Why all the fuss?

[Chris Barylick]

Ok, I've got to ask:

What will the iPhone allow you to do that you currently aren't able to do now and how will it make work easier for you?

Just curious.

Not that I'd turn down a free iPhone by any means, but the question's on my mind.

Chris

[tomcole]

I think Jobs had it right when he said that a lot of folks really dislike their cell phone. I was using a RAZR and occasionally needed internet connectivity... a huge, slow, agonizing, ineffective pain. My wife uses a Treo which is far superior to the RAZR for internet connectivity, but is still slow and disfunctional for many web sites, and is heavy and bulky.

By contrast, iPhone feels like a reasonable compromize between slim and shirt-pocket-sized (the reason I went with the RAZR in the first place) and still quite functional as an internet connection device.

Plus, the fun factor of using the device cannot be overlooked as a draw. For some folks (including myself), the subjective enjoyment of using the device is worth a significant part of the cost. Which is why many of us tend to use Macs rather than various Windows-based systems as well, I suppose.

[boneznet01]

What do I do on my iPhone that makes me love it so much?
I use the iPod very frequently, listening to music.
I use the iPod Video function often enough when I don't have time to watch a TV show at night (I use EyeTV, etc to record/encode).. I watch them on the bus, works out great. Makes my 1-1.5hr commute feel short!
8GB storage? It's enough if you re-sync your TV/Movies every day or three.
I use the phone, it works fine. Like the Favorites list a lot. I mainly call the same 8 numbers...
I use Safari, it works great. You can even "mouseover" in this browser! Just hold your finger on an item until "Action" pops up above it. The only thing I've noticed that doesn't work is Java and Flash. No biggie for the most part. I'd be sad about Flash not working if YouTube wasn't already installed on the thing! But, alas, I still have my YouTube addiction I can feed just about anywhere.. Youtube videos even stream in real-time over EDGE.
EDGE: It's not as fast as WiFi, but it's fast enough for web browsing, YouTube and email use! Stop complaining! If you need EVDO or HSDPA get a laptop and a connection card. That's what I do :P Franklin USB EVDO ftw.
Battery life? More than any other phone I've used, thats for sure.
Volume? I never actually noticed the volume problem people are complaining about. Maybe it was there? Maybe I just have good hearing?
Screen: It's beautiful. I clean it with my T-shirt, haven't had a scratch yet and I think I've accidently dropped it twice now.. Once in a car and it fell under the seat (which I've scratched several other phone's doing..) Seems high-quality to me!
I currently have no complaints, unless its possible to make a self-cleaning screen? I think not though.

[gwiz]

I really like the simplicity of finding names to call- I haven't created a set of groups yet, but that's coming soon- so "restaurants" as a group, "local friends" as a group, "NYC Friends", etc... Checking and writing emails is a breeze. Viewing websites is very viewer friendly except for a few quicktime bugs and of course the whole flash plugin issue.

I'm extremely pleased with the phone and had considered waiting for v.2 of the device, but after using it for almost 2 weeks now I have to say, I'll upgrade if it seems that necessary. Some of my favorite things about the phone are:

The ease of locking and unlocking the handset (screen)
(While dialing or on a call) Switching between headset/phone/speakerphone
Wifi...nuff said.
SMS text messaging has never looked so cool.
Flipping through photos- super cool.

What I don't like is that I can't copy and paste text. That is just freakin crazy. I can't copy and email address, web address, etc...from anywhere and worse, since you can't select text, sometimes erasing something can be a chore. Google maps, are simply amazing, but unlike the old google maps on my Sony Ericsson, I can now only save single locations, not routes.

Overall Take:

My phone can beat up your phone.

[tomjennings83]

The iphone needs intense 3rd party software releases but since apple is thinking about putting intel based processors in their new iphones it would make the 3rd party software useless.

[Touristoo]

I'm extremely pleased with the phone.

Google maps, are simply amazing.

it is very easy to lock and unlock the handset.