to those asking about a hardware update- yes, apple will be releasing a new 3rd gen iPhone this summer to coincide with the 3.0 OS release. i'm not claiming to have insider info, this is common knowledge and it's a dead certain thing.
i'll be upgrading to the 3rd gen iPhone from my 1st gen this summer for sure. and i can almost guarantee all these people hyped on the Pre are going to be disappointed when it's released, just like all the other wanna-be iphones that have come and gone before it.
It is by no means definite. it's probable, but you can't say a company will definitely do something. Things like the lack of MMS for the 2G iPhone suggest they're resting on their laurels.
And how do you know the Pre will disappoint? you lose your remaining credibility by calling it a wannabe iPhone (Have you SEEN the innovation in it?), and without using both 3.0 and the Pre, you can't say which will disappoint.
I too didn't bother upgrading my 2G phone to the 3G one when it came out as I felt that the features weren't justified. I do feel however that this summer's new iPhone will have signifcant hardware upgrades and perhaps be styled differently. Yeah sure it will disappoint and it will lack stuff we expected - but thats usual, I just feel that it will be a version to jump to.
What really upsets me about Apple however is that they have SHAFTED us 1st gen users over MMS. We've been the most vocal about it since day one and they took till v3.0 to add it - but now they give us some absolutely pathetic and bullshit excuse that 1st Gen iPhones won't have MMS because of some radio chip? Pulease.. all those MMS apps available right now must be transmitting via magic then huh Apple? I think they just want to force 1st adopters to upgrade. I know someone will hack the firmware to allow us 1st gen users to get MMS via normal means and that will be a sweet day indeed.
I'm sorry but with the impending influx of 3rd party accessories with the new access to BT and the dock connector, and how insanely fast app development is maturing to the point of developing truly useful apps and genuinely fun to play games, the iPhone is set to be on a whole new level than the Pre.
I convinced my dad (an E.R. doc, and not easily excited about gadgets) to get an iPhone after showing him Epocrates and a few other medical related apps and he's already got half the hospital totally hooked on them. It's getting to the point where they're genuinely dependent on the added functionality these apps give them and when I showed him the two medical related examples of what access to bluetooth and the dock connector can bring to manufacturers from the 3.0 video, he was seriously giddy just thinking about the potential of having access to those kinds of tools. And this is just ONE field!
The Pre will always be just a phone, and most likely a good one, but the iPhone is already so much more. I honestly don't see how ANY, especially cash strapped Palm, manufacturer could catch up to the level of 3rd party apps/accessories and level of integration the iPhone has already achieved, and this is just the beginning. It's widely accepted that the future of computers is mobile and thanks to the iPhone, no company is better positioned to deliver on that front than Apple.
@pheonix - would you care to put money on it? it's a promise from me to you, new iphone this summer. that doesn't mean it'll be revolutionary compared to the 3g, but there will be new hardware and at the very least a slight cosmetic change along with storage capacity bump. also, i am predicting the pre will disappoint most of the people claiming to love it now. i'm not saying it will.
The features that you were touting to your father have been available forever and a day on WinMo smartphones, and plenty more that haven't and likely never will see the light of day on the iPhone, be it for technical limitations or otherwise.
As for Epocrates, heh, WinMo had that 4 years ago. In other words, you and your father have been missing out for nearly half a decade now, and with the rate at which Apple themselves updates things or adds features, it will likely be another half decade before your precious iPhones receive features that have for some time now been standard on many a smartphone.
I don't think we are going to see the next gen iPhone anytime soon. Just look at how long it take for them to refresh their macbook lines and iMac's. The fastest refresh was, the original iPhone to the iPhone 3G. But it was due to user's demand to have 3G connectivity and also a way for apple to reduce it's production cost (with those cheap looking plastic) for mass production.
So why should they introduce a new gen anytime soon. From Apple's point of view, the only thing that was lacking was their software support, which they try to fix with the latest OS.
New gen iPhone? meeh, it's not gonna happen this year
I have to agree with you. I also have a father in the medical field and he simply loves his iPod Touch for the many things that it can do thanks to apps. He also has Epocrates loaded and some other apps as well. I've tried convincing him to get an iPhone, but I don't think he's ready for something like that yet. The thing is, using an iPod Touch is simply funner for him and everything looks better. He's used Windows Mobile before, but there's nothing worth remembering as far as I can tell. He uses a Palm Zire I believe and, sure, it gets the job done, but it's run its course.
