iPhone Syncing Issues

Syncing the iPhone is not as easy as it should be. If you have a lot of movies, pictures and music (like all of the editors at iphonePOV) it can be a bit of a pain in the toosh.

As Apple suggested in an early email, it really is best to prepare for your first sync before you plug in your iPhone. General preparations are:

1. Address Book - Have your address book in order. If you have too many addresses that don't matter or you have a lot of duplicates, it can be a pain to find them once they are all in your iphone. If you can't actually reduce or erase errant addresses, iphonePOV recommends making a custom (slimmed down) group which you can later choose when inside the phone.
2. iTunes - This is where a few of the editors at iphonePOV ran into trouble. As Apple suggested, we had made playlists which we thought were small enough to fit inside the iPhone, well... it turns out they were just a little bit too big, which canceled the entire sync. Unfortunately, when it canceled the sync, it lost track of all the items it had already transferred to the iPhone! This meant we had to slim down our iPhone playlists and start the rather long process of syncing again. Everyone here really wished there was a quick 'Fill My iPhone With Music' button in iTunes which would simply fill your iPhone with random music choices, in much the same way iTunes will fill out remaining space on an iPod shuffle with the click of a button. A feature/button like this would alleviate the tedious necessity of trying to figure out how big your playlist should be in relation to contacts, videos, and photos -- which is especially hard when the phone is empty. iphonePOV's advice is start with small playlists and build from there. It's a real bummer when you wait 15 minutes for your phone to sync only to have it cancel the process because you slightly overestimated your phone's capacity. (see picture above)
   
3. iPhoto - This was a relatively straightforward process. Pictures are converted to the iPhone's size, so there you don't have to worry about overfilling your phone with a couple of 10 megapixel pictures. We were able to fit 400 picture in less than 1 gig of iPhone space, but again the conversion process does take some time, so if you're eager to fire up your phone, limit the number of picture you select for your first sync.
4. Mail - They don't give you too many choices here and the process doesn't take up much memory, but one iphonePOV editor did have a problem with OSX Mail on his MacBook after the sync -- All of the messages in his Inbox Disappeared. This was easily resolved with a restart, but having all the mail in your Inbox disappear for even a moment is very scary. For this reason, iphonePOV is strongly recommending to all of its readers that they backup their desktop Mail preferences before their first iPhone sync.
   

Please leave any issues you may have encountered in 'Comments.'

iPhone Has Arrived!

Frankly, it was a bit touch and go back there in Century City and for a moment or two, I thought I was gonna have to do some kung-fu fighting to get my iPhone. Cooler heads prevailed and everyone got what the came for.

First impressions: It's pretty cool. Has some flaws, but it's pretty cool. Rather than bore you with lots of words you've already read, iphonePOV has decided to let you fully experience the opening of the iPhone:

Packaging:


The Virgin Launch:




Pretty Nifty. Stay tuned for the good stuff

Not enough iphones

People have just been told that there are not enough phones.... Chaos is starting to develop.... Angry geeks.... This could get ugly...

Scalping at Century City

this kind gentleman got his phones and then walked to the back of the line and tried to sell them for a profit. We unanimously boo'd him away!

Century city doors open!

Cheering. Yay. Not long now.

iPling

Some guy just went down the line and handed out a promo for an iphone app that allows geographical social networking via sms....

Century city update 5 or 6

The magic hour is approaching... 375 people in line... 30 minutes to go.

Century city update 4

...the wait goes on.... 1 hour to go.

century city update 3

Strange lookin' guy at the front of the line just started mumbling to himself... Where is security when you need the?

East coast update.

IphonePOV has just received our first report of an actual iPhone purchas. One reader reported buying 2 phones at the Shadyside Apple Store in Pennsylvania. Apparently, the store employees clapped for the customers when they entered the store.

century city update 2

Apple store employees came by and dropped off free bottled water. Shortly after that, a kid came by and tried to sell his place in line. No one was interested. Everyone seems pretty confident that they'll get a phone-- even at the end of the line.

