Apple iPhone 5

Pros: Fast, great screen quality, iOS/OSX integration, good camera, panorama mode is cool. Decent battery life.

Cons: Would have been 4 stars had it not been for Apple Maps. Because navigation is a primary reason I have a smartphone at all, this couldn't go unpunished. The jury is still out on Siri.

Summary: Recently retired my old HTC Droid Incredible, it died an unspeakable death the day before the iPhone5 hit the stores. Went to the local Verizon office the next day, and noticed they had the new phone for sale. Being in the middle of nowhere (Sioux Falls) sometimes has its advantages - I had my iPhone 5 at 8:15 a.m. the day it went on sale.

Some background - I liked my Droid. It was old, slow, it's battery was shot. But I liked the way it integrated with Gmail (duh!), and had many apps I liked (including Google Sky - one of the best free apps in existence). I knew I would miss the "back" button if I went to an iPhone. But I've had macs for years, and would have had an Apple before now if AT&T had any semblance of coverage in the frozen plains of eastern South Dakota. But going from a Droid to an iPhone was a tough choice.

Took the phone home - set up was straightforward. Unlike other reviews here, I thought using exchange to set up my gmail account was pretty simple. Itunes integration was pretty easy, so between my Imac, two mac books my wife's 4S, my 4G iPod Touch and Airplay - I have my music everywhere. And I disagree with those trashing the earpods - they're great for FREE earbuds (although I wouldn't pay money for them).

NB - be careful with the new facebook integration. Somehow, when I set up my contacts, all my FB friends ended up in my contacts list. It was a PITA to get them all out. I'm sure it was user error, but be careful.

Really liked the camera. The Panorama camera mode is very cool - I now often find myself standing with my phone and spinning in circles everywhere. The camera overall performs well enough that I'm considering using it as my primary point-and-shoot (retiring my old Panny LX1). Low light performance was good, HDR mode did as well as one might expect from a camera phone.

The screen is very clear and sharp, played videos well - both from iTunes and the web. i'm not a gamer, can't comment on game graphics. Reading was easy (NYtimes apps, others). And the size of the screen was more than adequate.

For the record - I'm not a fan of phones pretending to be tablets. I find the Galaxy SIII to be comically large, and assume many men stuff them tightly into their pants to impart a false impression of virility. The iPhone 5 is as big as I need a phone to be.

Maps - this has been covered everywhere, so I don't need to rehash it all here. Apple maps are okay in Sioux Falls, which doesn't throw the application any navigational curve balls. But in larger cities - particularly those having extensive public transportation systems with multiple choices for transport (metro, bus, train, etc.) - Google maps are so far ahead I can't see Apple catching up for years. (To date, tested in DC and NYC). For business I still have another Droid - there's a good chance my iPhone won't stray far from home until this is fixed.

If I were Google, I would make an iOS 6 Google Map app and charge for it - they'd make a lot of money. But I'm me, and hope they do it for free.

Siri - amusing, but I can't say I find it useful very often. Maybe I'm shy around virtual females and become inarticulate ("who am I" becomes "who am pie" and then the fun begins). For some reason, she insists that I'm the owner of a local Lebanese restaurant and keeps asking about my mother.