Engadget does a much more thorough review here.

So I left my iPhone 3G in Vegas. Dignity, hygiene, girlfriend… all replaceable. iPhone, due to AT&T’s iron clad early termination fee, not so much. Thankfully because I was previously on a family share plan with a buddy I could still qualify as a NEW AT&T customer (Suck that you monopolistic, corporate d-bags).

So deciding to really stick it to the man, I decided to opt for the $50 upgrade and get the White (pure class) 16GB 3GS. The ‘S’ is for speed btw and it signifies the upgraded hardware. Did it blow me (ha), a 3G user for the past 9 months, away. Short answer: Kinda, Sorta, Maybe, Meh.

So the standalone compass is campy, and probably useless in 99% of everyday users’ everyday lives. Where it does shine however it in the Maps application, whereby the map rotates as you move and look around. This is key, and pricess, and finally makes the iPhone a viable GPS alternative. Previously, the 3G was a capable GPS device, but if you were being honest with yourself, you were really forcing it.

There is now a focus feature on the Camera App, and also you can take Video. The coolest part about the video is a little on screen editor (yes, just like you saw in the commercial). Also upon sending it in an email it will compress the video. Very smart thinking and handy. What absolutely SUCKS about this is still NO MMS? This however is AT&T’s fault.

I really really really hate AT&T (Wireless). I think they are a soul-less, non-progressive company that someone should buy and dismantle, and change a third world lemonade-stand chain. Their coverage in New York is unbearable and their commercials sometimes make me nauseous. To be fair, out on the West Coast their coverage has been the bomb-diggity and AT&T U-verse (Verizon FiOS Competitor) is Totally Sweet and Amazing, and we will be doing a comparison review of the two in the coming weeks.

As cool as the 3GS is, the real news here is the new 3.0 Operating System. Which lets you do Copy and Paste and Horizontal Keyboard. Finally. I mean this is baby shit Apple. The jailbreakers did it months ago. It’s about time.

Bottom Line. for new customers the 3GS is worth it. For customers with early upgrade option (you probably still have first gen) yes- still a no-brainer. For current 3G customers however: you aren’t missing out on much, I would pocket the cash and stand-by for the next hardware rollout (rumored to be in 12 months).

Can you imagine an iPhone with the iPod Touch form factor… it could be coming….

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