Five reasons to choose… the iPhone

Confused about the ever-expanding number of smartphone platforms? Unsure which is the right one for you? Our Five Reasons to Choose series gives you an instant guide to the things you need to know about every mobile OS.

Part one: Apple iPhone

1. App selection
The iPhone is leagues ahead of the competition in terms of legitimate apps, from zany games like Rolando to serious business apps like Bento and powerful utilities like AppBox. There are now over 85,000 apps to choose across every category, many that takes advantage of the iPhone touch screen and tilt function. Just as importantly, most iPhone apps are just a pound or two.

2. Brilliant touch
There’s no question about it: the iPhone, especially the new 3GS model, has the best touchscreen of any device. The main advantage here is speed of input – the iPhone interprets your finger swipes, pinches, and other gestures more accurately than other models.

3. Media
It’s debatable whether new phone models such as the Samsung Instinct HD – which actually uses a proprietary OS – and the Nokia N97 are better media devices for making movies and taking photos. Yet, the iPhone wins hands-down when it comes to consuming media. The iTunes store has more media than other stores, and it is easy to use and easy to make purchases.

4. Extra media content
Another advantage to the iPhone that should not be ignored is content apart from the basic music and movies. It’s far easier to find and load audiobooks and podcasts with an iPhone than any other platform. In fact, podcasting is not nearly as popular apart from the iTunes store.

5. Tilt functions
The iPhone also uses the built-in accelerometer more effectively than other smartphones, rotating the screen quickly when you turn it, providing features such as lightly shaking to play a random song, and the ability to control game characters by tilting the device.

Series written by John Brandon. Originally published in Smartphone Essentials magazine.

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