Live from century city

3:11 pm As promised, the the Apple Store closed its doors at 2.00pm to prep for six o'clock sales. The blacked out windows are a nice touch... Very theatrical. It all feels like we're waiting for a broadway show to start.

iphonePOV Is Going Live!

The team at iphonePOV is headed out to Century City Mall in Los Angles for Live coverage of the the official release. Check back regularly for realtime pictures and updates.

Welcome to iDay!

Would love to spend all day posting little ditties and expanding your iphonePOV, but, i've got to go wait in line like everyone else.

Here are a couple of Pearls to keep you satisfied during our brief separation:

Apple has posted a video called 'Fingertips' which is a demo of a 10 nifty things you can do with your, well, fingertips.

iTunes 7.3 is now available for download at the Apple Website. If you're getting an iPhone, you have to have this to activate your phone.

Gizmodo has a great picture gallery of the growing lines at ATT/Apple Stores accross the nation. Very cool (and also a little pathetic, in a good way.)

Got.. to... go... must..... have......

Disgruntled Blogger Declares iPhone Piece of Junk Because '...it can't even cook...'

With the good comes the bad. Now that everyone has had a chance to read the reviews and scour the Apple Website for all the nitty-gritty details, the naysayers are popping up like fleas on a neglected kitty. Here's a taste of the of the Moans and Groans seeping out of nearly every tech site on the web:

• No Games
• No iTunes Music Store
• No Video Recording
  
• No Custom Ring Tones
• No Voice Dailing
• No Official support for Microsoft Exchange
• AT&T
• No GPS
• No Flash
• No Way to cut and past, which means...
• No way to edit word/excel/pdf documents
• No iChat (instant messaging)
  
• No 3g
• Weak Speaker Phone
• Weak Vibrate Alert
  

and there are many, many more. Well, iphonePOV has a response to all this: So what? Stop being such bitches. Get over it. The iPhone is not perfect. It cannot walk your dog, it will not help your kids get better grades, and it will never help you become a chess master. It's just a friggin' cool phone that's only gonna get better. And when it gets better, you'll buy yourself a second iPhone and take a couple of Groans off the list.

Ten years from now, when you see your 1st gen iPhone being used as a doorstop in your kids dollhouse, you won't be wondering why it didn't have Microsoft Exchange support. You'll be fondly remembering the crazy debut of a product that caused a paradigm shift in mobile computing, and how your desire for its release and the way you eventually used it played a tiny, yet crucial part in the evolution of technology. That's good times.

iPhones For Everyone

iphonePOV has just learned that at the end of a recent Apple Town Meeting, Steve Jobs gave an iPhone to every employee--not just the ones who were at the meeting--every employee that works for Apple. That's a hell of nice way to say thanks.

Apple Store Inventory Checker

Apple has added in an Inventory Checker to their website. It allows you to choose your state and shows which stores have iPhones in stock (green) and which stores do not (red.) Right now, all 170 Apple stores have them in stock. That will change.

Custom Ringtones Coming Soon?

Engadget is claiming that Apple may add the ability to create custom ring tones when it rolls out iTunes v7.3 on June 29th. (iTunes version 7.3 is required for iPhone syncing.) Other sources have hinted that this feature may also include a custom interface (like Garage Band?) which will enable users to edit their tunes into perfect little ring tones. Expect this service to cost at least 99 cents per song.

2 iPhones Per Person At The Apple Store

The Apple Store will allow the purchase of 2 phones per customer. So, if you want to buy a second one for your wife, you need to go to the Apple Store. (As earlier reported by iphonePOV, ATT stores will only allow the purchase of 1 phone per person) Here is more information from Apple's Announcement this morning:

All 164 Apple retail stores in the US will stay open until midnight, and customers can purchase up to two iPhones on a first come, first served basis. Beginning Saturday morning, iPhone owners can learn how to get the most out of their new iPhone with free, in-depth workshops offered throughout the day at all Apple retail stores. Every Apple retail store will offer free support for iPhone at the Genius Bar and personal training through Apple’s new One to One program.

“Apple retail stores were created for this moment—to let customers touch and experience a revolutionary new product,” said Ron Johnson, Apple’s senior vice president of Retail. “With our legendary Genius Bar support, free workshops and our One to One personal training, we’re here to help customers get the most from their new iPhone.”

