One Year Later: iPhone Not So Amazing
There are many things I love about my original iPhone, but after one year of ownership, it’s lately begun to collect dust in its charging stand. I grabbed a BlackBerry Curve 8330 at the office, and after three weeks with the RIM device, I’m sure I’m not going back to my iPhone.
So what’s wrong with the iPhone? Two things:
1. One word: AT&T. I live and work in the greater Boston area, and AT&T’s network is pretty poor here and elsewhere. When I receive calls at my house, the iPhone rings only about 50% of the time. Sometimes calls don’t even register as missed. One of the first things I noticed after switching to BlackBerry on Verizon’s network is how many calls I was suddenly getting. And calls to my BlackBerry don’t drop off or become interference plagued anywhere near as frequently as those on my iPhone. Apple’s insistence on exclusivity with AT&T in the U.S. will keep me from going back to the iPhone until that changes.
So is this a regional problem? Not according to Consumer Reports, which has more than once ranked Verizon’s network as best or second best in most major markets throughout the U.S. Both in the Northeast and in my travels all around the country I have found this to be true. I was a Verizon Wireless customer before I bought my iPhone.
2. The virtual keyboard doesn’t work for me. People assume that it’s the lack of tactile feel when pressing fingers to glass, but I don’t think that tells the story. My frustration with the iPhone keyboard is that I cannot use my thumbs, but am instead reduced to stabbing with one finger, which is slower and less accurate. The worst part is that I frequently press the wrong keys while attempting to type without looking. On the BlackBerry, even though the keys are both much smaller and packed more tightly together, I’m able to “touch type” because of the little bumps that help you locate the keys by touch. The way I see this the problem is one of size. I could deal with lack of tactile feel on the iPhone if the virtual keycaps were larger so there were less chance of hitting the wrong key. Without those tactile bumps, me and my thumbs need larger targets.
That’s my short list of serious pet peeves with the iPhone. Were I to make a list of things I love about Apple’s smartphone, it would have at least a dozen items. But while it’s a short list negatives, they hard to get around: It’s not a reliable cell phone for calls, and I can’t really type emails and texts comfortably. The switch to the BlackBerry was a no-brainer for me.
Even so, I wouldn’t say I love the BlackBerry. The software syncing situation is terrible for Mac users. PocketMac is hopeless. (I’m about to try Missing Sync.) RIM needs to break down and write a true Desktop Manager for the Mac. I’m going to miss the iPhone’s seamless integration with all things Apple and Mac.
I also don’t like the BlackBerry’s over-reliance on email as a way to notify about voicemails and texts. I get so much voicemail that I need one place for that. I love the iPhone’s visual voicemail center and texting module (which uses more of an IM paradigm).
The BlackBerry Web browser and digital media features pale by comparison with those of the iPhone. I bought a 4GB SD card for the BlackBerry and still haven’t been able to successfully copy my songs and photos to RIM’s smartphone.
One BlackBerry Curve strength I hadn’t expected is that it’s noticeably lighter than the iPhone while being roughly comparable in size.
All in all, the iPhone is the most important smartphone released in the last three years. But Apple’s blind insistence on being exclusive with AT&T and Steve Job’s belief that buttons are bad — even keyboard buttons — makes the iPhone incomplete for me. I know other people who’ve gone back too. I’ll come back to the iPhone when and if Apple gets the message about the main things that a smartphone has to accomplish: phone calls and email.
If I could only get the BlackBerry keyboard and Verizon’s network on the iPhone, I’d have the best of both worlds.
October 21st, 2008 at 8:44 AM
Also have had the iPhone, for more than a year. While AT&T isn’t bad in the NYC area, I find the iPhone a little hard to hold as a phone (slippery, with the earpiece not great), and it just doesn’t seem to be primarily a phone. Also a bit glitchy, where the screen sometimes doesn’t turn back on when I move it from my face, making it difficult to end the call.
Agree as well with your points on the keyboard. I do the one-finger method too, and even then I’m frequently backspacing to correct slight misspellings that can generate the wrong word.
Good luck with Missing Synch. I used a few versions of that with the Palm and Mac up until a couple of years ago, and there were occasional issues with corrupted data or data not synching. I did contact them about it and they were unable to resolve. Personally, I would be reluctant to rely on their products, although it seems many people happily use them. So maybe my experience was a fluke.
To give you a complete picture, A few months ago I switched to Vista on an HP Slimline, after regularly using Macs at home since 1993 (everything from an LC to the black MacBook). I got tired of not having anything comparable to Outlook and having to make many small compromises (such as keyboard shortcuts). I’m very happy with the setup, and I fully understand that many Mac users would completely disagree with me, so no one needs to go there! (I do like and respect the Mac platform.)
Anyway, the iPhone synchs well with Outlook on Vista, so that experience has been good. But now that I’ll be needing a new phone, I’m considering other options. I like the HTC Touch Pro, but haven’t tried it in person. The Palm Treo Pro (the new one) looks very nice as well. I do have a BBerry Curve for work, which works nicely, but I think I want WMobile with full Outlook synch (including Tasks, which the iPhone frustratingly doesn’t do without jumping through a lot of hoops and buying an app or two).
October 22nd, 2008 at 7:45 PM
Interesting info, Andy. Truth is, AT&T isn’t terrible in Boston either. But it’s very spotty. Verizon is pretty strong everywhere. Three miles from my house, my iPhone gets 5 bars. At my home, no bars. But it’s my home that matters. My neighbor, who is also in the IT industry, has the same problem. We both have to go outside to receive and make calls. But winter is coming on — and that’s getting old!
