iPhone, Bluetooth

When I go to connect a device for Bluetooth capability, namely my car for handsfree talk and Bluetooth audio, it connects but the spinning icon still appears next to the word "devices," as though it's still searching for something even though it's already connected. Is this typical?

I forgot to mention that I'm talking about the iPhone 4 with Verizon.

I think so, I usually disregard. I've got several Bluetooth devices. Mostly mine are auto but occasionally I have to go to that menu.

iPhone, Battery drain

I am suddenly experiencing battery drain on my iPhone 4 v4.3.3 and cannot figure out why this is happening. I can go from 100% battery charge to 10% within a matter of 5 hours with no phone usage at all.

I have tried various suggestions that I found on a Google search such as Reset Network Settings, turn off App Store, closed out apps running in background. I have a couple of Location services turned on but they have been running all along with no problem.

Because of the timing what I suspect is that there is an iPhone app that was updated a couple of nights ago that may be causing the issue. My problem is that I don't really have a clue which app it may be because there were a dozen or so apps that were updated that night and I did not pay any attention to what they were.

I thought of doing a restore from a previous backup and then trying to install the app updates individually to see if I could root out a problem but all I am seeing when I selet Restore from Backup on iTunes is a backup that I did last night , 6/27 which is post app updates.

I know I did a previous backup on 6/20 but I cannot find a backup folder with that date in Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup/.

So, I am looking for suggestions on

what may be draining the battery

how to find what apps were updated on 6/26

how to find the backup from 6/26

Just do a restore without any backups, this way you will know if this problem is the iphone itself.

For my own experience, backups that have corrupted apps and data will remain corrupted when you use them again.

Check the battery drain for a couple of days and if OK THEN start installing your apps one at the time.

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You can find out what apps were updated by going to the apps section in your iTunes library, adding a "date modified" column to the display (& putting that column next to the app names so you can see it!) and sorting on date-modified -- do it in reverse & the latest mods will show at the top. I have both a date-added & date-mod column in my app library display.

This won't tell you which app may be causing the problem but might give some clues.

iPhone, FOUND Wx Alert USA

Thanks......I found all previously purchased apps under updates. And yes thank you it is now called Wx Alert USA which I searched and now is not available if not previously purchased.

I am so glad I returned that new Samsung and got a new iphone 4. I missed it so much. :)

Enjoy and thanks all !

Ooo! it’s available, you just have to look in the right place.

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The correct name of the app is "Weather Alert USA". it is $3.99 and you can find it here:

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/weather-alert-usa/id314502416?mt=8

iPhone apps, NOAA

There used to be an app named NOAA that changed to WX Weather and I can't find
that now. I used to have a 3G and bought a Galexey Tablet. I missed the iphone
so I went a got a iphone 4. This was one of my favorite weather apps.

I have a lot of weather apps but I'm not familiar with that one. I do love MyWeather and it is free:

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/myweather-mobile/id435025246?mt=8

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I like it! MyWeather may be my new go to weather app!

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I'm in the UK and I use the free Met Office app.

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I use it all the time; one of my favorites. Now it's called Wx Alert USA. The latest version has (had..) audible NOAA weather radio now, but my station quit in the last couple weeks. I'm hoping it gets fixed. The rest of the app works great, though.

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I can not find it in the app store.

IPhone notification, iOS 5 Beta 2, iMessage, Music app iPad, iCloud, WiFi Syncing

iMessage
Now iMessage users on iOS 5 Beta 2 will not be able to send messages to users on iOS 5 beta 1. We’re not quite sure why Apple did this, as nothing else seems to have changed with iMessage as a whole.

Music app iPad
If you have albums without any artwork, a new blank album image is put in its place.

Settings
The iCloud icon has changed in the Settings app. Does it look better? Let us know what you think.

WiFi Syncing
Probably the most exciting feature of the build is that iOS 5 Beta 2 finally enables WiFi syncing for Mac users (no Windows support yet), the feature requires iTunes 10.5 Beta 2 and OS X 10.6.8 or Lion. The feature seems to be enabled automatically if your iDevice is connected to a power source and paired to the same network as your computer. We detailed how to use it yesterday.

Furthermore you can enable the feature upon connecting your newly updated device to iTunes for its first sync.

The build seems more stable and we hope it is lighter on the battery. Overall the update is not as exciting as we had hoped with Newsstand still inactive and no WiFi sync for Windows users. However, there may be more in this release just waiting to be uncovered. Needless to say there is still a lot more testing to do and upcoming builds will definitely have something in store. While we keep you posted on the latest in iOS 5 news make sure you check out our comprehensive iOS 5 roundup, right here, it includes over 170 new features.

Honda can't keep up with Apple, apparently..

I posted before on this. My iPhone 4 won't connect to my new Honda Insight through the USB cable, although my husband's 3GS plays fine. I have pursued this to the point that I have given up.

My husband talked with Honda and they gave the impression that they can't keep up with Apple's technology. I have also read on line that the 4 won't work through the USB cable in Cadillac but will work in Lincoln -- haven't verified this myself.

Anyway, I have given up and now play Pandora with an auxiliary cord. Sound is fine, although I do miss having the radio display the artist and name of song.

It would be lovely if Honda would figure this out and come up with a fix.

