Battery life: Mossberg's tests found that the iPhone 3G delivered 4 hours, 27 minutes of talk time. "More important," he says, "in daily use, I found the battery indicator on the new 3G model slipping below 20% by early afternoon or midafternoon on some days, and it entirely ran out of juice on one day."

As with the first iPhone, you can't replace the battery in the iPhone 3G, meaning you have to charge early and often--or use workarounds. Mossberg says he used Wi-Fi instead of 3G for data transactions, turned down the screen brightness, and at times turned 3G off entirely to save juice.

Cost: All three reviewers point out that despite a drop in the cost of the iPhone itself, having one will end up costing you more than owning a first-gen iPhone. That's a result of increases in the cost of AT&T's phone and data plans. Though you save $200 on the phone, you'll pay $240 more for the service over the life of the two-year contract you must purchase, Mossberg writes.

GPS: The bottom line on the iPhone's new GPS capabilities is that they're nice but limited. Pogue points out that they can't provide turn-by-turn directions, merely showing you as a blue spot moving along a map--and sometimes they can't even do that. "The metal of a car or the buildings of Manhattan are often enough to block the iPhone's view of the sky, leaving it just as confused as you are," he writes.

Business support: Apple has boasted that the new iPhone will work much better with corporate e-mail servers. Baig reports on connecting the iPhone 3G to his company's e-mail network, and he comes away impressed. "Messages and calendar entries are 'pushed' to the device, so they show up right away, just as they do on other computers. With your employer's blessing, set-up is a relative cinch."

Mossberg points out a potentially serious problem, though: "While you can have both personal and Exchange email accounts on the new iPhone, if you synchronize with Exchange calendars and contacts, your personal calendar and contacts are erased."

Third-party apps: Mossberg and Baig tried a few early iPhone apps and liked what they found. Baig says Cro-Mag, a caveman racing game that uses the phone's accelerometer to steer, is "difficult but fun." Mossberg believes "the iPhone has a chance to become a true computing platform with wide versatility."

Audio quality: All the reviewers comment on the new iPhone's improved audio quality. "You sound crystal clear to your callers, and they sound crystal clear to you. In fact, few cellphones sound this good," Pogue raves. Mossberg concurs, but complains that "the new phone produced an echo when used with the built-in Bluetooth system in my car."