TUMB1604

This iPhone is absolutely awesome. Although I got it more than a month ago, I haven’t really done a review. Now, though, I’ve had a whole month to play with most of the features, so here goes…
 
First of all, I’d like to point out the battery life. Today, I was using the phone pretty much non-stop, using various different features (including watching a full movie and talking on the phone, leaving 3G on) from 7:30AM until now, 9:30PM, and I’ve only used 75%. the battery seems to have been improved quite alot, especially in comparison to the iPod Touch 1G (my previous iDevice).

 
Moving on to the software features, the new video recording feature is great. On my old phone, it was far too complicated to record a video, but with the iPhone, just tap the Camera application, slide the little slider over to video and you’re set. This is especially easy when using the iPhone 3.0’s Spotlight feature, if you have your Camera app hidden in your 10 pages of apps. http://matt1604.com/Matt/Images/IMG_0499.MOV (sorry, couldn’t embed it)
 
I only tried the new Accessibility features for the first time today, and I must say, these things can be quite useful. The Accessibilty features include high contrast mode (I must say, a high contrast iPhone theme looks pretty damn cool) and a “VoiceOver” option, which allows you to select any clickable object and have the device read it out to you. These Accessibilty options mainly focus on the visually disabled, which isn’t too much of a surprise, seeing as the device is heavily touch-reliant. The new screen on the device (which is what allows for the high contrast mode), however, can become a bit frustrating when viewing the device from a harsh angle.

 
One of the features that comes in handy on those days where you just can’t be stuffed to try and yank your phone out of your pocket is the Voice Control feature (when using the bundled “Earphones with Remote and Mic” accessory). Although this is quite an overdue feature, along with the video recording, it is done far better than I have ever seen and also integrated pretty damn well. It also includes something that is unique to the iPhone (as far as I know). It can tell you the name and artist of the song (just like the new iPod Shuffle) and even create a Genius playlist, based on your current song. I find this especially useful when just playing thorugh all of my music and coming along one particular song that I feel like listening to.

 
 The new camera is a great upgrade from the 3G’s pisspoor excuse for a camera. It not only dwarfs it’s predecessor in megapixelage, it also gained an auto-focus capabilty, auto-whitebalance and the absolutely amazing “Touch-to-focus” feature. This allows you to selectively focus on anything that you sate looking at on the real-time display.

 
The new 3GS also has a magnetometer, or in layman’s terms, a compass. I find it quite useful when trying to findy way around, because if you’re absolutely lost and resort to getting directions from the Maps application that comes on the phone, you’ll often find yourself saying “Okay, so straight ahead, then left…”, then 200m down the road, realising you started walking in the wrong direction. With the compass, you can get directions from Maps, tap the “Current Location” button down the bottom left of the screen to locate yourself, then tapping it a second time to make a white cone appear on your pin marker. This cone shows you the basic direction you are facing, similar to how the blue ring around your pin marker shows that you are somewhere within that circle.

 
Something that can be good in one way, but bad in another is the physical appearance and form-factor of the device. That is, it is physically identical to it predecessor, the iPhone 3G. Owners of the 3G often spent large amounts of money on accessories that were made specifically for their device, such as Mophie’s “Juice Pack Air” and many other cases and things of the like and these people don’t necessarily want to spend more money on the sane thing that they have sitting in their drawer. The form-factor means that these early- adopters don’t have to put up wit both the outrageous price of the device and the over-priced cases. On the other hand, with the device looking like the now old, haggard piece of technology known as the iPhone 3G, you can’t just whip your new 3GS out in public and expect all eyes to be on the guy with the flash new gadget. No, you just look like every other guy in the room with an obsolete, expensive hunk of chrome, glass and silicone. The only way that you could determine the difference between the 3G and 3GS, without turning the device on, is by looking at the serial numbers and the capacity on the back.
 
Overall, I’d say this device is one of the most useful things I’ve ever bought. Not coming from the point of an Apple enthusiast (not fanboy), but from the (above) average user. It has so many features and so many applications, both in the software sense and the actual- use-of-the-device sense. BUT… And this is one massive but… If you own an iPhone 3G and are paying the ludicrous price that you are and you’re on the fence about buying one, there aren’t too many features that will get you on Apple’s side. If you absolutely can’t live without the native ability to record video, or a 3MP camera, you should just wait it out until Apple brings out their next significant device (iPhone 4G, Apple Tablet, etc.). Plus, some of the features that are only availbale on the 3GS, “due to the device’s hardware”, such as video recording can be accessed by jail reaking your device. Although, I don’t condone this, seeing as it’s a fairly controversial subject.
 
Hardware: 4/5 
Price: 3/5 
Usefulness: 276/5 
Overall: 4.5/5 
 
I hope you found this helpful.
 
P.S. I’m actually posting this from my iPhone :D
 
P.P.S. In the hour or so that it’s taken me to write this review, I’ve used 7% of the battery (I can tell by another of the new features, which adds a numerical battery)

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