iPhone 3G S - the verdict

Well then, what did you make of that? Another WWDC keynote speech, another raft of announcements and launches from Apple. But somehow none of them quite took my breath away - and none really got the crowd going as in previous years. (There was quite a cheer when the $29 price of Snow Leopard was announced.)

First of all the phone. iPhone 3G S. (There is a gap after the G and before the S, apparently.) It is not a very sexy name to highlight its main advantage - being Speedier. I wonder why they did not choose to focus on the video capablilities by making it the iPhone 3G V. I think for most consumers the iPhone's new abilities to take decent pictures and video is more important than the nebulous - "it's faster" - no matter how important that is to the user experience.

I think lots of iPhone owners, still tied into their two year contracts from buying the iPhone 3G a year ago, will not be trading up for this one en masse. That this update is not such a big leap forward is implicit in Apple's decision to continue to offer the 8GB iPhone 3G at a lower price point.

By the way, the Apple UK press people urge patience over the UK price for the 8GB iPhone 3G. It will be coming down - the US price is now $99 - and it should be updated on the Apple website soonish.

The keynote was notable really for a series of negatives - no Steve Jobs, no iPhone nano, no big "and another thing" moment.

The keynote speech by Phil Schiller et al went on for two hours. Most of the time was taken up by a series of demonstrations of new apps that take advantage of the new iPhone 3.0 operating system that is coming on June 17. Unusually for Apple two of the demos failed completely.

Schiller started out by announcing a refresh to the line up of MacBook Pro laptops. They have made the 13 inch MacBook into a Pro, with a host of new features including FireWire 800 and kept the price down. I was pretty impressed with that. Some, I know, have some trouble with the non-replaceable battery thing which is now a feature of all the Pro line-up but Apple points out that for most users the batteries have a recharge life of up to five years - more than the life of most laptops. I sort of buy that.

What else to tell you? iPhone 3.0 operating system is a big deal - probably bigger than the hardware update - and plugs a lot of holes. Developers here are hungry to get writing more apps to take advantage of the In-App Purchase feature. There was interesting news on tethering - the ability to use the iPhone to hook up to the web on your computer - but how carriers allow it will dictate how that goes. AT&T are not playing ball here in the US yet. O2, how about you?

The Find My iPhone feature got a big cheer. Finally a reason to sign up to Mobile Me web services?

Finally a question - one which the product managers here were unable to answer. When UK users get their hands on the new iPhone 3G S and its new voice control feature which you can use to make calls, play songs on iTunes etc, what's the betting that they will have to use a cod-American accent to get it to understand what they are saying?

The Apple press releases are here (iPhone 3G S), MacBook Pro, Snow Leopard, Safari 4.

Comments

[abdul islam]

please check o2's website come june 19 the price of iphone 3gs in the uk will be ridiculously high (£538 for pay go 32gb, and £440 for 16gb) whilst the americans get good value for money for their iphones, as usual the rest of the world pays astronomical prices maybe its for american f16 and patriot missiles another stealth tax by the police of the world, i wonder how much iphone costs in isreal.

[Greg]

O2's website already says it will support tethering.

[Andras S (not speedy, that's the first letter of my surname)]

It's ironic, but 7 month ago I complained about Apple's decision to use a poor screen on the unibody MacBooks, not to include Firewire, while they kept the Ethernet; and finally to overprice the laptops.
Now I have a 2.4 GHz MacBook that is not manufactured anymore and today would be called Pro. Also, mine doesn't have FireWire, while the new ones do, and most annoyingly, the £1149 today would buy so much more. I haven't actually sold my MiniDV camcorder, but should I need a new computer just to use it? Annoying. Meanwhile, back in April Apple quietly upgraded the screens on the MacBooks. I wouldn't call the unibody launch a great success today. In fact, it left us, dedicated fans in the cold.
My girlfriend is even more disappointed. Her 2.53 GHz MacBook Pro got discontinued within months and today better performance would be yours for £600! less (she paid £1800). That is not technology and recession, that is bad pricing on Apple's part back in October.
But some warned - NEVER get a first generation Apple product, wait for the second! Original iPhone and white MacBook purchasers will verify that.

