Overall, I've been very impressed with this little piece of technology, and so has everyone I've shown it to. I'll get the negative out of the way first before I get to the good stuff. Its not all that easy to find a usable WiFi signal. In Portland we have a free WiFi network that you can identify by the large white plastic cans sitting atop the light standards. You have to be quite close to get a strong enough signal to log on - like 30 yards. T-Mobile wants 20 bucks a month, forget it. Often I can find unlocked signals, but they're usually only one bar strong and that is seldom enough to lock on. I haven't been able to log in to my own home network, but I now suspect that it doesn't like 64 bit encryption since at my sisters house I got right on her 128 bit wireless network. The free airport networks were batting 50% - worked well in Portland, couldn't get on in Dulles.

On the 5 hour plane ride to DC I was very impressed with the video. You'd think that little screen wouldn't be that great, but I found it very enjoyable. Battery power was good for a little over 2 hours of video, not the 3 they advertise. I tried reducing the brightness on the return trip and it didn't seem to make a huge difference. I suppose you could get a battery pack to plug it in to. Music sounds excellent, as expected.

I had some photos on it that I needed to share. Seemed like the only option was to email them. This proved quite easy, once I found a network. The Hilton I stayed at the first couple nights only had ethernet for free so I spent a cold couple hours wandering around downtown Silver Spring looking for a network - finally found one in a warm phone store. Once I was online it was easy to configure both gmail and yahoo and send the pix. Even though the pix were reprocessed when they were loaded in they still had more than enough resolution to use in a slideshow. It was nice how the mail window pulled info out of my contacts, and let you add new ones in. Very well thought out.

Once I was on a high speed home network everything worked wonderfully: Utube links played flawlessly, browser was a little slow but quite functional, weather worked great, no trouble picking up my email, maps was very impressive but won't do much for you on the move (satellite pix, too!). Great little gizmo.

Thanks great review, good info. In your opinion, is there any reason that it would not work as a decent PDA?

I'm not a PDA power user but I'd say its more than decent. It syncs easily with your Address Book: has all the same info onboard and adding new contacts is easy and sends them back to your base computer next time you plug in. Has a nice calendar section that also syncs with the Apple Calendar. Email is handled nicely. I wasn't able to get my POP account configured but that was probably due to my lack of expertise. I was still able to get to that account online. There is also a place to type notes. Small and easy to carry, screen is beautiful. The touch navigation is well thought out and easy to get used to. Others can probably weigh in with better recommendations.

Thanks for the review. I am interested in one too.

I was trying one out at the Apple Store the other day and was surprised that the Map function would not switch to landscape mode. I asked one of the Apple people if this was the case, and she said she didn't really know, but tried it and said that it appeared to be so. The main reason I would want to switch to landscape is so the keypad would be larger. Even though I have very small fingers, I find typing accurately on the keypad when it isn't in landscape hard. If I could use a stylus that would help, but I don't think that it possible, is it?

---

Roswell, GA (Atlanta suburb)

Don't think a stylus will work. I don't have a stylus but I tried various objects like pens and erasers and none of them worked. Must need the heat off your finger? Maybe you could recycle a flattened squirrel paw.....

WIth the touch and 'Phone, "landscape" mode is only available for websites and photos.

You should be able to enable that in every app. Expecially because the keyboard is bigger.

---

I am that Masked Man.

All you can do, is all you can do.

There’s trouble — it's time to play the sound of my people.

Your boos mean nothing to me, I've seen what you cheer for.

Insisting on your rights without acknowledging your responsibilities isn’t freedom, it’s adolescence.

I've been to the edge of the map, and there be monsters.

We are a government of laws, not men.

Everybody counts or nobody counts.

When a good man is hurt,
all who would be called good
must suffer with him.

You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.

There is no safety for honest men except
by believing all possible evil of evil men.