I'm with you there - Acura (which is made by Honda) is t he same, I have only tried USB port it doesn't work on any iDevice I own. I use Bluetooth Audio (A2DP) and even though iOS supports it I don't get artist/song/etc either that bluetooth profile isn't supported on the stereo (2010 model year).

Even though I was raised in an Anti-Ford (Found On Road Dead, Fix Or Repair Daily, etc were every day mentions) - I am set on my next car being a Ford due to the Sync System - I almost bought a Ford Edge last time but stuck with Acura but the tech is just too good in Ford now so when my lease is up, I will be getting a whichever Ford SUV fits my needs and budget at the time.

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I doubt that Honda will make the effort, unless they get a ton of complaints.

Just on an off chance, check to see if you have some dirt in the 30-pin connector in your iPhone.

The software for the 3GS and the 4 should be the same so there is no software reason the Honda doesn't recognize the 4.

iPhone GPS

I was just wondering if anyone else if having trouble with their GPS on their phones. I have an iPhone 3GS with NAVIGON GPS. There are times when my phone does not receive a GPS signal for long stretches of time. Fortunately, I had my stand-alone GPS unit with me which never lost the GPS signal. Is this common with the iPhone? Does anyone else have NAVIGON who is experiencing this problem? If you have another App like Tom-Tom or Magellon are you having this problem? I even reset my phone while I was driving and it still did not pick up a GPS signal.

I just downloaded Navigon and will use it this weekend. Thanks for the heads up. I'll let you know if I have any trouble!

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Most (or all) cell phones get the map info for the their GPS from the internet. In other words, the phone has the gps but the maps are accessed thru 3g or WiFi. Consequently if there is no phone service then the mapping wont work.

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The Navigon software includes on-device maps.

Take a look at this FAQ from the Navigon site:

http://www.navigon.com/portal/int/kundenservice/faq.html?id=11203&content_identi\
fier=faq&page=1&faqTopic=iphone

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The TomTom app puts the whole database on the device. Takes up about 1gb but much faster & not dependent on 3G coverage.

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Give us a little more info.

Did you lose the map or the location indicator?
What is the vehicle?
Where was it mounted?
In a case or not?
What model of iPhone?

Remember that the GPS signal reception in the iPhone is probably not as strong as the standalone. Some of the car kits have a second GPS antenna to boost the signal.

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I got a red bar across the top of the screen (using NAVIGON GPS), the map is frozen, and it doesn't do anything.

I have the iPhone 3GS that is plugged in to a FM transmitter on the dash of my 2001 Dodge Van. The phone is not in a case and even when I unplugged it and held it close to the window there was still no GPS signal.

It even happens when I am just holding the phone outside while not driving.

The NAVIGON website said they have been having problems when you run NAVIGON in the background and then come back to it.

The program has been losing the GPS signal, and they have hopefully fixed the bug with the new release 1.8.2. I just downloaded it so I will try it and give this site an update.

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Does the iPhone show the correct location in Google maps?

I have found that when an app does not perform correctly, that removing the app from the iPhone and reinstalling from iTunes fixes the problem. I did have the GPS quit working when I had an iPhone 3GS. I restored the phone and it started working again.

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I did try a restore on the phone and that didn't work either but I think the new release may solve the problems I mentioned.

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I use GPS Drive from Motion X. It was $.99, and I've bought the voice add-on. The only problem I've ever faced wasa one time iPhone crash that lasted almost 10 minutes. Because I was on my way out of town for several days, and I absolutely needed my phone and its GPS, that was an extremely long 10 minutes of near-panicky problem solving. Then suddenly the phone restored both itself and my trust in Apple.

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That situation happened to me much more when I used to use navigation software on a Palm PDA and it was nerve wracking when you worried if you went the wrong way.

iPhone, Play Music in a car

How can I play music from my iPhone music in my car? Is there any way? I have a 2007 Tav4 with blue tooth. I know that you iPhone experts can give me a tip.

My son plays his music via BlueTooth from his iPhone4 in his Dodge PickUp all the time. Have you tried that?

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I assume you have already paired the Bluetooth to the car for phone use. You may have to select the Bluetooth device although my car does it automatically. Select Aux on car stereo And that should do it. SWEET. Expect more battery drain due to Bluetooth.

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I just got a Bluetooth Sony car stereo installed yesterday and it is super sweet! No more wires other than to keep my iPhone charging when I drive.

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I would like to know about using bluetooth to listen to iPhone music....

Tell me about your Bluetooth Sony car stereo you mentioned:

(1) Which one is it?
(2) How did you decide on the one you have? Research?
(3) How does it work?
(4) Cost/where purchased?

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Sure. Here is the info!
1. Sony Xplod Model MEXBT2900 as I recall. Best Buy online shows it priced at $159.99 but in the store it was priced as clearance at $89.99. I also needed to buy a car kit and wiring kit that added another $50-60 to the cost. But they didn't have the car kit for my 4Runner at the store so I had to order it online.

2. I looked online at choices at Bestbuy.com searching for Bluetooth car stereo. There were several choices. So I next went to the store and looked at them all and it came down to cost. I couldn't pass up on a clearance deal like that. And I have to say I make a great decision. The Sony Xplod is amazing.

