iHustle.TV: Review – Apple iPhone 3G
I’ll be straight with you. I wasn’t at all fazed by the hype of the first iPhone, however all of this changed when I spotted a bargain and bought me a black Apple iPhone 3G. Compared to the old, the new features it come’s packed with are 3G, GPS and the ability to run 3rd party apps. To be fair, Nokia and Sony Ericsson had set this trend years ago thanks to the Symbian OS.
Familiar Face
From the front, the iPhone remains unchanged. However the back panel has been redesigned from shiny plastic which complements a new curvier look. The iPhone 3G still uses the same solid-state memory which is available in both 8GB and 16GB. The 16GB iPhone gives buyers the choice of a black or white back panel.
Don’t be alarmed when I say ‘shiny plastic’. As with all Apple products, it feels solid and classy, and according to many polls on the web, most owners prefer the ‘plastic’ to the old matt silver metal finish. The newer iPhone is not thinner than the previous, however the curved back makes it feel much so.
The designers done a good job of getting rid of the recessed headphone socket and replacing it with a more integrated one.
Impressive GPS
I’ve never felt the need for GPS as I happen to be the son of a human A-Z, however it fills me with confidence knowing that it is there if I need it. Anyway the inclusion of GPS doesn’t mean any silly looking external aerials, it locks onto satellites with speed, taking between 30-45 seconds to connect from ‘cold’.
GPS together with the Google Maps application makes an outstanding combination. A little blue marker appears on a Google map pinpointing your exact location. It uses A-GPS technology which basically means that the network provider assists in maintaining a good fix in areas of built up network coverage. Signal dropped a few times in the mean alleyways of London town, but returned to normal when out in the wider streets again (which, to be fair, aren’t a great deal wider than London’s back streets).
Now, to the main headline: 3G, or as some would like to refer to it as, 3.5G as the iPhone also has support for O2′s HSDPA network too. Unsurprisingly, the iPhone does not disappoint. Download speeds are substantially improved over those in the previous EDGE only handset.
The peeps over at Stuff.TV raced the iPhone 3G against a Nokia N-Series mobile running on Vodafone’s HSDPA network, and Apple’s latest gadget was first every time. We are unsure whether this is down to the network, or Safari’s superior rendering, however the benefit is, your web pages and videos will download faster.
Surprisingly, the boys at Apple have not left any stone unturned when it comes to connectivity. The Wi-Fi has also been improved greatly. I am now able to get full wireless signal anywhere in my house as opposed to my laptop which only has one bar when being used in the living room.
Music and video playback are excellent. A Wi-Fi connection would be best for larger clips as you won’t violate your network provider’s data usage policy.
Well Juiced
Apple’s claim of five hours of phone action, seven hours of video, and 24hours of audio is not far off at all. With all figures aside, the iPhone passed the real life test. From the first text message in the morning, to showing off my apps all day at work, to playing music on my car stereo via Bluetooth, to ending the day with a call to the wifey, it still had battery power left at the end of the day.
The Downsides
Compared to most cameras on the mobile market these days, the iPhone 3G’s 2megapixel with no flash or auto focus is rather poor, however the camera software redeems itself by adjusting for low light beautifully. However I would still prefer to have zoom and a flash as it’s what I’m used to after switching from a Sony Ericsson P990i.
The on-screen keyboard is tricky, and will only get trickier with the current rate of obesity in the country as users fingers will soon be too fat to press one key at a time. The predictive text has also proved to be rather annoying as it ‘drops’ unwanted corrections when not needed at all.
Also, because Apple aims its products at Americans, it does not support MMS (that is correct). So for husbands who want to receive saucy picture messages from their mistresses whilst at work, this is not the phone for you.
This week, Apple released the ‘White’ iPhone 3G. In my eyes it is the biggest anti-climax ever. If you are like me, when someone says to you, a “White iPhone”, you would expect it to be ALL white. However when a colleague of mine came into the office bragging about his latest investment, I couldn’t help but notice that it looked exactly the same as my black iPhone, until he flipped it over. What is the point?
But we’ve saved the best for last: the price. At the very most, you’ll pay £160 for a 16GB iPhone with the cheapest contract. More than most high-end mobiles, yes, but worth it for the entertainment, connectivity, productivity and the ratings from your peers that the iPhone will give you.