Apple has also announced that as of June 30th, all Apple Stores will open at 9:00 (for at least the rest of the summer) to help meet the demand for iPhones.

UPDATE: Apple's online store will begin taking orders at 6:pm PDT on the 29th. Like most items this expensive on the Apple website, shipping will be free.

Yet Another iPhone Review

USA Today's Ed Baig and Jefferson Graham posted another video review which is actually a speakerphone conversation about Ed's experience with the iPhone. This one shows a lot of hands-on use and as an added bonus provides viewers with the first glimpse of the iPhone's packaging. Overall, it's a positive review, but once again, Ed expresses some major gripes about the ATT's network coverage and speed.


(iphonePOV is currently putting the final touches on an exclusive method for speeding up internet access via ATT's Edge network -- more details to come.)

AT&T Store Locator Goes Live

In an effort to help reduce the lines that are sure to form in front of every Apple Store across the nation, AT&T has created an online Store Locator which can guide you to the doorstep of every AT&T Location which will be have the iPhone in stock. I suspect most buyers will use this as more of a backup plan--after all, which would you rather tell your friends: "I got my iPhone at the Apple Store" or "I got it the AT&T kiosk at the mall."

Mossberg's Video Review of iPhone!

Unlike David Pogue's happy-go-lucky student film video review, this one from the Master of All Things D is all nuts and bolts. Bottom line, he really likes the phone, but has serious reservations with ATT's edge network.

Pogue's Video Review of the iPhone

Written reviews are all fine and dandy,
but video reviews go down like candy.

Here's one from the New York Times that's 1 part review, 10 parts goofy:

The First iPhone Reviews Are Out!

The first of many reviews on the iPhone have hit the web. As expected, the reviews are mostly positive with a bit of disappointment when it comes to typing on the touchscreen and the speed of ATT's Edge network. Here's a couple of links to get you started.

The Wallstreet Journal

"Our verdict is that, despite some flaws and feature omissions, the iPhone is, on balance, a beautiful and breakthrough handheld computer.
--Walter Mossberg and Katherine Boehret

New York Times --

"When you’re in a Wi-Fi hot spot, going online is fast and satisfying. But otherwise, you have to use AT&T’s ancient EDGE cellular network, which is excruciatingly slow. The New York Times’s home page takes 55 seconds to appear; Amazon.com, 100 seconds; Yahoo, two minutes. You almost ache for a dial-up modem."
--David Pogue

USA Today -- "Apple's iPhone isn't perfect, but it's worthy of the hype."

"I expected to miss the tactile feel that a physical keyboard provides. I didn't. Making calls was surprisingly simple. You can flick through your list of contacts or favorites (iPhone's equivalent to speed dialing) and then tap on a name to make a call or send a text message. The keys of the virtual keypad are large enough so that dialing a number manually — or punching in a code to access voice mail remotely — is easy. I rarely made a mistake."
--Edward Baig

NewsWeek -- "...all those people lining up to buy iPhones will find their investment worthwile."

"Web-browsing is where the iPhone leaves competitors in the dust. It does the best job yet of compressing the World Wide Web on a palm-size device. The screen can nicely display an entire Web page, and by dragging, tapping, pinching and stretching your fingers you can zero in on the part of the page you want to read. Web pages you wouldn’t dare go to on other phones are suddenly accessible, though those that require Flash, Windows Media or Real Media formats won’t work. A clear, very readable implementation of bookmarks helps you get to your favorites without typing." --Steven Levy

Only One iPhone Per Person -- Sort of...

iphonePOV has just received word from an anonymous tipster who claimed that official Apple Store policy will be one iPhone, per customer, per transaction. Presumably, this means that customers will be able to buy more than one iPhone, but they will have to wait in line AGAIN if they want to buy a second iPhone--thereby fulfilling the requirement of one phone per transaction. If you have your heart set on more than one iPhone, keep this in mind when planning on what time to get in line on the 29th.
***Because this rumor was received anonymously, its validity is unknown.

