Forex

Here comes the long-awaited iPhone killer, a cellphone with features so compelling it will make Apple Inc.'s renowned touch-screen phone instantly obsolete.

It's the new iPhone 3G, which Apple will begin selling next week. With faster cellular data service, a built-in global positioning system chip, and a price of just $199, Apple's new model will clobber its older brother.

Or did you think I meant the new Instinct phone, from Sprint Nextel Inc. and South Korea's Samsung Group? Hardly. The Instinct lacks some of the iPhone's most appealing features, as well as the almost seamless elegance of the Apple device.

But that hasn't kept the Instinct from selling out at Sprint stores nationwide. Its popularity is well deserved, for while it's no iPhone, the Instinct boasts some unique and powerful features, at a price as low as $129 for new Sprint subscribers.

Unlike the original iPhone, Instinct was born with built-in GPS. The navigation software is fast and accurate, and even provides highway traffic updates. But the best part is its integration with the Instinct's voice-control system. Press a button on the side and speak a word or two, like "grocery stores." The Instinct hooks up with Microsoft Corp.'s Live Search service to display a list of the nearest supermarkets. Tap the touch screen for audio turn-by-turn driving directions.

The Instinct also uses Sprint's high-speed data network, which runs much faster than the original iPhone's AT&T Inc. data service. The speedier network allows for multimedia services not found on the iPhone, like streaming Internet music channels and live television feeds from CNN and Fox Sports. The video is often pixilated and jerky, but it's adequate for catching the latest headlines.

The iPhone has a pretty good camera, but only takes still photos. Like many newer phones, the Instinct has software that lets its camera shoot two-minute video snippets. The video quality is pretty poor, but good enough for capturing life's random madness. And while the iPhone relies on its limited built-in memory, the Instinct uses interchangeable microSD memory cards so you won't run out of storage space.

Many have griped about the difficulty of typing on the iPhone's touch-sensitive onscreen keyboard, which lacks the tactile feedback of mechanical push buttons. The Instinct uses a "haptic interface" that causes a weird, edgy vibration in your fingers whenever they touch the screen. Apart from the welcome feedback, it feels rather cool; I found myself fiddling with the Instinct just to enjoy the buzz.

And it does take some fiddling to get used to the phone, which uses a different, more sensitive touch-screen technology than the iPhone. Scrolling through menus is tougher, because the slightest touch will open the wrong item. A Sprint guy cleared it up for me - use fingernails to scroll, fingertips to activate.

The Instinct's other problems aren't as easily solved.

Its address book stores a maximum of 600 entries; I've got thousands, and so do many other business folk. The phone has no Wi-Fi chip, so you can't tap into fast wireless Internet service at home or work. The iPhone switches from narrow- to wide-screen mode when you tip it sideways, thanks to a chip that senses motions. The Instinct only goes wide-screen when its software tells it to, like when you're watching videos. It works well enough, but I prefer the iPhone's more versatile approach.

Then there's Internet browsing. The iPhone makes Web surfing a pleasure, with clever features like "pinching" with thumb and forefinger to expand or shrink pages. By contrast, the Instinct browser is little better than the cramped and clunky software found on other cellphones. You might use it out of desperation, but never for fun.

And of course, the new iPhone will match two of the Instinct's better features - with GPS and a new AT&T data network that's about as fast as Sprint's. Throw in a $200 price cut, and Apple has little to fear from the Instinct.

Indeed, it's Sprint that's running scared these days. The company lost over a million subscribers in the first quarter of 2008 alone. Some defected to AT&T, exclusive US distributor of the iPhone. The Instinct is priced to hold on to wavering subscribers and scare up a few new ones. The phone costs $450, but a combination of discounts and mail-in rebates will lower the price to $129 for customers who sign up for two years of Sprint service. The deal applies to new Sprint customers, or those whose previous contracts will soon expire.

The plan's working so far - Sprint is enjoying its best sales in years, and why not? The Instinct is the coolest phone most people have ever seen. But then, most people have never used an iPhone.