On Call: Really, I mean it: Welcome, iPhone, to 2003
Welcome, iPhone, to 2003
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET)On September 25, AT&T finally activated multimedia messaging for the iPhone. The long-awaited features caused great excitement for AT&T iPhone users, primarily because they had gone so long without it. Even worse, they had to watch while their counterparts in other countries could use MMS immediately after they got iPhone 3.0.
When the MMS update went live shortly before noon Pacific time, I posted a quick blog announcing that users could now send their first multimedia message. The blog stuck mostly to the facts, but I decided to end it by welcoming the AT&T iPhone "to 2003." And that's where the fun began.
I soon received e-mails and blog comments from CNET readers who disagreed with my salutation. Some were polite, and some weren't, but all felt that I had overlooked the iPhone's other strengths while bemoaning its late arrival to the MMS party. Here's a sampling.
LOL. Hey Kent, what do you mean by "Welcome, iPhone, to 2003?" Why is that people think the iPhone is behind by not doing MMS? Other phones can do MMS, but are way behind cause they can't do email! The first MMS was sent out in 2002, the first e-mail in the mid 1960's! Somebody please explain.
- mritalian76
OK, I read all these comments from people who sarcastically proclaim the iPhone having caught up with 2003. On the other hand, Apple did make some nice enhancements to MMS. For most people, "MMS" simply means photo messaging, but on the iPhone you can send audio files, contact cards, and map locations.
- KingKuei
I know it has already been said in the comments, but I think it is worth repeating. The iPhone, unlike most phones "from 2003," can use MMS to send more than pictures. You can send contacts, videos on the 3Gs, and mapping info from the Google maps app.
- dandy1117
Yeah, it's real sad [that the iPhone is just getting MMS] when you consider that other phones can only send/receive MMS, but not email and stuff like that.
- Perry_Clease
I'll readily agree that the iPhone does many things well and it offers some experiences that aren't available on many other phones. But even with those strengths, it lagged behind almost every other cell phone on the planet by not offering a basic mobile feature for the first two years of its existence. MMS is a basic feature, but full-fledged e-mail is not. What's more, though the problem was AT&T's, the carrier's strengths and limitations are an integral part of the cell phone user experience.
So, seriously, in this case I can't make excuses. The iPhone should have had MMS from the start, and AT&T customers shouldn't have had to wait when iPhone users in other countries got it.
Kent German is a senior editor for cell phone reviews at CNET. When he's not testing the newest handsets on the market, he's blogging about cell phone news for Crave. In his On Call column, he answers reader questions and gives his take on the rapidly changing mobile industry. E-mail Kent.
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AT&T and their horrible service is what prevented iPhone users from having MMS until now.
Also it seems to me that the Author needs to stop acting like MMS was God's gift to cell phones. Was it missed from the iphone? Yes. Would I much rather have email, apps, and a competent web browser? Absolutely.
This whole article seems like one big flame-bait for attention.
Was the original iPhone first gen officially available in places other then USA/At&t?
If it was, did it support MMS on these non US networks?
If it didnt, then arguing about the fact that it was Att (which is horrible btw) is to blame as well would be a moot point,since the phone itself when it first came out didnt do MMS to begin with. Which would than proove that this article did make sense. I'm not arguing at all, because I could be wrong. I honestly don't know the real answers to those questions I asked.
The point is that MMS is NOT g-d's gift to cell phones... in fact, it is much simpler and a basic feature that should have been there!
^^
sarcastic, kent.
shut up all you critical people !
lol.
I say MMS is soooooo 2003! Who wants/needs it anyway?
I think pepepius has raised a strong point...ive had the 3G and 3Gs in the UK and only used MMS twice. Once to try it out.. and the other...... well cant really remember why the heck I used it...just wasted more of my SMS allowance. Anyway my point is strong selling points for smartphones are not MMS; they are email, texting, storage for media, screen size and resolution and synchronization with your computer.
It's crazy to think that you, a seasoned CNET editor, would condemn the iPhone for not including a feature that is easily remedied by e-mail and really is not that big of a burden for ACTUAL iPhone users. I mean lets face it, the majority of people complaining about MMS are iPhone haters anyway who just use that as ammunition to announce why they think THEIR phone of choice is better. I mean come on Kent, the iPhone may not be the best phone on the market anymore, but it has set so many trends in the market that i've lost count. To devote TWO articles to this garbage is ridiculous, and just shows how desperate CNET has become by using the iPhone's name to generate clicks.
