On August 1 2007, I published an article called “My Month with the iPhone” wherein I examined the iPhone’s now well-known advantages and deficiencies and speculated extensively on where Apple was likely to take the phone, development-wise. Now that the new iPhone and the iPhone 2.0 software have been out for a few weeks, and there’s been a whole new storm of praise and gripes raging, I thought it would be illuminating for me to re-visit my prognostications and take my lumps.In my article, I had three major divisions of deficiencies:
- Things that will be changed in software updates by Apple
- Things that should be changed by Apple, but will be instead be changed by way of hacks, (and many of these will eventually be embraced by Apple)
- Things that can’t be changed because they’re not fixable in software, but will probably be changed in later hardware revisions, much to the annoyance of we early adopters.
The fourth category is things that Apple won’t change, or will resist changing for far too long (two-button mouse, anyone?)
In the first category, let’s look back and see what Apple really did change with software updates:
Sure enough, native apps happened, first through hacks, and then, finally, officially. All that BS about Safari being their apps platform was just a smokescreen, and they took their sweet time rolling out the platform, and the NDA and the control over distribution is going to stifle innovation, but native apps are here. There was a pretty vibrant ecosystem of native apps for jailbroken iPhones, but that world suffered a 1-2 punch, with the iPhone 2.0 software update breaking all of them, and the official apps channel opening up. There’s still an acute need for an unofficial channel, making a place for apps that Apple won’t approve, for various reasons.
My prediction that the new apps would be released in stages didn’t pan out. I’m not sure why Apple didn’t release a few major partners’ apps as part of minor software updates. That would have been nice.
As for other software updates, shamefully, there’s still no copy and paste. The contacts search is woefully inadequate. No file management. Still no decent to-do list. Still no MMS. No native “open in new tab” feature. No native IM, push or otherwise. Web caching hasn’t been improved much. There have been some nice UI tweaks, with icon rearranging and improvements to the map software.
The bottom line is that aside from supporting downloadable apps, none of features that I predicted have been made available through software updates from Apple. I’m a little stunned, for two reasons: first, they just don’t seem like they would have been a big deal to implement, and I’m not the only person to miss them. But I’m also surprised that after using the iPhone heavily for over a year now, I haven’t missed those features as much as I thought I would. A better Search (that would let me search through company names or notes in the contact info) is probably the biggest one for me. Apparently, someone is working on an indexed search SDK for third-party apps. But that’s no replacement for a search feature from Apple.
Probably the most glaring software deficiency in the iPhone is the lack of proper mobile sync and wireless data transfer. You can buy a phone from Nokia and using Apple’s own iSync software to sync it up with your Mac very nicely. You can use Apple’s Bluetoth utilities to transfer files over Bluetooth. It’s just shameful that the iPhone supports neither of these features. We know you can do it Apple. Why don’t you want to?
So one of the big new things is MobileMe, Apple’s reboot of .mac. It finally allows iPhone users to wirelessly sync their calendar and contacts. But let me just get this out: I’m pretty pissed off about Apple’s MobileMe offering. All I want is to wirelessly sync my calendar and contacts. I already have a perfectlly good IMAP-based email setup that syncs up my email (and notes and to-do list, but in a not-very-useful way). I don’t need MobileMe’s mail, gallery, iDisk, or any other MobileMe service. I don’t need my caleadar and contacts synced up to the “cloud,” even. I just want my Mac to sync those things whenever my iPhone comes within Bluetooth range. It’s that simple. Apple wants me to pay $99 per year to get something that should be a standard iPhone feature. I won’t do it.
The second section of my article last year was “Things that should be changed by Apple, but will be instead be changed by way of hacks.” Let me quickly doff my cap to the tireless efforts of iPhone hackers everywhere. If I was off base on this section, it was by underestimating what the hackers would be able to accomplish. There were jailbreaks, unlocks, Javascript hacks, neat native apps, several workable tethering hacks and custom ringtones (I made up a good one of the Super Mario Brothers theme for mine), just to name the ones I predicted in my previous article. The hacks were sometimes quick and dirty at first, but many have become very simple with the friendly tools available. Jailbreaking and unlocking an iPhone, particularly a pre 2.0 iPhone, is practically point-and-click.
