Apple iPhone 3G Review

Overall Rating

No doubt the Apple iPhone was game changer when it came out. I too was entranced by the hype machine and wanted an iPhone and to be honest, with good reasons......in places.

I say "in places" mainly because there are some major things that bring the iPhone down in my opinion, but first lets cover the good.

Good things:

1) It's a beautifully crafted device
2) The screen is fantastic
3) The touch interface is the best out there
4) The ease at which you can buy/download applications is dangerous, but in a good way.
5) The web browsing on it is fantastic
6) The integration of iPod, phone, camera and entertainment device is great, you only need one device in your pocket.

The Bad:

1) Battery life
2) Battery life
3) Battery life.....it truly is shocking. It's all well and good having an iPod/phone/entertainment device all in one, but if you're listening to music while browsing the web or sending emails, then it absolutely canes the battery life. I have to charge my phone every day and if i know there's going to be a time where it'll be in heavy usage, i have to put it on an additional charge especially.
4) It's not able to run different applications in the background. So for instance, you can't pause a game, reply to a text, then come back to the game.....it has to close.
5)It randomly drops calls, or doesn't even ring sometimes, this could be due to the carrier or the device....i don't know.
6) You're not able to take out the battery and change it for one with a better hold of charge - not a major problem, but the battery DOES suck *that* much!
7) The camera is rubbish. Seriously. 2MP. No flash. No zoom (you can download an app to be able to zoom, but to be honest, you shouldn't have to. Yes the 3GS has 3MP camera, but even this is waaaay behind what consumers expect from their phone. How much of a problem would it be to whack in a 5MP camera with a flash?
8) I often have problems with data connection etc again not sure if this is a MNO (Mobile Network Operator) problem or handset problem. Usually sorted by refreshing what i was trying to do....still shouldn't have to do this though.

Just felt like i should vent a little bit, due to my iPhone running out of battery again. Don't get me wrong, it's a beautiful device and the user interface is fantastic. The user experience is frustrating at times and if i'm honest can get really annoying!

I truly think that unless Apple bring out a series of handsets offering a little more variety, then it will be a Google world once more and more handset manufacturers get their hands on Android.

Members' Comments onneilrobertson's Review

• jbrwilkinson on 3rd Oct 2009

  I found this review helpful because it covers a lot of the features and clearly some of the problems. Well balanced.