iPhone: Is it worth it?

Hello,
We have an iPad thread, I thought it worth to open an iPhone thread, especially since I'm thinking of getting one.

I'm currently in Australia on exchange. I will be here for another 8 months and I am thinking of getting the iPhone 4 16GB. I've never had a smartphone before, but everyone has been telling me it's really great to have one.
The possibility of (easily) accessing IM programs (e.g. Yahoo Messenger, Skype...), surfing the web, getting 3G internet, wifi, iPod, and so on all packed into one osunds amazing.
What do you think ?

Also, does anyone know if the warranty extends back to the UK ? Since, I will only be here for another 8 months or so, I was wondering if the warranty extends globally and if getting the apple care protection plan for the iPhone is worth it and would also be global ?
If not, is there some kind of other insurance policy that I can take for a few months in Australia and then get another one in the UK ?
Worth it ?

Another question ? Should I just buy it unlocked from the Apple AU store or buy it from EBay unlocked ?

Well, I'm writing this on an iPhone right now. My wife gave me mine for my birthday last year. I used to only have super-cheap cellphones as I really don't phone much on the go. But the iPhone is a nice gadget. Its my agenda, my mobile email client, my GPS, a mobile browser, my iPod, and a mobile gaming platform. I like it and use it constantly. Wether its better then this or that, or wether Apple is evil empire, I don't care

The important thing to consider is pricing. Don't only look at the price of the phone, as it's usually subsidized by the phone companies. For example, when I was looking for phones, the iPhone was "$200" (or something like that). I put it in quotes because, after considering the cost over the 2 years of the contract, it ended up being about $1000 more than other phones. Basically, the monthly cost for the required voice+data was over $100 with AT&T (exclusive provider for iphone), while for other phones it was much less (the one I ended up getting, the Palm Pre, was about $65/month, so the $35 difference/month over 2 years, that's about $850+).
So, I don't know how it is in Australia, but consider the plans, don't only look at the up-front cost.

Well, that's another +1 for the iPhone.
Any idea on the other stuff I asked? And which iPhone do you have ? 3Gs ?

wolfing: Since I'm only in Australia for less than a year, I'd have to get it full-price. It's either getting the old 3Gs for 720$ or the 4 for 850$.
It's quite expensive I think, but if it's really as good as most people have been telling me then it might be worth it. I could use it for small gaming, browsing, IMing, music and so on, so it would be like having a phone, MP3 player, small usb drive, hand-held game console all-in-one.
My previous iPod - the iPod Photo 30GB - broke a bit more than a year ago and I have missed having one, so at first I was thinking about the iPod touch, but then the iPhone would get me so much more in one packet, albeit at a higher price.

Pladio said:

Well, that's another +1 for the iPhone.
Any idea on the other stuff I asked? And which iPhone do you have ? 3Gs ?

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I have the 3GS. I THINK that Apples own warranty is independent of your country of residence, but any additional services or plans are probably tied to your provider, and would probably become void. If you are in the mood for legal drivel, check for yourself :
http://www.apple.com/legal/warranty/iphone/

No idea about your other questions, sorry.

Pladio said:

I could use it for small gaming, browsing, IMing, music and so on, so it would be like having a phone, MP3 player, small usb drive, hand-held game console all-in-one.
My previous iPod - the iPod Photo 30GB - broke a bit more than a year ago and I have missed having one, so at first I was thinking about the iPod touch, but then the iPhone would get me so much more in one packet, albeit at a higher price.

Click to expand...

There are other alternatives that do all that too. I have all that in my two years old nokia phone. People say that iphone is better for its ui but since I have never had ui problems with my current phone and have never used iphone I cant comment on that.

But generally speaking after buying my first smartphone there was no going back to cheap phones. I have taken i.e 800 pictures with it, listen to spotify/radio, use the messenger and browser all the time. Im sure you are in for lots of treat if this is your first.

It would be my first first... lol (seems weird saying that)

As mentioned above definitely check on plans, insurance / warranty, reactivation fees when you return and so on.

It also depends on carrier coverage. I am locked into Verizon Wireless here for two reasons (1) entire extended family is on VZW making all calls / texts free and (2) coverage. I had a AT&T pay-as-you-go when I first moved here until I could get a camera pass at work, and coverage was abysmal.

For the past year I have had a Motorola Droid (Android OS 2.2), and during that time also tried out HTC Touch Pro 2 (Windows Mobile 6.5) and Palm Pre Plus (WebOS 1.5). All three are fine, but I use so much Google stuff that the Android OS just rocks for me. One thing I missed elsewhere was Google Maps navigation ... it is really top notch and even better than the dedicated GPS in my wife's car!

