[MW Forums]

After more than two years in the making, Steve Jobs today announced the company's intention to enter the mobile handset market, unveiling the new Apple iPhone. more

[mr_josh]

This is the iPod I have been waiting for. The phone I've been waiting for. The PIM I've been waiting for. I have a 2 year Sprint contract with over a year left, but I'm tempted to take the hit and jump to Cingular for this thing. Gonna be huge.

[dbranam]

Wow! Finally a device that does it all. Phone, media, email, and internet in a form factor that works. To just be able to send a text message without having to use a phone dail will be a boon for me. The new input structure is elegant and simple. It is indeed a beautiful thing and truly revolutionary!

[lhudd]

Why on earth did they tie this thing to Cingular? I'm loving everything about the phone, but Cingular will RAPE people on the service. They already charge almost double what T-Mobile does for blackberry service. WIth a technology like GSM, they should have left it open... They could have at least paired up with all the GSM providers, instead of going exclusively Cingular.

Poor decision.

[Ace_Pumpkin]

$600 (rounding up) for the 8GB phone (plus a contract reservation of sorts), and then you pay for a 2-year contract?
Or, if I understand, it's $600 for both a phone and all the voice/data service for 2 years? That would be a huge bargain, although I'd wonder what the voice/data service would cost per month/year after the end of 2 years.

[quigonjin]

Wow. This thing is SICK. If I could wait til June to leave Verizon, I would. But one question I have is, what about fingerprints on the screen? Won't that catch a lot of glare (i.e. when watching movies)?

[icerabbit]

It is a very exciting device, great looking with plenty of features.
Since it runs OS X I'm left with one big question: Will Apple allow users to run third party applications, if compiled for it?
I'm thinking more PIM, Mapping, Notes, iChat? Since it has WiFi, this product could also do great double duty for VOIP at home (Skype, ...) and plenty of other things. Though hard drive space may become tight.
The big disappoinment for me is the Cingular exclusive and 2 year contract.
I had just decided to leave Cingular in 3-6 months because their coverage is so poor, and they hiked rates compared to ATT. (not that ATT was super)
I'm also left wonderfing if we'll see the 6th gen iPod in iPhone clothes, with similar features, minus the phone capabilities and a bigger hard drive.

[drillbo]

Quote:

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I'm also left wonderfing if we'll see the 6th gen iPod in iPhone clothes, with similar features, minus the phone capabilities and a bigger hard drive.

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Possibly a "One more thing..." media event in the near future?

[Downing]

Looks nice, but I'll pass because:
1. I'm locked into a family plan with Verizon;
2. I'm happy with my iPods just being iPods; and
3. I'm happy with my present cell phone partly because it's a decent enough cell phone but mostly because it was free.
The good news is by passing on the phone and Apple TV, which I also don't need, I've got $900 I can put towards a new iMac. /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[scottspinola]

Quote:

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Why on earth did they tie this thing to Cingular? I'm loving everything about the phone, but Cingular will RAPE people on the service. They already charge almost double what T-Mobile does for blackberry service. WIth a technology like GSM, they should have left it open... They could have at least paired up with all the GSM providers, instead of going exclusively Cingular.

Poor decision.

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I agree 100%. I am thoroughly heartbroken at this development. I've been hanging on to my three year old phone for months waiting for the iPhone and nearly jumped out of my car when I heard about it. Then when I heard it was on Cingular exclusively, I was crushed.
Cingular is the most pathetic excuse for a company I have ever experienced. I was with them for a mere 30 days and will never go back. My first bill got mixed up in the mail when I moved and instead of calling me they simply shut off my phone with no warning whatsoever. Then as I tried to cancel the service for that unbelievably draconian move you'd think I was asking them if I could throw their gramma down the stairs. Now, four months later, after no less than four contacts with their <cough> "customer service" asking for the bill, they have yet to send it so I can figure out what I owe them and get them out of my life for good. And after repeated failure on their part to send me my bill they had the nerve to send me to collections. This is a PATHETIC EXCUSE for a company. To say that their customer service is bad is to do a disservice to bad customer service centers everywhere. Their customer service is non-existent.
If I cannot get an unlocked iPhone and use it with T-Mobile, and Cingular is the only option, I regret that I will never be able to purchase this delicious piece of technology.
Terrible terrible TERRIBLE decision Apple. /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif

[ernestk]

I don't think it's going to be iPhone.
1)Jobs didn't show us the back of the iPhone anytime during the Keynote
2) On the product page there's no QTVR tour for the iPhone (they've released one for the Apple TV).
3) If you take a look at the product main page, the white text on black reads '(Apple Logo) iPhone' which is weird as all the other iPods have the logo missing from similar text. And the similar text on Apple TV's main product page reads '(Apple Logo) TV'
My guess is Apple still has Copyright issues with Cisco over the use of 'iPhone' so they can't show the back of the phone just as yet.
Will Apple do another delete and take away the 'i' this time? Apple Phone anyone?

[fribhey]

Quote:

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Why on earth did they tie this thing to Cingular? I'm loving everything about the phone, but Cingular will RAPE people on the service. They already charge almost double what T-Mobile does for blackberry service. WIth a technology like GSM, they should have left it open... They could have at least paired up with all the GSM providers, instead of going exclusively Cingular.

Poor decision.

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cingular and t-mobile are the ONLY us carriers that work with unlocked phones. verizon DOES NOT allow you to use unlocked phones with their service.
the only poor decision is verizon not allowing it's customers to use unlocked phones.

[Moof_in_Charge]

Wow this Disney connection just keeps paying off and off .... GO APPLE

[Gene_J]

I was willing to spend whatever the iPhone cost, no problem, then I saw that Cingular was the exclusive U.S. carrier!?!?! I have a family plan with T-Mobile and wouldn't think of leaving them because of the great service, especially when it comes to EDGE.
Even if I had any good feelings about Cingular, and while I could care less about any penalties with my current carrier to switch, I'd also have to move the other members of my "family plan" (my dad and a friend) and their phone numbers, its just too much of a logistical nightmare, not worth it just for an Apple phone.
Apple? Why can't you have the sense to sell an unlocked and unsubsidized phone apart from Cingular???
Sorry Apple, I'll gladly stick to unlocked and unsubsidized phones from Sony Ericsson and Nokia until you either see the light, or I can get an export model imported from Dubai or Hong Kong or somewhere. Great phone but I think Cingular will be the big mistake here.