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1st Gen iPhone Owners: Reminisce

M

modit

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Apr 8, 2008
340
37
Canada
I've never had the chance to use the original iPhone since it wasn't released here in Canada (3G came a year later in '08). To me, it always looked like the greatest design; made with aluminum and glass which to this day could fit in with the unibody product line.

Did it feel like holding the aluminium iPad in terms of feel?

If you want to reminisce, please post here! :)


*Here's hoping for the design to make a comeback*
 
I remember picking one up via Craigslist about a couple of months prior to the 3G releasing. I use to buy cases left and right for it because I didn't like to rock it naked.
 
It was sooooo slippery. Like I had it fly 20ft across a room when I did a swinging motion with my arm. The "oval" shape wasn't bad but it wasn't the most ergonomic shape ever. It was a bit chunky too by today's standards. I wouldn't like going back to the old design, albeit beautiful.
 
Gurtz said:
It was sooooo slippery. Like I had it fly 20ft across a room when I did a swinging motion with my arm. The "oval" shape wasn't bad but it wasn't the most ergonomic shape ever. It was a bit chunky too by today's standards. I wouldn't like going back to the old design, albeit beautiful.
Click to expand...

The iPhone 4 is more slippery. I loved (still love) the original iPhone's design. It was truly iconic.
 
The aluminum backs would scratch more easily than either the 3G/S or IP4. I think the IP4 is the best design to date. Hard to believe there were no apps...except a few web apps, nothing but bare bones, Email, Web, and media player basically. Originally the biggest model was only 8Gb. It was revolutionary during it's time and unlike anything before it. The first time I felt a phone was magical. I wish I would have kept it instead of selling it when I got the 3G just as a collector's item.
 
Bought an original iPhone on gumtree about a month ago. Needed a temporary replacement to my broken bb until iPhone 5/4s comes out.

Great buy I think. Looks good, gets lots of comments, and is much better than the bb I had. Hate not having 3G though!
 
I still have and use two of them. Both JB'ed and on prepaid t-mobile. One is tricked out with themes I like. If something goes wrong I just reset it and start over. Firmware all the way back is still downloadable.
You can still find good ones over at cowboom.
 
Not to sound nerdy, but it really changed my life.

I remember I was in 11th grade and I was constantly on it in class. I really could not put it down. I had my pictures, music, email, Internet all in 1 place with the iPhone. I picked it up on launch day at 10pm thinking it would be sold out, but low and behold they were in stock.

First time getting used to touch screens and every time someone saw me with it they'd say "oooohhh".

When I got the 3G I didn't find myself using it as much as the original, but still love all iPhones.

I have owned every iPhone and they get better and better. Can't wait for 10.4.
 
Gurtz said:
It was sooooo slippery. Like I had it fly 20ft across a room when I did a swinging motion with my arm. The "oval" shape wasn't bad but it wasn't the most ergonomic shape ever. It was a bit chunky too by today's standards. I wouldn't like going back to the old design, albeit beautiful.
Click to expand...

I completely disagree. The original iPhone to me has easily been the most ergonomic and felt best in the hand. Slippery? yes it was, but it felt so sturdy and tightly put together. And the rounded edges were great to hold. For me the iP4 is much too squared and feels harsh in the hand. I would love Apple to bring back elements of the orig. Here's hoping.

----------
haddman said:
The aluminum backs would scratch more easily than either the 3G/S or IP4. I think the IP4 is the best design to date. Hard to believe there were no apps...except a few web apps, nothing but bare bones, Email, Web, and media player basically. Originally the biggest model was only 8Gb. It was revolutionary during it's time and unlike anything before it. The first time I felt a phone was magical. I wish I would have kept it instead of selling it when I got the 3G just as a collector's item.
Click to expand...

I never had any scratches on my orig iPhone, and I rarely had it in a case. Although I was careful. I wish I had kept mine also. To say it was a game changer is obviously a huge understatement. I loved it and no iPhone since has given me such a feeling of excitement and newness to hold it and use it. Good times~
 
For the $600 it was the hottest thing going. Felt like I was in an elite group (money buys anything in reality).

