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iPhone 3G First Impressions and Reviews
- Thread starter Blue Velvet
- Start date
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The most amazing phone ever
This is my first iPhone, I held out to buy it when it originally came out due to the lack of 3G and GPS. I am so happy I waited, this phone absolutely rocks.
The data portion of the phone works awesome in San Diego. I drove down the 805 from Sorrento Valley to Hillcrest today and the Pandora Radio NEVER missed a beat. I plugged it directly into my Pioneer DEH-P700's ipod connection, and I was able to play Pandora on my car stereo, and it sounded awesome for a compressed streaming radio station!
The sound quality on phone calls is amazing. Prior to 3G, and when I used Verizon, I would notice a bit of compression in people's voices. With 3G, it sounds almost as clear as a traditional copper phone line does! Also, it works in the elevator of my condo complex, which my Verizon phone never did!
The Yahoo Mail integration is slick and works very well. Messages appear to get pushed directly to my phone within a matter of seconds. The mass delete/move function on the new phone is very slick and easy to use, as well as convenient.
LOVE Safari! It works so well, zooming in and out of web pages and being able to rotate the phone on its side to view in widescreen! LOVELY!
I could go on for hours, but this is definately one awesome phone. With that said, here are my gripes:
-I'd still prefer a slide out keyboard, my thumbs are so big that I just can't type too fast on this thing. In time I'll get used to it, but right now it's a pain when compared to my Motorola Q.
-Why can't we multitask? It would be very nice if Apple would at least allow the radios to work such as Pandora and AOL radio while doing other things.
-Would *** LOVE *** if apple would allow rotation when viewing emails. The reason being, the keyboard is bigger, so I could type emails easier with the larger keyboard. Also emails are much more visable on the wider screen, so it would be nice if they would add this functionality in the future.
-Apple needs to stop being so selfish and let us view all video formats on the iphone. Let's face it, most web sites (even ones with QUICKTIME VIDEOS) aren't set up to stream to the iphone, so open it up and let us play DivX, WMV, and FLASH!!!
-GPS.... I think it's kinda false advertising to say you have GPS and not provide full "traditional" GPS functionality such as turn by turn directions... But that's just my humble opinion.
This is my first iPhone, I held out to buy it when it originally came out due to the lack of 3G and GPS. I am so happy I waited, this phone absolutely rocks.
The data portion of the phone works awesome in San Diego. I drove down the 805 from Sorrento Valley to Hillcrest today and the Pandora Radio NEVER missed a beat. I plugged it directly into my Pioneer DEH-P700's ipod connection, and I was able to play Pandora on my car stereo, and it sounded awesome for a compressed streaming radio station!
The sound quality on phone calls is amazing. Prior to 3G, and when I used Verizon, I would notice a bit of compression in people's voices. With 3G, it sounds almost as clear as a traditional copper phone line does! Also, it works in the elevator of my condo complex, which my Verizon phone never did!
The Yahoo Mail integration is slick and works very well. Messages appear to get pushed directly to my phone within a matter of seconds. The mass delete/move function on the new phone is very slick and easy to use, as well as convenient.
LOVE Safari! It works so well, zooming in and out of web pages and being able to rotate the phone on its side to view in widescreen! LOVELY!
I could go on for hours, but this is definately one awesome phone. With that said, here are my gripes:
-I'd still prefer a slide out keyboard, my thumbs are so big that I just can't type too fast on this thing. In time I'll get used to it, but right now it's a pain when compared to my Motorola Q.
-Why can't we multitask? It would be very nice if Apple would at least allow the radios to work such as Pandora and AOL radio while doing other things.
-Would *** LOVE *** if apple would allow rotation when viewing emails. The reason being, the keyboard is bigger, so I could type emails easier with the larger keyboard. Also emails are much more visable on the wider screen, so it would be nice if they would add this functionality in the future.
-Apple needs to stop being so selfish and let us view all video formats on the iphone. Let's face it, most web sites (even ones with QUICKTIME VIDEOS) aren't set up to stream to the iphone, so open it up and let us play DivX, WMV, and FLASH!!!
-GPS.... I think it's kinda false advertising to say you have GPS and not provide full "traditional" GPS functionality such as turn by turn directions... But that's just my humble opinion.
