…and this is a 
Get thee behind me, Satan!
Category: Technology
Posted on: July 17, 2008 11:44 AM, by PZ Myers
I have been tempted many times by that over-expensive sexy slab of technology called the iPhone, so I don't need Seed adding to the temptation with a list of science apps for the iPhone.
Fortunately, the strongest argument against the iPhone for me right now is that it's closed and only supports one carrier…who does not offer good service in the wilderness of western Minnesota. If ever they opened the gadget up, though, or if ATT built a cell phone tower in my neighborhood, I'd have to rely on my wife's ability to slap and shackle me to prevent wasteful spending.*
*Which is, obviously, a reason to hope for more flexible service plans even if I never buy one.
Comments
Get the ipod touch.
It does everything but the phone stuff. It runs all those sciencey apps. It has double the storage of the iPhone. It looks and feels great. It connects to teh interwebs via wi-fi. It's got the best mobile web browser out there. You don't have to sell your soul to a long-ass service plan with AT&T.
You can still keep a cell-phone in your other pocket.
Posted by: Siamang | July 17, 2008 11:47 AM
We bought iPhones for some of our employees (mostly VPs, so, being a VP, I got one). I can say that it's nice, but honestly I wouldn't have spent the money on it. It's convenient to check my email when away, but I don't listen to MP3s and rarely use any other feature of it. With the 2.0 update to the OS you can run those fancy apps, so that may breathe some life into it for me. Otherwise, I just wasn't impressed with the phone when the cool factor wore off.
Posted by: Richard Wolford | July 17, 2008 11:56 AM
My argument against the iPhone: people can use it to call me.
Needy bastards.
Posted by: Dustin | July 17, 2008 11:56 AM
"I'd have to rely on my wife's ability to slap and shackle me..."
Damn, PZ, they weren't kidding. She really IS a Trophy Wife.
Posted by: E.V. | July 17, 2008 11:57 AM
Got mine Sunday. I'm really happy with it. Getting fast at typing on the glass too. It's great in NYC.
There will be TONS of great apps created for it. I'm tempted to get the BeatMaker from Intua.
Posted by: Steve_C | July 17, 2008 11:59 AM
Weird, isn't it, how much more user-friendly human design is than God's "designs" are.
Almost makes you wonder if...
I bring this up because today the DI put up this fine writing, but bad thinking, of Nabokov (their comments on Nabokov's passage are utterly predictable and uninteresting):
Oh yeah, nonutilitarianism is the mark of design. I guess that's why we have to make everything that is rational and obviously utilitarian, while God just makes do, with some elegant flourishes. And that's why simple technology like radio transmission between organisms was right out of God's demented artistry, so that humans had to come up with that--and iPhones.
Nabokov wanted non-utilitarian art, and found (what a shock!) that butterflies favor beauty like humans do (evolutionary convergence? Not if you don't want it to be). The IDiots claim that purpose and forethought exist throughout nature, then they latch onto Nabokov's reveling in nature's lack of these.
OK, I know it's a tangent, but the juxtaposition of the iPhone with the evolved beauty of butterflies seemed to call for some comment. The iPhone is a masterpiece of beauty, creativity, and rationality. Nature is a masterpiece of beauty, non-rationality, and of a remarkably hereditarily constrained (yet productive) creativity.
The differences are striking, and reveal the massive differences between design and sheer reproductive competition.
Posted by: Glen Davidson | July 17, 2008 12:03 PM
Really, don't. Dont.
Just don't. Over priced pile of junk. Get a decent Nokia [http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2008/07/17/review_nokia_e71/]and a half decent music player if you must [although the nokia plays just nicely..] and you'll save a lot of money, time effort and heart break.
Just dont do it.
Posted by: piloti | July 17, 2008 12:03 PM
Weird, isn't it, how much more user-friendly human design is than God's "designs" are.
Almost makes you wonder if...
