Ok, so the iPhone.
i have to admit, that at first, reasonable blush, i was actually kind of impressed by it. Not for the audio, video, glitzy interface elements or anything else. i mean, yeah, those are pretty and all, but not really that interesting for a phone.
No, for me, i want to know what i can do with this while out being mobile.
Unfortunately, while the iPhone does seem to address a great many of the general needs i have for a mobile device, it looks like i'd still need to have another one.
Right now, unless i hear otherwise, i'm going to assume that the iPhone is like the iPod. It's a device, not a platform. It may be a quite capable device, and like i said, a very pretty one, but a restricted device none the less. i'll assume that in order to access anything actually interesting on the device i'll have to use iTunes. (Even on the latest, snazzy fifth generation iPods, photos are stored in proprietary, non-indexable databases. i don't see Apple changing that.) i also don't see Apple adding expandable memory or a user replaceable battery (right shame too, because i'm betting that big screen and all those sensors are going to eat power like candy).
i also don't see any word of an SDK to allow folks to put even J2ME apps on it.
Mind you, i'm willing to believe that there's some level of Java capability on the thing, considering that Yahoo! not only runs on the device but recently rolled out their own J2ME version, but no idea if this is something that can be installed without some form of signature from Apple.
In some respects, i really hope i'm wrong. i'm hoping that Apple does peel back enough of the system that folks can consider doing goofy crap with it. Heck i can run ssh on my T9 enabled, touchless phone, putting it on something running embedded BSD should be a piece of cake, but again, the pessimist in me keeps thinking that it's not going to happen.
i'll keep an eye on this thing, but as Mookie points out. Apple is the new Sony.
And i get the feeling this is their first PS3.
