What I learned in the first 4 days of my iPhone 3G

I picked up my new iPhone late on Thursday night, worked with it on Friday, then left with it for a quick trip to see my brother and my first and only nephew. Prior to this phone, I have used some sort of smartphone since 2000…all Palm software based. Prior to that I used Palm handheld computers since about 1997.

I decided to move to the iPhone because I felt that the Palm innovation had stagnated…about 5 years ago. Plus, with all the innovation and development happening around the iPhone, I knew it was a great opportunity to take my smartphone usage even further than the Palm based systems had. A real quick word about any smartphone; they aren’t met for every cell phone user. Smartphones are designed for people who want to check email, lookup information on the web, get maps, send text messages, add specialty programs like conversion programs, time trackers and much more to their phone.

Enough blabber, here are some of my thoughts about the iPhone after only four days of use:

1. The screen is absolutely stunning…clear, bright, and responsive.

2. I really miss being able to select text and use copy and paste.

3. I thought that visual voice mail was a gimmick…until I tried it. Voice mail on the iPhone is a sheer pleasure and saves a lot of time. Visual voice mail allows users to listen to voice mail in any order, rewind pause, and fast forward messages easily, and more.

4. Now I know why Treo users were/are upset that Palm never added Wifi to their phones. The ability to use a Wifi connection is awesome and makes the web function very quick…even though the 3G network from AT&T works well too.

5. The mapping and integrated GPS and searchable maps make traveling and looking for addresses and places to eat or get a coffee a snap.

6. The third party iPhone application developers and web application developers are innovating in this space like no other. In a year, I think the iPhone might actually be able to cook and drive my car! Most of the applications are quick, useful, and joy to use.

These are just a few of my initial observations, but so far, the iPhone has not disappointed at all and has in fact exceeded my expectations for how I would use it and how it would function. The screenshot above is an actual capture of one of my iPhone launch screens and shows some of the programs that I’ve added to the iPhone already.