Let's talk Iphone

[gellar]

Hey, is it possible to block spam calls? I was on Sprint and I only had the option to block three phone numbers on the phone. Does the iPhone let you do something similar?

Why don't you just do what I do - record a ringtone called 'Silent' and assign those phone #s to that ringtone.

gellar

[The Grue]

Hey, is it possible to block spam calls? I was on Sprint and I only had the option to block three phone numbers on the phone. Does the iPhone let you do something similar?

Why don't you just do what I do - record a ringtone called 'Silent' and assign those phone #s to that ringtone.

gellar

Which doesn't work when you also have vibrate on, but I do think its a brilliant idea.

[gellar]

Hey, is it possible to block spam calls? I was on Sprint and I only had the option to block three phone numbers on the phone. Does the iPhone let you do something similar?

Why don't you just do what I do - record a ringtone called 'Silent' and assign those phone #s to that ringtone.

gellar

Which doesn't work when you also have vibrate on, but I do think its a brilliant idea.

Yeah true.  That's why I also assign all those #'s to a contact called 'DONT ANSWER'.

gellar

[YellowKing]

Here's another good tip re: ringtones.

By default Apple expects you to make ringtones out of songs purchased on iTunes for .99. But there's a better way.

Go to http://audiko.net/

Search for the song you want. You'll find tons of song snippets which you can demo before you download. When you find one you like, click the "Download ringtone for iPhone" button and it will put the ringtone in your Ringtones folder in iTunes, ready to be synced to your phone. Works beautifully.

[The Grue]

I just make my own ringtones in Garage Band.  There's an option built right into the program to export as a ringtone to iTunes.

[leo8877]

gellar you live in the Bay Area iirc, how's the coverage for ATT out here?  If anyone goes to the Lake Tahoe area, how's the coverage there.  How about Hawaii?

[depward]

gellar you live in the Bay Area iirc, how's the coverage for ATT out here?  If anyone goes to the Lake Tahoe area, how's the coverage there.  How about Hawaii?

When I was honeymooning in Hawaii my iPhone had fantastic coverage.  No problems whatsoever.

[leo8877]

gellar you live in the Bay Area iirc, how's the coverage for ATT out here?  If anyone goes to the Lake Tahoe area, how's the coverage there.  How about Hawaii?

When I was honeymooning in Hawaii my iPhone had fantastic coverage.  No problems whatsoever.

Thanks depward!

[gellar]

It's adequate in the Bay Area, but nowhere near as good as Sprint and Verizon, in my experience.

gellar

[leo8877]

It's adequate in the Bay Area, but nowhere near as good as Sprint and Verizon, in my experience.

gellar

Thanks gellar!

[wonderpug]

Leo if preheat your skillet and oil before adding the ingredients to cook you can more easily brown the food while also reducing the chance of food sticking to the pan.

[leo8877]

Leo if preheat your skillet and oil before adding the ingredients to cook you can more easily brown the food while also reducing the chance of food sticking to the pan.

I don't get it sorry?

[The Grue]

Do you guys have problems with dropped calls on the 3G?  It happens to me quite a bit...so much so, that I don't even turn on 3G unless I want to do a good deal of web browsing.

[gellar]

Do you guys have problems with dropped calls on the 3G?  It happens to me quite a bit...so much so, that I don't even turn on 3G unless I want to do a good deal of web browsing.

I used to until an update.  Now it rarely happens.  It was INFUCKINGFURIATING for a while though.

gellar

[Isgrimnur]

Dropped calls are seldom with me and usually a reminder to me that I need to power cycle my phone.  Like any other computerized device, it is recommended that you do that every so often. 

WAEFR - When ALL Else Fails, Reboot.

[The Grue]

Do you guys have problems with dropped calls on the 3G?  It happens to me quite a bit...so much so, that I don't even turn on 3G unless I want to do a good deal of web browsing.

I used to until an update.  Now it rarely happens.  It was INFUCKINGFURIATING for a while though.

gellar

Well, I have the latest update and it still does.  I never reboot it, though, so I guess I will try Isgrimnur's advice.

[rittchard]

I had some dropped calls early on - but I don't think these were traditional "dropped calls" in the sense of reception going out.  The call would start and then just stop, I'm pretty sure it was a software error.  As mentioned above, the updates seemed to clear that issue, and when in doubt, a reboot every now and again is a good thing.  With the humungous amount of apps now out and running, it's not too surprising that there can be some conflicts now and again.