I bring this up because today the DI put up this fine writing, but bad thinking, of Nabokov (their comments on Nabokov's passage are utterly predictable and uninteresting):
Oh yeah, nonutilitarianism is the mark of design. I guess that's why we have to make everything that is rational and obviously utilitarian, while God just makes do, with some elegant flourishes. And that's why simple technology like radio transmission between organisms was right out of God's demented artistry, so that humans had to come up with that--and iPhones.
Nabokov wanted non-utilitarian art, and found (what a shock!) that butterflies favor beauty like humans do (evolutionary convergence? Not if you don't want it to be). The IDiots claim that purpose and forethought exist throughout nature, then they latch onto Nabokov's reveling in nature's lack of these.
OK, I know it's a tangent, but the juxtaposition of the iPhone with the evolved beauty of butterflies seemed to call for some comment. The iPhone is a masterpiece of beauty, creativity, and rationality. Nature is a masterpiece of beauty, non-rationality, and of a remarkably hereditarily constrained (yet productive) creativity.
The differences are striking, and reveal the massive differences between design and sheer reproductive competition.
Posted by: Glen Davidson | July 17, 2008 12:03 PM
They are apparently very easy to unlock, with instructions all over the interwebs.
Posted by: Ric | July 17, 2008 12:04 PM
Gizmo zombies.
Posted by: Dustin | July 17, 2008 12:05 PM
Iphones are cute and all, but HTC products are more versatile and all-around better in my opinion. I have a Touch and it's been great.
Posted by: Jeff Arnold | July 17, 2008 12:06 PM
I'm sure you can run the iPhone fine with a 2GB network.
And geez, haven't you heard microwave towers litteraly melt faces when you're less than 1000 km away from them?
Posted by: Simon Coude | July 17, 2008 12:12 PM
God I hate Steve Jobs.
He has gotten people who are generally otherwise anti-consumerist types to reflexively buy each new iteration of his consumer toys... and then proudly show off their newest artifact of compulsive consumption as evidence that they are "different" and against compulsive consumption.
That and the fact that Itunes is a bloated buggy annoying piece of shit that tries to tell you how to organize your music, hijacks settings and takes surgery to uninstall. (Sucks on a PC anyway, maybe its a marvelous program on a mac, I dunno.)
Evil bastard.
Oh and plus he stiffed Steve Jobs for like $2k.
Posted by: craig | July 17, 2008 12:12 PM
ack.. I mean he stiffed Steve Wozniak for $2k.
Stoopid brain.
Posted by: craig | July 17, 2008 12:15 PM
Personally, I hate talking on the phone. I just can't stand it. I talk on the phone when I need to. It's a tool.
At $60/month for the base plan, I really think I can live a normal life without an iPhone.
However, I think within 5 years, iPhone-like devices will be the norm. Think of this as version 0.1. Once they get this up to about 2.0, they will be more useful and cheaper to use.
Weren't the first-generation plasma TVs around $6,000 or so?
Just asking.
Posted by: MikeM | July 17, 2008 12:16 PM
I've had my iPhone for just under a year now. I would absolutely never, ever use another phone for any reason. Give in to the temptation. :)
Posted by: JSorrell | July 17, 2008 12:17 PM
Just get an Openmoko phone. The Neo FreeRunner, for example. :)
Posted by: AnonCoward23 | July 17, 2008 12:19 PM
Why get an expensive phone when you can get iPod touch instead? Most, if not all, of these new apps work with it.
Then again, you could buy an iPhone from eBay, jailbreak it, and get your own subscription. People are even selling jailbroken iPhones in stores... It's been on Digg quite a lot.
Posted by: Copache | July 17, 2008 12:19 PM
The new iphone is what the original should have been and they are a nice gadget indeed, and much more reasonably priced than last year's.
Don't unlock them, though. They will cease to function. And no one will help you when they do.
