Overall
Here it is NS...
I bit the bullet. Steve Jobs couldn't stay away. Being a fan of all things Apple, I suppose it was only inevitable I would end up buying an iPhone. I waited for the price drop (now $399) and waited patiently for UPS.
The iPhone at first glance is beautiful. I can honestly say after a few days of owning one, I'm still in awe. The touch screen looks and feels great.
My overall impression of the iPhone is its incredible but flawed. Nothing is ever perfect, this comes so close. If you're on the fence, buy one. You will not be disappointed.
Performance
The phone feature is average. Nothing great, nothing terrible. Visual voicemail is great. I had voicemail from my grandmother, sister, and a business contact, I quickly went directly to the contact by simply tapping it with my finger.
SMS messaging is cool but the lack of picture messaging is pretty lame. Yet, I can still email photos to friends which is reality is a more effective way of sharing photos with friends. Plus it's free with the data plan!
The internet is awesome (when browsing on Wi-Fi). Edge service is slower than an old woman chain smoking cigs in traffic but it's still the internet. Mail is awesome. Google's GMAIL has completely jumped on board and it's easy as pie to access your email and reply. Youtube is also cool. I haven't yet tried to view NS videos but I know the iphone is not capable of viewing flash, which NS is moving towards. I feel this will be fixed in an update eventually.
The iPod feature is as good as an iPod can get. As Jobs says, "you can touch your music." Only draw back - it's only 8gb which is insane for a phone but limited for an ipod. I have a 30GB iPod so using both, is not a problem. I simply put my favorite playlists on my iPhone, and my entire library on my iPod.
Design
Beautiful. I mean, seriously, look at the thing. It's a chick magnet. No longer does the phrase, "pull it out of your pocket" make you a pervert kiddies. The only draw back is the weird headphone jack that requires a converter in order to use my Skull Candy headphones. Other than that, awesome. Simply Stunning!
Value
When deciding to use purchase this phone, I asked myself a few questions:
1) Do I need a revolutionary PDA/Will Is use all of its features?
I do a ton of emailing. I'm also in college. The ability to access the internet with literally a flick of my finger is amazing.
2. Why the iPhone?
Why not the iPhone? When making a purchase of this magnitude, I felt it was better to buy something I wouldn't regret having later. Many friends have relayed to me they don;t use their blackberries, PDA's treos, etc as much as they thought. I've never had this problem with an Apple product.
3. AT&T?
Sure it's the old Cingular but it's also the new ATT&T which offers much better service. The truch is no cell phone service is perfect but with its great internet capabilities, I expect a Voice-Over-IP app very soon.
Durability
In regards to durability, so far so good. I'm interested to see how it hold up during the winter months on a cold chairlift. The one great thing is no longer do I have to carry a cell phone AND an iPod with me during the day.
Quality
Amazing quality. It's an Apple product. 'nough said.
i just broke my ipod on saturday with it in its hard case. smashed the shit out of the screen and i didnt even fall very hard.