| iGot an iPod; iWant an iPhone
By James
Mosieur
Last months announcement of the Apple iPhone got gadgeteers tingling with excitement. Many people following the launch saw it as a “gotta have” device. Back that “scroll wheel” up a second. The iPhone may be a cool gadget, but before you drop $499 or more consider a couple of things.
- The hefty price tag.
$499 for the 4GB or $599 for the 8GB. That’s not all, Cingular still has not announced the iPhone rate plans. The way music downloads can eat up bandwidth may require Cingular to have a special iPhone service plan.
- The 2G data limitation.
The iPhone will only support 2G data service. Consider whether the 2G/EDGE service gives you speeds fast enough for your Internet and data needs. The iPhone does allow for Wi-Fi access so you may be able to get your data fix that way. No word yet on when the 3G model will be available.
- No room for video.
Although the iPhone will support video, it has the storage capacity of the Nano. That will not only limit the songs you can store but space will not allow for much video storage. Most iTunes Store movies are more than 1GB each. If you want video or your large music collection on the go, you're likely to find the video iPod is your best bet.
- Initial feature limitations.
So far the word is that the Apple iPhone will remain a closed platform. This means no third-party browsers, RSS readers, productivity applications or even games for the iPhone. You will be limited to the tools that Apple provides.
That being said, Apple always does things first class and the iPhone will be no different. We can surely expect more features, models and applications in the short term from this iconic company.
So here’s my advice:
Gadget Freaks – Get together on Myspace, sell your Nintendo Wii’s and pool the proceeds to bulk buy some iPhones.
Business Users – Get the “first-mover advantage” and sign up for the Cingular iPhone updates. Then be prepared to whip out the old corporate credit card and buy it before the competition does.
Consumers – Wait a month or so for the Gadget Freaks and Business Users to list the ones they bought on eBay.
For more information on buying an Apple iPhone check out the article Eight reasons to think twice about buying an iPhone
James Mosieur is CEO of CellForCash.com . He has been in the electronics recycling business since 1985. James writes and speaks on cell phone recycling and related subjects particularly as they relate to the individual consumer.
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