So last week after much enthusiasm and hype, Steve Jobs revealed to the world the iPhone 3G. Hurray as the consumers rejoiced, the techs compared notes and people like me, the in betweens look on earnestly at the keynote.

What impresses Seb?

The inclusion of 3G comes as no surprise as I felt it should had been incorporated in the first generation iPhone but its never too late now to put the 3G chip in. iPhone 3G users will now benefit from 3G speeds and even faster HSDPA speeds depending on operator. In the UK, that is not a problem. The absence of a front facing camera is a disappointment to many as that would mean their video calls will be one way now instead of the more common two way video calling.

Apart from a speed bump, I’m impressed at how Apple reached out to the business community to incorporate push technology and Exchange support. Driving what was previously a consumer device, business users can now benefit from these new features and be empowered with email on the move.

However, no matter how rosy this thought is, it will depend on the business community to drop their RIM Blackberries to take up this device. A friend of mine spoke of how the feel of a physical keyboard can never be replaced by a touch screen keyboard. I’m afraid I share the same sentiments as I’ve used the HTC Tytn in the past and have been addicted to its QWERTY keyboard for sending emails and text messages. Now that I’ve switched to the HTC Touch Dual, the physical keyboard is still there and so I’m still very reliant on it for sending emails and text messages. Maybe it just needs a little getting use to? Or maybe the CTOs need to decided to jump into this new venture. What ever the case is, its gonna be a big jump if it happens.

The next thing which I wish to talk about is another area of the iPhone’s development which has really impressed me. That area is iPhone Apps. Following a highly successful release of the IPhone SDK a couple of months back which saw thousand of applications written for the iPhone, Apple is taking the next step in launching the iPhone Apps store where a central repository will exists for iPhone apps which can be downloaded freely or purchased. No charges are incurred on the authors by Apple if the authors make the application free to download however it is understood that authors who wish to sell their application will enter profit sharing with Apple on a 70/30 ratio – 30 for Apple (Thanks to Melvin for correcting me).

When the SDK was demonstrated at WWDC, I was extremely impressed with its development tools and ease of development. Not only did Apple create an IDE for development, they also threw in a fully equipped emulator to test the application. Fantastic work by Apple here.

The iPhone 3G features location base services and developers have full access to this feature. Some possible uses could be integration with social networking which would allow users to be notified of friends in the vicinity which they could have a coffee with. This is a very promising piece of technology.

GPS, another plus for the iPhone 3G which will really benefit me with my Google Maps.

Seb’s Verdict

On the whole, I will really recommend the iPhone 3G to anyone who is due for an upgrade in the next month or two. It is also recommended to current iPhone uses as don’t you guys just love the new casing? Speed demons should also welcome the 3G speeds on the iPhone. The iPhone 3G will be available 11th July in the UK by O2.