I bought an IPhone about two weeks ago and overall I have loved it. I converted from a Razor and so it has been a big step for me. I love having the Internet and email at my finger tips. And, the functionality of the phone is great as well. Below is a list of the good and not so good things about the IPhone that may help you when making a decision to buy:
Good
- Touch Screen - I love this feature tremendously. The phone is very intuitive in this manner.
- Safari browser - this Internet browser from Apple is superb. The graphics are excellent. The tilt screen feature also allows for different viewing angles of the internet.
- Wi-Fi- the new Iphones come equipped with the ability to connect to Wi-Fi if it is not a secure network. Wi-Fi gives you a great amount of speed to browse the net. In addition the phone can also connect to 3G (slightly slower than Wi-Fi) and as a last resort there is the Edge network, which is mind numbingly slow but is better than nothing.
- Tons of Free Apps - Once you have established an ITunes account, you are able to download both free and for sale applications to your phone. As an example, I went to church last Sunday but forgot my Bible. I picked up a Wi-Fi connection and downloaded a free Bible application to my phone. The app allowed me to look up any book and scripture in the Bible with ease.
- Acts as an IPod - no need to carry your phone or an IPod/MP3 player. The IPhone plays your music and comes with a set of head phones.
- GPS - The IPhone comes with a built in GPS system. It can locate where you are and also give you directions to where you need to go. The downside is that this will only work if you have an internet connection. So if you are out if the middle of nowhere you might have problems with the GPS.
Not So Good
- Battery Life - because there are so many things you can do with the phone, the battery can drain rather quickly compared to most other phones. But, you can adjust the settings so that the phone goes into sleep mode every 1 minute which will increase you battery life. Also, when the time comes to replace the battery, you will have to send it in to Apple to have it replaced.
- Camera - I used the camera at a party my daughter went to and it is sub-par at best. Any sort of movement of whatever or whoever is being photographed causes a blur in the picture.
- Touch Screen Keypad - this takes some getting use to. When I first starting using the phone my fingers would miss type most of the words. The keys are a little small but I have since gotten use to it. But, I still have to be very conscious when typing so as not to have a typo.
If you have a home anywhere in the Charleston Metro Area and would like to get more information about selling your home, please contact me for a free home evaluation.
I also work with buyers. If you are interested in more information about buying a home please contact me and I would be glad to meet with you or email you a list of homes.
Michael J. Johnson, Realtor, ABR
843-817-5299
michaeljohnson@carolinaone.com
"Providing the Light to Guide You Home"
I also love my I-phone and actually can download MLS listings and access my own website from my I-phone. I also love the fact that I can see the numbers of people who called and left messages - I can pick and choose which messages to listen to first without having to listen to them all in chronological order.
One BIG drawback - especially for a realtor who is on the road and uses a bluetooth headset is that the I-Phone does not do voice dial or voice activation. From what I have learned, this is not one of Stephen Job's priorities for the IPhone.
I really enjoy voice search in google. It comes in handy for general info.
Download the new mobile Google app for free. It has voice recognition as well as virtual keyboard input.
Martin - I wish there was blue tooth as well but I make do with the speaker phone. But you can get the Say Who application and also the goole voice search as David mentioned.
David & Richard - Your right. I like the google app. as well.
I have a bluetooth earpiece....and I guess I haven't yet figured out how to make it automatic to answer using my bluetooth without having to go through the steps of sliding to answer, and choosing how to answer.
I haven't yet used the google search voice activation --- but I thought it was only intended for normal search (but not our own contact list). Isn't it?
Great review. I have a few things to add.
1 - you can also connect to secured Wi-fi networks, as long as you have that network's passkey of course.
2 - if you download the 'Say Who' app, you can dial anyone in your phone's contacts via voice.
3 - battery life being good or bad is based on your past experience. My last phone was a WM6 OS and the battery life of the iPhone beats that phone hands down. With normal use, my WM6 phone wouldn't last longer than 4 hours... my iPhone, with HEAVY use, lasts more than 1 full day.
4 - The camera, I agree, does have to be held steady to eliminate the blur effect, but the quality of the pictures is stellar!
5 - The keyboard does take a little getting used to, but it's intuitive manner corrects almost all mis-spellings. Just a learning-curve issue here, IMO.
Thanks again for the review. I always enjoy reading others' opinions of the iPhone.
Pacita - Get the 'Say Who' application. You can then speak your contact's name and it will dial it for you.
Couple of other good apps: I love the UrbanSpoon. Great way to find a restaurant if you're not familiar with the area. I also love Dual Level. They're both free so try them out.
Lisa --- thanks. I actually had selected that application, but dummy me, didn't activate it. I have been practicing the voice call and it's working! yey!
So much to learn about this phone -- -but then again, I faced the same challenge with the first TREO I bought. I will eventually get there.
Lisa - I like Say Who but it is not always reliable. Thanks for the tip on Urban Spoon. Its pretty cool.
