iPhone 3G

Don't worry, this isn't going to be a "OMG I <3 APPLE SO MUCH" page. Trust me...

I purchased my iPhone 3G on October 21, 2008, from an Apple Retail store. First impression...it's something you don't want to break. The plastic feels solid in my hand, but I'm paranoid about scratches (as most Apple freaks are). Screen protector and case in hand, I leave to party hard.

You get the standard complement of accessories; USB cable, power adapter, earbuds with microphone, a cleaning cloth, and a SIM eject tool. It would be nice to see Apple offering insurance on the phones, but I'm sure that's impractical.

On the outside, you're greeted with exactly four buttons. Volume, sleep, home, and vibrate. Personally, I love the vibrate switch. I don't have to navigate through menus or even wake the phone up to shut it up. A quick flick and I can get away with having my phone at that important meeting. The vibe mode doesn't silence your iPod portion, too, so you can have music softly playing (or blaring) while it's set to -not- ring. The dock connector, standard since the first iPod, is still here, flanked by the microphone and the speaker. The back is adorned with minimalistic markings, except for a huge shiney Apple logo in the middle. The top of the phone has your sleep button and the headphone jack, which is compatible with any standard 3.5mm headphones. The silver trim doubles as the phone's antenna for 802.11 WiFi, 3G, and EDGE networks, while the GPS and Bluetooth transponders are internal. Functionality meets style, I suppose.

The phone has excellent sound quality, both microphone and speakers. The test calls from the retail store were successful, and the person I called reported no issues. The iPhone's loudspeaker isn't that impressive, as it's not true stereo, nor is it incredibly loud. But it is a leap ahead from the earlier iPods that had no way of playing music except by the teeny pez inside.

Texting is another story, however. The interface is obviously designed with three-year-old children in mind as a primary userbase. Functionality gives way to pretty chat bubbles, lacking any real options such as timestamps, forwarding, etc. Yes, I'm aware of the timestamp issue. You get one timestamp every 30 minutes or something rediculous, but for an anal geek like myself, I like too much information over not enough.* The text input option is also lackluster, giving you a full keyboard (with special characters and accents!) but refusing any form of copy/paste utility. Typing is difficult at first, however the corrective typing technology used is easy to get used to. My biggest gripe about the on-screen keyboard is the fact that very few applications support landscape orientation while typing; something I would like to see incorperated into more apps.

MMS Text messages aren't supported natively, however AT&T is generous enough to provide a (poor) substitution to this. If you receive an MMS text, AT&T puts whatever the item is on a website and texts you a link containing a username/password to access it. While good in theory, the actual practice is very poorly designed, having multiple issues (the most significant being Safari on the iPhone doesn't like to access the page nicely). To send an MMS, you're left with email...and that's it. Unless you know the recipient's email-to-phone address, you're stuck emailing it to their email address. Really inconvenient.

The touchscreen is bright, vibrant, and responsive. I did get a screen protector, however, mainly because I had a bad experience with a gouge in my old iPod Touch a while back. Casual users shouldn't notice much, since it's actual glass instead of cheap plastic used on most phones. Even still, I would highly recommend a screen protector for it. Optical glass is nice and all, but having a scratch-free phone has always been my priority.

Network coverage is hit and miss, just like any other phone. I'd say that overall, however, it's above average compared to the phones of old. I can go anywhere in my house and have over half 3G coverage, but when I lay in bed I drop down to one bar of EDGE coverage. My parent's house is even worse; nowhere inside do I get any 3G coverage, but I can step out on the front porch and get full 3G signal. Not that big of an issue since when at home I use a WiFi network. Some apps that use the network constantly can be an issue, such as AIM and Simplify Media. Both require the phone be on and not in sleep mode, which is a huge drain on battery life. Pressing the home button essentially kills those apps, since Apple refuses to let third party apps run backgrounded. Which makes sense, given the limited power resources on the iPhone.

Bluetooth functionality is mediocre, as usual. Using a Motorola H670, H500, and Apple's iPhone Headset, I felt like a crappy soft rock radio station trying to broadcast amidst the seas of death metal, rap, and j-pop. You can hear what they're saying but it's definitely not clear. My first thought on that is the incredible amount of radio transmissions that the iPhone must process; 3G, EDGE, WiFi, Bluetooth...and all the crap that's probably going on inside the plastic shell. You know, various RF sources that cause interference. This is about par for the course, however, even on my Motorola Q9c and V3xx.

