I had a whole entry about the new iPods, but then a bunch of stuff started happening, including the revelation that the 4GB iPhones were being discontinued and going for $299 while they still were in stock, which kind of changed everything, as the screenshot above shows. Yes, after fighting the good fight, I capitulated and got an iPhone. You've probably already read all the good stuff and bad stuff about the device, so I am not going to go into it too much right here, but suffice to say, I have used it much more for web browsing, emailing and messaging than I have actually using it as a phone! The mantra seems to be true--this is more than a phone, it's basically a very nice mobile communications device.

I have a lot of rationalizations (including that damn broken screen on my old, lame, slow Cingular 3125 phone) but in the end, it's become not why I ended up getting the phone, it's about what I can do now that I have it in my now often less greasy mitts. Basically, it's really, really nice too have a solid way of emailing and getting on the web while I am on the road dealing with auditions. Today, for instance--I was at another last minute audition and I had forgotten the address of my last minute call back (everything has been "same day" for the past week, which has been really crazy) that was happening an hour later. So, i was able to email my agent and she was able to email it to me right back and, if I needed to, I could then map out the address and get the directions all on the same screen. That's just sick, you know? And yes, I know, I could this with my old phone but, really? I couldn't.

(3 days later)

I have been starting and stopping this all week, apologies for that. Yes, the iPhone is rad, no, I don't think that everyone needs one, but I can basically say that everything you read is basically true: it's a pretty amazing device, having Internet access wherever you want is fantastic, having a pretty solid camera is great, being able to watch videos, listen to music, show people photos, check your email, deal with calendars, etc, etc--it all works great. Whit used it a lot this past weekend and commented how great the user interface and loved being able to give me driving directions based on actual maps. Yes, there are problems that just seem weird to me:

- how do you add an attachment to an email? There's gotta be a way, but the only attachment process that I have seen is the "take a picture, send it" process. It works, but if you wanna add more than one photo, etc...I'm lost.

- Apple makes a big deal about having a full featured mail program but it's odd there are no font options? Not that you need to italicize everything, but, I mean, what's with that?

- So, there's really no way to send a single text messages to multiple people? really?

- How about switching the "from" account when sending an email? How do you do that?

- The camera desperately needs to have a zoom feature (or at least a cropping feature available in some kind of edit mode) and it's really lame it can't take video (yes, I realize we are talking about a phone, but honestly, phone stopped being phones awhile ago. they all have cameras, and so far, all of the camera phones I have used have had both zoom and video capabilities). There also needs to be some kind of white balance or something--these pictures can get dark when it's not all that dark outside.

Luckily, most of this seems addressable by software updates...so, let's update and fix this stuff, apple.

But hey, I'm happy. I'm really enjoying taking pictures throughout the day, I must admit, like this one I took after going to the Mexico City restaurant on Sunday. Hmm...Sunday margarita...

Here's a shot of the lovely Silverlake area in LA; we were looking at some houses (for fun) and this view was pretty terrific.
The place was trapped in 1979 (complete with glittery white ceilings) but the views were nice.

So what else? I had some good auditions last week (which have resulted in some good callbacks) but no bites, which bites. I guess there is still some time for things to happen but whatever; I actually went in for a pretty funny fast food spot, but I did not get a chance to do the character I had originally done because they had this other guy who was just doing it so deadpan that I am pretty sure he got the part immediately and they were just looking for someone else to play opposite him. I'm okay at deadpan, but, really, I think deadpan stuff only goes so far, humorwise. I think--no, I know, that being earnest in an unusual/odd situation is actually more honestly funny. Anyone can be weird/unnatrual in a weird/unnatrual situation; the key is being normal in that situation and not judging it or commenting on the moment by doing something artificial. Ah, well...I may not get cast, but at least I am going down in dreamy opinionated flames.

Had a really good chat with Ravi about Australia, meditation and parental motivations/agendas which warrant their own post, but these ruminations will have to come later when I am in a more thoughtful frame of mind. Suffice to say, it was more than excellent to talk to him and I am looking forward to more musings later. Right now, I am just trying to tie up some loose work threads before I bust out of here for a callback this evening...where, this time, I am getting called back because of my earnestness.

Tags: apple, tech, iphone