WSJ's Mossberg calls iPhone a 'breakthrough handheld computer'

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 66
    I agree.

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TimDeRosa View Post


    It says in the post that one of the upsides is that the phone connot be upgraded to 3g. This dosn't make sense. Was this a mistake, and should have been put as a down side, or should it have said the initial iphone can be upgraded to 3g?



    Thanks



  • Reply 22 of 66
    direwolfdirewolf Posts: 11member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by physguy View Post


    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.



    I just posted this concept in another thread. Thus far, pretty much all the analysis has been comparing the iPhone to Blackberry type devices. However, I suspect that most iPhone buyers will be consumers who have never before used a smart phone. If so, they won't realize what they are missing or what the weaknesses are as even in the new reviews they are weaknesses relative to other smart phones. Instead, they will be wowed by the user interface/ease of use factors.



    We'll know soon enough.
  • Reply 23 of 66
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by fraklinc View Post


    how the heck where they goin to bring the iphones [iPhones -Ed.] in if the 3G chip is ban [banned -Ed.] from the country, if they [have you -Ed.] thought about it [that? -Ed.]



    The iPhone doesn't have 3G. It has EDGE (2.5G) and WiFi (b/g, no 'n' and no 'a' AFAIK). The ban, therefore, does not have any bearing on the iPhone.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TimDeRosa View Post


    It says in the post that one of the upsides is that the phone connot [cannot -Ed.] be upgraded to 3g. This dosn't make sense. Was this a mistake, and should have been put as a down side, or should it have said the initial iphone [iPhone -Ed.] can be upgraded to 3g?



    Should have said downside. The iPhone cannot be upgraded to 3G as that is a hardware feature.
  • Reply 24 of 66
    tbagginstbaggins Posts: 2,306member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TenoBell View Post


    Yes you have gold star for you Baggins. But you've also been citing this as reason why people will not want the iPhone.





    No, I've been citing this as a reason why some people will not want the iPhone. \



    I've also been saying that the iPhone will still be a big success at launch. My concerns are more with the long-term.



    .
  • Reply 25 of 66
    tbagginstbaggins Posts: 2,306member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by BlackSummerNight View Post


    Motorola MPx220





    Geez, that thing isn't even EDGE... it's GPRS. Real-world data speeds are like 30-40 kpbs.



    Congrats... you on dial-up, essentially.



    .
  • Reply 26 of 66
    sc_marktsc_markt Posts: 1,402member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by hmurchison View Post


    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.



    We used to be on ATT's system (the older system) and it was crap. Dropped calls all the time and the voice quality wasn't very good. I don't know how their newer system is but I've heard it's better.



    The Verizon network is very good (I'm comparing it to the older ATT network). Hardly any dropped calls and good voice quality. That said, I don't like the way Verizon nickle and dimes you to death with charges for all kinds of things for your phones. And they also cripple phones (I have a Mot e815) so that you can't use the USB port to transfer files to and from your phone to your computer. You have to go through them and pay fee to send a picture or ringtone to your phone.



    But, if you're motivated, you can to to howardforums and they have lots of posts on how to hack your e815 and other phones. They even have a section on the iPhone and I bet that somebody will be figuring out how to hack it. Here is the link if anybody is interested. Its a good site for phone discussions.



    http://www.howardforums.com/forumdisplay.php?f=115



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by hmurchison View Post


    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.



    I like Verizon as compared to ATT but I don't like the way Verizon has their phones firmware changed so you can't transfer ringtones or pics to/from your phone/computer and also charges you for all kinds of things that should be free.



    I have to admit that I am getting curious about the iPhone and anticpate playing with it to see how it works. SInce I posted my last link here in this forum, I've read a few more reviews on the iPhone and they are very positive.



    One thing I heard and if it's true, I don't like it and that is that you have to have an ATT contract for the iPod to work. I can't believe this is true.
  • Reply 27 of 66
    tbagginstbaggins Posts: 2,306member
    Ouch. David Pogue body-slammed ATT's network and EDGE a lot harder in his New York Times review than the AI blurb lets on. He still liked the iPhone overall, but... wow:



    The bigger problem is the AT&T network. In a Consumer Reports study, AT&T’s signal ranked either last or second to last in 19 out of 20 major cities. My tests in five states bear this out. If Verizon’s slogan is, “Can you hear me now?”, AT&T’s should be, “I’m losing you.”



