iPhone 4 Announced Today
 

From Mac Rumors:

Engadget has some hands-on pics and notes:

(Click the link above for pics)


And while not mentioned in either above, the new OS DOES do multi-tasking (about effing time!)

Good for the multitasking, but doesn't that disappoint all the people who have told me that the lack of multi-tasking is a desirable feature? I'll have to go find them and ask.

If you follow the link above, you'll see that the new version of "multitasking" that Apple is using on the iPhone is a "best of both worlds". If open apps were running in the background (the imagined definition of multitasking for the iPhone before today), the battery would drain faster. This new version pauses apps when you switch between them.

I'm satisfied with that explanation.

That's cool for the multi-tasking - but I don't find myself using the device for internet all that much. Incredibly, I find the new phone to be so much uglier than the original iPhone that I'm not tempted for a minute to buy one for the tech upgrades.

I just recently freed my phone from its protective case to restore its sexiness of fantastic design. The new phone comes unsexy out of the box, so it's a big no-thanks from me.

Thinner is good - but I don't think the old one looks "bloated." Ovoid, rounded shapes are futuristically sexy, and sharp edges are simply not as appealing to my sense of futuristic aesthetic. Wall*E vs. Eve.

I love it and I'm so happy our contract is up in July. New phones new phones new phones!!!!

(But, I will be putting mine in an un-sexy case. I'm too rough on my devices to risk it.)

I know others will poo-poo it, but I think I would prefer this way of multi-tasking. I would be too worried about draining my battery too quickly by forgetting what was also running.

Personally, I think you are crazy for not having a cover on it. Maybe it is just me, but I think the question is not IF you will drop it, but WHEN. While no cover is a panacea of protection, I feel that a decent cover is a must - especially with the iPhone (and especially for Susan, but that is another story).

As someone who has broken an iPhone while in a pretty but not so strong case (and had to pay for a new one) I'm NEVER going without a case.

Also, one thing I didn't mention in my OP (once again, courtesy of Mac Rumors):

From a previous Mac Rumors post:

AT&T is being generous with iPhone upgrades. People are asking why.

^^ Interesting ^^



I saw this while wasting time and it amused me, so I thought I would share:

^^^^ pretty much.


I think the article nailed it - something big is coming down the pipes and they want to lock people in. I know earlier I said the VZ iPhone rumors that I heard were that it wasn't coming (and again, not some super secret rumor, just someone with the same knowledge of what WB was hearing) and I asked again and heard what WB did.

The upcoming months will be very interesting between what may or may not be happening with the iPhone and VZ and the new Android phones and software that are coming out. I'm glad my "upgrade" period doesn't start until November, and even then it's only 1 year into my contract and not prime upgrading time but the "buy out" vs. upgrade/extend cost differential may be minimal.

Except nobody who ever defended the lack of multitasking ever used battery life as a defense but rather that it was actually better to only be able to run one application at a time.

As for how well this form works, I'd have to try it and see what impact "pausing" has. I have several apps that I frequently use simultaneously where I wouldn't want them to stop when I had something else in the foreground but I'd probably get used to it.

All somewhat moot for me since I'm pretty sure the iPhone still has a virtual keyboard which my use of test phones at work has confirmed is a showstoppe for me. I'm just old.

Except me.

Ok, fine. Nobody I remember ever discussing it with.

Mostly I'm thinking about a cadre of Mac developers at work and a couple other people I've had in person conversations with. I'm sure we've discussed it here but I don't remember any of those details.

Kevy, I'm sure I will drop it at some point. That's when I will upgrade to the new phone. But if I buy a product partly due to its aesthetic, I would not be getting my money's worth to destroy that aesthetic. I thought I wasn't doing that with a transparent case - - but when it broke off in a fall, I realized I'd been fooling myself.

And yes, I am fully aware of the irony. The fall that revealed my phone's latent sexiness would kill it now if it happened again when I'm letting that sexiness go fully expressed. That's ok by me. There's no price tag on all the boners my naked iPhone gives me.

Steve, I love you buddy, but you REALLY need to get a boyfriend...

Very excited. I completely disagree with iSm. I think the iPhone 4 looks awesome :)

not sure I ever said, I did end going with the iPhone. (thanks to all who helped me decide)

and mine is in about as un-sezzy, but secure cover I could find.

otterbox defender


well...except for the yellow. thats too un-sezzy even for me

If I was keeping it in a case, I wouldn't mind the new phone. In fact, I'd definitely keep it in a case to hide it's boxiness. I love the Eve-ness of my current phone - so until fate pries it out of my damp, slippery hands - - I'm sticking with it.

Yes, Kevy, I need a boyfriend bad. For now, it's me and my EvePhone. We're in love.

Jane Lynch vs. the Iphone4

I love that woman. :) LOL.

You need a glowing version of this as your iPhone background.

Why the hell are the iPhones so easily breakable? My Blitz has been thrown in excess of 30 ft, and even when it split nearly in two, it easily snapped back together and still functions just fine.

Because your blitz doesn't have a sensitive, fragile touch screen that covers 90% of the surface of the phone.

