Apple iPhone Bugs and Missing Features

After a good week’s worth of use, I’ve decided to keep the iPhone, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have its fair share of problems or missing features. Most notable is its built in email client which is a terrific start, but falls short when compared to other mobile phone email clients.

My guess is that Apple has already heard most of these and my hope is that all ... (more)


Another converted Verizon/Windows Mobile user

Exactly one week ago I took the plunge and snagged an iPhone at my local Starbucks (what, Apple didn’t tell you that you could buy one at Apple stores, AT&T stores, and now Starbucks?) After the initial excitement of having the coolest gadget in the world wore off, I began to really use the iPhone for my daily mobile phone tasks… calling other humans, reading and writing email, and surfing ... (more)


Skype on Apple iPhone now possible

skype-logo.pngYes, according to TMC Labs‘ Tom Keating, Skype is now possible on the iPhone via an AJAX-enabled web application. While still a bit kludgey for me as it requires you to install SoonR Talk on your PC, it does enable you to keep in touch with your Skype contacts for now, until Apple opens up the iPhone to real 3rd-party development.... (more)


2 billion unread messages on my Apple iPhone

So this is, er, interesting. After deleting a few messages in one of my Inboxes on my iPhone, it reported to me that I had 2 billion unread messages. And they were all unread! Where have I been? I need to get on the ball!

2 billion unread messages on my Apple iPhone

Usually the bug I see is “-1 messages total, 1 unread”, but this one was definitely a new one.

–Chris
Apple iPhone Beta Tester :)... (more)


Tip: Get to those Apple iPhone punctuations faster!

I first read about this tip from waitingforiphone.com which leads you a page at O’Reilly’s website. Here’s the skinny. The keyboard layout on the iPhone is great for the most part, unless you want to get to the numbers and punctuation marks via the “.?123” key in the lower left-hand corner. Normally this would take 3 taps to get to a period.

Here’s how to do it in one ... (more)


Finding iNemo: clown fish for your Apple iPhone

Clown fish for your iPhoneOf all the dastardly things to do, Apple forgot to include the popular clown fish background photo on the iPhone.

No problem. I found it. Click here to download it. Just sync it with the rest of your iPhone photos and set it as the background. It is sized perfectly (320 x 480 pixels) for your iPhone’s background.

iNemo found.... (more)


Slingbox/SlingPlayer support for Apple iPhone?

SlingPlayer on Apple iPhoneSlingbox is one of those “nice to have” features on my Motorola Q phone. It allows me to stream television from my home to my phone, through the Verizon EVDO network. It works very well, actually. The SlingPlayer is supported on Windows Mobile and Palm devices, but not yet the Apple iPhone.

With AT&T’s slow EDGE network, I can’t imagine using it while travelling, however when I’m near a WiFi ... (more)


One million iPhones sold and activated?

If this is true, it is quite incredible.

According to waitingforiphone.com, over 1,000,000 iPhones have been activated since its launch on June 29th. That’s less than 7 days… at $500-$600 a pop, you do the math.

That’s an amazing new product launch for any company. Launched only in the U.S., availability of the iPhone in other countries is expected to be announced soon.... (more)


Apple iPhone irritation #1

I understand Apple being, well, Apple-centric, but to completely ignore .wav email attachments is being a tad bit too narrow-minded, considering the Windows OS market share. My business’ voice mail system (onebox.com) sends me an email with a .wav file attachment when a new voice mail message arrives. If I’m on my Windows PC, that’s fine, but I’d expect to be able to open the attachment on my iPhone, too.... (more)


iPhone AT&T/Verizon phone number transfer a success

The other night when I went through the AT&T sign-up process, it took all of about 5 minutes (if that) and I was able to start loading my new iPhone up with all sorts of goodies and play with it the first time.