@George.....uh iphone 2g is actually the 1st generation iphone like he said. the 2g stands for the network(edge) and the iphone 3g(which is the 2nd generation iphone) is 3g because thats the network service... the 2g does not stand for the generation.
The only person confused seems to be you! I was not confused at all when I wrote that comment above. I referred to the iPhones based on their technology - 2G/3G. therefore iPhone 2G = original iPhone. When I am referring to them in terms of generation - I use the word "gen". 2G and 3G are not terms that people use to refer to the phones in terms of generation, but rather the inbuilt technology. The original iPhone is referred to as 2G or 1st gen. Neither Darren nor myself used it in the wrong way you assumed.
Since you have clearly been out the loop - here is a link to help you:
I find it amusing that some of you believe that Apple will NOT have a new iPhone this summer. Lets do some analyzing to put this into more perspective.
When the first phone launched - we had firmware 1.0. When the 2nd iPhone launched, it launched with firmware 2.0. Now with firmware 3.0 - do you seriously believe this will not launch simultaneously with a new iPhone? DOUBTFUL! Also every iPhone has been released each summer and firmware 3.0 is due summer 2009 - which also coincides nicely with the time of the year that they happen to release iPhones! They also showed us the new features of firmware 3.0 - but rest assured - they probably didn't mention a lot of stuff simply because it is tied into the new phone - which they obviously dont want details leaking about. I'll assume that a lot of new features won't be mentioned until the launch of the new iPhone.
Phones like the Pre and Nokia N97 will be stepping up the game. While the iPhone 3G is good, it certainly cannot go on for another whole year in its current form given the competition. All firmware updates after summer will be point releases so therefore not offer anything significant.
Look at Apples market share - 2 years ago, Apple had 0% of the mobile phone market. Currently they have 8%. That is a huge thing for a company that only 2 years ago did not have a single mobile phone with their name on it.
Look at the demand iPhones create too. Yeah sure its an Apple product and people will always rush out to buy it, but there is always a demand for the phones, because even with the shortcomings - they are actually decent phones and what they do, they do well. Also remember the kind of revenue Apple get - not only from hardware sales but also from revenue streams via each telecoms carrier. This is all serious money nobody can ignore.
The disasterous eceonomic situation worldwide for the last 8 months has companies seriously struggling and they need to do everything they can to generate revenue again. The iPhone is a big golden egg for Apple.
Now putting all this together and some of you seriously think that no new iPhone is coming out this summer? You're in denial then for sure!
Hamidxa, saying something like that basically guarantees that you've never even used an iPhone for more than a few minutes. Tiny fonts (a HUGE issue for him), having to manually manage battery and performance draining background applications, the exact opposite of an intuitive user interface, and miniscule keyboards/buttons is quite possibly the worst nightmare(s) embodied in a phone for my 55 year old father. This is a guy that came from a several year old Sanyo flip phone he never even figured out texting on (after several attempts to teach him). I literally haven't had to help him ONCE with his iPhone and he's texting, Googling, taking/sending pictures through e-mail, downloading apps, and just started integrating his calendar into it.
Good luck finding me a WinMo phone that integrates with blood pressure and blood sugar monitors, and has as much potential and excitement from developers to create dozens of other devices within a few months. The iPhone offers a potential for profit for developers that no other mobile platform can touch and this reason alone basically guarantees that all the best devices will be created for it, and it alone.
He couldn't give a shit less what brand or device he's using. He has more loyalty to the brand of yogurt he eats than any manufacturer and if the iPhone didn't deliver as well as it did, he wouldn't be using it. He's not trying to impress anybody and has an incredibly low level of tolerance for bad design and functionality. The fact that he's taken so well to it says a lot in my opinion, but hey that's just because I know the guy.
For those looking for a device strictly for reading, the new Kobo is a nice little option. It's small enough to slip into a pocket, can do more with a PDF than the competition, and at $129, it's $10 cheaper than both the Nook and Kindle WiFi.
