<p>I noticed on another thread several people raving about their iphones. I am just curious, what exactly does the iphone do? D has wanted one for a while now–not sure why except that a lot of her friends have one.</p>
<p>They have instant, seamless access to the internet. It’s like having a tiny computer in your pocket. And an iPod with video camera and play-back and all kinds of fun stuff besides the phone. You have to pay ($30/month) for the data plan on AT&T , which is the only company offering them (unless you buy one on eBay that has been “unlocked” by some unknown person and may or may not work)
I just got one. It’s fun, and I have enjoyed it. Is it worth the extra money? Not sure yet. I’m not a heavy phone user. The $30/month data plan DOES NOT INCLUDE TEXT MESSAGES! That’s the part that bothers me the most. I’m now $35 over my basic phone bill to include 200 messages/month. Text messages are how my kids communicate with us, and trying to do it through the email server hasn’t been successful in our family. YMMV</p>
<p>There are levels to the iphone. It is a phone, of course, and it handles email very well - including exchange mail. It’s also an ipod and that is interrelated with the phone very well. The user interface is extremely easy to use and is natural. Above that, putting aside browsing the web for a moment, the apps can be amazing. The iphone is a terrific game player - though it’s not perfect for games like pinball that could use a physical button. It can be used as a flashlight. A guy used it for 1st aid advice that kept him alive in rubble in Haiti. I use it as a level and plumb bob. I’ve used it to test my hearing. It’s frankly amazing what can be done with the apps. </p>
<p>Now more apps are becoming available for other phones so the question will over time be which phone has the best experience - and which you simply prefer. Most ads, IMHO, ridiculously distort a phone’s capabilities so don’t trust what you see.</p>
<p>As for web browsing, the Verizon ads make it sound like 3G is God’s gift but it’s actually a fairly slow system that is only marginally better than the old system. I find that using wifi makes web browsing much, much better but the truth is I don’t do it much with my phone. I also don’t read books on the phone - because the page size is too small. I think web on a phone is useful for distraction - for which I have games - or to check on something like a restaurant’s location.</p>
<p>The biggest issue, it seems to me (as someone who only uses her cell to make phone calls) is coverage. Around here, Verizon is clearly better than AT&T, but that may not hold true for where you live. There’s no point in having an iPhone if you can’t get reception…</p>
<p>Incredibly well-designed user interface that makes it possible for even old f***s like me to use most of the features. I use my iphone to check my email when I’m traveling, text my kids to keep in touch with them, check the day’s weather first thing in the morning while I’m still in bed, find the closest restaurant when I’m on the road, check traffic while I’m driving (to see how extensive that massive traffic jam really is). Oh, and for business, I check the day’s balances and outgoing checks for our business while I’m waiting for my husband to be ready to go.</p>
<p>is the gps free on the data plan or an extra charge?
How much does the texting package cost?
I think I want one! Verizon contract ends in May…woo hoo.</p>
<p>GPS is free with the plan. Text packages vary, but aren’t much.</p>
<p>I didn’t get the point of an iphone until I owned one…and now I don’t now how I lived without it. </p>
<ul>
<li>I LOVE the camera on it and use it more often than my regular camera as its always with me! I also downloaded some photo editing software that works great. </li>
<li>I use it as my work calendar and it synchs with microsoft outlook so my meetings pop up and poeple at work, like my secretary can add meetings in for me with reminders. </li>
<li>I have my FB on it, and its great for posting directly photos, links etc.</li>
<li><p>Check my mail when out and about, saves me having it pile up. </p></li>
<li><p>I love the applications you can download that add a ton of functions to your phone. Many are free, most cost 1-2 bucks. As but a few examples:</p></li>
<li><p>I download games for my nephew to play with my iphone, I play scramble while waiting in line</p></li>
<li><p>I have an app for urbanspoon to check out restaurants, another for movies playing</p></li>
<li><p>I use my iphone to run: listen to music, and I have an app that provides a running timer and log</p></li>
<li><p>I use my iphone to diet: I have a nutritional label app, and another to track weight watcher calculations and points</p></li>
<li><p>We use it a lot to travel: download gps for the area, train schedules etc.</p></li>
<li><p>My spouse and I downloaded kindle for free on our iphones and we buy books that way and read them on our iphones (we can read each others books too and it keeps track of the pages we each left off at). </p></li>
<li><p>I download movies and watch them on my iphone when on long flights. Good for viewing youtube as well.</p></li>
<li><p>Apparently you can get skype on your iphone now but I’ve not tried it. </p></li>
</ul>
<p>I find it all much easier and nicer to use than a regular cell phone.</p>
<p>“I didn’t get the point of an iphone until I owned one…and now I don’t now how I lived without it.”</p>
<p>Me too! Now I’m hooked, and DH wants to buy an iPad - lol.</p>
<p>As for $30/data plan - that is pretty standard across the board, although some carriers (Sprint?) include texting in it.</p>
<p>All of the above, plus the ability to have all my music, podcasts and audiobooks available, too. The on screen keyboard makes texting much simpler for me than using the small blackberry or phone keys. I used to bring a laptop when traveling for access to the internet, mail etc. No more. The iPhone does it all. </p>
<p>Unlimited text messaging is 30 bucks a month on the family plan, for up to 5 people.</p>
<p>Also- many people are eligible for discounts from AT&T- hospital employees get 24% off their monthly bills, union members get something, school employees get something. Check and see if you qualify.</p>
<p>You should also look into the Nexus One (which is what I have). You get just about everything that the iphone offers. Right now t-mobile offers the best deal, but you can use it with any carrier.</p>
<p>So far I’ve used maps and GPS.
