By now, most of you know and have seen Apple’s iPhone at some point in the last year. When it came out, it was one of those ground breaking events, because Steve Jobs says the iPhone truly delivers on the phrase, “the Internet in your pocket”. The price was initially $600 dollars, and the people who bought it saw the price on the iPhone reduced to $400 dollars after 10 weeks, starting an uproar that subsided after Apple issued $100 dollars per iPhone buyer – only if they bought the iPhone within 2 weeks of the price cut. I did not purchase one, and besides, first generation products almost always have flaws that are addressed in subsequent generations. I recently acquired the iPhone 3G, and so far it’s been fantastic.

Some shots of the iPhone and the iPhone 3G together

I got the black, 8GB version. The other model is 16GB and can come in white. Most people don’t see the reason why there’s a white one, and although the black version can reveal smudges more easily, overall it looks very sleek. From what I’ve read about the iPhone, the iPhone 3G is lighter due to replacing the metal back with plastic. Instead of the back being generally flat, the iPhone 3G is curved, so tapping the device while it is resting on a table may result in it rocking left and right slightly. The headphone jack on the original is recessed, requiring an adapter for most headphones, but the new model solved this annoyance. Complaints about the battery being non user replaceable is still true for the new model. The biggest improvement is obviously the 3G, marketed as being twice as fast. That may be true, it really depends on where you are and if 3G is available. Living right outside of Boston, I don’t have any issues with connectivity, and so far 3G is working out great. For the details, check out this link: iPhone vs. iPhone 3G

The reason why iPhones are so successful is quite obvious. Who doesn’t want a mobile device that can harness the power of the Internet, with an extremely friendly user interface? How many times have you wanted to check up on something on the go, but couldn’t? For example, you’re headed somewhere to meet a few friends, but you’re low on petrol so you want to find out where nearby gas stations are. The iPhone can do that. Friend A wants to go see a movie, friend B wants to see a live show, and friend C just wants to eat. The iPhone can do all those things too, it can look up movie times, check on current as well as upcoming events around you, and find restaurants. Over dinner, to settle a dispute over urban legends, you can use the iPhone to pull up something like MythBusters and reach the definitive answer right there and then. Someone else sends you an email with the address of a club you guys want to hit up next, so you click it and it automatically comes up on your GPS. Cool isn’t it? I know, you can use other phones to browse the web to some extent, but here is what they’ll look like compared to the iPhone:

This is how browsing the web used to look like, extremely slow and haphazard layout

How the web looks like on the iPhone

So that is the primary reason why I got it, along with 3G. The App Store is another strong point. You can access it either through iTunes on your computer, or directly via the icon in your iPhone. There are tons of free apps, and some of them are quite good. For example, there’s an app that determines the name and the artist of the song that’s playing. It will tell me what song is playing on the radio, and I even tried some lesser known songs, and it still worked. There’s another app that was featured in the iPhone commercials, that helps me in Chinese by categories. Then it will display how to write what I want and a person will say the phrase so I can too. Another app is like Guitar Hero, there’s the New York Times app, unit conversion app, Flickr app, Wikipedia app…you get the idea, and all of the apps I mentioned are all free.

Camera differences, both are 2.0 megapixels

The aesthetics of the iPhone is simply elegant. There are no smart phones currently that can outmatch it. The touch screen is great, you can click on web links with your fingers, and move from one screen to another by swiping. Like the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro, the surface can be manipulated by using your fingers. You can pinch the screen to shrink it, or spread the screen by separating your fingers. This applies only on apps that support the multi-touch feature. You can also access WiFi through this device.

All iPhones have accelerometers that are very useful, such as measuring acceleration in your car to determining a surface’s flatness, as well being used in gaming. The iPhone 3G is actually a more advanced gaming platform than the Sony PSP and Nintendo DS…combined. Think I’m kidding? Click on the link to see what John Carmack from ID software had to say about the iPhone. The accelerometer also changes the display from portrait to landscape, depending on how you hold it.

