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Overview

The Apple iPhone was released on June 29, 2007 and generated tremendous interest for mobile device users. In collaboration with other departments at MIT, IS&T formed an iPhone Evaluation Team to test various aspects of the iPhone within MIT’s infrastructure.

The goal of the project was to investigate the viability of the Apple iPhone within the MIT environment and to share the findings with the community. The evaluation included email, calendar, contacts, certificates, web browsing, and other features that are essential to MIT mobile device users. The project also investigated ways to make the iPhone work with these features and document the findings.

The iPhone contains a number of breakthrough technologies that will interest many users at MIT. It includes a number of revolutionary features that might benefit MIT mobile device users. These include the "full" web browsing capability, robust email client, mult-touch user interface, etc. (for more information on Apple's iPhone, please visit http://www.apple.com/iphone)

However, as with any first-generation products, there are a number of things that need to be improved for broader adoption. Since the initial release, Apple has been releasing software updates to address bugs and security issues. Apple also recently made additional changes that include a 30% price drop, elimination of the 4GB iPhone from its product line as well as the introduction of iPod Touch (without cellular voice and data capability) that contain many features found in the iPhone.

Anyone at MIT interested in purchasing the iPhone should be aware of potential issues listed in this report.

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Recommendation

IS&T recommends that mobile device users should be aware of the issues mentioned in this report and if considering to purchase the iPhone, please wait for the next version of the iPhone with expected improvements. We also remind the community that a significant portion of the cost of the iPhone covers the cost of the iPod functions. It is not the intent of IS&T to determine for any department whether this is a legitimate business expense or not but in line with our goal to be fiscally responsible, we feel it is important for the community to understand what's included in the cost when making a decision on which mobile device to purchase.

We expect Apple to address some of the issues mentioned in this report over the next few months. These improvements and bug fixes may be available to current users via software update. However, some features may require the users to purchase new equipment (e.g. 3G network capability).

Next Steps

IS&T will initiate an iPhone Release project to provide documentation and limited support for the following:

• Email Configuration
• Wi-Fi Connection within MIT
• iTunes (set up and initial synchronization)
• Safari

In the meanwhile, those seeking assistance can utilize Mobile Devices Wiki (https://wikis.mit.edu/confluence/display/MobileDevices/) and join the Mobile Partners User Group (http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/mobilepartners) for peer support.

 

Main Functionality

Phone:

The iPhone is tied to one carrier — AT&T. As long as AT&T’s network is available, the iPhone works well as a phone. It includes visual voicemail feature that is handy when accessing multiple voicemail messages in the AT&T account.

Unfortunately, AT&T's voice coverage is poor in greater Boston area in comparison to other carriers. Evaluation testers found that in many areas, poor signals and dropped calls were common. Therefore, users interested in the iPhone should check to make sure that the AT&T’s coverage is sufficient in the areas that the device will be used.

Some users find the lack of physical buttons to be problematic at first. However, this can be overcome with enough practice.

The iPhone does not have voice dialing feature that is found in most cell phones. This makes it hard to place phone calls while driving, as the user needs to see the screen in order to place and end phone calls.

Email:

Email works well when connected using the iPhone’s Wi-Fi connection. The Mail application allows the user to access messages in subfolders better than other mobile devices with MIT’s email server. However, when the iPhone is used without the Wi-Fi (it will default to AT&T’s EDGE network), downloading and viewing email can be slow.

iPhone can handle email messages in HTML format extremely well. The user has the ability to zoom in and out of messages for better viewing experience.

Current Known Limitations:

• The iPhone cannot handle some audio file attachments (some .wav).
• Sylantro VOIP (Voicer-Over-IP) users at MIT that rely on voicemail notification via email will not be able to listen to the attached audio file.
• Copy/Paste is not possible.
• Search functionality is missing. Unlike other mobile devices, the user would have to scroll messages to find relevant messages.
• Attachment handling is limited to viewing only.

TechTime Calendar Synchronization:

Synchronizing TechTime calendar with the iPhone does not work as well as other mobile devices (e.g. Palm OS and Windows Mobile devices). Unlike other devices that can synchronize calendar over-the-air, the iPhone must be connected via a USB cable to a computer (Windows or Mac) with iTunes in order to synchronize calendar.

The following is the list of currently known methods:

Windows XP and Vista (two-way synchronization):
Using a third-party software (SyncJe for Outlook) on the computer, the TechTime Calendar can be synchronized with Outlook Calendar. Then, iTunes software can synchronize the data between Outlook and the iPhone. There are known issues with SyncJe for Outlook that may not satisfy some users.

MacOS (one-way synchronization):
The Oracle Calendar client application version 10.x. as well as a third-party application (OraCal2iCal version 2.9.x) can be used to perform one-way synchronization of TechTime calendar with iCal application. Then, iTunes software can synchronize the data between iCal and the iPhone. Two-way synchronization is not possible at this time, and there are known issues that may be problematic for some users.

Using Safari:
The user can use the Safari browser to access the web version of the TechTime Calendar and logging in with the proper credentials (http://calendar.mit.edu). In order for this method to work properly, the user needs to have a good command of the multi-touch interface to zoom and pan within the Safari browser. This method can be used to view and edit calendar entries, but it can be quite cumbersome for most users.

While the above methods provide means for TechTime calendar sync for the iPhone, they are not recommended for novice computer users.

Web Browsing:

Browsing the web with the iPhone is excellent as long as Wi-Fi connection is used. iPhone’s Safari browser allows the user to view the entire website with the ability to zoom and pan within the browser.

Current Limitations:

• iPhone does not support X.509 personal certificates. MIT websites that require personal certificates (e.g. Stellar, ECAT, SAPweb, RT, Wikis, etc.) cannot be accessed by the iPhone.
• No Flash. Websites that primarily use Flash technology cannot be accessed by the iPhone at this time.
• Some common web user interface may not work properly (e.g. pull-down menus, selecting dates with calendar pop-ups, etc.)
• Connectivity: AT&T's EDGE network is much slower than 3G networks offered by many carriers. Web browsing using EDGE network is slow. Also, switching between Wi-Fi and EDGE sometimes results in loss of connectivity entirely.
• Security. The initial version of Safari contained security bug that potentially could be used to hack the iPhone. Apple subsequently issued an update to fix the bug.

iPod:

The iPhone is a great iPod that can play music, video, and podcast. The tight integration with the iTunes application makes is very easy to purchase, manage, and synchronize files between a computer and the iPhone.

MIT users can download or subscribe to various audio, video files and podcasts of MIT lectures offered by iTunes Store.

Data Connectivity:

The iPhone allows the user to connect to the internet either via Wi-Fi or AT&T’s EDGE network.

With Wi-Fi (e.g. at MIT campus), the iPhone’s data connection works great. However, AT&T’s EDGE network (120 ~160 kbps) is slow especially compared to 3G data network offered by Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T (e.g. EV-DO, UMTS, HSDPA with 400 ~ 800 kbps).

Until 3G data capability is offered on the iPhone, those that frequently use mobile devices outside the range of Wi-Fi network may want to wait for the next version.

International Roaming:

iPhone users need to be extra careful when using the device outside of the U.S. especially with accessing the internet using the cellular data network. Since the iPhone can browse the full web, data usage will be much higher than other mobile devices. For example, accessing New York Times website using the iPhone will download about 600 KB of data. The same site accessed by Palm Treo will download about 20KB of data.

This may result in significant data roaming charges in hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars. When using the iPhone overseas, the users are advised to find Wi-Fi access points and minimize the use of the cellular data.

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