My opinion of the iPhone has changed considerably after reading this article on Wired.com. An excerpt from the article:
The hosannas greeting the iPhone were so overwhelming it was easy to ignore its imperfections. The initial price of $599 was too high (it has been lowered to $399). The phone runs on AT&T's poky EDGE network. Users can't perform email searches or record video. The browser won't run programs written in Java or Flash.
But none of that mattered. The iPhone cracked open the carrier-centric structure of the wireless industry and unlocked a host of benefits for consumers, developers, manufacturers — and potentially the carriers themselves. Consumers get an easy-to-use handheld computer. And, as with the advent of the PC, the iPhone is sparking a wave of development that will make it even more powerful. In February, Jobs will release a developer's kit so that anyone can write programs for the device.
I have always thought it fantastic from an engineer's point of view: a pocket computer, media player and communications device easier to carry than a full-sized iPod (and most PDAs) with an interface and design anyone can quickly learn to, and want to use.
From a consumer's point of view, I thought of it very badly - an expensive, highly locked down device and Apple annoys me by bricking unlocked iPhones with each firmware release. I still don't think much of it, but knowing more about the whole project has made my views less dim (I still can't afford one to try and judge it properly. Friends, you know when my birthday is... ;) )
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