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to those asking about a hardware update- yes, apple will be releasing a new 3rd gen iPhone this summer to coincide with the 3.0 OS release. i'm not claiming to have insider info, this is common knowledge and it's a dead certain thing.
i'll be upgrading to the 3rd gen iPhone from my 1st gen this summer for sure. and i can almost guarantee all these people hyped on the Pre are going to be disappointed when it's released, just like all the other wanna-be iphones that have come and gone before it.
It is by no means definite. it's probable, but you can't say a company will definitely do something. Things like the lack of MMS for the 2G iPhone suggest they're resting on their laurels.
And how do you know the Pre will disappoint? you lose your remaining credibility by calling it a wannabe iPhone (Have you SEEN the innovation in it?), and without using both 3.0 and the Pre, you can't say which will disappoint.
I too didn't bother upgrading my 2G phone to the 3G one when it came out as I felt that the features weren't justified. I do feel however that this summer's new iPhone will have signifcant hardware upgrades and perhaps be styled differently. Yeah sure it will disappoint and it will lack stuff we expected - but thats usual, I just feel that it will be a version to jump to.
What really upsets me about Apple however is that they have SHAFTED us 1st gen users over MMS. We've been the most vocal about it since day one and they took till v3.0 to add it - but now they give us some absolutely pathetic and bullshit excuse that 1st Gen iPhones won't have MMS because of some radio chip? Pulease.. all those MMS apps available right now must be transmitting via magic then huh Apple? I think they just want to force 1st adopters to upgrade. I know someone will hack the firmware to allow us 1st gen users to get MMS via normal means and that will be a sweet day indeed.
I'm sorry but with the impending influx of 3rd party accessories with the new access to BT and the dock connector, and how insanely fast app development is maturing to the point of developing truly useful apps and genuinely fun to play games, the iPhone is set to be on a whole new level than the Pre.
I convinced my dad (an E.R. doc, and not easily excited about gadgets) to get an iPhone after showing him Epocrates and a few other medical related apps and he's already got half the hospital totally hooked on them. It's getting to the point where they're genuinely dependent on the added functionality these apps give them and when I showed him the two medical related examples of what access to bluetooth and the dock connector can bring to manufacturers from the 3.0 video, he was seriously giddy just thinking about the potential of having access to those kinds of tools. And this is just ONE field!
The Pre will always be just a phone, and most likely a good one, but the iPhone is already so much more. I honestly don't see how ANY, especially cash strapped Palm, manufacturer could catch up to the level of 3rd party apps/accessories and level of integration the iPhone has already achieved, and this is just the beginning. It's widely accepted that the future of computers is mobile and thanks to the iPhone, no company is better positioned to deliver on that front than Apple.
@pheonix - would you care to put money on it? it's a promise from me to you, new iphone this summer. that doesn't mean it'll be revolutionary compared to the 3g, but there will be new hardware and at the very least a slight cosmetic change along with storage capacity bump. also, i am predicting the pre will disappoint most of the people claiming to love it now. i'm not saying it will.
@Sax25.....uh. The 2G iPhone IS the iPhone 3G. It is referring to the 2nd GENERATION iPhone which is the iPhone 3G.
Utahkid,
The features that you were touting to your father have been available forever and a day on WinMo smartphones, and plenty more that haven't and likely never will see the light of day on the iPhone, be it for technical limitations or otherwise.
As for Epocrates, heh, WinMo had that 4 years ago.
In other words, you and your father have been missing out for nearly half a decade now, and with the rate at which Apple themselves updates things or adds features, it will likely be another half decade before your precious iPhones receive features that have for some time now been standard on many a smartphone.
Welcome to 2005, see you again in 2010.
I don't think we are going to see the next gen iPhone anytime soon. Just look at how long it take for them to refresh their macbook lines and iMac's.
The fastest refresh was, the original iPhone to the iPhone 3G. But it was due to user's demand to have 3G connectivity and also a way for apple to reduce it's production cost (with those cheap looking plastic) for mass production.
So why should they introduce a new gen anytime soon. From Apple's point of view, the only thing that was lacking was their software support, which they try to fix with the latest OS.
New gen iPhone? meeh, it's not gonna happen this year
@utahnkid
I have to agree with you. I also have a father in the medical field and he simply loves his iPod Touch for the many things that it can do thanks to apps. He also has Epocrates loaded and some other apps as well. I've tried convincing him to get an iPhone, but I don't think he's ready for something like that yet. The thing is, using an iPod Touch is simply funner for him and everything looks better. He's used Windows Mobile before, but there's nothing worth remembering as far as I can tell. He uses a Palm Zire I believe and, sure, it gets the job done, but it's run its course.
