iPhone - is it worth it?

Is it worth buying an iPhone 3G? i do NEED a new phone... if i buy an iPhone, if required, will it be easy to unlock so i can use it on a Virgin pre-paid sim card in australia? What is a good price for the various models? (8gb, 16gb or 32gb) im looking to get it cheap as possible, so will it be safe to buy it from eBay?

Thanks, Rod.

 

OR

should i get an ipod touch and then just get a cheap phone??

 

Best phones I have seen for the cash this year are the samsung jxxx series.

iphone is actually over hyped rubbish.. people have no signal on o2 where my 6 year old nokia on the same network is 3/4 full strength... and they are pretty useless except on the network which supports them.

 

Hi rod619

It's hard to think of any other device that's enjoyed the level of exposure and hype that Apple found in the launch of the first iPhone. I think its totally worth to buy iPhone.It is safe to buy from ebay also.

iPhone 3G 8GB Black $99 approx
iPhone 3GS 16GB White $199 approx
iPhone 3GS 16GB Black $199 approx
iPhone 3GS 32GB White $299 approx
iPhone 3GS 32GB Black $299 approx

 

where in the world are you getting these figures at?? there is no-way in hell you can touch an iphone of any model, 2g first edition, second edition, 3g, 3gs for those prices. 2g's are still going for around 200, 3gs are around 300, 3gs are around 400, and those are for 8 gig versions, not the 16 or 32's. maybe you should look at ebay before you say what you can get them for.

 

you don't mention what you'll use it for. I had used windows mobile and palm phones for about 8 years and when the att tilt i had crashed, i decided to give an iphone a try. i am very pleased with the abundance of applications and the ability to extend the phone - something the winmo phones aspired to do, but haven't achieved. that said, the iphone has crappy battery life - especially if you intend to use gps functionality - carry a spare battery / charger just in case. and the pim features - especially contact integration w/phone dialer is pathetic - and calendaring.
i've learned to live with these shortcomings, so far - but if these are 'showstoppers' then you might want to consider alternatives.

 

compared to 3gs, i would rather buy just original 3g, mainly coz of the price difference.

 

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The other major difference is built-in GPS with live tracking and photo geo tagging. When looking at a map, a squiggly blue dot will show where you are in real-time. In the US the pricing will be $199 for 8GB and $299 for 16GB. The 16GB model will also be available in white, otherwise the back is black plastic, which makes it 0.1 ounce lighter than with the metal back on the original. . The battery life while using 3G will be 5 hours and while using 2G it will be 10 hours, (the original was rated at 8 hours). Same 2MP camera, but improved camera software. Headphone jack is no longer recessed. 3G service will be 2.8 times faster and nearly as fast as Wi-Fi. It will have improved audio. There will be no dock in the box. it's now optional. No price for the 3G dock is listed but it could sell for as much as $49, but I'm thinking more like $39. The dock cable ($19) is included in the box.

Although the 8GB iPhone 3G is half the price, (a $200 savings), the data plan is $10 per month more. Over the life of a two-year contract, that's a $240 increase.

Both versions of the iPhone will get the benefits of the 2.0 Software Update to include: The Apps Store, Enterprise with remote wipe, iWork and MS Office support, MobileMe support (the new .mac), mass email move & delete, contacts search, more languages, and a scientific calculator when in landscape mode. Regrettably no copy and paste, stereo bluetooth support or video capture this time around.

I've had my iPhone last year, and I'm not going to jump on iPhone 3G. For me it's not a wow! I've got to have that! when it's going to end up costing more for just the speed and GPS. Now if they were to add a front camera for iChat, I would consider it. I think the camera should've been bumped up to 3MP as well.

 

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No doubt. These prices are completely wrong.

@OP

The iphone is a great phone, really like my 3G. If your planning on Unlocking/jailbreaking make sure you get a older 3Gs or any model older. The new 3Gs Bootrom has not been fully jailbroken yet, they have to be tethered to your PC in the event of a reboot, etc.

 

No matter the generation and model, the iPhone is a great piece of hardware. Two thumbs up!

 

I figure I comment on this because I have owned all the iphones along with numerous phones...15 to be exact not including the iphone. Ive owned the competitors such as the cliq and vu and droid. They all in my opinion are worthless. Ive also had the my touch, nexus one. These are the phones that are suppose to be competitors to the iphone, but the truth is no phone that claims to be what the iphone is, is even close to be a even competition. The iphone is easy as hell to unlock and jailbreak. It takes the matter of plugging in your iphone 3g and click one button on a program(Black Rain), and letting it do its work. Then once you do that you open up the app that it installed and click on the unlock button...easy..and those apps are always a fun way to keep you entertained during boring times. But as for those figures on the prices thats a lie. I bought a black 3g iphone 16gb not to long ago, maybe two weeks and it costed me 375. a white one ran it up to about 450. 3gs are at the least 525. And the only difference is speed and video in the long run...but you can use a cydia app cycorder for that, and its comparable. hope that helps

 

I'd started off on the anti-apple bandwagon. But then I got myself an ipod touch, purely as a gaming device. Using it for the last 3 odd months, I've come to rely on it more and more for everything I do, and the same stuff I used to do on my phone. I end up consuming my phone's battery on joikuspot to turn it into a wifi hotspot, so that I can use my ipod touch for browsing and chat and just about everything else!

So yeh. iphone would have been better for me than luggin around two devices permanently dependent on eachother and forever running out of charge..... >_<

 

I got my first iphone last week and I love it. It's a 2g(First Gen) 8gig and it's the best phone I have ever owned. I am using it on AT&T prepaid service and have never had an issue with call quality,etc,etc..

The network is good and the apps are amazing. If you do get an iphone, make sure you jailbreak it and unlock it(very easy) and install Installous thru Cydia(you'll know once you do more research).

I say go for it. If you've gor a couple hundrad bucks to drop on a phone, hell, why not. Mine was $189 shipped off of ebay, and make sure you get a good usb cable(not a china knockoff)


~SMurf

 

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