3. There is a BT button which you press and hold for 5 seconds. It then goes in search mode looking for my iPhone or should I say it becomes discoverable Bu my iPhone. Once I see Xplod show up as a BT device I then pair it just like you would do with a BT headset. Then be sure the source is set for BT Audio. Turn on some music from your iPhone and be sure it shows it is playing through the Bluetooth connection from the app. I believe it defaults to it automatically after the pairing is done and you leave your BT feature turned on. They auto-discover each other everytime you get in the car. Then if Ineant to make a call, the stereo automatically changes the source to bT Phone. It provides crystal clear sound for your phone call through your car audio. I even verified on the other end the person I am talking to can hear me good and they can.

After the call is over, the Sony automatically changes source back to BT Audio and the music recontinues where it left off.

4. See 1 above. For under $200 investment, I got it installed once I received the car kit. Their professional installation comes with a lifetime warranty and costs $49.99. That installation cost is part of my total $200 spent. The best Father's Day gift ever!!!

Good luck!

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You are assuming that the bluetooth in his car supports media and is not just for telephonics. I don't know one way or the other about the car in question.

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After market stereos like my new Sony Xplod supports both phone and stereo music via Bluetooth!

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Your car has to support the A2DPÂ Bluetooth protocol in order to wirelessly play music (or any audio) from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod. My Cadillac Escalade has Bluetooth but it doesn't support A2DP (GM has always been about 5 years behind the technology curve). Thus, phone - works great / wireless music - not so much (none). On the other hand, the Lincoln MKX rental I had about a year ago with Ford's SYNC system paired easily & worked great

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I would recommend then to remove the stock stereo and buy a Sony Xplod (or similar) that gives you the BT stereo feature. Keep the stock stereo like I will in case I ever sell my car. You can go back to Best Buy and they will swap it back and you keep your new stereo to put into the next vehicle!

The beauty with their professional installation service is the car and wiring kits you buy. It provides exact connectors your car uses so no cutting of original car wiring. That way its very easy for them to swap back in your original stock stereo. It took less than an hour for the installation.

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On its face, your suggestion sounds logical, & for most, would be the way to go - but - in the Escalade the factory Bluetooth is in one module that also houses the OnStar, the XM receiver is another module, & the main head incorporates the factory navigation & two DVD drives (one for the nav data disk & one for CD's or movie DVD's. Anything's possible, but needless to say, aftermarket in an Escalade "ain't easy" & is usually left to those that like for you hear their bass thumping two blocks away. Anyway, it's a lease & the whole issue will be moot in a couple of years. Hopefully GM will come into the 21st century by then - otherwise, look out Ford, here I come :-) Your observations about Best Buy are very interesting. I've often wondered how competent their car audio installers were. Thanks for the input.

BTW - to keep this "on-topic" for iPhones - for those without A2DP Bluetooth, there are aftermarket modules that integrate into you stock sound system & plug into your iDevice to allow you to listen and control it thru your factory head unit. I'm currently using the PA20-GM from www.usaspec.com. Their units are available from them or thru Amazon & several other online sources.

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I can second the BB stereo installers. They did a fantastic job installing my BT Pioneer deck last year. Loving the BT audio. Especially the kids. They can pass the iPhone around to play songs with no cord issues. I also like watching movies / Netflix while waiting on appointments and the audio coming through the stereo. All without the annoying hiss and whatnot you get from FM transmitters.

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Thanks. After seeing this thread I tried to use my iPhone through bluetooth on my Lexus 2007. Didn't work :-(. I must not have the A2DP support. So not only GM is behind the times!!

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Does your car have a mini-jack port for audio input, some cars have this capability and can be connected with a stereo cable from you iphone or ipod touch to play music, using the AUX setting on your stereo. This is true of one of my cars, in fact the port on one car is on the console between the seats, and is in the glove compartment on another car.

You might check your owner's manual or one of the car forums and ask the question there as well.

iPhone iTunes, Authorizing My Pc

Good morning, I don't remember if this question was asked or not. But how
do I authorize my pc to get everything I downloaded on iTunes to play on my pc?

iTunes > Tools > Authorize This Computer - log in with iTunes Account & PW

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I authorized my pc but the songs I have won't play in full. They only play a few seconds of the song.

Apple iPhone, iCloud Storage

It's announced.. The email notes that once the storage is full, iOS devices will no longer back up or save data to iCloud and mail sent to me.com email addresses will get bounced.

Users are directed to the iCloud settings on their iOS device to buy more storage. The email also notes that more storage can be purchased on a Mac or PC.

At present I'm not extremely excited about I cloud. Will it store complete backup? In other words if I'm using 8 gig on the phone will it need 8gig in the cloud and extra charges? Pockets Not deep here.

I know it won't be for the 3G which I have but I really need a 4 or 5. This 3 is just too slow for me running the 4.0 and above.

I listened to a podcast out of Canada on the 5.0 and I cloud. Sounds exciting with tons of automatic features. They said it will backup every night while charging. If so that will be cool.

At current just have reservations about Icloud and keeping all my music which Is 99% legit.

I think I heard there will be no online iTunes after June of 2012. Alot of questions in my mind.