And who cares if it's a lousy phone or the service is poor? It's an iPhone!
In other words, while the accidents may have lousy coverage, the substance never drops a call.
Gadget lust is an essential driver of the economy. Do it for the children.
Full disclosure: I work for the insane bloated megagiant that provides iPhone Service. Thus, in that service, I insist that you abstain from desecrating them, that my salary remains safe. Otherwise I might have to call you all bigots.
Also, I don't have one. Because the company won't give me one for free.
Posted by: Longstreet63 | July 17, 2008 12:22 PM
You can unlock it (illegally). Or you can go to Europe to purchase one unlocked (legally).
Posted by: gdlchmst | July 17, 2008 12:23 PM
Hmm, Baracoda still isn't making a iPhone package for it's bluetooth based barcode scanners. I still need a phone I can do business with.
I'm working on an antiquated HTC 8125. It still works.
Well, most of the time it works.
Posted by: wildcardjack | July 17, 2008 12:24 PM
iPhones are easy to unlock. There are even places you can go to that will unlock it for you for about 20 bucks.
Posted by: Tim Drake | July 17, 2008 12:25 PM
Don't settle, PZ. The real ubergeek buys Neo Freerunner, and runs Linux apps on his phone. A biologist especially needs GPS, so that when he spots that rare specimen from his canoe, he can pull up lat-lon, to find the spot again. They even thoughtfully included a lanyard attachment.
;-)
Posted by: Russell | July 17, 2008 12:26 PM
iPhone? Nah.
Posted by: MartinM | July 17, 2008 12:27 PM
I wouldn't want an iTouch. I'd never get a chance to use it.
When I first got my iPhone I tried to connect to public Wifi hotspots. I soon realized there are very few of them, at least in my suburban neighborhood (which is a dense, high tech corridor). Having EDGE connectivity has been a lifesaver.
It's been sweet to read SciBlogs on the run. Commenting still sucks, and the feature I long for most is a "Alt-Home" like shortcut so that I can navigate to the top of these massive Pharyngula cracker posts. Scrolling takes forever!
Posted by: Genuinely Doug | July 17, 2008 12:29 PM
I picked one up and am having a great time with it thus far. Already feels indispensible...
Internet - *proper* internet - everywhere is a killer feature for me.
Posted by: ceejayoz | July 17, 2008 12:31 PM
Heh. The last time I actually used one was after the Expelled expulsion -- I got to use Richard Dawkins' iPhone for a bit, and yeah, scrolling through the comments on that one did seem a little tedious.
Posted by: PZ Myers | July 17, 2008 12:32 PM
My experience with my iPod nano has convinced me — and the people who struggled alongside me to make the damn thing function — never to buy an Apple product. And hey, I got the iPod as an X-mas gift, so from one perspective, it was a free lesson.
Posted by: Blake Stacey | July 17, 2008 12:32 PM
You shameless name-dropper!
Posted by: andyo | July 17, 2008 12:40 PM
Oh, I definitely want an iPhone 3G. However, I was very disappointed that the first iteration only had a maximum of 16 GB storage space. I need more, which is why I'm not upgrading my old first generation iPhone until Apple releases a version of the iPhone 3G with 32 GB storage (minimum).
Actually, v.2.0 of the iPhone software is what really shines. It's a marked improvement (particularly the Exchange support, which lets me finally access my work e-mail) and I can download Apps to my old phone just as well as they can be downloaded to the 3G. The vast majority of my web surfing on the iPhone is on wifi networks anyway; so the increased speed of the 3G network alone is not sufficiently compelling in the absence of more storage. Ditto the GPS features.
I know that Apple will up the storage to 16 GB and 32 GB eventually, and I'd be shocked if it doesn't happen before Christmas. I can wait a few months for that, and for the bugs to be ironed out.
Posted by: Orac | July 17, 2008 12:41 PM
I've never checked up with apple's phones. Not since they ran flashy commercials advertising common features that I'd been enjoying on other phones for years already.
