We’re coming up on the one-year anniversary of the iPhone ‘s release, so people who feel strongly about the popular smart phone have had plenty of time to weigh in with their wallets — it’s been a consistent seller since its release last June 29 — or with epithets. (Remember the early description of iPhone fans as “iPhonies?”)
In the past 11-plus months, seemingly everyone has offered an opinion about the iPhone, usually colored by which side of the Microsoft-Apple divide they’re on. One of my favorites came from Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer : “There’s no chance that the iPhone is going to get any significant market share. No chance.” Mac fans, myself included, dismissed this as iPhone envy, but even we’ve been taken by surprise at how quickly the iPhone seems to have gone mainstream.
Chances are, Palm CEO Ed Colligan is among the surprised. Months before Apple’s iPhone announcement in January 2007 , he said, “We have learned and struggled for a few years here figuring out how to make a decent phone. PC guys are not going to just figure this out. They are not going to just walk in.”
Maybe PC guys couldn’t figure it out, but Apple certainly did.
Not only is the iPhone introducing Apple technology to a whole new audience, it’s grabbing buyers who had previously shied away from smart phones because the devices are often needlessly complex. It’s even infiltrating markets Apple hasn’t much targeted, including business – long the territory of Microsoft, Palm and Research In Motion, whose BlackBerry remains the poster child of corporate communications.
Since the iPhone’s release, I’ve spent countless hours debunking an amazing amount of FUD — and just about as much time answering questions about how the device works and why it’s different from the competition. The questioning has grown sharper since Apple announced plans for its iPhone Software Development Kit (SDK) in March. Suddenly, sales seemed to jump, companies started testing it out, and even here at the media company I work for, I quickly found myself supporting a bevy of iPhones.
With a solid combination of advanced technology and ease of use, it became almost ubiquitous, no doubt spurred by Apple’s popular ad campaign. Despite the media blitz, a lot of people still have little idea what it is, how it works and where it’s taking the mobile-wireless industry. With that in mind, I pulled together this FAQ to help you sort through some of the details. The first question I always get is the easiest: “Oh, dude, is that an iPhone?” After I tell them it is, the quizzing begins.
If the iPhone is so easy to use, why the need for a FAQ? Someone actually asked me that when I mentioned I was writing this FAQ. The answer is simple: You have to separate truth from fiction, especially when it comes to a product that is as talked about as the iPhone. Not only that, but as intuitive as the iPhone is, “intuitive” is a matter of perspective. If you use Mac OS X, the way the iPhone works and the built-in applications it uses — like Photos, Calendar, Mail and the iPod music software — make sense. If you use Windows, all of the icons and apps — even the way it syncs using iTunes — represent terra icognita. And if you already have an iPod, regardless of your main OS, you’re already ahead of most people new to the technology. Those familiar with the iPod/iTunes ecosystem have had few problems understanding the iPhone’s setup. With the iTunes Store besting Wal-Mart and Target as the No. 1 music store in the U.S., and with iPod owning 75% of the digital music player market, it made sense for Apple to use the well-recognized and well-established syncing system within iTunes.
But what about those for whom this was their first Apple mobile device? They bought their iPhone, plugged it into a computer without iTunes and…nothing happened. What usually followed was a panicked phone call to an IT department or an Apple Genius Bar. (After getting just such a call, I instructed my boss to install iTunes, then plug in the iPhone.) iTunes is pretty much required. There’s no getting around this if you’re setting up a new AT&T account.
I have heard complaints from some Windows users who claim to loathe iTunes, and after seeing the Windows version, I understand. The Windows version feels more sluggish then the Mac version. There are some ad hoc ways of avoiding iTunes, but I haven’t tried them and can’t vouch for them.
My advice: If you find yourself with an iPhone, the easiest way to start enjoying it is to stop resisting iTunes.
I don’t want to buy a phone from a company that’s going to stop selling the device because it’s not selling well. Then buy an iPhone. Apple isn’t going to stop selling one of the hottest, game-changing devices to come along in years. You’ve been listening to Ballmer again, haven’t you?
Steve Ballmer said the iPhone wouldn’t gain any market share. Stop right there. If you’re reading about the iPhone or any Apple product and the article quotes any of the following people — MarketWatch columnist John Dvorak, analyst Rob Enderle and Ballmer — consider the article null, void and useful only as satire. Just do a Google search of their names and “Apple,” and you’ll understand why.
