I Bought The iPhone and I love it: Complete Review of Apple’s iPhone

My old cell phone had got to the point where it was turning off for no reason.  I also wasn’t getting text messages until hours later.  My friends didn’t even know what I was talking about by the time I replied to their texts so I said that’s it, I can’t take no more.  I’m buying the iPhone.  I bought it, I love it, and I really couldn’t be happier with the transaction.  Well I could if they gave me a free scratch resistant coating, but you know what I mean.  Below is my very positive iPhone review complete with research for those looking to shop around before buying your next phone or PDA.

I went with the black iPhone.  I wanted to go with the white iPhone just to be different, but it didn’t look as good – the white color didn’t really mesh with the silver.  I was going to buy the iPhone online from the Apple website, but it was going to take 3-5 days I think.  So instead, I just called the Apple Store at my local mall and bought it lock, stock, and barrel there.

They were pretty busy, but once I got a hold of a rep, the purchase was easy and my phone was ready to go as soon as I bought it – no sim card transfer necessary to start using my ATT service.  Of course, I still have to add my contacts, but not really a big deal.

Ok on to the review of the iPhone features.  First text messaging.  I choose the 200 text message plan for a month for $5.  Your only other option is 1500 for $15 I think.  I wouldn’t use 1500 but I’ve realized that I can easily use 200 especially if the texts count coming and going or inbound and outbound.  If you think about 200 text messages, that’s about 6-7 per day and it’s pretty easy to rack those up, especially if you like friends that like to text.

The texting itself is super easy and the keypad allows me to text message about 4x faster than my old phone.  If you make a mistake, it’s easy to identify because the letter highlights when you press it.  The text messages also show on a back and forth little blurb message board so you can get an idea of the chronological orders and replies.

The iPhone also has video and camera capabilities.  The resolution is pretty darn good but not great, but hey I didn’t buy a digital camera right?  The coolest part about the  photo taking abilities is that you can email the photos right to your email address or someone else’s immediately (using your own default email by the way).  You can also record a video of anything and then upload it right to YouTube in probably less than a minute!  Wow talk about cool.  This could also help you out if you’re getting pulled over or in a wreck to show proof of what really happened.

There is also a voice memo which allows you to take dictation any time, any where.  For example, if I need to remember a great idea for later that I know I’ll forget if I don’t record it now, I can touch the VoiceMemo and record away.  This is especially helpful if you have a longer or more detailed message and don’t want to type it all out finger by finger.

Of course, the iPhone also has a cool little yellow notepad app for taking down quick written notes.  This is a good alternative to voice memo because you don’t have to relisten to everything you recorded and you can do it if you’re in a place where you need to be quiet like at the office, classroom, or library.

The Internet access provided by the iPhone has proved invaluable.  Of course, you’re not going to use it for extensive browsing or as a primary ISP but it has come in handy already on a few purchases.  For example, I was at Office Depot and wanted to check to see if their lexor 8gb flash disk memory jump drive marked down from $44 to $17 was really a great deal (I’m not up on the current prices for memory sticks).  Turns out it was a great price even by Internet standards so I bought the last two.

My next stop was Academy Outdoor Sports store to buy running shoes.  I’m not generally a big spender, but I had needed something things for a long time and a phone and running shoes were on the top of my lists as I’d worn my previous cell phone and shoes to the point of no longer serving their purpose.  The cool thing about having mobile web with the iPhone was I was able to look up reviews on certain shoes right there in the store without taking down model and product numbers and going home and doing research shopping and price comparisons.  The iPhone saved me time and gas money because I could do all this right in the store.  I ended up buying Nike Lunar Glides which are awesome.

The iPhone also has a calendar, great voice mail set up, compass, weather, clock, stop watch, and alarm clock all built right in.  I’m pretty sure the iPhone has GPS too.  And this isn’t even with me adding any new free apps.  I haven’t even had the chance.  I will probably get a fantasy football app for my iPhone when I can to get live scores.

You can adjust the volume on the iPhone with a side toggle to hear the person on the other end louder.  I called my dad and he said my voice was crystal clear on his end.  At first, I couldn’t hear the other person but then I realized how to turn the volume up and then I could hear the other person fine.

How much did my iPhone data plan cost?

I actually only paid $30 for my data plan.  You’ll have two options when you’re signing up.  The corporate business email option (or something corporate) costs $45 and the alternative which is personal use costs $30.  As I said my text message plan was $5.  This totaled $35 on top of my $40 a month phone plan and I got away with only paying $75 total a month for the iPhone which is among the cheapest prices I’ve seen for monthly plans.

I’ll tell you right now that if you’re on email a lot or need to be abreast of updates, the Internet data plan is well worth it.  I have saved a great deal of travel and time with the web at my finger tips.  Plus you can look up store hours and phone numbers without having to guess and go to the store or go back home and looking it up.

Internet browsing features include multiple browsers, favorites, bookmarks, a .com default button, screen scroll and enlarging.  One note is I was unable to download an Adobe plug-in to my Safari browser.  YouTube has its own seperate button.  Surprisingly, the Internet streams so well I was able to run while listening to Taylor Swift on YouTube through the net – I did not have the YouTube video saved to my iPhone.  Now, that is a pretty good Internet connection.

For my phone I bought the 16gb capacity.  I’m not sure if I’ll ever need this as I don’t plan on using it as a storage device, but it could come in handy if I end up accruing a lot of photos and video that I don’t want to erase.  The 16gb is $199.  The 8gb is $99 and the 32 is $299.

Should I get the 8gb or 16gb iPhone?

If you’re just an average iPhone user, all you will need is 8gb.  8gb should be more than enough and it will save you at least $100.  If you plan on storing a lot of music, video, and pictures on it, you may want to get the 16gb.  I’d only recommend getting a 32gb phone if you plan on downloading a lot of apps, music, and video to your iphone.  For example, big gaming apps could take a lot of space.

Last, I recommend you get a rubber holder and scratch resistant cover for your iPhone screen.  Mine hasn’t scratched yet but I’ve heard it will scratch easy.  A rubber holder will help absorb any shock should your iPhone take a fall.  You definitely don’t want to buy an iPhone and then end up breaking it two weeks later or getting a major scratch.

You can also get a car charger for your iPhone for under $10 on the net.  Skip the retail stores like Target, Wal-Mart, Apple, Best Buy, Radio Shack, and others for these iPhone accessories.  It’s much cheaper to buy online.  The iPhone does come with a charger for regular wall outlets and does have a USB cable to connect to your computer and download songs or whatever else from your PC.

That’s my complete iPhone review.  Overall, I recommend it to any one.

4.8 stars out of 5.