I almost ended a streak of DiMaggian proportion. Because of me, my former roommate nearly owned a cell phone for the very first time.

Alas, I fell short.

Just a couple weeks ago, sage blogger John Saddington (@human3rror) ran a contest on the website ChurchDrop in which he gave away his old iPhone 3GS. He had just bought the new iPhone 4 and decided against selling his old phone in favor of doing something more fun.

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I am about to make my first foray into smart phones. I just pre-ordered the new iPhone 4. It’ll be released on June 24.

I’ve been following the development of smart phones, app stores, and the like for years. I have a general idea of the apps I’d like to use, but I want to hear from the people who have been using them. What iPhone apps do you use? Which are your favorites? These could be apps from Apple’s App Store or they could be web apps.

Leave your suggestions in the comments. I’ll try out all the free apps you suggest and many of the premium ones, too. I’ll write a follow-up post in a few weeks.

I’d like to highlight the points that stood out to me at today’s WWDC keynote. They’re listed roughly in the order they were presented. If you’d like to read the liveblog that I read to get all this juicy info, click over to Engadget’s liveblog coverage. Of course, go to the Apple website for the official news.

15″ MacBook Pro

• Eventually I’ll need to buy a new battery for my MacBook Pro (when my current one stops holding a charge), and I’m glad to see that they’ve made a battery with even better battery life than my computer currently has. UPDATE: I don’t think I got this one right. Yes, the 15″ MacBook Pro has a better battery, (up from 5 hours to 7) but these new 15″ MBPs have a battery that cannot be swapped out by the user, only by Apple (one more reason I’m glad I got my computer when I did). So, it’s unclear to me whether the type of battery found in my computer received an update. I’m guessing it didn’t.
• I’m really glad I got my 15″ MacBook Pro when I did. My computer has an ExpressCard slot; now they come with an SD card slot instead. The average user will like this move, but not the power user. I think it’s a very strange decision.
• I’m glad to see the MacBook Pro received a price cut, even if it only affects the low-end model.
• I really wish my MacBook Pro could handle 8GB of RAM. That is a HUGE update. The hard drive and processor updates are also nice.
• Refreshed features and lower price is immediately available.

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I can’t believe my sister got an iPhone before I did! Way to go, Alison! Read on and I’ll tell you about some of the iPhone 3G’s best apps and accessories.

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As you probably know, Apple released version 2.0 of its iPhone/iPod touch software earlier this summer. One of the big new features was the ability to add third party applications to your device. To get these applications a person goes to the App Store, found in Apple’s iTunes software. Many applications are free, but the majority you have to pay for.

Today the blogosphere is abuzz with the news of a new app in the App Store called I Am Rich. The man behind the app is asking $999.99 for his efforts. What does it do? Here’s the description in the creator’s own words:

The red icon on your iPhone or iPod touch reminds you (and others when you show it to them) that you were able to afford this.

It’s a work of art with no hidden function at all.

After pressing the (i) button on the main page, a secret mantra will be shown. This may help you to stay rich, healthy and successful.

So, in other words, it does nothing.

There’s been a wide variety of reactions to this app. Some folks are angry, some find it humorous, and still others wish they’d thought of it first. Personally I was sad to hear about it, but it did get me thinking.

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