How tough are iPhones

v23

I'm thinking of getting one of these iPhones we hear so much about. Obviously it'll need to come biking with me. How tough are they? Are they sitable on? Will the screen crack if I'm too clumsy with it? Can you get hard cases for them?

hoathy

I have one, its fairly tough, better than i was expecting. I got a sractchproof cover from car phone warehouse which is good. I was riding between some railings on my way to work with it in my pocket once and i caught it on the corner, when i took it out of my pocket it had a massive scratch across the screen. I was like "$%&!", but i peeled the cover off and it was fine! amazing! so i bought another cover the next day!

drop wise etc. its been fine in my camelbak during a few crashes and genral riding off road. You can get hard cases but they don't cover the screen, for obvoius reasons.

Get one! you won't regret it!

PS. I also downloaded this app called B.iCycle, whcih seems pretty good, like a garmin edge, and only £8. I haven't properly tested it yet as i don't have a bar mount though.

Raymondavalon

I've had an iPhone for some time, they do take the knocks if protected but I wouldn't go as far as mounting it on my bars to use as a tracker or equivalent
When I ride I carry mine in my Hydrapak hydration backpack but I use the Otterbox Defender case to offer extra protection as sometimes I do land on my back when falling :P, I rate it, I don't use the Otterbox for daily use, just for riding though. Seriously the thing is like a suit of armour for the iPhone and it's a good product as it seals up nicely, I wouldn't say it's waterproof, but it's certainly water resistant and my iPhone has been through many a rainfall in my hydration backpack. It also comes with a detachable belt clip.
The Defender case has it's own screen protector, so even though my iPhone's screen has one of those protection films fitted for daily use protection, the Otterbox also has one to keep the iPhone sealed.

In my opinion £25 well spent.

v23

Thanks chaps.

dave_hill

They don't like being run over.

Raymondavalon

dave_hill wrote:

They don't like being run over.

Strangely enough neither to human beings, cows, deer, dogs, cats, sheep, goats, hedgehogs, squirrels, badgers, badgers, badgers, badgers, Mushrooms! Foxes, snakes, mice, bugs, other brands of mobile phones, wallets, RayBans, dentures, wristwatches, bike wheels, CDs, DVDs, 8 track cassette tapes, USB memory sticks, hubcaps, unread issues of WMB, MBUK and Playboy magazines..

stumpyjon

Not great if they do get damp, mine played up like mad last Sunday after riding in that foul weather. Stopped working when I got back to carpark, didn't start responding again until I'd been in the pub for 30 mins. Ironically the same could have been said about me.

I tend to take an old phone with me with a Pay As You Go SIM in it.

nik young

hope this helps
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qg1ckCkm8YI

Pokerface

I've had mine for over two years. Have dropped it on tile floor and cement a few times. Ridding with it almost daily in my back jersey pocket. Still works as good as day 1.

Hard and soft/rubber cases of all kinds available. They are designed to take a pretty good beating.

Just don't drop in a river/bathtub/toilet, etc. They AREN'T designed for that.

Mastineo

Speaking from experience, unfortunately, they most definately dont like being submerged in a river for a couple of minutes!!.

yoohoo999

tougher than they look. i was quite anxious about breaking mine for a while, but you soon realise that they feel like they are built to last longer than most style phones.

if i'm out riding in decent weather i just stick it in its leather case and into my backpack.

if it's wet, I throw it into a beachbhoy (from proporta) that I use for all my electrial gizmos that i use for climbing. the beachbouy is excellent, but there are cheaper alternatives out there from the likes of Gelert. i've got a pack of 3 of the Gelert ones that came in 3 different sizes and cost about 1/5 of the price of one beachbouy!

I don't trust the gelert ones for prolonged underwater exposure, but they are fine for riding! In saying that, i did leave tissue paper in the gelert ones and completely submerged overnight, the tissue was bone dry the next day.



http://www.springfields.co.uk/bush%2Dcraft%2Dfield%2Dkit/element%2Dprotection/waterproof%2Dgear%2Dprotection/waterproof%2Dequipment/?id=2708

just noticed the proporta product is in the sale too:

http://www.proporta.co.uk/F02/PPF02P05.php?t_id=4154&t_mode=des

nicklouse

they dont like being in crashes.

colintrav

v23 wrote:

I'm thinking of getting one of these iPhones we hear so much about. Obviously it'll need to come biking with me. How tough are they? Are they sitable on? Will the screen crack if I'm too clumsy with it? Can you get hard cases for them?

Glorified mini pc's that is all they are ...