I think the iPhone is an excellent device ... but as everyone else said, there are tons of things to consider!

I would wait right now, win phone 7 is just out, and early reviews says its faster and slicker than the iphone........ not sure whatever to believe it yet or not... but at the very least I would expect it to cause some price drops.... so if you want a smart phone wait and see.... and of course android phones offer more for a less price.... and there are lots of free apps for it too.

Personally I wouldn't trust on Windows 7 phones. They promise a lot, and initially look better, until you worked with it for a few weeks. Same thing happened with 6.x, which I currently have.

I know quite some people who either have the iPhone 4 or 3GS. From what I have heard and seen so far, it's an amazing phone. Only problem I have with it is that there is hardly any freedom in adapting the "inner works" (lay-outs, colors, button placement and looks etc). If you look at Android phones for example, you can see that the freedom of customizing the phone is amazing.

Have you every thought about the HTC Evo? Don't know if they have it in Australia yet (the network for that phone isn't available all over the world), From what I heard it's nearly as good, if not better, then the iPhone 4.

If you don't want an Android phone, I can certainly recommend the iPhone 4.

I love my iphone 3Gs, it's literally changed my life.

That said, it's my first super-phone, Ive always had cheapies up to this point. How it stacks up to the Droid, and similar superphones I'm not sure. My girl's droid does the internet quicker, even when we're on the home wifi network. OTher than that, I like iphones mapping, music, etc far better at a first glance comparison.

Even w/ the slower networking issue, still it gets the job done. I dont know how I went as long as I did without one quite frankly

GothicGothicness said:

win phone 7 is just out, and early reviews says its faster and slicker than the iphone.

Click to expand...

You have interesting sources in your anti-Apple reality distortion field

Windows Phone 7 *is* indeed just starting to creep out in some parts of the world, with wider availability coming in about a month. Not sure when AUS is targeted.

As for reviews, the general consensus is that it is slick and much more responsive than earlier WiMo versions, and that it has some advantages over the app-centric iOS and Android devices.

*HOWEVER* almost every review I've read calls it 'half baked' or 'undercooked' and wonders if the 'release now, fix later' approach will work or will end up costing it the business. There is no copy & paste, no multitasking, very restricted customization outside of piling on new 'tiles' on the home screen (which means endless scrolling with no 'home' button to get back to the top) and so on. Most of that stuff isn't due for 6 months at the earliest.

Also, the app market is supposed to have ~1000 apps come mid-November ... and most of the games are 2008 iPhone ports ...

So since he wants a phone NOT, I would say that iSO or Android are the only reasonable choices.

GothicGothicness said:

android phones offer more for a less price…. and there are lots of free apps for it too.

Click to expand...

While I would debate the 'more for less' as a very subjective statement from an obviously anti-Apple person (who has demonstrated this by saying people buying Apple products are stupid) ...

Android OS is excellent, has loads of options for utilities for general media consumption and so on. There is both good and bad hardware, with the general consensus that at least a few phones (in particular Moto Droid X and the Samsung one with 20 different names depending on carrier) that are very solid direct competitors to the iPhone.

Personally, while I do like Apple iOS stuff, I love my Droid and Android OS quite a bit and don't think I'd get an iPhone even if it came to Verizon. But between Android or iPhone you will have an awesome user experience and gravitate away from PC to more mobile consumption.

GhanBuriGhan said:

I have the 3GS. I THINK that Apples own warranty is independent of your country of residence, but any additional services or plans are probably tied to your provider, and would probably become void. If you are in the mood for legal drivel, check for yourself :
http://www.apple.com/legal/warranty/iphone/

No idea about your other questions, sorry.

Click to expand...

Do you know what the real differences are between 3Gs and 4 ? Since Apple will of course promote 4 over 3Gs, how much of a difference do you think it makes ?

zakhal said:

There are other alternatives that do all that too. I have all that in my two years old nokia phone. People say that iphone is better for its ui but since I have never had ui problems with my current phone and have never used iphone I cant comment on that.

But generally speaking after buying my first smartphone there was no going back to cheap phones. I have taken i.e 800 pictures with it, listen to spotify/radio, use the messenger and browser all the time. Im sure you are in for lots of treat if this is your first.

Click to expand...

The GUI of the iPhone does seem very attractive, however, can you give me any examples ? I've spoken to people who say the HTCs are good, but they say usually that it has some kind of drawback (even though I'm sure the iPhone has some too)

GothicGothicness said:

I would wait right now, win phone 7 is just out, and early reviews says its faster and slicker than the iphone…….. not sure whatever to believe it yet or not… but at the very least I would expect it to cause some price drops…. so if you want a smart phone wait and see…. and of course android phones offer more for a less price…. and there are lots of free apps for it too.

