Category: Geeks r Us
Editorial: Taking the iPhone 3GS off the job market
by Joshua Topolsky, posted Jul 10th 2009 at 3:10PM
The other day, whilst sitting in the waiting room of a doctor's office,
awaiting the inevitable bad news to come down the pipeline (you're dead,
you're dying, no that rash can't be treated), I attempted to do something
daring with my iPhone 3GS. I attempted to work. I say attempted, because
what dawned on me -- separated from my laptop, a netbook, or any viable
computing system -- was that I couldn't really get much of my work done on
Apple's bundle of joy. It wasn't the first time I tried to get work done on
my phone, but it was one of the first times that I really thought about how
frustrating the experience is. What follows is my heartbreaking tale of
staggering lameness. Or staggering tale of heartbreaking lameness. Your
pick.
Before I even got to the "work" part of my experience, I realized I had
serious problems. AT&T's service is never anything to write home about in
New York City (in fact, it's usually embarrassingly bad), but I found that
my 3G connection seemed especially weak in this Manhattan doctor's den. Oh,
I had five bars all right, but trying to load just the iPhone-formatted
version of Engadget tested my will to live. After nurses denied my requests
for assisted suicide, I resigned myself to dealing with the network issues.
Honestly, a lot of what I do during the day (namely, hanging out in a chat
room and commanding the team to help me pick the perfect pizza toppings)
doesn't require the highest-test connection -- though I certainly put pedal
to floor at times.
So, stoically accepting the fate of thin 3G, I set about firing up the apps
I would need to actually tend to Engadget. First up, I required an IRC
session. That's no problem, because the App Store is filled with useful
tools for chatting with good buddies. I prefer Mobile Colloquy, so away I
went, happily bounding into the Engadget chat room to direct the editors and
get the latest gossip about Gyllenspoon. Of course, it took an exorbitant
amount of time to actually connect, but once I did it's a reasonable
experience... save for one big issue. The iPhone keyboard truly sucks if
you're trying to type words it might not be familiar with. You know, like
tech terminology which isn't exactly part of its native dictionary.
Additionally, typing quickly during a conversation with lots of people is
severely hampered by the inaccuracy of the on-screen keyboard.
I would have left it at that, but my work requires that I use a bunch of web
tools, look at lots of news sites, and have a feed reader open... basically,
things that would require some level of multitasking. Imagine the
frustration of having to constantly break the connection in chat to go look
at a site or work on a post. It's frustrating, let me tell you. The idea of
jumping into and out of applications -- of having to actually quit an app to
move to another one -- is "We don't work like this on our computers -- why
does Apple think we want to work like this on our phones?"
an incredibly outmoded and foreign idea in 2009. Additionally, the email
experience on the iPhone is brutal -- and to get anything done in a day as
Editor-in-chief of Engadget, you need your mail. As a Gmail user, the way
the native iPhone mail application handles messages is counterintuitive at
best. Google presents a lovely browser-based solution for email, but it is
markedly hampered by the browser environment itself. It's slow and
inaccurate to navigate, though obviously better if you need to bounce
between an open page and your mail. Funnily, the Safari experience provides
better multitasking than the phone itself. Adding insult to multiple
injuries, the system of notification for SMS, calendar events, or even push
IM messages (which still gives you limited options) is intrusive,
productivity-stalling, and frankly upsetting. It doesn't aid productivity if
you're constantly being hammered with pop-ups.
The whole, painful experience set me thinking. Is this really what Apple
wants me to be doing with my phone anyhow? The company has added lots of
features -- like decent Exchange support -- so that its phone will appeal to
enterprise and business users, but can these users really get what they need
out of the device? Basic functionality, like calling people, email, and
certainly document editing still feel inelegant and clunky due to the
onscreen keyboard, and the lack of multitasking makes moving around through
those typically important tasks difficult to say the least. The experience
on an Android device, S60, the Pre, a BlackBerry, or even Windows Mobile
just makes more sense. Let me say that again: those experiences make more
sense. Now I'm not saying the execution of those experiences is better
across platforms, but the philosophy of letting users multitask is more
natural to us. The iPhone doesn't even have a method for switching between
recently used or favorite applications.
We don't work like this on our computers -- why does Apple think we want to
work like this on our phones?
Well that's the thing -- maybe they don't really care about how we work.
Maybe they don't want us to work at all. If you take a look at the App
Store, it's fairly obvious where the cash is going -- and it's not to
productivity or enterprise apps. Where is it going? To Doom Resurrection,
frankly (sorry, not for me -- I hate games on rails). At the end of the day,
it's nice to stick the "we love business users" line into your PR, but it's
quite another thing to make it real.
Keep this in mind: I'm not a Wall Street lifer -- I'm a guy in new media who
needs to get things done. I should be part of Apple's target market.
