The media blitz for Apple's iPhone 3G is in full swing. In every other story you read, the iPhone is being spun as the apex of technological sophistication. The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today reviews, written by authors handpicked by Steve Jobs to receive early review units, have been predictably glowing and effusive. There are even lines of people waiting outside Apple Stores across the country, shorter than those for the original iPhone, but still far longer than any sane person should wait to buy a phone. (A Nintendo Wii, on the other hand…) Nonetheless, you shouldn't buy one.
For now, I'll give the phone a pass on voice quality since the early reports indicate that it is much-improved. The fact remains, the iPhone 3G simply isn't ideal for most people. I am on record as being a BlackBerry convert, so I'm not without some bias here. Even so, before you spend your hard-earned cash for an iPhone 3G, you should consider each and every one of these facts:
The iPhone 3G is AT&T only. This alone means that two thirds of the country should look elsewhere. Even if you don't like AT&T's service, coverage, or pricing, it's your only option if you have to have an iPhone. There is a persistent belief out there that you'll be able to buy an iPhone 3G and unlock it—after all, you could do it with the original iPhone—but this isn't a realistic solution for most people. Even if you succeed with the unlocking, Apple is determined to brick your phone each time it updates the device's firmware. It simply isn't sustainable. And if you're like me and are tied into a Sprint (or any other non-AT&T contract), you'll have to pay to switch.
The iPhone 3G costs more than $199. That appealing under-$200 price tag is featured prominently in many of Apple's ads, but for most people, it's pleasant fiction. That entry fee is only for new subscribers who sign up for a two-year contract, and even then, there's an additional "upgrade fee"; if you want to get picky, it's really $217. The pricing is fairly complicated, but the bottom line is that a new 16GB model could conceivably cost you as much as $699. See our iPhone pricing story for phone and service specifics. Speaking of more money: This is a high-end smartphone and your monthly bills will reflect that.
The iPhone 3G isn't worth the upgrade. There's no shortage of iPhones already out there. Walk down a New York City street and you'll see them everywhere. I'd go as far as to say that anyone who really wanted an iPhone already has one. The addition of 3G and GPS are great bonuses that come with this iteration, but since existing iPhones can run iPhone 2.0 software and all the new third-party apps too, why upgrade? You'll pay more for an iPhone 3G contract each month, and that original iPhone certainly wasn't cheap.
The iPhone 3G's battery life is going to suck. Unfortunately, I don't know this for sure since Apple didn't give us the head start it gave to David Pogue of The New York Times and author of iPhone: The Missing Manual. Still, this has been a chronic problem for 3G phones of all varieties. And when you add a display that is as large as the iPhone's, power usage will most definitely increase. If you want to use your iPhone as your MP3 player, PDA, e-mail device, and phone, you'll never be able to actually leave the house with it. And, of course, defying all logic and reason, that battery isn't user-replaceable.
The iPhone 3G's storage is limited to 16GB. Right now 8GB and 16GB are your only choices, but I bet we'll see a 32GB version by the end of the year. At 32GB you'll have a device that could truly serve as a full-time iPod replacement, with room to store thousands of MP3s and high-quality video files. Now that might be worth buying—depending on the price.
The iPhone 3G is not a feature leader. The touch screen and interface are impressive achievements, but when it comes to features, the iPhone isn't a leader. What's missing: support for additional flash memory; stereo Bluetooth support; picture messaging; video recording; and the rudimentary ability to cut-and-paste text. Its 2-megapixel camera doesn't even have a flash! In short, there are free phones with better features than the iPhone 3G.
Granted there's more going for the iPhone 3G than just the phone itself. The App Store will make it a genuine smartphone platform, instead of a trumped-up feature phone. And MobileMe could make the device a key part of an increasingly cloud-based computing environment. But right now, despite the incessant buzz, I'm underwhelmed.
The original iPhone was a game changer, and with it Apple permanently altered the mobile-communications landscape. That said, given the drawbacks outlined above, I still can't see why people would rush out to buy an iPhone 3G. If you already own an iPhone, download the upgrade software. Otherwise, ignore the hype, skip the long lines, and enjoy the weekend. That's what I'll be doing.
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