@George.....uh iphone 2g is actually the 1st generation iphone like he said. the 2g stands for the network(edge) and the iphone 3g(which is the 2nd generation iphone) is 3g because thats the network service... the 2g does not stand for the generation.
@George
iPhone 2G = Original iPhone
iPhone 3G = iPhone 3G
iPhone 2G = 1st gen
iPhone 3G = 2nd gen
The only person confused seems to be you! I was not confused at all when I wrote that comment above. I referred to the iPhones based on their technology - 2G/3G. therefore iPhone 2G = original iPhone. When I am referring to them in terms of generation - I use the word "gen". 2G and 3G are not terms that people use to refer to the phones in terms of generation, but rather the inbuilt technology. The original iPhone is referred to as 2G or 1st gen. Neither Darren nor myself used it in the wrong way you assumed.
Since you have clearly been out the loop - here is a link to help you:
http://www.theiphoneblog.com/2008/06/13/original-iphone-2g-pulled-from-att-stores/
I find it amusing that some of you believe that Apple will NOT have a new iPhone this summer. Lets do some analyzing to put this into more perspective.
When the first phone launched - we had firmware 1.0. When the 2nd iPhone launched, it launched with firmware 2.0. Now with firmware 3.0 - do you seriously believe this will not launch simultaneously with a new iPhone? DOUBTFUL! Also every iPhone has been released each summer and firmware 3.0 is due summer 2009 - which also coincides nicely with the time of the year that they happen to release iPhones! They also showed us the new features of firmware 3.0 - but rest assured - they probably didn't mention a lot of stuff simply because it is tied into the new phone - which they obviously dont want details leaking about. I'll assume that a lot of new features won't be mentioned until the launch of the new iPhone.
Phones like the Pre and Nokia N97 will be stepping up the game. While the iPhone 3G is good, it certainly cannot go on for another whole year in its current form given the competition. All firmware updates after summer will be point releases so therefore not offer anything significant.
Look at Apples market share - 2 years ago, Apple had 0% of the mobile phone market. Currently they have 8%. That is a huge thing for a company that only 2 years ago did not have a single mobile phone with their name on it.
Look at the demand iPhones create too. Yeah sure its an Apple product and people will always rush out to buy it, but there is always a demand for the phones, because even with the shortcomings - they are actually decent phones and what they do, they do well. Also remember the kind of revenue Apple get - not only from hardware sales but also from revenue streams via each telecoms carrier. This is all serious money nobody can ignore.
The disasterous eceonomic situation worldwide for the last 8 months has companies seriously struggling and they need to do everything they can to generate revenue again. The iPhone is a big golden egg for Apple.
Now putting all this together and some of you seriously think that no new iPhone is coming out this summer? You're in denial then for sure!
Hamidxa, saying something like that basically guarantees that you've never even used an iPhone for more than a few minutes. Tiny fonts (a HUGE issue for him), having to manually manage battery and performance draining background applications, the exact opposite of an intuitive user interface, and miniscule keyboards/buttons is quite possibly the worst nightmare(s) embodied in a phone for my 55 year old father. This is a guy that came from a several year old Sanyo flip phone he never even figured out texting on (after several attempts to teach him). I literally haven't had to help him ONCE with his iPhone and he's texting, Googling, taking/sending pictures through e-mail, downloading apps, and just started integrating his calendar into it.
Good luck finding me a WinMo phone that integrates with blood pressure and blood sugar monitors, and has as much potential and excitement from developers to create dozens of other devices within a few months. The iPhone offers a potential for profit for developers that no other mobile platform can touch and this reason alone basically guarantees that all the best devices will be created for it, and it alone.
He couldn't give a shit less what brand or device he's using. He has more loyalty to the brand of yogurt he eats than any manufacturer and if the iPhone didn't deliver as well as it did, he wouldn't be using it. He's not trying to impress anybody and has an incredibly low level of tolerance for bad design and functionality. The fact that he's taken so well to it says a lot in my opinion, but hey that's just because I know the guy.