Author: Damon Brown

Don't blame yourself for expecting Apple to launch the iPhone with a fully-functional Apple Music Store, downloadable ringtones and several third-party applications. One or all of these additions seemed to be the last Ace the company was holding, a final, last-minute announcement to blow sales through the roof. It's now several weeks later and we're still waiting on that announcement. It probably won't come until October.

Fortunately, unauthorized third-party companies are stepping up and filling in the vacuum created by Apple's slow start.

Social Networking
The biggest new addition to the iPhone is Facebook (see top image), the addictive Web site that allows you to link with other people from work, school and other social circles. As a recent Newsweek cover story proclaims, it's pretty much taken over MySpace and Friendster as the place to connect.

This month the hottest social Web sute launched on the most popular cell phone - and, most importantly, Facebook on the iPhone is free. Go to the Safari Web browser, type in http://iphone.facebook.com and log in. That's all you need to do.

The iPhone version of Facebook has most of the original Web site's features including your e-mail. Facebook e-mail Inbox, the status of your friends and colleagues, and a robust search engine that makes it easy to find long-lost people. You can even view your network's latest photos while on the go.

In fact, the photo viewing may be the best part of Facebook on the iPhone. The application has a smooth interface similar to the iPhone's own photo library, and your can shuffle through friends' pictures quickly and easily.

The resolution is as crisp as any iPhone photo. Unfortunately, you can't upload your own iPhone photos, which stops this just short of being the perfect traveling app. For a free and timely program, however, it doesn't get much better than portable Facebook.

The Movies
The iPhone also has the potential to be the ultimate portable movie device, but there are at least two hurdles.

One, Apple only allows movies purchased through the Apple Store. Apple TV notwithstanding, it seems impractical to pay up to $20 for a low-resolution movie only watchable on a screen measurable in inches—especially when DVDs, a more practical alternative, can be had for as cheap as $5. Two, Apple couldn't use a standard DVD if it wanted to since the discs are larger than the iPhone itself.

Which brings up one of my favorite new iPhone applications, Red Kawa's Videora. The small application adapts video files to the iPhone format. AVI, divx, mpeg, and yes, DVD, are listed as supported. Ironically, the iPhone program only works on the PC.

After a brief setup, Videora will help you find media files on the computer. It can only convert one file at a time - no batches here - but the process is quick and painless. A 30-second Windows Media video took just as long to convert.

The program will set up a cache file to store all the converted media. Then just launch iTunes, click on "Movies" and drag-and-drop the converted movies into iTunes (see image below). Watch them within iTunes or, when the iPhone is connected, Sync the iTunes movies to your phone. The Videora's default resolution is widescreen.

Red Kawa isn't going to be getting you out of legal trouble for downloading new movie releases and using Videora to convert them (the required agreement absolves the company). However, the conversion of your own movies and content should fall well into the legal realm.

The Written Word
Finally, the first batch of iPhone commercials hyped up reading The New York Times online, but going through the front page on the iPhone can be kind… of… slow. Ditto for the New York Post or any other graphic-intensive newspaper Web site. Wi-Fi browsing is okay, but using AT&T's default EDGE network is nearly unbearable.

There is also the frustration of accidentally tapping on one item when you actually meant to jog to another—something very common on the busy Times Web site since there really isn't a resting place for your finger. It's clear the Times site wasn't built for something like the iPhone.

Fortunately, we now have Leaflets, a free third-party app and portal that turns the iPhone into a big RSS feeder. It aims to improve the Web experience by optimizing applications for the iPhone's often-limited access speeds.

Leaflets gives several reading options from the get-go including the The New York Times, Major League Baseball scores and Newsvine, a news aggregator that collects the best items from the Web. The popular bookmarker del.icio.us is also available, so all your favorite Web sites can be reached quickly and easily.

The New York Times RSS feed is smooth and efficient. A bulk of the screen is the main story. A small left-hand column highlights all the major sections of the New York Times, such as Frontpage, U.S. and Technology. Of course, all parts of the display can be tapped and stretched for more detail. The streamlined topics, vertical layout and text-focused design make the Times feed much smoother than the original Web site.


The New York Times in Leaflets

About the Author
Damon Brown wrote the "Pocket Idiot's Guide to the iPhone" (Alpha/Penguin Books), the first book on the iPhone, available at Amazon or your favorite bookstore. Damon also writes for Playboy, SPIN and The New York Post.