The menus are easy to access and well laid out. A good chunk of the features on the iPhone can be found in the iPod Touch, which is basically the iPhone without the phone. Obviously, you can use iTunes and play music, watch videos, podcasts, etc on the iPhone just like the iPod Touch.

QWERTY in portrait, see my feedback below

Now for the criticisms. One of the first things you’ll notice about this device is it’s short, and I mean SHORT battery life. After a full charge, if you use the phone frequently, it is very possible for the battery to run out before the day is over. Most people with the iPhone didn’t buy it just to talk, but to also use apps and online connectivity. Despite the recent updates, battery life is still not where people like it to be. One of the reasons why Flash isn’t supported on the iPhone, according to Steve Jobs, is that it’ll drain the battery even faster. If you use it conservatively, it may last 2 days.

The camera on the iPhone is just passable by today’s standards. For such a device, the camera should’ve taken photos with more clarity. Also, there is no video recording, a feature that is found on lesser phones.

Surf with caution. Because the iPhone can access the Internet so well, that also raises the chances of receiving malware. Steer away from risque sites, only visit trusted ones. Also, even with 3G, webpages can still take a long time to download, depending on the site. This will temporarily lock up the phone, and not all sites are phone friendly, causing Safari to quit.

Severely limited Bluetooth. The only thing that the iPhone can link up with, is a Bluetooth headset. That’s it. Can’t pair it with a computer to transfer files. Yes, you can transfer files via the USB cable, but it doesn’t have the dexterity of Bluetooth.

Cannot copy & paste, cannot highlight text in single line fields.

Apps can crash. Stability is an issue, this applies mostly to free apps. Also websites can crash. Whenever the device crashes, you’re kicked back to the Home screen.

QWERTY keyboard is cramped, very easy to enter the wrong letter unless you’re typing slowly. The keys will magnify and you’ll get spelling suggestions, but it’s still too small. You’d think that it’ll switch to landscape mode whenever you type, but that’s not the case. So far, there are free apps that will offer the landscape option when sending emails, but that’s it.

Battery not user replaceable. You’ll get these special screwdrivers to for the screws on the bottom of the iPhone, but unfortunately, only Apple can replace your battery.

Blackberry Pearl & iPhone

You can do what’s called “jail breaking” your phone to have it be capable of more actions. There are mods that are labeled “jail breaking” that are very useful, but not supported by Apple. “Jail breaking” won’t void your warranty, unlocking the phone will. Currently, you can only get the iPhone with at&t.

GSM phones will create a distinctive buzzing sound when placed near TVs, speakers, and anything else that can emit noise from radio frequencies. This is due to inadequate shielding of cables in those devices, and the best solution is to use ferrite beads to block out GSM frequencies. You can also try anti-static bags, or upgrade your speakers, but those are not as practical. The iPhone 3G solves this when 3G is activated. It will drain battery faster, but the buzzing will cease. Revert back to EDGE and the noise will come back.

There have been comparisons against Blackberry Pearl/Bold, the Samsung Instinct, the LG Vu/Dare, and the recent HTC G1. Each model has it’s strengths, but the Blackberry’s screen is too small to browse adequately, the G1 has no direct headphone jack and its make quality low, also all of the iPhone’s competitors have UIs that are rather bland. Even with the iPhone’s weaknesses, it’s currently the 3rd largest mobile phone manufacturer. Remember, Apple is a company that just entered the mobile business as a bona fide contender about 1.5 years ago, and it’s success is amazing, even beating out some of the players who have been in the business for a long time. There is good reason why the company and the iPhone are both doing so well. The beautiful design, ease of use, and most importantly, the creative genius of Apple is what separates its products from the masses. The large touchscreen…you can’t beat it. Until even better devices are revealed, the iPhone 3G truly is the Internet in your pocket.