So I’ve had my iPhone for about 2 weeks now.

I’m going to list the bad points I have with it to get some not mac fan boy cred, and then get into what I like about it. The main theme for all my problems seems to be “I don’t have enough control over this device to feel like I own it, I feel like I’m renting it. These are all things that apple could easily just flip and switch and make work. I don’t mention the camera here because its not a problem for me.
Then I’m going to list all the things that now that I’ve bought it make me happy that I followed that gut instinct telling me I wanted this piece of tech.

Problems I’ve found with the iPhone

• Can’t use it as a bluetooth modem
  It has bluetooth but I can’t sync my contacts and calendar (on my mac) with it like I can with a nokia, also I can’t use it as a bluetooth modem, so no 3g anywhere for me. Its not a big deal that it doesn’t have this, there’s just no reason for it not to and that annoys me.
• Writing your own applications requires an 80 dollar license
  Apple have a store from which they sell applications for the iPhone, the iPhone will only install apps downloaded from the app store, if you want to write your own apps you have to pay 80 euro, you can then give your app to a limited number of people or distribute it on their store once their engineers have done extensive testing to see that it doesn’t enable anything on the phone it shouldn’t or that it doesn’t break anything. You can also sell apps, apple take 30%. Nice way to make some cash.
• Can’t access my files directly
  This has always been an issue for ipods but the iPhone has taken it to a new level, you can no longer use it as a usb hard drive. If I want to get my ereader to read a file I have to tell it what website to download it from.
• o2
  You go on a more expensive o2 plan when you choose the iPhone and the minimum contract is 18 months. You do get the extra 1gig transfer but the lowest price plan is 45 euro which is all a bit much when you consider that the phone will only work with that provider. Also not that you will really care because using 1 gig transfer using a phone is difficult enough but Ireland is the only country where the iPhone is available and doesn’t have an unlimited data plan. Its still better value for money than vodafone and better coverage and service than meteor or 3 so I’m not too miffed, I’m sure I’ll be switching to a new phone in 18 months anyway.

Things I like about the iPhone

• The Multi-Touch Screen
  It is the first thing you notice, it is a complement to every other feature of the phone, its what makes the phone easy to use, powerful and something I spend a ridiculous amount of time using. No other phone on the market has one to that standard.
• Google Maps
  My sense of direction isn’t great and even when I know where I’m going, how am I meant to know that there is a quicker way if I just head down that road that I was sure was a cul-de-sac. I used it yesterday to figure out when the bus was getting close to newbridge so I could ask the driver (private bus) to let me off early. I then used it to figure out how long it would take me to walk to my sisters from where I was dropped off, and finally I rang my brother in law to ask him to pick me up telling him which road I was on off which exit. When I was apartment hunting I could tell it the number of the house I wanted to go to and it points at the right part of the road. It can also tell you where you are, its not as good as satellite but if you move about 20 feet you get the right place, not great for car travel, perfect for on foot.
• App Store
  I know this was in my dislikes too, but there is something really nice about being able to think, “What should my iPhone be able to do” and end up 5 minutes later staring at a virus free app that does what it says on the tin. Most paid apps cost no more than 3 euro. They go up to 20 but I’ve only found one rather specialist piece of software that did. One of the most useful apps for me was the eReader, I don’t like carrying books around and if you switch it so that its white text on a black background it doesn’t hurt your eyes. I also like windows remote desktop, snowboarding (uses the tilt), chess, backgammon, speed test, facebook, skype etc. all of which made excellent use of the touch screen.
• iPod and YouTube
  The iPod is a background application, you can have that playing on your earphones or loudspeaker while you play chess or check your email. It fades out when someone calls you and you can use your headphones (any normal set of headphones plugs in) to hear the caller and the mic as per normal to talk to them. YouTube streams well enough over 3g. Its not as powerful as the full YouTube application over a normal web browser but it does the job when you’re bored.
• Email
  This was a pretty big deal for me, I have multiple email accounts, I want to be able to get my email from anywhere, just like text messages. Its how work contacts me so its important.
• Web Browsing
  Was able to view the Irish rail website for timetables, touch screen makes this really doable without the need for the webmaster to create a separate mobile site I can easily navigate through the majority of sites with ease. The only issues are with rollover menus and flash as far as I can see.

I think the more I use it I’ll find items I wish to add to both sections, but for now, its one of the most useful, most used and best value for money tech I own.

However we’re all different, this is why I bought it, if you are considering buying one I’d recommend you have a look at the n95, Sony Ericsson and the new palm iPhone killer. The n95 is the one I’d be looking at if the idea of a touch screen doesn’t interest you, its not as nice in terms of interface, I mean I wouldn’t use it to anywhere near the same extent if I had one, imagine trying to read a book on a tiny screen :S but it has none of the iPhone downsides I listed.

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