screens. The glass is nice and hard, but is a little prone to face smearing after a greasy lunch.
Safari
If I were to pick the killer app on the iPhone, it would be Safari. Flash and Java support aside, it is the best mobile surfing experience you could possibly imagine. The scale and zoom works so well that I have yet to find a reason to surf in landscape mode. If you're sitting back in a couch, the iPhone provides a better surfing experience than a small laptop.
Keyboard
The keyboard is a learning keyboard. At the outset, I did find that precision was a little tough. After two weeks of use, I'm surprised that I can type at about the same rate of speed as I could on the QWERTY keyboard on my HTC smart phone.
The one thing that really bugs me about typing on the iPhone is the autocorrect feature. I'm used to tapping on the suggested word to accept, but in the iPhone, you tap on the suggested word to reject it. I can understand some of the thinking behind it, but it's still annoying.
Wi-Fi
The iPhone is smart about Wi-Fi, in that it seems to prefer Wi-Fi traffic over cellular data traffic. If you don't have an unlimited data plan, this is definitely A Good Thing.
Camera
The shutter lag is shameful, but comparable to most other smart phone cameras. Calling it inferior to most other phones is like calling out a C- student in a class full of Cs.
The GPS
I didn't expect to be wowed by the GPS, but I was pleasantly proven wrong with the selection of location-aware applications being developed.
Syncing
Syncing is basically the same as for any iPod. Where sync time increases, however, is when the iTunes is backing up the applications. It's not very snappy, and you'll find yourself getting impatient really fast.
The iPod
Since the iPhone isn't really a dedicated iPod, you will encounter occasional hiccups if you attempt to multi-task, but they're usually for a fraction of a second. In my non-scientific test, I didn't notice any degradation of sound quality compared to my 1G nano in real world use (i.e., my daily commute). One nice feature is that you can still listen to your own music while playing many games.
iTunes Store/The Apps Store
Apple has done a fantastic job of providing iPhone users with instant gratification. While the end goal for Apple may be revenue generation, it's a boon for end users.
I don't think any other phone platform (or mobile platform, for that matter) can compare in terms of user experience. The closest thing I can compare it to is the online purchasing experiences for the XBox 360 and the PlayStation3. In any case, I can see iPhone users blowing a lot of money on music and apps directly on the iPhone. I already have.
Battery Life
Since I didn't carry a spare battery with my power sucking Windows Mobile phone, having a phone with a non-replaceable battery was no big deal to me. As I'm also used to charging nightly, battery life was comparable to my previous phone.
The Apps
There are a lot of worthwhile applications for the iPhone. My favorites include:
Games
I don't really intend to use my iPhone as a gaming platform, but there are some nice little games available. The ones I like:
My Take
Despite its foibles, the iPhone is a magnificent smartphone. In the areas that matter, the phone simply shines. That I'm no longer using the Windows Mobile Task Manager to kill applications is a deep breath of fresh air. This is probably one of the best gadgets I've ever acquired.
The Phone
The general operation of the iPhone is extremely well thought out. There is a clear sense that the designers of the iPhone put the core phone functionality ahead of all other features, sometimes to the chagrin of those iPhone developers who would like to run their apps as background processes.
Reception is satisfactory, and the speakerphone works fine, although it's definitely not in the class of my Jabra bluetooth speakerphone. The phone is generally fast, although on occasion, you are left with a craving for teh snappy. Most features are easily accessible from a few taps, although like my Windows phone, the Bluetooth control is buried within the settings. One nice touch is that when dialing or answering calls, you can actually choose the device on which you would like to talk.
One feature that I like is the alarm clock. It's easy to set, and it works. The built-in alarm on my Windows phone was flaky at best. I've been using a retired Nokia phone as my primary alarm clock for the past few years because it works so well (the unlimited snooze helps).
Boot time is slow, although it does seem to be a hair faster than Windows Mobile. The phone does crash occasionally with some third party software, but it still is much more stable than my Windows phone.