Since I’m stuck with Lotus Notes, and my company runs BlackBerry Enterprise Server, that’s a big part of the reason I went back to a BlackBerry. I don’t do Outlook (although I’d happily give up Notes for it). As a Mac user, though, the idea of having to use Entourage makes me shudder. I’d rather use Notes.
It’s amazing to me that 10 million units of iPhone sold through Sept (in not even 15 months since the intro) and it has the problems it does. I’m just too much of a phone & email freak to be able to deal with the iPhone, which does everything but those two things well. Apple is unlikely to fix what isn’t broken from their perspective when you look at sales. I just don’t see myself going back to iPhone unless they do, though. Maybe, maybe if they swing a deal with Verizon in a few years.
About Mac vs. Vista, it’s really personal preference. You’re an Outlook guy — so you’re always going to miss Windows. There was no application holding me back. I like the Mac better, but I don’t hate Windows.
I’m looking forward to checking out the Windows 7 code.
– Scot
October 23rd, 2008 at 3:05 AM
Its also too expensive in India right now. Almost $800!
October 23rd, 2008 at 7:50 AM
That’s preposterous. Probably has something to do with the wireless carrier too, I’m guessing.
My big problem is that I still have a year on my contract, and I need to figure out how or even if there’s a reasonable way out of it. I’m paying about $67 a month for the service. And now it’s just a glorified iPod as far as I’m concerned.
– Scot
October 30th, 2008 at 8:25 AM
AT&T is terrible in our area (mid-NH). My “choice” is using 2 devices: cell phone + iPod Touch. Would like to use one device…smartphone. I’ve used MissingSync with PalmTX (which I want to get rid of…Palm repairs are a nightmare) and was pleased with that sync app. I’d like very much to hear what your experience is if/when you use MissingSync with the BB Curve 8330 and Mac.
October 30th, 2008 at 12:57 PM
I should have mentioned in my post: I have used Verizon for several years and am very pleased with its coverage/reliability, from New England to FL; switching to AT&T would be unwise.
November 30th, 2008 at 2:37 PM
Sadly, I recently made the move from AT&T to Verizon. I’ll certainly miss my iPhone but the service is so spotty, I simply can not rely on it. I miss phone calls AND emails. This is simply unacceptable for a business user.
You’d think in my area (the Baltimore Washington corridor), the service would be excellent; but not so. I lose calls within an 8 mile radius of my home so when I’m driving home or to work (using bluetooth with a HORRIBLE echo (another iPhone problem)), the call simply fails.
I spent 15 minutes with the new Blackberry Storm and decided I probably could get used to the click-through keyboard. I’d be happy to relay my overall experience as soon as I receive it (it was shipped two days ago). Even if it turns out I hate the Storm, I’ll stick with Verizon and another phone this time. Apple needs to wake up and work with AT&T to FIX the problems or not have an exclusive carrier in the U.S. If the devteam can ever break the iPhone, I’ll be the first on board to use it with Verizon!
November 30th, 2008 at 3:24 PM
Would be interested in your impressions of the Storm. Two of our reviewers at Computerworld didn’t like it much. I’ve yet to try it. I’m just not all that interested in any virtual keyboard. I’m pretty darn happy with the Curve. But it sounds like your experiences and mine were very similar with the AT&T network.
For the record, I don’t think the echo you describe was an iPhone-specific problem. I’ve heard that (very infrequently) with several cell phones and networks. My iPhone is no more likely to have that problem than any other mobile I’ve used. In fact, I can’t recall it ever doing that. A bad echo is certainly not a generic iPhone problem. At least not in my area.
– Scot
December 2nd, 2008 at 5:14 AM
Scot, if you’re OK with the Mk1 Curve, the Bold supercharges it. Much faster processor (Curve’s lag is tedious) and the 3G and Wi-Fi support make mobile internet use almost a pleasure (rather than a chore on the Curve). Also has an external card slot, so could make side-loading tunes a viable option if syncing causing you grief. Early days, but my only gripes with the Bold that are it is a bit bigger so doesn’t fit in my hand or type quite as comfortably in single-handed use, and that it isn’t very ‘exciting’.
However, that latter gripe sums it up to me — BlackBerries are tops for work, while iPhones are for the current top dogs for play. Difference is BB has staying power, iPhone 3G will be toast within a few months when the next cool device rolls in.
Unless Apple is nuts, it has very soon to come out with a range of iPhone form factors (beyond the long-rumoured low-end iPhone nano), including keyboard (perhaps WinMo landscape slider-style) and decent imaging (where the likes of Nokia slaughter it). However, not sure if Apple fully understands that mobile is different to PC, with product cycles measured in months and far more fashion oriented — iPhone 3G will be past it within months, and over the hill by next fall.
From what I’ve seen and heard, the Storm sits between trad BBs and the iPhone, which could just be no-man’s land. Absence of Wi-Fi is moronic. UK users finding it really buggy and very miffed about initial BlackBerry Enterprise absence (duh…). New-to-BB consumers seem wowed by the messaging and generally happy, while BB old-guard seem to gripe (I don’t want one…).
Nokia’s E73 *might* be a wildcard, but haven’t personally tried it and no idea about Mac compatibility.
There is also an uprated Curve due, which hopefully keeps the same form-factor but apparently updates the processor, adds Wi-Fi (no 3G) and has new cosmetics.