[A Jarvis]

One word - Overpriced. Considering the coverage of 3G in the UK. In West Wales, there is a transmitter in Carmarthen , you then have to travel north for a couple of hours to Aberystwyth to get your next 3G signal.
The in built compass is obviously a backup for anyone in 'no mans land' - which is pretty much the whole of Wales - bar Cardiff and bits of Swansea.

[sean]

Interesting that a man going by the name of Abdul Islam manages to bring up Israel and patriot missiles in a review of an iPhone.

It seems a certain type of person can think of nothing else. Sad and pathetic...

[tony]

As an existing iPhone 3G user I'm not upset at all about either features or pricing and will be upgrading as soon as my contract allows.

My guess is that Apple has positioned itself to ship the iPhone into corporate US in big numbers with the $99 existing 3G. It looks like the 3G S is lined up to be the alternative to netbooks. And I bet that someone comes up with an accessory, toot sweet, for the 3G S to make videochats viable - it was done for notebook web cams to point the videocam away from the user.

On MacBooks it seems that the white MacBook has become the education/home user product, and the MacBook Pro lineup the business laptop. Hence the feature set and pricing points.

If home users were really concerned about processor speeds and screen resolutions then Microsoft's TV ads of late would be ridiculed from here to Timbuktu? Some people buy down to a price, others buy Macs. Each to his/her own!

[A Keen]

Andras, I’m not sure I understand your multiple points. You’re blaming Apple because you bought a MacBook without Firewire and you can’t use your MiniDV with it. Did you read the box? You blame Apple for using a poor screen and then upgrading it? You were left out in the cold...why? Now your girlfriend is upset because Apple have upgraded the spec of the MacBook Pro she bought. I think the concepts you are struggling with are called consumer choice and progress. Buy what you need, be aware that manufacturers have a tendency to improve their products and understand that, in certain markets - computers, phones, etc - manufacturing efficiencies and process improvements of certain components tend to push prices down.

I have seven Mac laptops - from a black and white 150 through to a unibody MBP and they have always cost more than PCs because, in my view, they have a better OS, they don’t look like they’ve been built in a Russian tank factory and they don’t get between me and my work...to say nothing of a complete absence of viruses.

Regarding the iPhone, I bought one last May and it’s been problem free and a joy to own. The original has been on the market for over a year...that’s a heck of a long time in the world of mobile phone handsets. If you’re saying don’t buy something if it’s upgrade cycle is less that 12 months then virtually all computer based products would be off limits.

[Alex]

I really do like Apple products, owning a Macbook Pro and an iPhone.

I won't be upgrading my iPhone though. For the 16GB iPhone on an 18 month £35 contract is £185.

I'm not sure that it offers THAT much over the original iPhone. I wouldn't mind that better battery though.

As for Macbooks... well, i bought a 2.4Ghz macbook pro, and i don't think that the upgrades are bad news for me. I paid £1,350 in November. The new £1,299 has a little more RAM and an SD slot (ignoring the better screen). But crucially, the graphics are much poorer - that's the trade off. You would have to pay £1,499 to get a similar graphics card in the Macbook. I don't think the processor will affect the speed as much as the graphics card.

I wouldn't ever say "don't get a 1st generation apple product". If you choose carefully, then you should be ok. Andras, it sounds like you didn't chose that carefully....

[George]

All gadgets become obsolete within a short space of time (months).There will always be something new 2morrow that you can complain about.This version is great. The best. (until the next one comes along)

[Andy]

No mention of flash player suppport, maybe in the 4th generation. As a current owner of a 3G iphone, I see no real reason to upgrade. The price is way too high, and I don't particularly see a reason to subsidise our American cousins. Apple and o2 you have messed up royally with your pricing.

[justin binder]

A Compass on a mobile phone?
That's about as useful as a wet tea bag on a life boat.

Snow Leopard Intel only?
I think the computing world needs to spend more time developing products which last longer than 6 months, and less on overpriced chunks of aluminum which fail ever so quickly.

[Adam]

Just checked the o2 website, says internet tethering must be bought separately as a "Bolt-on". £14.68 per month for 3GB, £29.36 per month for 10GB (http://shop.o2.co.uk/update/internet.html)

You'd think with the extortionate contract price that this would be included for free.