Battery life isn't the best, but it's good enough for me. While typically I can get through my day without troubles, I'm also considered a "casual user". Music playback doesn't seem to drain much at all; I can listen to music while at work for over nine hours without a problem. The biggest issue are apps that maintain a network link while keeping the screen on, such as AIM. After only an hour using it I can see the battery meter creep towards the empty mark. Typical usage, however, isn't an issue, as I can play games, listen to music, make a few calls, and surf the internet for a decent length of time before I need to hit the charger. Compare this with my Razr V3xx or even my Motorola Q9c, where I could go days without needing to find juice, and you can see my point. Actual call time is probably around five hours, though the longest I've gone is probably two hours with plenty of juice left.
If you use the iPhone for anything other than "casual" use, I would recommend you stay close to a power source. I would like to see Apple offering extended battery packs of some kind, like third parties have done already, except incorperate it into the phone. Sleek isn't always practical.

What sold me was the internet functionality. Safari on the iPhone puts every other phone's browser to absolute shame. The intuitive touchscreen interface meshes seamlessly with the internet, to the point where I wish more portable devices used the stuff. A stylus/fingernail isn't always handy...
Before I downloaded the 2.1 update, Safari crashed like a drunk Nascar driver. Since 2.1, things have improved steadily, to the point where the 2.2 patch significantly improves stability. Biggest gripe? No flash. Nope. Nowhere. Can't have flash.

The mail application is again useful, sporting a direct IMAP connection to popular services or allowing you to POP3 your own mail from home. Basic file attachment is supported as well, namely images. The mail function is a very nicely done addition to the iPhone's arsenal of mobile communications. Again, better than some other phones I've used.

GPS functionality is pretty impressive. I noted an average inaccuracy of about +/- 5 feet, which is better than some. Acquisition is sped along by using cell towers to guesstimate your position while the GPS transponder gets its readings from the sattelites. Average aquisition time is about ten seconds or less. Turn by turn isn't available...yet, but then again, I'd rather use a vehicle GPS for that anyway. Using the GPS is a huge drain on battery life, however, so be warned.

The camera makes me cry. I think I could make a pin hole camera that takes better pictures, and quicker pictures, than this thing. If you want to get a quick shot of whatever, might want to get a SLR. I'm pretty sure I could unpack it from a case, snap on a lens, manually focus it, then taking the film to get developed in the same time I could get a clear shot using the iPhone's camera. I don't know what Apple was/wasn't thinking when they added this disgrace to the iPhone 3G, but I can guess it wasn't much. Have I bashed this camera enough? I think so. Just typing about it brings dishonor to my family.

Pretty much every accessory I've tried to use with my iPhone 3G has prompted me the error, "This accessory was not designed for use with the iPhone 3G." However, most of the time it's not a problem. For example, I had a Monster iCarPlay FM transmitter that worked just fine with every iPod I've owned, including the 3G, however it will not charge the 3G. To avoid buying the outrageously expensive replacement, I bought a cheap Griffin iTrip that charges the iPhone just fine. Bonus, the iTrip does not interfere with my case. To add on this, using my iPhone on road trips for music is extra nice. I used to miss phone calls because I couldn't hear the ring over open windows and blaring music. That is no longer the issue since I use my iPhone for music; now, when I get a call, the music fades out and the ringtone happily blares through my car's speakers. No more missed calls on the road.

The App Store is a playland of third party applications, most cost under $3.00 USD. Some are free, but as with anything that's free, you get what you pay for. iTunes syncing leaves a little to be desired, as many times my iPhone won't recognize that I downloaded an update to an app via iTunes or vice-versa. Of course, this adds cost factor to a phone you just paid over $200USD for...but then again, if you have enough money for that, you shouldn't be worried about $0.99 here and there...but for a few bucks, you turn your phone into a true mobile computer. For instance, using my phone, I could edit this website from anywhere that has cell coverage, or reboot my computer at home, or stream music from any computer in the world...all on my itty bitty phone. By the way, those apps are free. How about that!
The bundled YouTube app is nice, though. I can't count how many episodes of Bill Nye the Science Guy I've watched on my phone. Thankfully, the plans all have unlimited data. Whew.

Overall, it's a nice toy. But it is just a toy. You could probably spend your $200 elsewhere and get by just fine...but then again, the iPhone 3G is an awfully nice toy...

If you're thinking of buying one, however, I strongly recommend you stay away from the AT&T store. You simply don't get the full experience of an Apple Retail store, and I got a lot of nasty looks when I tried to place test calls and texts at the AT&T store. Your mileage may vary, but the folks at Apple just about commited murder at my command. Why yes, Rick, I think I will have some champagne with my iPhone today.

*I am the kind of person who chooses to display a status bar on every window, full email headers, and constantly checks fan speed, temperature, and process activity on my computer. Too much is better than not enough, any given day.