The Awards Keep Coming for iPhone

As if there hasn’t been enough praise heaped upon the Apple iPhone up to this point, another huge honor came its way this week. Time Magazine called the iPhone the “invention of the year” in its latest edition because of the impact of the phone on the market in regards to innovation.

The magazine cited many different reasons for the honor, most of which cited the device’s unique features. The touch screen capability was one of the top reasons why the iPhone won the award.

In addition to listing the positive features of the device, the magazine also made note of some of the phone’s worst features. Among those things was the iPhone’s keyboard, which has given users a ton of trouble. Most users find that this feature is highly advanced, but difficult to use. In addition, Time also mentioned that the iPhone was too big considering that it was a mobile phone. Add the magazine to the many others who have criticized the fact that the phone only works with AT&T and is locked to other providers.

Nevertheless, those shortcomings didn't overshadow the five elements Time listed as making the device special. Still, the magazine made note of the iPhone’s top three features.

Design: The iPhone is unique because people can use the device and all of its features without having to read through 100 pages of instruction. Apple understands that great features aren’t worth a whole lot if consumers don’t know how to use them.

Touch Screen: The brand new interface provided by the iPhone is revolutionary, and that was picked up by Time. When people can use their hands to manipulate data, there is a lot of intrigue. The ability to re-size photos and do other things with the phone’s touch screen makes it that much better.

Staying True to Its Roots: Time commended Apple and Steve Jobs for sticking to its guns in regard to the Apple iPhone. They worked out a deal with AT&T that allowed for the phone to be constructed exactly how Apple executives wanted. Since Apple knows what it is doing when it comes to building devices like this, it was important that the Apple touch was all over the iPhone. Had they signed on with some company other than AT&T, they might have had to conform to some standards that would have taken away from the iPhone.