My Very Own iPhone 3G!! - [Random Ramblings]

Yay!! Finally got my very own iPhone 3G!!

What you see when you open the box.

I know I'm a little slow, most people already bought their iPhone 3G a long long time ago. I wanted it a long time ago but unfortunately iPhone 3G (and the older generation) was not "officially" brought into Malaysia until about 1 or 2 months ago, and the "non-official" set was insanely expensive! I asked around before the official launch of iPhone 3G in Malaysia, and some are selling the iPhone 3G at RM4,000+ (about USD1,100). Since I heard so much about it's limitations, which I'll go into it in a bit, and with that crazy pricing, I immediately threw the idea of owning an iPhone 3G out of my mind. In fact, even when it was officially launched in Malaysia, I wasn't keen because all the limitations are still there.

The back of the iPhone 3G.

I was actually eyeing the HTC Touch Pro2 that was rumoured to be avaibable in the Asian region during summer (sometime in June) 2009. One of my friend was trying to talk some sense into me, saying the HTC Touch Pro2 will most likely going to cost about RM3,000 (about USD800) in Malaysia, I should consider getting an iPhone 3G, with contract, and will only cost about half that price. He also added that with the Version 3.0 OS, most of the limitations in the current version will be addressed and improved upon. I was a little skeptical so I did a little research on my own.

Clear iPhone 3G, blur box.

Blur iPhone 3G, clear box. But why did I put the box upside down?? Sigh.

The biggest problem doing research was the more I looked at the iPhone 3G, the more I wanted to get it! And when I looked at some of the things the OS 3.0 can do, it's very hard not to get excited. Cut the long story short, it didn't take very long for me to purchase my very first Apple product (next in line will be the Macbook Pro, LOL! Dream on!).

Some of the limitations of the current iPhone 3G that originally puts me off were:-

1. Can't forward SMS. Can be a major pain in the @$$ during festive seasons LOL! (Will be fixed with OS 3.0)

2. No MMS. (Will be fixed with OS 3.0)

3. Can't do video call since it doesn't have a front mounted camera.

4. The QWERTY keyboard is painstakingly small making it really hard to SMS and chat (Thank God for Auto-correction!). It does get better after some practice. You can however use the landscape QWERTY keyboard when surfing the net with the Safari browser. (Will be fixed with OS 3.0)

5. Can't change the battery yourself and can't buy extra batteries. Which brings me to the next problem that really bugs me,

6. Very short battery life. With moderate mix usage, the battery can probably last for around 5 hours.

7. Bluetooth can only connect to handsfree headset. You can't listen to music through wireless stereo headphones (no A2DP), can't transfer files and can't transfer contacts. (Will be fixed with OS 3.0)

8. Camera is not the best, only 2MP and cannot record video.

9. Can't copy and paste. (Will be fixed with OS 3.0)

That's about all I can think off at the moment. Most of these limitations will no longer be an issue once the OS 3.0 is launched. It's rumoured to be launch sometime in the beginning or middle of June 2009 so it won't be long. In fact after using it for a few days, most of these limitations are actually quite bearable.

I'm sure by now you should realise that the pictures doesn't really have much to do with the article I'm writing, except, of course, that they are pictures of iPhone 3G.

Some of the features I really like are :-

1. The touch screen is just a bliss to use. Responsive and intuitive.

2. The 3G is quite fast, and wifi connectivity just gives us more options.

3. Some really great a useful 3rd party applications which I will cover in a while.

4. Beautiful and vibrant display.

5. Superb video and audio quality. Not surprising since it's an iPod.

6. Maps, Stocks, and Weather applications can be very useful.

Other accessories that came with the box.

Some 3rd party applications that one shoud have are :-

1. Facebook (Free) - this is useful if you use facebook to msg and keep in touch. If you want the access the full facebook and it's applications, you have to use the web browser.

2. Fring (Free) - A messenger type app allowing you to access your contacts from various sources such as MSN, Yahoo, Skype, ICQ, Google Talk etc. You can access them all with just one application. Very useful

3. Skype (Free) - You can also use Fring. Basically if you have Wifi, you can call your friends who have Skype on their phone or computer for free.

4. SnatchTest (Free) / Snatch (Pay) - Converts your iPhone into a mouse pad which allows you to control your laptop/computer's cursor by using your iPhone. It uses Wifi to connect and you can also use IP address to connect. Very useful for those who do a lot of presentations.

5. Dictionary.com (Free) - Pretty much self explainatory. Good thing is you don't even need to be connected to the internet.

These are only but a few useful applications. There are plenty more you can get from iTunes.

Well, that's about all I have to say about my iPhone 3G for now. I'll say more once I used the OS 3.0. All in all, I'm quite happy with the experience and have no regrets getting this little baby despite of all it's limitations.

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