It’s cool being in Italy not just because it is truly the most beautiful country on Earth, but it’s laws also prohibit the likes of Apple to dictate their terms on and in their country. It is therefore one of the few countries on Earth that you can legally pick up an unlocked iPhone without a contract any time you like…
And that is exactly what I did on the 2nd day of being here. I purchased two, one for my son and the other for me; 2x 32 sweeties! And after almost a week of using it, I can tell you the experience is worth it; twice the speed or even faster compared to the old one, and a host of features which I’m not going to go through at the moment as Apple’s own site as well as many others could furnish that information much better than I could. Suffice it to say that the Compass feature is bloody good especially when trying to navigate the narrow and utterly confusing Roman streets. The camera IS much better and helloooo video, at last! I finally can do video after more than a year with the predecessor. Oh how I missed thou!
To those wavering on the decision to get one, waver no more. Just plunge in and thank me later.
Comments
what were the prices like compared to here?
works out about 650 euros. not sure how much it is elsewhere.
How accurate is the Maps app in Bahrain? Does it display streets with names, etc? And how cool is the compass integration within Maps?
I’ve written a post about some gems in the 3GS here.
Didn’t try it yet obviously, just arrived back. but from cursory examination, it puts me about 20kms from where I actually am! It’s shows that we live south of Hamad Town 😉
Maybe it needs to acclimatise a bit first, jet lagged iPhone? 😉
In Bahrain, it does not make sense to buy an iPhone, because unlike Italy, as you have rightly said, you cannot fully utilize all of it’s features and applications (including fast speed internet for a very reasonable price, Batelco has a very long way to get there). Thus, after having bought a Blackberry Curve one month back for a little over 100 BD, I would recommend that people living here get a BB or any other mobile phone like SE, LG, etc. The BB Curve has been my best decision of this year, and no one I know has ever complained about owning one! Honestly, I’m not a tech guy, but I’ve had my fair share of experiences with different mobile phones, and the BB buzz worldwide is simply incredible!
Enjoy the rest of your time in Italy, Mahmood. Take care.
Although I’ve never used Blackberries, I know several people who do and who seem to revel in complaining about its deficiencies. I’m not judging it, it might be useful to some.
My decision to use the iPhone instead is that more important than having it tethered to an operator’s network (which is of secondary importance to me, considering the cost of doing so and of the roaming charges in particular) mine was its performance in wireless networks and of course the complete compatibility with my chosen work platform, the Mac. it’s ability to synchronise my mail accounts, my calendar, my notes and my thousands of pictures are all of paramount importance. Another very importance factor is its abilities in displaying video at quite excellent quality. I use this feature extensively as part of my job, not only as a test-bed for how might a client’s video look on such a device, but also habitually use it for demonstrations and presentations too. Add the plethora of applications available applications and I’ve got what I can only call a killer device.
For all of that, I think it’s price is quite a bargain actually.
that’s not bad. Here they go for about 430 I think.
I got the 3GS from Mobily who sell it with a prepaid chip for SR 3000 and it’s UNLOCKED! Amazing! Now am enjoying the best of both worlds having a BB bold which I use for work mostly but also keep in touch through BBM with my family and friends back in Bahrain. And the iPhone is a much cooler toy 😉