WSJ's Mossberg calls iPhone a 'breakthrough handheld computer'
Despite some flaws and feature omissions, the iPhone is, on balance, a beautiful and breakthrough handheld computer, writes the Wall Street Journal's Walt Mossberg, who on Tuesday published the first official review of the inaugural Apple handset.
In particular, the renowned technology columnist praised the Apple device's software for setting a new bar for the smart-phone industry, noting that its clever finger-touch interface works well, though sometimes adds steps to common functions.
"[iPhone] offers the best Web browser we have seen on a smart phone, and robust email software," he wrote. "It has the largest and highest-resolution screen of any smart phone we've seen, and the most internal memory by far. Yet it is one of the thinnest smart phones available and offers impressive battery life, better than its key competitors claim."
Excerpts and points of particular interest from the review have been compiled below, though readers are encouraged to check out Walt's full review, which was compiled over a two-week period with help from fellow journalist Katie Boehret.
On the upsideThe iPhone's virtual keyboard "turned out in our tests to be a nonissue." After five days of use, Walt "was able to type on it as quickly and accurately as he could on the Palm Treo he has used for years."
iPhone does work overseas, but only via an AT&T roaming plan.
The initial iPhone model cannot be upgraded to use the faster [3G] networks.
When you have access to Wi-Fi, the iPhone flies on the Web. "Not only that, but the iPhone automatically switches from EDGE to known Wi-Fi networks when it finds them, and pops up a list of new Wi-Fi networks it encounters as you move."
iPhone is thinner than the skinny Samsung BlackJack.
While iPhone does pick up smudges, it didn't acquire a single scratch during the two-week period, even though it was tossed into Walt's pocket or briefcase (and Katie's purse) without any protective case or holster. "No scratches appeared on the rest of the body either."
On the downside
"The phone is about as long as the Treo 700, the BlackBerry 8800 or the BlackJack, but it's slightly wider than the BlackJack or Treo, and heavier than the BlackBerry and BlackJack."
"While the iPhone uses the standard iPod port on the bottom edge, it doesn't recognize all car adapters for playing music, only for charging." Walt claims Apple is considering a software update to fix this.
"There's no overall search on the iPhone (except Web searching), and no quick way to move to the top or bottom of pages (except in the Web browser)."
"There's also no way to cut, copy, or paste text."
"If you are playing music while doing something else, the lack of hardware playback buttons forces you to return to the iPod program to stop the music or change a song."
"The error-correction system didn't seem as clever as the one on the BlackBerry, and you have to switch to a different keyboard view to insert a period or comma, which is annoying."
"It can also handle corporate email using Microsoft's Exchange system, if your IT department cooperates by enabling a setting on the server."
No BlackBerry email services but Yahoo Mail's free BlackBerry-style "push" email to iPhone users "worked fine."
iPhone can view, but can't edit or save Word or Excel files.
"Its battery life is excellent. In our tests, it got seven hours and 18 minutes of continuous talk time, while the Wi-Fi was on and email was constantly being fetched in the background."
Under the same conditions, Walt got 22 hours of music playback, over 9 hours for Internet usage, and seven hours -- enough to watch 4 average movies -- for video.
The phone interface takes more taps to reach than on many other smart phones, because there are no dedicated hardware phone buttons. You also cannot just start typing a name or number, but must scroll through a list of favorites.
"Voice call quality was good, but not great. In some places, especially in weak coverage areas, there was some muffling or garbling."
"While its two megapixel camera took excellent pictures in our tests, it can't record video."
"Its otherwise excellent Web browser can't fully utilize some Web sites, because it doesn't yet support Adobe's Flash technology."
Can't use songs on iPhone's iPod as ringtones.
"Apple says it plans to add features to the phone over time, via free downloads, and hints that some of these holes may be filled."
Read Walt's review in full over at The Wall Street Journal. Alternatively, readers can check out his video review.
David Pogue of the New York Times has also posted his own iPhone review.
In particular, the renowned technology columnist praised the Apple device's software for setting a new bar for the smart-phone industry, noting that its clever finger-touch interface works well, though sometimes adds steps to common functions.
"[iPhone] offers the best Web browser we have seen on a smart phone, and robust email software," he wrote. "It has the largest and highest-resolution screen of any smart phone we've seen, and the most internal memory by far. Yet it is one of the thinnest smart phones available and offers impressive battery life, better than its key competitors claim."