After 1.5 years of iPhone-ing, I can't imagine going back.  The iPod functionality on top of the phone on top of the internet on top of the PSP-level gaming console and unending supply of Apps - there's just not much competition.

Keyboard-wise, all I can say is in spite of what it might seem like the first few times you try it, it gets much better as you use it.  The trick as I've told many friends who eventually agree, is you have to trust the keyboard correction.  Don't stare at what you write as you are typing.  If you are like me, you're inclined to constantly go back and make corrections as you type.  If you just keep typing and let the error correction work it's magic, it tends to make good decisions the majority of the time.  What I do now is type out a full sentence or paragraph as fast as I can, and then make the 1 or 2 corrections (if needed) after.

[Meisterbrew]

Finally got mine jailbroke (and loving it woot)


Is there any applications (except the one that stacks icons into folders) that would be useful?

[wonderpug]

Leo if preheat your skillet and oil before adding the ingredients to cook you can more easily brown the food while also reducing the chance of food sticking to the pan.

I don't get it sorry?

Woops, forgot about this thread.  The post was a gag that got ruined from getting pushed to a new thread page.  You were supposed to respond, "Thanks pug!"

[Purge]

Leo if preheat your skillet and oil before adding the ingredients to cook you can more easily brown the food while also reducing the chance of food sticking to the pan.

I don't get it sorry?

Woops, forgot about this thread.  The post was a gag that got ruined from getting pushed to a new thread page.  You were supposed to respond, "Thanks pug!"

Thanks Pug!

[Isgrimnur]

I hear good things about Simplify Media.  Especially if you leave your home (or media) PC on all the time anyway.

[Zero]

I'm just stoked that the slingplayer is finally coming to the iphone!  I can't wait to watch my slingbox on my iphone!

[Blackjack]

Although I mostly natter away in the Palm Pre thread, and sometimes the iPod Touch threads, I did finally get to tinker with an iPhone 3G at a Best Buy today. Although we have an Apple store in my area, I guess I tend to prefer to tinker with something completely unfettered.   

fwiw, I liked my experience with it, but I wish it had really been "connected," as I didn't get to try the Internet or calling stuff. The virtual keyboard worked fine if I hunted and pecked with an index finger, not so much with thumbs, but I'm not a big texter per se. I have pretty long fingers (I'm about 6'4" tall), but they're relatively thin so it worked better than I thought.

The few programs I tried seemed very responsive, and I came away pretty impressed. Not exactly deep insights, but it was nice to finally fiddle with one. 

[The Grue]

It's funny that people complain about the virtual keyboard.  I tried using a Blackberry keyboard the other day and couldn't get anything type.  I kept trying to type and i, but could only type an o.  Seriously....I tried like 10 times and then gave up.  I really don't have many issues typing on the Apple keyboard at all.

[rittchard]

The few programs I tried seemed very responsive, and I came away pretty impressed. Not exactly deep insights, but it was nice to finally fiddle with one. 

Keep in mind that there is a major OS upgrade on the way shortly (3.0) so it's only gonna get a lot better very soon.  And more than likely (I'd say 75-80%), a new version of the hardware should be available in a month or two, maybe sooner.  Announcement may be made next week at the WWDC.

Projected features of the new iPhone (all but confirmed):

- 32GB memory
- 2.2MP camera with video recording
- faster processor/overall speed
- built-in compass

I've also heard rumors (less likely) of:

- built-in FM radio
- front side camera for iChat

[SkyLander]

Although I mostly natter away in the Palm Pre thread, and sometimes the iPod Touch threads, I did finally get to tinker with an iPhone 3G at a Best Buy today. Although we have an Apple store in my area, I guess I tend to prefer to tinker with something completely unfettered.   

fwiw, I liked my experience with it, but I wish it had really been "connected," as I didn't get to try the Internet or calling stuff. The virtual keyboard worked fine if I hunted and pecked with an index finger, not so much with thumbs, but I'm not a big texter per se. I have pretty long fingers (I'm about 6'4" tall), but they're relatively thing so it worked better than I thought.

