Earlier today I went and got the link for the manual download of the iPhone 2.0 firmware and so far it's pretty nice, got a few apps installed and they're working pretty well. AIM is nice, and even though its from AOL, there are no ads like in the Windows versions, although I hope someone creates a 3rd party app that also incorporates Google Talk into it.

My main complaint with it is the lack of background processes. I enjoy talking to people through AIM and it'd be nice if I stayed online when I closed the app and even when i turn off the screen, so if someone IMs me, it notifies me as say an SMS message or an e-mail would, but alas it doesn't. Oh well, it is definitely a step in the right direction for Apple.

One nice little feature is the ability to easily create screenshots...

Update: From what I've been seeing, I'm glad I did this all last night, people seem to be having problems upgrading or for the new 3G customers, even ACTIVATING their new iPhones.

Tags: apple, iphone

While I initially debated upgrading my iPhone to the 3G model, I have since decided that it's just not worth it, for several reasons.

First, the new iPhone plans from AT&T now suck in comparison to the first gen iPhone plans. The voice plans remain the same from what I can see, but the data plan is now $10 more and does not include the 200 text messages like the old one did, so in order to get the "same plan" for the 3G iPhone, you'll be paying $15 extra a month. It may not seem like that much, but over the course of your 2 year contract, it adds up and even cancels out the cheaper price for the phone itself.

A second reason is that despite what others want to say, the battery life on the 3G model is noticeably worse than that with the original. The 3G drains the battery faster than does the EDGE network. Walt Mossberg has already reviewed it and said he barely got 4.5 hours out of it.

A third one is features. The 3G really only adds 2 new features. The first of course is the 3G network, and the 2nd is GPS. Yes the 3G network is faster than the EDGE network, but speed isn't everything. And GPS, on a phone, I could take it or leave it, especially since I would really only see it as useful for maybe driving, but i already have a car GPS system. Keep in mind that all the other features like the app store, etc are part of the 2.0 firmware which still will work just fine on the original models.

So while the 3G iPhone doesn't suck by any means, in fact it looks great, especially for someone who doesn't have an iPhone to begin with, for someone like me however; the new iPhone 3G doesn't pack enough of a punch to make me toss my current iPhone for the new model. Maybe in the future with newer iPhone models, but for now, I will be sticking with my current iPhone.

Tags: opinion, iphone, apple

Because of the upcoming release of the iPhone SDK, I figured I'd list some of the apps I would like to see developed for the iPhone. Some of them can probably be done through the web apps with Safari, but I'd still like native apps to use if possible rather than going through Safari.

IM Client - This is probably the one I want most. A client similar to Adium or Pidgin that can run natively on the iPhone so I can chat with my friends using AIM or Google Talk. I'm not quite sure how I'd like it set up, but if done right, it would definitely be nice to have.

PDF Reader - The ability to view PDF files would be nice to have for the occasions neccessary. What would make this even better would be the ability to turn the iPhone and view the PDFs from both perspectives like you can webpages with Safari.

Twitter Client - It would be nice to see a native app that I can use to post and view Twitter statuses like so many clients available for Linux, OS X, and Windows. I might even try my hand with this one.

Notepad - The key to this would be synching with the computer. If a notepad like app would be developed that would allow for one to create text files on either the iPhone or the computer and be able to transfer them back and forth, I'd be interested. All I'd need would be for a basic notepad program, don't need any text formatting or any of those extra features.

Some Games - Maybe a few simple games would be nice to see, and I'm sure some will come. What would be even cooler would be some multiplayer action. The games could be as simple as something like hangman, sudoku, solitaire, etc. I know there are already some web versions of the games for the iPhone, but native ones could be nice as well as to not have to go through Safari.

Paint - The touch screen would be perfect for something like this. It wouldn't have to be anything complex, but a basic drawing tool could be interesting to fool around or play with. It could also be used for visual notes or something along those lines.

So, what apps are you looking to see created for Apple's iPhone?

Tags: thoughts, apple, iphone, mac, sdk

Apple's iPhone SDK will be coming out soon and rumors are going around that any and all 3rd party apps are going to have to go through Apple and be approved before they will be available for download and installation. This has some upsides and some downsides.

PROS

Malware, Harmful Apps Weeded Out - If someone tries to sneak in some app that harms the iPhone OS or causes an iPhone to be unstable, Apple should be able to pick these out rather quickly to prevent an unsuspecting victim from downloading and installing the app. Now granted, like computers, it could be up to the user to protect what he/she puts on the iPhone, but Apple at the same time probably wants to protect its name. Apple probably doesn't want some user to blame them for a 3rd party app that crashes that user's iPhone. In reality it wouldn't be Apple's fault, but too many people seem to blame the easy target, in this case Apple. (How many people blame Windows for a BSOD when in reality its a poorly written driver made by some third rate printer company).

CONS

Total App Control - Apps that Apple doesn't like for whatever reason could be blocked, even if they're good apps. Take P2P apps for example. Apple could take the stance that they'd only be used for piracy and shouldn't be allowed and block them from iTunes. (They haven't said anything on this, and it baffles the hell out of me why anyone would use the iPhone to download from P2P to begin with) With the power of total control could allow Apple to abuse that power.

Pricing - I haven't heard anything on the pricing of apps thus far but I would likely believe that they'd probably be mostly under $10. This alone wouldn't so much be a problem, but what if some developer wants to create an app and give it out free? Can they do this, or will Apple step in and charge for that app anyway? If they do, then I'd say its a bad thing. If they don't then this point is pretty much moot. Anyone know anything more about this?

Anyone else have any more pros or cons?

Tags: apple, iphone, mac, sdk

Back when the iPhone Firmware version 1.1.2 and iTunes 7.5 was released, people found a workaround for free custom ringtones from any MP3. I of course wanted to see if it would work, and sure enough it did. I was concerned as to how long the workaround would last figuring Apple would notice and close it up in future updates.

Then the 1.1.3 firmware became available which added a bunch of features that I liked so I figured I'd give it a try hoping that the upgraded firmware would not mess up my ringtones. After crossing my fingers and installing it, sure enough, the custom ringtones I made were still available.

iTunes 7.6 has been available for some time now, but I've been cautious about installing it thinking that it might be the update that disables the workaround. Well last night upon installing OS X 10.5.2, I decided that I might as well give it a try. Luckily my ringtones are still there, and I'm still able to create new ones, so obviously the workaround is still there for iTunes 7.6 and the iPhone 1.1.3 firmware. Here's the link for the workaround.

Note: this requires at least iPhone Firmware 1.1.2 and iTunes 7.5

Create Custom Ringtones for your iPhone [macrumors.com]

Tags: iphone, itunes, ringtones, workaround, apple, mac