Apple iPhone and related items (cont.)

[Vintage Paw]

Did they send it via TNT like they did mine? I just logged onto TNT's website and entered the delivery reference number Apple gave me and full tracking info was available.

No, UPS.

I got an email on 7th from Apple saying they'd shipped it, with a link to track it. It took me to my order. Which had another link that said 'track this shipment'. When I clicked on that I got a page that said it shipped on 7th, del. estimate was 20th, carrier details to be updated shortly.

It still said carrier details to be updated shortly last night when I checked again, and it mysteriously turned up this morning. It now, obv., says delivered, and carrier details have been updated to UPS. All pretty pointless and annoying.

 

[Vintage Paw]

I was in bed when the delivery man knocked on the door. I looked frightfully grotesque when I answered

 

[Vintage Paw]

In other news, why can't I move my folders around like I can normal apps? Grr. I've spent all this time creating lovely folders, and now they're stuck on a fucking page all by themselves. Only way to move them all to the front page it would seem is to take everything back out and make sure when I start the folder again it's where I want it to be.

/rage

 

[Bungle73]

In other news, why can't I move my folders around like I can normal apps? Grr. I've spent all this time creating lovely folders, and now they're stuck on a fucking page all by themselves. Only way to move them all to the front page it would seem is to take everything back out and make sure when I start the folder again it's where I want it to be.

/rage

I can move them about fine.

 

[Vintage Paw]

Then why can't I? They won't move like apps. They wiggle. But they won't move.

Ignore me. It works now. Grr.

I've managed to get everything on one page, except 1 fucking thing. That's going to fuck me off no end

 

[g force]

No, it's Friday and that article also says the 16th. It's going to be fun seeing how Apple get out of this one.

Free bumpers? Gift vouchers? More denial? I can't see a product recall happening, but with the antenna issue making the mainstream news internationally, it's got to start hurting sales soon - or at least putting a seed of doubt in people's minds.

It's all very un-Apple-like.

A product recall won't happen. Simply won't.

Best guess would be free bumpers to any iPhone 4 owner at any Apple store (have to go their physically to collect). Be nice gesture to maybe also give free iTunes/App Store downloads - on iTunes where it recognises you have an iPhone 4 and gives you automatic £10 credit for whatever you want to use it for.

 

[teuchter]

No, it's Friday and that article also says the 16th. It's going to be fun seeing how Apple get out of this one.

Free bumpers? Gift vouchers? More denial? I can't see a product recall happening, but with the antenna issue making the mainstream news internationally, it's got to start hurting sales soon - or at least putting a seed of doubt in people's minds.

It's all very un-Apple-like.

The kind of people that buy iphones aren't really going to be put off by something like this.

 

[skyscraper101]

It's all just another reason why nobody should ever get an expensive new bit of kit until its been out for a while. Let the fanboys rant about the problems, and just sit back a few weeks while it quietly gets sorted out - then buy a model that works.

Common sense. Simple common sense.

 

[editor]

The kind of people that buy iphones aren't really going to be put off by something like this.

I'd normally agree, but when the issue attracts massive media coverage and even gets ridiculed on mainstream comedy shows in the US, there's a chance that some potential purchasers may be prompted to look at alternative handsets while the issue remains unresolved.

Apple's whole USP is ease of use and 'it just works.' It isn't working out too good for them at the moment.

It's all just another reason why nobody should ever get an expensive new bit of kit until its been out for a while. Let the fanboys rant about the problems, and just sit back a few weeks while it quietly gets sorted out - then buy a model that works.

Common sense. Simple common sense.

A lot of Apple fans aren't usually the type to wait for new products. Some like to queue. And high five.

 

[Kid_Eternity]

Folders are good on the 4 software but I really wish that it was easier to move the app buttons about on the phone or in iTunes

How do you mean?

 

[Structaural]

It's all just another reason why nobody should ever get an expensive new bit of kit until its been out for a while. Let the fanboys rant about the problems, and just sit back a few weeks while it quietly gets sorted out - then buy a model that works.

Common sense. Simple common sense.

Old but pertinent:

 

[Vintage Paw]

Well I'm mostly enjoying playing around with it so far. Display is very sharp, we all know that though. Camera seems to be a massive improvement over my 3G. Video! (Only used for videoing the cat yowling mercilessly because he wants feeding.) That quick switching malarkey is swish.

Have put the bumper on it. It stops the fucker slipping off the arm of the sofa, at least

This is a fun little app: http://incredibooth.com/ and on a related note, swankolab, which I had previously discounted because it takes so long to use, is much quicker. Not instant, but I guess that's part of the point of it. Having been used to the 3G camera, I'm more than happy with the quality of the digital zoom.

I'll feel much better when I've got a good case though. The bumper's okay (massively overpriced), but I'd like that back glass panel protected.

 

[grit]

The media in the states are really taking the piss out of it now.

Letterman's 10 ways you know you bought a bad iPhone (number 1 was actually kinda funny).

http://www.crunchgear.com/2010/07/1...-top-10-signs-youve-purchased-a-bad-iphone-4/

 

[Lazy Llama]

iOS 4.0.1 for iPhone is now available via iTunes.

 

[Kid_Eternity]

iOS 4.0.1 for iPhone is now available via iTunes.

What's new?

 

[editor]

What's new?

All-new, all-bigger "improved" signal bars (really!).

[more]

 

[Kid_Eternity]

All-new, all-bigger "improved" signal bars (really!).

Er, what?!

 

[Lazy Llama]

• 
  Improves the formula to determine how many bars of signal strength to display

http://www.tuaw.com/2010/07/15/ios-4-0-1-software-update-is-available-for-download/

 

[Lazy Llama]

A snip at 579MB to display fewer bars....