The few programs I tried seemed very responsive, and I came away pretty impressed. Not exactly deep insights, but it was nice to finally fiddle with one. 

You get used to the keyboard, one thing I noticed quickly is that the predictive text/word finishing/fixing of the iPhone was fabulous 9 times out of 10 it guessed right the word I was going for.

[Isgrimnur]

They need to bring something, because all of the first gen iPhone contracts start expiring on June 29th.  

[Blackjack]

How does it work for general web browsing? I don't see myself using an iPhone (or Pre or whatever) as much for voice calling, as for web browsing (whether 3G or WiFi), showing off media, and some general PDA type stuff. Which is why I've been keener on just getting an iPod touch, but I figure at some point I've got to join the Convergence Crowd. 

[McNutt]

It works well for internet browsing, at least compared to older phones.  I like the iPhone a lot and think it was ahead of its time, but I'm beginning to think that other phones are going to make very nice alternatives. 

Apps - There are some very cool apps out there, but I find that as neat as they are I rarely use them. 
Phone - The phone feature of the iPhone is pretty good.  I do have some calls that get dropped while I have good signal, but I have no idea if it's the iPhone or the network.
Web - The best I've tried.  This is the biggest selling point for me.
iPod - It makes a pretty good iPod and the screen is a great size for watching movies.
Mail - The mail is good, but you can't have shortcuts for each mail address.  I have one shortcut and to check another account I have to back out and select the other account then inbox.  Repeat when checking the other account.  That's a really bad way to do it.

I still give the iPhone a solid recommendation, but when my contract expires next year I will seriously consider a different phone, perhaps an Android-powered phone.  It's not because I don't like the iPhone but just because I like new tech stuff.

[wonderpug]

How does it work for general web browsing? I don't see myself using an iPhone (or Pre or whatever) as much for voice calling, as for web browsing (whether 3G or WiFi), showing off media, and some general PDA type stuff. Which is why I've been keener on just getting an iPod touch, but I figure at some point I've got to join the Convergence Crowd. 

Why wouldn't you want to use the iPhone for phone calls if you got one?  You'd carry a separate cellphone in your pocket...for battery saving reasons or something?

[Blackjack]

Good to know. How's the battery life? I know it's sealed. I just wonder if I used it a lot for music playing and web browsing, how it would hold up. As neat as the Pre is, it seems to gobble up juice quickly (though the battery is swappable at least), which seems a common problem among many brand touchscreen smartphones i've looked at recently.

Wonderpug,
It's not that I wouldn't want to use it as a phone, I just don't have much reason to use a cellphone these days. Most of my buddies keep in touch via e-mail, and well, OK I'm a single geek and I don't have a signficant other who needs to harass me by phone regularly. At least not atm.  But certainly if I had an iPhone I would ditch my current Nokia brick and it would be good to have one less thing to worry about (I do like Verizon though, and they don't carry the iPhone or Pre at the moment). Probably I would want a calling plan more focused on data than on having a zillion calling minutes.

OTOH, my iPod Touch reasoning was that if I could use it for the basic PIM/PDA stuff I use my old Palm Zire 71 for, and for the media playing I use my credit card size Creative Zen for, then at least I could retire those two things and gain some Wi-Fi ability I don't have. But I'm wishy-washy and so far have talked myself out of anything. I'm a sloth when it comes to tech change. 

I do want to see what the big iPhone 3.0 announcement is.

[Chaz]

Battery life is pretty poor in my experience.  The first weekend I had it, I had a flight from Boston to California, and my GF and I (we both got iphones at the same time) were using it a lot on the flight.  I was using it to watch part of a movie and play a text adventure on the Frotz app.  Unfortunately, the battery was basically dead witihin about 2-3 hours of use.  Hers had the same problem.

I find that the phone seems to have pretty poor RAM management, as if I go for a week or so without a reboot, and have two or more web pages open (whether I'm actively using them or not), it frequently starts hitching pretty heavily.  A reboot clears that up, but it's annoying to have happen when I pull it out to check something quickly, and have to wait two minutes while the phone catches up with itself.

Overall, I like it fine, but when my contract is up in a year, I'll be looking at all the alternatives (especially the Android phones) and deciding from there.  It's possible I'll wind up staying with the iPhone, but it's nowhere near a definite.  While it hasn't done anything to make me write it off yet, it's also done nothing to make me say I don't have to look at anything else either.

