Nothing speaks more about the brilliance of the iPhone than its own success in the market, both by the numbers and how you would need three hands to count the number of iPhone owners in any given room across the country.

It’s easy to see why they’re so popular. Apple has a knack for creating devices that look dazzling and provide useful functions, whereas most tech companies seem to only focus on one aspect at a time. If the iToothpick were the next device released, I guarantee you every single mouth you pass on the street would be chewing on one. Plus it would bring new meaning to the health adage “an apple a day”.

For those less familiar with the iPhone, it is a mini computer and cell phone hybrid, with internet and application capabilities, built into an iPod chasis. Apps, which are purchased through Apple’s proprietary application store, increase the productivity and fun of the device. They include everything from games to programs that help you find taxis or places to eat. Since internet access is achieved through Cingular’s wireless network, the device is always connected if it has service.

The iPhone’s sleek looks are hard not to like, and hard not to notice too. A combination of the stainless steel back and the full-sized touch screen on the front makes for one sexy device. No protrusions, no lines, just a solid, thin, rounded rectangle able to perform almost any task a modern PC is capable of handling.

I love how Apple has evolved the usefulness of the built-in accelerometer. Most people are familiar with the technology being used to flip photos from portrait to landscape profile. Now it can be used to navigate an object through a game or randomize selections in specific apps. It also works with the touch screen to promote an interface free of buttons. Brilliant!

Another one of my favorite features is the ability to take screen shots at any point. This is useful if I want to access a webpage without having to go online and work my way through the site or if I want to show off a high score I got in a game to my friends.

I do have one beef with everyone’s favorite phone, though. Steve Jobs came out last year and confirmed that the phone has a kill switch, meaning Apple has the power to access anyone’s phone at anytime and delete programs it dislikes. While this can be used to protect consumers from malicious programs, it’s more realistic that Apple is looking out for itself financially, like every corporation does. Regardless, this phone has too many pluses to focus on such an obscure flaw.

The Apple iPhone is the device where form and function live harmoniously. Never before has it been so easy to stay connected and get things done at the same time. Technology is evolving at an alarming rate and now we have computing power at the cell phone size. The possibilities are amazing and entertaining. I could see Apple taking over the cell phone market, changing the way we think about cellular phones and computers by meticulously weaving them together into a beautiful device.