WOW!!! Very cool!! Feels like I have a macbook in my pocket. 3G is very fast!!
thats exactly what i love about it...with the web experience it offers along with the apps....it is like a mini-mac
DMe too, the trick is you have to tilt the phone a bit when you switch to landscape or it won't flip....
After camping out last night, I got my hands on an iPhone. Here are my thoughts...
Design: I am extremely impressed with the plastic back. I picked up a Black 16GB Model, and it feels awesome in the hand, much better than iPhone 1. I expected it to be cheap: its not. The design is flawless to me.
Internet: 3G is fast. It feels like WiFi is everywhere. I did 2 speed tests in a rural area, and 3G came out to be 5 times faster than EDGE. I love how Youtube videos embeded on sites can be viewed in mobile safari. I love the ability to save images as well.
GPS: After some initial problems (for some reason, my phone was convinced I was in Holland when in fact I was in Idaho), GPS worked great. It was surprisingly fun watching that blue dot go down the street! Hopefully TomTom, or someone else will develop a real navigation app to take advantage of it. It does take a hit on battery however. Also, its extremely annoying (Vista-like), when it asks you to use your current location every time you use an app like Camera or Maps.
AppStore: Its a dream come true. I downloaded a few free apps (AIM, Facebook, AOL Radio, eBay, Remote), and bought some too (Trism, Monkey Ball, Enigmo, Band), and love them all. A quick review of these apps...
-AIM: Will be the best app on the phone in October. For now, its good. Push notification is a must for this app to take off. I don't want to sit in AIM talking, when I could be doing other things.
- Facebook: Awesome! I like this app a ton! Only peeve is that I can't view my friends' walls...
- AOL Radio: This app has huge potential. It gives access to a vast amount of Internet Radio stations, and totally makes up for no FM Tuner. In fact, it is much better than an FM Tuner. Its like having satellite radio on the phone. A+ App!
-eBay: As a frequent eBayer (iPhone 1 sold for 450, PowerMac G5 sold for 2500!), this app is great. Again, Push notification is needed to take this app to the next level.
- Remote: I see no point for controlling iTunes, but I see a huge point for controlling Apple TV. I wish it controlled everything though... :-(
-Trism: Best iPhone Game to date, and the best Puzzle Game of all time. While games like SMB are fun, you have to be at a certain precise angle at all times. Trism is easy, releaxing, fun and addicting. A+ app!
- Monkey Ball: Very Hard at first, but once you find the right angle, its more fun. Gets kind of boring for a 9.99 Game...
- Enigmo: Awesome Sound Effects, but very hard as you advance. So hard I get very frustrated with it. If you like a challenge, get this game! This game has an awesome design though, very intuitive and sleek.
- Band: 12 Bar Blues is the best. Enough Said.
Recessed Headphone Jack is a relief. This should've been on the last one.
Love having Push Email with MobileMe and Exchange. Thank you Apple!
Great Having Sideways Calculator as a student.
Still can't use iTunes library for Alarm Clock
Parental Controls work as advertised.
Only thing missing that should be there (not like front-camera which is just a bonus), is a higher quality camera. At least 3 MP with Image Stabalization would be nice.
As far as the price is concerned, it will sell many more iPhones. While I liked the old iTunes Activation+Higher Price, I know it was the right decision.
Conclusion: The Revolutionary iPhone gets an evolutionary upgrade, but the changes it addressed were needed. With 3G, GPS, 1/2 Price, and best of all, the App Store, there is no reason I see to not get an iPhone.
Edit: Totally forgot about the speaker. It is much much clearer! The best clarity I have ever heard on a cell phone.
Design: I am extremely impressed with the plastic back. I picked up a Black 16GB Model, and it feels awesome in the hand, much better than iPhone 1. I expected it to be cheap: its not. The design is flawless to me.
Internet: 3G is fast. It feels like WiFi is everywhere. I did 2 speed tests in a rural area, and 3G came out to be 5 times faster than EDGE. I love how Youtube videos embeded on sites can be viewed in mobile safari. I love the ability to save images as well.
