Iphone Not Ready for Prime Time

[Blendit!]

This brick is like a three-legged quarter horse; beautiful but can't run. While it has many features that are a giant leap forward for smart phones, I am baffled as to why Apple couldn't also put out a product that had at least the same basic features of less sophisticated PDAs that have been on the market for years. To wit:

1. No search engine: Every PDA since the abacus has had a search engine. I have 4,000 business, community, and personal contacts in my iPhone, but if I don't remember someone's LAST NAME, I will never find them. I can't search by first name, address, city, job name, or any other nmemonic. What were they thinking when they failed to provide a fetch program?

2. World's lamest calculator: Add, subtract, multipy and divide, and that's IT? Can't even spare a pi, a square root, or a stack memory. The engineers who put this thing together were obviously versed in very advanced math, but they didn't think their customers ever took or have use for, say, trigonometry? How is that for contemptous of your audience?

3. Photos? Who needs photos? You take them and there they are, on the iPhone forever. Can't get them off. The threads I have been reading say with a Mac it is no problem (though I am not sure I believe it), but first, the instructions with the iPhone give no information on how to get them off the iPhone onto my PC, and second, the tip I read elsewhere about accessing them from any of the PC photo programs doesn't work. I have had to purchase a third-party program to get them off my phone, and I am not happy about it. I don't mind purchasing additional programs that add functionality to my iPhone, but I resent having to do it to get the damned thing to work at the most basic level.

4. Sync at your peril: Crashes. Dropped entries. Double entries by the hundreds. Did I say crashes? Sometimes the thing cranks through a synchronization for several minutes, then just loses interest without actually transferring information.

5. Idiot lights: iToons, is like that old DeSoto your dad had. It just had idiot lights on the dash, so you couldn't really tell what was going on. Either things were OK or, when the idiot light did come on, you had burned out the engine for lack of oil. Why, oh why, would Apple allow you to overwrite the information on the iPhone from the info on the computer, but not allow the inverse process? They apparently don't trust you to make rational decisions. After all, you did buy the iPhone, right?

I have had it. Tomorrow I go back to AT&T and trade in my iPhone for a smart phone of some type that will not be as cute, but won't kill appointments. I am thoroughly disappointed with this cute little toy.

[stevento]

i'm a computer science major and you just summed up my entire philosophy about apple products.

[Blue Velvet]

Pity that hundreds of thousands, possibly millions would disagree with your analysis. iPhones will be selling like hotcakes this Xmas and no amount of carping will change their minds.

[memesmith]

Works for me. I don't need a search function because, you know what? Like you, I can' t remember peoples last names so the iPhone let's me sort them by first names, which I can remember. And of course it dies have a search function anyway. Its just so integrated you can't see it. Start typing a name anywhere, google maps, email etc and it automatically searches its database and gives you all the contacts that match the characters you've typed.

Calculator? I ain't no scientist. But I've used none of the functions you require since I left school. So this basic calculator is just the thing I need, when my own brain can't do the adding up and taking away.

Your points 3, 4 and 5 are really all abound syncing. I've had none of these problems, but I use a mac. They are just ... better. Which is why we all hang out on these forums.

Anyhow, sorry it does not meet your needs. Sound like you've made the right decision to buy another, more appropriate tool. That's cool. The iPhone doesn't do everything you need. But it does do everything I need.

What was it Steve Jobs was talking about, way back when?

"A computer for the rest of us"

[Cleverboy]

Yup, this is one of THOSE replies, live with it.

1. No search engine: I'm sorry man... most PDAs aren't set up to work like this (the iPhone's new UI paradigm). There's a lot of intentionality going on. It was interesting what Andy Ihnatko commented, regarding his converations with some Apple people. He said that, for the most part, if it isn't there, its because they're still working out the best way to do it. That's the deal with copy/paste, though I would agree that feature needs to be fast-tracked, no matter how "new" or "different" it will be for this interface.

For contacts? It's mostly a phone, so this feeling that you need to search by "address" is odd. And... you can't remember the LETTER that someone's lastname starts with? How will you even know the name when you get to it if the only thing in your head is the first name? Very unconvincing point. I'm pretty sure Apple's working on "Spotlight" for iPhone. I think enabling disk-mode is the first step. In February, its not going to matter, as there is already a third-party search tool that searches by query. Personally I wish they'd just let Mobile Safari "browse" files put on the phone via disk-mode, but I suspect Apple may shoot for a better, if longer-term, idea.

