Apple iPhone 3GS review: Same clothes, new feel

30 June 2009
The Apple iPhone 3GS is probably not the next revolutionary iPhone as you might have expected it. But the performance boost, the sharper camera with video and the purportedly improved battery life certainly...

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  • z
  • zugzug
  • 4AJ
  • 01 Jul 2009

Best phone ever... eom.

    • ?
    • Anonymous
    • M3g
    • 01 Jul 2009

    First of all - Thank you for the review GSMArena! Good job!


    Next - I am still amazeed that how many people are still affected by the iPhone! Most of them are usually haters of course. They read all the news, the review and use every possebility to bash the iPhone. I can`t see in to their minds, but it is a simple fact that people talk about things for which they are interested to have. If somebody does not like FIAT cars for example he is not going to go to the FIAT store to talk to everybody not to buy FIAT. He will just.. well don`t care and that is all.
    However here are lots and lots of people who for whatever reasons cry abou8t the iPhone. If you ask me thay are all just jealous or have some sort of complexity issues. There is really no other explanation.

    For example, I don`t like Nokia phones generally because I repair them every day. But I still respect my friends who use them. It is their choice.

    One thing that people fail to realise:

    It is generally true for all Apple products that they don`t care about specs sheets. Everybody can put together a phone with an impressive specs sheet and anounce it a year before it is going to be released.
    Apple has always focused on end user experience. That is their field. And they do deliver with the iPhone as well.

    Again, if somebody is looking for something elese it is their choice.

      • ?
      • Anonymous
      • LxJ
      • 01 Jul 2009

      Anonymous, 01 Jul 2009The SE Aino runs on symbian don't it? The same "buggy" soft... morethe anio doesnt run on symbian fool

        • D
        • Dveer
        • ji{
        • 01 Jul 2009

        Gsmarena is biasing here.when they are doing nokia review even the smallest mistake is highlighted and in this iphone review they never mention its biggest blunders like multitasking poor camera(even noise has pattern lol).the very same people when reviewing n97 criticised their camera only for not being able to detect smile,face detection etc however producing way greater images then iphone.they say multitouch is better then double click however cell phones are devices for single handed operation and double click is way more convenient then multitouch.its only that some geeks find it cool.

          • ?
          • Anonymous
          • mse
          • 01 Jul 2009

          It is hard to manufacture a phone that is going to please everyone.

          I used to b a propa anti-iphone timmy and opted to use the HTC diamond instead. Couple weeks later I sold the HTC and bought an iphone 3g and have never regretted.

          The phone is simple in terms of features but it does the job. It depends on what your priorities are. Im not too fussed about taking pictures, but use the ipod function quite alot. So it suited me to a T.

          Likewise, for those folks who want a higher megapixel count, an iphone may not be ideal.

          So instead of dishing out crap and moaning about Apple or whoeva, shutup n focus on what u want!

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • 2CJ
            • 01 Jul 2009

            ZEDAN, 01 Jul 2009More disadvantages.. ==================== *Battery is not... moreDude, you have no idea... THE APP STORE IS ALL THIRD PARTY APPS! all sms and mms is instand? iTunes is brilliant (unless you have a dinosaur computer) it does work as a modem (its called tethering) and it does have java support. I don't see not being able to replace a battery as an issue as I never have a phone longer than 2 years, though no flash support is clearly a very big disadvantage and one that admittedly must be addressed. It's rather frustrating and arrogance on Apples behalf.

              • ?
              • Anonymous
              • 2CJ
              • 01 Jul 2009

              David, 01 Jul 2009Seriously guys. Just let people like what they want. Everyb... moreThe SE Aino runs on symbian don't it? The same "buggy" software as the N97... Oh and your E71 also runs on Symbian... E71 has had a fair few memory card slot faults and out of the box DOA's. However it is by far Nokia's best phone, wouldn't say a masterpiece though, all the same I would be happy with one. In my opinion the iPhone offers far more though and the reason they haven't updated the features is no one has caught up. No other phone can offer the UI, sensative touch and easy access to everything else that goes with a phone like an iPhone.

                • D
                • David
                • p8c
                • 01 Jul 2009

                Seriously guys. Just let people like what they want. Everybosy hade their own choice. I don't have anything agaiant any handset company or model. I work at a mobile retailer here in Sweden and need to keep and open mind to what kind of phones different personalities need.

                Personally i wouldn't recommend the Iphone 3Gs cause it has features from 2007 and frankly it's getting obvious now to an extent even on swedish Apple forums that the fans are realizing with this release that Apple is taking their sometimes "blind" loyal fan base for granted. They deserve more then a this and more commitment from Apple instead of releasing this "new" device.

                I wouldn't recommend the Nokia N97 either cause it's not really what i expected. It has a fresh design with the nice qwerty, but the software is slow and buggy, touchscreen is not well done. With some apps you need alot of patience.

                With phones that are about to release, the SE Aino looks very "interesting", and the phones that are available, i don't think there is a better piece of technology then the Nokia E71 right now, it's a masterpiece hardware and pure class, even the exterior and dimensions. The only thing a bit down in the E71 is the average camera. I have never had a phone for more then 2 months before i get a new one or exchange it, but the E71 i have used almost for a year.

                  • ?
                  • Anonymous
                  • MWW
                  • 01 Jul 2009

                  man, 01 Jul 2009comparing the shown photos taken with 3GS and arena, shows ... morethe LG arena had the most details, look at the brown house where there is a tree in the left aside. as GSMarena said funny thing is iphone 3g 2mp camera has much better quality than the iphone 3gs 3mp camera. mp matters when it comes to cropping. but there's barely notice between 3 and 5. 3mp in the iphone 3gs is a gimmik by apple to fool people, they should have put 5mp forthwith.