We don’t do focus groups. They just ensure that you don’t offend anyone, and produce bland inoffensive products. —Sir Jonathan Ive

An armed society is a polite society.
And hope is a lousy defense.

You make me pull, I'll put you down.

I *love* SIGs. It's Glocks I hate.

Quote
RAMd®d
WIth the touch and 'Phone, "landscape" mode is only available for websites and photos.

You should be able to enable that in every app. Expecially because the keyboard is bigger.

Of course, there is always the possibility that Apple could add that in a software update. With one of those blackberry/chicklet studded pdas you are stuck with what you get (or don't get).

Music, too - but in landscape mode I think it will only let you flip through album cover art. I was experimenting with it in shuffle song mode while on landscape and discovered an inconsistency. It will display the correct album on the first song, but when it shuffles to the next song it won't change to the correct album unless you orient it vertically.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/02/2008 11:56AM by Wags.

Funny thing about those touch-keys...you learn to use them really fast. I didn't think I would be able to use the miniscule keys on my iphone either...but within a couple of days I got my average up to about 80% and after a couple of months I am 95% on it. Which was about what I had on my Treo.

Jay

Quote
Undrpsi
Funny thing about those touch-keys...you learn to use them really fast. I didn't think I would be able to use the miniscule keys on my iphone either...but within a couple of days I got my average up to about 80% and after a couple of months I am 95% on it. Which was about what I had on my Treo.

Jay

Agreed. Someone here told me to aim slightly above the letter and that was quite helpful. Plus, the smart function, where it suggests words based on the first few letter you type, is better than most I've seen, especially the lame one on my phone.

Quote
Wags

Quote
Undrpsi
Funny thing about those touch-keys...you learn to use them really fast. I didn't think I would be able to use the miniscule keys on my iphone either...but within a couple of days I got my average up to about 80% and after a couple of months I am 95% on it. Which was about what I had on my Treo.

Jay

Agreed. Someone here told me to aim slightly above the letter and that was quite helpful. Plus, the smart function, where it suggests words based on the first few letter you type, is better than most I've seen, especially the lame one on my phone.

Also agree. I've had my Touch since Oct. and I'm fairly fast with the keyboard now. Waaaay faster than with my BlackBerry. What did Steve say? That you just have to trust the keyboard? He's right. Use the force, Luke.

I'm going to challenge my brother who has a Palm to see who can punch out a paragraph faster. He claims that he's fast with his stylus and has those "shortcut" symbols down pat. We shall see...

---

Mr. Lahey: A lot of people, don’t know how to drink. They drink against the grain of the liquor. And when you drink against the grain of the liquor? You lose.

Randy: What the @#$%& are you talking about?

Quote
Wags
Don't think a stylus will work. I don't have a stylus but I tried various objects like pens and erasers and none of them worked. Must need the heat off your finger?

I think it uses the electrical conductivity of your skin to alter the capacitance. I found that the trackpad on my portable computer doesn't respond well when my skin is very dry. This is consistent with the condicutivity hypothesis.

Of course, there is always the possibility that Apple could add that in a software update.

Exactly. I'm hoping that Apple has that on its roadmap, along with voice dialing.

I believe the screen is capacitance-sensitive technology, like the touch-on/touch-off lamps, and of course- the Cube, and some elevators. A stylus won't work.

And I like how the keyboard changes depending on what app you're in. For instance, Apple put in a .com key for Windows users.

Some phones use T9 predictive typing. Apple uses their own form of predictive/corrective typing that works really well.

I will say that BB users and other phone users who can type by "feel" are at an advantage in some situations, but I'm really happy with the 'Phone keyboard.

---

I am that Masked Man.

All you can do, is all you can do.

There’s trouble — it's time to play the sound of my people.

Your boos mean nothing to me, I've seen what you cheer for.

Insisting on your rights without acknowledging your responsibilities isn’t freedom, it’s adolescence.

I've been to the edge of the map, and there be monsters.

We are a government of laws, not men.