2. World's lamest calculator: Seriously? You're criticising a calculator for not being a scientific calculator? Just wait 'til February, from here, I'll abbreviate this as "WTF". I don't need Apple shipping the iPhone with a scientific calculator.

3. Photos? I feel bad for you. Something is wrong with either your computer or... Are you even running Windows XP? When I connect my iPhone, it actually shows up under My Computer. Windows even asks me what I'd like to do with the new pictures. It's pretty seamless. Maybe you're still running Windows 2000 or something? Did you install something that broke your OS installation's camera support? I've had Kodak software installed from a previous camera, and even THAT works with the iPhone. Don't blame the iPhone for your broken computer.

4. Sync at your peril: I gotta give it to you here. There were some SERIOUS sync issues. That said, they've all gone away for me. Are you sure you have the latest version of iTunes and iPhone firmware? No, really, do you? Don't tell me you hacked your iPhone and don't want to upgrade it, or that you love your custom ringtones so much you can't bare to upgrade iTunes. That's just asking for it. I got my iPhone on June 29th, and the first sync I had, the iPhone dropped out and I had to sync multiple times to get my entire collection. Now? FLAWLESS. I personally have absolutely NO problems with syncing on either platform (Windows or Mac).

5. Idiot lights: This sounds ranty. Not sure you made a coherent point here. At one point it sounds like you're complaining that iTunes doesn't give you enough information? Or something? Then your complaining about the lack of reverse sync. Honestly, you can thank the RIAA for that, can't you? They're already doing their BEST to portray the iPod as the ultimate piracy box. Apple new this going in, that's why they put a little message in there saying "Don't Steal Music" which has appeared since the earliest iPods. Does Apple not trust you? Don't get all teary. You've heard the studio quotes haven't you? Apple was damn PRESCIENT on this point, so don't hate. Universal Music Group CEO Doug Morris said, "These devices are just repositories for stolen music, and they all know it,. So it's time to get paid for it." Instead, they make it clear that the device is intended to be ONE-WAY unless you can prove you own the music (purchased it from iTunes).

Believe it or not, if they can prove Apple's device primarily facilitates the stealing of music... that's it! Apple is SCREWED. That's the way it works. If you could take an iPhone/iPod and connect it to a friend's computer, sync, then connect it to your computer, sync, and have all the songs they put on your pod... I'd almost have to agree that Apple was facilitating piracy. Sorry. Personally? Because I use my iPhone/iPod the RIGHT way, I don't need to "reverse" sync. But, that all said... "WTF" (see above). Right?

Please, please, please return your iPhone.

For others, like me, its not about this goofy "cuteness" thing some people want to harp on and on about. Its just sad. This phone is truly *great*. It's got tons of room to grow. I'm not entirely satisfied with where it is (okay, actually I am), but I'm patient on the things I'd like to see, and they're not critical. All I have to do is whisk my thumb and effortlessly I'm bouncing around the phone without so much as an implied "please press harder". I'm whisking up and down contacts. I'm shooting over web pages, and posting to websites very regardly. Just 10 minutes ago, I got a hankering to grab my iPhone and use it to finish a story I was writing.

On Friday, I was discussing the future of mobile development in a strategy meeting, and as we passed around phones, it became obvious that the lowest common denominator *wasn't* the iPhone by any stretch. While the iPhone is virtually future-proof on all but wireless access and processor speeds, all the other phones out there are so closed off from the world its depressing.

Good luck on your journey into the bowels of the Earth. I like the air up here myself, possibly a tad rarefied, but pleasant. At least make sure they don't lock you in until you can get Android compatible gear next year. I came from Sprint/Nextel, and Holy Hannah, if you want to see something worth complaining about... woo-boy. Nextel actually took standard features OUT of my previous handset, and then tried to sell them back to me on the new handset that was supposedly "better" (like calculators, calendars and voice notes). It's a jungle out there, but if one thing is certain, now that I'm on the iPhone platform... its only going UP form here. Instead of "does this have everything my last phone had"? On the next iPhone, I get to move to the good stuff like, "What new things am I getting with this that Apple won't be able to give me for free on my current phone?"

WTF*. Its gonna get crazy.

~ CB
(*Wait 'til February)

[emotion]

I love my iPhone. OK, it needs a little polish in terms of software but it's already head and shoulders above any PDA and/or phone I've ever had (and I've had quite a few).

The prospect of this getting better as time goes on (roll on firmware 2.x) is part of the fun of owning one.