[McNutt]

The battery is okay at best.  I can watch an entire movie on a plane, but it seems that web surfing, especially in WiFi mode, drains the battery pretty fast.  From what I've read the Palm Pre is about the same. 

[Isgrimnur]

Any device that you use on a constant basis that maintains a backlight and/or an active data connection is going to have battery life issues.  Most "normal" phones rank at about 4-6 hours of talk time before needing a charge.  I can get more Pandora time out of my iPhone than that. 

I love it for web browsing.  It's not as quick as a wired connection, but that's to be expected for another few years. 

When I worked in wireless, we recommended a power cycle a couple times a week for any mobile device, not just smart phones.  People code badly.  The more people code, the more of them code badly. 

WAEFR - When All Else Fails, Reboot.

[SkyLander]

http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/03/palm-pre-review/

Here is engadgets review of the Pre and I would seriously consider switching to that. Or maybe the new HTC Magic Android phone coming out that is both capacitive and has a new UI. Really there is a lot of options out nowadays besides the iPhone but it has a lot of strengths. I think 3.0 will fix quite of the issues that everyone hates about it. Lack of MMS, some landscape keyboard options in places.

Really for what it is, it is an amazing device. Battery life for me in the beginning seemed rather horrible but surprisingly it seems to have gotten better over time. I've watched MST3K movies on transatlantic flights then switched to music and it lasted me the whole flight. I usually just keep wifi turned off only switching it on to download large apps because of the stupid 10 meg limit. Getting Skype and some dedicated instant messenging apps have been great for me. It's all just a matter of taste. Play around with the phones, check out the Pre and the G1 and hoepfully the G2 soon and see which one is the easiest to use.

[Poomba]

So, to be nosy - what's the average monthly bill with an iPhone? Work has offered to either buy me the iPhone and I pay the bill, or I buy the actual iPhone and they pay the bill for a year. I know which one will end up costing me less, but after one year, I am stuck paying my monthly At&t bill with the iphone.

[kathode]

Still in love with mine, though I'm ready to put in my order for whatever upgraded version they announce next week.  The thing that sets it apart for me is the App Store.  Just a huge amount of potential given that they opened the platform, combined with the touchscreen and the power of the device.  I've got four pages worth of apps and games I fiddle with.  I know other phones will have their own stores but this one is way out ahead for now.

My average bill is something like $70-75 I think.  I don't have 3G at the moment or any optional upgrades.

[McNutt]

My bill is $80/month.  That's the cheapest plan plus texting.  I think a non-iPhone with the same plan would be about $70.

[Isgrimnur]

$40 for 450 DT/5K NW/UNL M2M, $30 for unlimited data (standard PDA data rates), $5 for 200 text (in and out).
Plus taxes and fees, ~$80-85.

[rittchard]

Battery life I've found is hit or miss, particularly depending on the apps I use.  My guess is certain apps have memory leaks or some odd behavior that allows them to drain the battery even after you leave them.  Twice now my battery drained out over night for no apparent reason.  Under "normal" usage though, it's hard to complain as I generally need to recharge maybe once a week.  The question is what constitutes "normal" usage in this new era where the one unit can be used for so many things.  With the games getting better and better each day, you could argue this is a portable gaming platform rivalling the PSP and DS.  And this is on top of being your phone and your iPod and your web browser. 

Oh yeah, there is a free App called "Free Memory" which I highly recommend.  It esentially clears out extraneous things in RAM so you have 20MB free.  More importantly, I believe this helps memory life as it kills off any rampant background processes.

All in all I don't think you can beat the iPhone in an overall comparison.  The Pre looks cool, but my guess is if you took all things into account (user interface, gazillion Apps, App Store, music/videos, web browser, etc etc), the iPhone is still a better piece of hardware (with a superior software support system) if you are the type that takes advantage of all its considerable featureset. 

Oh, and as others mentioned, possibly still the best portable web browsing experience.  The responsiveness and intuitiveness of the interface is just unparalleled.  A guy was trying to show off his new PDA (one of the Verizon ones) the other day, and it was just a joke compared to the iPhone.  He had a stylus out, and kept making gestures back and forth but couldn't get it to zoom or scroll or basically do anything he was trying to do.  I just kept my mouth shut.