[Ben Adamson]

Not really sure what to make of this. I have no doubt that, like other Apple products, this will be a high quality device and that its 3 megapixel camera will likely be better than other phones' 5s or even 8s. Still, I had anticipated a bigger jump forward - possibly a facelifted design. Then again, a classic never dies and as a current iPhone 3G owner I am quite happy knowing that my phone won't suddenly look old (one wonders if that is perhaps part of the reason behind the lack of a design change). Not bad, Apple. Feel free though to launch another new one in, say, 10 months when I'm due for an upgrade!

[Jahweh]

abdul islam - maybe you should stick to buying arabic technology instead of infidel western goods? Sure you'd survive with smoke signals and shouting?

Get real you victim

[Bill]

- A JARVIS - Doesn't that say more about what the infrastructure companies think about Wales than Apple does about its kit? Can't blame Apple for their deficiencies....

[Jeff]

Abdul: you're a muppet. Take your poison elsewhere.

[mashud]

Adbul Islam - wtf? what has has the price of the iphone in Isreal got to do with anything? I think your on the wrong site mate

[R Vigneswaran]

@ Abdul Islam

The $199 and $299 prices in the US are for contract phones. We get quite a good deal from O2 - we could get 8gb iPhone for free on a £35 contract before the upgrades, we'll probably get even better deals now.

[Adam K]

"(There is a gap after the G and before the S, apparently.)"

Is that to say there is a gap between the G and the S, or are there two gaps as you describe? Surely, we must be told?

[arockalypse]

ABDUL ISLAM compares Pay-as-you-go price in UK versus US contract price; also US prices are quoted without sales taxes whereas ours include 15% VAT.

A JARVIS complains about 3G in West Wales, hrm... where the majority of the British population live -- i.e. the South East of England -- the 3G coverage is excellent in my experience. I've even been in small villages in home counties and got good 3G signal, as well as throughout London. Also found good coverage of The Cloud WiFi network that is included in the monthly fee.

O2 were very good with the previous upgrade to 3G last year; they allowed customers like to me break the previous iPhone contract with no penalty to upgrade to 3G iPhone.

In addition, my friend had a Moto on a 2-year contract with O2 and it went wrong after a year and they allowed a swap to an iPhone 3G contract with no penalty. Also I gave my old first-gen iPhone to my brother and O2 allowed him to change his monthly contract to an iPhone one with no penalty, and he was only a couple of months into his 18-month contract.

[martin_tf]

Can't believe they kept the Pay as you go 8GB at the same price. If they dropped that to £200-250 range they would sell a boat load of them.

[DDave]

The Developer Conference has a different audience (programming nerds) so it is no surprise that it was a little short on that Wow factor. Talk of CL's and GL's will do that. The rebuild of the finder is a very big but again is under the skin of the operating system - no big media sexiness.

We have similiar pricing problems here in Ireland, probably worse in fact, given the higher cost of mobiles here. Apple have managed to maintain a strong pricing control on all their products, iPhone included. From their perspective that is good management of their business and customer base. Businesses only drop prices when they have to and at present the demand in the UK obviously is good enough at the price points they have chosen.

You do have to watch first editions of apple hardware but you can't universally avoid them. I bought an original a US iPhone nearly two years ago and hacked into it - it still works great with 2.0 software. I also bought the first generation Intel MacBook Pro nearly four years ago. It is still bang up to date in many respects. Four years for a laptop is pretty good - even if the battery had to be replaced.

Andras, it sounds like you got a little unlucky. The differences between a MacBook and MacBook Pro became so slight that they had to collapse one into the other. You are right in that you have to watch Apple's upgrading policy very closely before you leap.

[JNM]

What a lot of negativity!

The iPhone is a fantastic product, combining an exquisite understanding of human/technology interfaces with an elegant technology solution.

I'm itching to upgrade my first generation iPhone to the 3G S.

[Eduardo Mourao]

ABDUL ISLAM, you don't know what you are talking about. UK prices are higher due to taxes.

In Brazil we pay 60% of import taxes, my xbox 360 cost me US$ 900 and a Iphone 16gb costs 1200US$ here. Only because of taxes.