Shame you don't have the patience to see that though.

As for syncing, as we're on a macrumours site, I'll just say - get a mac.

[netdog]

Tis the season to be trolling.

[darngooddesign]

1. You can install a Search program.

2. You can install several HP scientific calculators.

3. Photos are easy to remove.

4. Never had a problem syncing

5, You can overwrite info on your computer with info from the phone.

[abijnk]

Another one of those replies:

Originally Posted by Blendit!

1. No search engine: Every PDA since the abacus has had a search engine. I have 4,000 business, community, and personal contacts in my iPhone, but if I don't remember someone's LAST NAME, I will never find them. I can't search by first name, address, city, job name, or any other nmemonic. What were they thinking when they failed to provide a fetch program?

While I completely agree that a little bar at the top of the address book where you can just start typing something and it will search would be extremely convenient. However, you apparently don't fully understand the functionality of the address book. If you have a hard time remembering last names, tell it to sort by first names. If you want to be able to pull up a contact by business name, then make a contact for that business... Sure, its a little out of the way, but hello, this is Apple's first phone, you can't expect it to be perfect in every little detail.

Originally Posted by Blendit!

2. World's lamest calculator: Add, subtract, multipy and divide, and that's IT? Can't even spare a pi, a square root, or a stack memory. The engineers who put this thing together were obviously versed in very advanced math, but they didn't think their customers ever took or have use for, say, trigonometry? How is that for contemptous of your audience?

Why the hell do I need to be able to figure out the sine of something on my PHONE? If you are in a profession where you need to be able to do this, then you need to carry a CALCULATOR not a PHONE. And, if I remember right, my other two PDA phones, an old Samsung on the Verizon network and then the Samsung Blackjack before the iPhone, didn't support trigonometric functions either.

Originally Posted by Blendit!

3. Photos? Who needs photos? You take them and there they are, on the iPhone forever. Can't get them off. The threads I have been reading say with a Mac it is no problem (though I am not sure I believe it), but first, the instructions with the iPhone give no information on how to get them off the iPhone onto my PC, and second, the tip I read elsewhere about accessing them from any of the PC photo programs doesn't work. I have had to purchase a third-party program to get them off my phone, and I am not happy about it. I don't mind purchasing additional programs that add functionality to my iPhone, but I resent having to do it to get the damned thing to work at the most basic level.

Are you serious? This is an obvious carry over from the iPod, which has supported photos for a while now. I for one have my entire photo library on my phone, even if it is just for the hell of it... You don't need any special software to get photos of the phone from any platform. Just a little computer sense. For me, on vista and xp when I plug my phone in it immediately recognizes it as a camera device. If your computer doesn't, you probably have some feature turned off. Just go into explorer and go to the phone and copy and paste the photos from there. Then import them to any photo software you have already... Sounds simple and straight-up to me, but from the sounds of it you want this thing to wipe for you too...

Originally Posted by Blendit!

4. Sync at your peril: Crashes. Dropped entries. Double entries by the hundreds. Did I say crashes? Sometimes the thing cranks through a synchronization for several minutes, then just loses interest without actually transferring information.

Never had an issue. If you have a faulty phone then TAKE IT BACK! Not that hard to figure out.

Originally Posted by Blendit!

5. Idiot lights: iToons, is like that old DeSoto your dad had. It just had idiot lights on the dash, so you couldn't really tell what was going on. Either things were OK or, when the idiot light did come on, you had burned out the engine for lack of oil. Why, oh why, would Apple allow you to overwrite the information on the iPhone from the info on the computer, but not allow the inverse process? They apparently don't trust you to make rational decisions. After all, you did buy the iPhone, right?

My phone allows me to write info both ways... Maybe you should read the instruction manual from Apple's website and learn how to use it first.

I know that the so-called "diehards" on this site (I assume I am one of them ) catch a lot of flack when we disagree with people when they sign up for an account and post this kind of stuff. Maybe we are a little over protective of our Apple products, but I think you need to look in the mirror as well. If you buy a PHONE with some other little fancy features (and a first generation product at that) and then expect it to do so much for you, you are pretty much asking for a let down.

I very strongly believe that those who are happy with the iPhone, like myself, are the ones who accept it for what it is. It isn't a laptop, it isn't a scientific calculator. It is a phone with an ipod and an internet browser in it and couple of other little knick knacks. Why is that so hard for people to figure out? And if you do have issues with the phone, why do we need to hear about it? Do people have the misunderstanding that we can do something about it? I don't get it...

