drew888

So which members here bought the iphone and are you impressed with it so far? Is it what you expected or are you disappointed? Did they over hype it or was it waranted? Chat about your iphones.

alkoller

Here's my first impression, for whatever it's worth. I ran Apple and Windows for more than 20 years, was a Blackberry user, and try hard to stay current on new technology. The iPhone isn't perfect, but it's about as good as you are going to find in today's technology. Try it out yourself; don't take the word of others or go on what your read or hear. Until you TOUCH IT, you won't really understand how great it is.

I've posted this twice, so this will be my last one here. As I learn more, I'll add new information. Fun!
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My daughter bought me an iPhone for my retirement on Saturday. We were very lucky; got the last two sold in our area. We had decided going over that we would watch the demonstrations carefully, ask lots of questions, have lunch, and go home to think about it and watch the blogs for a couple of weeks or so.

Well, that lasted about 20 minutes. Even though we had read everything available, watched the Apple movies, visited the AT&T site, gone to Think Secret to see the postings and thought we knew how it would work, seeing and TOUCHING is an entirely new experience. I tried EVERY ONE of the 16 icons and did setup on my home email (Google mail) in about one minute. I'm an experienced Blackberry user (three years, constant use) and can tell you that none of my Blackberry phones come anywhere near the functionality of the iPhone.

During our one-on-one personal demonstration (we had made an appointment, since it's an hour's drive for us) we were approached by a member of the sales staff and told there were two 8 gig phones in the store although the signs were up saying "No iPhones today". We bought them on the spot and were delighted to have that special opportunity. Since then, there's been no looking back.

We returned home, logged into our iTunes, and immediately activated our phones through AT&T. It took me about four minutes from start to finish, even reading the contracts (skimmed, since I had been with Cingular for 10 years in the past). My daughter's phone would not unlock, and she eventually called Apple support and was up and running in ten minutes. Mine unlocked immediately and I've been smiling ever since.

I won't take time here to describe all the features you see on the screens, but I will touch on three key points I worried about.

First, the network is supposed to be slow, and perhaps it is for some uses. So far for everything I have tried, including using Safari WHEN MY HOME INTERNET CONNECTION WENT DOWN the same night I bought the phone, the AT&T functionality has been much better than I thought and is not a problem anywhere I have been in our locale.

Second, the touch screen makes it easy to do things on the phone that are much more difficult on the computer, including email and contacts. LOOK OUT PCs everywhere -- this is a glimpse of what the future of computing is going to be, and much sooner than anyone believes.

Third, having all that capability right out of the box and knowing what is already going on in third party actions world-wide, I can hardly wait to see what will be added to the widgets and other areas for use by iPhone customers. Apple and AT&T have both hit home runs on this one, and I'd recommend it to anyone who can afford it. By the way, the monthly contract by AT&T is about $20 cheaper than similar costs for Blackberry, and there are no comparisons for things like Google maps (which also turn into satellite imagery in seconds if you want to see photos of you neighborhood from space!).

I only wish I were younger and could be around longer to see all the wonderful things this technology is going to spawn. What a great technology. If you haven't been to a store to see and touch one on your own, GO NOW. Even if you can't afford to buy one, get in on the developments and be a part of the great wave of change that will accompany this invention. Kudos to Steve Jobs, all the Apple associates, and the great folks at AT&T. And thanks, Terri, for making my first days of retirement ones I will remember forever.

drew888

Very nice customer review and thanks for taking the time to post it. I'm glad you've been able to say it was worth the purchase and are excited about having it. The iphone is some great technology and I'm sure they are already thinking of what to add to the next version of it.

Oh and very nice daughter you have for buying you one!

sbhatt

I honestly wouldn't buy it, I hear that most government jobs and corporate jobs are forbidding its entrance into its buildings because of the fact that the phone is a security risk. I'm not sure if it's the camera or one of its features that is responsible for the problem but it seems to be a big deal.

MaxPower

Damn U know it must be REALLY good if the Gov. wants to ban it, that makes me want one even more

sbhatt

Well I hear that it has a crap load of problems to go along with it. I don't know if anyone has seen those ads where they make fun of it, it's pretty damn hilarious.

alkoller

I saw this same note filed in other forums. Whose "facts" are we citing here folks? Do you have a phone? Have you been told not to bring it to work? If not, then this is just another ugly rumor that doesn't belong here. However, if it's true, then name a company or government agency, and be sure to note why so we can decide if all the other phones that have the same kind of technology -- camera or whatever -- albeit not as neat, would be in the same boat. I doubt it very much.

TheMilkyWay

Overall I think it is fantastic. I've had a way several cell phones/smartphones in my day and I think this iPhone is worth every penny! It's very initutive and easy to operate, vivid and clear and the battery life is more than I had anticipated. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to anyone who can handle more than just one click. I love it.

randylip

i bought my iphone on saturday, no problem with lines. it took me 18 hours to get activated although i am a longterm cingular customer. apparently problems with my sim card. i am a treo 650 ex customer and yes the iphone is spectacular. i am still getting used to typing on it, but event that is becoming better with each use. i do miss some programs that i had on the treo, such as exel spreadsheets, an id keeper program, and various other express information. i assume programs like these will come out in the near future. but, aside from that the phone is beautiful to work and watch. so far i have put on 400 pictures and at least 300 songs. the quality of the screen is outstanding.
one problem i have encountered is a noise interferance whenever it is near other electronic equipment. the screen and overall email experience is the best part. i can't understand why apple didn't make removal of multiple emails easier. you have to delete each one, unless someone can tell me they found a better way.
anyway, its a beutiful thing

msabinoe

I have very mixed emotions about it. Yeah, it's flat out cool, great iPod, some revolutionary UI. But, I'm migrating from a Treo680 (also AT&T) where I had impeccable phone coverage, only one dead zone in my travels. So far, my iPhone has rather poor coverage and that's with both SMS and phone service. Sometimes it takes two or three attempts to successfully send a text and the phone more than a few times just drops calls or doesn't even connect when dialing.

The jury is still out in my book.
-ME