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It does NOT backup content, just like iTunes does not backup content. It backs up everything iTunes does at the beginning of a sync or by the forced right click Backup - all settings, which apps are installed, any data stored from apps, etc and you can turn off any apps data that you do not want to backup. My iPhone uses 1.2GB and my iPad uses 1.6GB leaving me 2.2GB free space for e-mail and anything else I want on iCloud.

iPhone Bluetooth, Hands free texting

Indiana is joining the no text ban as of July 1. I applaud this action. What I would like to find is a text message voice app to use with my bluetooth. Has anyone found an app that allows you to read and create text messages?

There is a voice-to-text service, Dial2Do, which will allow you to use your iPhone (or any other telephone) to call a number and voice command it to create texts, emails, calendar reminders and other things.

You need to register at http://www.dial2do.com and then register the telephone numbers of the device with which you wish to access the service. If you take advantage of the Jott user's special offer by June 30, 2011 at http://www.dial2do.com/jott you can obtain your first year of service for $35 (regularly fifty dollars a year.)

There is a free trial, but it is extremely limited in functionality (no emails, or texts. only reminders which can give you some idea of the accuracy of transcription, but not how all the options function.)

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What people don't realize is that texting and phone conversations are the problem, hands-free or not. It is the distraction from driving that is the problem.

If you are going to text or have a phone conversation, safely pull over, turn off the engine, then text or make the phone call.

And people wonder why legislators want to put cell phone blockers in vehicles.

They don't need new or more laws or gadgets. There is already a law on the books in all 50 states, it is called inattentive driving. They just have to enforce it.

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I've asked this question and have never gotten an asnwer...does that mean @ traffic lights also?

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In New Mexico it includes sitting at a traffic light. Reasoning being that you'll miss when the light turns green and you could potentially cause an accident with the people behind you or make them mad and start a road rage incident.

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Thank you for your response. I've posted this same question in various forums at least a dozen times, and this is the first response!

Now back to regularly scheduled programming.dragon dictation is pretty good for just speaking. I've used it but you still have to do some 'finger interaction' in choosing the recipient but it is much less than straight typing.

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I use dragon. It works but takes time to get right

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"I use dragon. It works but takes time to get right" AND that takes your attention away from driving.

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I've switched from Dragon to Vlingo. Vlingo is as close to hands free texting, email and search that I've come across for the iPhone. And, it's free. Vlingo is working on a completely handsfree version.

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FYI, Vlingo is a nice app (the BB version was very good)... but the free version is limited in features. For example, you can compose, but you can't actually send a text or email. It also has adds. I think the full version is $4,99, not sure. It is a well designed program though and likely worth the cost if you'll have heavy use.

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You are right Vlingo was very useful on Blackberry. I had forgotten about it.

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I paid for the full version $9.99 after using Vlingo on my friend's Android.

Below is a YouTube link to a quick comparison between Dragon and Vlingo. Vlingo also has their own channel on YouTube.

http://m.youtube.com/#/profile?user=vlingovoice&v=vaVitdIO5h4&view=videos

Hands-on You Tube vids are a great way to compare apps.

I have found Vlingo to be the best "mostly" hands free all-in-one app to date.

I'm always hoping IOS will catch up to Droid in this respect.

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In CA yes as well. The reasoning is that you are behind the wheel. Makes it straight across the board.

Of course, shaving, eating and plucking eye brows are never given citations. But that is a different argument for a different time :)

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While I agree with you about texting, I'll pull over to make my Bluetooth voice call when you and everyone else remain silent while driving.

Texting while driving is illegal. Hands free phone calls are not.

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HeyTell is a good app for this purpose. It does not transcribe, but if you keep the app open, all you do is hit the big button, talk and it sends the voice message to the contact (to their copy of HeyTell). Then when they reply, it will automatically play back.

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I love HeyTell! I use it at work with my iPhone compatible noise canceling headphones to talk back and forth with my guys at work. It's great!

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I can 2nd the HeyTell app. My friend got me to using it last week and now several of my friends and coworkers have it.

Its a great app. I think the audio is a bit low but its still a good app.

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Talking on a phone and having a conversation in a car are not the same. When you are in a car together you share the same sights and sounds which makes it much easier for the driver to respond to an emergency situation than when someone keeps talking via phone.

That said, it is a bad idea to have an intense conversation while driving even if both parties are riding together. I've seen cars weave all over, change lanes indiscriminately, fail to stop for pedestrians etc. And nine times out of ten the drivers are either on the phone or having a too lively conversation with passengers. And these days it's mainly folks on the phone.

Please drivers, concentrate on the road—especially on busy city streets and highways. Don't endanger yourself or others unnecessarily. just because it's legal doesn't make it a good idea. "Safety First" may be an old slogan, but it's still a good one.

iPhone, 3G, edge, or ? Symbols

I have been in some remote areas where I used to have data but don't sometimes late at night. I have wondered about maintenance but still scratching my head?

Last night I drove for two hours before I got back into it and I drive the same boring route Dallas to El Paso,TX.

On AT&T I've been seeing a very small circle where E or 3G would be. What's this?
I've got hooked on that stitcher app and it really helps the miles go by.

That symbol is GPRS which is a level below Edge. Here is what Apple says about GPRS:

*General Packet Radio Service:* A high-speed packet data service implemented as the data component of the GSM network. GPRS speeds are roughly equivalent to that of a home 56k dial-up Internet connection; users should expect between 20-40 kbit/s down and 10-20 kbit/s up depending on signal strength. This info from Apple Support page: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2106

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Thanks, any idea why I used to see edge and now don't? I'll be making the trip again tonight so I'll see. The gsm won't support stitcher. I'll try some other apps and see.

