iPhone

[Stuart]

Irony: Steve Jobs boasting about how many patents Apple have, then citing the Mac as a massive innovation in computing, when (IIRC) Apple were successfully sued by Xerox for copying various concepts used in the Mac's user interface (Windows, Mice, that sort of thing).

[punky]

N95 is OK, but a bit thick for me. The O2 Orbit (HTC P3300) is better. Its much thinner (about as thick as my Razor, closed), and still has GPS and wi-fi. Camera isn't as good though.

Originally Posted by Stuart C

Irony: Steve Jobs boasting about how many patents Apple have, then citing the Mac as a massive innovation in computing, when (IIRC) Apple were successfully sued by Xerox for copying various concepts used in the Mac's user interface (Windows, Mice, that sort of thing).

Ironically since Xerox management had already decided those projects at PARC were not worth it and refused to make it.

Xerox of all people could have been a big player in IT

[Bob]

Originally Posted by Gavin

N95 is OK, but a bit thick for me.

I don't have too much of a problem with that - my hands are large so I don't want the possibility of pressing all the buttons at once with one finger lol

Very nice!

http://www.enuff.co.uk/forum/index.p...43.html#msg443

[danielf]

Originally Posted by Dodger444

Very nice!

http://www.enuff.co.uk/forum/index.p...43.html#msg443

Not a hint of a shameless plug of another forum there eh?

Originally Posted by Gavin

N95 is OK, but a bit thick for me. The O2 Orbit (HTC P3300) is better. Its much thinner (about as thick as my Razor, closed), and still has GPS and wi-fi. Camera isn't as good though.

I had a play with a customers Orbit last week - very nice - but he didn't opt for any GPS software so I couldn't test it out!

---------- Post added at 14:35 ---------- Previous post was at 14:33 ----------

Originally Posted by Dodger444

Very nice!

http://www.enuff.co.uk/forum/index.p...43.html#msg443

I won't repeat what I think here...instead I'll just point you to my comments...

[cookie_365]

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/7days...989878,00.html

[Shaun]

Originally Posted by cookie_365

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/7days...989878,00.html

The iPhone has many more functions there simply isn't time to talk about today, though if you click this icon here, you actually get extra time. The iPhone can work out a solution to the Middle East crisis, prove to all doubters that there was a Holocaust and plant a hedge in the Amazon jungle [Polite applause] but what I will finally reveal now is its best function, the ability to unblock drains! [Applause that only a sun god gets.]

A voice is heard saying 'The iPhone is on sale for $499' and the audience shouts: 'That's too much' and hurriedly leaves.

Originally Posted by Gavin

Jobs confirms no 3rd party apps for iPhone

There you go. You'll have to make do with widgets checking for stock quotes and other over-priced apps that Jobs has to personally approve.

This is what he actually said:

“We define everything that is on the phone,� he said. “You don’t want your phone to be like a PC. The last thing you want is to have loaded three apps on your phone and then you go to make a call and it doesn’t work anymore. These are more like iPods than they are like computers.�
The iPhone, he insisted, would not look like the rest of the wireless industry.
“These are devices that need to work, and you can’t do that if you load any software on them,� he said. “That doesn’t mean there’s not going to be software to buy that you can load on them coming from us. It doesn’t mean we have to write it all, but it means it has to be more of a controlled environment.�

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/11/te...in&oref=slogin



I can see his point. While I would like to have the freedom to muck about with my iPhone (when I get one ) as I do with my Palm currently (I would hope to replace the Palm with this), I appreciate the need to keep the phone working. And I don't think there's any basis for saying that the only apps that will be available will be overpriced widgets for checking stock prices either.

Besides, if the thing has a fully-featured web browser, there are online services for almost everything these days. Google Docs & Spreadsheets springs to mind.

[Stuart]

Well, here's my view of the iPhone (based on the hype, as I haven't used one yet).

The multi-touch display: Excellent. A real innovation.

The "virtual keyboard": Anyone who has used one of these will have already come to the conclusion they are a bad idea. Apple's is the same as any other, but the keys appear to grow when you touch them. TBH, I can't see how this is any real use, and it may be irritating. A physical keyboard (or keypad) is far better. Virtual keyboards are a major handicap when texting.

Visual voicemail: How much will this *actually* help anyone? It might save you a couple of minutes per call, but how many times do you call your voicemail each day?

Texting: Now, I personally don't think the "Conversation" style of organisation works for email (which is why I don't like Gmail). I really don't see how it will be any better when texting. Also, how often do you have a text "conversation"?

