While Apple's new iPhone 3GS has been flying off store shelves and selling like proverbial hotcakes, new users are finding the new phones are not as resilient as many lower-tech cell phone devices.
Complaints have been flooding into Apple about the new iPhone model and problems with it malfunctioning in hot environments, and shortened battery life. The “old” iPhone GS that I own doesn't seem to be as susceptible to heat, but I can tell you that I haven't tested that theory — I don't leave it in direct sunlight very long, and I sure don't let it shake-and-bake in my car on a hot sunny day.
My theory on why the new phone is generating complaints is that many of the people buying it are new to the iPhone. And the unvarnished truth about the iPhone is that it isn't nearly as tough a device as the Nokia phones I used to carry. Those things were virtually indestructible, and mine went through the washer twice and lived to transmit RF again.
In comparison, the iPhone is a prissy-pot of a device: If you're too rough with it you can break the screen on the thing. If it gets wet, its history — the phone has moisture sensors that when activated disable the phone so it can only be repaired by Apple. Forget about running it through the washing machine. In fact, Apple warns people who take the iPhone or iPod Touch with them while they jog, run or workout to keep sweat and humidity away from the phone because your own sweat can trigger the internal moisture sensors, leaving the phone a very expensive brick. Moisture “damage” isn't covered by the warranty, so you're going to be out a cool $200 for a replacement/repaired phone.
The moisture sensors are mostly a method that Apple can determine why your phone died. Moisture? It's your baby to pay for. As it turns out, my feeling is Apple is less interested in repairing phones than it is selling new ones. Perhaps the next version of the phone could be hardened to avoid damage due to moisture, humidity and sweat.
During a recent Leadership Nelson County outing — which was outdoors on a day with rain in the forecast — I kept my iPhone sealed in a very small ziplock bag. My wife buys this small size for packing nuts and individual servings of snacks for lunch, and they're the perfect size to also serve as an iPhone moisture protector. Had I gotten drenched in the rain, the phone wouldn't have known the difference (though I did worry about the humidity in the ziplock being high enough to trigger the sensors. For a whiz-bang, hot-shit, high-tech, gotta-have-it cell phone, caring for the thing is like taking your 3-year-old to a rock concert — you can't take your eyes of it for a minute, and you spend time fretting over what “might” happen. Ugh!
Perhaps Apple needs to take some lessons from Icom and Yaesu. Three years ago at our Field Day operation we were hit by a severe thunderstorm. Nearly all of our get was soaked — HF rigs, VHF rigs, power supplies, etc. I took the covers off my FT-2800 and the Astron supply and literally poured water out of them. I let them air dry for several days and they were fine — and still operate to this day without a hitch. In fact, none of the equipment that was soaked by the torrential rain suffered any damage.
Do I regret buying an iPhone? Heavens no! BUT — with what I know now, here's what I would do differently.
1. I would get the most rugged cellphone ATT offers that is in my affordable range (with FREE being the preferred price).
2. Instead of buying the iPhone, I would buy an iPod Touch, which is essentially an iPhone without the cell phone capability. My daughter has one, and it is every bit as cool a device as my iPhone — with not monthly fee.
3. ATT tacks on the $30 data plan fee to all iPhones, but that's not an issue for me. The fee is an all-you-can-eat data plan, and I find that I am like most iPhone owners — I use my iPhone a LOT. Industry surveys show that iPhone users use the data features of their phones 8 times that of the average smart phone owner. This is a fact that ATT is struggling with in major metro areas because their 3G network is swamped by users and horribly slow in data throughput.
Here in the hinterland, the only time I ever see my phone detect 3G service is when I'm in Louisville or Lexington metro areas (and believe it or not, I was just off I-64 in Carter County in Eastern Ky. and had 3G service in the middle of nowhere! So why not my little burg??). I don't depend on 3G at all; most of my data usage on my iPhone is via WiFi, either here at home or wherever I'm at.
I have an app for the iPhone that sniffs out WiFi systems within its range, both closed, locked systems and those that are open and accessible. You would be surprised how many businesses and homes have their WiFi networks wide open — not that I'm complaining, mind you. I piggyback on these open WiFi access points every chance I get.
During my 6-months of grand jury duty, I found the courthouse here has open WiFi (presumably for the benefit of attorneys); nearly any place around downtown I can find at least one open WiFi system to connect with. In fact, sniffing out these open WiFi systems is one of my new hobbies. Anywhere I stop for a few minutes, I always check to see what's nearby.
The WiFi is really only a benefit when using data services on the phone, but most of the best features ARE the data features. For example, checking the App Store is horrendously slow without WiFi. So many of the phones apps use the Internet from which to pull data, and on WiFi its just a much faster process.
Some locations have open WiFi by design — the Java Joint coffee shop and the public library for example. But my daughter's school has an open WiFi system, though I'm not sure that's by design. Scanning for open WiFi systems is a little like the enjoyment I get from listening to my police scanner … you don't get information you can use much, but its neat to know its there.
WiFi sniffing isn't anything new or unique to the iPhone. Years ago my nephew was using his Compaq IPaq to do the same thing. At that time, most WiFi systems were open, including most of the law offices around town — which he thought was a huge security breach.
So am I going to trade in my iPhone? Heck no! I'm waiting for the new apps to arrive, particularly the voice turn-by-turn GPS direction app coming from Tom Tom. You just have treat the thing like your quirky Aunt May — don't let her sit in the sun too long or sit in a hot car; keep her out of the rain, don't let her sweat and don't jostle her around too much. Trust me on this: Life is much better when you keep your iPhone — and Aunt May — happy.
73 es CUL … de KY4Z dit dit ….