Section Three oflast year’s article is “things that can’t be changed because they’re not fixable in software, but will probably be changed in later hardware revisions, much to the annoyance of we early adopters.” Actually, there wasn’t a lot of consternation among iPhone 1.0 users about the new 3G iPhone. It probably helped that the list of new features is pretty modest. 3G is meaningful for people who live in places with 3G coverage (unlike me), and GPS is really nice, but honestly the tower triangulation feature that Apple released makes up for it quite nicely for all but turn-by-turn navigation (which isn’t supported yet in the software anyway) or if you really don’t know where you are at all. Backtracking on that stupid recessed headphone plug was certainly a good move, too.
With the 2.0 software, Apple has integrated location-awareness into every aspect of the iPhone’s operation. I think we’re only scratching the surface of the potential usefulness of this functionality, and the software developers now have the tools in their hands to make it happen.
Section four, “things that Apple won’t change, or will resist changing for far too long” included integrated VoIP, officially unlocked phones, file management, iPhone-to-iPhone file transfer, and crippled Bluetooth.
Unlocking is such a huge issue for the iPhone in the world at large that huge resources are being applied to that project. The 3G iPhones seem to be at the cusp of being unlocked, though the new activation policy is putting a damper on the excitement by restricting the supply of iPhones to people with AT&T contracts. Apple’s embrace of unlocked phones depends completely with its agreements with carriers in each country, so it seems likely that unlocking will remain in the realm of the black market for a while.
Official support for VoIP is primarily an issue the relationship between Apple and the carriers. Unless the carriers want integrated VoIP functionality (and most don’t) there won’t be any, no matter how nice that would be for users. There are some interesting VoIP options coming out of the hacker and third-party app community.
There’s been some work on file management tools in the hacker community, but currently there’s nothing fully-baked that works on 2.0. It seems that if Apple hasn’t allowed for file management and transfer until now, it will be a long time until we see anything from them, and the same goes for Bluetooth.
In the conclusion of my “Month with the iPhone” piece, I predicted that we would likely get new “features” and “functionality” in upcoming releases that nobody really wants. I said, “future iPhones will certainly have the ability to let you purchase a lot of crap from iTunes that you really want to be able to load on your iPhone yourself, like videos or ringtones. It will also include subscription or fee-based apps and services that should be free or should have been included in the first place.” The launch of the iTunes iPhone store has certainly confirmed that prediction.
I won’t join the chorus bemoaning the proliferation of shoddy me-too applications available from iTunes for absurd prices. That’s just the free market. If someone wants to charge $3 for a “flashlight” app that works the same as the free flashlight app from someone else, then I applaud Apple for not interfering with the marketplace and giving them a chance to try to sell it. My only complaint is when the iPhone’s potential is compromised by Apple in order to protect a dubious revenue stream or partner preference. I fear that Apple will succumb to these temptations all too easily, to the detriment of the platform. I only hope that the hacker community continues to pick up where Apple has dropped off.
I am bothered by Apple’s on-again/off-again bit with NetShare, the unexplained grumblings with BoxOffice, the ridiculous approval process, and their limitation of competing apps, such as an alternative browser or media player.
I think the lack of MMS is embarassing. Every US carrier supports it. To throw away something so many use seems silly. I’m surprised AT&T doesn’t insist on it if only for the additional revenue.
The lack of wireless sync spits in the face of all Apple work over the last 5 years. I have ONE wire going to my mac for power. Keys, mouse, network, everything else – even a time machine volume – is wireless. That my CELL PHONE needs a data line to sync – a device whose sole purpose is to be wireless – should be seen as a direct insult to developers who made the Mac what it is.
Also, I’m surprised there’s still no copy/paste and A2DP, if only to shut up the detractors!
That said, I LOVE my iPhone. When I got my 3G, I gave my 1st gen to my wife, who loves it. It’s still the best phone on the market.
Adam, why can’t they just make us in charge?
Because I would totally want an iPhone in red. Red back, front, red UI, red headphones, camera that does the red variant of sepia, and so on.
And it wouldn’t sell.
to match your lipstick?