Oh and edge supports stitcher fine I suppose because it's basically audio content.

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It could be that they are having equipment problems. Use this app to report it to them the next time you go that way. Tell them you have GPRS instead of Edge.

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/at-t-mark-the-spot/id338307313?mt=8

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The one who described the round icon.

Mark the Spot is an excellent app that gives AT&T the information to fix those no signal spots, if enough people have the problem.

The reason you don't see the Edge signal is that it may be in a shadow or no signal spot, like a valley below the signal or a lowered freeway (think Los Angeles), or the canyons of New York City.

I only have a basic knowledge of this part. GSM is a radio transmission type. Edge and 3G are ways to send data within GSM.

iPhone abroad

I thought there was no problem swapping out an ATT GSM sim for another sim with carrier in Europe, then switching back on returning home to the USA. Recent osts make me think I'm dead wrong. Only an unlocked GSM iPhone can allow the ser to switch sims? Or is the problem continuing to pay for ATT usage while ctually using a foreign service? I'm confused.

It has to be unlocked from ATT to use another sim.

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This applies here as well. My iPhone is locked to O2 and it needs to be unlocked to use another network. Most (all?) phones are locked to the carrier you buy them from.

An Otterbox clip recall?

Let me say that my iPhone was damage because of a poor quality of the clip belt holster made by otterbox, it fell while crossing a street and a car run over it. Does somebody knows of a recall, I read in facebook that otterbox was changing the holster, they knew it didn't work properly. What can I do?

which iPhone did you have the problem with? The Otterbox Defender for the 3G/3GS had some known problems, for which I had heard there was a replacement being offered. However, the Defender for the iPhone4 is "bullet proof", in my opinion, and mine gets some fairly rough treatment.

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3GS

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Will they replaced the iPhone ?

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That would be a question to pose to Otterbox, but I would doubt it.

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I had the Otterbox on my iPhone 3GS for 3 days. Getting out of the car, the seatbelt caught the clip. The pivot pin broke and the phone fell to the ground. The phone was fine, but the belt holder was broken due to the pin. I thought this was not worth the money and promptly threw the broken belt clip in the garbage. I didn't even think there was a possible replacement for it. Bummer.

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, I have a Verizon iPhone,I tried the otterbox and did like it,but hated the big plastic belt clip.

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My iphone also fell into the street during the winter. I didn't know it was gone. I went back to where I had parked and there was my iphone in the middle of the street in the snow in the otterbox in perfect condition!! The window plastic was a little askew but I was able to get it back. I think the clip is a little bulky, but it works for me. so far.

Iphone 4 message tones

I was wondering how to change the text message tone to a simple beep. There doesn't seem to be any in the sound setting lists. Any help on this would be appreciated.

In Settings > Sounds > Text Tone, you can choose from Tri-tone (the default, I think), Chime, Glass, Horn, Bell, and Electronic. No "beep", I know, but Bell is the shortest.

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Ios 5 has about 30 new tones in addition to those and will have a tone store in iTunes (and you can make your own as we do ring tones now)

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It's good to read that there will be more choice, and especially that we can make our own.

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I like the glass tone... it is a simple one note tone that sounds nice. I also like the chime one.

Iphone 4 vs others

Since today Apple is coming out with unlocked iphone and since i have been waiting a long time for an unlocked version of it I am ready to buy a smartphone and get rid of the Verizon that is totally useless overseas. How does the iphone 4 32 GB ($749.00)compare to others like HTC. Or should I wait for unlock version of iphone 5 which is suppose to come out this coming fall. Any input is greatly appreciated.

The iPhone 5 will be out but it will not be sold unlocked in the US until a year later. They do this every year to sell inventory before the next model.

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I read somewhere today that it is unlocked but it will not work on Verizon, Sprint or T-Mobile. It is still tied to AT&T for updates.

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I could not find the article that I read earlier but here is one that says it may do what you want overseas.

http://goo.gl/bndk9

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It is the GSM model which will only work on T-Mobile as EDGE not 3G (never has) and internationally. There is no reason to sell an unlocked CDMA device as the only other US carrier would be Sprint and they wouldn't activate it (not as simple as putting a SIM in). I guess some off the 'local' networks like MetroPCS, etc would use it but they will activate any Verizon phone for $50 so there is no need to pay $649/$749.

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Here is another good artice about the unlocked iPhone.

http://www.pcworld.com/article/230302/apples_unlocked_iphone_not_as_magical_as_i\
t_seems.html

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Since Verizon and Sprint do not use GSM, I under stand that, but why not T-Mobile?

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I was quoting the artice from memory which I should not do but here goes again. The unlocked iPhone will work on T-Mobile but only have edge service on data. It would be a waste to put an $800 phone on T-Mobile.

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OK, It works, but not with full functionality, if you can get the correct SIM from them. Now I understand.

iOS (4.3.3) drain the iPhone's battery?

Does the current iOS (4.3.3) drain the iPhone's battery?

I remember when the latest iPhone iOS (I think it was 4.3 ???) came out, people complained that it drained their battery. For that reason, I haven't upgraded the iOS on my 3GS and I'm currently using 4.2.1.