GPS: After some initial problems (for some reason, my phone was convinced I was in Holland when in fact I was in Idaho), GPS worked great. It was surprisingly fun watching that blue dot go down the street! Hopefully TomTom, or someone else will develop a real navigation app to take advantage of it. It does take a hit on battery however. Also, its extremely annoying (Vista-like), when it asks you to use your current location every time you use an app like Camera or Maps.
AppStore: Its a dream come true. I downloaded a few free apps (AIM, Facebook, AOL Radio, eBay, Remote), and bought some too (Trism, Monkey Ball, Enigmo, Band), and love them all. A quick review of these apps...
-AIM: Will be the best app on the phone in October. For now, its good. Push notification is a must for this app to take off. I don't want to sit in AIM talking, when I could be doing other things.
- Facebook: Awesome! I like this app a ton! Only peeve is that I can't view my friends' walls...
- AOL Radio: This app has huge potential. It gives access to a vast amount of Internet Radio stations, and totally makes up for no FM Tuner. In fact, it is much better than an FM Tuner. Its like having satellite radio on the phone. A+ App!
-eBay: As a frequent eBayer (iPhone 1 sold for 450, PowerMac G5 sold for 2500!), this app is great. Again, Push notification is needed to take this app to the next level.
- Remote: I see no point for controlling iTunes, but I see a huge point for controlling Apple TV. I wish it controlled everything though... :-(
-Trism: Best iPhone Game to date, and the best Puzzle Game of all time. While games like SMB are fun, you have to be at a certain precise angle at all times. Trism is easy, releaxing, fun and addicting. A+ app!
- Monkey Ball: Very Hard at first, but once you find the right angle, its more fun. Gets kind of boring for a 9.99 Game...
- Enigmo: Awesome Sound Effects, but very hard as you advance. So hard I get very frustrated with it. If you like a challenge, get this game! This game has an awesome design though, very intuitive and sleek.
- Band: 12 Bar Blues is the best. Enough Said.
Recessed Headphone Jack is a relief. This should've been on the last one.
Love having Push Email with MobileMe and Exchange. Thank you Apple!
Great Having Sideways Calculator as a student.
Still can't use iTunes library for Alarm Clock
Parental Controls work as advertised.
Only thing missing that should be there (not like front-camera which is just a bonus), is a higher quality camera. At least 3 MP with Image Stabalization would be nice.
As far as the price is concerned, it will sell many more iPhones. While I liked the old iTunes Activation+Higher Price, I know it was the right decision.
Conclusion: The Revolutionary iPhone gets an evolutionary upgrade, but the changes it addressed were needed. With 3G, GPS, 1/2 Price, and best of all, the App Store, there is no reason I see to not get an iPhone.
Edit: Totally forgot about the speaker. It is much much clearer! The best clarity I have ever heard on a cell phone.
My AT&T experience
I was in line during the Activation hiccup. The system went down and they couldn't activate phones. After an hour of waiting for it to be resolved, maybe even more than an hour, they started doing orders again.
When I got up there, I got the last phone at the store (Roosevelt Field, NY). I got a white 16Gb and it was what I wanted (except for the white part). They didn't even take the phone out the plastic. He rang me up, changed up my account and we were good to go. I had to unbrick it at home. It was activated as soon as I plugged it in and began receiving text messages that had been sent to me when my phone was off. My port from VZW took minutes.
I was an authorized user, 17 years of age, with a state ID and I was able to make the purchase alone, contrary to word before launch that you had to be 18.
I was in line during the Activation hiccup. The system went down and they couldn't activate phones. After an hour of waiting for it to be resolved, maybe even more than an hour, they started doing orders again.
When I got up there, I got the last phone at the store (Roosevelt Field, NY). I got a white 16Gb and it was what I wanted (except for the white part). They didn't even take the phone out the plastic. He rang me up, changed up my account and we were good to go. I had to unbrick it at home. It was activated as soon as I plugged it in and began receiving text messages that had been sent to me when my phone was off. My port from VZW took minutes.
I was an authorized user, 17 years of age, with a state ID and I was able to make the purchase alone, contrary to word before launch that you had to be 18.
Very Impressive
Finally got iPhone 3G 8GB after waited a long line in local ATT store around 10:00AM PST. Registered and activated through iTune @home instantly without any server issue. Been downloading apps and went out trying the GPS most of the day.
