When Bunnies Attack

Yesterday I took the plunge. That is, my bank account took the plunge.

Yes, that is an iPhone in a pink leather case. And it’s mine! Muahahaha!! 8GB of space for music, videos, data, and other flotsam that will probably find its way on this phone. It really is more of a mini-computer than a phone. The interface is quick. The display is one of the most beautiful things I’ve held. And it feels good-sized in the hand.

Activation and choosing the rate plan was so darned easy I couldn’t believe it. And since I’ve been using iTunes for a couple of years now the data management on it was very easy too. No learning curve at all. However, I did have to retype all of my contacts from my old phone and e-mail into the iPhone. One thing that greatly helps Mac users is the integration with iCal, iPhoto, Address Book, and iTunes. If you keep all of your contact and media data in these four apps, the iPhone can see them all and suck them into its memory with ease.

So it’s the Mac Way of doing things. If you’re on a PC, I’m not saying you’re S.O.L., but it’s going to be more tedious. The bundled equipment are few, but really it’s a phone. You get the Super Earbuds with the little talky-clicky mic thing—I haven’t tried it yet. There’s a cute little power adapter now for the iPhone. There is no software since you are required to have a computer and download iTunes 7.3.

To learn how to use it, I’d say go watch the iPhone videos on Apple.com, or find one of the bazillion tutorials cropping up on the Net.

After a day of usage on it I have to say it is a very nice phone overall. The web browsing over EDGE is slow, but not abysmal—when you’re home or at work on wireless it’s darned fast. I nitpick about the lack of cut-and-paste abilities because I do a lot of that. The SMSing is OK—I can do without cutesy chat bubbles. The iPod playback is amazing, but coverflow doesn’t do much for me. The time/alarm system takes a second to get used to flicking up/down a series of wheels for hours and minutes settings. I’m glad you can passcode the phone and your V-mail! I haven’t gotten any visual voicemail yet so I’ll write up on that later.

As for stability, well, hm. I was playing back a song today and the phone totally crashed. Crashed HARD. I mean holding the home button did nothing. Holding Home+Sleep did nothing. I plugged it into the Mac and iTunes didn’t see it. I mean, I was about this close to running off to the Apple Store to get it looked at. I tried holding Home+Sleep again for a longer time (about 15 seconds) and FINALLY it came back. Rebooted itself in about 30 seconds and I was back, no loss of data. Still, that’s unnerving that the phone can be crashed so easily. I rely on the phone to work all of the time and I don’t want to miss calls if it silently crashes in my purse.

Big note: Absolutely get a case. I know it adds bulk and ruins the “sleek” look. But I’ve seen these things dropped already and the dents are very obvious on the phone. I choose the leather because it adds a little bounce to it.

If you consider yourself a techno geek and haven’t heard about the iPhone then we must confiscate your Geek Card now. It was surely one of the most over-hyped things I have ever heard of. True, Apple’s marketing machine went into overdrive trying to drum up excitement over the launch. However, fans and news have taken it to a level beyond anything I could have imagined. It was so hyped, so good, so tantalizing that I almost considered getting one myself.

But. I didn’t. I didn’t stand in line for 30 hours like some friends did. I haven’t sunk $600 into a phone and had to upgrade my cellular contract.

I told a close friend that I would be very very surprised if my iPhone could be activated within a relatively short time. I said that the overwhelming number of sign-up requests would probably overwhelm both Apple and AT&T. Guess what?

“iPhone Activation Problems Cause Lots of Headaches” (San Jose Mercury News)

Um, yeah. Figures. But let’s be more realistic: the iPhone is a WiFi computer, not just a cellular phone. That means it is susceptible to all sorts of nasty stuff that affects computers like viruses, network flooding, and web page errors. A cellular phone to me is a very special device which needs to always operate as a phone without fail. Can a phone which is so computerized actually be able to multitask as a phone and a computer? I don’t know. I would think that it should be able to, but the problem is that this has never been done before on this scale. I think that the second and third generation iPhones will be quite good. But for right now it’s just going to be a big headache.

Honestly, the main reasons I didn’t get the iPhone were: I like my current phone (Motorola SLVR L7) because it’s small, functions as an iPod, and I can browse the Internet over it; the iPhone is too limited; I kinda got a new car. Um, err, yeah a car.

So last Wednesday I got a very brief call from the dealership saying my car was in Los Angeles! Yes! Yes! I had put the order in sometime in May and wasn’t expecting to take ownership of it until the end of July. But, the plant in Oxford cranked it out pretty quickly and it was soon on a boat bound for the U.S. Then I got word of it being transported to the dealership and prepped for delivery. I got to the dealership early on Friday morning with my old car (Babs) clean and glistening. The rep I was working with came in and we started the trade-in/delivery process. About two hours later I had all the paperwork and a brand new key in my hand! Yes! And moments later I drove off…

I’m still learning about the operation of this car. It’s phreaking complex. We’re talking a pretty full onboard computer—and I don’t even have all of the convenience and communications options installed! Language settings, daytime running lights, lane changing preferences are all stored on a key transmitter. The trip computer tracks mileage, fuel efficiency, and diagnostics. The radio allows for normal and aux inputs, speed-variable volume controls, and tone. Oy. It’ll take me weeks to learn and remember everything!

[Update 2007.07.25]
And of course being the hypocrite that I am I did eventually get an iPhone…

OK. I know a lot of us have been waiting for this, but what the … ? At first it said April 26th, now it says April 23rd. Better yet, it’s already April 25! Grr! I want my CS3!