Apple iPhone 2G
Dubbed as the phone you’ve all been waiting for. Just how worth the wait is the iPhone? Unless you’ve been living under a rock for some years then you’re bound to have heard about Apples mobile and the hype it’s caused. Well I’ll admit I was one of those who just shrugged it off and took as just that, hype.
On paper the iPhone seems like a poor excuse for a modern day handset. It all seems a little outdated. That’s until you pick one of these bad boys up and take it for a ride. It’s at that point your jaw drops and you realise this is how the mobile experience was meant to be.
I’m not saying it’s perfect, in fact the iPhone is far from it but it’s a brilliant experience.
Construction and Build:
The iPhone is a solid piece of kit. The aluminium back feels sturdy enough and the scratch resistant screen is a lovely finish. I feel comfortable in saying that this really could take more than a few bashes and come out intact.
Not only is it a sturdy phone but it also looks the part. It’s one of those phones you take out of your pocket and people think “wow”. Of course it’s a little large but you get used to it.
What does get annoying however is the 3.5mm jack is recessed making it very hard to find headphones that fit the iPhone unless you use an adaptor. This really is a pain and seems unnecessary. The only purpose it serves is helping Apple get a little more money from their customers. I’ll forgive them…this time.
UI and OS:
This is where the iPhone really shows off. Normally when you pick up a smartphone alarm bells start ringing and a terrible panic will take control of you as you realise you are well and truly lost and have no idea where to go to even make a call. With the iPhone this couldn’t be any further from the truth.
I honestly believe that anyone, no matter how useless when it comes to mobile phones will be able to pick this up and do pretty much all of the basics, even some of the more “complicated’ things are made simple. I remember back when email was a nightmare to set up. This is no longer the case, all you do is tap mail, put in your address and password and in most cases you’re set up and ready to go!
Threaded text is perfect for those who keep an active social life. The text messages display like a social network chat room allowing for a more fluid texting experience.
The browser really is something to behold. This is by far the best mobile internet experience you will have on a mobile phone. The pinch, flick and drag techniques are innovative and really allow for a brilliant user experience. It’s very hard to describe how good the browser is. Until you go and play with one of these you won’t understand. Only thing missing is Flash player!
These are just a couple of the things that make the iPhone’s software brilliant with a whole list left. It’s not all great though. As I mentioned right at the start there are a fair few issues. The lack of any real Bluetooth functionality seems like a waste and no MMS? Well that’s just stupid! Of course it’s just like Apple to build something amazing but then restrict it. We’ve come to expect this from them. It’s worth suffering these restrictions however for an amazing OS.
Camera:
Here’s where the iPhone really falls short of fantastic. There is only a 2 mega pixel camera on board. Granted it performs surprisingly well but it’s an absolute waste. It’s obvious this will be a deal breaker for so many people out there.
Not only is the camera below average but it lacks any settings. There’s no auto focus or flash and no video record. It’s a real shame.
Conclusion:
If you’re willing to let yourself get tied into a contract with one of the network exclusives and pay the premium up front then you will not be disappointed. This is the ultimate phone experience.
There are a number of shortcomings but you wont even notice these once you weigh the benefits up against them.
The only way this could not be the phone for you is if you’re after a super camera phone. If you’re not bothered then go out and buy a digital camera and invest in the iPhone. At least go to your local store and have a play. You can’t fully understand how good it is until you’ve played with one yourself!
Advantages:
- Stylish design
- Scratch-proof front glass cover
- Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
- 3.5" 16M color TFT display with a resolution of 480 x 320 pixels
- Handset orientation sensor and proximity sensor
- 2 megapixel camera
- Touch-based user interface
- Great UI graphics and animations
- Supreme web surfing experience
Disadvantages:
- Camera has no auto focus or settings
- No GPS
- No video recording
- Below Average Battery
- No custom ringtones allowed
- Safari browser doesn't support Flash and Java
- Really basic Bluetooth capabilities
- No Office documents editor
- No third party applications
- No 3G support