I have recently purchased an Apple iPhone 3GS 16GB on a contract from O2 and it is an impressive piece of kit, but that does not mean that it is not without annoyances that are not acceptable for a product of this cost and what is more I am stuck with it for 24 months.

  1. Battery Replacement
    I have a contract with 02 for 24 months and from previous experience of mobile phones it is likely that a new battery will be required during this period. This was not a problem with any of my previous phones, but with the iPhone I have to send it away to be replaced. This will not only cost more, but it means that I will be without my phone!  Why couldn’t Apple give owners the ability to do this themselves? Is because of aesthetics or is it an attempt to maximise profit.
  2. Power Cable
    Attaching the power cable is more difficult with the iPhone than any other phone I have come across.  The mobile phone industry in Europe has agreed to standardise on USB connectors, why hasn’t Apple joined done the same.  It would make it much easier to connect.
  3. Keyboard
    It took me a while to get used to typing on my iPhone, but I wish I could connect my Bluetooth keyboard so I can touch type on it.  Surely it would not take much to do this Nokia have been doing this for years with their smartphones.
  4. Reception
    I was out with a friend yesterday who has an old Samsung phone on the 02 network.  She was able to take calls and send texts, while my iPhone was giving me network lost messages and no service warnings.  This is obviously not a scientific experiment but it was frustrating.
  5. 02 Network Coverage
    In my local area the 02 network doesn’t seem to have the same level of coverage as Orange my old provider.  When I am travelling on the train I tend to use an old Nokia Symbian phone on the Orange network with a wireless tethering application if I need to browse the web.  This solves the problem but it is not what I was expecting.