Posted by: Dutch Delight | July 17, 2008 12:41 PM
Be careful - there are places in this country where using the camera in your iphone can get you arrested.
Posted by: Reginald Selkirk | July 17, 2008 12:43 PM
Awesome.
Glad to see you're on board with open source / open access.
Steve Jobs is a control freak.
Posted by: Neural T | July 17, 2008 12:45 PM
The MacBook Air and the iPhone are the epitome of what I dislike about Apple, and Apple is the epitome of what I dislike about gadgets and computers.
But I have had 3 iPods.
Back in the day, the iPod was about the only (barely decent) game in town, and it was already in its 3rd Gen, so at least I'll give Apple that. I basically just got locked in with the neat accessories. There were no wireless remotes that connected to the dock at the time for other players, and even now there are no radio remotes for other players that I can tell. And the ONLY car accessory that I use, is only made by one brand (Belkin) and only for the iPod. So it's a shiny, pretty, mediocre-to-good-enough music player, pretty bad video player (which I don't use it at all for), with a great array of accessories which got me locked in.
I also had the iPod Touch for a while, and when hacked and with homebrew software, it was so-so (there's a super-cool app that will let you use it as a multitouch pad and keyboard, via WiFi to your PC). But without the aid of said apps, unhacked it was a total piece of crap, so I returned it.
Posted by: andyo | July 17, 2008 12:49 PM
I want one sooo badly. Since i have turned my life over to a higher power, Google, i'd love to have access to it everywhere.
Posted by: Brian W. | July 17, 2008 12:51 PM
I prefer my Blackberry, and with the 3g version Blackberry Bold coming out, it's going to be even better. The iPhone is all looks, and the keyboard sucks. Give me tensile buttons any day, not smudgey glass... eeeeeewwwwwwwwwww.
Posted by: zer0 | July 17, 2008 12:52 PM
If your wife needs help, I'll be happy to oblige... :)
Posted by: eric | July 17, 2008 12:52 PM
If you are going to quote the Bible (KJV) PZ you may as well give the references. The phrase "Get thee behind me, Satan" appears three times in the gospels. You were probably thinking of the temptation of Jesus in Luke but here is the phrase in Mark 8:31-34:
"31And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.
32And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him.
33But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men.
34And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me."
Biblegateway.com is a great resource for everyone.
Posted by: Louise Van Court | July 17, 2008 12:54 PM
I know there are those who despise it, but I can honestly say I have never been more happy with ANY purchase of a technology product in my life. I use my iPhone constantly. I have a long comute to work and listen to audiobooks in the car, watch movies during lunch, surf the web waiting in a clients lobby, use my email and now with so many awesome new apps its like having a brand new phone for free.
That is the biggest selling point of the iPhone, every new update brings more and more unique features ( and some that should have been on it to begin with ).
Its flawed, but I would not trade it for any other device.
I rarely even need to bring my laptop to client meetings anymore as I can just access salesforce through my phone.
Thants one geeks perspective anyway TIFWIW
Posted by: Troy McCauley | July 17, 2008 12:55 PM
I can see the PC apologists are suffering from Mac envy again and are lashing out at the iPhone. Running iTunes on a PC seems almost sacrilegious to me... and I'm an atheist. Any bugginess must come from Windows or Vista because it works great on my MacPro, MacBookPro and the iMacs my son and wife use.
PZ... as long as yours or another carrier uses sim chips the phone can be unlocked. Try to buy the first model from someone who gets the new one, I'm sure they will popping up on ebay, then you won't have to be owned by ATT for 2 years. Most of the new apps will run on it but you'll be minus the quasi GPS.
If you lean towards an iPod Touch, wait. The price should be coming down because they will probably switch to a new case like the iPhone did.