(1) Does the current iOS, (4.3.3) drain your iPhone's battery?

(2) Should I stay with my current 4.2.1 and wait until iOS 5 to update my phone?

The latest iOS 4 does not have a battery drain issue that I am aware of - there was an issue with Ping that was fixed with an update after it was released. Updating to the latest version is not going to prevent you from updating to iOS 5 and that was just released to beta so it is a good 3 or 4 months away so unless you have some reason to stay where you are at, I would upgrade.

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I have a 3GS running 4.3.3 and I can get through a day on one charge. Especially if I have 3G and any GPS app turned off. It is no more battery hungery than 4.2.

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No it doesn't drain battery

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I have io 4.3.3 and my battery dosen't Die

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I'm running 4.3.3 on my iPhone4 and see nothing out of the ordinary in regards to the battery.

Lost All My iPhone Contacts When Trying To Sync

New to iPhones. Downloaded iTunes, tried to sync with computer and lost my phone contacts. I found out I needed Outlook or Outlook Express to sync contacts. I also found out that I can't use Hotmail. So what do you suggest I do?

The problem is I live full time in a motorhome with my own internet system on the roof. This gives me a Dynamic IP address.

Can I use my internet system to setup Oulook or something else to be able to combine my iPhone contacts with e-mail contacts?

I have never had Outlook. I sync my contacts to Yahoo.

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I sync to Gmail. One gotcha, is that if you change your Gmail password and forget to change it in iTunes you won't get a warning - it just won't sync. Then when you remember to change it in iTunes it still won't sync unless you trick it by changing or adding a contact. It took me quite some time to figure this out due to the lack of an error message.

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I'll try Gmail or Yahoo to sync to iTunes. I hope this works.

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You can have Hotmail forward to Gmail. That way you still get all your email. Over time Gmail is probably the better choice as their contact list can be directly synced to the iPhone.

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GMail now has migrate options for all 'older' web mail platforms (AOL, Hotmail, Yahoo, etc) they will import contacts, calendars, all saved mail and continue to retrieve mail until you disable it if you like.

I missed the original question but your contacts should be backed up somewhere, either restore an older iPhone backup (temporarily in order to sync the contacts elsewhere) or find where they are stored online.

In the process of testing iCloud I turned on contact syncing and iCloud was importing Google contacts then Google was importing iCloud and pretty soon I had 20 copies of everything - thank goodness Google lets you restore your contacts to any point in time so I easily restored them...

iPhone, Converting movie files

Since the iPhone won't play windows media files, how do you convert one to a format it will play?

I use Evom on the Mac, but I believe you can use Handbrake on either Mac or Windows to convert from one format to what the iPhone needs.

http://handbrake.fr/

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Depending on what I'm converting I either use Handbrake (larger files) or EasyWMV (smaller files)

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There are several DVD to iPhone rippers available on freewarefiles.com. The work really well. The only problem I have is with TV series DVD's, it rips all of the episodes into one file. But that is not too bad to deal with.

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Which download from freewarefiles.com do you suggest? I'm not sure which ones allow you to convert files.

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Freemake video converter. Does what it is supposed to do without a lot of hassle:

http://www.freewarefiles.com/Freemake-Video-Converter_program_58281.html

Now for my legal disclaimer - only use it to make legal copies of movies you own.

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To play DivX or Xvid movies (.avi) on the iPhone the best is the CineXplayer...it can even handle .SRT dubtitles...

Just drag and drop the .avi files in to the app on the iTunes and it uploads to the iphone quickly...

To convert several type of videos files, I use Xilisoft video converter 6...works perfectly..

Laptop, iphone, Recovery emergency

My laptop died that was used for my itunes. I have installed itunes on another pc, but have none of my music, photos, or apps on that machine. If I select any category in itunes for sync, it is going to cause me to lose all of the stuff on my phone. Is there any way to transfer these items from my phone to the replacement pc? I have no way to access the HDD from the failed laptop at this time.

A possible help, you can pull the old laptop's hard drive and using a PATA/IDE/SATA to USB cable, directly connect it to your new computer via the usb port and then copy whatever you need off the old drive.

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I hesitate to make this obvious suggestion, but what many of us do in this situation is restore all the data from our backup drive

Not being familiar with the Windows side of life, I can only assume that the latest version of iTunes, like the Mac version (10.3.1) is capable of restoring purchased songs, apps, movies, etc. that Apple has records of this account having purchased. This *IS* of course, potentially a LOT of downloading.

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Having BTDT recently -- the Store may let you d/l the apps again (altho there's one I'm having trouble with that *will not do*), but at least according to the customer service exchanges I had on the subject, not the movies & tv shows (I wasn't asking about music; I don't even know if I *have* an iTunes purchased music!); she made much of the special case she was making to set so I could re-d/l them again w/o charge I'll quote the relevant part of the email...

"I am glad to inform you that iTunes Store Customer Support will let you download (at no charge) all the titles you purchased on this account that are still available. This does not include any item that has been modified or removed from the store since you purchased it. Please note that you may download your purchases only once, so this is an exception. Also note that Apple does not offer protection for the loss of data from your hard disk, so I recommend that you back up your iTunes library as soon as possible and thereafter on a regular basis." She listed the apps that could not be restored (because no longer available) She also included b/u instructions if anyone wants those. Oh, and she also re-set my authorized-computers since I obviously couldn't de-authorize one that had crashed & had to be re-systemized.

