Today, Apple got rid of the 4GB iPhone, and dropped the price of the 8GB model by $200. This comes just over two months since the product launched in the first place. That has to be a record for fastest price-drop.
Basically, now I can go to an Apple store, and purchase an 8GB iPhone for $100 less than I paid for my 4GB.
Gah!
They also announced some other stuff, including an updated iPod Shuffle in new colors (including a Product (RED) offering), a new iPod nano (affectionately dubbed by some, the “fatty”) which supports video and the WiFi iTunes store you can access from the iPhone soon and from the new iPod touch which is basically an iPhone without the phone. The disk space on all the models got moved around too. Looks like the 8GB nano comes in all the colors now, not just black, and looks like the price came down a bit.
On top of that, they announced a partnership with Starbucks which will allow Starbucks customers to instantly buy songs that are playing in Starbucks locations. Kind of neat, but I wonder what T-Mobile thinks about that. T-Mobile provides the WiFi access inside Starbucks locations, but does not carry the iPhone, which is exclusive to AT&T. So, in a round-about way, T-Mobile has a partnership with a company that does not benefit T-Mobile in the least.
So after just over a month with my iPhone, I have a list of things which I would like to see pushed as a software/firmware update to the phone. As far as I know, none of these would require hardware changes.
- Highlight, Copy & Paste. I’m not entirely sure why this was left out in the first place.
- Landscape Mode in SMS and Email Applications. Again, not sure why this was left out.
- Video Support. Let me take short videos with sound. Add a button to automatically upload to YouTube and/or my .Mac Web Gallery.
- MMS. No reason why a camera phone shouldn’t be able to send and receive picture and video messages.
- Group Messaging. Sending one message to one person at a time is annoying. Change it.
- Bluetooth Auto-Syncing. I would like to be able to sync via bluetooth. With this, I’d like the option to select which things I would like to sync in this manner. Calendar, Address Book, Bookmarks and Mail should be a no-brainer. Syncing the iPod over bluetooth would be pretty maddening, so I’d pass on that. Also, I would like this to work automatically, with both the computer and the iPhone detecting changes on the other. I don’t want to have to push buttons for the basic stuff.
- Smarter Google Maps. If I navigate away from from the Google Maps application, don’t send me back to the start of my directions. Remember where I was, and start back there when I tap the Maps icon again.
- Smarter Weather & Stocks. In the weather and stock applications, let me select a frequency at which the data will be automatically updated. This will avoid me loading up either application while I’m out of service area and having the data displayed be a day old, or not displayed at all.
- Add GPS support via Bluetooth. This will let me carry a small GPS receiver in my pocket and interface with that via the Google Maps application.
- Make the Notes sync with something. I am assuming this is coming with Leopard and the new Mail.app, but it is annoying now. If for some reason I have to restore my iPhone, my notes are gone. Not cool.
Tim @ The New AT&T ran my credit check and tells me I will need no security deposit. That is exciting, as it means it will be easy for me to switch carriers, and it means my credit is improving.
He’s going to call me on the morning of 6/29 to sell me an iPhone and switch me over to AT&T.
I guess I have until then to decide if I really want to jump on that bandwagon right away (as I do desperately need a new phone) or get one of their lesser model freebies that they give away with new accounts. The problem with option #2 is that I know I will eventually want to upgrade to an iPhone, which will certainly reset my contract if I want any discount on it at all, and will still likely be more expensive than if I was a brand new customer immediately buying one. I’ve always found it pretty crappy that a new customer gets a better deal on new technology than a customer that has been supporting a cell phone carrier for much longer.
So, my phone bricked today. I’ve already hard-reset it and reinstalled Windows Mobile and a couple of my must-have applications. I figured it would be a good idea to call T-Mobile and see if they have a way for me to download Windows Mobile 6 to upgrade my phone. They, of course, do not. They don’t even carry the MDA anymore, so my phone is basically outdated and will be getting no support.
I want to switch to AT&T so that I can pick up an iPhone. I was going to wait until January or so, to allow any kinks in the new device to be worked out before I bought one. My early-adopter mentality already burned me once, with the Sidekick and Sidekick II. With the problems I’m having on my current phone, I’d like to just switch now, since the iPhone comes out on the 29th of this month, and AT&T can just give me a free phone in the mean time… But I’ll probably have to pay ANOTHER security deposit for AT&T, even though my account has been in good standing with T-Mobile for something like 6 years, and I’ve already paid a security deposit there (and kept my account in good standing, and got my security deposit BACK from T-Mobile)
The whole idea of a security deposit for a mobile phone plan makes zero sense to me at all. I mean, I’m paying you for the device ($599 in the case of the iPhone), I’m paying you every month for the service… And what happens if I don’t pay? You simply cut off the service! I don’t see the point in a 2-year contract, or security deposits or any of it. Just take my money and give me my service. It is ridiculously simple.
I don’t think I’ll ever understand why so much in life depends on my fucking credit score.
Apple put out a new MacBook Pro today. Faster hard disk, Faster CPU, higher maximum RAM, LED backlit displays, better graphics card.
Oh, and for college students - you get a free iPod nano.
Oh well. I guess having bought mine 6 months ago makes it feel a little better than if I bought it 6 weeks ago.
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