Thoughts on iPhone 1.1.1


iphone.jpg

So, I’ve been playing with this iPhone update for a while now – and I have to say, I’m mostly disappointed.

Now, granted, I got myself hyped up, thinking that we might get the benefit of revolutionary features like Copy and Paste – but I find the iTunes Wi-Fi store disappointing…I don’t really see why we can’t download video…and I’m EXTREMELY disappointed there are no podcast downloads. Playing the music is cool – and it’s certainly a good first step – but I would have like to have just flat out had the iTunes store on my phone, and that’s not quite what’s here.

They changed the Calculator icon. I don’t really have a feeling about that one way or the other, just thought you might like to know…

I like some of the shortcuts that they added…especially the double click home button…but I’m really frustrated that they added Mail attachments in landscape mode, but not Mail itself. I guess that’s a pretty clear indicator that they’re not going to make Mail a landscape mode program.

Anyway, that’s what I think about it – what about you? Did you find lots of cool new stuff in the iPhone update?


Kokou Adzo

Kokou Adzo is a stalwart in the tech journalism community, has been chronicling the ever-evolving world of Apple products and innovations for over a decade. As a Senior Author at Apple Gazette, Kokou combines a deep passion for technology with an innate ability to translate complex tech jargon into relatable insights for everyday users.

18 Comments

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  1. Are you disappointed? Come to Brazil! We don’t have iTunes Store, don’t have iPhone and the Apple products price are nonsense!

  2. The double tap on the space bar for a “.” and a space will save me a lot of time while typing. I like being able to re-order my stocks and cities now. I like being able to pick the sound that plays when I get new Text message – though I wish Apple would have made that function available to Mail and Voicemail as well – maybe in 1.1.2??

    I personally like the iTunes WiFi Store. I was sitting in a Caribou Coffee yesterday afternoon listening to their music and heard a U2 song I liked and didn’t own. A few minutes later it was on my iPhone. I don’t need Starbuck’s to be able to download music while I’m drinking expensive coffee!

  3. Cry, cry, cry. If the update does not have EVERYTHING you want they cry about it. More updates will come out and your not going to like everyone so get over it.

    That said, BRING OUT VOICE DIALING!

  4. Yeah, it took them 3 months to do the little tweaks they did. With no way to do 3rd party apps people will get bored with this phone quickly. Have you had to delete 100 messages yet? It is a pain to do so and really takes up valuable time. Yes I have one, but if Google came out with a similar phone with similar features then I might consider it. Especially if they made it open carrier and open source. Played Divx,ogg, shockwave and had a firefox browser. I phone would be forgotten and the gPhone will divide the die-hard Apple fans and the casual admirer.

  5. Let me ask you this.

    If there was NO update, would you be happier? It was ONE update!! Geez, can’t you Mac folk ever be happy? It’s not supposed to solve the war on hunger, it was just a simple update…like the ones coming in the future.

    I love the iTunes WiFi Music Store. It’s called MUSIC Store, at the moment. You know that they will eventually open it up to movies and the like.

    Why does everyone have to complain about a free upgrade? Do other phones do the same?

  6. @Nimbus: If I could add third-party apps, I wouldn’t expect new apps from Apple, but they prevent that. As a result, Apple is our only source of new functionality. That’s why I complain.

    Apple can’t have it both ways. If they won’t let other developers provide some of the missing features that any other top-end smartphone has (to-do list, ebook reader, games, etc.), they should provide those feautures themselves. And if they don’t I’ll be disappointed.

  7. I am disapponted, not because the update wasn’t more impressive (no copy and paste is driving me nuts) but because it wasn’t worth it and there is no way to go back for the first time in Apple firmware update history. Shortcuts are nice but I upgraded to be able to dl my podcasts without my mac, great for mid day podcasts and travelling. Since the iTS isn’t complete, I would rather have my third party apps, but you can’t go back. I also wrongly assumed that the loss of third party apps would last a few days before updates corrected things but the iPhone is now locked down like the Touch and we will probably be appless for a good while. On well, at least I still have a badass phone.

  8. Note that I don’t own an iPhone. And this sort of thing is part of the reason.

    While Apple may not be positioning this way–and that’s fine–many hyped and still hype the iPhone as a mobile computer. “It runs OS X, just like a Mac!”