User Interface
There are only four hard buttons on the phone - power/sleep, volume, silence and home. Minimalist but effective.
On the software side, the user interface is intuitive, but I did have to watch the 30 minute video on Apple's site to learn some of the finer points of operation. Still, I managed to pick up most of the basics without reading a manual.
It's easy to dismiss the bouncy effects of the user interface as eye candy, but they do provide valuable user feedback. It's nice to know that the phone is working at responding to your inputs.
The Screen
The screen is absolutely beautiful. It has a weird look to it in the sense that it looks like it's a backlit transparency of a fake screen as opposed to a live LCD screen. It's hard to describe, but it just doesn't have the same look as other LCD screens. The glass is nice and hard, but is a little prone to face smearing after a greasy lunch.
Safari
If I were to pick the killer app on the iPhone, it would be Safari. Flash and Java support aside, it is the best mobile surfing experience you could possibly imagine. The scale and zoom works so well that I have yet to find a reason to surf in landscape mode. If you're sitting back in a couch, the iPhone provides a better surfing experience than a small laptop.
Keyboard
The keyboard is a learning keyboard. At the outset, I did find that precision was a little tough. After two weeks of use, I'm surprised that I can type at about the same rate of speed as I could on the QWERTY keyboard on my HTC smart phone.
The one thing that really bugs me about typing on the iPhone is the autocorrect feature. I'm used to tapping on the suggested word to accept, but in the iPhone, you tap on the suggested word to reject it. I can understand some of the thinking behind it, but it's still annoying.
Wi-Fi
The iPhone is smart about Wi-Fi, in that it seems to prefer Wi-Fi traffic over cellular data traffic. If you don't have an unlimited data plan, this is definitely A Good Thing.
Camera
The shutter lag is shameful, but comparable to most other smart phone cameras. Calling it inferior to most other phones is like calling out a C- student in a class full of Cs.
The GPS
I didn't expect to be wowed by the GPS, but I was pleasantly proven wrong with the selection of location-aware applications being developed.
Syncing
Syncing is basically the same as for any iPod. Where sync time increases, however, is when the iTunes is backing up the applications. It's not very snappy, and you'll find yourself getting impatient really fast.
The iPod
Since the iPhone isn't really a dedicated iPod, you will encounter occasional hiccups if you attempt to multi-task, but they're usually for a fraction of a second. In my non-scientific test, I didn't notice any degradation of sound quality compared to my 1G nano in real world use (i.e., my daily commute). One nice feature is that you can still listen to your own music while playing many games.
iTunes Store/The Apps Store
Apple has done a fantastic job of providing iPhone users with instant gratification. While the end goal for Apple may be revenue generation, it's a boon for end users.
I don't think any other phone platform (or mobile platform, for that matter) can compare in terms of user experience. The closest thing I can compare it to is the online purchasing experiences for the XBox 360 and the PlayStation3. In any case, I can see iPhone users blowing a lot of money on music and apps directly on the iPhone. I already have.
Battery Life
Since I didn't carry a spare battery with my power sucking Windows Mobile phone, having a phone with a non-replaceable battery was no big deal to me. As I'm also used to charging nightly, battery life was comparable to my previous phone.
The Apps
There are a lot of worthwhile applications for the iPhone. My favorites include:
- Evernote
- Urbanspoon
- Things
- Remote
- Tipulator
- Midomi
- Shazam
Games
I don't really intend to use my iPhone as a gaming platform, but there are some nice little games available. The ones I like:
- Tap Tap Revenge
- MotionX Poker
- Imangi
- Dizzy Bee
- Mondo Solitaire
My Take
Despite its foibles, the iPhone is a magnificent smartphone. In the areas that matter, the phone simply shines. That I'm no longer using the Windows Mobile Task Manager to kill applications is a deep breath of fresh air. This is probably one of the best gadgets I've ever acquired.