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StevenRJones's Review
Love your Mac, need cellphone? Can't be happier than this
gadget geek, early adopter, reliant on my phone, technology lover, tech savvy
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JUL
12
2007
Apple - iPhone (8 GB) Cell Phone —
Where do I start? Well, I'd like to address the most obvious crowd. If you already own and love your Mac (redundant?) and you tend to prefer smartphones like the Treo or some Windows Mobile-based device, then there is simply no better option out there for you.I have had several Palm-based and Windows smartphones over the years and none of them came close to extending my Mac experience to a handheld device. I also have many iPods, which are great of course but for a limited number of functions. It really wasn't until I began syncing the iPhone with my Mac Book Pro that I began to realize that you could have the same Apple experience on a phone!
Even weeks before I got my new iPhone I had begun referring to what I hoped would be "native syncing" with the Mac. Sure enough, beyond the obvious PIM functions like calendars and contacts, I found that the iPhone takes PC syncing to new heights. My Safari bookmarks and Mail accounts are seamlessly shared and while none of this is impossible with other smartphones, but I've always had to jump through a number of hoops to achieve this in the past.
And of course, because it is also an iPod, it also syncs your iTunes content, from music to movies to TV shows to podcasts. I also have a video iPod but have already watched more video podcasts and TV shows on the iPhone than I ever did with the iPod. It probably has more to do with the iPhone's enormous display than the fact that I always have my phone with me and don't have to root around in my bag for a separate device.
One last treat. It also syncs photos from the photo management tool I use on my Mac, iPhoto. I never got this to work with my old Windows smartphone but like everything else here, it is effortless and rewarding (i.e. Mac-like). Sure, I'd love to have more than a 2 megapixel camera built into the phone but the ease of moving photos back and forth from the phone to the Mac more than makes up for it.
This leads me into my final reflection as I come up on two weeks of ownership. I am constantly surprised at how everyone who plays with it becomes enamoured with the touchscreen. My 5 year old found his way to the photo albums and was scrolling through rolls of family pictures all by himself without any guidance or instructions. Friends and colleagues inevitably discover the iPod's Cover Flow interface or are impressed as they scroll through the contacts in the address book. There are always glowing remarks when they interact with web sites and page back and forth between Safari's "tabbed" web pages. And that touch experience is everywhere you go. You flick weather widgets side to side for different cities, you whiz up and down through You Tube listings, and creating a new appointment in the Calendar is full of additional surprises.
Like the Mac and to some degree the iPod, this device makes you want to use it more and more. Almost every experience is rewarding and increases the likelihood that you'll reach for this device when performing even the most routine tasks like looking up movie listings, making dinner reservations, getting directions to a store, reading your favorite RSS feeds, capturing the moment with a quick photo, catching up on a good podcast, texting your boss to say you'll be late to work, showing a funny YouTube video to your friends, rocking out on your headphones while you mow the lawn, sending an email reminder to your staff, jotting down a quick list for yourself - and of course, making a phone call!
Last edited on Jul 12, 2007
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