Initial Impression
* Very beautiful shape and feels good in the hand.
* Very fast and responsive GPS. Quite accurate to the pin spot.
* Crisp and sharp screen.
* Audio sound very clear.
* 3G speed is impressive, and switching between 3G and Edge was instant.
* Switch to WiFi WPA2 network fast. Was able to pick up WiFi signal even when traveling on the car through distant buildings.
* AppStore is truly a step forward for iPhone, download and sync the apps instantly.
Can't wait for the 3D turn-by-turn voice guided GPS software for download! The current maps GPS software needs to offer a separate option to allow temporary auto-lock deactivation feature while GPS rout is activating so it doesn't get turned off by itself while traveling in car. (Maybe someone can point me to a setting?)
Overall, very satisfy with purchase.
Finally got iPhone 3G 8GB after waited a long line in local ATT store around 10:00AM PST. Registered and activated through iTune @home instantly without any server issue. Been downloading apps and went out trying the GPS most of the day.
Initial Impression
* Very beautiful shape and feels good in the hand.
* Very fast and responsive GPS. Quite accurate to the pin spot.
* Crisp and sharp screen.
* Audio sound very clear.
* 3G speed is impressive, and switching between 3G and Edge was instant.
* Switch to WiFi WPA2 network fast. Was able to pick up WiFi signal even when traveling on the car through distant buildings.
* AppStore is truly a step forward for iPhone, download and sync the apps instantly.
Can't wait for the 3D turn-by-turn voice guided GPS software for download! The current maps GPS software needs to offer a separate option to allow temporary auto-lock deactivation feature while GPS rout is activating so it doesn't get turned off by itself while traveling in car. (Maybe someone can point me to a setting?)
Overall, very satisfy with purchase.
No Dice
Bad first impression. I don't want to hate on the phone man, so far I can tell you that it lacks in looks compared to the original model. It does feel cheap compared to the other. I'm holding both phones in my hands and the 3G looks like a Japanese knock off of the original phone. I have yet to test the "technical" part of the phone, I'll keep you posted. It looks like I'm going to keep the original and give my lady the 3G, WiFi...I'm depending on you!
Bad first impression. I don't want to hate on the phone man, so far I can tell you that it lacks in looks compared to the original model. It does feel cheap compared to the other. I'm holding both phones in my hands and the 3G looks like a Japanese knock off of the original phone. I have yet to test the "technical" part of the phone, I'll keep you posted. It looks like I'm going to keep the original and give my lady the 3G, WiFi...I'm depending on you!
I can understand if you're a road warrior who travels all over the country and never has time to stop and plug it in, but for me, I have an ipod hookup in my car, an ipod hookup on my home stereo, the dock for the iphone, and of course I have another dock at work.
So, I usually leave it plugged in at home, except when talking on the phone, I plug it in in the car and talk over bluetooth, and i plug it in at work, so it's pretty much always plugged in and I don't have to worry about the battery.
So, all this battery life fuss might be valid for a traveling salesperson, but the average person with a 9-5 office job definately has plenty of time and options for plugging the phone in to keep it charged!
My friend got a Black 16GB iPhone 3G yesterday (in Australia) luckily. Each store only got about 30 phones to stock... so within about 30 minutes all stores were sold out!!
We found the Exchange Integration features to be pure awesome!!! We linked it up to the work server and immediately everything was synced up... so cool
Also the yellow tinted screen, I didn't notice, but really unless you are side by side with a whiter screen, it is not noticeable at all!
Damn it is cool.... but has some FATAL FLAWS:
- You cannot send files via bluetooth!!! WTF? Why would you use the phone network when you could directly send phone to phone with BT. This feature has been around forever in other phones and they just totally forgot it?!!!!! Especially with 16gb on the phone, you could bt your files from your pc at work and take them home, and vice versa... IF it supported that... ODD.
- MMS... where is MMS??? You can't even receive MMS Messages!! (Nor Send them) - this alienates you from every other phone user! Most phones these days do MMS, but not necessarily email.. so how am I supposed to take a photo and send it to my friend who doesn't have a smartphone or iPhone? CANT DO IT.
