iPhone, iPhone!!!!

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Jonnycat26 @ Jun 28 2007, 09:50 AM) [snapback]469351[/snapback]</div>

Spreadsheets on a 3.5" screen ? Obviously you and I have different interests.
Don't know anything about Resco Radio, but I'll take the world of internet Radio, thanks.
You watch DivX, I'll watch h.264.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(EricGo @ Jun 28 2007, 04:07 PM) [snapback]469619[/snapback]</div>

Who said spreadsheets? I'm talking word documents, which is fine on the go.

Resco radio is internet radio. Which you won't have on the iPhone... no flash, no additional applications.

And isn't DivX > than h.264? Yeah... altho the Nokia supports both.

Thanks for playing! : )

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Jonnycat26 @ Jun 28 2007, 04:19 PM) [snapback]469630[/snapback]</div>

iPhone reads Doc format. Excel too, for that matter. But as I said, that is the last thing I care about.
Flash is not required for Internet radio
No, DivX is NOT > h.264.

You are welcome.

I have seen some pretty amazing User interface stuff using FLEX, which is an API based on flash, if I understand things correctly. I hope it takes off, and gets integrated into Safari. That would make the whining surrounding iPhone app development a lot less valid I think, and relegate it to legacy apps unhappy that they have to do some coding if they want to sale on the new platform.

addendum: h.246 implementations vs 6.2.4 DivX (800k PDF)

Also, a refresher of what DivX and h.264 actually are -- (stolen from the great WWW; sorry for lack of authorship)
ooks like almost nobody here knows what he/she is talking about.

1) DivX is merely a commercial implementation of MPEG-4 Part 2. It has features beyond what is specified under MPEG-4 Part 2, but AFAIK, DivX is generally backwards-compatible and should be able to be decoded by most MPEG-4 decoders. XviD is an open source off-shoot of DivX. They are now totally different codecs.

2) MPEG-4 is an audio/video encoding standard. It has many parts that specify a whole range of capabilities being video and audio encoding, including interactivity. Part 2 specifies a "simple profile" for encoding video. Part 10 specifies an "advanced profile" format commonly known as H.264. DivX/XviD/3ivx/etc. are all implementations of Part 2. x264 is an open source implementation of Part 10. All of these formats may be correctly called "MPEG-4," but H.264 is so much more complicated that DivX/XviD/3ivx/etc. decoders cannot decode H.264 and possibly vice-versa. H.264 is much higher quality at lower bit rates than Part 2 implementations.

3) AVI is merely an audio/video container. (The letters stand for "Audio-Video Interleave.") Like any other container, such as a jar, you can put many different things into it. A jar of honey is not the same as a jar of water or a jar of jelly beans. We use physical jars as a common means of storage; we don't use them to define what is stored in them. The AVI container can hold a video encoded by just about any codec. Therefore, an AVI file may hold a crappy Indeo video stream or a glorious x264 video stream or even a completely uncompressed video stream (i.e. raw video). We use the AVI container just like we would use physical jars or Tupperware -- for organization. Why have a countless number of different extensions for all of the different video formats in existence when you can have just one, and through the use of FOURCC header codes, use decoders to decide how to read a file? AVI is an ancient container format. New ones, such as Matroska and OGG, have additional features such as support for subtitle streams.

In short, DivX is an implementation of a subset of a standard; MPEG-4 is a broad audio/video standard; AVI is an audio/video container. Each of these may be called a "format," but the word is too broadly defined. You cannot appropriately compare DivX to MPEG-4; you might as well compare apples to oranges. DivX IS MPEG-4, but MPEG-4 means a whole lot more. And AVI, by itself, is quite meaningless.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Jun 28 2007, 11:06 AM) [snapback]469441[/snapback]</div>

That might be the party line from the apple information department, but that's hard to believe considering the existing flash capability in the ipods.

It's just too easy of a set up for the next iphone upgrade.

 

Haven't posted here in months, just stopping in to say that I'm gonna get one tomorrow if I can. My verizon contract runs out on Sunday, so I'm gonna take the opportunity to cut over and try it out.

What's the word on iPhone blutooth and prius? Does it work? too early to tell?

Anyone want to buy my Newton?

 

BD,
What time are you going to queue up ?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(EricGo @ Jun 28 2007, 09:18 PM) [snapback]469762[/snapback]</div>

I am in Georgia, I suspect that things are gonna be different here than in NY or CA. I am literally planning to leave work, go grab the kids and walk up to my local Cingular store at about a quarter 'til 6. If I don't get one, no big whoop.

For me, it's simply taking advantage of my Verizon 2 year being up. Not getting one would be easier on the wallet, but I'm a Human Computer Interaction developer/researcher type person, and getting one seems like something I could take advantage of professionally (I am involved in some rich-client ajaxy type projects, would be neat to play with some of my stuff on this platform. Safari is only 'phone' platform to date that has even piqued my interest these last 10 years.)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(bigdaddy @ Jun 28 2007, 08:07 PM) [snapback]469755[/snapback]</div>

I've got a really nice leather case for a Newton.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Jun 28 2007, 09:16 PM) [snapback]469583[/snapback]</div>

Interestingly, this was almost exactly the same conclusion drawn by the Economist in a recent article about Job's life.


