First look at UK iPhone
T3 video exclusive: We've taken a very close look at the iPhone, as it will be sold in the UK.
It can be yours on Friday! [more images]We came, we saw, and we blagged one of only a handful of fully working, o2-powered iPhones. Last week, in a secret London location (just west of Regent street), T3 met up with Apple's Greg 'Joz' Joswiak and o2's Director of Communications, Glen Manoff, for a natter about all things Jesus phone.
Given that we first mentioned the Apple iPhone back in January and, more recently, awarded it the most anticipated gadget of 2007, finally getting our grubby mitts on a UK iPhone was like waking up on Christmas Day and being told it was your birthday too. Twelve months of tick-inducing anticipation had, in an ephemeral moment, just been exchanged for internal squeals and loud snorts.
So, what's it like? Well, apart from the o2-engraved box, the UK iPhone is, externally, identical to the US version, which we reviewed back in August. The biggest modification is on the inside and is something that will have nerdgeeks sprinting to online forums in a message-posting furore. We can reveal that the UK iPhone is, in fact, installed with firmware version 1.1.2. Oh, how we wanted to post picture proof last week but would have run the risk of Steve Jobs personally removing our knackers. As well as more keyboard character sets, the updated firmware will have addressed security issues and minor bugs: Great for news overall stability, but it is likely to cause yet another uproar in Apple's loyal fanbase, as Apple is sure to have closed up the security loopholes (such as the TIFF exploit) which allowed people to hack the iPhone to run their own software.
The UK iPhone works just the same way as one bought from the states. However, having a solid week to play around on the o2 network meant we could road-test the experiences of iBlighty come 9 November. And impressed we were. Early reservations about the iPhone's lack of 3G were dampened with how well EDGE copes with Safari page loading (around 10 secs), Google map finding, email downloading and other net-based apps (weather and stocks). Glen did mention, however, that because we were testing in Beta, we might not reach warp speeds until the ninth. So, a chunky double thumbs up, although we'd like to see a greater selection of UK weather locations and an improved pop-up blocker - a roguish couple escaped the net.
Web-surfing on the iPhone is simply the best example of internet browsing on a handheld device. Ever. Zooming is smooth, pages look great thanks to its super-sharp screen and the virtual keyboard is quick to learn - we were double finger pecking within a few days. And now that IMAP has been added for Gmail, we were living the mobile office dream.
We do have some gripes, though...
1) The accelerometer doesn't work in Mail. Shame, as in landscape mode, the keys are more spaced, which reduces typing errors. The genius automatic spelling corrector does a fantastic job of fixing mistakes, mind.
2) Many standard email features, such as 'mark all as read' and 'mark as spam' aren't available. You can, however, have multiple email accounts running simultaneously. We had Gmail, .Mac and Yahoo Mail chugging away very nicely, with no hiccups. And adding new accounts is ridiculously easy; enter your username, password and you're away. Finally, a gizmo to properly rival the well-heeled crackberry.
Being a fully functioning British iPhone, we've been amusing ourselves with the UK iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store. While you can only connect via wi-fi (downloading tuneage over EDGE would just take forever), it's straightforward to use and effective. Song snippets can be previewed, iTunes+ music can be downloaded (now at the same 79p price tag) and everything is synched back to your computer-based iTunes account. Brilliant.
Downsides are, at present, no video or podcast downloads and a limited run of 'proper' iTunes featurettes; 'iTunes Festival: London' and 'buy iTunes gifts', to name but a couple. However, downloading a 5min tune takes less than a minute (on a decent broadband wi-fi connection or, when it's up and running on the 9th, Cloud wifi hotspots) and everything is nicely catalogued into the iPhone's music library.
The iPhone can be synched to one 'pooter-based iTunes library and the new version of iTunes (we were given 7.5 d15) supports Ringtones as well as iCal and the Address Book. However, in a move that would annoy Ghandi, it's impossible to drag music files directly into an iPhone's playlist. Conversely, all choons have to be stored locally in an iTunes playlist, which then has to be synched to the iPhone. Obviously there are ways to make this process easier but if you're used to an iPod, this new direction makes no sense. What's more, just like on the US iPhone, there doesn't seem to be a way to click on an address in iCal and have it appear in Google Maps. A hitch before the final release, perhaps?
Another exasperating issue is the headphone socket. While it's a 3.5mm input, a surrounding lip means it's impossible to use anything bar the bundled earphones. Ok, so sound-wise they're a marked improvement on the original white ear-bleeders and now they've got a in-built mic that can be squeezed to take an incoming call, pause the current track, or - by a swift double squeeze - skip to the next track. But come on Apple, at least give us the opportunity to make our own acoustical decision, why do you mock us so?
Another pain in the rear chute is the iPhone's ineptitude to talk to any Bluetooth device bar Apple-endorsed headsets. So, no across-the-pub-table contact sharing and definitely no tube 'toothing'. We hoped this might have changed in the new firmware update, but alas, no such luck.