Excerpts and points of particular interest from the review have been compiled below, though readers are encouraged to check out Walt's full review, which was compiled over a two-week period with help from fellow journalist Katie Boehret.
On the upsideThe iPhone's virtual keyboard "turned out in our tests to be a nonissue." After five days of use, Walt "was able to type on it as quickly and accurately as he could on the Palm Treo he has used for years."
iPhone does work overseas, but only via an AT&T roaming plan.
The initial iPhone model cannot be upgraded to use the faster [3G] networks.
When you have access to Wi-Fi, the iPhone flies on the Web. "Not only that, but the iPhone automatically switches from EDGE to known Wi-Fi networks when it finds them, and pops up a list of new Wi-Fi networks it encounters as you move."
iPhone is thinner than the skinny Samsung BlackJack.
While iPhone does pick up smudges, it didn't acquire a single scratch during the two-week period, even though it was tossed into Walt's pocket or briefcase (and Katie's purse) without any protective case or holster. "No scratches appeared on the rest of the body either."
On the downside
"The phone is about as long as the Treo 700, the BlackBerry 8800 or the BlackJack, but it's slightly wider than the BlackJack or Treo, and heavier than the BlackBerry and BlackJack."
"While the iPhone uses the standard iPod port on the bottom edge, it doesn't recognize all car adapters for playing music, only for charging." Walt claims Apple is considering a software update to fix this.
"There's no overall search on the iPhone (except Web searching), and no quick way to move to the top or bottom of pages (except in the Web browser)."
"There's also no way to cut, copy, or paste text."
"If you are playing music while doing something else, the lack of hardware playback buttons forces you to return to the iPod program to stop the music or change a song."
"The error-correction system didn't seem as clever as the one on the BlackBerry, and you have to switch to a different keyboard view to insert a period or comma, which is annoying."
"It can also handle corporate email using Microsoft's Exchange system, if your IT department cooperates by enabling a setting on the server."
No BlackBerry email services but Yahoo Mail's free BlackBerry-style "push" email to iPhone users "worked fine."
iPhone can view, but can't edit or save Word or Excel files.
"Its battery life is excellent. In our tests, it got seven hours and 18 minutes of continuous talk time, while the Wi-Fi was on and email was constantly being fetched in the background."
Under the same conditions, Walt got 22 hours of music playback, over 9 hours for Internet usage, and seven hours -- enough to watch 4 average movies -- for video.
The phone interface takes more taps to reach than on many other smart phones, because there are no dedicated hardware phone buttons. You also cannot just start typing a name or number, but must scroll through a list of favorites.
"Voice call quality was good, but not great. In some places, especially in weak coverage areas, there was some muffling or garbling."
"While its two megapixel camera took excellent pictures in our tests, it can't record video."
"Its otherwise excellent Web browser can't fully utilize some Web sites, because it doesn't yet support Adobe's Flash technology."
Can't use songs on iPhone's iPod as ringtones.
"Apple says it plans to add features to the phone over time, via free downloads, and hints that some of these holes may be filled."
Read Walt's review in full over at The Wall Street Journal. Alternatively, readers can check out his video review.
David Pogue of the New York Times has also posted his own iPhone review.
Comments
But even in version 1.0, the iPhone is still the most sophisticated, outlook-changing piece of electronics to come along in years. It does so many things so well, and so pleasurably, that you tend to forgive its foibles.
In other words, maybe all the iPhone hype isn?t hype at all. As the ball player Dizzy Dean once said, ?It ain?t bragging if you done it.?
Look like a winner for Apple. They both comment, correctly, on all the weaknesses that have been cataloged here umpteen million times but it seems the good far outweighs the bad.
Combine this with the cost analysis by Erin over at RoughtlyDrafted. and voila.
And I'm not so sure this iPhone is going to be as sucesfull as people think (but I hope I'm wrong).
- "so sleek and thin, it makes Treos and BlackBerrys look obese."
- After walking around with the iPhone unprotected for 2 weeks, no marks on it. Glass smudges are easily wiped off.
- Making calls can be a 6 step process if phone is off.
- Web, Email is superior
- Battery Life Test: 5 hours video, 23 hours audio. Note: did not turn off Wi-Fi and other features as Apple suggests.
- Typing was OK. Difficult at first, but learned to "trust" the keyboard. "The BlackBerry won?t be going away anytime soon."