I think a lot of these problems will be fixed once the new Notification API is released this September.
http://gizmodo.com/5031559/iphone-developers-get-push-notification-…
Frankly many of the features you are complaining about lacking will be helped greatly by the notification API and will likely be implemented sometime after it is released.
Also many of the features people want with the iPhone will probably come with v3.0. The v1 was just to get it out the door, v2 was to release an initial SDK for third party developers, and v3 will probably be an updated and expanded SDK plus many of the current missing features. I mean hell it took until Leopard for Apple to make major modifications to Finder in OS X. Once the notification API is released that will probably be it for v2 besides bug fixes especially for MobileMe per the rumored recent e-mail by Steve Jobs.
Improved bluetooth does seem like such a killer app for an Apple product doesn’t it. Maybe they’re waiting for Wireless USB?
Edit: fixed word selection
Edited 2008-08-05 23:55 UTC
On a more serious note though, we Dutch finally got iPhone’d, and withint a few moments, the 5 iPhones Apple allocated to The Netherlands were sold out, and now there’s a waiting list of 4 weeks.
I sneaked to my friendly neighbourhood Apple dealer, and I played for a short while with the 3G iPhone they had in the shop. It didn’t blow me away or anything (it takes a whole lot to wow me) but I was still pretty much impressed. I totally hated the touchscreen bit (I generally have slightly sweaty hands, so do the math), but I think I could get used to it. The animations were nice, everything was fast, and overall, I was impressed.
2.0.1 is a very worthwhile upgrade and does a lot to fix interface lag, it seems. The first gen phones on 1.1.4 were really tight. In time, 2.0 will get that way too.
As for sweaty hands, you really need a special anti-glare sheet for the iphone. It prevents fingerprints, etc and feels better on the fingers anyway.
I don’t have sweaty hands, but I’ve had hard time understanding why so many people seem to get excited by touchscreen technology in general nowadays? How much is it just a new cool looking toy to those who tend to get excited by fashionable new tech in general? Or are touchscreens really better in their usability than good keyboards and buttons?
You know, there might have been and may still be quite good usability reasons why in many (most?) cases people have preferred to use clear buttons and keyboards instead of (unclear?) touchscreens when controlling machines and technology.
It’s mostly the “wow” factor I think, though the multitouch — especially in some games on the iPhone — is really intuitive. For example, there’s a free Mahjongg game that uses nearly every multitouch gesture to control the game board, which makes it much easier to zoom in and focus on a particular part of the board.
That said, I really miss my Treo’s hardware keyboard at times; I’m still not as fast on the iPhone even though it has adequate word correction. Also, I’m a touch typist and I type all day at work, so I’m used to using both hands and getting peaks of 90 WPM. with the Treo I could use both thumbs and got about 25-30 WPM on a good day. On the iPhone it’s one finger only unless I’m in Safari and landscape mode and even then I only get about 10-12 WPM. The lack of tactile feedback is also a major issue; I find myself constantly looking back and forth from the keyboard to the input area so I can watch where I put my fingers. With the Treo I got good at sliding my thumbs across the keys without even looking, subconsciously counting the dimples just as I do the frets and strings when I play guitar.
Yes, it’s a cool toy, and I’ve just about come to the conclusion that it will never be more than a toy to me. It’s just not enough phone for my needs, and while I enjoy the ability to watch video and listen to music wherever I go, there are more durable and less frustrating phones out there that do so with less restrictions on file format to boot. I think I’ll end up with a Nokia N-Series phone in the near future, and this bad boy will go on the auction block.
touchscreen aren’t new, but the interesting point of the iPhone is that you’re expected to use it with your finger instead of a stupid pointer.
So of course, it feels much more natural.
That said, I doubt that the iPhone is better for writing SMS or email that phones which have a keyboard.
Well I was kind of skeptical as well until I got a chance to play with an iPod touch for 45 minutes. While I’m in no way ready to declare the death of hardware buttons, it really needs to be said that Apple’s particular touch screen solution really does work. They really did nail it. Especially for browsing the web it worked far better than I expected.
That being said my dream iPhone would still have some sort of sliding out hardware qwerty keyboard, but I in no way consider it a necessity.