This has been AbiYng for W-Y-DO-U-EXPECT-YOUR-PHONE-TO-WIPE-FOR-U, signing off, have a good day

P.S. To stevento, what does being a computer science major have to do with your philosophy of all Apple products? I am a CS student as well and chose an apple platform. Maybe I am not a good little CS-er

[plumbingandtech]

You should return it.

Some people are just naturally crabby about any product.

Be sure and go back to your Treo and visit TreoCentral.com, they badly need the visitors

[Sun Baked]

People expecting the world for the cost of a Big N' Tasty ...



It is a first generation product, though I'm sure MS can deliver much more with their 1.0 hardware and software. Try them.

[mpuck972]

Its funny how the counter arguements are always the same: Sure every other phone has that but I dont need that! In your guys response to try to defend this product, you admit everytime that it has short commings, while trying to say it doesnt. Even worse, you defend an inferior product like its the best thing that has ever been built. And wait until febuary? Why not wait until the 3g version comes out, why not wait until the 16gb model is released, wait, wait, wait, wait....Doesnt seem like a very good comsumer strategy to me.

Plain and simple, Apple failed to hit a grand slam with this product. A double at best with a questionable call by the umpire at second base.

To the original poster, I agree 100%.

[mpuck972]

Originally Posted by Sun Baked

People expecting the world for the cost of a Big N' Tasty ...



It is a first generation product, though I'm sure MS can deliver much more with their 1.0 hardware and software. Try them.

A $599 dollar Big and Tasty huh? Diamond coated buns maybe? And MS is on millions of true smart phones around the world. Go to downloads.com and do a search for windows mobile, and then do one for iphone, you will see the difference there.

[Cleverboy]

Originally Posted by abiyng87

I know that the so-called "diehards" on this site (I assume I am one of them ) catch a lot of flack when we disagree with people when they sign up for an account and post this kind of stuff. Maybe we are a little over protective of our Apple products, but I think you need to look in the mirror as well.

Well, I'm not "over-protective" of Apple products, I'm allergic to this type of "game" though. I feel silly. I didn't see that "BlendIt" just signed up. I will silently add "iPhone Not Ready for Prime Time" to the list alongside such hits like "I'm/We're Returning my/our iPhone(s)" and any about how his $500 Hackint0sh is faster than a PowerMac by new posters calling themselves things like "2Fast4U".

BlendIt!, totally missed that you're :

1.) A New Poster
2.) Call Yourself "BlendIt!" (that's very funny, I see what you did there)
3.) This is your one and only post ever on the forum,
and you don't even say "Hi" or "Hello".

I admit it. I get mad at people getting mad at a product for little "good" reason (and then being really snarky about it... its like I'm tempted to whip out my snarky so I can play too). I'm also aware of it. I love this one: BlendIt! says: "They apparently don't trust you to make rational decisions. After all, you did buy the iPhone, right?" Nice.

It's amazing. I unsubscribed to the 2Fast4U thing after pointing this out, and in commenting on it again... I searched and it seems like its all gone. Like the posts never happened. As if the moderators of this forum are aware of people like you, and actively expunge this threads from existence if its clear you're just a troll. If you're willing to waste a lot of time, keep on truckin'.

Originally Posted by mpuck972

To the original poster, I agree 100%.

You're not alone either, so no one is saying you're imagining things. What if someone came out with a new television set that had the BEST picture-in-a-picture that you've ever used (like a great web browser or visual voicemail on a phone, in THIS case, they figured out a way that let you view 4 stations at once with only one antenna source), an incredible touchscreen remote included with it, but it didn't have a "sleep" function, and while it had "auto-detect" channel, it was missing a number of other things like "real" buttons for the basic functions, and forced you to do some normal things differently. Some people really HATED these changes, but for other people, they didn't show up on the radar AT ALL.

That's all we have here. It's when you can't see anyone else's point that you have to wonder if you might be missing something. I have a friend that is mad at the iPhone for not having a GPS. I toggles between going, "this is AWESOME" and "I wouldn't have gotten it if my mother didn't get it for me" (his previous phone wasn't a smartphone but pretty descent for his needs). I shrug my shoulders. I knew that before I bought it, so... "shrug". My experience says that that doesn't matter as much as having solid readable, easily retrievable directions. It's not that having it wouldn't be super... its just that NOT having it, isn't a deal killer for most people. Which is perfectly ok.

