I usually don’t like to post about stuff that is not real important, but I am so fired up right now that I’ve got to unleash somewhere. I was recently given an iPhone as a gift and I am ready to toss this piece of crap right in the trash! Does that sound harsh? Well it does and it should. Let me tell you why I’m so fed up with this phone.

I had a Cingular/AT&T 8525 device before I was given this iPhone as a “gift”. I really didn’t want to give up my PDA but I thought I would give it a try. Well this iPhone should be called iStupid and the engineers at Apple should be ashamed of themselves. First, the keyboard provided for typing emails and sms messages is extremely small. In fact, I would venture to say that it is for kids. I have made so many errors typing ordinary messages that I used to fly through with my 8525. Second, there are no up/down/left/right buttons to use when you type. That means that if you make a mistake you have to try to get to the point where you can correct it. I say try because you have to carefully put your finger at the point right after where you need to make your correction or you won’t be able to get to the exact point. I spent about 25 second trying to get back to the middle of a small text box so I could delete something. Finally I gave up and just deleted the whole damn line. What a fucking waste of productivity!!! I tried to use my stylus from my old phone, but the iPhone doesn’t allow that, so I’m stuck trying to use my thumbs to type. Oh the inhumanity of it all!!! 

The major issue I have with the design of the keyboard layout on the iPhone is that it is NOT designed to provide any kind of support for people with disabilities. How is a person with Parkinson’s supposed to type on that ultra small keyboard to send a text message? How is a grown man with big manly hands supposed to use the iPhone to send a text message? Basically, how is a person with normal sized thumbs supposed to type on this thing. I have issues with this iPhone keyboard and I’m completely healthy. I know a person without full motor control will have problems.

The bad thing is that Apple COULD do something about this. When you are viewing a website on the iPhone, you can turn the phone sideways and the picture on the screen will go to landscape mode. If you try to type something in at that point, the keyboard is much, much bigger and can be used by people with normal sized fingers. You can’t do that when you are typing sms messages or system settings - which is stupid!! Why would the software engineers at Apple do such a stupid thing? There are several apps that you can BUY that will allow you to do different things in landscape mode, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to spend money on an app to do something that should be included with the phone. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!

Then there is the Bluetooth issue. With my 8525 device I could use Bluetooth to do a number of things including connecting to the Internet with my laptop with my phone. Why should I have to pay for an unlimited data plan for my phone and a laptop card for my notebook? Anyway, Bluetooth is restricted on an iPhone. You can’t use the Bluetooth feature on the iPhone for anything more than a Bluetooth headset. Damn! Why? Why? Why? Why do companies want to restrict people from doing what they want with the things they purchase? Why should Apple care if I want to use my unlimited data plan to access the Internet through my phone? Why shouldn’t I be allowed to do what I want with my headset? Well they did develop it so it is their call, but this was an essential feature for me that I now don’t have.

Then there is the issue of the stylus. On my 8525 I could scribble notes down using the stylus and the screen. Fast, quick and efficient. With this iPhone, all I can do is type a note……which wouldn’t be a problem if the keyboard was a good size. So again I’m screwed!

The bottom line is that the iPhone is a great device for kids and non business professionals who don’t have big hands. The phone is not for people who value speed when typing text messages, people with big hands, people who have any kind of disability or people who need to take quick notes.

Apple you should be ashamed for developing a phone that lacks basic support for people with basic needs. Apple your iPhone keyboard and Bluetooth support is very stupid. In fact, it’s so stupid that I need to go listen to some music to calm myself down. I guess I’ll plug my headphones in and listen to music on my iStupid…..I mean my iPhone……while I still have this piece of crap.