Unless iPhones have changes since last I saw one this morning and the touchscreen is now on the back as well, at most the fragile touchscreen covers 50% of the surface of the phone (less including the thin edges).

It doesn't change your point and is pedantic but I don't want you one day crashing a rover into Mars.

You and your third dimension.

The breakable discussion puts me in mind of the first great technologically significant, portable, expensive device - the pocketwatch. Too bad there's nowhere on a naked iPhone to attach a short wallet chain to prevent dropping. You're still stuck with a case.

I still want Jane Lynch more than an iphone.

(Does vBulletin allow for embedded video to youtube?)

It would require a hack to embed video.

Wow, that's a great idea, CP. What a dumb thing not to incorporate in the new phone - in a world of thieves, much less butterfingers.

I can only imagine it's the usual Planned Obsolescence.

I just wanna know if it blends.

I got the blender for Christmas last year, if anyone wants to supply the iPhone I'll be happy to test that out for you.

As far as fragility, this one is glass on the front AND back! (Why on the back?) Anyway, it's pretty keen, but I just can't get past my unwillingness to add yet another 60 dollar a month (at least) obligation to my life. (If the data could tether with my iPad, well, that might tip the scales for me.) Also, the AT&T coverage out in my neck of the swamp is pretty bad.

A new Android phone can Hotspot for your iPad. Just saying...

They do make cases that can be attached with a chain or to a belt loop. They work great if you have a bluetooth headset. I had one that I used a lot, but I like the clip better.

You also have to be aware of having the phone attached to your waist. I broke a previous phone by leaning up against a counter with the phone attached to my waist. Back pockets aren't good either (for obvious reasons).

Yeah, but if I have a case, the phone won't break when I drop it. Um. I guess it helps prevent against theft, but does not address my particular issue.

And really, glass on back, too? I HATE the new iPhone. Maybe I'll put my old one back its case just to make it last longer. But when it goes, I've a feeling I'll be switching to an Android or something.

The chain talk made me think of pagers chains. Which brought me to this image



We've come a long way.

Not out of the question. I've been looking at the Sprint and Verizon Mifi units as well. If i thought one of those could deliver adequately for my desktop at home, I would drop Bright House immediately and carry my hot spot with me, then bring it home and plug it in. (I still don't have a television, so I don't need a cable company if the wifi works at home. But I don't yet know how viable this is. If only a friend or neighbor would get one so I could test it.) anyway, I only want to pay for Internet access on one bill a month, not two or three. It seems like a lot of options are fast approaching but not quite here yet, especially in my remote patch of West Kissimmee.

WOW! That portable phone has TWO lines of text on it! I don't know why you need to see the numbers you're dialing, but it sure looks cool.



This is what I would have said at the time

I saved my money to buy a StarTac. I think it was $200.


Look at that nifty pager with text on it! I wonder how that happens!

If you're gonna go old school, just cut to the chase:

This might weigh things back in favor of getting an iphone:

New Gov't Rules Allow Unapproved IPhone Apps

I'm not sure what the big deal about the ruling is (not saying you're making a big deal but it seems to be getting an outsized level of press). The ruling says Apple can't sue you for doing something Apple has never sued anybody for doing. And Apple can still do what they've always done, not support jailbroken phones and do what they can to break unapproved stuff with software upgrades.

The ruling about read-aloud software is interesting. The publishers forced Amazon to make the text-to-speech feature on the Kindle configurable (and many publishers take advantage of that).

A friend sent me this comment on a blog he was reading. I don't have the source, but it made me laugh:

I've had zero problems with my iPhone making phone calls.

I know. And the majority of iPhone 4 users have experienced zero issues. But if I am going to poke fun at the "opposition," I have to be fair and poke fun at "my side."

I love my iPhone 3GS and if I needed a new phone right now, I would not hesitate to get the iPhone 4

You will pry my 3GS out of my cold dead hands, until it itself is dead. I've never loved a phone this much. It should last at least till the iPhone 5 - and maybe I'll like that one better. To each their own, but I really hate the iPhone 4's look. I would be the one to have connectivity issues, because phones don't like you when you hate them.

The iPhone 3GS can't take a flight of stairs quite the way my dear UTC Blitz can. My zombie phone has LITERALLY snapped in half, and after carefully popping it back together, continues to serve beautifully.

Bad news for you: the next iPhone (iPhone 5?) will have the same boxy shape: http://macrumo.rs/NM4CTl

Yeah, I'm stuck with it, I guess. But I've enjoyed my 3G for longer than practically anyone else. :D

Also on macrumors recently - Virgin Mobile is offering cheap iPhone plans - starting at $30/month, with unlimited texting plans at around $50/month.

If those prices still hold when the iPhone 5 comes out, I'll be jumping ship faster than AT&T can brew T.

The price looks good, but the Virgin Mobile data coverage looks spotty.

iPhone still fails my staircase throw test, every time.

It could not possibly be worse than AT&T. :cool:

And doesn't VMs unlimited data throttle at just a few megs?

Just got my iPhone 4s yesterday. I'm loving Siri. I'll just give dictating my password list a miss, though, seeing as apple gets anything I dictate.