So, what's the fix here? Well for Apple, the solution is simple -- the
virtual keyboard problem is annoying, but not a deal breaker necessarily.
The lack of multitasking is. The fact that Apple won't let end users decide
to run down their battery with these dangerous, experience-ruining
background tasks is galling, but the fact that the company doesn't seem to
recognize how important the concept is is even worse. Giving users the
option to select even a few apps to juggle would alleviate this problem
instantly, but you've still got the hurdle of notifications which are
difficult to manage, and an email platform which feels woefully behind the
curve. Until the company finds some new paths to beat in those departments,
the iPhone -- for all its apps and all its uses -- still doesn't hit the
sweetspot for a lot of users who need to work.
For me? Providing this heart holds up the way doctors say it will, I'll be
keeping a keen eye on Android developments. But seriously guys... put a
keyboard on those things.
preaching to the choir .. exactly why i am sticking to my S60 handset for the time being. But lets be honest .. THis is how Steve Jobbs think we should work not apple as a whole. Why do you think it was so easy for palm to lure away a bunch of the original iPhone team members from apple and bring them in to develop the Palm Pre. Oh and if they gave us the ability to multiTask on the IPhone how could they brag about what great battery life their phones get? Oh and its nice to know its not just non iPhone users who has to suffer with the painfully slow At&T 3G network here in NYC. Apple brags about how much faster the browsing experience is .. they just don't tell you you are stuck on the ATT 3G network.
oh btw you may want to consider re posting this in accessable electronics .. t where there are already a bunch of IPhone threads with ppl trying to decide if they want to get one.
amusing how people still haven't figured out that the iPhone is more about entertainment, than it is about business application. will give a big and obvious clue for business application, blackberry, orator as a screen reader for this device. don't buy to be cool, buy the device that is going to get the job done for you.
As i said in another post on this topic, apple is slowly trying to enter the workspace with the iPhone its more the fact that its on a crap network here in the states and you can't multi task on it.
Am I the only person who has never been attracted to phone as your medium of choice for everything?
I find it so strange people are cramming more and more stuff into their phones, because I prefer phone to be for basic email, basic browsing, good phone call and text message quality and may be to be able to act as a modem, nothing else.
I bought a netbook and I am delighted with how well it serves me, it's small, may be doesnot fit in a pocket, but it's light, fits into any man's bag or purse, starts up fairly quickly and runs all Windows based apps.
I'm definitely a little pumped by the Orator introduction, since Blackberry is really the device of choice for basically anyone I know who uses phone for work, but I just kind of hope that netbooks will advance and phones go a little back to basics. I also prefer my audio stuff to be on an mp3 or audio player, so much more battery friendly, smaller and even more portable.
Anyways, does anyone else here agree with me that phones that cook your food, have built in vibrators, clean your floors, breast feed, play a thousand different media things, have live Facebook, Twitter, Myspace and Blog feeds, run your business, your life and your identity, are not necessarily the holy graille of the tech industry?
cheers
-B
Wow! what a wonderful topic. My thoughts: First the editorial was fantastic. Second let's realize that what the IPhone brings is choice. There are phones that excel in productivity and phones that excel as well, um, phones. The nice thing is now there is something for everyone. Yes, the black berry screen reader is a welcome addition to the market. I have used windows phones, symbian phones and now the IPHone. Personally, for me I like the simplicity of not having to remember commands. it's on the screen. I like the fact that I paid the same price as everyone else and didn't have to install any third party software to make my phone accessible. I also enjoy the fact that there are many third party apps that work without any modification. So, for me the IPHone is a winner. I will say the battery rots and if Apple had been doing some thinking they would have made the phone an eight of an inch thicker to accommodate a better battery. Thankfully there are solutions for this problem. I don't need the ability to multitask, I enjoy knowing that when I press the home key the app closes and like not having to wonder if other apps are open. Let's enjoy the land of choice and realize that we now can have it all in whatever form it comes in.
Personally I like having everything in once device as i don't usually carry a bag and its only one device to put in my pocket unlike before where it was two or more. A phone, texting, basic web browsing, gps and media player. .. enough to keep me entertained on my fairly short rides on the subway and help me find my way once i am off the train and walking around. and the ability to multi task comes in handy as i can look up something and switch back and forth between the place with the info and the app i am entering it into. So yeah its amatter of what works for you .
i think battery life is a huge issue for these increasingly complex devices and such. so maybe apple will bring out a battery for that Iphone that is more longer lasting. i have my suspitions the battery life is a bit of a dog at the moment on the Iphone.
Agreed on the iphone thing, however perfect or imperfect it is (it sounds pretty good from what I have read, and I will definitely drop by and check it out in person next time I'm near an Apple store) the fact that I don't have to install special software on a phone to make it talk to me is brilliant.