Isn’t that the phone that costs $500 a month? Wait, let me get my jaw off the floor. Short answer: No. Now, it is true that the iPhone isn’t subsidized (at least the current generation isn’t), so there is no discount on its cost. If you want the 8GB version, you pay $399; if you want the 16GB version, it’s $100 more. They are currently out of stock right now at Apple’s online store, and supplies are tight worldwide, leading to speculation that Apple is preparing the next-generation iPhone for release in June.
As for AT&T’s voice and data plans, they start at $59.99 for 450 daytime minutes, 5,000 night and weekend minutes, 200 text messages and unlimited data. This also includes the standard rollover minutes and unlimited mobile-to-mobile minutes. The plans go as high as $119.99 per month for unlimited minutes, unlimited data and — curiously — rollover minutes for your unlimited plan and 200 text messages. So if you use the iPhone 24/7 for the better part of each month, then yes, it’s theoretically possible to spend $500 a month. But you’re going to have to work at it.
Just 200 text messages? Isn’t that kind of lame? It sure is. And the cost of additional texts is even worse: an extra $10 for an additional 1,300 texts, for a total of 1,500 texts, or another $20 for unlimited texts.
AT&T is a mega-evil company. I don’t want to sign my soul away. Do you know that Verizon actually turned down the iPhone and then wrote a press release about it? The excuse was that Apple wanted too much control over its product, the pricing and the feature set, and Verizon officials didn’t want to change the company’s network just for a phone. AT&T had no problem with that arrangement, and even went out of its way to change the way its voice-mail system worked for iPhone. The result was Visual Voice Mail, one of the more popular iPhone features.
Does that mean Verizon is more “evil” than AT&T? No. They’re both businesses, and Verizon made the decision it felt was best; AT&T took a gamble that seems to be paying off, if the latest subscriber numbers are accurate.
Steve Ballmer said the iPhone was… Stop again. What did I tell you about a Ballmer quote concerning Apple? He’s wrong. He has a competing product to sell ? what would you expect him to say?
Is a 3G-capable iPhone coming? Yes.
When? Ask Steve Jobs. If you don’t know him, you’ll have to wait like the rest of us. The Magic 8-Ball says, “It’s coming this month.”
Should I buy an iPhone now? Normally, I’d say that’s highly dependent on your current needs. But at this moment, I can’t recommend buying. We’re so close to Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, which starts June 9, and there’s a definite lack of iPhones in the wild. I’m sure this is not a coincidence. With rumors stating that the new iPhone model will have an onboard front-facing camera for videoconferencing, built-in GPS, fast 3G data transfer, higher-capacity memory, a more nifty case design, and the ability to make toast to go, I think it’s a safe bet to wait a couple of weeks. (I’m kidding about the toast.) Even if none of these features appeals to you, you’ll still benefit from any price drop for the previous-generation model.
Other phones have touch screens now. Are they like the iPhone’s? While competitors continue to increase the number of phones with touch screens, no other phone has multi-touch capability, and this missing feature alone guarantees a half-hearted touch-screen experience. Multi-touch is the ability to use multiple fingers to perform actions. Its execution means everything in the world of touch screens. On a small screen, space is extremely limited, and every button, element or line takes up precious real estate. It’s not long before small screens get cluttered, leaving little room for displaying actual media or data. Consider this scenario: zooming in and out on digital photos. With a non-Apple interface, I can press an on-screen magnifying icon to zoom in and out. To move to the next photo, I press arrows on the screen. If the developers designed the interface well enough, there would be a simple way to get the interface elements out of the way so I can view my media full-screen. However, with an interface that supports multi-touch — such as the one on the iPhone — you can use multiple fingers to invoke a response, say “pinching” two fingers together to zoom in and out of photographs, Web pages, maps, e-mails and their attachments. Multi-touch support allows you to perform actions without cluttering up the interface.
You’re obviously biased, or a fanboy, or both. What are other people saying about the other touch-screen phones? Ya think? Anyway, here’s a review from the Chicago Tribune of two potential iPhone killers: the LG Vu and the Verizon XV6900. If you wish to skip the gory details, here’s a few quotes:
About the Vu, the Tribune ‘s Eric Benderoff said, “Unlike with the iPhone, I needed to press firmly, and I often hit the wrong keys because the letters are squished together. …More important, the haptics controls didn’t work well for the other functions that the iPhone has made simple: scrolling through the content on your phone or surfing the Web. For instance, you can’t use a finger swipe to move through pictures or, in what enthralls many iPhone owners, use two fingers to enlarge an image or Web page.”