<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(EricGo @ Jun 28 2007, 10:07 PM) [snapback]469619[/snapback]</div>

Quite likely, actually. Believe me or not, but I use the spreadsheet functionality on my Qtek S200 very often. One of the functions of my smartphone is a very sophisticated scientific calculator. Back in the old days, I would have used my HP 49G, but the S200 is better in any respect: much faster, bigger screen, much more and better software. My 49G is collecting dust right now.

I have tools on it that solve equations, graph functions, draw charts, and dozens of other stuff. I use this all the time as a replacement of a scientific calculator.

And, best of all, I write applications for my S200 on my PC using Visual Studio, sharing 95% of the code that I write for Windows. I can debug those applications on my PC environment, and upload them to my S200 when ready.

I like that. I really hope that the iPhone would offer something similar.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Jun 28 2007, 03:16 PM) [snapback]469583[/snapback]</div>

A fad? I might have a different view on the word 'fad' then.

If, however, you mean by using the word 'fad', that the Apple iMac is a hugely successful computer, then yeah, I agree. It's a great fad.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Jun 28 2007, 03:16 PM) [snapback]469583[/snapback]</div>

While true, Jobs' past product flops make other businesses leery of hooking up with him. This is the reason that Verizon declined Jobs' proposal to be the exclusive distributor for the iPhone.

While a Jobs' endeavor can be a spectacular success, it also holds the potential for being a spectacular failure, as well (regardless of what the long-range possibilities of success might be). So, Jobs ended up with AT&T/Cingular for his iPhone, a somewhat lesser cellular organization than Verizon.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(burritos @ Jun 28 2007, 07:32 PM) [snapback]469746[/snapback]</div>

http://www.toshiba.co.jp/about/press/2007_04/pr1702.htm

Not a party line - found the press release from Toshiba dated April 17, 2007. The release clearly states the new 16GB chips are the industries largest - and due to the nature of these things, they tend to be available only in multiples of 2 (thus 4gig, 8 gig, and now 16 gig). In fact, the day of the press release, Apple stock dropped over $2 on the news. think Jobs would do that?

Oh, and the iPod has a 30 or 80 gig hard drive. the Nano has a 2, 4, or 8 gig flash drive, and the shuffle has a 1 gig flash drive. So the flash capability of the iPods isn't any greater than that of the iPhone.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(rudiger @ Jun 29 2007, 06:48 AM) [snapback]469928[/snapback]</div>

FWIW, Verizon didn't decline because they thought it was risky. While i can't find the article now, I remember reading within the past few weeks that Verizon declined for several reasons, chief among those was that Apple wanted a cut of the monthly contract, and Verizon wasn't willing to give up control. Any phone you buy now a days comes loaded with carrier-specific crap designed to make them more money - Apple's not allowing that on the iPhone.

As for a "somewhat less" organization... That really is personal opinion. Here where i am, Verizon sucks and i can't wait to get off it. It was great when i got the phone back in Ohio, but i haven't had decent reception here, and absolutely no reception while at work. Cingular/at&t has excellent reception in all the places i frequent (i have a close friend on their network), and for what i'll be getting an iPhone plan with them will be cheaper than an equivalent plan with Verizon.

 

I've been seeing AT&T ads for a Blackberry. I consider the Blackberry to be a comparison to the iPhone because it costs quite a bit too, doesn't it? Can a Blackberry run on any system also? Or is AT&T advertising a Blackberry model that only they carry? I remember part of the ad saying only from AT&T.

Seems to me the iPhone is aimed at the same crowd that would buy a Blackberry. Those that want the lastest and can pay. I can see the iPhone appealing to business people that don't have to do engineering calculations on the fly. Those that need a phone, calendar, etc. but are also into the whole image prestige thing. Sorta the same reason some people buy a Lexus instead of a Corolla.

 

The amrketing strategies are interesting. blackberry is geared almost exclusively towards corporate America. Apple wants to go after that market too, but with the features and design of the iPhone, it's more or less designed more for average people. Rich average people, but average all the same.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Jun 29 2007, 10:07 AM) [snapback]469995[/snapback]</div>

Of the three companies I've been with (Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint), Verizon, while lacking some features of the others (at the time) was the best for reception and coverage. But then, I'll admit my experience was in Ohio, also.

Although I've yet to try Cingular/AT&T and have no personal experience with them, I had read somewhere that they're the customer service complaint champ over at the Federal Communications Commission, and at Consumer Reports.

 

One of the things about the iPhone, however, is that Apple is going to maintain the first level of customer service/interaction through iTunes. I trust Apple customer service a lot more than i do any of the phone carriers.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Jun 29 2007, 02:19 PM) [snapback]470202[/snapback]</div>

They'll also be covering repairs, should there be any. That's something Verizon wanted sole control over and Apple refused.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Jun 29 2007, 02:19 PM) [snapback]470202[/snapback]</div>

Hopefully this won't be provided by the Apple employee in Burlingame, CA who threw away my system software discs and the remote control for my new computer in an unopened envolope...telling me "you'll never need anything in here..." as he did.

 

first impressions from an early adopter: the iPhone lives up to the hype and then some. The keyboard isn't nearly as hard to use as some reviewers had predicted - in fact I'm sending this from the phone, typing quickly with both thumbs.

AT&T has been experiencing some problems related to demand on their system, however their customer service has been more than capable of solving the few minor problems I contacted them with (I felt a need to test them).

On a scale of 1-10, the phone scores an 11 in my book. I can't wait to see what software updates Apple has in store.