Absolutely critical functions like these is what stops people from buying the iPhone (if they know about them)... unfortunately we found out the hard way...........
All in all a very cool phone though and if I had the spare $ I would get one anyway... but eagerly await the arrival of those critical missing functionalities!!!!
We found the Exchange Integration features to be pure awesome!!! We linked it up to the work server and immediately everything was synced up... so cool
Also the yellow tinted screen, I didn't notice, but really unless you are side by side with a whiter screen, it is not noticeable at all!
Damn it is cool.... but has some FATAL FLAWS:
- You cannot send files via bluetooth!!! WTF? Why would you use the phone network when you could directly send phone to phone with BT. This feature has been around forever in other phones and they just totally forgot it?!!!!! Especially with 16gb on the phone, you could bt your files from your pc at work and take them home, and vice versa... IF it supported that... ODD.
- MMS... where is MMS??? You can't even receive MMS Messages!! (Nor Send them) - this alienates you from every other phone user! Most phones these days do MMS, but not necessarily email.. so how am I supposed to take a photo and send it to my friend who doesn't have a smartphone or iPhone? CANT DO IT.
Absolutely critical functions like these is what stops people from buying the iPhone (if they know about them)... unfortunately we found out the hard way...........
All in all a very cool phone though and if I had the spare $ I would get one anyway... but eagerly await the arrival of those critical missing functionalities!!!!
We know there is no MMS functionality, we know the Bluetooth is cripped. Do you really think that need repeating?
Some points:
-GPS is way more accurate than it was made out to be based on some user comments
-App store works very well, seamless and quick
-3G isn't as fast as WiFi (duh). Way way faster than dial up though! I haven't used an Edge phone so I don't know what it used to be
-3G was down for a few hours today. Why? Very random. Working now, though.
-GPS is way more accurate than it was made out to be based on some user comments
-App store works very well, seamless and quick
-3G isn't as fast as WiFi (duh). Way way faster than dial up though! I haven't used an Edge phone so I don't know what it used to be
-3G was down for a few hours today. Why? Very random. Working now, though.
I am impressed with the phone. Works well, all synced up.
My concerns over GPS not working properly seem to be false. It seems to locate me quicker than my Blackberry ever did. I don't know if the GPS is always on or only when I turn the map application on, but the discussion in previous thread about lack of GPS accuracy is wrong.
I had mine in my car and it was tracking me fine all the way home from work...(with heave battery drain I will add) and my FM cup no longer charges my Iphone which means I will need to buy a new FM transmitter with charger. WIll go to the Apple store and see what the geniuses recommend.
Just adding a quote below which made me very happy.
One point of confusion is whether or not 3rd parties will be able to offer a turn-by-turn GPS solution for the iPhone. Questions about SDK conditions and antenna size have been raised in previous reviews, but TeleNav confirmed to Gizmodo that they will be launching a 3D moving map GPS application with turn-by-turn voice guidance.
My concerns over GPS not working properly seem to be false. It seems to locate me quicker than my Blackberry ever did. I don't know if the GPS is always on or only when I turn the map application on, but the discussion in previous thread about lack of GPS accuracy is wrong.
I had mine in my car and it was tracking me fine all the way home from work...(with heave battery drain I will add) and my FM cup no longer charges my Iphone which means I will need to buy a new FM transmitter with charger. WIll go to the Apple store and see what the geniuses recommend.
Just adding a quote below which made me very happy.
One point of confusion is whether or not 3rd parties will be able to offer a turn-by-turn GPS solution for the iPhone. Questions about SDK conditions and antenna size have been raised in previous reviews, but TeleNav confirmed to Gizmodo that they will be launching a 3D moving map GPS application with turn-by-turn voice guidance.
Absolutely. Apple need to understand that it is critical!
This is a first impressions thread. These are my first impressions.
This is not a thread to argue.
Well I bit the bullet tonight and went down to my local apple store just like I did a year ago to purchase the new iphone. Last year I was in and out in less than 120 seconds believe it or not. To my shock, I witnessed a line of people waiting at least a 100 yards to get into the apple store. I was told a 3 to 4 hour wait and this was 11hrs after the onsale time of 8am.