Do me a favor... STOP picking out tiny flaws in the iPhone that don't even exist anymore and write about the other smartphone's out there with even worse problems and stick them on the FRONT PAGE instead!! And btw... I still love ya Kent! No hard feelings! : )
Stop living in the past, because email, apps, music are what makes a phone good, not MMS. All it does is make money for wireless carriers because they can charge for it and naive people will pay for it.
calm the f down. You take it like its a huge shot at your pride.
Yes, the iphone can do some nice things. But the fact that it missed a basic function cannot be overlooked.
You talk about MMS making money for companies, what does your data plan do?
I guess it comes down to personal preference, but the data is a way better deal in my opinion.
For instance. Voice control/dialing...this feature has been a standard for Windows based smart phones for almost 5 years now...Heck, this feature has even been on BlackBerry devices. I used it with my 7520 on Nextel 4 years ago!
Landscape keyboard...Windows mobile has had that feature for half a dozen years.
Voice Memos. Anyone with OneNote has been able to do this since Office 2007
YouTube and Flash based websites..again, a non issue with Windows Mobile
Encrypted backups. While formally embraced with WimMob 6.1, there were third party apps that this this years ago
Turn by turn navigation. Using the online service from the carrier, this was available for half a dozen years in both WinMob and BlackBerry and Garmin and TomTom has had a GPS app for WinMob for 5 years at least!
Tethering...come on...tethering? Since when has WinMob *NOT* had this feature? Heck, I had this feature with my Blackberry 7250!
Force quit an app...again. My HTC 8500 did this 4 years ago
3 megapixel camera...been there done that... years ago
Copy and Paste...heck, my BlackBerry 7250 did that 5 years ago!
I could go on, but I think my point has been made. The iPhone brings only three things to the table that older smart phones do not have.
Multi touch
Accelerometer
and a compass.
Ed
web/gadget guru
it is a good Ipod, with a phone, and nice interface. fast web browsing and oh yeah some games... but for serious use it is not....
it is a mistake to compare Iphone (as you said) to anything else other than simple smartphones. Yes you can buy apps to do all the stuff that are missing but what is the point when most phones have them builtin. heck, even Adobe pdf viewer is free with most phones.
it is an Ipod for music lovers, who like to ccasionally to make a phone call and send 1 or 2 sms/mms. I will not mention GPS cause it is everywhere.
What a waste of money. I am giving this to my 12 year old daughter (the iphone suits that age and type. It is a girly phone) and getting myself HTC HD2, now this is a serious Phone for real men :-)
i am really really disappointed with Apple.
And as for you Ed, are you kidding me!?! You've obvisously never owned or used an iPhone 3GS for an extended amount of time. Otherwise, you would know how smoothly and easily it integrates a person for a total multi-media experience. From a catalog of great apps, speedy internet browser, slick UI, great music/video experience to tons of little things, it's the best smartphone on the market right now. That's why everyone is scrambling to copy it's features and offerings.
Your Winmo devices may have been able to do some of these things in years past, but they've never done any of them well!! So continue to deny the truth...........Apple has raised the bar and will continue to get even better! Have fun with your FisherPrice WinMo phone! HA, HA, HA-TERS!!!!
The iPhone wasn't originally developed for the enterprise market. However, they have made strides in that direction and will continue to fix some of the issues you stated. With that being said, people want a device that does many things well. You can edit and save MS EXCEL/WORD/PDF files on the phone, if you buy the appropriate applications. "They should come on the phone"...why in the hell would Apple put a MS supported software on their phone? There are apps (cheap at that) that allow this option. I don't own them, but I can still open and read any EXCEL, Word, or PDF file on my phone. To say brag about any Winmo device is comical. I've owned a few WinMo, Palm and Blackberry devices and none compare to the 3GS! These "switching problems" between apps is hilarious. Almost every app on the iPhone saves your exact spot if you have to exit out to take a phone call or if you want to return an email. Winmo allows apps to run in the background, suck power and cripple their devices to the point their unusable! If you're strictly using your smartphone to edit spreadsheets and work from, maybe the iPhone's not for you. But if you have a social life, into music, movies, games and sharing pictures, video and other information on the go on one of the many social networks, while having one of the fastest internet browsing phones (with full web pages), then the iPhone is the way to go.....Now go edit a document on your Winmo. Oh, and this is from my iPhone 3GS........do that on your Winmo. I'll get a push notification when you reply to this......another thing your phone won't do! HA! Once again! HATERS!
