Had there not been an iPhone 3G S⃣ released, but 3.0 came out, then I would've been perfectly happy with that. Also, had I been completely unable to afford an S⃣ , then I probably would've remained happy with my 16GB 3G.
Ultimately though, I did get an iPhone 3G S⃣ 32GB and am happy with it. Yeah it's an evolutionary thing, but it's
just enough of an evolution for me to want it.
- As someone who relies on his iPhone a
lot, the speed difference is very noticeable. I remember how smooth and responsive the 1.x firmware was on the 1st Gen iPhone, and 2.0/3.0, while very useful and serviceable on the previous two generations of hardware, has never quite felt as smooth to me. Some reviewers have used the analogy of getting a fresh new computer with the latest OS, and feeling how smooth and responsive it is. To me that's pretty accurate.
- The camera is a significant enough improvement from the 3G for me, in terms of quality, and capability.
- My music/video library is happy for the extra capacity. I went to the iPhone from a 40GB iPod, so having to originally drop all the way down to 8GB was pretty rough. Although I adapted, now I'm about back where I was about 2 years ago.
- The magnetometer is a nice touch. Not a necessity, but VERY useful and a time saver when trying to navigate while walking in a busy urban jungle with the Maps app.
- I ended up getting a black iPhone 3G but noticed that way more people had black iPhones than white ones, and the white ones seem to stand out more. So, I figured I might want to try switching colors this time around.
All in all, none of the above make the S⃣ an absolute must-have, but for me, they combined to make it worth the upgrade.
It also helps that the 3G model is still fetching a really good price on eBay. All told, I was able to recover nearly all but $30 of what I paid for my 16GB 3G last year, and that's only because I opted for a quick, same-day sale. Had I preferred to stick it out for a week or so in a traditional auction, some people are bidding on used 3G models for
more than what their sellers likely paid for them when new. Using the sale of my 3G to subsidize my 3G S⃣ made a HUGE dent in my upgrade costs.
The iPhone is the only model of phone I've seen that people are willing to pay so much for used. Most other phones are practically worthless in terms of used resale value after just six months or so, especially after a new/improved version has been released.
One other thing to note: the iPhone has actually
slowed my expenditure on cell phones by quite a bit. I used to buy smartphones, rave about how great their are for like, a week, then progressively get more frustrated with the limitations, the crashes, and the annoyances that each one had. Sometimes a glitch would cause major fiasco involving massive data loss (I once had two years' worth of e-mails get deleted by a Blackberry while it sat it its holster). Then I'd grow tired of it, and 2-3 months later, some competing model would come out and I'd eBay my then-current phone to switch to that new model. Then the cycle would repeat. I've used Palms, WM devices, Blackberries, S60s, you name it, I've had my gripes about it.
Except for the iPhone.
I originally swore I'd never get one because I thought it just
has to suck. Then after trying one for a while in an Apple store, I was hooked. Since then, the only upgrading I've been doing is when the new model of iPhone comes out. Other smartphones just don't interest me anymore. Not to say the iPhone is
perfect, but it's a significant improvement over everything I've used before, or tried since.