    Then there’s the Internet problem. When you’re in a Wi-Fi hot spot, going online is fast and satisfying.



    But otherwise, you have to use AT&T’s ancient EDGE cellular network, which is excruciatingly slow. The New York Times’s home page takes 55 seconds to appear; Amazon.com, 100 seconds; Yahoo, two minutes. You almost ache for a dial-up modem.






    Like I said... ouch.



    But I think anyone not on the Apple Apologista Squad™ saw that part coming, and its not like the iPhone won't still be a huge hit initially.



    However, both the iPhone and ATT's network obviously need to improve to keep the momentum going once the shine is off the apple (sorrry, pun slipped in there).



    I'm happy I decided to wait for iPhone 2.0. But I don't think too many with 1.0 will be terribly unhappy. Its still a breakthrough product overall.



    .
  • Reply 28 of 66
    Those speeds are a little high.

    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TBaggins View Post


    Geez, that thing isn't even EDGE... it's GPRS. Real-world data speeds are like 30-40 kpbs.



    Congrats... you on dial-up, essentially.



    .



  • Reply 29 of 66
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,598member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Marvin View Post


    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 think this goes in the upside section not downside.



    You noticed.



    There are a bunch of things that are screwy.
  • Reply 30 of 66
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,598member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TBaggins View Post


    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.



    .



    It's also not for all chips. People keep forgetting this.
  • Reply 31 of 66
    jeffdmjeffdm Posts: 12,953member
    Basically all "iPhone apps" are going to have poor non-WiFi performance, just as what I recall most people as saying.
  • Reply 32 of 66
    tenobelltenobell Posts: 7,014member
    Quote:

    No, I've been citing this as a reason why some people will not want the iPhone.



    I think in the US that number will be quite small.
  • Reply 33 of 66
    tbagginstbaggins Posts: 2,306member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TenoBell View Post


    I think in the US that number will be quite small.



    Short-term, I'd agree. Long term, I'm not so sure.



    There will be better competition going forward, it would be naive to think otherwise. \





    .
  • Reply 34 of 66
    physguyphysguy Posts: 920member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TBaggins View Post


    Short-term, I'd agree. Long term, I'm not so sure.



    There will be better competition going forward, it would be naive to think otherwise. \





    .



    And there will be new iPhones.
  • Reply 35 of 66
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,598member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TBaggins View Post


    Short-term, I'd agree. Long term, I'm not so sure.



    There will be better competition going forward, it would be naive to think otherwise. \





    .



    I don't think the long run is anything to worry about. By then, we will see a 3G version, Jobs said as much.



    All networks are getting better over time. As bad as some think ATT is, it's still better than the best network five years ago, when dropped calls were common almost everywhere with all networks.
  • Reply 36 of 66
    backtomacbacktomac Posts: 4,579member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by TBaggins View Post


    Short-term, I'd agree. Long term, I'm not so sure.



    There will be better competition going forward, it would be naive to think otherwise. \





    .



    I think that the competition will get better, but it ain't gonna be easy and Apple has a big lead at this time. The current handset makers will need to improve their hardware and software and for many they don't have control over the software. The iPhones first 'competitor' will probably be iPhone 2.0.
  • Reply 37 of 66
    physguyphysguy Posts: 920member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by backtomac View Post


    I think that the competition will get better, but it ain't gonna be easy and Apple has a big lead at this time. The current handset makers will need to improve their hardware and software and for many they don't have control over the software. The iPhones first 'competitor' will probably be iPhone 2.0.



    I think this is absolutely correct. Which is easier to add, a couple of new features, like 3G or video or GPS or ..., or to revamp the entire user experience?
  • Reply 38 of 66
    physguyphysguy Posts: 920member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by a_greer View Post


    I like Mossberg and Pouge but be real, if Apple sold cow pies, they would say "this shit smells like roses!"



    And the other review by Levy and Baig? They all seem consistent and rather balanced.
  • Reply 39 of 66
    a_greera_greer Posts: 4,594member
    I like Mossberg and Pouge but be real, if Apple sold cow pies, they would say "this shit smells like roses!"
  • Reply 40 of 66
    backtomacbacktomac Posts: 4,579member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by physguy View Post


    And the other review by Levy and Baig? They all seem consistent and rather balanced.



    Damn, you're psychic or something.
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