I'm something of an Apple devotee myself, although I'd draw the line at camping out on pavements. I inherited this passion from my former boss (as you can see, he's something of an odd bloke, but that's another story) and have shown blind, unquestioning loyalty for about 12 years. While I've seen friends of mine oscillate between platforms – either drawn or repelled by the cult of Apple – I've stuck with them for everyday work while dabbling only occasionally with Windows – not because of some fierce opposition to Microsoft, I just feel more at home on a Mac.

But the iPhone, while it looks unquestionably beautiful, and carrying one casually in my palm would undoubtedly make me a hit at parties, isn't going to get me queueing at the Apple Store counter, and probably won't for the foreseeable future. True, there's something that appeals to me about having my computer and phone working in tandem, seamlessly exchanging data – contacts, diary, music and so on – without me having to jump through hoops to make it work, as I currently do with my Nokia N73. But the biggest barrier against forking out for an iPhone is that it only works on the O2 network.

Now, I've got nothing against O2, I'm sure they offer outstanding customer service and fantastic value tariffs. But for them to have sole rights to the iPhone – remember, this is short for "internet phone" – just seems misguided; of all the main UK mobile networks, O2 have trailed way behind the others in allowing their customers to take full advantage of mobile internet services. While 3 and T-Mobile have been offering customers unlimited data plans at budget prices on high-speed 3G networks, O2's site still prominently advertises their i-mode service, priced at a hilarious £3 per megabyte of data. (By comparison, 3 offers a soft limit of 1Gb for a fiver.) OK, its introduced an unlimited £7.50 flat rate since The Independent ran a mobile data round-up earlier this year, and iPhone contracts come with unlimited data plans – but the fact remains that those of us who shopped around months ago looking for the best mobile internet provider aren't signed up to O2. We're either with 3, or we're with T-Mobile.

Hackers in the US have been hard at work under the bonnet of the iPhone, forcing it to work with other networks. People will undoubtedly buy iPhones in the UK in the hope that these hacks will allow them to work on any UK network, too. But those who hacked their phones were scuppered when Apple released a software update which bricked their new toy; you can be sure that this battle will continue, with Apple continuing to defend O2's investment in the project.

Aside from these network issues, the iPhone isn't even 3G capable, while several distinctly more downmarket handsets have this feature as standard. So, quite simply, you're going to get a faster, cheaper mobile internet experience by steering well clear of the iPhone. It breaks my heart to say it, but it's true.

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