Eventually I made it in after about 3:15 hrs waiting. A total duh to realize first hand that the delay was due to signing up, asking of questions, checking of IDs, signing, and activation process was the delay. How I missed last year's activation process.
Thoughts: Amazing feel and love the plastic back. I went for black 16gb and love it. I took it out and tried 3G and I'm still really shocked at how fast it is. It's almost 6 times faster than Edge for me and makes it almost hard to discern from wifi. The screen feels less slick. The screen IS yellowish. Most importantly for me though was VOLUME and call QUALITY. Man this new iphone sings..night and day difference for me. Speakerphone seems much better but haven't tested it too much. Voice calls really seemed so much better. Really very happy with the iphone 3G ACCEPT, and i don't know how much this is going to be an issue, I get almost zero bars in my home where i had full bars on the original. If you're on the fence, get it.
Eventually I made it in after about 3:15 hrs waiting. A total duh to realize first hand that the delay was due to signing up, asking of questions, checking of IDs, signing, and activation process was the delay. How I missed last year's activation process.
Thoughts: Amazing feel and love the plastic back. I went for black 16gb and love it. I took it out and tried 3G and I'm still really shocked at how fast it is. It's almost 6 times faster than Edge for me and makes it almost hard to discern from wifi. The screen feels less slick. The screen IS yellowish. Most importantly for me though was VOLUME and call QUALITY. Man this new iphone sings..night and day difference for me. Speakerphone seems much better but haven't tested it too much. Voice calls really seemed so much better. Really very happy with the iphone 3G ACCEPT, and i don't know how much this is going to be an issue, I get almost zero bars in my home where i had full bars on the original. If you're on the fence, get it.
Thanks everyone for your first impressions. I am on the edge of just paying the ETF to Verzion for two lines and getting two iPhones for my wife and I. Her iPod is on its last legs, mine has been doing some weird stuff lately, and our phones are pretty beat up. If we have to replace them soon, might as well do it now.
Now that I've had a day to play with it I'll post my first impressions. I'm new to the iPhone so my point of view may differe from others who already had the original iPhone or at least played with it some (I played with the original for about 5 min in an AT&T store). My first and overall impression is that it's smaller than I thought. I thought it was going to be bigger. I'm glad to find that it's not this huge thing. Along the same lines, it's also thinner that I thought. I was afraid it'd be making my pocket bulge out, but it's very thin! It's thinner and only a little taller than my Krzr it's replacing as my personal phone. The dimensions are about the same as my Treo I use for work, but soooo much thinner! I hated carrying around that brick. The quality seems good to me. It feels very sturdy. As for the iPhone itself, it's awesome! I'm overwhelmed by what all it can do. Even though all I did yesterday was play with it (and follow the forums here) I feel like I've barely scratched the surface of everything the iPhone has. I'm going to have to sit down and read the user manual just to become completely familiar with it. I know the basics but want to learn the details. So far I'm very happy!
My first impressions:
Pros: Love the look and feel of the device, the screen is excellent, brighter and crisper. Sound quality is excellent all round. 3G is amazingly fast. GPS is very good although doesn't seem to be SUPER accurate when I am driving and I am disappointed that they couldn't somehow intergrate turn by turn directions even if they weren't spoken but just on screen. App store is great although I am hesitant to spend any money on apps without knowing if they are any good or not.
Cons: Bugs bugs and more bugs. My sister sent me an email with photos of my nephew, tried to save the photos to the iPhone and everytime I tried to view them in Photos it caused a crash and locked up my iPhone, took me a few minutes just to delete the 3 photos. Facebook app was constantly crashing as soon as I opened it last night, had to do a reboot to fix it. MobileMe not working (I signed up to the trial as I was hoping to test the push software). App Store giving a "Cannot connect to iTunes Store" error occasionally. Lose the bugs and I would not have a single complaint about the device. Well, apart from the battery life but I guess I will learn to live with that!
Pros: Love the look and feel of the device, the screen is excellent, brighter and crisper. Sound quality is excellent all round. 3G is amazingly fast. GPS is very good although doesn't seem to be SUPER accurate when I am driving and I am disappointed that they couldn't somehow intergrate turn by turn directions even if they weren't spoken but just on screen. App store is great although I am hesitant to spend any money on apps without knowing if they are any good or not.