                    • ?
                    • Anonymous
                    • MSM
                    • 01 Jul 2009

                    Anonymous, 01 Jul 2009To all iPhone haters saying it's overpriced and overhyped. ... moreI don't think this post is full of iphone haters (well maybe some) just iphone fan boy haters. If you go onto any other review of any other phone no matter how good it is there will be an iphone fanboy saying how rubbish it is compared to the iphone.

                      • Z
                      • ZEDAN
                      • mED
                      • 01 Jul 2009

                      More disadvantages..
                      ====================
                      *Battery is not replaceable
                      *no third party apps support so far
                      *no instant SMS + MMS
                      *USB Data only through iTunes
                      *Doesn't work as a Modem
                      *no Java or Flash support

                        • m
                        • man
                        • pTf
                        • 01 Jul 2009

                        comparing the shown photos taken with 3GS and arena, shows more details for 3GS (despite the fact that is has less Mega Pixels).
                        3GS show more accurate focus with less noise reduction (which leads to loose more details)
                        Another 3.2 MP phone (diamond) has eliminated all the details (just look at the bear to see the difference) during a high noise reduction process

                          • v
                          • vasil
                          • 0BF
                          • 01 Jul 2009

                          you are missing the point. its about treating N97 and the 3GS in a different fashion when it comes to the review. you cannot bash one for having outdated camera features, and praise the other for having pretty noise in pictures

                            • m
                            • man
                            • pTf
                            • 01 Jul 2009

                            renfred, 01 Jul 2009I think what's special about this phone is it's software fu... moreyou do not need an iPhone not even a blackberry or android .... even winmo
                            to have a cameraphone with load speakers buy a 80$ Chinese phone with 6 speakers @ the back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! to in front!!!!!!!!!!

                              • m
                              • man
                              • pTf
                              • 01 Jul 2009

                              Dveer, 01 Jul 2009What a smartphone?no multitasking poor camera.now they aint... moresmartphone is a SMART phone
                              all smartphone around are 5MP and lower, 8 - 12 MPs are mostly cameraphones, so iPhone is average till now, not poor as you said.
                              There are some other issues which makes a camera good or bad, not only the MP.
                              Let me tell you this:

                              3.15MP = 1538x2052 Pixels
                              5.00MP = 1920x2560 Pixels
                              8.00MP = 2456x3260 Pixels
                              12.00MP= 3000x4000 Pixels

                              Just look at the number of lines, 3.15 MPs has about half vertical lines compared to 12

                              The other important issues are accurate focus, aperture(exposure), CCD size (which directly means the amount of uptaken light and ....
                              Night shots are hardly affected by the exposure and ISO instead of MPs

                              I'm telling these facts for all of you here to stop comparing phones only referred to MPs, camera is not the main issue in a smartphone, but what ever it is it has to be compared with all it's features not only the MPs.

                                • r
                                • renfred
                                • tV4
                                • 01 Jul 2009

                                I think what's special about this phone is it's software functions, not hardware.

                                If you compare iPhone's hardware to other existing devices', iPhone will certainly lose no matter what, lousy camera, cripple bluetooth, weak speaker and much much more. But if you compare the software, there's no other devices manage to win iPhone.

                                Apple designed this phone very carefully, that's why it limits the phone so so much, no multi-tasking and whatsoever, but compare to Windows Mobile, don't you think iPhone is more usable? It's fast and responsive! Do you rather get something that takes you ages to load an app but can load up multiple apps, or something that responses instantly but doesn't let you to open up multiple apps? It's your call.

                                As a software developer, I have to say writing an app for iPhone and making the user interface beautiful is much much easier than writing app for Windows Mobile phone. Yes, Windows also has the tools to make outstanding apps, but it's way harder, it really kills the productivity of a developer.

                                To buy/try an application is extremely easy for iPhone, either using the AppStore app in iPhone's or Mac's, it's a one-stop place for you to shop, you don't need to search for days for an app you like, and there's no mediocre software that'll cost you more than $10. And yes again, Apple is a control freak that restrict the app to be published on AppStore, Apple does that to standardize the quality of the software that will eventually be purchased by users, who's benefit is it? If you really can't find the software you're looking for there's always a way to jailbreak it, if you want to experience something more.

                                But anyway, if you want something that's very strong in hardware, like camera and HQ video capture ability, this isn't the right phone for you, as i said the hardware of iPhone is still very immature. But if you want something that has great and cheap and affordable software, this is it!

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • 2CJ
                                  • 01 Jul 2009

                                  Compare the photos taken here to the 12MP Samsung review they just did... It does have multi-tasking (push-apps, do more research). This phone really is wonderful and finally its a stable phone with a revolutionary interface (no-one still can't claim better) and easy access to third party apps. I don't see why people have a hatred for this phone. It is still a high end phone, just in a different way. Apple aren't into specs their into making a good phone that gives a genuine user experience. All Nokia, Samsung etc do for marketing is up the MP count which does nothing.

                                    • h
                                    • hXXo
                                    • utX
                                    • 01 Jul 2009

                                    PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING CARE FULL AND DECIDE

                                    N86 REVIEW
                                    "Main disadvantages
                                    Camera feature set is last year's stuff (and even older)
                                    Image processing isn't very well tuned at this moment"

                                    Apple 3gs review
                                    "Plus the noise on these photos has some nice pattern, which adds for subtle analogue film-like effect."

                                      • ?
                                      • Anonymous
                                      • PQ{
                                      • 01 Jul 2009

                                      disadvantage:

                                      no bluetooth file transfer....

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • vGq
                                        • 01 Jul 2009

                                        Tried sending and recieving business cards like you can do with Nokia... could not do it ... Grrr ... Apple pls note and add this functionality