iPhone Equals iProblems? Is the iPhone Right for You?

By: Michael C. Podlesny
Besides being an instrument to talk on, the Apple iPhone can retireve your email, surf the web and more. Apple`s iPhone is expected to become an important tool for music fans to listen to and share music.

Apple report that they sold 270,000 iPhones in the first 30 hours after the mobile device`s June 29 release. However, according to MacWorld, Duke University in Durham, North Carolina claims that it causes problems in their wireless system. A few weeks after the iPhone`s release, Duke University said that the device`s Wi-Fi connection was responsible for taking down between a dozen and 30 of the school`s Cisco wireless access points at a time, due to the flood of connection requests coming from them. In blaming the iPhone, Kevin Miller, assistant director of communications infrastructure with Duke`s Office of Information Technology, said, he does not believe it is a Cisco problem in any way. Cisco Systems Inc. said in a statement that the problem was caused by a Cisco-based network issue.

Macworld also reported in their October 2007 issue that, a new study from ChangeWave Research shows that the iPhone may be extending its halo to Macintosh brands. According to the study, consumers planning to buy new computers in the next 90 days, the percentage opting for Apple desktops and laptops jumped significantly in June 2007.

Gregg Keiser of Computer World reports in the September issue, concerning the announcement of "iPhone price cut by Apple Inc. in the U.S. The company has unexpectedly slashed the price of the eight gigabyte model of its two-month-old mobile device by 33 percent which was released in late June 2007. It is stated that the price cut was initiated by the company`s chief executive officer (CEO) Steven Jobs during an announcement of new iPod music players. The company is flooded with complaints and accusations of betrayal by the iPhone users but responded to the issue by promising the issuance of $100 purchase credits to people who bought iPhones before the price change." The price of the phone went from $599 to $399.

However not all that is cool is complete according to Scott Bradner of Network World. Scott share`s his insights about the iPhone from Apple Inc. According to Scott, there is a lot of things that bothers him about iPhone and he wanted to see some technology on it. He reveals that most of the things he wanted to see on the iPhone is not there because the functions that would make the device complete are missing. Scott cites that it would have been far better for Apple to sell a version of the iPhone that admits it is a computer running a good operating system that would allow the customers used it openly. He further expresses that the worst part of the iPhone is that the Apple is treating the iPhone just like another cell phone.

And then of course there is the issue with the huge packages on phone bills that iPhone owners are receiving. The New York Times reported in August of 2007 that "Iphone users are amazed to find oversized bills delivered by AT&T. AT&T has promised to send summarized bill to the users through text messages. Itemizing of every detail about every text message and Internet data transfer by AT&T are reasons for oversized bills."

So should you buy an iPhone? It all depends on what you will be using it for. If you need access to your email or surf the web at a moment`s notice, then it might be for you. However all experts agree, it`s better to wait until the price drops further and all of the bugs are worked out of the system.
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