The internet SUCKED. Yea, it was a far cry from my old razr and rockr, but the frustration was blood pressure raising, especially when I was trying to impress someone about how cool it was and "showed" them the internet, or at least the 1/4 pages that loaded..
 
I'm still using my 1st generation iPhone! I'm so ready to switch to the iPhone 5 when it comes out. My 1st gen is getting so laggy it's ridiculous sometimes. I'm going to go from a 2 megapixel camera with no video to an 8 MP with HD video! Hello unified inbox! Hello 3G internet! Hello bigger screen (I'm hoping)!
 
When I finally had a job and the cash to buy one, Apple released the 3G :p

A friend of mine had one and when I held it I knew iPhones were the way to go. The aluminium back didn't fit into your had as smugly as the 3G, but it felt a lot more sturdy and reminded me of my Macbook Pro :D

Thinking about it...I might try and find one on eBay for collection purposes :cool:
 
Original iPhone commercials (2007)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lZMr-ZfoE4


^^ I remember having three of those four ads on my PSP and I would watch it over and over before it got released. Just hearing Orba Squara's "Perfect Timing" gets me in reminisce mode. Going to download that song right now just thinking about it and then make it into a ringtone for old time's sake!

Then when I saw the iPhone in person for the first time, it actually wasn't until October of 2007 at an Apple Store in South Coast Plaza. Then my brother got it for Black Friday that same year before I would own it the same one he had the following year since he moved onto the 3G. I salivated over the first iPhone when it was first announced in 2007. The weird thing is I could have went iPhone by Christmas 2007 but went with Nokia N82 instead because I needed a good camera and spent $500 for it unlocked. At that time, it was much more rarer to see iPhone users even in Los Angeles because they were going for $399 after the $200 price drop. So yeah, it felt like being in an exclusive club before the 3G price made it more mainstream at $199.

It was a solid phone but it didn't have much apps that first year, had many missing features, and was extremely overpriced for what you got. It was slippery, but far more durable than all the other iPhones. I had it jailbroken and used to love to hear that lightsaber sound when I unlocked it. It lacked RAM and the speaker was far too low. It had its flaws being a first gen, but it was a gamechanger. Perhaps my #3 fav phone of all-time even with all its faults and crashes I had with it. Just a really, really solid phone and revolutionary for its time. I still feel the first iPhone became Apple's greatest announcement.
 
I still have mine.

Compared to my 3GS (I update every other release), the thickness and weight when held in each hand is noticeable and significant. Kind of like comparing a classic 1925 Rolls-Royce Phantom with its 2003 counterpart; the original has more bulk, less speed, finesse and modern design queues, but the style and build quality are undeniable, arguably even better.
 
iphone-banner.jpg


^^ I remember having that picture above as my wallpaper for my PSP and even laptop back in 2007. The way the icons are arranged in that middle iPhone's homescreen is exactly how my first gen iPhone and iPhone 4 look. Exactly at that arrangement. Now the SMS app and Calculator looks different. I never have a fourth row just to swipe easier to the next page and then with the iPhone 4, the second page is filled with 12 folder apps in alphabetical order with apps arranged in alphabetical order too. That page is where I put the apps like iTunes, App Store, Contacts, Voice Memo, Compass, and whatever first-party app Apple has added over the years. That homescreen is exactly how I plan to arrange the apps for every future iPhone I get.

I am going to miss that iPod icon once we move to iOS5. I got a iPod touch first and didn't mind the Music and Video app, but I prefer finding them all in one app with an icon that looks better than both of them.

A day that will live in infamy...

Introducing the new iPhone
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftf4riVJyqw
 
Reminisce? Hell, I'm using my 4+ year old 1st gen iPhone, now. Back in May, since I needed some cash, and I thought that the new one was close to release, I sold my iPhone 4. Boy, it's been a long wait. Even though it works well for a 4yr old phone, it is pretty slow (2g was slow back then!). Also, many apps won't work with it. Suprisingly, the battery still holds a decent charge. For me, the nostalgia is over. I can't wait to upgrade!
 
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