80 Gig iPhone On The Way?

A number of readers have pointed out to the editors of iphonePOV that the iPhone setup video recently posted on Apple's website shows a progress bar which belongs to an 80 Gig device. Hmmm... either there's another iPhone hiding in Apple's secret lab, or, more likely, the Chiat/Day video guy captured footage of an 80 gig ipod and tried to sneak it past the Mighty-Mac-Faithful. You'll have to be sneakier than that mister ad agency video guy. You can check out all the goodness at around 6 minutes and 15 seconds.

Activation and Setup Video For iPhone Now Online

Apple has posted a new video on their website which shows prospective customers how to set up their iPhone. Interestingly, it is all done through iTunes -- even for existing AT&T customers. The iTunes setup process will even allow people to easily transfer their existing phone number. Wow, this is really cool, because it means buying an iPhone will basically just be a retail experience--like buying an iPod. Leave it to Apple to change the way cell phones are programmed. No more waiting for pimply faced teenie-boopers to call the home office and enter some secret code so you new phone can work. Thank you Steve.

Press Release:

Apple and AT&T Inc. today announced that iPhone users will be able to activate their new iPhones using Apple's popular iTunes software running on a PC or Mac computer in the comfort and privacy of their own home or office, without having to wait in a store while their phone is activated. Activating iPhone takes only minutes as iTunes guides the user through simple steps to choose their service plan, authorize their credit and activate their iPhone. Once iPhone is activated, users can then easily sync all of their phone numbers and other contact information, calendars, email accounts, web browser bookmarks, music, photos, podcasts, TV shows and movies just like they do when they sync their iPods with iTunes.

iPhone Rate Plans Are Announced!

This Morning, ATT and Apple announced the rate plans for the upcoming iPhone. While not Earth-Shattering, it is nice to see that all of the plans include unlimited data. Prices are about the same as Sprint and Verizon for similar service.

iPhone Bluetooth Dock Revealed!

Some sneaky guys over at 9to5mac uncovered a nifty spy shot of an iPhone cradle with a built in blue-tooth headset charger.


(This is also, incidentally, the worst photoshop mashup I have ever seen. I'm hoping the author of this terrible image inserted the bluetooth headset only as a reference to placement, and not in an attempt to fool us into believing it was originally in the picture.) Either way, it looks like an okay device if you're into Bluetooth. Personally, I think bluetooth headsets as a whole are pretty crappy devices, which turn the already hard to hear and be heard phenomena of cell phone communication into an exercise in folly, however, that notwithstanding, I guess if you really wanna look like one of the Borg and would prefer to keep your new iPhone in your pocket (but why? Why would you want to do that?) then having an easy charging solution like the one pictured might well give the Apple bluetooth headset (rumored to be significantly overpriced at $149.00) an ear up on the competition.

iPhone Nano Coming Soon!

Leave it to the Music Man of Cupertino to have something even better up his sleeve than the current iPod-sized iPhone. According to this YouTube video, if you have a ball-point pen, and a couple of wires, you can have the smallest iPhone around and you won't even have to wait in line.
Of course, you will need a degree in electrical engineering from a Russian University, but that's a tiny hurdle compared to getting your hands on one of the real (big and bulky) iPhones before June 29th.

FedEx Has The iPhone !

Rumor has it that all US iPhones are being brought to Apple/ATT stores by FedEx drivers. But, just in case some unscrupulous gadget freak thinks it might be a good idea to steal something from an unsuspecting delivery guy, FedEx has taken the unprecedented step of making all drivers with iPhone deliveries travel in teams. (So, I guess that means you should only set out to mug FedEx drivers when you see them together, don't waste your time with the lowly solo drivers!)

How To Get An iPhone!

There are 4 days left until the Apple iPhone will be in stores.

CNET NEWS called Apple and AT&T stores around the nation to figure out how many iPhones each store would have available and if they could reserve one.
The result is that the stores have no idea how many iPhones they will have and how the launch will happen.
The iPhone will not be available online, so you'll have to visit an AT&T or Apple Store on the 29th.

iPlan For iPhone?