Originally Posted by mpuck972

Plain and simple, Apple failed to hit a grand slam with this product. A double at best with a questionable call by the umpire at second base.

A solid triple, and someone might have seen the fourth run across home, but there was a lot of smoke. It's like someone changed the rules at the last minute and the umps are still figuring it out. I think Apple could have hit a TRUE "grand slam" by next year, if it had waited. Unfortunately, they would have missed a window and fallen victim to a syndrome that afflicts lots of companies that don't get products out for long swatches of time on "promises". I'm happy they called it, and put it out.

Millions of people are. The entire industry is in an uproar, and you don't have to be an iPhone owner to have benefitted from the explosion of new products and *seriously* percolating competition. Nokia is still screaming, "I'm almost there, hold on dang it!" with its iPhone clone. Pro-rated cancellation fees, open CDMA on the way, Open Handset Alliance, huge attention on "unlocking" practices that have been long under the cloak of "who cares". It's funny. If you don't credit the iPhone's presence with a lot of the repositioning and deals going on I think you're in denial (like some phone companies). It's been like a fat heavy pillow to the face of the mobile sector.

~ CB

[abijnk]

Originally Posted by mpuck972

Its funny how the counter arguements are always the same: Sure every other phone has that but I dont need that! In your guys response to try to defend this product, you admit everytime that it has short commings, while trying to say it doesnt. Even worse, you defend an inferior product like its the best thing that has ever been built. And wait until febuary? Why not wait until the 3g version comes out, why not wait until the 16gb model is released, wait, wait, wait, wait....Doesnt seem like a very good comsumer strategy to me.

Plain and simple, Apple failed to hit a grand slam with this product. A double at best with a questionable call by the umpire at second base.

To the original poster, I agree 100%.

No one said "every other phone has that, but we don't need it"... But hey, I see where the whole reading thing might have gotten a little tedious

There are some major flaws in the phone. Duh, its a first gen product... The only thing Apple failed to do was make a phone that lived up to all the hype. Maybe that's because they weren't trying, but more than likely its because people expect too much. It isn't that hard to go play with one to see if it is something you can live with. That is why the apple store and AT&T stores (etc.) have these things out on display. So you can try it out and see if you like it. If you buy it without being sure it is what you are expecting it to be then you are setting yourself up for disappointment. Who's fault is that? Not Apple's, they didn't tell you what to expect. The commercials aren't showing you the phone doing something it isn't capable of doing and the demo models in the store certainly aren't sporting some special feature that could mislead you. Whats more, coming to a forum and proclaiming to the world doesn't do anything. It justs wastes time and gets people hot and bothered.

Seriously, what is so hard to understand about this thing? It is Apple's first stab at this and they had one hell of a lot to live up to. Just look back at all the hype people made about this thing! If you read what everyone was expecting before it came out it is clear that it is bound to disappoint! People expect it to be a wonder product, well guess what IT ISN'T! IT'S A PHONE (*in her best Lewis Black impression*)

/rant

[Stampyhead]

Wow, the writer's strike must be causing reruns in the iPhone forums too. How many times have we seen this thread? 'The iPhone doesn't have or do such-and-such so it sucks.' I love my iPhone. It's a great device and it helps me in my work. If you don't like yours take it back. Oh wait, have you actually used one yet?

[bigandtasty]

Somebody say Big N Tasty?

= BigNTasty!

[Sun Baked]

Originally Posted by mpuck972

A $599 dollar Big and Tasty huh? Diamond coated buns maybe? And MS is on millions of true smart phones around the world. Go to downloads.com and do a search for windows mobile, and then do one for iphone, you will see the difference there.

Compare MS 1.0 products to Apple 1.0 products and you will see the differences.

The iPhone is a 1.0 product in a market that made its first phone call about 25 years ago, and people complain because it lacks some features.

[abijnk]

Originally Posted by Stampyhead

Wow, the writer's strike must be causing reruns in the iPhone forums too. How many times have we seen this thread? 'The iPhone doesn't have or do such-and-such so it sucks.' I love my iPhone. It's a great device and it helps me in my work. If you don't like yours take it back. Oh wait, have you actually used one yet?

No new House episodes on Tuesdays has really got me bummed out Gotta take it out on someone!!!

BTW, I love my iPhone too

[Eraserhead]

Originally Posted by mpuck972

And MS is on millions of true smart phones around the world. Go to downloads.com and do a search for windows mobile, and then do one for iphone, you will see the difference there.

