Five More Reasons Not to Buy the iPhone
Considering the sheer hassle (namely, the long lines) involved in buying this thing, it might be time to look at some other reasons to hold off. Take a look at our list of extra reasons not to buy the iPhone – we hope they make you feel a little less like you're missing out on the most-hyped launch since....PlayStation 3? (you know, should you actually decide to go home and rest after a long week's work on Friday.)
1. You Must Have an iTunes Account. Not the hugest deal considering that most people use iTunes anyway, but it would be nice to have some other options for purchasing and managing your music.
2. No Direct-to-Phone Downloads. There's nothing like hearing a song you like (or thinking of a song you want) and downloading it right then and there, directly into your phone (or audio player). Sure, you can't do this with your iPod, either, but the feature is increasingly the norm on music-capable phones from Verizon and Sprint. Now, given that Apple has said that the iPhone will feature a full version of iTunes, it's perfectly possible that, come Friday, over-the-air downloads via Wi-Fi could well be a reality on the iPhone.
3. No built-in GPS. Like over-the-air downloads, built-in GPS is increasingly the norm on many lower cost phones from Sprint and Verizon. Sure, the iPhone has built-in Google Maps that give you directions from point A to point B, but good luck if you deviate from the route or get lost, since the lack of real-time GPS won't recalculate routes automatically based on your actual location (which you probably won't know anyway, since you'll be lost). To be fair, many of the other smart phones competing with the iPhone don't have GPS built-in either – case in point, the otherwise very satisfying BlackBerry Curve – but the feature is increasingly commonplace on many new phones from Verizon and Sprint.
4. Even 8-gigabytes (GB) of memory is not enough . If you watch a lot of TV, or are going on a long trip that involves even just one ten-hour-or-more flight, you'll quickly run out of video entertainment with just an iPhone. And since it has no expandable memory option, the iPhone can only hold a Nano's worth of media and that's it. Now, each movie takes up about 1-gigabyte of space or approximately 250 songs. This means that if you have, say, three movies and 1,000 or so songs, you've pretty much tapped out the larger iPhone's memory.
5. It won't play nice with your work e-mail. If you wanted to use the iPhone as your work phone, you'll most likely be out of luck, since the it won't play nice with Microsoft Exchange Server, which is one of the most widespread work e-mail systems. Yes, it'll connect with your Outlook and transfer emails that have already been retrieved on your desktop, but don't expect real-time push work e-mail a la BlackBerry. [UPDATE: It looks like Apple has added Microsoft Exchange Server compatibility, but you still have to get our employer's IT department to implement some settings -- good luck!)
So, it's okay. You can rest easy and go home on Friday, without an iPhone. Even if you still can't stop thinking about it, you can always get a line waiter on Craigslist for $250 or so (at last count).
From Forbes.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Laura @ Jun 27th 2007 2:50AM
I still go for Blackberry without even blinking my eyes rather than this one :-)
Alex @ Jun 27th 2007 10:12PM
I think iPhones are such a waste, personally; do I need every single bit of technology on one, easy-to-break, piece of equipment?
What about the fact that, after playing around with it for the day, the screen will be smudged and fingerprint-y?
Peter @ Jun 27th 2007 11:47PM
Every first generation Apple technology since the Apple Lisa is plagued with problems (batteries melt, power supplies and cable problems, screen problems, etc.) $600 is a lot to pay to be a play tester.
Sandy @ Jun 28th 2007 12:32AM
It sounds like sour grapes to me. If you can't afford the Iphone,(niether can I ) don't discourage others who acually can AFFORD a $500.00 cell phone (don't use your rent money).
Stop hatin'
Marty @ Jun 28th 2007 12:47AM
This thing can't POSSIBLY work as well as they show on the commercial. AT&T's network is way too slow. But it will still sell, people need the latest and greatest etc....
martinsmlth @ Jun 28th 2007 1:05AM
The iphone is sick and these reasons to not get it are rediculously stupid. The person who wrote this obviously wants one but cant afford it so they are just coming up with reasons and hoping people will join in and be okay with themselves.
Rebekah @ Jun 28th 2007 2:46AM
Oh how horrible! It only holds 3 whole movies and 1000 songs at once. No GPS system? Aww whats a girls to do.
who cares if it only holds 3 movies and 1000 songs at once. Thats more than what anybody elses phones can do. And GPS system?? People are just too ashamed to ask directions themselves! lol And seriously the internet on the phone is enough of a breakthrough. The fact that it looks like the actual internet is big. Its the only phone to do that. Why complain if it takes extra time to get online than a computer. Its not a computer!!!
The screen seems awesome. I want this phone badly!!! Keep hands clean and there wont be too much of a smudge problem.
The price is the only down fall.
Give it 2 years and the price will be down and available cheaper with a plan and the mechanical problems that will arise will be fixed.
Matthew @ Jun 28th 2007 3:37AM
There is no way i am going to buy this phone... I mean... I could buy a PS3 for around the same price as an Iphone... now that is just STUPID.. Wait till the price goes down... but by then there will be a new peice of Technology that everyone wants and you wont even dare to touch the Iphone... :3
Shannon @ Jun 28th 2007 6:39AM
If you ask me, there is one compelling reason NOT to buy this phone. In New York, AT&T's service is the WORST. I have two friends who have it and it's PAINFUL to try to have a conversation.... the calls drop every five minutes at least. We have Verizon and the signal is great. The fact is, even the most perfect, feature-packed phone becomes worthless junk if your signal drops continuously. Unless they start offering Verizon, I'll stick to my lower-tech razor....
