Irony, cubed

Despite what may have sounded like fear of technological advancement in my recent blather, I am a firm proponent of the computerized lifestyle, as mentioned before. (You'll notice that even then, like now, I was cognizant of the eventual consequences of such tech advancement, but I'm still OK with reaping the benefits and not being around to deal with the sci-fi nightmare its likely to produce).

This is precisely why I haven't bought an iPod. Because they are quickly becoming obsolete. Why would I need to carry one when my phone can store and play my music for me?

Ok, so its not my phone yet, but I'm very, very seriously considering making it mine. CNet's review is pretty flattering, and the user ratings are certainly better support of the rating than they are for some other phones, particularly the Razr. And the specs, well, they're simply to die for.

The battery life is unheard of, especially in a phone of this nature (the reviewers got 8 days on standby, though its officially spec'd for less). Couple that with the removable miniSD card and you have the perfect phone (to date). The card is only 256mb, which isn't going to hold a candle to your iPod storage, but I'm not the type that needs to take his entire music library with him. Assuming the interface is smooth enough, it should be fairly easy to import whatever list I may be in the mood for, and 256 is certainly long enough to get me through the standard day. Currently, SD's site only shows 256 as their largest mini-card, but from what I've been able to deduce, there are rip versions of the 512 out there, and it probably won't be long before we see 1GB (which of course won't be quality until SD makes it and sells it at ridiculous prices).

It also has Bluetooth, which I'm really looking forward to checking out. I can't wait to get a wireless headset. If that's not the quintessential embodiment of Star Trek, I don't know what is.

There are two major drawbacks. The first is that I won't be getting the just-plain-silly low rates I've been able to negotiate with Sprint, which I'm not going to get into, for fear they find my comments here and up my rates (hey if that flight attendant got fired, well...). Anyway, suffice to say I'll be paying significantly more per month to get a similar plan to what I have now. And, as a sub-drawback, I'm not familiar with AT&T's service (coverage/customer service/etc)...anybody?

Secondly, as Engadget points out, Apple's hard at work on an iResponse, and there's no doubt it will be uber iCool and all of a sudden I'll be just as un-iTrendy as I was before getting the SMT5600.

But for a while, I'll be able to watch SportsCenter on the train on my way to work, long before anybody with an iPod has that capability. So iThere. iFigure for $150, it should last me until there's a decent phone on the market with a built-in hard-drive and whatever other magical features they've been able to smack onto it by that point. And its probably safe to say that I'll have it for about a year while the iMothership is still working on the release of its first version of mobile pone/mp3 player.

Say goodbye to your iPod. Or phone. Or both.