I can't remember which one has the most mobile internet users out of MS and Apple though. (clue: it isn't Microsoft)

For applications wait until February and then there'll be loads of software, undoubtedly including a scientific calculator.

[desenso]

Living in Berkeley is affecting your mind, son.

[bostonte]

Clearly the OP is upset, but that doesn't mean people should shrug off all of his issues and tell him to sit in the corner. It's probably best he return his phone. But if you aren't going to try and help him fix his problems or find a work around, why bother replying? Yes it's the 50th gripe thread I've seen, yes some time spent searching could have given the answers.

Ignore posts you don't like -- it's a life skill that makes the internet a much more pleasant experience for everyone.

Originally Posted by Blendit!

1. No search engine:
2. World's lamest calculator:
3. Photos?
4. Sync at your peril:
5. Idiot lights:

1- A VERY valid gripe for any serious business use. A search option for contacts is something most people who are coming from another smart phone would just expect to be there. I spent the time to make sure I could sync the information I needed, play what I wanted, and view what I wanted -- but I didn't even think to check for search.

Lucky for me I came from a bad searching phone. I store my contacts such that I can usually pull up what I want without a search. Being able to work around it doesn't mean it shouldn't be there. I often need to call a specific company about a contract, but can't decide which person -- being able to search by company (without having to go into contacts and switch my view by setting) is very useful to see everyone at the company and choose the best person.

That's to say nothing about good search that allows you to find a contact based on "darn, it was billy or bobby or brandon something from JJ Widgets" and doing "b JJ Widget" and seeing the matches.

As another poster mentioned, if you jailbreak the phone you can add a search program. Hopefully Apple will fix this or the SDK will bring someone's fix. The unofficial jailbreak-required program seems quite good, though.

2- I can't think of a time I had a decent calculator on a phone without adding a third party one. This falls under the general lack of third party apps, hopefully to be rectified by the SDK in Feb. You should have seen this before you bought, though.

Again, several alternative calculators are available now if you jailbreak.

3- Something is wrong in your Windows settings or you didn't read the directions. It shows up like almost any other Camera/Scanner and you can just double click on the Device to import photos without any additional software. Or, since it shows up as a standard camera you can use almost any photo software of your choice that allows standard camera/scanner TWAIN (what's it called in XP now??) interfaces. If you could be more specific about what wasn't working, maybe I could give more specific directions on how to get it working.

4- Based on my experiences helping other people get setup, it's an issue with your PC. I have 2 computers that are a pain to sync. After spending time with it, the USB is pretty wonky with anything attached -- but the iPhone seems to be more sensitive / lack error recovery than most other devices. If you're using a desktop, try switching to either the port on the back or the port on the front (whichever is opposite what you usually do). Illogical as it may seem, one is 100% reliable in the back, the other the front, and only about 50% reliable if in the other -- it's fixed the issue on the two Dell's I had problems with.

5- Can't help here. Don't really understand what the issue is.

There are some options if you still want to give it a whirl.

[TurboSC]

Originally Posted by netdog

Tis the season to be trolling.

I've been seeing a lot of that lately throughout MacRumors... I guess everyone's getting all edgy cause of MacWorld :P

[solvs]

Originally Posted by mpuck972

A $599 dollar Big and Tasty huh? Diamond coated buns maybe? And MS is on millions of true smart phones around the world. Go to downloads.com and do a search for windows mobile, and then do one for iphone, you will see the difference there.

Judging by your sig, I'm guessing you'll just call me a fanboi or whatever (obviously you wouldn't know me if you did) but that's wrong on a couple of points. First of all, it hasn't been $599 for awhile now. I got my 4GB model for less than $300 actually. Go look at the original Windows mobile and you'll see how much it sucked. But actually, thanks to us complaining, there actually will be new apps we can install legitimately come Feb. Maybe you haven't heard of the SDK coming.

As for the rest, I like my iPhone. It isn't perfect, but it's the best phone I've ever had. I don't have issues like the OP.

1. All my faves are in favorites and if you need to scroll faster, you can click on the letters on the right side.
2. I don't need a scientific calc, but I'm sure one is coming after people are allowed to dev their own apps in Feb with the SDK.
3. I can get photos off of mine just fine.
4. No problems syncing, and it backs everything up every time I do.
5. No problems merging either, and it seems to work fine for me both ways.

Maybe it's just you.

[Bernie-Mac]

Obviously not, i mean they sold only what? A million plus of them so far?