Jesus Phone

I finally got the chance to play with an iPhone at an Apple store today. The verdict: not bad. Solid build, glass, pretty graphics. Not sure why people are gushing about its form factor, though--it's pretty much a thin brick with rounded corners. The software is where it's at.

Interestingly, despite the fact that Apple touts simplicity in every facet of its design I had a hard time at first adjusting to the interface. I kept looking for a back button (finally figured out that the lone button on the phone took you to the Main Menu), and was a bit confused as to what "gestures" to use. After a couple of minutes, I finally got it, and was off and running. I looked at YouTube and a bunch of arctic photos. I called up Safari and started viewing sites, including Shelfari and Hotmail.

The keyboard is...interesting. Apple said to "trust it" and a lot of times trusting it did work, but using it to type in a URL was a painful experience. I liked the keyboard so much better when I was able to use it horizontally with two thumbs; I went to a restaurant website, tapped on the locator, entered a zip, called up a map, and did the "two fingers apart" gesture with my thumbs to expand the map. So much better. I guess Filipinos are genetically bred to only use thumbs when typing on a phone keyboard, virtual or otherwise.

My final impression of the iPhone: It's not really a phone, is it? I never even poked around to see how I could make a phone call, although clicking on a "Call" link on one of the websites brought up a call dialog with the number on the website (pretty slick). I can see myself using it as an iPod, and as a handy lookup whenever I need information from the web. Using it as a phone? No. As a camera? Maybe.

In other words, I wouldn't pay $600 for it, since my usage for it would be limited. Apparently some people think it's worth it; I saw three people walk out of the store with one (curiously, those three people just happened to be walking Apple stereotypes).

If someone gave me one, though, I wouldn't refuse it.