I’m going to be completely honest. My biggest gripe with my iPhone, beyond the freezing and corrupted backups, beyond the apps that don’t work as advertised (or at all), beyond the need to reboot the phone at least once daily since 2.0 was installed…
My biggest gripe is how delicate it is. I’ve dropped it about 10 times in the five months I’ve owned it, and every time I do a vision of glass shattering and flying everywhere flashes before my eyes. So far, I’ve gotten off with a couple of scratches on the metal back and a short but deep scratch on the glass just above the active part of the screen. The day will come, however, when it will be destroyed by my active lifestyle. I agonized for months about getting one because I knew how hard I was on phones. I finally bought it when the Nokia N73 I was considering instead, sold out at all the retailers with the best prices (i.e. less than $400).
And no, I’m not going to get a belt case for it. I don’t wear a belt and I’m not going to start wearing one just for a phone, no matter how expensive the device is. Besides, past experience with phone clips and cases on my work phone tells me it would just get knocked into doorways and scrubbed on file cabinets anyway.
I really, really wish Casio would make a GSM version of the G’zOne. The new Boulder edition of that one is the toughest “feature phone” I’ve ever come across. Throw Symbian on it and make it GSM and it’ll be my phone for the next five years or more.
The obvious solution is to *stop dropping your phone*.
Well duh, that would be nice, wouldn’t it? But this is the real world and I don’t just sit in my bed all day cradling my Precious and growling at anyone who glances at it. It’s a phone, not a crystal vase, and it’s going to be dropped, kicked, sat on, etc. no matter how careful I am. I actually have a job, a social life and a family, and such things tend to involve using the phone as opposed to putting it on a pedestal and worshipping it.
In other words, it’s a tool and a damn expensive one at that, and it should be able to stand up to regular use. It turns out I made a bad decision buying it, and now I’m looking for something less fragile and more sensible.
Is all that okay with you, mate?
Just put it on a lanyard and wear it around your neck.
If you don’t wear a belt, what do you wear?
Pants that actually fit.
“It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s Captain Obvious!”
The last two sentences don’t seem to support your “biggest gripe”. If your phone got away with just a few scratches after being dropped 10 times, that would mean it is not all that delicate, wouldn’t it.
That’s because I’ve been lucky, not because the phone is sturdy. So far the drops have been on carpet and wood floors, but one day it’s going to be concrete and I just don’t see the phone surviving that one.
If you are that active, and are that clumsy with your phone, then get a rubberized sleeve and/or a screen protector. From your description, you are running around with a naked phone.
any smartphone will suffer some damage if dropped in the manner you described. Spend $20-$40 to protect your investment.
Try these:
http://store.apple.com/us/product/TS480VC/A?n=iphone2&fnode=home/sh…
http://www.zagg.com/?gclid=CKTrvNmp-ZQCFQSwFQodn05Lrg
http://store.apple.com/us/product/TS713VC/A?n=iphone2&fnode=home/sh…
still better than running around naked with a phone.
That’s what I’ve been saying.
Touchscreens are nice for a lot of stuff, but for *everything*? I can’t stand smudges on my screens…
*shivers*
Nice article. Informative, well written, well paced, well organized.
Apple’s products seem to bring out the nitpicker in me. The air is almost exactly what I want in an upgrade (i use a toshiba r200), but a few deficiencies or design decisions (no ethernet, only 1 usb, only 1 mouse button) led me to abstain.
When the iPhone came out, I tried to look at it from the standpoint of all of the other phones and their horrible OSes. I found myself saying “If it had a real GPS and was 3g, that’d be enough”, but now the poor battery life and the way they have treated developers of the past year turns me away.
I think it’s the sense pretentiousness (real or imagined) that I get from their products, or their price, that leads me to act like this. In the end, when I realized that it’d cost me $1300 on top of my current cell plan to get an iPhone due to AT&T’s outrageous pricing plans, the final nail in that coffin was hit.
People constantly criticize Microsoft for not being open enough, but then flock to Apple in droves with open arms and embrace one the most closed vendors out there.
When you choose Apple, you choose not to have a choice.
