New iPhone – did they make the right calls?

New iPhone – did they make the right calls?

July 17 2008

The new iPhone 3G was released last week amidst promises of better battery life, faster data transfer and improved functionality, but has Apple listened to what users really want?

Unique research by Reevoo.com has uncovered an in-depth wish list of improvements from 107 genuine purchasers of the original iPhone. The spec for the new iPhone 3G was then compared to see how they matched up.

Wish List top five – for the full list, see Reevoo’s blog Decide What to Buy

Speed: Original iPhone owners complained about internet browsing speed, with many citing the absence of 3G as one of the biggest opportunities to improve iPhone

The new iPhone has 3G technology so that browsing the net is much faster

Battery life: From 107 reviews, the original iPhone only scored an average of 6.8/10 for its battery life. As well as improvements in the battery life itself, iPhone owners also wanted to be able to change the battery

Apple says that it has increased battery life to 300 hours on standby, 10 hours of 2G talk, 5 hours of 3G talk and 7 hours of video playback. However you still cannot change the battery

Ringtones: Users wanted to be able to set their own music as ringtones

This is now possible, however it is a bit fiddly for the average user, requiring manual reformatting of music files

Camera: Consumers thought the old iPhone’s camera was one of its worst features. They wanted to see a camera with a flash, more megapixels, the ability to zoom and with video functionality

Apple has kept the original specs for the camera on the iPhone 3G, which will disappoint many consumers. There is no flash or video capability and it is still only 2 megapixels

Text messages: Original iPhone users were very frustrated with its SMS functionality. People were unable to carry out the most basic functions such as forwarding text messages, sending messages to multiple contacts and sending pictures and business cards. Users also would have liked to be able to navigate more easily through words and letters in text messages

Apple has now improved the iPhone’s messaging features so that you can now send messages to multiple contacts. However, you still cannot send multimedia messages

The new iPhone is definitely an improvement on the first. The unique internet browsing experience can now be enjoyed with the addition of 3G technology. Users can use maps and tracking with GPS and the whole iPhone experience will get much more interesting with the opening of the App Store.

However, while you can now send messages to multiple contacts, there is still no multimedia messaging functionality. There have been no improvements to the 2 megapixel camera, which still doesn’t have a flash or video capability.

Those who were hoping that Apple would improve basic functions such as multimedia messaging and video and camera capabilities may be disappointed. There’s no denying that Apple has improved much of the functionality shortfalls identified in Reevoo’s research of genuine customer reviews. And with one million global sales in the iPhone’s opening weekend, it’s clear that consumers will sacrifice some functionality for the Apple brand and category-leading design.

ENDS

Shoppers can also keep up-to-date with the latest consumer news and reviews on Reevoo’s blog at www.decidewhattobuy.com.

When shoppers buy goods online from any of Reevoo’s 52 retail partners, including Woolworths, Currys, Dixons and the Carphone Warehouse, they are asked to rate their purchases. Their comments – good, bad or indifferent – are then published on both the e-tailers’ websites and on shopping.reevoo.com.

More information:
Chris Winstanley
chriswinstanley@reevoo.com
020 7654 0340

Jo Reale
joreale@reevoo.com
020 7654 0341