Apple iPhone 4

I put in a reservation for an Apple iPhone 4 a few weeks ago but but never got a call. I learned that some of my friends actually received calls about their reservations. Unwilling to wait anymore, I went back to the Globe business center.

As usual, Globe customer service was thorough (read: slow) unless of course if you’re a Platinum subscriber in which case they would gladly turn back any other customer they’re about to talk to and even give you the last stock of a phone another customer is about to get.

Unfortunately, I’m not. So I waited in line, watching as people walk off with an iPhone, fearing each one is the last. Finally, it was my turn and luckily it turned out that someone cancelled his reservation and they’re releasing it to me. Yipee! After a bunch of paperwork and payments, I walked out of the store an iPhone owner.

My first impression of the iPhone 4 is that it is well-built. Most phones are made of plastic and more plastic, the iPhone 4 is made of steel and glass. The external controls are made of metal. No flimsy rubber buttons like that of my recently retired Nokia E51. The overall build is very solid with no flexing or creaking whatsoever.

As with most recent Apple products, the design is really clean and nice in a minimalist Zen kind of way. The proprietary port, the volume, power, and silents buttons well-integrated to the clean lines of the steel sides. The back has the 5 megapixel camera lens and the LED light. The front has the speaker, the home button, and the Retina display. The display is awesome! Not as vibrant as Super AMOLED but it’s so sharp that no matter how hard you squint, you can’t discern the individual pixels.

The build is far from perfect. For one, due to the antenna design, the signal is weaker compared to most other phones. Another problem is that, it has twice the chance of breaking because it now has two glass panels. But this is definitely a premium (and expensive) phone. You likely don’t go around dropping expensive things. Still, a bumper-type case would probably be prudent. Don’t go for the ones with closed backs as they’re rumored to cause scratches that eventually leads to cracks. And don’t go for the Apple bumper case as they’re rumored to cause scuffs on the steel sides.

iOS is not perfect either. The functionality is not as efficient as operating systems that evolved from phones (i.e. Symbian) or those that is just plain geeky cool (i.e. Android). Call and SMS management lacks certain capabilities. And the UI could be better designed and more efficient. Then there’s the irrational dependency on iTunes (what has tunes got to do with phones?). This at a time when computing has become more and more mobile, a time when desktops has been replaced by laptops, laptops by netbooks, netbooks by tables/smartphones. It just doesn’t make sense.

But the bottom-line is that the iPhone 4 works reasonably well for most people, is snappy, and is easy-to-use. Besides, that’s why there’s a strong and dynamic App Store. And if it’s not on the App Store, you can write your own. Just hope and pray Apple approves it.

UPDATE: Got an SMS that my reserved phone is ready for pick up,  two days after I already got it :P