iPhone is not the best phone in the world - how Apple Can improve it

To begin with, I would like to clear this out of the way; that I am a Sr. Software Designer who works on both PC and Macintosh platforms. Further more I am a Macintosh user and developer and I have many products that carry ‘Apple branding’. So the following ‘rant’ is coming from a person who is an Apple enthusiast as well as a Mac user and developer. Having said that, here are my thoughts concerning the reasons that prove that iPhone, though nice and sexy, is far from being the best Smartphone out there:

1.) The Missing Editing Features: Even though Apple Sells the iPhone as a Smartphone (PDA / Internet Device being part of it’s functionality), It still lacks the basic editing futures like “Copy – Cut and Paste, which in turn are very important when you have to do any text editing on a Smartphone! Why? Simple; who wants to keep using the small and awkward keyboard of any Smartphone? No one. This is where the Copy and paste comes very handy so you don’t have to retype text and possibly make other typos and spelling errors that will slow you down. So these functionalities, as rudimentary as they are in larger computers, become very important and useful on devices like a Smartphone.

2.) That Terrible Camera: When iPhone 1.0 hit the market my N95 provided a 5.5MP camera. The iPhone had a 2.0MP built in one. I said to myself, well it’s version 1.0 and it will change in the upgrade. Low and be hold, Apple turns around and includes the same camera (2.0MP) in the iPhone 2.0. Hard to digest and / or comprehend what Apple is doing here, but there you have it. The Camera should have been a 6.1MP. Apple didn’t even bother to include a small flash system to at least be used as a fill light and improve the quality of the pictures that is taken by the it’s ailing camera. I guess Apple decided “Who’s goanna take any pictures with that crappy camera”!

3.) Total Lack of Video: As it was the case with the version 1.0 of the iPhone – iPhone 2.0 has no ability to create or stream live videos! Is this a restriction imposed by Apple or AT&T? How does Apple want to compete against other Smartphone companies, when they have no video recording capability? Most new Smartphone can do HD recording, or at least soon that ability will be added to their flagship products.

4.) The Strange GPS: iPhone sports GPS can not provided turn by turn directions – but it can divulge your EXACT position to the world! Is that not a strange GPS? When it’s needed, it can’t help its rightful owner – but it can pinpoint your position for those that really want to trace you, legally or illegally! iPhone 1.0 also performs this task thru triangulation of the Cell towers that are activate, with an accuracy rate of one ± hundred feet (Your ISP will never admit to it).

5.) Unsatisfying Audio: Even though iPhone 3G has 2 small inbuilt speakers at the bottom of its frame phone, it still cannot play Music in Stereo! Nearly all the other Smartphone can perform this task with the higher models playing 3D Audio. May be Apple doesn’t want to give this functionality to it’s clients! In the name of Sam Hill: WHY NOT?

6.) The Missing MMS: It seems that apple has never heard of MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service). Apple, in its infinite wisdom, has decided that iPhone users do not need nor want to use MMS under any circumstances. So, MMS, is totally alien to iPhone and iPhone 3G. MMS is mostly software based that in turn depends on the communication-service that your ISP provides

7.) The Missing Secondary Camera: Nearly all, 99% of the G3 phones sold in Europe are 3G phones capable video calling. It is the norm for these Cell phones using their secondary camera as the Video out device for the phone. The secondary camera can be used in conjunction with the primary camera to mix video and send it to the person you call. This secondary is conveniently missing from iPhone and Apple keeps ignoring the fact and stays quiet about it!

8.) Locked Out Flash – Air & SilverLight: In a very surprising move, apple has locked out Adobe Flash – Air and Microsoft SilverLight from running on the iPhone 3G or the upgraded legacy iPhone. Reason give is that Apple does not condone one company ruling the iPod entertainment desktop! By the same token, Apple is really restricting the iPhone users from accessing all the material that are encoded in these standards and, severely handicaps iPhone competing against ANY Smartphone on the Market that support Flash – Air and SilverLight.

9.) Half-assed Exchange Support: Despite what Apple promotional material says, the Exchange support seem to be incomplete, at best. iPhone supports IMAP as it’s email protocol. That is not the Exchange default protocol. The Exchange managers can enable IMAP at their Exchange servers, so their iPhone users are able to pickup their emails. By doing that, the iPhone client looses the benefit of Exchange’s ‘PUSH Mail’ ability. iPhone at this time does not support Microsoft Exchange’s ActiveSync, consequently the iPhone client cannot remotely access the Calendar & Contact databases. This will be a deal breaker for the IT people for the following Reasons:

1. IMAP is not their primary Email protocol and if used they will loose the ability to push email to iPhone Clients.

2. iPhone doesn’t support ActiveSync, so IT loose the ability to sync ‘Calendar’ and ‘Contacts’ with the iPhone.

1. IRumors are that Apple has licensed ActiveSync and in the next versions of iPhone. Let’s hope that will be in the NEXT release of the iPhone software update and would be available to both version of iPhone.

10.) A User Friendly Battery: As it was the unfortunate case with the original iPhone, the iPhone 3G’s battery is not accessible by the user and can not be swapped with a full charged one, when the main battery has ran out. Apple reports improved Battery usage over the older version of iPhone., but I see this as a deal breaker for the iPhone being accepted by the IT Depts. as a viable alternative to Blackberry and or other Smartphone’s that provide interchangeable battery system.

If Apple fixes the shortcoming that I noted in this ‘rant’, iPhone 3G can very well be ‘ONE’ of the best phones out there.