 

[editor]

http://www.tuaw.com/2010/07/15/ios-4-0-1-software-update-is-available-for-download/

Some eyebrows have been raised at this formula rebaking, prompting New York Senator Charles Schumer to write an open letter to Steve Jobs:

I further urge Apple to issue a written explanation of the formula it uses to calculate bar strength, so that consumers can once again trust the product that they have invested in

http://www.boygeniusreport.com/2010/07/15/schumer-letter-jobs/

As an aside, I've been writing about tech stuff for something like 15 years now, and this has to be one of the worst managed PR episodes I've ever seen from a major company.

 

[Lazy Llama]

Some eyebrows have been raised at this formula rebaking, prompting New York Senator Charles Schumer to write an open letter to Steve Jobs:

The Senator could do worse than look at the Anandtech review which gives a signal strength to bar mapping.

But then he wouldn't get the PR coverage and would have to learn to use Google.

 

[teuchter]

Hasn't the New York senator got anything better to do, then?

 

[Vintage Paw]

Anandtech's latest article on the 4.0.1 update: http://www.anandtech.com/show/3821/iphone-4-redux-analyzing-apples-ios-41-signal-fix

Actually a very balanced article. As always.

 

[paolo]

I'm thinking about getting an iPhone 4, but having read some reports here, I'm now worried I won't be able to drop calls.

Can anyone recommend tutorial on how to do it? I know Kanda tried and failed. I always thought he was a savvy user, but he had to get someone else to do it for him.

This is all seems to be going against the "it just does" idea. I expect to get the widely perceived user experience - but am really concerned it's all been hyped up, typical of those PR people.

I have this horrible worry that, unlike everyone else, I won't get the typical user experience.

Can anyone put my mind at rest?

[Also interested in the giant spring. But you don't catch me out with your wonderful rumours!]

 

[editor]

Anandtech's latest article on the 4.0.1 update: http://www.anandtech.com/show/3821/iphone-4-redux-analyzing-apples-ios-41-signal-fix

Actually a very balanced article. As always.

Good piece, but as they say themselves, no amount of fiddling about with the signal bar display is going to make the physical problem of the antenna design go away. Their press conference tomorrow should be interesting.

While the software update obviously does not and cannot address the design of the antenna itself - or make the drop from holding the phone any less - it does change the way the issue is perceived among users. The result is that most iPhone users will see fewer bars disappear when they hold the iPhone 4 in a bare hand...

Interestingly enough, Apple has indeed changed the heights of bars 1, 2, and 3. They’re taller, and the result is that the relative heights are no longer linear, but rather a tad exponential looking. It’s a mind trick that Apple no doubt hopes will make the signal look better. If the bars are taller, they must denote stronger signal, right?

P99: so long as you buy a bumper - and are perhaps a little bit more careful with the phone than you might usually be - you'll have an excellent handset in your hands. If you can afford it, of course. Oh, and ho ho.

 

[teuchter]

I'm thinking about getting an iPhone 4, but having read some reports here, I'm now worried I won't be able to drop calls.

Can anyone recommend tutorial on how to do it? I know Kanda tried and failed. I always thought he was a savvy user, but he had to get someone else to do it for him.

This is all seems to be going against the "it just does" idea. I expect to get the widely perceived user experience - but am really concerned it's all been hyped up, typical of those PR people.

I have this horrible worry that, unlike everyone else, I won't get the typical user experience.

Can anyone put my mind at rest?

[Also interested in the giant spring. But you don't catch me out with your wonderful rumours!]

Surely if you get one that won't drop calls, you can take it to a Genius and get it fixed, or replaced with one that does?

 

[Sunray]

I'm finding this quite hilarious. People that don't actually own an iPhone are complaining about a issue that isn't really much of a real world problem. Ok I managed to get it to degrade to just about no signal and start having connectivity issues this evening by doing what I know will slap the signal.

What I don't find though, is that you'd notice is in real world usage. Its a flaw but a fairly trivial one and certainly not one that will make me jump to another platform. This is the best mobile OS out there in my opinion, having used all of them to one extent or another.

My only complaint is that running apps are harder to kill than is really necessary. Palm still wins on that front, but one feature does not make a phone.

 

[paolo]

Surely if you get one that won't drop calls, you can take it to a Genius and get it fixed, or replaced with one that does?

That's what I was hoping.

I've heard stories that these experts, if they can't get it drop calls, go the extra mile and smash the phone with a hammer.

There's also, I think, some kind of "cult like" customer ceremony, where the staff all raise their hands in the air, and - as the customer leaves - run around going "OMG! OMG! This Phone Has Ruined Your Life!". The customer is encouraged to join in.

Then the staff go home and write tech blogs.

I've not got one yet, but pleasingly, I can sense my life being ruined. I'm so excited!!!!

 

[editor]

I'm finding this quite hilarious. People that don't actually own an iPhone are complaining about a issue that isn't really much of a real world problem.

You're missing the point.

The real issue is not the relatively minor defect. It's the way that a mega-rich corp like Apple - who normally boast the super slickest PR machine on the planet - has handled it so spectacularly badly and ended up digging such a huge hole for themselves.

If they'd just admitted there was a minor problem at the beginning and given away free bumpers, the issue would probably have been all-but forgotten by now.

Instead, the company's off hand attitude to its customers and its weird denials have turned the issue into an immense PR catastrophe - so much so that billions were wiped off the company's value leading them to call an emergency press briefing today.

That's pretty much unprecedented for Apple, and that's the story.

 

[Kid_Eternity]

So...378mbs and one small firmware update later and my 3GS is exactly the same...