And the so called torch feature is just comedy gold a white screen as a torch lol

xgeek

My new iPhone 3G S fell from the top of the Stealth ride at Thorpe park and survived. Had to wait for the park to close before going to find it and it was still on

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lu1xJMQhGQE

A few weeks after that I came off my bike and fell in a small stream in the forest and this time I was not so lucky. iPhone got water damaged and it cost me £138 for a replacement from Apple

Cheers
XG

jayson

Why go for an extortionate iphone?? why not buy a samsung i8910 like i did and laugh at the iphone uncontrollaby as u make movies in HD with the onboard video and marvel at the sheer quality and clarity of its 3.7" AMOLED screen

v23

colintrav wrote:

v23 wrote:

I'm thinking of getting one of these iPhones we hear so much about. Obviously it'll need to come biking with me. How tough are they? Are they sitable on? Will the screen crack if I'm too clumsy with it? Can you get hard cases for them?

Glorified mini pc's that is all they are ...

I've not come across any mini PCs that will fit in my pocket.

Why go for an extortionate iphone?? why not buy a samsung i8910 like i did and laugh at the iphone uncontrollaby as u make movies in HD with the onboard video and marvel at the sheer quality and clarity of its 3.7" AMOLED screen Very Happy Very Happy Very Happy

'cos I'm a tart

hoathy

jayson wrote:

Why go for an extortionate iphone?? why not buy a samsung i8910 like i did and laugh at the iphone uncontrollaby as u make movies in HD with the onboard video and marvel at the sheer quality and clarity of its 3.7" AMOLED screen

it is a 100% fact that anyone who thinks they have a better phone than an iphone is wrong, and anyone who says they don't want one but has something like one is lying. I don't normally get involved in these things, but the iphone is about a million times more useful than you are expecting.

Surf-Matt

The phones can be as tough as iron.

But the owners are all gay.

kopite1979

Hoathy wrote:

jayson wrote:

Why go for an extortionate iphone?? why not buy a samsung i8910 like i did and laugh at the iphone uncontrollaby as u make movies in HD with the onboard video and marvel at the sheer quality and clarity of its 3.7" AMOLED screen

it is a 100% fact that anyone who thinks they have a better phone than an iphone is wrong, and anyone who says they don't want one but has something like one is lying. I don't normally get involved in these things, but the iphone is about a million times more useful than you are expecting.

couldnt agree more!

yoohoo999

Hoathy wrote:

jayson wrote:

Why go for an extortionate iphone?? why not buy a samsung i8910 like i did and laugh at the iphone uncontrollaby as u make movies in HD with the onboard video and marvel at the sheer quality and clarity of its 3.7" AMOLED screen

it is a 100% fact that anyone who thinks they have a better phone than an iphone is wrong, and anyone who says they don't want one but has something like one is lying. I don't normally get involved in these things, but the iphone is about a million times more useful than you are expecting.

+1

i hated the iphone for ages, just because i didn't want to join the hype.

I've always owned and used HTC's and Blackberry's and didn't want to be an iphone fanboy.

Then I finally caved in and got one.

Oh boy, what an idiot I had been. Apple are streets ahead for the stuff that they do.

I still use HTC and Blackberry for business, but you would be absolutely crazy to write off the iphone for anything else. It's quite simply the best non-business phone you can buy for all round usefullness

Skonk

Mine survived me almost falling off Wharncliff Craggs on Saturday when I took a tumble.

It was in the weather sealed phone pocket of my camelbak at the time; the crash ended with me on my back in the middle of a pile of large boulders.

jayson

Hoathy wrote:

jayson wrote:

Why go for an extortionate iphone?? why not buy a samsung i8910 like i did and laugh at the iphone uncontrollaby as u make movies in HD with the onboard video and marvel at the sheer quality and clarity of its 3.7" AMOLED screen

it is a 100% fact that anyone who thinks they have a better phone than an iphone is wrong, and anyone who says they don't want one but has something like one is lying. I don't normally get involved in these things, but the iphone is about a million times more useful than you are expecting.

I am neither wrong or lying as u put it, ive played with alot of iphones and in my opinion they're rubbish plus its a rip off per month for what u get for the money u pay.

Hey what do i know though, aslong ur happy with one then go ahead and follow the rest of the herd i'm more than happy to sit back and laugh at everyone paying through the nose for inferior technology

bails87

jayson wrote:

Hoathy wrote:

jayson wrote:

Why go for an extortionate iphone?? why not buy a samsung i8910 like i did and laugh at the iphone uncontrollaby as u make movies in HD with the onboard video and marvel at the sheer quality and clarity of its 3.7" AMOLED screen

it is a 100% fact that anyone who thinks they have a better phone than an iphone is wrong, and anyone who says they don't want one but has something like one is lying. I don't normally get involved in these things, but the iphone is about a million times more useful than you are expecting.

