iPod Touch Versus iPhone

Having recently acquired an iPod touch to use for software development work, a brief review comparing it with the iPhone seemed in order. First impressions? The Touch is much thinner than the iPhone. I knew this from brief encounters with it in the Apple Store, but actually having one around the thinness really becomes apparent; especially since my iPhone nearly always lives in a protective case whereas the Touch sits in its birthday suit on the desk.

• The touch is less comfortable to hold than the iPhone; the bevel around the front of the screen is actually kind of sharp! I don't consider this too much of a problem however since the lightness and thinness assuages my pain.
• The home button is smaller than on the iPhone.
• The headphone port is on the bottom next to the dock connector rather than on the top - so far, I prefer the iPhone's design.
• The iPhone earbuds don't appear to fit in the headphone jack which is kind of a hassle - I didn't want to push too hard, so maybe they actually do…
• The lock button is on the opposite side from the iPhone! This one is actually pretty annoying since I am so used to the iPhone and switch between the two devices. Why on Earth did Apple decide to do this?
• I don't miss the volume buttons on the side yet - the Touch always leaves its screen on unless you lock it (it auto dims) so the volume is accessible just by touching the screen. Of course, I'm using this as a development platform so I haven't actually tried taking the touch outside yet - if it was in my pocket this would probably be a bigger issue.
• I miss the built in speakers more than expected - no more quick trips to YouTube or listening to podcasts without headphones.
• It comes with a cute little plastic stand (iPhone has a dock instead) which lets the Touch sit at a nice viewing angle on your desk.
• No bundled AC power adapter or dock like the iPhone.
• Back is the same shiny iPod metallic material used on previous generation iPods so it finger prints like nobody's business. I prefer the brushed aluminum look of the iPhone.
• It's kind of nice not having the cellular radio in the Touch - I'm not afraid to leave it next to my head at night for the urgent need to google something which always seems to arise.

So there you have it: a brief comparison of the Touch and the iPhone. I don't really see any reason to own a Touch if you already have an iPhone except possibly as a bedside web browser or to keep docked in a set of iPod speakers.

Kissphrase

The Kissphrase release is going fairly well so far - positive reviews have been coming in. Check out this link for a nice little review.

Bugs reported so far: after installing, you must add at least one of your own keywords (or edit the existing "test" keyword) before Kissphrase will start auto-completing. Also, the first word word typed in a document won't auto-complete unless at least one space is typed preceding it. These will both be corrected in the next release.

Feel free to report any other problems you encounter either in the comments, or by the usual contact page.

Kissphrase Released

The first release of Kissphrase is now available! Version 0.5 is still considered a beta, so any feedback about how it works for you would be appreciated. Kissphrase requires Leopard or later to function and probably will work best for people with their computer's language set to English.

iPhone Takes Over the World

Exciting news in the iPhone world today from Apple: third party developers (e.g. Chimoosoft) will finally have a legal way to develop software for the iPhone. In addition, our software will be made available through iTunes and through an installer app on the iPhone itself called "App Store" which will let users install software on the go. Apple will let developers sell their apps (Apple takes a 30% cut) or distribute them freely. For all you iPhone owners out there, you're about to see a huge torrent of applications available for you! In this context, the word "about" means June, 2008 (but developers will have been working away on their software for three months by that point).

The other most important news is that the iPhone will fully support all the common enterprise needs such as Exchange, push email, remote disabling (and erasing) of stolen phones, etc. This is significant, and will go down in history as... the day the iPhone took over the world! Prepare to see as many people walking around with iPhones as you currently see people with iPods!

Kissphrase

A brand new program is nearly ready for its first release: Kissphrase. Developed partially to assist with answering support emails, Kissphrase will be a freeware auto-completion style program to assist with typing frequently used phrases. Look for it soon!