Why I'm Finally Ready To Buy An Apple iPhone (Almost)

I’ll admit it: I’m a fan and an admirer of Apple products, but I’m not a heavy user. I’ve got my iPod, sure. But the laptops I use, both at home and at work, are PCs and have been for over a decade. But I’ve been keeping an eye on the iPhone. It’s an alluring little device for sure. And now, with Apple’s launch of the new iPhone 4 at this week’s Worldwide Developers Conference, I’m ready to take the plunge. I think.

From what Apple has shown so far, the iPhone 4 is a striking offering. The FaceTime video functionality is cool, but that’s not really a huge draw at this point given that it only works between two iPhone 4s. The circle of people with whom I would realistically care to videoconference is small, and the number of them that would purchase an iPhone 4 at this point is decidedly smaller.

No, the real draw for the iPhone has been and continues to be the wide number of apps available for the platform, which are all now made infinitely cooler (and more usable) by iPhone 4’s new high-resolution Retina screen. Retina adds a 960 x 640, 326 ppi display that promises crisper text and sharper graphics. Reading, Web surfing and watching video clips or even full-length movies on a 3.5-inch screen now seems like a plausible endeavor. Pair that with the HD video recording capabilities and 5-megapixel two-way camera? I’m there.

The new form factor in general is both impressive and enticing. The stainless steel band that wraps around the iPhone 4 provides durability and also doubles as antennas for the device. Clever Apple. Plus, the iPhone 4 is thin and pretty. A video on Apple’s site showcases all of the engineering goodies that went into this thing. Be forewarned: If you’re on the fence about the iPhone 4, watching it will surely sway you to preorder one on June 15 when Apple opens the floodgates.

The one drawback for the iPhone has been and continues to be its pairing with AT&T. I’ve never been impressed with the quality of service friends and family members have received using AT&T. And the fact that AT&T just dumped its unlimited data plans isn’t winning over any fans. I’m not really sure I even need more than 200 MB of data per month (the lower-level option in AT&T’s new pricing structure), I just really liked the idea of not having to think about it. But plenty of people are using the service -- some 85 million subscribers as of the beginning of 2010 -- so can it really be that bad? Naive? Perhaps, but this is the part where I’m talking myself into the purchase.

The real kicker in all of this is the upfront price. Apple says the iPhone 4 will cost $199 for the 16 GB version (with purchase of a two-year AT&T service plan). That’s crazy-low for all of the features Apple has packed in. I paid that much for my current phone a few years back, and it’s no iPhone.

All told, despite AT&T, Apple’s iPhone 4 might finally be too good to pass up.

Jennifer Hagendorf Follett is the managing editor of technology at CRN and a part-time geek.