Internet in strange town when we had the wrong address for a concert.
Games.
Pandora radio.
Music (instead of ipod)
Notes
Calendar (which downloads info from google calendar on my desktop)
gmail
youtube
to do list app</p>
<p>Unlike my old phone, this one doesn’t turn on and call random people because the buttons get pushed accidentally.</p>
<p>Hey Dragonmom- there is a free app called Text + (as in text plus) which allows you to send and receive texts for free, even from abroad, as long as you’re sending to a US phone number. Check it out. It’s pretty good, with a nice user interface, especially for texts that you initiate- it’s slightly more involved to receive a text started by someone else, since the app has to be running to receive.</p>
<p>Does anyone have any apps that you really love? Recommend, please.</p>
<p>How well does the Iphone work in Chicago?</p>
<p>Would love an IPhone, but in my little town (just a 20 minute drive to downtown LA) there is virtually NO ATT coverage. ATT is baaaad.</p>
<p>tsdad - have an iPhone in the Chicago area, and I travel six counties on a regular basis for work. My work cell phones have ranged from Verizon to Sprint to T-Mobile (they change contracts every two years), and my personal AT&T phone (whichever model I’ve had) has always had the most reliable coverage of all the plans.</p>
<p>tsdad: I’d been monitoring reports of iphone coverage in Chicago as I wanted to get D a new phone as a birthday gift. I’d read a number of reviews indicating that coverage in Chicago was spotty at best and downright unreliable at worst. However, AT&T has since done a massive upgrade to their infrastructure in the city. D has had an iphone since November and with the exception of occasional hiccups, has been enormously happy with her phone. She lives in north chicago (lakeview/wrigleyville area) and is in school in the heart of downtown chicago. </p>
<p>I think many of the blogs complaining about Chicago coverage may have been prior to the recent upgrades in service. But it’s also important to further investigate the specific areas where the phone would be used. D is so happy with her phone and says she can’t imagine ever being without it again. (And is worried about how she’ll pay for the service on her own once out of school!)</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>I have been with Sprint since they were Sprint Spectrum, but I really, really want an iPhone. Toys for boys kind of thing. The computer guy at work came in this week to give us new equipment (the first time in six years and we have to keep this stuff for four so I’m going to get a 24 inch monitor), and was doing all kinds of stuff with his iPhone. Except for the new Google phone, Sprint’s offerings seem unimaginative. Since we are often in downtown Chicago, River North, I want to make sure the iPhone works there.</p>
<p>I have to admit, I didn’t even text until I got an iphone (because it was much easier for me). And we LOVE photo texting. </p>
<p>Things like, “hey honey, look at these specs, is this a good deal?” (taking a photo of the description of some product in the store). Or funny things we see while out and about.</p>
<p>Another good use of the iphone is to take pictures of our boards in the classroom after doing a case or an interesting but unusual tangent or discussion. It’s a great way to remember the info to use in preparing the class for the following year.</p>
<p>Any thoughts about the Android as a competitor to to the iPhone, and which carrier is the best? If I stay with Sprint it looks like I need to pay $149, and they have a small memory, for each Android phone, but if I switch to Verizon they’re free.</p>
<p>I saw a funny article in the WSJ yesterday about Microsoft employees having iphones. Apparently, they have their own (Windows) mobile phone platform but it can’t compete. It’s interesting though…kinda like employees at Coke drinking Pepsi :)</p>