RE Blake and the iPod Nano: My wife and son use theirs with absolutely no problem to watch videos, listen to music, podcasts, photos, etc. I cannot understand what difficulties you could have had... unless maybe you are on a PC....
Posted by: mayhempix | July 17, 2008 12:57 PM
"I'd have to rely on my wife's ability to slap and shackle me to prevent wasteful spending.*"
You make it sound like a bad thing.
#32
That officer is in serious trouble. He's gonna get his ass sued.
If you're a photographer, you should at the very least always carry this with you.
http://www.krages.com/phoright.htm
Posted by: Dracil | July 17, 2008 12:57 PM
5 reasons to avoid the iPhone 3G.
Posted by: Peter Rock | July 17, 2008 1:02 PM
Is iTunes still a bloaty pile of crap? And is there still no way around using on new iPod/iPhone things? I seriously turned against Apple when the started putting those crypto chip things to stop you using AmaroK.
Posted by: Matt Heath | July 17, 2008 1:06 PM
"Most of the new apps will run on it but you'll be minus the quasi GPS"
It's real GPS. In fact it's better than regular GPS because it uses the cellphone towers to speed up locating where you are.
Posted by: Brian W. | July 17, 2008 1:07 PM
Three computers, three operating systems, three failures.
Oh, and now the headphones are falling apart.
Posted by: Blake Stacey | July 17, 2008 1:07 PM
PZ: "I have been tempted many times by that over-expensive sexy slab of technology called the iPhone"
Pope envy?
Posted by: MH | July 17, 2008 1:08 PM
iTunes works great on my PC. Never had a problem.
Posted by: Dave Wisker | July 17, 2008 1:11 PM
It's possible that with more fiddling I could have gotten GTKPod to work on my Ubuntu box, thereby obviating the need for iTunes, but even if I got files successfully transferred to the iPod in such a manner that it could use them (instead of thinking that music tracks were video games), I couldn't play the majority of my music archive. This is what you get for having lived with an audiophile and getting all your CDs ripped as Ogg Vorbis.
Posted by: Blake Stacey | July 17, 2008 1:12 PM
@42: I approve of the concept, but that Freerunner screen-shot is fugly.
Posted by: Matt Heath | July 17, 2008 1:13 PM
I agree with Jeff Arnold, get an HTC product if you're looking into one of these types of phones. I've messed around with the iPhone enough to know that any current HTC product beats the pants off of the iPhone. They may not be as pretty or have the cool factor, but there is just soooo much more you can do with a Windows Mobile device. Plus, they're offered on multiple carriers, so no problem finding one that'll work.
Posted by: Steven Mooney | July 17, 2008 1:15 PM
The iPhone is the best designed piece of electronics I have ever used. Apple rocks when it comes to design, and leaves everything else in the dust. The iPhone does everything, check and send email, keep hundreds of phone numbers that are easily added to the directory, it is a great quality phone, the apps are fantastic, and it is only $199. It interfaces without problem and natively with a Mac, and has dozens of other features that blow other phones out of the water. Its reception is better than my previous phones, and I have internet and digital phone service in the boonies of West Virginia.
Posted by: Rob | July 17, 2008 1:16 PM
Uuuuhhhh, thank you, Louise...
Blake:
I suspect operator error.
Posted by: E.V. | July 17, 2008 1:18 PM
I'd buy the next Mac mini though, for portability. I generally don't care for laptops (why pay for the freaking display unless absolutely necessary!) and I have displays available at work. It's by far the most un-Apple Apple product. But, I probably wouldn't if I couldn't install Windows on it (yes, WINDOWS!), and since I already have 3 Windows PCs, I want a Mac OSX one to see what the fuss is all about that OS (have used it, but not had time to tinker with it). Hopefully they do come out with a new one though, now that Montevina is out.
Posted by: andyo | July 17, 2008 1:20 PM
Dude,
Wait for Android to come out. Might be out late this year. It´s gonna kick the iPhone´s ass, and it´s backed up by Google.
