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“I get so annoyed by reviews from people who clearly do...”

written by Jamie2176 on 05/08/2008

Good Points
Screen resolution
Touch screen interface
Automatic wi fi detection
Web browsing
iPod sound quality and music browsing functionality
Third party apps - huge range and many are free
iTunes and Apps on the fly - you can use the phone to find out what song is playing on the radio then download it from iTunes, direct from the phone
Email - as close to PC based as you can get on a mobile
Texting
GPS and maps
Design and weight - v light given how much is in there

Bad Points
Battery life - ok if you only talk and text but video and GPS soon eat up up power
Icons - you can't customise the desktop
Keypad - does take getting used to - if they could make this available in landscape for text and email (as they do for web) it would enable two thumb use on bigger keys, but it's not that bad once you get used to it
No stereo bluetooth

General Comments
I get so annoyed by reviews from people who clearly do not have this phone or have even tried using it properly - a few minutes playing with it in store is not enough to appreciate how superb this phone really is.

I'm a recent convert having used Sony Ericsson and Nokia for over 10 years. My last phone was the SE W960i, which I thought was the best phone I'd ever had so far. The iPhone 3G makes that seem like a brick. The key is not so much the range of functionality but more the way it works. The touch screen interface is seamless, intuitive and a joy to use. Apple have developed this from a user's perspective, everything links beautifully and seems to be in just the right place and works so smoothly. The screen resolution is far superior to anything else out there and produces TV video quality. Surfing online is near to PC quality - real web pages in real time with the ability to view portrait or landscape. Text messaging is unique with messages to sender grouped so you can follow the conversation. Visual voicemail is like having an advanced digital answerphone, you can select what you want to hear rather than have to listen to everything.

The phone is also a great business tool. For years I've been looking for something i can work on and take down the gym to listen to music as well as make calls from. The Blackberry's are ok but their music players are not good. The SEW960i was the closest thing I'd found so far, good Walkman player etc, but the iPhone has far superior email and calendar functions that sync seamlessly with your PC via iTunes - when you first sync it even copies and installs your POP email settings.

The iPod has excellent sound quality, better than my old Walkman phone which was ok, and the music storage and management just blows the old phone out of the water. There is no stereo bluetooth though, which is a shame but no iPod yet has this function so it's not a surprise and it's probably due in the next version.

Ok the camera is only 2mp but the lens quality is much higher than other phones so the picture quality is much better than standard 2mp - I find the pics are just as good as my Sony 3.2mp. There is no video, but personally I think I've only ever used this a handful of times since I've had video enabled phones so I don't miss it.

The GPS facility is great, it pinpoints where you are and you can find a location and plot a route to get there. There are no spoken instructions - a la Tom Tom but I suspect this is just a matter of time for a third party app to enable it - but the effect is like having an advanced A-Z in your pocket and that's fine by me.

There is lots more to praise on this device and these far outweigh the minor niggles listed above. Apple have in my view created the next generation phone (unique and breaking new ground as opposed to repackaging an old format) it feels like mobile devices have finally moved on to the next stage and now the challenge is for the other manufacturers to catch up.

I would thoroughly recommend you try this phone for yourself and I'm confident you'll love it as much as I do. I know the tie to o2 is what makes many people on other networks so anti it but nowadays you can easily get it unlocked.