Stickyd, One could ask you when the last time was you owned a WinMob phone. It's obvious it's been a while. I'm glad you're happy with your IPhone. Who knows, someday when they can fulfill my mobile needs I might even own one myself. For now, I need "productivity" not "pretty".
WinMo does the job. You don't have to like it, it is kludgy and dated now (6.5 may or may not fix that) but it does the job and the apps are pretty sweet. It had apps when the iPhone was just a twinkle in Daddy Job's eye.
I'm not saying that the iPhone isn't good for what it does well. Just that WinMo does a lot of things better like document managment and such.
WinMo does the job. You don't have to like it, it is kludgy and dated now (6.5 may or may not fix that) but it does the job and the apps are pretty sweet. It had apps when the iPhone was just a twinkle in Daddy Job's eye.
I'm not saying that the iPhone isn't good for what it does well. Just that WinMo does a lot of things better like document managment and such. The iPhone did not set a standard for what a smart phone should be. It set a standard for how to use a touch screen to make things simple. The only smart phone related item it launched was debate if the limited device actually qualified as a smart phone. Nope. It didn't. Maybe V3.0 has finally earned those chops.
I hope you guys enjoy your WinMo devices, I seriously do. But from what I recall, more people have switched to the iphone, rather than vice-versa.
tek-ed: you neglected to mentioned the 500lb gorilla in the room: the app store
/addFunctionalityGalore!!
And the feature is............."reject a call". Yes, believe it or not, you can't reject a call on the iPhone, if your iPhone is locked. You can only turn it to silent using the pathetic switch that is on the side, which ideally "should do more than one thing" (remember original iphone keynote by Mr Steve jaws?).
So go cry to Steve now.....or u know what, "may be that's good for you and that's why steve didn't put it in the iPhone". Yeah...
no need to be spiteful folks - why is it so hard to be respectful to those you've yet to meet in person?
And how about templates for texting? My dumbphones allowed that along with MMS ages ago!
For me, now understanding what MMS is, I don't understand what the fuss about it is.
I told peope never to MMS me on the iPhone before now. I don't need the hassle of signing in or email. Japan is usually ahead of the curve but MMS is so much easier than email IMO for sending quick photos.
What is this guy talking about..? Ok, AT&T users had to wait after Apple made the feature available with OS 3.0. But that's only a couple of months. The iPhone had been around for a long time and Apple didn't do anything about MMS until this summer. And this guy is blaming AT&T (because some other carriers made it available right after the release of 3.0..)
These Apple fans are soooo annoying.. Always making every other company look like incompetents (Microsoft, AT&T, etc..) and they are "so cool".. They really annoy me.
As much as I love my iPhone, I'm definitely not cool enough to be a Mac guy..
Can't people just agree to disagree? I'm a Mac brand ambassador but don't go around posting on tech nerd blogs that a feature has been missing since 2003... I personally don't give a flying fart about MMS.
Perhaps you guys need a hobby or a GF or both!
And i dont care about apple or microsoft, future android and blackberrys people! I mean waaaaay future! Not now kind of crappy.
Palm Pre, Android, and other smartphones have true multitasking. If it took that long for iPhone to have MMS and Copy/Paste, it may never have true multitasking. It may be a sign of Apple's short of technical talent. And if that's the case, I'd hate to see how long it will take to get their bandaid solution to recompile Flash apps to run on the iPhone flawlessly without dozens of bugs frustrating Flash developers.
Oh well, Palm Pre, Android, Nokia, and Windows Mobile will not have to deal with that and still benefit by being fully Flash-compatible.
I have had other smartphones in the past (WM), and after having the iPhone for over a year now, you just made me realize how bad it is.. I can't believe this is the best selling phone/smartphone ever. Millions of people must be wrong. I'm not an Apple fan at all, but the iPhone is just the best gadget I've ever purchased (and I've had a few..).
So you can't view a PDF on the iPhone..? Really...? Well, what can I say.. I'm sure your 12 year old can teach you how to do it. It's that simple. Just open the PDF attachment and voila! You are viewing a pdf file.. Same thing for office docs.. There's not a single thing that a WM phone or a Blackberry can do that the iPhone can't.
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by djkamasutra
October 6, 2009 4:34 PM PDT
- some people need to relax & have a glass of wine. seriously, it's just a phone.
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by raymund15
October 6, 2009 11:46 PM PDT
- Agreed, people act like its their companies battling, when we're just the suckers that pay too much for them...
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by lavern
October 14, 2009 6:35 AM PDT
- This is the most intelligent comment on this board bar none
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