Posted by: TheWall | July 17, 2008 1:20 PM
It's real GPS. In fact it's better than regular GPS because it uses the cellphone towers to speed up locating where you are.
Posted by: Brian W. | July 17, 2008 1:07 PM
Don't get me wrong, it's a great feature. At this point it does not function as a full GPS giving realtime driving directions. My guess is that is coming.
Posted by: mayhempix | July 17, 2008 1:21 PM
A GPS locates your position. It doesn't tell you where to drive. This is an unrelated feature.
Posted by: Rob | July 17, 2008 1:22 PM
So what sorta things can the HTC products do that the iPhone cant? I may have to change my mind.
Posted by: Brian W. | July 17, 2008 1:23 PM
With the possible exception of the starmap doodad, those "science applications for the iPhone" would be remarkably useless for me, too.
Why am I feeling so let down by the twenty-first century?
Posted by: Blake Stacey | July 17, 2008 1:24 PM
Wow. I gather most of you haven't used the NEW 2.0 software on the iPhone. Or have even used one for more than 10 minutes.
HTC touch? Ouch.
Is it the best thing to view comments on PZ's blog? Nope.
Is it the best phone browser to do it on? YES.
Here's an idea... Scienceblogs could create a reader like the NY TIMES app for the iPhone. That would rock.
Posted by: Steve_C | July 17, 2008 1:24 PM
Wait, you *don't* want your wife to shackle and slap you?
Different strokes, I guess. . .
Posted by: Cooper | July 17, 2008 1:25 PM
What i've read on other sites has said that TomTom (and probably other companies as well) are developing software that'll give turn by turn direction on the iPhone.
Posted by: Brian W. | July 17, 2008 1:25 PM
E.V.:
"Operator error" is why the iPod can't parse an Ogg Vorbis file? Carrying headphones in the operator's laptop bag makes the earbuds break open?
Posted by: Blake Stacey | July 17, 2008 1:27 PM
but there is just soooo much more you can do with a Windows Mobile device
?
Im not trying to bait here, really curious as to what that might be? With the new apps, the iPhone can do things no windows mobile platform can duplicate, but I really am not aware of anything WM can do that the iphone now can not. ( ok, except cut and paste, thats annoying )
I have tried the HTC phones and I could not begin to tolerate that interface after gettng used to the user experience of the iPhone.
Again not trying to be a smart ass, serious question, what can windows mobile do that the a 3G iPhone with 700+ apps can not?
Posted by: Troy McCauley | July 17, 2008 1:27 PM
But the iPod Touch is a great alternative to the iPhone. It only lacks the camera, gps and phone service. I'm pretty sure it does everything else.
Posted by: Steve_C | July 17, 2008 1:28 PM
Open source fanatics don't seem to understatnd that most of don't want to become programmers and just want our computers to function easily with the lowest learning curve possible. Apple has always understood that basic premise. I use mine as a tool in film production. I have no desire to become a computer geek. And that is not meant to a diss those who are... that's what they do and we all benefit from it. It's just not what I want to do.
Posted by: mayhempix | July 17, 2008 1:28 PM
Oh no.
I have books and tuition to pay for! Rent and food! But ... but... ARTIFICIAL DNA IN THE PALM OF MY HAND!?
=( Thanks a lot, PZ! I'm looking forward to eating ramen for the next two years.
Posted by: Autumn | July 17, 2008 1:31 PM
I found iTunes obnoxious. It wanted to run my life. Or at least my music collection. Sure, it was put together just fine. It could be seductive, even. But it had some real control issues, it seemed to me. We broke up. It clearly wasn't going to work out.
And re Vorbis: Vorbis is a good thing. Apps that don't support it are the bad thing. So sayeth this Vorbophile. The frickin' libs are free, compile on just about anything with a half-assed effort. There's even an integer-only version of the lib for wimpy embedded processors that don't do floating point. Not supporting it... why, it's bigotry, I tells ya! Halp! I'm bein' bigoted.
