iReporters underwhelmed with Verizon iPhone
By Doug Gross, CNN
iReport and Mashable invited iReporters to weigh in on Verizon's addition of the iPhone 4. More than a few weren't impressed.
(CNN) -- Every release of a major new Apple product, be it due to clever company buzz-building, fierce customer loyalty or a combination of the two, tends to prompt a certain level of hysterics.
So, while Tuesday's rollout of a Verizon-backed iPhone 4 certainly pulled in some customers, the lack of the usually breathless excitement was noticeable.
No one expected the monster lines outside Apple and Verizon stores that are commonplace when a brand new Apple gadget hits the market. But even by fairly relaxed standards, the crowds were small.
There were anecdotal reports of stores where Apple employees outnumbered customers on a day that iPhone fans miffed with AT&T's service had dreamed of for years.
CNN's iReport and Mashable asked readers to share their experiences. And while they received a handful of the typical "excitedly opening the box that just came in the mail" videos, a significant number of iReporters took the time to respond with why they won't be picking up a Verizon-fired iPhone.
An iReporter using the handle "SchnauzerGirl" said she'll wait until summer, when Apple generally rolls out a new phone, to consider switching from her current iPhone 3G on AT&T.
The reason? The Verizon phone doesn't share the current model's ability to hold a voice conversation while streaming other data.
"While this does not seem to be an issue to most people, it is to me," she wrote, saying that she had been "all set to be a defector from AT&T."
"No, this isn't something that I do all the time, but there are times when it is necessary," she wrote. "Why would I ever give up a service that I currently have?"
iReporter "omekongo" agreed.
"I would have serious problems dealing with the inability to surf online and use the phone," he said in a video he posted to the site.
"That's so Treo 300," he added, referring to Palm's flip-style smartphone released in 2003. "It's so old-school. It makes no sense."
Others have complained that while Verizon is rolling out a faster 4G network, the Verizon iPhone will only run on the current 3G network.
"By the time you can get out of the contract (20 months for a 2-year contract) to upgrade your phone, you will be stuck with over 5-year-old technology while everyone else will be using the 4G LTE products," wrote iReporter "linderman."
For many current iPhone owners, switching from AT&T to Verizon also includes a termination fee for their current contract and buying a new phone, since the hardware to use the two networks is different.
Of course, the iReports did include some Apple love.
In his video, Greg Delucia (gadelucia on iReport), of Hoboken, New Jersey, appeared positively giddy at receiving his first iPhone in the mail.
"All the junk phones I've had in the past waiting for this day -- totally worth it," he said. "I really have nothing but great things to say.
Credit: CNN (www.cnn.com)
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