[gorillanet]

Apple's iPhone is hands-down the best cell phone I've ever used. It's not the lightest, smallest or most durable, and it doesn't even have the best call quality or loudest volume. However, the sum of its parts -- and there are many -- easily push it to the top of my list. First, the basics

Overall, I've found the calls to be clear. Around last January, when the wireless division was still called "Cingular," service around my area was so bad that I was a hair away from ditching the plan completely. Only Steve Jobs' iPhone announcement saved my account. Since then, and before I received my iPhone, AT&T (NYSE: T) miraculously fixed whatever problems were causing dropped calls and the near-constant static.

signal quality against the signals of phones belonging to friends and family members who also use AT&T in my area. I found the iPhone to at least as good as, if not better than, newer models offered by Motorola (NYSE: MOT) , Nokia (NYSE: NOK) , Samsung and Sony Ericsson.

Half the battle with using a good cell phone is the feel and function -- the simple ergonomics of everyday use. The iPhone's relatively large size compared to basic cell phones (not compared to smartphones, which are typically larger than the iPhone) actually works in the iPhone's favor. Talking on a larger phone for long periods of time is flat-out easier than talking on a tiny phone. Of course, I'm a bigger guy with big hands, so take that into consideration.

Thal alone makes iphone #1.