On the iPhone

Now that I've had some time to let the news of Apple's new product set in, I can write about it rationally.

Well, at least I can do it without drooling over myself.

Before the Keynote: Wasn't interested. Everything I'd heard about the rumored iPhone led me to believe that this would not be a device I'd be interested in.

During the Keynote: Wow. Oh god. Oh god. Oh god.

After the Keynote: It's a wonder what a few days away from the Distortion Field can do to your outlook. I still think it's an awesome device, but it isn't as great as it could be. I would love to get one, but I don't think I'll be buying it right off the bat for a couple of reasons:

• 8 GB of Memory - If the iPhone is going to replace my iPod as well as my phone, I need at least 30GB. The reason I enjoy the iPod so much is because it has enough storage space to carry my complete music collection. 8GB is a lot of space for such a small device, but it's just not enough, especially if my songs have to share real estate with my contact and calendar information. Hopefully the iPod will still see a widescreen update.
  
  Or maybe the iPhone's memory will quadruple within the year.


• No Third-Party Applications - It looks like the absence of third-party programs is all but confirmed, which is a shame. The iPhone's closed nature makes it hard for me to see this phone replacing my Treo. As of right now, my Treo acts as a checkbook, a dictionary (kanji and otherwise), an assignment planner and an IM client, as well as a phone and web broswer. It can be pretty buggy, especially when using the Opera browser, but it's definitely a versatile machine. Apple can't hope to make a program for each function that every person wants, and until I can start tinkering with the iPhone to suit my needs, my pocket device count will hold steady at two.
  
  Then again, the iPod was closed…

I can see the memory expanding in new revisions, but I'm a bit afraid that the closed architecture of the iPhone will be a persistent characteristic of the device. I was really hoping this would be the One Device. As it stands, I'm still hoping for a widescreen iPod and Palm OS 6.