Lack of software: Using the excuse that installing the wrong software will stop you being able to make calls is, in my experience, wrong. Any well designed Phone OS will prevent software you install from stopping you make calls. Also his excuse about it being able to bring down the network is also, in my experience, wrong. If ANY network's security is weak enough that one app can bring it down, then, TBH, they will have other problems, and I don't want to subscribe to that phone company.

The scrolly list thingy. Very pretty, but my phone does a similar job (probably with less effort and a lot more accurately) with a wheel on it's side.

The "Home" button. Admittedly, a lot of phones don't have this, but some get near. Symbian UIQ phones (such as the Sony Ericsson P range) have a row of icons along the top, and Windows Mobile phones have a start menu, Both of which are accessible most of the time. Also, in my experience, pressing the "Hang Up" button usually closes any software you are using.

The Music player: While I like cover art (and have it enabled on both iTunes and my iPod), it is eye candy. The Coverflow feature on iTunes is OK, but in my experience, sometimes mixes tracks from different albums. I suspect the iPhone will do the same. As for organisation, well, the iPhone appears to lack something the iPod also lacks. A decent search system. Admittedly, I haven't seen an MP3 player with a proper search yet (although the Creative Jukebox 3 with the latest firmware comes pretty close).

Also, I'd like to know what music formats the iPhone can use. As phones don't come with hard drives, I try to use the most compact format possible for music on my phone. At the moment, this is OGG. Apple are unlikely to support this on the iPhone.

One final thing I'd like to know: Does the iPhone support memory cards. If not, why not? I personally don't believe a phone is an adequate replacement for a camera, but a lot of people do, and they aren't always going to have access to a computer when their phone memory is full, and they want to take more photos.

[Cobbydaler]

Apple & Cisco have reached an agreement on the iPhone name...

[gazzzman]

Originally Posted by Stuart C

Lack of software: Using the excuse that installing the wrong software will stop you being able to make calls is, in my experience, wrong. Any well designed Phone OS will prevent software you install from stopping you make calls. Also his excuse about it being able to bring down the network is also, in my experience, wrong. If ANY network's security is weak enough that one app can bring it down, then, TBH, they will have other problems, and I don't want to subscribe to that phone company.

I take it you dont think wm5 is well designed then?
from the xda through several phones to the m3100 I currently own..
I love the functionality.. but do the apps ever get in the way of the phone?
about 10 times a day usualiy!
sorry but if the iphone gets round that fundamental flaw.. I am having one!
simbian is fine.. had the p800 p900 p910i and even an a920 (yuck)
great phones lousy PDA's (but at least they didnt crash anywhere near as often as all my windows based phones have!)
just my 2p!

[Stuart]

Originally Posted by gazzzman

I take it you dont think wm5 is well designed then?
from the xda through several phones to the m3100 I currently own..
I love the functionality.. but do the apps ever get in the way of the phone?
about 10 times a day usualiy!

I don't think WM5 is well designed. I did have problems with reliabilty, until, one day I did a manufacturer's reset. Now it doesn't crash that often. Well, it did when I installed Minimo (mobile firefox) on it, but I put that down to problems within minimo.

sorry but if the iphone gets round that fundamental flaw.. I am having one!
simbian is fine.. had the p800 p900 p910i and even an a920 (yuck)
great phones lousy PDA's (but at least they didnt crash anywhere near as often as all my windows based phones have!)
just my 2p!

TBH, if you can't install software on it, IMO, you'd be better off with a non-smartphone. Most phone's have PDAs nowdays, and most have MP3 players, and even assuming they are not free, they will cost a *lot* less than the iPhone. Ok, so you won't be able scroll through your cover artwork, but that is a minor feature.

[punky]

Hurrah!

Apple CEO Steve Jobs took the stage at the D: All Things Digital Conference near San Diego and announced that his company is working to make its eagerly anticipated mobile phone open to outside developers, reversing months of skeptical statements about third-party involvement.

For software makers, the latest pronouncement by Jobs, though lacking specifics, couldn’t be more welcome. It indicates that they’ll have a chance to create versions of their apps—or come up with entirely new programs—that will run on what potentially could be the most popular mobile device since Apple’s iPod.

Although I won't get this (cost mainly), I think its a much-needed move. Jobs doesn't like this sort of thing, but I think he realised that 3rd party support is needed to help maintain the life of a device (think of an OS with no 3rd party apps!"

Hopefully its less restricted than the usual stock quotes/weather report widgets.