About the XV6900, Benderoff said, “Navigating those Web pages was a pain: Do I use my finger or the stylus? Neither worked well. There is no magic here. The functional XV6900 would be impressive if this were still 2006.”
He concluded, “Perhaps the next few efforts at a touch-screen phone, including Sprint’s Instinct, will provide the fun and function Apple got right in its first effort. So far, if someone asked me to suggest a cool touch phone, there’s still only one worth buying.”
So, there may be a spate of new touch-screen phones, but none comes close yet to Apple’s.
My company uses Exchange for e-mail, calendars and contacts. My BlackBerry supports that, and I think iPhone should, too. The only way to retrieve Exchange e-mail is when certain IMAP functionality is turned on from the Exchange side; whether this function is supported varies from IT shop to IT shop. Even if it is enabled, that doesn’t mean that e-mail notification would be instantaneous, as is true for BlackBerries. The iPhone pulls e-mail after a set period of time, either manually, or every 15, 30 or 60 minutes. The shorter the interval, the more the battery drain.
Apple has shown a version of iPhone software that will support native Exchange support, with full push-e-mail, -calendar and -contact management. Full integration directly into the Exchange server, without an intermediary machine and accompanying server license and software, means fewer points of failure and increased savings in hardware costs and license fees. These features are specifically meant to entice business users accustomed to partnering with RIM, but they aren’t the only thing Apple has coming. It also plans on implementing global address lists, Cisco IPsec VPN, certificates and identities, WPA2/802.1x support, enforced security policies, device configuration for enterprise customers and remote wipe. All of this will come standard with the next software update, due sometime in June.
I don’t like how Apple stops you from installing third-party applications. Fix it. I don’t have to. Apple’s next software update should take care of this. When Apple showcased the iPhone SDK , it also showed off third-party application developments as a sneak peak of what’s to come. It also introduced a new way to add software through its App Store that will be part of the next major update for the iPhone. That’s when the floodgates for third-party applications will be unleashed.
There is some information on my iPhone that isn’t syncing correctly, or maybe it’s corrupt. How do I fix this? Sometimes your iPhone can act up. It’s an electronic device. Your best bet is to try holding down the power button on top until you are prompted with the virtual slider to shut down the phone. Once the iPhone is powered down, turn it back on. You’re basically rebooting it.
If problems persist, you may need to re-sync your data. To do so, plug in the iPhone to your computer using the USB cable and launch iTunes, if it’s not launched immediately. Select the iPhone in the iTunes sidebar and click on the Info tab. If you scroll down, there is an Advanced section that allows you to replace specific information during the next sync. The ability to reset data includes contact, calendar, mail accounts and bookmark information, and can easily be done by checking the appropriate data option and hitting the Sync or Apply button.
How slow is AT&T’s EDGE network? For real-world usage, EDGE is fine for e-mail, stock updates, weather, Google maps and RSS sites. That said, it is sometimes bizarrely, frustratingly slow. The iPhone’s Safari browser on EDGE is too slow for an audience of impatient friends checking a Web site, but it’s tolerable if you’re surfing by yourself and not in a hurry. Safari is best when using Wi-Fi, but your level of patience and EDGE strength will determine your enjoyment level. That’s why we’re all waiting for a 3G version. It’ll be noticeably faster.
Does iPhone support MMS? MMS is not supported on the iPhone. iPhone users can get notifications of MMS messages, but that consists of an SMS message telling you to access https://viewmymessage.com with the assigned username and password. Given the lack of copy and paste on the iPhone — more on that next — it’s actually pretty annoying. I’d bet anything that MMS functionality will be one of the first third-party applications released.
Does iPhone support copy and paste? Nope. And there’s been no word on whether this feature will be implemented. It certainly wasn’t shown off by Apple during any iPhone demonstrations, but the fact that this is an often-requested feature means someone should be working on it.