On the plus side, visual voicemail is a real treat. Just like Jobs bragged earlier this year, messages can be selected at will and paused, rewound and skipped, just like an audio file. It's a bonafide step in the right direction for mobile telephony and compellingly useful. Even your voicemail message can be recorded from the iPhone itself and then uploaded to the system. It's an ingenious piece of work.
However, mashing our spirits (slightly) are two of the most infuriating and utterly illogical decisions that Apple could have ever made: You can't SMS more than one person at once (so, no group texting) and that the iPhone is incapable of sending or receiving MMS messages.
Not only do we think that most UK phone-owners class picture messaging as a standard feature, it's also an obvious money spinner for o2 and Apple. So, we posed the simple question why? Joz's answer was that 'Apple only wants to deal in hi-res images and these can be emailed'. 'But hold up', we retorted, 'surely the all-powerful iPhone has the technology to resize hi-res originals?' Joz repeated 'sure, but users are used to hi-res photos and that's where we want to be'. Glen's silence suggested a trick missed.
However, did uncover a nice piece of insider info: If you've signed up to an o2 contract before 18 Sep 2007, you can break it and jump onto an iPhone plan without incurring any leaving or contract-moving costs. You'll be able to keep your old handset too. Result.
Apple answers some of our questions
Of course, we weren't going to let Apple away with the flaws we found, so we went ahead and asked them. The answers from the Apple spokesperson were... Less than enlightening. They do hint at even more functionality being unlocked in future firmware updates, however...
1) Why can't you drag and drop music direct into iPhone playlists within iTunes?
There is no drag and drop functionality on iPhone. iPhone uses iTunes to sync contacts, calendars, photos, music, videos and more just like iPod.
2) Why doesn't the screen rotate in Mail?
With the latest software update for iPhone you can view email attachments in landscape.
3) Why can't you send group text messages?
We don't comment on future products or features. This is the first iPhone and you have to make choices about what to include and what not to at some point. That said, one of the unique benefits of iPhone is our ability to easily add new features/functionality at some point in the future via software update.
4) Why has the headphone socket been designed in a way that all 3.5mm jacks won't fit?
The headphone socket is recessed for functional and aesthetic reasons. There are third party adapters available (Belkin is one example) for iPhone that enable the use of a wide range of headphones.
So, while the iPhone is undoubtedly the most forward-thinking, most innovative, most glorious piece of mobile technology since the Motorola DynaTAC, it's also deeply maddening. Basic features that the UK mobile population have been privy to for so long have been overlooked. While these can be updated through future firmware releases, we think these irritations could be irksome enough to discourage those wanting to replace their existing pocket rocket. Shame, as it's the best piece of kit we've seen all year.
source
It can be yours on Friday! [more images]We came, we saw, and we blagged one of only a handful of fully working, o2-powered iPhones. Last week, in a secret London location (just west of Regent street), T3 met up with Apple's Greg 'Joz' Joswiak and o2's Director of Communications, Glen Manoff, for a natter about all things Jesus phone.
Given that we first mentioned the Apple iPhone back in January and, more recently, awarded it the most anticipated gadget of 2007, finally getting our grubby mitts on a UK iPhone was like waking up on Christmas Day and being told it was your birthday too. Twelve months of tick-inducing anticipation had, in an ephemeral moment, just been exchanged for internal squeals and loud snorts.
So, what's it like? Well, apart from the o2-engraved box, the UK iPhone is, externally, identical to the US version, which we reviewed back in August. The biggest modification is on the inside and is something that will have nerdgeeks sprinting to online forums in a message-posting furore. We can reveal that the UK iPhone is, in fact, installed with firmware version 1.1.2. Oh, how we wanted to post picture proof last week but would have run the risk of Steve Jobs personally removing our knackers. As well as more keyboard character sets, the updated firmware will have addressed security issues and minor bugs: Great for news overall stability, but it is likely to cause yet another uproar in Apple's loyal fanbase, as Apple is sure to have closed up the security loopholes (such as the TIFF exploit) which allowed people to hack the iPhone to run their own software.
The UK iPhone works just the same way as one bought from the states. However, having a solid week to play around on the o2 network meant we could road-test the experiences of iBlighty come 9 November. And impressed we were. Early reservations about the iPhone's lack of 3G were dampened with how well EDGE copes with Safari page loading (around 10 secs), Google map finding, email downloading and other net-based apps (weather and stocks). Glen did mention, however, that because we were testing in Beta, we might not reach warp speeds until the ninth. So, a chunky double thumbs up, although we'd like to see a greater selection of UK weather locations and an improved pop-up blocker - a roguish couple escaped the net.
Web-surfing on the iPhone is simply the best example of internet browsing on a handheld device. Ever. Zooming is smooth, pages look great thanks to its super-sharp screen and the virtual keyboard is quick to learn - we were double finger pecking within a few days. And now that IMAP has been added for Gmail, we were living the mobile office dream.
We do have some gripes, though...
1) The accelerometer doesn't work in Mail. Shame, as in landscape mode, the keys are more spaced, which reduces typing errors. The genius automatic spelling corrector does a fantastic job of fixing mistakes, mind.
