Apple iPhone?

[ronbo2000]

I guess this is the image ....

 

[marcol]

That's the thumb-nail from the trustedreviews page. The main image is ten times the size and cropped less. This is the address:

http://www.trustedreviews.com/images/article/inline/3321-e280.jpg

but really it's not all that interesting and not worth the bother of chasing. Most interesting thing to me at this point is that it seems so elusive! I'm *pretty sure* it's not a figment of my imagination.

Anyway, I'm going to buy a nano

 

[marcol]

Yes, assuming it has bluetooth, contacts, calendar, email, and a web browser I'd buy it in a heartbeat.

Some sort of software to play music might be nice too! My predictions are usually rubbish but I think there's a fair chance of this in any phone Apple might release

Thing is, what do Apple have in mind as their target market? I bought my daughter a SonyEricsson W810i for Christmas. Pretty sweet with a 4 gig card, but all it's good for really is phone calls, messaging, music and pictures. It's just a basic phone with an MP3 player. I wouldn't be surprised if Apple's motivation for producing a phone is a perceived threat to iPod sales and that they perceive the threat as coming from devices like the W810i. If that's so, and if they just repond to like with like, I don't think we'll be seeing a device that would be of great interest to most TreoCentral readers. There're rumours of an Apple smartphone too of course but they come from back when the rumourers were all calling it an 'iPhone' - and we know how accurate that name turned out to be. At this point I think the only thing that makes me believe any of this is that Apple doesn't seem to have moved to quell any of the hysteria..

I'll note that Nokia is using a new excellent browser on their new phones that is based on code from Safari the web browser on Mac OS X.

I wasn't completely sure at first but the more I used it the more I liked the S60 WebKit browser. I'd find it really hard now to go to any device that didn't have something comparable.

 

[bcaslis#IM]

I agree that any initial phone will probably be targeted at the music phone market. That's why it probably won't be for me, but I'd be willing to bet it will be an excellent device for it's target market.

 

[specimen38]

I think the iPhone hype surpassed the hype of the Treo 650, 700 & 750 release. Your thoughts? Finally, by this time tomorrow, we will know everything and start speculating about the next big thing.

 

[marcol]

Phone from Apple looking pretty likely now:

http://www.moneyweb.co.za/shares/international_news/563488.htm

WSJ was spot on with the prediction of a move to intel processors 18 months ago.

 

[specimen38]

WOW! Did you see it? WOW!

 

[specimen38]

I will be San Francisco at MacWorld in 60 minutes to see it for myself -- "hands on."

 

[MacUser]

I will be San Francisco at MacWorld in 60 minutes to see it for myself -- "hands on."

Please come back and post your impressions! I knew it!!!

I can't believe we have to wait till June...

 

[specimen38]

I am sitting in a presentation of the iPhone (now) and this phone is "other worldly". Google maps via satellite, a new iPod interface, a new MacOS interface "touch & pinch" w/fingers - no stylus. I will report more later.

 

[specimen38]

Fresh back from MacWorld

I don't want to sound like a fanatic. But since seeing it, this iPhone has had that "fanatic" effect on me today. I don't know where to start.

The phone is about a 1/2 inch thick. They would put it in a glass case and teased us. It looks like an iPod without the "click wheel." They have eliminated the click wheel technology to introduce the 3rd generation interface "point & pinch" which makes the device fully touchscreen. They have built some new intuitive features into the touch response. Apple's conducting research for the past 5-years on touch/response on touchscreens. Their goal was to elimate the clumsy experience of tapping/hitting the wrong key or button when you're interactinmg with a touchscreen display. This thing is hyper-intuitive and well thought out as Apple has prepared a nearly flawless interface that compensates for clumsy fingers and for those of us who have not completely felt comfortable using a completely touchscreen device.

It has 3 sensors on it. 1) one deterimines when your face is close to it while on a phone call. This sensor turns off the video display and does not permit you to inadvertantly touch buttons while on a call; 2) the second sensor collects ambient light and adjust the brightness of the video display depending if you are outside or indoors; 3) the third sensor detects motion. If you turn the iPhone horizontally (landscape) or vertically -- it automatically adjust.

The iPhone is built to be 3 devices in 1. An iPod, a Phone and an Internet device. What Apple is not saying is that they have basically given us a Mac computer that is 1/2 inch thick x 5 inches long x 3 inches wide. As I watched the presenter navigating MacOS X During the presentation, the presenter kept on repeating "the new iPhone" brings the desktop experience.

I am certain you can load and run MacOS applications from this phone. However, I would imagine they'd need to be customize to run under the new point & pinch finger interface.

Non-linear voicemail.......Very Cool! You don't ever have to listen to in linear order. They appear on the screen and you pick the one you want to hear first.

