I’ve had an iPhone 3G for 18 months, and so I have 6 months to go until 2 things happen. Firstly, that my existing contract with O2 expires, and secondly that Apple release another improved version of the iPhone. So now is an interesting time to look at what I’ve enjoyed about the iPhone, and what I might be looking for in a replacement.
What I’ve enjoyed:
- Unlimited/everywhere internet access
- Decent mobile web browser
- Lots of Apps available at a couple of clicks
- Decent media player
My short wishlist for a replacement:
- Larger screen (but not a larger device overall)
- Wireless Data Sync (I don’t want to have to plug my phone into my laptop just to get up-to-date podcasts)
- Decent (video) camera
- Longer battery life
- More powerful web-technology apis (accelerometer, camera, etc)
The iTunes experience is a force likely to drive me in the direction of an Apple replacement unless an alternative appears. One thing that would attract me to an alternative would be a cloud centric rather than PC centric sync. I’m not sure if that’s likely from anyone in the next 6 months or not.
Sorry to be a pain, but it’s not everywhere. It’s UK only. That’s a minor point, maybe, but if you travel a lot like me it’s a serious bugbear… I’ve never seen a mobile operator seriously attack the problem of data costs abroad.
You’re right, of course. While I’m sure there are some regulatory reasons, my understanding is that the industry refuses to move in the direction of global organisational integration as a mechanism to justify high roaming prices.
I think short term, the most likely fix is a MiFi like device with a world sim. An international MVNO could provide that pretty cheaply as there wouldn’t be any actual international routing.