"This is pretty brilliant in its own special way. Let's paint the scene -- you're wandering the cold streets of Chicago a few months from now, and you're wondering where the closest pizza place is. You whip out your iPhone to pull up the Google Maps application, but wait -- your hands are covered in gloves, and no matter how much you try to swipe the screen, you can't get it to register your swipes, much less hit those little keys on the keyboard. But it's too cold to take your gloves off -- what do you do?"
"There are a lot of App Store submissions and works-in-progress that trigger anticipatory drooling here at TUAW, among them the program guide and movie finder i. TV; we first saw it a few weeks ago and I've been checking every day to see if it's shipped. Now you can download this free tool from the App Store and see for yourself what's so exciting. (The promo video on the i.tv site borrows heavily from Apple's 1984 ad and the Apple TV intro, so clearly there's an effort to brand this app as 'revolutionary.')
The heart of i. TV is a TV listings browser, which connects to the free data feed from the i.tv site (registration is required), including synopses and cast info. You can select your zip code and programming provider and the current schedules are there at your fingertips; you can rate, review, filter or flag shows as favorites and optionally share your feedback with other i.TV users."
This is pretty damn cool. I hope Apple approves it.
"Heart Monitor on the iPhone 3G uses the in built microphone to detect, calculate and store your heart rate. You can measure the pulse on your neck or wrist and even directly over your heart.
A second mode allows you to simply measure your pulse manually when training by telling you when to start and stop counting. You can then enter your pulse count and this too will be stored."
I love my iPhone but considering the impact on usability based on issues I’ve experienced while using it, I’m not so sure it’s worth what it costs. Considering the bill is around $90 a month after one accounts for the taxes the fed tacks on, I feel that it should run pretty flawlessly. As I have found, unfortunately, it does not. This list isn’t about what iPhone is missing (Flash, cut and paste, etc.), but more about what it has that just doesn’t work.
1. Terrible 3G reception
This isn’t so much a problem with iPhone (maybe) but more of a complaint against AT&T. Their 3G network blows. I find myself using Edge almost all of the time, except when I’m at my girlfriend’s since that’s the only place I get good 3G reception, unless I’m in her backyard or about a block down the street. Then my phone gets 0 to 1 bar on 3G and usually switches over to Edge. I’m not necessarily pissed that 3G isn’t so great; it’s more the fact that I’m paying for a service that doesn’t really work and I have no choice but to stick with it for two years. I also live right outside of Philadelphia in one of the most densely populated areas in the U.S. What’s your excuse AT&T?
On a side note, Engadget posted about this and apparently their issue was a faulty iPhone. Two of my friends also have iPhone 3G and their rec... Read more
I noticed this when I went to use my iPhone 3G with my car stereo adapter.
"Buyers of Apple's new iPhone 3G are complaining that, unlike the original version, the device can't be used with many of the pricey charging stations, sound docks, and other accessories they had bought previously for their iPods.
"My Monster car charger has always worked with the original iPhone and now it won't charge. Very annoying," wrote user "OkSurya", in a message posted Saturday on Apple's iPhone 3G support forum. Another user, "Aapl", reported being "bummed when my new Bose SoundDock didn't work."
A number of forum members speculated that the problem relates to the fact the iPhone 3G exclusively uses a USB connection to link to charging devices, whereas the original iPhone can use either USB or Firewire connections. Some users on the forum said they are hoping that Apple or third party vendors like Bose will develop adapters that will enable them to connect the iPhone 3G to Firewire-based equip... Read more
"We all suspected it, but now it is confirmed: someone very, very close to the 3G iPhone launch has told me that Apple will announce their new model at the WWDC Keynote on June 9th. The second-generation iPhone will be available worldwide right after the launch, and not at year's end, as previously thought. The new model will also herald new sales policies in some countries.
In Spain, for example, the 3G iPhone will be available for sale at the June 18th grand opening of Telefonica's megastore—an Apple Store-like shop located in the company's historical building in Madrid's Gran Vía— with nationwide availability the next day or after a few hours. The other European countries with iPhone availability will have similar launch schedules.
According to another source involved in the launch, the 3G iPhone will no longer be available at a fixed price point—at least in some countries, and its launch will also bring new sales policies, although these have not been completely specified yet.... Read more