Everybody counts or nobody counts.

When a good man is hurt,
all who would be called good
must suffer with him.

You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.

There is no safety for honest men except
by believing all possible evil of evil men.

We don’t do focus groups. They just ensure that you don’t offend anyone, and produce bland inoffensive products. —Sir Jonathan Ive

An armed society is a polite society.
And hope is a lousy defense.

You make me pull, I'll put you down.

I *love* SIGs. It's Glocks I hate.

Quote
TheTominator

Quote
Wags
Don't think a stylus will work. I don't have a stylus but I tried various objects like pens and erasers and none of them worked. Must need the heat off your finger?

I think it uses the electrical conductivity of your skin to alter the capacitance. I found that the trackpad on my portable computer doesn't respond well when my skin is very dry. This is consistent with the condicutvity hypothesis.

Cool! Maybe the next update will include a lie detector.

I think it uses the electrical conductivity of your skin to alter the capacitance.

No, skin conductivity is not a factor.

If you put a Touch or "Phone in a Zip-Loc™ bag and use it while, say, soaking in the tub, it while work just fine.

And they work well with plastic screen protectors, too.

---

I am that Masked Man.

All you can do, is all you can do.

There’s trouble — it's time to play the sound of my people.

Your boos mean nothing to me, I've seen what you cheer for.

Insisting on your rights without acknowledging your responsibilities isn’t freedom, it’s adolescence.

I've been to the edge of the map, and there be monsters.

We are a government of laws, not men.

Everybody counts or nobody counts.

When a good man is hurt,
all who would be called good
must suffer with him.

You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.

There is no safety for honest men except
by believing all possible evil of evil men.

We don’t do focus groups. They just ensure that you don’t offend anyone, and produce bland inoffensive products. —Sir Jonathan Ive

An armed society is a polite society.
And hope is a lousy defense.

You make me pull, I'll put you down.

I *love* SIGs. It's Glocks I hate.

Quote
RAMd®d
I think it uses the electrical conductivity of your skin to alter the capacitance.

No, skin conductivity is not a factor.

If you put a Touch or "Phone in a Zip-Loc™ bag and use it while, say, soaking in the tub, it while work just fine.

And they work well with plastic screen protectors, too.

So, what makes it work???

Rammie, do you really take your iPhone in the tub in a little zippy bag?

And yes, if it isn't the conductivity that makes a finger work and not a stylus, what is it?

---

Roswell, GA (Atlanta suburb)

It's the same stuff that powers the reality distortion field.

---

"In science it often happens that scientists say, 'You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken,' and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion." (1987) -- Carl Sagan

I'm not crazy about how the autocorrect is implemented. If I'm adding a calendar event and I type the name Jenn, it might correct it to Jena. And to stop it from doing that, I have to notice that it stealthily put up a teeny little suggestion, and then I have click on the even teenier little blue X to dismiss it. If I don't, I have an event that tells me to go to Jena's office, when I'm supposed to be at Jenn's. And those are about 60 miles apart.

As a PDA, it's not bad, though I wish it honored the way iCal lets you set up separate calendars. And it makes me wish iCal was more robust. It's shocking that features I found handy on calendar/address book applications 15+ years ago still haven't made it to iCal and Address Book.

Quote
Mike Johnson
If I'm adding a calendar event and I type the name Jenn, it might correct it to Jena. ...If I don't, I have an event that tells me to go to Jena's office, when I'm supposed to be at Jenn's. And those are about 60 miles apart.

Maybe its cuteness sensor is kicking in and it is steering you towards Jena, who is presumably hotter than Jenn.

---

"In science it often happens that scientists say, 'You know that's a really good argument; my position is mistaken,' and then they would actually change their minds and you never hear that old view from them again. They really do it. It doesn't happen as often as it should, because scientists are human and change is sometimes painful. But it happens every day. I cannot recall the last time something like that happened in politics or religion." (1987) -- Carl Sagan

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