Might as well talk about the iPhone too

Since there’s not getting around the fact that all the talk in the coming days/weeks/months will be all about the iPhone, might as well put in my 2 cents on the matter based on what I’ve read in the internet.

Here’s a press release from Apple

iPhone will feature up to 8 hours of talk time, 6 hours of Internet use, 7 hours of video playback or 24 hours of audio playback.* In addition, iPhone will feature up to 250 hours—more than 10 days—of standby time. Apple also announced that the entire top surface of iPhone, including its stunning 3.5-inch display, has been upgraded from plastic to optical-quality glass to achieve a superior level of scratch resistance and optical clarity.

If this is true, then damn, that’s awesome! The use of glass is a brilliant idea – I just hope it doesn’t make the phone fragile and less resilient to [unwanted] physical impact.

As amazing as these specs sound, there are also some other “feature concerns” the iPhone reportedly has. I’m not sure as to the accuracy of the data on the list below, as it was posted from a Windows Mobile-centric forum. But assuming they are true and not just an attempt at sour-graping, here are my thoughts on the matter.

• The mobile version of OS X (or whatever it is the iPhone runs on) takes up 700MB Insignificant. You’re dealing with GIGs of memory, my Atom life only has 1GB built-in storage and it costs much more than the iPhone. I’d say the iPhone to date, has the largest capacity storage drive regardless of the size of the OS. So this argument doesn’t hold any water.

• There’s no way to cut, copy, or paste text! Now this is disconcerting. I use these functions in the phone all the time. Just imagine having to relay some information or the simple task of entering serial numbers.

• No A2DP support. Worrying for bluetooth headset users. I myself do not intend to use the apple headset if ever I get an iPhone; just like I never used the stock iPod earbuds. But as far as the actual purpose of A2DP goes, I never used my phone as a music device nor do I really want to (unless the battery life can be guaranteed) – so those types of multi-tasking functions the stack manages isn’t that appealing to me.

• Music cannot be used as a ringtone Not an issue. I’m sure some chap out there would release an “Apple Ringtone” converter at some point.

• On a PC, the iPhone syncs with Outlook for calendars AND addresses Cool! This is actually the type of forward thinking I’ve come to expect from Apple; unlike Windows Mobile devices, which need 3rd party syncing tools.

• It supports Exchange ‘in some capacity’ Never used exchange, and in the advent of email services being everywhere, I really don’t see why people find this feature a necessity.

• Document file reading — but not editing — for PDF, Word, and Excel (only). Not the end of the world. I remember the Palm also accesses these types of documents as read-only; never really bothered me.

• Adobe Flash support is officially out. It’s just not in the browser. Wierd. Don’t know if this is that big a deal though. Not like I like viewing rich media on a small screen.

• No kind of embedded video support. I’m not exactly sure what they mean by this. Isn’t it an iPhone VIDEO as well? So there is video support. Or do they mean support for the other video codec formats (DivX, etc.); in that case, it is kinda disappointing. But we don’t hear people complaining about the iPod Video not having such support as well now do we?

• It will take snaps, but won’t record video. Such a waste of video and storage power. From a company that gave us the iSight webcams, I really expected this to be an easy feature to implement.

• Oh, and no MMS. Personally, I don’t MMS that much (just costs too much in our part of the woods). But I must say that this has already been one of the basic, standard, and actual useful features many phones have; so the lack of this is certainly disappointing.

• No voice dialing, either. While it isn’t the end of the world, I’d consider it a disappointment as well just like the lack of MMS.

• Contact groups can’t be emailed as contact lists. I guess this is a legitimate concern for mobile emailers. I personally don’t really care.

• Apple says between 300-400 charges the iPhone will lose battery capacity — you’ll send it in and get the cell replaced for a fee. It’s worth mentioning that this is one of the major reasons why I’m hesitant on getting an iPhone, because the battery cannot be switched/replaced without having to send the unit back for servicing. It’s a friggin’ phone for chrissake! Normally, people need to have such a device with them at all times. I’d rather have the option to purchase an extra battery and swap it when needed, than to have to relinquish the phone for any battery problems.

• Apple will be rolling out periodic updates This is very good. Apple has always been great at taking care of their customers on the OS front (none of that M$ Genuine Advantage bullcrap)

• Voice quality is said to be good — not great. People nowadays are extremely picky. In my honest opinion, a voice call’s resolution is already plenty good. While audio fidelity will always be a bonus, as long as you can understand what the other person’s saying on the line, I don’t think this is worth getting bent out of shape over.