I am neither wrong or lying as u put it, ive played with alot of iphones and in my opinion they're rubbish plus its a rip off per month for what u get for the money u pay.

Hey what do i know though, aslong ur happy with one then go ahead and follow the rest of the herd i'm more than happy to sit back and laugh at everyone paying through the nose for inferior technology

I've forgotten, have Apple "invented" video recording and MMS yet?

jayson

Exactly. Ive been texting and sending mms messages for years now but to apple customers its an all new thing the same as being able to record video, my old SE S700i was doing that 5 years ago and my old Motorola a900 was doin video calls before that even.

Skonk

I've had my iPhone for about a year and been pretty happy with it. I use the iPod features and have about 100 hours of video on it (movies, tv episodes and the like) so as gadgets go its pretty good.

BUT, there is so much that this phone could do (and the hardware is already able to do) that Apple refuse to add support for in the software; it could be so much more if they opened it up a little but there are no signs of it happening.

I'm able to upgrade in Feb and I'll most likely be switching over to something like the Palm Pre.

Thewaylander

they are very slick phones. But how can they claim its a real mobile device when the battery life is like a day at most.. my nokia E61 lasts for 5days generally.

I camp alot in the summer with my bike i don't want to have my phone spend most of its time in the car charging to be used.

They have a place and sadly at the moment i think its a yuppy toy

projectsome

Hoathy wrote:

jayson wrote:

Why go for an extortionate iphone?? why not buy a samsung i8910 like i did and laugh at the iphone uncontrollaby as u make movies in HD with the onboard video and marvel at the sheer quality and clarity of its 3.7" AMOLED screen

it is a 100% fact that anyone who thinks they have a better phone than an iphone is wrong, and anyone who says they don't want one but has something like one is lying. I don't normally get involved in these things, but the iphone is about a million times more useful than you are expecting.

I used to own an iphone...

I'm happy with my Sony Ericsson Satio now.

While the iphone is an amazing phone it doesn't do what I use it for.

Does have one of the best music players though...

Skonk

Thewaylander wrote:

they are very slick phones. But how can they claim its a real mobile device when the battery life is like a day at most.. my nokia E61 lasts for 5days generally.

I camp alot in the summer with my bike i don't want to have my phone spend most of its time in the car charging to be used.

They have a place and sadly at the moment i think its a yuppy toy

My iPhone 3G will last around 5 days if just used as a phone (as in not used for video and apps etc), for general use (watching some video, playing music, using apps from time to time) the battery will last a good 2 days.

Using WIFI and processor intensive apps like 3D games, will drain the battery quicker (WIFI probably being the worst for it) but it's unlikely ud ever use these that much to cause the battery to be flat after just 1 day.

Thewaylander

Most i-phone users i ahve encountered suffer from awful battery life on general use.

Only one of them is really a power user ie internet and so on but still the others have battery life issues. ah well you can but try adn see

Skonk

Well I mainly use mine for music and video (in terms of gadgetry), instant messeging (MSN via an app called IM+ over 3G) and obviously as a phone.

The battery life atleast for me is how i described, and I have sometimes watched several hours of video without it making any real dent on the battery.

Music and Video require very little power, so as a multimedia device the battery life is great; it's running third party apps that eats the battery, especially graphically intensive apps (such as games) and things that requite quite heavy internet use.

When I first got the phone and it still had the novelty factor, the battery did drain fairly quickly (about 50-60% gone in aday) but kinda to be expected as it was a new toy and I spent a lot of time messing with it, downloading apps playing around turning features on and off.

After a few days, i got the phone setup how I like with the apps I wanted and went into normal usage, and from then on the battery has lasted really well.

Dont get me wrong though, I think the iPhone has some major issues; mainly down to Apple's refusal to open the OS up more and give more access in the SDK. They have basically locked away a lot of what the hardware it's self is capable of.

But battery life is definitley not been an issue for me, or the people I know who also have iPhones (3 of us here in the office have them).

As I said in a post above, in a few months when I upgrade, it's unlikely that I'll get another iPhone.

Surf-Matt

iphone - cr4p camera, flimsy, easy to scratch, hideous battery life and users for some reason feel the need to ram them down non users throats.

I have a mobile phone. It works well. It's not an iphone.

YIPEEE!!

I hate ipods too.