2) Many standard email features, such as 'mark all as read' and 'mark as spam' aren't available. You can, however, have multiple email accounts running simultaneously. We had Gmail, .Mac and Yahoo Mail chugging away very nicely, with no hiccups. And adding new accounts is ridiculously easy; enter your username, password and you're away. Finally, a gizmo to properly rival the well-heeled crackberry.
Being a fully functioning British iPhone, we've been amusing ourselves with the UK iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store. While you can only connect via wi-fi (downloading tuneage over EDGE would just take forever), it's straightforward to use and effective. Song snippets can be previewed, iTunes+ music can be downloaded (now at the same 79p price tag) and everything is synched back to your computer-based iTunes account. Brilliant.
Downsides are, at present, no video or podcast downloads and a limited run of 'proper' iTunes featurettes; 'iTunes Festival: London' and 'buy iTunes gifts', to name but a couple. However, downloading a 5min tune takes less than a minute (on a decent broadband wi-fi connection or, when it's up and running on the 9th, Cloud wifi hotspots) and everything is nicely catalogued into the iPhone's music library.
The iPhone can be synched to one 'pooter-based iTunes library and the new version of iTunes (we were given 7.5 d15) supports Ringtones as well as iCal and the Address Book. However, in a move that would annoy Ghandi, it's impossible to drag music files directly into an iPhone's playlist. Conversely, all choons have to be stored locally in an iTunes playlist, which then has to be synched to the iPhone. Obviously there are ways to make this process easier but if you're used to an iPod, this new direction makes no sense. What's more, just like on the US iPhone, there doesn't seem to be a way to click on an address in iCal and have it appear in Google Maps. A hitch before the final release, perhaps?
Another exasperating issue is the headphone socket. While it's a 3.5mm input, a surrounding lip means it's impossible to use anything bar the bundled earphones. Ok, so sound-wise they're a marked improvement on the original white ear-bleeders and now they've got a in-built mic that can be squeezed to take an incoming call, pause the current track, or - by a swift double squeeze - skip to the next track. But come on Apple, at least give us the opportunity to make our own acoustical decision, why do you mock us so?
Another pain in the rear chute is the iPhone's ineptitude to talk to any Bluetooth device bar Apple-endorsed headsets. So, no across-the-pub-table contact sharing and definitely no tube 'toothing'. We hoped this might have changed in the new firmware update, but alas, no such luck.
On the plus side, visual voicemail is a real treat. Just like Jobs bragged earlier this year, messages can be selected at will and paused, rewound and skipped, just like an audio file. It's a bonafide step in the right direction for mobile telephony and compellingly useful. Even your voicemail message can be recorded from the iPhone itself and then uploaded to the system. It's an ingenious piece of work.
However, mashing our spirits (slightly) are two of the most infuriating and utterly illogical decisions that Apple could have ever made: You can't SMS more than one person at once (so, no group texting) and that the iPhone is incapable of sending or receiving MMS messages.
Not only do we think that most UK phone-owners class picture messaging as a standard feature, it's also an obvious money spinner for o2 and Apple. So, we posed the simple question why? Joz's answer was that 'Apple only wants to deal in hi-res images and these can be emailed'. 'But hold up', we retorted, 'surely the all-powerful iPhone has the technology to resize hi-res originals?' Joz repeated 'sure, but users are used to hi-res photos and that's where we want to be'. Glen's silence suggested a trick missed.
However, did uncover a nice piece of insider info: If you've signed up to an o2 contract before 18 Sep 2007, you can break it and jump onto an iPhone plan without incurring any leaving or contract-moving costs. You'll be able to keep your old handset too. Result.
Apple answers some of our questions
Of course, we weren't going to let Apple away with the flaws we found, so we went ahead and asked them. The answers from the Apple spokesperson were... Less than enlightening. They do hint at even more functionality being unlocked in future firmware updates, however...
1) Why can't you drag and drop music direct into iPhone playlists within iTunes?
There is no drag and drop functionality on iPhone. iPhone uses iTunes to sync contacts, calendars, photos, music, videos and more just like iPod.
2) Why doesn't the screen rotate in Mail?
With the latest software update for iPhone you can view email attachments in landscape.
3) Why can't you send group text messages?
We don't comment on future products or features. This is the first iPhone and you have to make choices about what to include and what not to at some point. That said, one of the unique benefits of iPhone is our ability to easily add new features/functionality at some point in the future via software update.
4) Why has the headphone socket been designed in a way that all 3.5mm jacks won't fit?
The headphone socket is recessed for functional and aesthetic reasons. There are third party adapters available (Belkin is one example) for iPhone that enable the use of a wide range of headphones.
So, while the iPhone is undoubtedly the most forward-thinking, most innovative, most glorious piece of mobile technology since the Motorola DynaTAC, it's also deeply maddening. Basic features that the UK mobile population have been privy to for so long have been overlooked. While these can be updated through future firmware releases, we think these irritations could be irksome enough to discourage those wanting to replace their existing pocket rocket. Shame, as it's the best piece of kit we've seen all year.
source
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