Cons: Bugs bugs and more bugs. My sister sent me an email with photos of my nephew, tried to save the photos to the iPhone and everytime I tried to view them in Photos it caused a crash and locked up my iPhone, took me a few minutes just to delete the 3 photos. Facebook app was constantly crashing as soon as I opened it last night, had to do a reboot to fix it. MobileMe not working (I signed up to the trial as I was hoping to test the push software). App Store giving a "Cannot connect to iTunes Store" error occasionally. Lose the bugs and I would not have a single complaint about the device. Well, apart from the battery life but I guess I will learn to live with that!
My short review:
Pro: Design is nice with metal trim, and mesh for the speakers, the home button seems more flush with the phone. The plastic back feels good not cheap plastic. Volume seems to be louder, GPS is good, it even picks me up in the house and tracks when I move from room to room. The interface is great same as the last iPhone.
Con:The firmware seems to be a bit buggy, launching an app might reboot the phone or freeze it. There seems to be a little lag when scrolling through contacts. I didn't notice 3G Blazing Fast speed, it's a bit faster just not blazing it could just be my location. Battery life is shorter I had to charge my phone twice since, but I've have been using wifi and 3G a lot to download apps and just playing with the phone.
That's it, Good Luck to those waiting for the iPhone
Pro: Design is nice with metal trim, and mesh for the speakers, the home button seems more flush with the phone. The plastic back feels good not cheap plastic. Volume seems to be louder, GPS is good, it even picks me up in the house and tracks when I move from room to room. The interface is great same as the last iPhone.
Con:The firmware seems to be a bit buggy, launching an app might reboot the phone or freeze it. There seems to be a little lag when scrolling through contacts. I didn't notice 3G Blazing Fast speed, it's a bit faster just not blazing
it could just be my location. Battery life is shorter I had to charge my phone twice since, but I've have been using wifi and 3G a lot to download apps and just playing with the phone. That's it, Good Luck to those waiting for the iPhone
An amazing phone, so much better than the free pieces of crap i have been using for the past 6 years! GPS is great and it actually followed me as i walked around my neighborhood updating my position nearly in real time..I was amazed! 3g is fast! I had only one bar and tested it and got 375kbps, can't wait to see what full 3g gives me. I got 875kbps on wifi with it too. I still need to figure out some stuff, because sometimes i am trying to check my recent call information and i make a call on accident...oh well. Some apps will suddenly quit on me and go back to the home page, but nothing too serious. It is still amazing!!!!!
Hi All,
I'm a new iPhone owner, as I thought I'd give the original a miss, due to the fact that I expected them to update it in a year or so.. glad I was correct
The purchasing experience
As I'm in the UK I ordered my Black 16GB 3G from O2's online store on Monday. Unlike quite a few others the experience seemed to to go pretty smoothly. I waited for a few days to see if I'd actually got one! But luckily I received an order number late on Monday and then on Thursday afternoon my order changed from "In Progress to Completed" and I had a DHL consignment number.. phew!
Most of Friday was spent waiting for the phone to arrive (and reading various sites on the net including MacRumours). My iPhone arrived around 5pm and I then tried to activate it.... not happening due to the server issues. So I decided to go and grab some food... did that .. came back - retried.. and "Activated!".. cool.
The iPhone
Having never really played with one "in the flesh" I didn't know quite what to expect. However I am pleasantly surprised by the size and build of the unit. The plastic seems pretty robust so far.
As for the software - I think it's amazing. I let it sync up with my powerbook G4 and after a few minutes it had all the email accounts, contacts, calendar, Songs etc. all transferred over.
I spent a good few hours on Friday playing with it - getting used to it. I'm amazed how fast I can "text" on this! The keyboard and the auto-correct is amazing! The email sync works really well (I'm tempted to get Mobile-Me now.. but just working out if it is really worth it). As for reception - much better than my old phone (LG KE850) and the speaker is excellent.
Woke up this morning and decided I didn't want to get out of bed just yet.. so I tuned on the iPhone and spent a good few hours reading various forums etc. via Wifi and listening to the music (this used up about a quarter of the battery). I then downloaded some applications from the App Store and decided to see what was what...