Boy Genius Report is claiming they know the data plan/pricing for the iPhone. Here's what they have to say:

No, we're not kidding. Although iPlan might simply be used internally to refer to the Apple iPhone data plan, this streak of info came from a pretty high up source of ours, and it looks to be accurate. The iPhone data plan will be around $34.99-$44.99 and feature unlimited data, and either 2000 text messages, or unlimited text messages (we still have not confirmed which, but unlimited text messages would be awesome).

A Tip From Steve On How to Get Your iPhone...

Apparently, Arianna Huffington bumped into SJ at the All Things D conference and before he walked away, she managed to step on his verbal droppings:
"Talking to Steve Jobs after his speech, I got a hot tip on how to be one of the first people to score a new iPhone when they go on sale in June. "Don't go to an Apple store," Jobs told me. "It will be a madhouse there. People will be lined up around the block, sleeping on the sidewalk to get one. Go to an AT&T/Cingular store. Most people don't know that they will be selling them too." - Huffington Post

Mossberg On The iPhone

Fast EDGE Surfing (iPhone Videos)

This page contains videos which can be viewed directly on an iPhone.

This Video is for iPhone's connected to the internet through a WiFi connection:

Click To Watch With iPhone (WiFi)

This Vides is for iPhone's connected to the internet through the EDGE Network:

Click To Watch With iPhone (EDGE)

iphonePOV Homepage

iPhone Browsing with EDGE - 5X Faster

Make Edge Browsing 5X faster (or More)

Here's the deal, according to Steve Jobs (the real one) there are two internets. The "real internet" and the "kinda, sorta, feels like the internet." One of the things that makes the iPhone so great is that it surfs the real internet, meaning web pages, javascript and annoying blinking ads all show up on the iPhone the way they do on your desktop.

That's great, except for one tiny problem, the EDGE network does not have the bandwidth necessary to bring the 'Real Internet' to your iPhone. But, there's a secret that Steve won't admit in public, EDGE does possess the bandwidth necessary to bring the "kinda, sorta, feels like the internet" to your iPhone. This begs the question, 'How do I get the 'kinda, sorta, feels like the internet" to my iPhone so I can stop cursing EDGE and start getting my ESPN-on without having to wait ten minutes for their ads to show up?

Let's start with a little history lession: When EDGE was developed and put in place (on the Cingular Network) there were no mobile devices that could show the "real internet." The few phones that attempted to show the 'kinda, sorta, feels like the internet' used WAP browsers, which only handle text and tiny pictures, or proxy servers, which convert the 'real internet' into the crappy 'kinda, sorta internet.' 99% of the mobile phones in the world still use those archaic browsing methods, which means EDGE is a suitable solution for those devices.

With this knowledge in hand, it becomes glaringly obvious that the iPhone needs a WAP browser or proxy server in order to make proper love to the EDGE Network. Since we can't get a WAP browser into the iPhone (internal applications are closed to the public) our only choice is use a proxy server. Now let's see, If you were to choose one company to provide an internet service for your iPhone, who would it be? (Besides Apple!) Hmmm.... let's see, how about Google? Well, you're in luck. One of iphonePOV's Graphic Designers has a cousin who knows someone who works at Google, and we convinced her to have Google make a Proxy Server for the iPhone and keep it a secret from every website except iphonePOV.com. Thanks Google.

If you'd like try out the EDGE network on the 'kinda, sorta, feels like the internet' at 5 times the speed of the 'real internet,' follow these instructions on how to use Google Mobile as a proxy server for your iPhone:


Open Safari and enter the following URL:

http://www.google.com/m

(the m stands for mobile)

Next, scroll down to the bottom of the page and push the link for 'Settings'

Here's the crucial step: Under the setting for 'Format Pages For Your Mobile Phone.' Select 'YES'

You're half way there...

Now, 'SAVE' your settings and the page will automatically return to Google Mobile. From this point on, anything you search for, and link to from Google mobile will be formatted for the iPhone by Google's Mobile Proxy Server. Search for any site in the world and Google will shape it to fit your iPhone. Once you visit a page you like that's gone through the Proxy Server, simply bookmark it, and whenever you are on the EDGE network, you can view the Google Mobile Version of your page by clicking the bookmark.

You heard it hear first.