[Alex]

I would update an iPhone 1st Gen to the new 3GS. That's a pretty big step up.

However, I'd be annoyed at the £185 for a 16GB model on 18 month contract, when 1 year ago it was £159 (which was the top of the range model back then - top of the range 32GB now costs £275).

Not sure how O2 can justify a like for like £115 price hike...

Plus, £15 or £30 a month for tethering!?

Here's my thoughts:

The iPhone is 2 years into its product cycle. Apple are now turning it into a way to make money. Money from the App Store on upgrades to games etc through the application itself, money from tethering bolt ons to contracts, money from needing longer contract lengths to achieve the same subsidy of the iPhone etc etc

It is still the best phone out there. Unlike most, I have tried several before coming to this conclusion.

I'm most looking forward to the 3.0 software pack (which is free - Hooray!)

I wouldn't upgrade an iPhone 3G to the new 3GS. If you do decide to upgrade a 3G, then you will likely wait until the end of your contact (November/December at the earliest) and you'll be only 6 months into the 18 or 24 month contract before they upgrade it again... and then you'll probably miss out on the things they didn't add this time (front facing camera, even faster 3G or 4G, faster Wifi, better case design, OLED screen, even better battery, the list goes on).

So, no, I won't be upgrading. Thanks for the free software upgrade, I'm looking forward to that, but I don't need the compass or the voice control. Oh, I have a computer to do my video editing, so I won't need that either.

[david shaw]

In reference to the first comment from 'abdul islam' (is that your real name!?), well done on making the connection between consumer pricing and the zionist plot to take over the world.... one phone at a time! Get a life (no irony intended)

[J.T. Wenting]

A lot of Apple users are barely sensible, not at all logical.
They will happily fork over the €1500 or so for a "new and improved" iPhone 3G S despite having had their "old" iPhone 3G for only a few months.
That's the same crowd that buys a new iPod twice a year when a new colour is released.

To people who have some logical brain cells it makes no sense, but Apple (and some other brands) marketeers can play these people like well tuned musical instruments and make them buy anything.

That said, Apple has some nice products, albeit often overpriced (why pay €1500 for an iPhone when a Samsung i780 costs a third and does the same, and for most people a €200 or cheaper model does all they really need of a phone, apart from maybe the "kewlness" factor).

[gary o'kelly]

Forget video and warp speed internet all I want to know know is after 2 years of waiting can i finally forward an SMS on the iphone? A function that the iphne has been bereft of. ah the simple pleasures in life......

[Judy D]

I think people are forgetting that they are going to be able to sell their existing iphone 3g for over 200 pounds if pay to upgrade to the new one. This makes a significant reduction to the cost.
I have the iPhone 3G 16gb with 10 months left on a 44.05pm contract. The article aboves says that they will waive 3 mnths of that - so the cost for me is (7 x 44.05) - 200 + 87.11 = 195.46
I upgraded to 3G from 2G iphone in the final month that the special upgrade was on (October) and so i have the maximum number of months left. Most of my friends who upgraded in July would be able to get the new phone for a net cost of £150.42
I agree it's probably a bit pricey for just the video and voice upgrade but in the past I have paid similar amounts for smartphone upgrades.

In some regards we are just spoiled by the fact that the OS3.0 upgrade - which has worthwhile improvements - is free on the iPhone.

(With regard to trade in prices - Look at mazuma.co.uk for simple post in pricing or on ebay for even higher prices showing the demand for second hand iphones).

[Judy D]

note: with regard to os3.0 when did you ever before get a substantial improvement in the functionality of your phone from your manufacturer for FREE?

on iPhone we've had TWO (although admittedly that is down to Apple not O2)

[Mandeep]

Arockalypse; since you spend your post criticising other posters, perhaps I should laugh at your comment - "where the majority of the British population live -- i.e. the South East of England". Are you absolutely stupid or are you just making up 'facts' to humiliate A. Jarvis because they live in Wales? I suspect a bit of both. Because if you genuinely think that over 30m people live in the South East of England you should stop spending money on Apple products and instead on remedial teaching.

