More and more of my friends are picking up iPhones. The latest convert is Cory. My dad thinks it is only a matter of time before I join the club/cult. I have to admit, there are some things that continue to tempt me about the iPhone. Still, I just don’t see any way that I will buy one any time soon.
I still believe that the iPhone is good for all cellular customers. I am glad more people are using the iPhone. It is definitely stepping up the handset market in the US. Application developers are paying attention to the mobile platform. While I think native apps are better than web apps for may things, the lack of a sanctioned SDK for the iPhone has resulted in more mobile applications being available for every phone with a browser (probably an unintended consequence).
The iPhone itself is great. If it weren’t for these issues I would have already made the switch.
- The AT&T data plans and TXT plans for the iPhone are considerably more expensive than what I am paying Sprint for unlimited data and unlimited TXT on my Treo.
- The EDGE speeds are considerable slower than the EVDO speeds I am used to.
- That pesky touch screen keyboard. I do a lot of typing on my Treo.
It seems like my list of reasons for not switching to AT&T and buying an iPhone is shrinking. If Apple releases a 3G iPhone in Q1 2008 (which I would bet money one) then I am going to be on shaky ground.
Must. stay. strong.
update
On a related note, investors seem to like the details of the Apple store credit for early iPhone adopters. I think this is because there is only a 2.5 month redemption period. That will reduce the number of store credits that are actually redeemed. I am guessing it will be 50% of the credits redeemed for products at a 50% profit margin leading to a $0.25 on the $1 cost to Apple for this exceptional token of good will. (Assuming AT&T is not picking up a portion of the tab). That is money well spent.