I hadn't actually asked about getting a free re-do, I'd asked about something else that made her *think* I needed it. Don't want to discourage such helpful actions by not taking advantage of it. I wasn't sure about my b/u & wasn't about to turn down the offer. :-) Took several *days* of d/l to get everything back in order but at least it's not something I had to babysit & much of it was done overnite.

But to answer OPs original question -- there is s/w that will copy *from* phone to computer. Of course, it won't copy-back anything from the crashed pc that wasn't *on* the phone. It's easy to transfer purchases from phone to pc in iTunes, but that doesn't help if you have non-purchased content.

Meanwhile, I've not only copied my iTunes library to an external drive (or two) (again), I've backed up purchases to DVDs (another long task, but one that only requires popping in from time to time to change discs.)

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You can elect not to sync music/apps, merely getting updates and such on the device itself.

Eventually, you can get your data to the new set up.. see if a geek can take your internal drive from the laptop and put it into a case with USB and attach it to your new computer. You could hopefully drag your things from that iTunes to the new one.

Also, remember this iCloud. Launch you new computer and see what way that might help you.

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Well, my bad for not having a backup on removable media. I have noticed that there is an option to transfer purchases in iTunes by right clicking the phone icon and selecting transfer purchases. This did allow me to get my apps entered into the pc I am now using. Now I must recreate all the music. You can bet there will be a DVD with the music back up in my to do list. I just did not figure on the MOBO dying in my 3 year old laptop. Thanks for the suggestions.

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You can get a bus-powered external hard drive with 300GB of space for under $80.
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/firewire/on-the-go
Safe is much better than sorry.

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If you watch the sales (e.g. Best Buy) you can do better -- like 500GB for < $70. If you don't mind a separately powered external (& I have several!) you can get a TB or 2 for $100 or not much more.

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Hard-drives can last years and years or they can fail within a day. The same with other hardware. Taking regular backups is essential for anyone who has data they don't want to lose. Do you back up your other files?

DVDs only hold about 4.4 GB, or 8.0 GB for dual layer. Will that be enough?

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Did you check Copy Trans? I use that to copy from an Ipod to Itunes, if they can do that...maybe they have an option to go from Iphone. It costs about $25 but it has saved our music twice!

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I've done an iTunes "backup of purchases" that took a *stack* of DVDs. The b/u process tells you when to put in another. I don't know how the "restore" goes as I haven't tried that.

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Yes, but once you are using multiple discs, the chance of one failing increases. I can't imagine not using external hard-drives given how cheap they are now.

iTunes, Version 10.2.2 vs. 10.3 why can't I get the latest?

When I check for updates on iTunes, I get a message that says my 10.2.2 is the
latest version. Any thoughts?

Not sure, I have updated Windows XP, Windows 7, Snow Leopard and Lion DP all go to to 10.3 then 10.3.1 - you can manually download the newest version at itunes.com and install that way.

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I always to to the apple site and download it from there. I have 10 versions of iTunes in my download folder (time to cleand up some). The latest version is 10.3.1 that came out yesterday.

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I have three computers - 2 running vista and one win 7. One of the vista computers automatically alerted me to the new version. I then went to the other and checked using apple updater but it said 10.2.2 was the latest. I tried a couple more times and it "registered" and downloaded the 10.3.1. Trying the same procedure on the win 7 computer did not work. It still says 10.2.2 is current. Strange. Maybe Apple is metering out the downloads?? Or Something in windows is acting up. I will try again today but manually download if the updater doesn't work.

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Thanks everyone, I am downloading 10.3 to my iMac now.

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That happened to me too. I shut down iTunes, then went to Software Update and it downloaded the new version for me. I'm on a MacBook Pro with OSX 10.6

IPhone Antenna & App pages?

Is the IPhone Antenna in the end
of the phone, top are bottom,
are a wrap around ? ?

# 2, any chance the next Gen.
IPhone my have more pages
to display App's.??

If it is a iPhone 4 then it is wrap around. but it has several antennas. Different ones for different things, cell, WiFi and BT. Read the manual.

#2, what you've got more than 1536 apps on your iphone? You know about Folders don't you. 8 pages x 16 spaces for folders per page x 12 apps per folder = 1536
apps.

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Sorry, no. ELEVEN pages.

11*16*12 = 2112

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Don't forget the 4 dock spaces, each of which can be a folder for an additional 48 - 2,150 is the max and I think you can still add more they just wouldn't show up…

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Boy, I feel like a Hog with every
one knowing my iPhone 4
is filled with App and I'm asking
for more display App pages.

Sorry friends, it is just I keep
seeing all these neat App's
and I love those that do things
for me! I dare not tell you how
many App's I pull off the Phone
to make room for a new one. ;-}

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Yes! I'm NOT the only one!!!

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I have 377 Apps on my iPhone, many of which I never get around to using.

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Like, I suspect, many of us, I see a reference to an app that seems like a good idea. If it's free, I install it, expecting to try it out when I've got nothing else to do. There are some I've still not tried ...

But, Keith, how many apps do you have, and are they *in folders*?

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Why do you have to pull anything off?