FrankTheTank @ Jun 28th 2007 6:48AM
I JUST PURCHASED A HELIO OCEAN AND COULDN'T BE HAPPIER. I LOOKED INTO GETTING THE IPHONE, BUT THE COMPARISONS BETWEEN THE TWO ENCOURAGED ME TO CHOOSE THE HELIO OCEAN OVER THE IPHONE. FOR STARTERS, THE HELIO OCEAN IS A DUAL-SLIDER DEVICE WITH A FULL KEYBOARD (THAT'S PRETTY COOL). THE CONNECTION SPEED IN THE HELIO OCEAN IS MUCH FASTER THAN IN THE IPHONE (400KBPS-800KBPS COMPARED TO 70KBPS-130KBPS). IT'S AN MP3 AND MPEG4 PLAYER WHERE AS THE IPHONE HAS ONLY ITUNES (WHERE YOU HAVE TO BE A MEMBER IN ORDER TO GET SONGS). THE TURN-BY-TURN BUILT-IN GPS SYSTEM IN MY HELIO OCEAN GOT ME BACK TO THE CITY FROM THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE IN PENNSYLVANIA (THOSE LOOKING TO GET THE IPHONE, GOOD LUCK, CAUSE AS YOU CAN READ IN THE ARTICLE, THE IPHONE WON'T GIVE YOU THAT). AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST, THE PRICE. BOTH CARRIERS HAVE 2-YEAR CONTRACTS, BUT BOTH HAVE WAY DIFFERENT PRICES. AT $295, THE HELIO OCEAN IS AN AMAZING DEAL COMPARED TO $499-$599 FOR THE IPHONE. I HOPE YOU MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE AND GO WITH THE HELIO OCEAN AS I CERTAINLY DID.
beenthere @ Jun 28th 2007 6:59AM
friends of mine work at a call center for ATT formerly Cingular and they told me the phone is uninsurable. NO INSURANCE CAN BE PURCHASED SO THE IPOD IS NOT COVERED FOR ANY TECHNICAL DEFECT! AND THE BATTERY CANNOT BE REPLACED. THE IPOD IS ALL ONE UNIT.
when a phone cannot be insured be careful ATT knows the ipod has problems and @ $600.00 that is a unnecessary risk.
lbrown717 @ Jun 28th 2007 7:50AM
Most PDAs or Smartphones are uninsurable as well. The reason being is the wireless insurance company realizes that replacing a phone that costs at retail more than the 50.00 deductible charge used to file an insurance claim can leave room for a lot of needless replacements when something that expensive is "lost" or otherwise ceases to function. There are warranties on these phones that will replace the phone by the manufactors. Iphone is uninsurable but you can always insure it through a homeowner's insurance policy if you feel more comfortable. However the fact that the Iphone is uninsurable has little to no connection with rather the components on the Iphone are in one piece or not. By the way, the V3 Razr by Motorola and a few of the other newer phones were not insurable either when they first came out.
Floyd @ Jun 28th 2007 7:54AM
I can think of a 6th reason. It's an AT&T product.
Hazecore @ Jun 28th 2007 8:04AM
I think the iPhone sounds sweet, and I can't wait to get one Friday. I'll let you all know how she rides.
Henry @ Jun 28th 2007 8:46AM
I can't agree with your number one reason, or your number five. itunes is a widely used application that many people across America already utilize and Apple announced the other day that the iphone will support exchange after all. If anything, you should have mentioned the fact that the iphone will use one of the slowest data networks out there. In my opinion, it doesn't really matter if you can view the "real" web, if it will take a user a frustrating amount of time to load a website. While this is a truly revolutionary phone that will spark many improvements in the cell phone industry, I say wait till the next apple models come out. The best analogy that I've heard about this is that "even a prodigy needs to grow up." Yes its a stellar product with great design but it still needs to mature. Faster data network, more storage room, gps, maybe a program to not only view but EDIT office documents (could team up with google on this), and a release of Apple's hold on peripherals would make this more worth the money. Hopefully in the next year or two we will see these developments into future Iphone models. One can hope.
r4501 @ Jun 28th 2007 9:34AM
$600 is a lot for a first-gen gadget. Things like this are just gonna get better and more affordable in the future, so why not hold out?
who cares @ Jun 28th 2007 9:41AM
to sandy (comment # 4 i think) ....WTH?? "stop hatin" ??? were talkin about a freakin cell phone! what you said in your comment is kinda like we're talkin bout a celebrity... you are just weird. "dont discourage others who can AFFORD it" omgsh... yea lets discourage others to not buy a cell phone ( yea, try HELPING them by letting them know they shouldnt waste their money on a $500 dollar phone that doesnt even work that well.)
mikki @ Jun 28th 2007 9:47AM
#6. It will be obsolete in 3 mos. !!!
#7. You become a member of the "lemming" club.
Tim @ Jun 28th 2007 10:18AM
My cellphone lives in some fairly harsh environments and I couldn't bring myself to pay $600 for one no matter what it did. Its bad enough when your $50 model falls out of your pocket and gets run over.
Alan @ Jun 28th 2007 10:21AM
I heard that when the battery goes you have to send it back to get it replaced. So you would not have it it for at least 2-3 days.