First of all, I found myself not all that excited about the new iPhone 4G. Not as excited as I was when the Palm Treo came out in 2003 and the iPhone 3G in 2007. In the last 12 months, Android has come up fast and iPhone isn't the only game in town any more as it was back in 2007. After having spent good chunk of time with the Droid, Incredible and the EVO, I think consumers do have some solid non-iPhone options.
I'm getting itchy to upgrade my iPhone 3G soon so I'm waiting for some long term usage reviews to come out on the iPhone 4G and keeping my eyes on what new Android devices will be released.
So what would make me move to the iPhone 4G?
- Battery life: I'm very curious to see how much longer the batter will last. This has been a long time gripe for me with the iPhone as well as Androids especially after getting 3 to 4 days on a Blackberry. (And please don't get me started by telling me that I shouldn't expect longer battery life since I am carrying a mobile computer not just a phone)
- Reception: Will the new antenna scheme in the 4G actually improve the AT&T reception at my house? I hope so. I really don't want to pay AT&T for their ripoff microcell box if I decide to stay with them.
What I really don't care much about in the 4G:
- Improved screen resolution: I always thought that 3G has a very nice display. I'll take the higher resolution but it was never on my want list.
- Facetime: I appreciate the better camera on the back but I think we are still few years away from video conferencing on mobile. I'm sure some will use it but definitely not on my high priority list.
What I was hoping for in the 4G but didn't get:
- Multiple Carrier choices. No duh here. Verizon would be nice even though I'm not a big fan of CDMA but I could use a different carrier.
- AT&T offering their Microcell ripoff box for free or at least give the box away.
- Removable battery. Even with improved battery life, this would be a nice addition. HTC can do it on their phones that have similar form factor as the iPhone so I know it's possible.
- Tethering: For obvious reasons
- Less control from Apple: They are just being a-holes now especially with the whole Flash thing.