The population of SE England as an official region is c.8m. So someone's opinion of 3G coverage outside SE England and it's impact on whether they want to buy a 3G S is damn well appreciated by the rest of us.

P.S. Sean, I agree with you, but what has name got to do with it? If his name was Niall would it make it any more palatable?

[Moshe Haivri]

To Abdul Islam,

The Iphone isn't sold in Israel!!!!
see http://israelity.com/2008/06/10/iphone-3g-now-available-everywhere-except-israel/

They have not given it to any of our major cell networks- even though most of the hardware inside was developed by scientists here. Also it doesn't officially support Hebrew but you can get great cracks that allow you to type in the language! Israel continues to lead the world in hitech and science!

Moshe- Hebron, Israel

[Ianjam]

Mandeep we have 11 million souls in London which, the last time I looked, is in S.E. England. Think you should move here - your tone is very 'parochial'.

[neil Fraser]

Interesting that a person called Sean can bring up Islam in a (massively biased and pointless) article about the iPhone. Pussy Galore I musht be dreaming...

[Sima]

There will be an update for old 3G customers. Video will not be included obviously.

No worried, a new one will be out next spring!

I work in a phone store part time and it is funny to see people paying so much on a product that dates so quickly.

They are good fun but I'd stick to my BlackBerry. Way to many apps on an iPhone to have a life and I am a computer geek!

[Chris]

I was disappointed with the 3G version of the iPhone, but I will be getting this version. I live in North Wales and, yes signal strengths are lame if you live on the high-lands, or in valleys, but over all not bad. Besides, aren't Voda and 02 going to be sharing the same frequencies soon?

http://www.itproportal.com/portal/news/article/2009/3/12/vodafone-and-o2-merge-operations-cut-costs/

In theory that means when they get their act together I will be able to get a 3G signal (as I do now with Voda) with my iPhone on o2.

Not today, not tomorrow, but soon...

[william stockdale]

The slipperyness of the phone along with its naff chromium edge makes it unacceptable to many users because of its slightly wider design.
When will they produce one which black, minus that natt chrome piece, and rubberised for better grip?

[jaxs]

Wow, one phone, missiles, taxes and tethering and .. it's built to make money, purely and simply. Any thing else is cream on the cake. Pricing, it's what the market wil stand... for the need to impress with your new phone.
Does it intuitively make the calls and tells people why you are late, not going or will arrive any second.
OK thought not... back to the old phone.

[Randy Knickers]

Oh my gawd, like, what is a cod-American Accent?

[Steve Powell]

I still fail to see the real attraction of the iPhone, especially at the current UK price. Yes it may be a "clever" device, but is it really useable as a daily phone for normal day to day things, I think not. As a phone its not great and I dont think most of us are looking to do EVERYTHING on a phone. My current phone (Nokia N95 8gb) supports my usual day to day needs (calls, txts, 5mp camera and video, voip) and anything outside of that is catered for by my work netbook or my home laptop.

[Anon]

To be fair. all Apple Products are massively overpriced. Was looking round in a shop the other day for new headphones for my MP3 (Not an IPod) and saw that replacement IPod headphones cost about £60. It's not like they're that good. Anything with the Apple tag costs considerably more compared to a similar product.

Sod the IPhone, get the new Nokia, meant to be better and not overheat like the 3G S.

[James Li]

I buy Apple products because in the long run they are excellent value for money. Aesthetically they are design classics and always look cool. As for the technology, I don't see the need always to have the very latest upgrade. Especially when it comes to phones, whether you are on the very latest, sexiest device or a bakelite phone that Hercule Poirrot might use, you are still speaking to the same bunch of people. What diference does it make?

[steve ryann]

Incredible the pricing you folks have to pay in the U.K. In Japan they giving the iphones away and unlimited access to the internet for less than 20 quid a month. Upgrading to the new 3S G is very reasonable too. Think most people here will be taking the new version

[Evan]

To Abdul Islam: The obvious cure to whatever ails you is to invent your own damn phone and sell it at absurdly high prices in the US and Israel. The population of both of these countries will be so enamored of your invention that there won't be any money left for patriot missiles and F16s. Viola. Problem solved.

[Ceri]

Tony - it's 'toute suite' - French! Not toot sweet...