| Despite all the complaints from early buyers, Apple’s decision to lower the price of the iPhone from $599 to $399 strikes me as a smart move now that they’re starting to run out of early adapters willing to pay an enormous premium to own the coolest phone on the planet. Besides, that cool factor already started to wane once it became obvious that there is an ample supply of iPhones. You don’t have to be an insider or willing to wait in line to get one. All you need is a valid credit card.Another factor is that a lot more people have now had a chance to put the iPhone through long-term, real world tests and the reviews aren’t quite as gaga-eyed as they were back at the end of June. Like several other technology journalists, I borrowed an Apple iPhone on June 29. Getting to try out new technology without having to put money up front is one of the perks of being a reviewer. Sometimes I fall in love with what I review and buy the product. More often it goes back. The iPhone went back last week. Sending the iPhone back to Apple wasn’t a difficult decision, especially considering its $599 price tag, but even at $399, I’ve concluded that it’s not the phone for me, despite its many great features. My early review of the iPhone was mostly positive, though, like others, I observed that its weakest link was that it was tethered to AT&T’s relatively slow Edge network and pointed out that its on-screen keyboard can be difficult to use. In the iPhone’s place, I’m now using a BlackBerry 8830 that I borrowed from Sprint, and I have to say that, on balance, I prefer it to the iPhone. I miss the iPhone’s great Web browser and the way it implemented Google maps, but I’m much happier with the true 3G network from Sprint and BlackBerry’s physical keys. I find myself typing messages on the BlackBerry and making fewer mistakes, though I do miss the iPhone’s software that corrects mistakes as you type.
The biggest difference is Sprint’s true 3-G broadband network which is not only faster but seems to work in more places. And, unlike the iPhone, the BlackBerry is able to display Word files, PDFs and some other attachments, making it a lot more practical to use to review business documents. The 8830 is available from both Sprint and Verizon which, unlike AT&T, use CDMA technology that doesn’t work in Europe and many other parts of the world. However, this particular “World Phone” BlackBerry comes with a GSM SIM card so it can also be used overseas. What’s more, they are unlocked, which means once you get overseas you have the option of buying a local SIM card which lets you avoid international roaming charges that can cost as much as $3 a minute. The model I’m testing lacks a camera, though there are plenty of BlackBerrys, Treos and other smart phones that do come with a camera. I recently tried out the Helio Ocean which has all the features consumers have come to expect from a high-end smart phone plus both a regular physical cell phone numeric keypad and a clever slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Like phones from Sprint and Verizon, the Helio also has GPS which means its maps can actually find you. The iPhone doesn’t come with GPS. At $295 plus the cost of service, the Ocean isn’t cheap, but it’s still less than the reduced-cost iPhone. For me, the exciting news from Apple is the new iPod touch. Even though it lacks a phone, it has most of the features that I love about the iPhone, including the only decent mobile phone browser on the planet, and the ability to work with WiFi. And, at less then a third of an inch, it’s even thinner than an iPhone. In fact, if you put the iPhone and the BlackBerry 8830 back to back, the combined thickness is only 0.81 inches. With both devices and a little glue, I can have an iBerry with the best of both worlds. |
Be the first to comment