Re the iPhone, I dunno. I'm actually not that tempted. But then, I've got a PSP for on-plane video (purty, purty video). And I *do* also want an HSDPA card for my X41. So I guess we're all in a state of sin.
Posted by: AJ Milne | July 17, 2008 1:34 PM
I have a Nokia N80ie. It does everything the iPhone does, and some things the iPhone can't do*. It's also unlocked, so I can use it on any GSM carrier.
I don't see what the big deal about iPhones is... the phone doesn't do anything new or innovative. There's nothing special about it at all, except, perhaps, the touch-screen interface but that's well into the realm of "whoop-de-do".
* it has an FM radio built in, and can do VoIP on my home network.
Posted by: Evolving Squid | July 17, 2008 1:34 PM
I'm with #54. Android is not only going to rock the smartphone world, it's also going to be the hip, user-friendly recruiting tool that the open-source community has needed for years. And it'll run on the HTC Diamond.
Posted by: Stephen Couchman | July 17, 2008 1:35 PM
Blake Stacey #62
I agree the earbuds are flimsy. My sister's also broke.
But why are you using such crappy earphones if you are picky about Vorbis files? I'm sure there are plenty of apps that can convert those to mp3's.
I even doubt the iPod can output such good quality sound with any headphones that one could be able to hear the difference between a high-quality mp3 and a lossless file. But I am on the skeptic's side of the lossless and "high definition" hoopla of "audiophile" culture anyway.
I do put my music in Apple Lossless into my iPod whenever I can, but that's just because of storing issues.
Posted by: andyo | July 17, 2008 1:36 PM
phhhht. Yeah the Nokie App store is AWESOME! ha.
Posted by: Steve_C | July 17, 2008 1:37 PM
Here's the deal, kids: Touch screens work better than buttons, and allow phones to be smaller than otherwise would be possible. All the companies that the hatas here are saying make better products: Y'all realize that they're all hopping onto the touch-screen bandwagon too, right? Buttons are on the way out, buckaroos.
The big problem, and part of the reason for the cost of the iPhone and the touch, is that the screens Apple uses make up $20 of the cost of each device. They had a choice between that screen and an inferior one that would have cost $5 per unit, but they went with the better model.
As for the Air: Just you wait. Within five years' time the solid-state drive will have made the first true hand-held computers possible and affordable. Within a decade's time it will rule the entire laptop field. All because Apple pushed the boundaries of what is currently possible.
Posted by: Phoenix Woman | July 17, 2008 1:41 PM
The reason I'd like to play Ogg files is because that's how most of my music is stored. Why should I have to convert the music I've already got into a different format just to be able to hear it while I'm walking around? Hey, even with the best headphones, Cambridge streets ain't exactly quiet places, so high-fidelity sound isn't really the issue.
Posted by: Blake Stacey | July 17, 2008 1:43 PM
If only they would team up with Sprint...
Posted by: Dahan | July 17, 2008 1:44 PM
Currently, the 2G's are ridiculously easy to unlock. The 3G's are not unlockable yet, but the predominate iPhone hacking group has reported that they are making progress and expect to have something in the near future. They have already figured out how to jailbreak the 3G (to run unsigned software) and we should be getting release on that very soon.
For people who are scared about the prospect of any of this, it's stupidly easy to revert the phone back to a 100% clean factory state because of a special recovery mode Apple built into the hardware.
Posted by: Godless Geek | July 17, 2008 1:45 PM
Two words: U. Buntu.
Seriously, open-source fanatics do understand the value of accessibility, or at least enough of them do that real progress has been made (installing and using Linux ain't like it was in 2003). It's hard, but it ain't impossible.
