Once the iPhone or iPod touch can solve those problems, it will make an excellent reader.  Personally, I don’t think the iPhone will set the world on fire.  Let’s start with the obvious reverse cell phone directory: the iPhone is not a substitute for a BlackBerry and isn’t meant to be.  The tangible benefits of a AT&T exclusive iPhone are also strong: roughly 1 million users are locked in to AT&T plans averaging somewhere between approx.  I would hope that Apple might eventually relent and permit J2MEE apps on the iPhone, but I wouldn’t push for a Java plugin for the iPhone Safari.