THanks for the tip on SayWho. I downloaded it. What I think I need to do is enter new addresses on my contact list for a list of frequently called numbers like:
"Home"
"Office"
"Parents"
"Sister"
"Brother"
Etc. That way, I won't have to look to see which number SayWho will call --- the home, cell, or work number of the person I want to call.
I just got my 3G iPhone and I love it. I also connect it to my WPA encrypted Wifi access point at home with no problems. The only real complaint that I have is that there is no cut and paste. I have been able to work around it in many cases but it would still be a nice feature to have.
I am a huge fan and major supporter of the iPhone.
All That you think it cannot do... it does.
I have full MMS, Upgraded Camera and much much more on the 3G
Hey Jeff, I'd love to read more about the upgrades you've made to your phone. Do plan on writing a post on these topics? And if so, could you please be sure to post them to the iPhone Power Group? Thanks!
I will send you the details. By far the most impressive, diverse and intense phone on the market!
Can you tell I hate it.
This is a photo of my "Lock Screen" you will notice that I have a full calendar and weather I can access without opening my phone.
Here are some apps and will will notice that I have 5 ICONS at the base instead of the 4 it comes with. Plus it also has iRealSMS which has a full landscape keyboard, mms and tasks.
On this page I have an upgraded camera feature that is awesome and a great video recorder that I can instantly upload to my youtube account.
This last page you will see that it has folders in which I can put several different apps in. Basically a fileing system.
Jeff - did you 'jailbreak' your iphone?
Hey Jeff
thanks for commenting. How did you upgrade your camera and how did you get a video recorder on your iphone?
Great post - great comments! . ..I'm a new Mac user and it's all because of the iPhone. ..I learned some new stuff through the comment conversations we got going on here; thanks everyone!
-PPI
Hi....really cool stuff. Maybe you should create a new post for every new tip/trick you want to share...that way, we won't have to wade through the comments to find the latest one.
Thanks for sharing.
OK No problem. I very new to the system so I will try to figure this out. lol I will try and create a new entry.
Thank You All!
Thanks, Jeff... I'll be looking for your great iphonetastic tips.
I am still a BlackBerry fan myself. Just got my 2nd one after two years with one of their first models. Love it.
I have alltel's version, the HTC 6900 Touch Phone. I love it. It has all the functions of a PDA, MP3, camera, and you can talk on it. Unfortunately it doesn't have a slide out keyboard, the new Touch Diamond does, so texting is slow and painful sometimes. These phones are the future for sure. Before you know it, you'll see third graders walking to school with them in hand.
Hello Michael, I love my iPhone. I take pictures and do so many things with it. I haven't upgraded to the 3-g yet.
The iphone has changed my life... it has freed time that I would have spent in front of a computer and converted it to allowing me to work in bits and pieces no matter where I am... so I don't have a backlog of email or any type of work waiting for me. My wife sometimes teases me about being on it so often, but she appreciates that I can spend more time with the family!
Hi Michael,
Do you know if the Iphone can be used as a Supra Key like the Treo? I need to upgrade and this is one of my deciding factors, I love all the other features, but not sure if it can interact with the Supra Lockbox System.
Thanks
Leslyn
Leslyn, I can answer that for you. The iPhone does not have an IR port, therefore, no capability to operate the supra lockboxes. However, as a former Treo user who bought it just for that one feature, I can tell you that what you will gain in the iPhone will FAR OUTWEIGH the inability to work with the Supra system. Just read the comments about, such as Brian Worrell's, who mentioned how much time the iPhone has freed up, allowing him to have a life outside of his office. Take it from someone who's been there, the Supra functionality IS NOT all it's cracked up to be, and isn't nearly as valuable as the multitude of invaluable tools you'll find on the iPhone. Just my (experienced) opinion, for what it's worth :)
Thanks Ryan, You totally nailed it, with the direct explaination I was looking for. My husband owns an Iphone, (don't ever let him know) but I love it's features and I can understand about the freed up time. So KUDOS my friend, I'm now officially sold on the Iphone.
Being such an Iphone enthusist, is there any truth to the rumor that an upgraded version of the Iphone is pending for April, hence the reason for the dramatic price drop?
Thanks Again
Leslyn, I've heard those rumors as well, but at this point (to my knowledge) they're just that... rumors. I can't make a prediction on it, but it definitely sounds like there are some changes (upgrades) coming sometime in the near future. I know I've got a few hopes, or a wishlist, of features on the next version, but I'm not ready to pay for another one yet, so I'm in no hurry to see the new one hit the market yet. I know myself well enough to realize that if a new one hits the market, I'm in trouble, because I won't be able to hold myself back :)
Michael,
Great post. I found the Avery Bible with all the versions priceless. Paul Avery has really done a great job with his free iphone Bible app.
Steve
Thanks for the post. I am researching Blackberry vs. I-Phone.