The main ones I got were:
- Bloomberg - quite good, a bit slow if not using WiFi to connect.
- Currency converter - this will be useful when I'm travelling.
- Enigmo - fun, but very difficult in parts.
- Shazam - this will be useful in the pub quiz
- Trism - lots of fun and surprisingly relaxing!
But the best app I've downloaded is "Vicinity" - this works amazingly well - using the GPS to locate you and then show you where nearby things are - such as Pubs, restaurants, petrol(gas) stations. Tried it with "Taxi Firms" and it pulled up all the ones in my area up in a few seconds complete with addresses and telephone numbers.. This is going to be very useful when I'm on business trips or generally out and about. This is the first KILLER APP for the phone I've found.. now I'm looking for more!
Overall I'm really really enjoying this iPhone and I think it's amazing. Yes it has the odd niggle.. but I'd fully expect anything major to be sorted out pretty swiftly by Apple.. but so far I'm loving it.
Edit: Oh I forgot.. I did have one niggle - with the Voicemail not working and getting the message "unable to initiate connection with Visual Voicemail" but I sorted it out by a) Turning on the visual voicemail (dialing 1750) and then b) performing a "Network Reset" from the settings section. I then set up a pin code and it all seems to be working fine now... very cool.
I'm a new iPhone owner, as I thought I'd give the original a miss, due to the fact that I expected them to update it in a year or so.. glad I was correct
The purchasing experience
As I'm in the UK I ordered my Black 16GB 3G from O2's online store on Monday. Unlike quite a few others the experience seemed to to go pretty smoothly. I waited for a few days to see if I'd actually got one! But luckily I received an order number late on Monday and then on Thursday afternoon my order changed from "In Progress to Completed" and I had a DHL consignment number.. phew!
Most of Friday was spent waiting for the phone to arrive (and reading various sites on the net including MacRumours). My iPhone arrived around 5pm and I then tried to activate it.... not happening due to the server issues. So I decided to go and grab some food... did that .. came back - retried.. and "Activated!".. cool.
The iPhone
Having never really played with one "in the flesh" I didn't know quite what to expect. However I am pleasantly surprised by the size and build of the unit. The plastic seems pretty robust so far.
As for the software - I think it's amazing. I let it sync up with my powerbook G4 and after a few minutes it had all the email accounts, contacts, calendar, Songs etc. all transferred over.
I spent a good few hours on Friday playing with it - getting used to it. I'm amazed how fast I can "text" on this! The keyboard and the auto-correct is amazing! The email sync works really well (I'm tempted to get Mobile-Me now.. but just working out if it is really worth it). As for reception - much better than my old phone (LG KE850) and the speaker is excellent.
Woke up this morning and decided I didn't want to get out of bed just yet.. so I tuned on the iPhone and spent a good few hours reading various forums etc. via Wifi and listening to the music (this used up about a quarter of the battery). I then downloaded some applications from the App Store and decided to see what was what...
The main ones I got were:
- Bloomberg - quite good, a bit slow if not using WiFi to connect.
- Currency converter - this will be useful when I'm travelling.
- Enigmo - fun, but very difficult in parts.
- Shazam - this will be useful in the pub quiz
- Trism - lots of fun and surprisingly relaxing!
But the best app I've downloaded is "Vicinity" - this works amazingly well - using the GPS to locate you and then show you where nearby things are - such as Pubs, restaurants, petrol(gas) stations. Tried it with "Taxi Firms" and it pulled up all the ones in my area up in a few seconds complete with addresses and telephone numbers.. This is going to be very useful when I'm on business trips or generally out and about. This is the first KILLER APP for the phone I've found.. now I'm looking for more!
Overall I'm really really enjoying this iPhone and I think it's amazing. Yes it has the odd niggle.. but I'd fully expect anything major to be sorted out pretty swiftly by Apple.. but so far I'm loving it.
Edit: Oh I forgot.. I did have one niggle - with the Voicemail not working and getting the message "unable to initiate connection with Visual Voicemail" but I sorted it out by a) Turning on the visual voicemail (dialing 1750) and then b) performing a "Network Reset" from the settings section. I then set up a pin code and it all seems to be working fine now... very cool.