It's been just over a week since we first got our hands on the second gen iPhone (though not everybody's been so lucky). As we said in our official review of the device last week, it isn't a major sea-change, nor will it seem a whole lot different to those with a first-generation iPhone.

Crucially though, to new purchasers the iPhone will seem an awesome device, with an unrivalled user experience.

So with the benefit that only an elongated week-in-the-pocket test period can provide, let's look at the best and worst bits of both the hardware and Apple's iPhone 2.0 firmware (which has locked on us a couple of times).

And yes, we have dropped it, but it was in a case and bounced off the floor of the train. And no, we're not dropping it properly – you need YouTube for that kind of reportage.

Battery and charging

Firstly, let's look at battery life. True, the first charge we gave it ran out remarkably quickly, but that was mainly because we were running amok downloading various apps and showing everybody that wanted to have a peek at the new device.

Wired.com thinks the iPhone's battery life "drains juice faster than a toddler in the desert" though we don't completely agree – if you're used to an older Nokia N95 or first-gen iPhone you won't find it out-of-the-park thirsty.

We believe with non-excessive data/GPS/Wi-Fi use you'll be looking at recharging every 2 days. And by the way, recharging is pretty speedy, so you can give the handset a reasonable amount of juice in, say, 30 minutes.

However, if you're using the new iPhone for Exchange email and internet on business for several hours of the day, you'll be needing your charger alongside your lunch box.

One thing Wired also picked up on which we didn't mention in our review is voice dialling – again absent and making use while driving a very big no-no.

Texting needs more work

Talking of talking, since the iPhone 3G is such a good device for internet and email, it's easy to forget that the phone function itself takes a bit of getting used to. Thankfully though, Apple's addition of a new Contacts app means getting to your numbers to actually call them is much, much easier with the 2.0 firmware.