    This may be fair or unfair, depending on your POV. I’m sure the iPhone is a pretty wonderful phone, as far as phones go. But as a mobile computer, I’m less than impressed. It doesn’t do many of things that I would want to do with a mobile computer.

    Take a simple example: Why is there no IM client? “Well, I’m sure Apple will bring iChat to the phone eventually.” And there’s the rub: Apple, currently overworked what with Leopard and all, will eventually make the iPhone do the things I want to do today. Remember, this is the company that took years to bring out a spreadsheet for iWork. I’m not sure I’d want to wait around for an IM client.

    So, again, as a phone, I’m sure it’s great. It does everything I expect out of a phone–and more! As a mobile computer? It doesn’t do half of what I’d want to do.

    So it depends on what you were expecting out of your iPhone experience. If you were expecting a really great phone, you’ll certainly not be disappointed by the new capabilities. If you were expecting a mobile computer, this new upgrade doesn’t give you much of anything.

  9. @nimbus

    It’s not a free upgrade. I pay a monthly bill for this phone and Apple gets a cut of that. I paid for this update, and so did you – if you have an iPhone.

    That being said – I have never expected the phone to cure world hunger – cancer- or even acne…but I don’t think it’s asking too much to expect it to copy and paste…or do some of the things FREE phones do, like IM and MMS.

  10. Hi folks,

    i believe the only single purpose of this update is in fact to brick the unlocked modified phones and keep 3rd party apps out of the game!

    Remember: Apple get’s paid for every single SMS you send. Data sendings that would occur due to an iChat like application (Apollo IM anyone ;-)) generates no revenue…

    Hopefully the phone i bought on ebay will arrive soon – it is the 1.0.2 firmware that’s going to stay on it forever?

    I specifically bought an U.S. phone that’s sure to run 3rd party apps, although i could buy one here in germany on november 9th.

    Think about it!

  11. Uh, guys, there will be more updates in the future. Would you have preferred to have Apple wait on the iPhone for another year so that they do the Leopard release first? I think that Apple had to strike while the opportunity was there. And from what I have seen playing with the iPhone on trips to the US, they deliver a way better experience than any phone I’ve ever used. Just be thankful that you aren’t Canadian. We have the full feature set, when those twits at Rogers finally get their act together and launch the phone.

    Furthermore, I can’t wait to see what will be around the corner with the advent of Leopard. I am expecting a lot more from this phone when it becomes available…

  12. Grant: if you needed third party apps, why did you update your iPhone right away? Why not wait until reviews of the update were plentiful so you could determine if you needed third party apps or not? Just because an update is available, you don’t have to apply it.

    I think Apple is waiting on Leopard before enhancing the iPhone’s applications and other feature content. Remember, OS X Leopard runs the iPhone, but Leopard is not finished and is only now rumored to have gone gold master. So, quite a few updates could be had in the next month once Leopard is released.

  13. Apple is without question more interested in generating more revenue than giving us meaningful updates. While the iTunes feature is interesting not having COPY and PASTE, just to name one, really slows down any adult trying to use the phone for business.

  14. @Michael:It’s not a free upgrade. I pay a monthly bill for this phone and Apple gets a cut of that. I paid for this update, and so did you – if you have an iPhone.

    You’d pay a monthly bill for *ANY* phone. your argument is specious.

  15. Voice-dialing is absolutely essential for use while driving. I have a HFL in my car and use that, but I often have rental cars for travel and cannot use the iPhone without pulling over, not always an easy thing to do. Instead of iTunes, for God’s sakes, give us business users something practical!

    Ishan Bhattacharya, MD

  16. @ the complainers

    It’s good to complain, we all know that you’re paying a monthly bill, but I guess that my electricity should have “updates” since I pay a monthly electricity bill, or maybe my cable should have an update since pay a cable bill…etc.

    Yes, Apple should make some 3rd party apps. I believe they are coming, but I won’t bitch until AFTER Leopard is released. I’m thinking that a lot of stuff might be tied to that. I won’t be angry until after Macworld 2008 if there are no 3rd party software.

    Until then, I’ll be a patient person and enjoy my cool phone.

  17. IMHO this ‘update’ also crippled one iPod function that was available before. Before the update podcasts were listed under Genres, where you could select to listen to them one after another, but now podcasts are listed separately. No way to listen to them in any order without selecting each one, a bit of a pain while commuting to work behind the wheel.