It seems like it has been much longer since I first got my iPhone 3G back in October 2008. It is probably because I am a technology connoisseur and love to have the latest and the greatest when it comes to gadgets.  Being that way I have thought of going to an Android or Windows Mobile 6.5/7 phones (I am not going to even review Windows Mobile because it still is lacking too much). It’s not that I didn’t like the iPhone it is just that I like something different. Well unfortunately for me my journey took me back to where I started, my iPhone.

Let’s get started with a step by step of why the iPhone platform is the best out right now (and no I am NOT an Apple fanboy, just simply stating the facts here). I know there is jailbreaking and rooting for each platform but I am not going into that right now. I will however say that jailbreaking the iPhone makes its functionality improve greatly because of the additional features and apps that you have access to. I have limited experience with rooting the Android devices so I cannot make a well informed comment about them. Let’s get started!

1. Overall UI Look and Feel:

I have tried many Android based devices, including the new Sprint HTC EVO 4G. The problem that I had with all the Android based devices is that they ALL felt clunky. The user interface was not smooth and had an “under construction” feel to it. For example when I am flipping through pages on my iPhone it’s is smooth and fluid. Where as when I moved through the pages on the Android it was choppy and laggy (like playing Halo on a bad internet connection). Now this is not to say that their user interface is bad. I am just saying that it needs some work. But unfortunately that isn’t the only place where the Andriod devices lack flair.

2. Applications:

Let’s face it. The applications make the phones now, for smartphones anyways. The biggest reason that the iPhone was such a success is that there are over 200,000 applications for it. Now there are some useless and ugly apps for the iPhone but the majority of them are pretty nice and work well. It is quite the opposite for the Android Market. There are roughly 50,000 applications for the Android platform. Now there are applications on both platforms for the same services (Facebook, Foursquare, Pandora, etc..). The problem (it’s not Androids fault) is that they are not all created equal. The worst offender is the Facebook application on the Android. It is clunky, ugly, and not very functional. On the other hand the Facebook app for the iPhone is quite nice and very functional. There are some applications that are good on both platforms but the sad reality is that most of the Android apps are all quite the same, clunky and not very functional, when compared to the iPhone counterparts.

3. Device selection:

Now one thing that Android devices have over the iPhone is device selection. Android is popping up on devices everywhere and there is a new Android device almost every other month now. The latest one, The HTC EVO 4G, is quite nice hardware wise but even with the high processor speed and great looking screen it still doesn’t feel as refined as the iPhone 3G S. They should be able to get this down by now! I will say that I was practically drooling over the HTC EVO before it came out but once I actually got to use one I realized that despite the awesome hardware inside it wasn’t going to be able to replace my iPhone. I also want to add that while the Android market share has FINALLY passed the iPhone please remember that the iPhone is ONLY available on AT&T (unfortunately, unless you unlock and use a different carrier) AND there are only 3 iPhone phones out there versus the 30+ Android based handsets (most of them simply are junk). So statistically if there are 10 times the number of devices running Android versus the 3 iPhone’s they better have a bigger market share.

4. Misc Points:

Now there are a few other points that are important but don’t need their own section. 1. OS compatibility and upgrades. Surprisingly Apple has consistently updated all the iPhones from the original 2G model to the latest 3G S model. Try upgrading any Android 1.6 device to another version. Nine times out of ten you can’t or you will brick your phone trying. 2. Charging/Sync cables. Another plus one the iPhone side is that while they do use the proprietary Apple Dock connector the upside is that they have been using this for YEARS across their iPhone, iPad, and iPod lines. Finding cables and chargers is easy and when you go to the new model you can keep your sync and charging accessories. 3. Cases and other accessories. Because of the popularity of the iPhone there are plenty of cases (cheap and expensive ones) on the market and are readily available.

5. Closing Thoughts:

Now there are going to be people in favor of both platforms and devices. The problem is that most of the people who are on Android and love it have not owned and iPhone and don’t know what they are missing. After using the iPhone for almost 2 years using any other touchscreen phone (Android, Windows Mobile, Proprietary ones) they just seem like cheap Chinese knock offs of the iPhone. I just hope that Android 2.2 will add a little flair and  give the OS the look, feel, and performance that it desperately needs. One feature that I would like to see on the iPhone is a user replaceable battery. I know there are battery packs but it’s still just not the same. I hope one day an Android device can prove me wrong but with the iPhone 4 coming out soon it may be a while.

Back in October 2008 I took the plunge and purchased a 16GB Black iPhone 3G. I had some extra money and was getting tired of my AT&T Tilt and its many quirks that Windows Mobile 6.0 gave it. I was quite content with the features and portability of the iPhone 3G until a friend of mine was getting rid of his White 16GB 3GS for a very reasonable price so I figured why not? I couldn’t see paying full price for a little more speed and a compass or would I?

I primarily use my iPhone for making phone calls, texting, tweeting, watching videos, streaming music, appointments, and the occasional game or two. I do have the phone jailbroken so that I can tether, use themes, IRealSMS, and this nice app called SBSettings.

So I got the 3GS home and promptly did a backup of my 3G to my laptop and then restored the 3GS with my 3G backup. After the backup finished I jailbroke the 3GS and installed my jailbroken apps. The first thing that I noticed is the speed. With a slightly faster CPU and twice the amount of ram the 3GS has a clear gain over the 3G. Everything from loading my contact list to browsing the web on MobileSafari was blazing fast. My tethering bandwidth was even faster on the 3GS. I used to average about 200KB/s to 250KB/s at my house with the 3G. With the 3GS I was now pushing 400KB/s to 450KB/s. There was also a noticable speed boost in packet transfer. I was able to finally play Left 4 Dead on my laptop using my iPhone for the internet connection.

Aside from the speed boost there is also the compass. Now one might first think “big deal a compass”. The default compass app isn’t anything special but the developers of AppStore apps have done some really cool things with the compass and the accelerometer. For example the “UrbanSpoon” application has a cool feature called “Scope” where you can point the phone in a direction and you see where food places are on the screen through your camera. You can then tap on one to select it.

All in all the 3GS is a welcome improvement over the 3G and if you are getting one under contract it is a much better deal than the 3G was. I paid $300 for my 16GB 3G in October 2008. Now you can get the 16GB 3GS for a measly $200 under contract with AT&T. Just a note the cell service was the same between the 3G and 3GS. I still get a dropped call every now and then but it’s because how the iPhone handles going from a 3G cell tower to Edge towers. Can you fix that soon Apple? Please?

Is it worth the upgrade from the 3G to the 3GS? If you can get it for under $300 I would say yes. If its more than that and you want to save some coin then just keep on using your 3G.