In order to put the iPhone to real world tests I had to use my current VZW phone number, so I opted to transfer my old phone ... (more)


iPhone’s iPod cover flow missing art (and how to fix it)

Earlier I said that I would start blogging about problems (and solutions) I found with the iPhone, or really cool things I found. My first blog is about a problem and a solution.

One of the absolute coolest things about the iPhone that it has “the best iPod ever” integrated right into it. Man, Jobs wasn’t kidding! It’s incredible. The cover flow feature is amazing. Here’s the problem, though. I ... (more)


Verizon Doubles EVDO Speeds… But Not For Phones?

Well how about this… Verizon announced today that it has doubled the speed of their EVDO network. Prior to this announcement speeds ranged from 400 kbps to 700 kbps. Effective June 29, 2007 speeds are to increase from 600 kbps to 1.4 megabits per second with faster uploads speeds ranging 500-800 kbps.

I put it to test on my Motorola Q today, July 1st, 2007 — one day after the ... (more)


Craziness: Apple Store Bevery Center, Beverly Hills, CA

Friday, June 29th, I happened to find myself in Beverly Hills to meet some friends for dinner. We arrived early, so we decided to go to a nearby mall to kill some time. We got on the elevator and as the doors opened, proof of the iPhone hype was immediately confirmed. A swarm of people had been waiting in line since 6:30am for the new Apple iPhone, and the actual ... (more)


Ordered a $150 Mailbox…

I know, you are probably thinking, what is he up to now… of course you would get a mailbox online! And why would he want to spend $150 to get yet another email account! Well, I definitely don’t need another online mailbox, but I did order a new postal mail box!

Sunday afternoon as we were heading out to run our family errands, we noticed one of our neighbors installing ... (more)


YouTube Mobile A Bust! (Getting 3GP/RTSP to work on WM5)

This is so cool… YouTube has found itself released from its Verizon contract and can now open up YouTube videos to the rest of the mobile world. Here’s what their new site at m.youtube.com looks like on my Motorola Q:

YouTube Mobile Website

Here’s the problem: the videos are streamed using a rather archaic (these days) video format called 3GP. The 3GP format is still used for a lot of mobile phones due ... (more)


Live Search for Windows Mobile Announced

Microsoft announced Live Search for Windows Mobile today in Spain at a 3GSM conference. It’s like the recently discussed Google Maps for Windows Mobile, but way better. Expect a full review soon, including Bluetooth wireless GPS tests (turn by turn navigation). Install it from your phone for Free at http://wls.live.com/... (more)


Moto Q GSM and Q q9 Announced

Last week Microsoft announced Windows Mobile 6 details and this week Motorola announced details of two new devices. The Moto Q GSM is due out later this year and is simply a quad-band GSM and EDGE version of the current Q phone, and for some odd reason (timing?) they are keeping the current Windows Mobile 5 OS on the phone, instead of the latest WM6.

The biggest news is the ... (more)


Windows Mobile 6 Announced

Windows Mobile 6 has been announced by Microsoft, however it is unclear as to whether or not the Q will be able to upgrade to it (and if so, when). Geek.com has a first impressions article so go check it out!

Highlights:

  • HTML-formatted e-mails from POP, IMAP, and Exchange Server 2007
  • Full integration with Windows Live (Search, Mail, Space, Messenger), including a Windows Mobile-based client
  • Automatic synchronization of Outlook calendars
... (more)


How To Disable The Motorola Q Camera Sound

The camera shutter sound effect that is played every time you take a photo with your Q phone is obnoxiously loud. In my search to disable this sound effect, I found two methods. The first involved changing the sound file itself, but there is an easier way. You have to edit the registry to change this value, so if you do not yet have software installed on your Q to ... (more)


Review of Skype Mobile on the Motorola Q

I decided to blog about Skype Mobile on the Motorola Q after reading a few topics online from people wondering how to get the Skype Mobile application on their Q and wondering how well it really works.

The first problem you will most likely encounter is that the Skype website does not list Motorola as an option on its brands list of mobile devices. In fact, it’s almost impossible to ... (more)