Microsoft have opted with the “open” approach resulting in more hardware and added apps freedom. Apple have chosen the closed platform resulting in sexier hardware and a more consistent experience.
Those complaining about MS not being “open” enough are those who WANT an open platform so when Microsoft lets them down in that regard, they complain.
When Apple users complain it’s generally when the company falls short of it’s “it just works” ideal.
These are in fact different groups of people complaining about different things.
The problem with MS is their silly attitude that open standards are not adopted unless they created the standard themselves (OOXML vs ODF, XPS vs. PDF, etc.).
They’d rather take an open standard and ’embrace and extend’ it so it gets useless for the public because the monoply vendor had his own financial benefit instead of interoperability in mind.
When you choose MS, you choose to have a choice to buy MS.
I remember your first article – thanks for being even-handed.
I just got an iPod Touch. At first, I was so impressed by the sheer coolness of it, then I felt uncomfortable as I was figuring it out and getting used to it, and now I realize the world will be using this kind of technology in everything in the next few years. I want an iPhone now. I hate using my stupid Samsung cellphone. It almost makes me wish I could dump my laptop too and just use a touch.
Anyway, I do agree about wireless sync options being a missing piece. But beyond that, I’ve enjoyed the Touch and plan on getting an iPhone in the next six months.
I do get tired of people complaining about Apple’s lack of openness. I think it’s just a boring argument, especially when non-open companies like Apple make easy to use software and hardware that is better than anything open. They aren’t perfect by any means, but I like choice too.
Really? Is that right? I’m afraid that strikes out the iPhone for an awful lot of people who you would have thought Apple would want to buy the iPhone.
Really? Is that right? I’m afraid that strikes out the iPhone for an awful lot of people who you would have thought Apple would want to buy the iPhone.
When I read your comment I was like hit on the head with a large pole; I just HAD to google and check if it was true. Apparently yes, it’s true. There is no MMS support in iPhone unless you install something called SwirlyMMS (and finnish keys “~AP~A¤~Ayen” don’t work in it). That’s pretty fcucked up really, iPhone is supposed to be a multimedia phone and all that and it lacks MMS? O_o That’s one big reason for me to avoid iPhone.
That was a big issue for me as well when I was considering buying mine. Not that I actually use MMS a lot, but on other phones I’ve used it to send a quick picture along with some text to better explain what I’m seeing. What finally convinced me to ignore this gross oversight was the fact that you can email pictures to most mobile phones and they are received as MMS messages. Apple must have been considering this when they designed the Photo app because it includes an “Email to:” button right in the photo browser. The downside is having to figure out your mate’s device email address (example: Verizon is “[email protected]”) and then add it to their entry in Contacts. It’s a chore but it gets the job done.
However, lack of a video record option with such a decent camera (for a phone) is another slap in the face, and again a lot of people will ask why you can’t send video from your $200-400 phone when they can from their chintzy free camera phone.
There is third party app support for recording video. But there again, you have to pay for something that should have been included.
That’s fine when you have corporate ‘push’ e-mail facilities available to you (in which case you can even stop texting), but for the vast majority of people who just take pictures of things and just want to generally send them to people in their contacts list without much fuss it’s a bit of a non-starter. I also thought the networks would have been puzzled about this as well, as they can’t charge for MMS messages.
Edited 2008-08-06 22:25 UTC
I’ve had my iPhone (1st gen) for a couple of months. Alas jail broken as officially it doesn’t exist here…
The unforgivable:
* no sms forwarding
* no Vcard sms support
* No MMS – but that doesn’t really bother me. you can always email instead. which is basically what mms is (though initiated through signaling channel)
Despite these really really bad shortcomings it is still BY FAR the best phone i’ve ever used. The App Store integration is amazing and has to be experienced to be appreciated. As it is jailbroken I have access to other 3rd party apps.
My one regret, not buying it sooner. I was a happy P800 user but was very disapointed by SE’s subsequent releases.
Re, touchscreen. for general use its perfect. for typing it does the job (far from perfect but does the job)
EDIT: just wanted to add a note about Netshare. Its amazing. does exactly what it says on the tin. Just setup a new profile on my Macbook Air and Steve’s your uncle.
Edited 2008-08-06 12:46 UTC