I guess it really depends on one's needs. Most of my recent travel has been trans atlantic and in those instances having a phone is a hindrance, firstly some airlines would not even allow it to be on in plane mode (for those phones that have it) and secondly its battery life pretty much guarantees that you will have to stop listening to your mp3s approx 80 miles south of Greenland and with 4 hours to go.
Battery life on the iphoen is actually pretty good from waht i hear , but that also varies from update to update. Thats also part of the reason apple doesn't allow background processing/multi tasking is to keep battery life up. Howerever since the iphone doesn't have a removable battery , there are a few companies that make iphone battery pack cases. You slide the iPhone into a case for it that then also powers it off the battery pack in it. There is even one that puts a light right next to the camera so you can use it to provide better lighting when taking pics or shooting video in case any of you are into that lol .
I agree with post 8. I don't go on very many long trips so a phone works fine for me. For long trips or working out I use my victor stream for music, or cary a laptop around with me.
Hell for long trips i just fill up my 8gb or 16 gb memory card with entertainment. And at least taht about 16 gb of all entertainment with out the phone or apps or anything eating into that space.
I forgot to say the other reason i enjoy having it all on one device, with my phone and stereo bluetooth headset with the push of one button i can pause music and answer a ccall or etc. instead of reaching for one device to pause it and then reaching to answering a different device.As for the battery life issue a second battery is under $10 on ebay and it doesn't take much more room in my pocket to walk around with an extra battery.
A simple google returns an app called backgrounder that solves the multiple tasking issue. And btw I am posting from my iPhone
Far cry you're awesome! Thanks for giving me the extra encouragement!
last thime i checked unless you have a jailbroken iPhone you can only install apps from apples app stoe, And i am guessing if you had to do a google search to find that app, it not in the app store. So i am going to assume you havein't used it yet and can tell us how well it works? And from waht i heard jailbreaking the iPhone isn't worth it cuz then it doesn't run as well. Btw i noticed that was a short message you typed there.. how long did it take you to tap that out on a touch screen keyboard. That part still seems like more hassle than its wrth to me but i guess you will get used to it and become quicker over time?
What I don't like about the IPhone is exactly that, they have rigid control over the apps you can run and they demand their share of money for any apps, most of them are fun apps, not productivity apps, while it's totally fine for some people I prefer my phone to be functional rather than pretty or cool. Do any Bluetooth keyboards work with the IPhone or any braille displays you could use a braille keyboard on. I wonder if, for instance, thenew display from APF works with the IPhone, it works with their OS.
Cheers
-B
I just love reading reading this thread and would like to offer some more thoughts. first, I hope you will offer a review of the backgrounder. Doing a google search for an app doesn't mean it's not available in the app store. I did a google search for slacker and when I clicked on download itunes opened. I found it was in the app store. Next, batteries. I bought the mophie juice pack. it's a case with a battery in it and a switch on the bottom. need juice when your iphone battery is dying just hit the switch. Problem, major one is this. It seems to cut down reception enough that for me it causes great problems. Reviews say it's only one bar but apparently the IPHone is not very forgiving and that one bar is the difference between making or not making calls. So, let's look at the iphone as this. I saw the comments about multitasking which made me think of the IPhone as a good solid device where apps can be developed for many things. So, it may not come with multitasking capabilities but the OS apparently supports it and people can develop apps to handle this. Also, it has no way to transfer and read documents from your PC or Mac. Try Air Share pro or air share and there it is.
True just cuz a google search turns up an app doesn't mean its not available in the app store. However somethinglike backgrounder is unlikely available in the app store since its deliberately giveing you a feature apple is not letting you use on the market. I know that the iPhone as of version 3.0 supports bluetooth 2.0 but which 2.0 protocols besides stereo bluetooth headsets aren't known for sure. People i have heard discuss this matter in the tech industry discuss it as if someone would have have to build a bluetooh or other keyboard that is specific for the iPhone.
yeah a search of th e iPhones, App Store for backgrounder says no such app. So as I thought its a jailbreak app
Re: blackberry screen reader, i love how even though thisis a good product we know very little about it. i have no idea when its coming out, whether a demo is available, its absolutely amazing how little info seems to be out there unlesss I'm missing something
As far as orator goes, it will cost about $450, and initially they don't expect to have the messenger and browser app accessible to orator. IMHO that is not a viable option. It was expected to be released this month, but acording to an interview with HW and RIM it will likely be pushed off to the fall.
mmm and the politics of blindness software venders continues. They should pay us for being beta-testers, because as seems to be the case with all AT equipment, this will definitely come with its share of bugs. If it still isn't ready for primetime, and is problematic now, just wait until it actually is released. And the price tag minus a demo period? Ridiculous.
I agree with alex, and thas one advantage to the iPhone, its a phone you get talks/mobile speak level accessibility out of the box whic is unheard of today, (though the google android isn't too far behind) but unfortunately for me its a phone i don't care to use.