Posted by: Blake Stacey | July 17, 2008 1:46 PM
Others may have suggested this already, but you could get an iPod Touch instead. No phone bills, you can use WiFi hotspots and there is likely to be an iP phone client on it soon, if there's not one already. I'm thinking I'll get the v2 Touch as soon as it comes out. I don't want the damned phone. My time is little enough free of intrusions as it is.
Posted by: Canuck | July 17, 2008 1:47 PM
@59
The best mobile web browser will be Fennic aka FireFox Mobile (available now in kludgy prototype form), and will likely come standard with Android installs.
@65
Not everybody in the open-source community is expected to be a programmer. The beauty of open-source is that there are thousands of creative people out there building free(!) tools for you all the time, and all the active participation they require from you is your assistance with distributing and/or constructive feedback on how to make the next version better.
Posted by: Stephen Couchman | July 17, 2008 1:48 PM
The antecedent of "it" in that last sentence should have been "making progress".
Posted by: Blake Stacey | July 17, 2008 1:49 PM
I knew that, but come on, it's pretty easy to convert those, even if it takes an hour, you can just let the program run converting them and go grab a bite, can't you? And you already have the iPod, so nothing to lose.
Posted by: andyo | July 17, 2008 1:49 PM
Well, I should amend my comment by saying any HTC product...except the Touch. Didn't really care for that one myself. Most of the HTC products have a full QWERTY keyboard, which really comes in handy. I hate putting my fingers on the screen. A stylus and a keyboard are much better, I think. And Windows Mobile already has loads of apps for it, a considerable number of which are free. The mobile version IE isn't that great, but there are other browsers which offer basically a full desktop browsing experience. NetFront is the best by far, even though it's still in beta, but there are others that are great, also. So, with the QWERTY keyboard and NetFront, you actually can pretty much do anything that you can on a desktop.
Posted by: Steven Mooney | July 17, 2008 1:50 PM
Canuck: Yeah, I have a touch -- got it so my spouse could check his e-mail when he was on a bidness trip. Works wonderfully. We don't even bother with styluses -- fingertips work fine. My next purchase might be a Solio charger so I can power the thing with light power.
Posted by: Phoenix Woman | July 17, 2008 1:52 PM
Well, my background cycles are being used up by simulations and stuff, so not really. :-/ The hardware itself has turned flaky in the past couple weeks (ever since I got back from TAM 6), and I don't know why, so it may all become a moot point soon enough.
Really, if I found an appropriately cool way to destroy it, I'd get more entertainment than I did during the entire period it was functioning. Suggestions welcome.
Posted by: Blake Stacey | July 17, 2008 1:55 PM
Blake:
I keeed, I keeeed, my friend.
Gotta go. I'm taking the kids to see Hellboy II.
Posted by: E.V. | July 17, 2008 1:56 PM
@72
Wait, wait, waitaminute . . . APPLE pushed the boundaries? MacBook Air released this Jan. 29, almost five months after the first EEE PC. Sure, it's a smaller drive, but the point was affordable portability, not Apple-riffic gee-whiz factor.
Posted by: Stephen Couchman | July 17, 2008 1:56 PM
Oh, I forgot to add not being an Apple product as the best feature of HTC phones. Indeed, if Satan were real, he would be Steve Jobs. :)
Posted by: Steven Mooney | July 17, 2008 1:57 PM
Have it put in your mouth by a priest and swallow it?
Posted by: andyo | July 17, 2008 1:58 PM
Whoops!!! We're talking about the iPod nano here, I swear that was unintentional.
Posted by: andyo | July 17, 2008 1:59 PM
As for the Air: Just you wait. Within five years' time the solid-state drive will have made the first true hand-held computers possible and affordable.
"True" handheld computers are already here. Who needs a behemoth like an Air? :)
Posted by: Rick at shrimp and grits | July 17, 2008 2:06 PM
I can't pass this one up. There's people here accusing other people who don't think the ipod/iphone products are useful as apple haters.
I have trouble accepting that argument