Click to expand...

The problem with wait and see is that there will always be something newer coming up. I learned this the hard way by waiting and seeing for a new laptop.

You can see how many new threads I opened about laptops over the years here on RPGWatch with my budget and what I was looking for (search: Author : Pladio and keyword: laptop. It's only in April that I finally bought a laptop and realized I should have done so earlier.

I'm sure that once the win7 phone pops out a new android model will pop out too,

Neo said:

Personally I wouldn't trust on Windows 7 phones. They promise a lot, and initially look better, until you worked with it for a few weeks. Same thing happened with 6.x, which I currently have.

I know quite some people who either have the iPhone 4 or 3GS. From what I have heard and seen so far, it's an amazing phone. Only problem I have with it is that there is hardly any freedom in adapting the "inner works" (lay-outs, colors, button placement and looks etc). If you look at Android phones for example, you can see that the freedom of customizing the phone is amazing.

Click to expand...

If there's one thing I'm not going to play with is the colours and looks. I'd like folders to put stuff in, but my laptop's wallpaper has been the stupid Windows logo since I got it 6 months ago. I think that tellls you how much I care for colours...

Have you every thought about the HTC Evo? Don't know if they have it in Australia yet (the network for that phone isn't available all over the world), From what I heard it's nearly as good, if not better, then the iPhone 4.

If you don't want an Android phone, I can certainly recommend the iPhone 4.

Click to expand...

I don't think they have the Evo in Australia, but the one thing that surprised me is that the first link after Sprint and HTC's website is this one:
Don't Buy The HTC EVO, It Is A Seriously Flawed Device

Other than that, what phones can you recommend ?

AU: To answer some of your questions about an Australian release date, the Motorola Droid is only available in the United States. Something similar may makes its way down under, but don’t hold your breath… -EH

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2009/11/motorola-droid-review/

But then it is on here : http://www.shopbot.com.au/pp-motorola-droid-price-207943.html

This is weird....

Well, how much space can you have in the droid ? Can you be online in your IMs and get messages all the time or do you need to have the application on all the time ?
(iPhone lets you have the application 'on' even when doing something else and if someone send you an im it would just pop like an sms has been sent, I think)
How do 'apps' work on the Droid ? Do you have an output for earphones ? Other comparison questions with iPhone ?

Also can you have a look at the Motorola Milestone please? And tell me how it differs to the Droid ? http://www.motorola.com/Consumers/X...e-Phones/ci.Motorola-MILESTONE-XW-EN.vertical

EDIT: Mike this is for you
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_tec_digital_life_tech_test_g2_phone

While I would debate the 'more for less' as a very subjective statement from an obviously anti-Apple person (who has demonstrated this by saying people buying Apple products are stupid) …

Android OS is excellent, has loads of options for utilities for general media consumption and so on. There is both good and bad hardware, with the general consensus that at least a few phones (in particular Moto Droid X and the Samsung one with 20 different names depending on carrier) that are very solid direct competitors to the iPhone.

Personally, while I do like Apple iOS stuff, I love my Droid and Android OS quite a bit and don't think I'd get an iPhone even if it came to Verizon. But between Android or iPhone you will have an awesome user experience and gravitate away from PC to more mobile consumption.

Click to expand...

So basically what you are saying is it is very subjective but you agree?

You have interesting sources in your anti-Apple reality distortion field

Windows Phone 7 *is* indeed just starting to creep out in some parts of the world, with wider availability coming in about a month. Not sure when AUS is targeted.

As for reviews, the general consensus is that it is slick and much more responsive than earlier WiMo versions, and that it has some advantages over the app-centric iOS and Android devices.

*HOWEVER* almost every review I've read calls it 'half baked' or 'undercooked' and wonders if the 'release now, fix later' approach will work or will end up costing it the business.

Click to expand...

All of them also complained of the lack of cut and paste... at the introduction event MS said it will come in January...... I also had some friends who tried it and own iphones as they were in the MS introduction of the device, and their words were exactly slicker and faster..... I immidietly trashed win phone 7 when I heard about it and have been taking that stance, but it was not such a disaster as I thought, and I hope you saw in my post that I was not overly positive? not sure whatever to believe it yet or not. The main reason was to wait for price cuts.

The problem with wait and see is that there will always be something newer coming up. I learned this the hard way by waiting and seeing for a new laptop.

Click to expand...

I don't think there'll be such a big thing as new phones with a new OS released anytime soon.... probably it will lead to price drops which was a main reason... you don't have to wait long since the win 7 devices are out now.