Steve Smith put his first iPhone through the wash cycle in his jean's pocket, and that killed it. The battery died in the second, so now he's on this third iPhone. Along the path, reporting for MobileInsider, he discovered what makes the iPhone really cool, even if one is a 50 year-old dweeb.

"I didn't realize it until the jeans went into the dryer with an unlikely thunk. My heart sank. Not only had it been washed, but rinsed (twice) and spun dry. It even smelled like fabric softener," Mr. Smith wrote.

Mr. Smith learned many things in the process. He learned that Apple sales people not only service the phone well, but they're sympathetic to the plight of people who bring in dead iPhones for burial -- even if they do wince a little.

Then, in the absence of the iPhone for a bit, the author had a chance to think about the coolness of the gadget. "I think it is a mistake for the market to think this is all about the coolest gadget. These phones may turn out to be all that," Mr. Smith wrote. "I don’t know. But the need to dazzle rather than simplify seems misdirected."

In the author's mind, the key to the iPhone is actually the data usage. While 7 percent of regular phone users and 28 percent of smartphone users use their phones for music, 74 percent of iPhone users do. [The author quoted M:Metrics data.]

"Ultimately, I did not stray, of course. I went for the iPhone, again," Mr. Smith admitted. "The seamlessness and sheer simplicity of the phone continues to be unmatched in an industry .... Even the best of the next-gen phones I have seen do not encourage data drilling and content browsing as effectively as this interface."

So while the iPhone is a favorite amongst the younger generation, Mr. Smith found salvation as well: "When you are 50, working on the second marriage, and have a teen daughter reminding you of your dweebiness at every turn, there is not a lot in this world to make you feel remotely hip," he concluded.

"Thanks, Apple. I’m sticking."