- Cites AT&T network as iPhone's biggest downfall. Cites Consumer Reports survey which ranks AT&T network as last or second to last in 19 out of 20 major US cities.
- AT&T?s EDGE cellular network: "excruciatingly slow"
Look like a winner for Apple.
Well, the reviews of the non-wifi network aren't promising and I think that'll be a deal breaker for some people. Reviewers said it took over 30 seconds to load some sites.
"Its battery life is excellent. In our tests, it got seven hours and 18 minutes of continuous talk time, while the Wi-Fi was on and email was constantly being fetched in the background."
Under the same conditions, Walt got 22 hours of music playback, over 9 hours for Internet usage, and seven hours -- enough to watch 4 average movies -- for video.
I think this goes in the upside section not downside.
Qt is great, but please stop trying to make the world switch over the Qt. embrace what is already out there and working!
(I could really care less about Qt and Flash pages, this is really for selfish reasons, as I'd rather code applications with Flash and Actionscript rather than having to dig into XCode or Dashcode to make simple applications)
I've been thinking about the touch screen and one thing I wouldn't like about it is if buttons that function similary (ike volume) are in differenet locations for different apps.
And I'm not so sure this iPhone is going to be as sucesfull as people think (but I hope I'm wrong).
I'm more worried about AT&T's network than the iPhone. I hope they've given Apple some assurances that they plant to gain parity with Verizon and Sprint.
As for the iPhone. I imagine that after a year or two they'll have captured their desired percentage of the market and the hardware will have improved. I'd love to jump off of Verizon's Family plan and on to the iPhone/ATT family plan in a couple of years. We'll see.
Well, the reviews of the non-wifi network aren't promising and I think that'll be a deal breaker for some people. Reviewers said it took over 30 seconds to load some sites.
I agree totally but its the 'some people' that's the key. What I still think has been missing from most of the discussion on these boards is that the market that Apple is addressing with this phone doesn't really fit into any of the current niches. For me, for example, I could care less about have 'mobile' web access all the time. WiFi is what I want and use and the EDGE will just be icing on cake in the sense that the few times I need to have this access it will be there, slow but there. It sometimes take the NYT's page 20-30 seconds to load at my work place with high-speed. The rest of the features more than make up for it. Would I like the iPhone better if it had the 3G? Of course but it not a killer for me, and I think a lot of other people.
IMO Phone have been marketed to date based on the feature sets that could be provided and people have been convinced that they 'need' these features. Mainly I'm referring to things like ringtones, MMS, etc. The great majority of people I know that have these feature on their phones, which they bought because they had the most features, don't use them. I think the iPhone turned this around to a large degree and said ' lets try to figure out how people would really like to use their mobile appliance' and then engineered that list from the top down.
I've seen that as parallel to the iPod. Apple, to this day, has avoided feature creep for the sake of features - no radio, no voice recording, etc.
We'll all see in a couple of months.
NY Times: David Pogue
- Cites AT&T network as iPhone's biggest downfall. Cites Consumer Reports survey which ranks AT&T network as last or second to last in 19 out of 20 major US cities.
- AT&T’s EDGE cellular network: "excruciatingly slow"
What have I been saying for weeks now?
At least he liked it otherwise. I think most people will.
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What have I been saying for weeks now?
At least he liked it otherwise. I think most people will.
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how the heck where they goin to bring the iphones in if the 3G chip is ban from the country, if they thought about it
The 3G chip ban hasn't even gone into effect yet- and is only for phones that are launched in the US later than early August, last I checked, so it wouldn't affect the iPhone in any case.
Also, its likely to get resolved before long anyway... its the equivalent of 'going nuclear', and the parties involved will want to settle up.
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Which phone do you have?
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I tried using the net today on my phone, i went to appleinsider.com and it took over 45 seconds to come up, and it still wasn't up completly. I have Cingular.
Which phone do you have?
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how the heck where they goin to bring the iphones in if the 3G chip is ban from the country, if they thought about it
Well put!
how the heck where they goin to bring the iphones in if the 3G chip is ban from the country, if they thought about it
Well put!
Score 1 for Wilco Massive Sarcasm Wave Attack! All your base are belong to us! You have no chance, make your time! It's over 9000!!!
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Thanks
What have I been saying for weeks now
Yes you have gold star for you Baggins. But you've also been citing this as reason why people will not want the iPhone.