If you want to read some of the reasons why the iPhone is not a good idea, go
here.
Its only rationale is to browse the internet on 3G: is that even available in India I wonder ?
~ £400 for a mobile which will last and last might be one thing ( though on Pay & Go you have to topup by £10 per month to get your 'free' internet browsing and WiFi for just 1 year ), but who wants to pay that for a sealed unit - which won't even let you change the battery when that needs replacement ?
There are users here who have bought one, and presumably think it is worthwhile, but for my money the advice would be DON'T !
My personal opinion is that the iPhone is a typical Apple product - over priced, greatly over hyped, and lacking the specs to go with either ! ( It can't even handle MMS, for goodness sake ).
mh you are correct in saying most phones are much better than the iphone in terms of phone functions. The n95 is a far superior to the iphone when it comes to telephony functions.
The iphone is more a multimedia device and nothing can beat it when it comes to music and video functions. It all comes down to what you need the device for, i personally don't like carrying 2-3 different devices around so the iphone is perfect as it is a mobile, mp3 player and an internet browser all in one.
As for cost i agree it is high and i would not buy one unless it was subsidized by the network.
moonandstar.