Did I tell you this thing has Bluetooth 2.0 and the coolest ear-piece? Of course, it has WIFI 802.11n. This feature alone is unfortunately a Treo killer for me personally.

I sat with a group of about 300 people watching the presentation. Strangely, there was not a lot of applause when the presenter demonstrated something new and never before seen feature on a cell phone. They were quietly awed. They wanted to applause -- but couldn't because they were too captivated by what they were seeing. I turned to look at the faces of some who were seated around me.

I have seen the BlackJack, I have seen the Moto Q, BlackBerry Pearl, Nokia's top of the line and of course the Treos. These are nice phone/PDAs. But make no mistake, there is nothing on the market like the iPhone. I have never seen anything like it. It is leaps ahead of everthing.

I have one critique though. It doesn't have a UMTS radio for Cingular broadband subscription. However, that's not really a problem for me because I wasn't going to pay 49.99/mo for wireless broadband anyway.

I paid 549.00 for my Treo 650 approximately 2+ years ago. This phone will cost 499.00 and 599.00 for the 4Gig and 8Gig versions respectively. They will be released in May. That gives me enough time to save up.

 

[theafricannerd]

This is really good for Palm. Now there is new standard for them to meet. Lets see if they are up to it.
On thing am still not convinced about is the touchscreen keyboard. I know they are bigger than the ones we had on previous palm pdas, but still am not sure about how well people will responed to them after the "Coolness" wears off

 

[specimen38]

Ed Colligan and Palm have received their gut check. I don't think they can do much to match the iPhone in the near future. But I think there is a niche for Palm' and its Treo line as a consumer phone. The Apple operating systems has leap-frogged Windows Mobile (which I think is very good) and certainly the Palm OS in its debut product. Answer: Palm needs to push Microsoft to dramatically innovate on its Mobile OS.

This is really good for Palm. Now there is new standard for them to meet. Lets see if they are up to it.
On thing am still not convinced about is the touchscreen keyboard. I know they are bigger than the ones we had on previous palm pdas, but still am not sure about how well people will responed to them after the "Coolness" wears off

 

[Chatter]

The iPhone is gorgeous, and it has one INSANELY TERRIFIC ADVANTAGE - you can't touch it or use it; you can only see the gorgeous pictures and hear Apple's PR. But no question, it's the best device in a glass case I've seen lately!

Marc

 

[specimen38]

LOL!

Good point! They'd be run out of business if this was vaporware. Do you remember they old vaporware days of personal computing?

The iPhone is gorgeous, and it has one INSANELY TERRIFIC ADVANTAGE - you can't touch it or use it; you can only see the gorgeous pictures and hear Apple's PR. But no question, it's the best device in a glass case I've seen lately!

Marc

 

[MacUser]

Thanks for the post, Specimen.

Frankly, we saw Jobs use the iPhone at the Keynote on Quicktime. My only concern is the keyboard, as I'm sure is the major concern of many.

How bad can the screen keyboard be?

 

[specimen38]

I think you are going to be impressed. The Apple presenter on the show floor demonstrated how intuitive and forgiving the UI is for entering text via touchscreen. Keystrokes are confirmed and great pains have been taken in the UI design to correct clumbsy fingers on the touch keyboard.

Of course, only time will tell. We'll have to do a hands-on in May when it is released.

Thanks for the post, Specimen.

Frankly, we saw Jobs use the iPhone at the Keynote on Quicktime. My only concern is the keyboard, as I'm sure is the major concern of many.

How bad can the screen keyboard be?

 

[dwman]

I'm sure I'm not the only one to mention this, but I haven't seen it in any other threads(too many to look at them all) With all this wonderful new technology, including EDGE and Wifi, why did Apple not give the iPhone the ability to buy songs using iTunes directly from the phone? Seems like the next logical step to me.

 

[specimen38]

Good point. EDGE is of course too slow for downloading music, but via WIFI - I'm not sure. Perhaps it's something they haven't perfected yet. Did you notice that they did not demonstrate any of the other applications during the key? For instance, the camera, calculator, etc.

I'm sure I'm not the only one to mention this, but I haven't seen it in any other threads(too many to look at them all) With all this wonderful new technology, including EDGE and Wifi, why did Apple not give the iPhone the ability to buy songs using iTunes directly from the phone? Seems like the next logical step to me.

 

[MarkY]

I'm sure I'm not the only one to mention this, but I haven't seen it in any other threads(too many to look at them all) With all this wonderful new technology, including EDGE and Wifi, why did Apple not give the iPhone the ability to buy songs using iTunes directly from the phone? Seems like the next logical step to me.

I think you answered your own question and that interfacing directly with the iTms is probably the next step. As logical as it may seem, it is probably easier said than done and I'm sure Apple wants to get it right before releasing it.