If there aren't enough pages, the "extras" will just go in the unseen following pages & you can access them with the search.

But with folders available, you could just stash things in a lot of "look-see-later" folders & try them when you get around to it. Then if you don't want to keep them you can delete, or just move to a "maybe ditch" folder or whatnot.

My iTunes-apps library has >650 apps in it, some only work on the iPad but lots would work on phone/touch. I don't put everything on any one device but before folders came out (last year?) I'd have more than the "visible" pages allowed.

Best Apps?

We just made the switch to iphone 4 (verizon 32G) this week after using BBs for 9 years. So Far so good...

I imagine this is been done, but any suggestions for the best apps that are actually worth getting.

Specifically I am looking for a text short cut app (ex I could type 'sig' and it would put my sig file in). This was a nice feature of the BBs (autotext).

To start, so far my favorites are
(tend to be 'productivity' apps)
Evernote
dropbox
LiveCams
Rmusic (ring tone maker)
Pandora

While I think the new iOS will take care of the autotext feature, TextExpander also does that. You make snippets of letters that will then expand to full paragraphs if you want.

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Yup - in new iOS - works nicely as well - saves many a tap while writing emails or texting. Can even do entire signatures, etc

iphone, MobileMe is dead

It's announced, effective June 6, 2011, if you had an active MobileMe account, your service has been automatically extended through June 30, 2012, at no additional charge. After this, the MobileMe service will no longer be available.

So this is what, the second time in four years Apple has done this to their customers? First, Mac.com was replaced by MobileMe (me.com), which is now being replaced by iCloud. And each time it requires the customer to resubscribe to the new service, move their data, and change their email addresses.

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I'm led to believe here at work, the icloud doesn't require the current MobileMe members to do anything.

If you want the cloud-based iTunes sync, that is a $25. Annual subscription.

That subscription price is for 20-200,000 items in your iTunes library.

From my little technological bit of heaven, iPad2!

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If you have a me.com address you will not need to do anything but log in.

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Dot Mac and MobileMe were both caca, especially the latter. Did not renew my Me account over a year ago simply because it never worked right.

Three times in five years Apple has moved everything around, essentially admitting the first two tries were failures. Apple does so many things well, but not these two.

Why should we expect anything different with iCloud?

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That's strange. I've never had any real problems with MobileMe except during the initial startup. Once that settled, iMM has always worked beautifully between my iPhone, iPad (now iPad 2), Mac Mini, iMac & MacBook Pro.

iPhone 4 'anomalies'

My wife & I got our iPhone4's in Dec. They work very well. I did have mine replaced when the dock button began to fail (had to hit it several times to get it to work).

However, hers has been displaying two kinds of issues recently and I'm seeking your feedback.

First, it's become very 'sensitive' when she is talking on the phone. Frequently, having her face near the screen activates the mute button, ends the call or dials someone else. It didn't seem to do this for her at first but it's been doing it for a month or so. I never have this problem.

Second, in the past day or so, it issues a camera click sound when it's powered on or off. Never did that before. Same 'click' you hear when you take a picture. Power off from the button on the top, it 'clicks'. Turn it on, from either the dock button or the top power button, it clicks.

Any thoughts about either?

We're about to take this unit back to the Apple store, unless there are simple solutions.

The first shouldn't happen unless she is using speakerphone or a bluetooth headset, when the phone is set to 'normal' (iPhone from a list of Speakerphone, iPhone, and any BT devices) the proximity sensor should kick in when it goes near her face and actually when anything covers it, easy enough to test just place a phone call and put finger/hand over the sensors near the front facing camera.

The second issue sounds like normal activity, you can turn the notification sounds (clicks) off or on in Settings > General > Sounds > Lock Sounds > Off or turn off all sounds by flipping the silent switch above the volume buttons. There isn't a selection to turn the camera sound off unless you flip the silent switch as it is illegal in some countries to take pictures without a notification sound.

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Try Settings/sounds down at the bottom.

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Number 1:
I remember reading about an issue where the proximity sensor failed to turn off the screen functions when the phone was held up to the user's face. So this has been a problem recognized and addressed by Apple, but I am not sure whether the resolution was in software or in a hardware replacement. So:

Number 2:
If you haven't already, upgrade to the most current firmware. Connect the phone to the computer, make sure all the data and images on the phone are backed up on the computer (if you're not sure how to, ask back here again), and, in iTunes, with the phone connected and selected on the left, click on "Check for Update" on the right.

Number 3:
If your firmware is up to date, and the problem persists, my next step would be a reset — press both the Home button on the face of the phone and the On/Off button on the top and hold them until the white Apple appears, then let it complete the re-boot.

Number 4:
If the problem is still present, go to the Apple Store.

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Thanks for the help on both issues, all!

Regarding the 'click' sound on power on/off, it was the settings/sound that had been toggled on. Neither of us did it intentionally. Let's see if it toggles again, seemingly on it's own.

Regarding the sensitivity when on the phone, we'll check the proximity sensor and see if there is a problem. The iOS is the most up to date and we have done many resets since it started.

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If you have the sound toggled off of the camera shutter sound, it should stay that way unless you adjust it.

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I have an iPhone 3GS and also get the "camera click" when it powers down. Have not investigated the situation yet...whether it is an error, normal or something you can turn on / off.