Safari-based access to the Internet is great and all, but is there a faster way to find numbers and addresses without using Google’s search site or Yellow/WhitePages.com? Your best bet for information such as phone numbers, addresses or directions is the iPhone’s Maps application. Let’s say you want to find a nearby gas station. Tap the Maps icon, then hit the Locate Me button on the lower left, and when the iPhone finds your location, tap the text field at the top of the screen. Type in what you’re seeking — in this case “gas.” The search results appear as pinpoints on the map, and tapping any of the pinpoints reveals the name of the location plus a “more info” arrow. That arrow takes you to a screen that displays the location’s listed phone number, home page and address. You can even get directions from or to the location, save the results to your bookmarks or save the information in contacts for future reference.
In some locations, Maps also offers real-time traffic information, indicated by red, yellow or green overlays on the roads. It’s surprisingly handy when traveling.
How do I prolong my battery life? By using the phone as a phone — or surfing with it over Wi-Fi — as little as possible. Also, tap the Settings button and go into the Wi-Fi preferences. Turn off “Ask to Join Networks.” Leaving this on means the iPhone is continuously scanning for new Wi-Fi hot spots. While useful if you’re actually looking for wireless, it cuts into battery life. If you’ve logged into a Wi-Fi hot spot before, the iPhone will remember it the next time you’re in range and automatically connect you, as long as it doesn’t require Safari-based authentication. Changing the time between e-mail checks under the Mail settings can also help battery life. I’ve noticed real-world battery life increases just by changing Auto-Check from 15 minutes to 30.
Another way to make sure you’re iPhone lasts is by purchasing external power add-ons like this one . This could easily help alleviate battery issues if you’re away from a power source for a while.
How is typing on the keyboard? Here’s the thing about the iPhone’s software keyboard. Once you become accustomed to the way it works, it’s difficult to go back to tactile keys. (Wait, do I hear the BlackBerry fanboys howling?) First, you must get used to the touch screen. While the iPhone does its best to ignore unintentional touches, there is a bit of a learning curve concerning the actual handling of touch screens. With button-based phones, if another finger or part of the hand rested on the phone’s surface, nothing would happen. On the iPhone, sometimes grazing the screen with a part of your hand may be enough to launch an app, so it’s best to hold the iPhone with one hand and use the other to type. The more deliberate the touch or gesture, the better the response from the screen.
Deliberate doesn’t necessarily mean hard or excessive or slow. It just means deliberate. Since the iPhone is trying to determine whether the touches are intentional, a firm touch is best. Within days you’ll pick up speed.
The iPhone’s keyboard has a bunch of tricks it uses to stay on top of your text entry. If you press down on the keyboard and find that you’ve landed on the wrong letter, don’t lift your finger. Just slide it to the letter you want. Once that letter is selected, lift your finger. With each successive letter, the iPhone narrows its guesses at the word you’re trying to spell, and even assists by invisibly shifting the tappable area of each letter. The next most likely letter gets the bigger tappable area, dynamically. In concert with that, the iPhone analyzes key presses and figures out what you’re trying to write, even if you never actually hit a single letter accurately!
For instance, I just typed the well-known pangram, “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog” into my phone as fast as I could, using two thumbs while I timed myself. In less than 10 seconds — 9.7 to be exact — I had that exact phrase typed out, even though what I actually typed was jibberish. As part of its predictive texting, the iPhone offers suggestions based on its calculations of your button presses, and it makes that the default the moment you press the space key. Once you realize you don’t have to be accurate with your touch strokes and learn to trust the keyboard, typing becomes a breeze.
Who will win out: the BlackBerry or iPhone? The market is big enough for both. While the BlackBerry has had a place in IT shops for a long time, the iPhone puts the fun in functional, and it’s about to get a serious productivity boost with the upcoming software update. Once the iPhone is updated, it will be able to do a lot more BlackBerry stuff than the BlackBerry can do iPhone stuff. RIM’s response is the Bold and a newer touch-screen model, which implies Apple chose wisely when it skipped physical buttons for a touch screen.
With direct syncing eliminating the need for extra hardware and software, and with the iPhone’s continued popularity, I’d be a little worried if I were RIM.
Got a nagging question or want to weigh in on the iPhone yourself? Leave a message in the comments area below.
Next: Opinion: When will iPhone have its own moment in history??
Michael DeAgonia is a computer consultant and technologist who has been using Macintoshes and working on them professionally since 1993. His tech-support background includes tenures at Computerworld, colleges, the biopharmaceutical industry, the graphics industry and Apple. Currently, he is working as a Macintosh administrator at a large media company.
