I have been usng an iphone exclusively for the past few months. For the most part I have been very pleased with the large screen, great battery life, and safari. I had upgraded to the 2.0 software, unlocked and jailbroken when it came out. The phone performs much slower and seems buggier, particularly with the 2.01 firmware. With the new 2.1 firmware, I have been waiting to see how stable it is before I attempt the upgrade. On one hand, I am glad that that the firmware's are being released quickly to help resolve the bugs. On the other hand, I am frustrated that I have to jump through some hurdles to use this phone on T-Mobile. I know this has been hashed out before, however, I go through this with every upgrade as I have to use "special" methods to upgrade and jailbreak/unlock. I am happy that there will be some compelling devices coming that may offer me the opportunity to leave the iphone like the new Android T-Mobile G-1 or the HTC Touch HD. Until then, I have to decide whether to upgrade or not.
Make Time to Play
Fridays are generally pretty slow for me from a work perspective which is why my iphone woke me at 9am. After getting some coffee I read my email and the newspaper on my iphone. During the day I made some phone calls as well as responded to emails. However, I did take some time to play "Star Wars Force Unleashed". I finished chapter 1 which was relatively easy. I did enjoy learning the motions and hopefully I will be more challenged in the next chapters. All in all, I am still enjoying the game as I am a Star Wars fan! I also found some time to catch up on some reading using ereader and safari. I think I did more fun things than "productive" things on my iphone today. It is nice to have so many options of things to do on such a portable device. Have a great weekend! I know I will playing Star Wars!!
Email and Workouts
My iPhone woke me this morning at 6:00. After rubbing the sleep from my eyes,I kissed my wife and grabbed my iPhone. I checked my email and looked at my schedule. I then was off to the gym. While at the gym, as I warmed up on a bike, I again checked and responded to emails. During my workout I listened to music that pumped me up. A hour and a half later I was on my way back home and answered a few phone calls on the way. Of course I used hands free because of the new law that went into effect yesterday here in California. My iPhone is just gettig warmed up for the rest of the days work and play!
My Mass Storage Device
Over the past several months I have been using the iPhone as my exclusive device. However, recently I have had to depend more on my HTC621 aka T-Mobile Dash with Windows Mobile V.6.1. The latest version has been more stable and quicker. What I am really appreciating is that I can carry my files with me and email or edit them as I need. I can also hook my device up to a computer via it's mini usb connector and have it act as a storage card for me to transfer files. I love that! I hope that this feature comes to the iPhone soon. Until then, I carry 2 devices.
Will I Ever Be Satisfied?
Since my early days utilizing mobile devices, I have always found myself longing for more in my mobile companion. It all began innocently enough with the Sharp Wizard in the early 90's. I soon outgrew it's limited capabilities and purchased a Psion Series 3 handheld. Wow, I loved that device. I could not put it down. It probably contributed to my soon to be weakened eyesight as I tried to use it in dim light situations. I soon upgraded to the Series 3c which added a cool green backlight to the screen. No keyboard backlight, however. It had a phenomenal battery life running for weeks on a couple of AA batteries. However enamored, I was still not satisfied with the chicklet keys. I then upgraded to the Series 5 when it was released. With the slide out keyboard, larger keys and larger keyboard I thought, this is the device. Unfortunately, the stylus had a tendency to break and the rubber coating of the device wore off rather quickly. I also found myself longing for a color screen. It did not seem as though Psion was going to make a color screen Series 5, and Microsoft had began making handhelds as well as the Palm Pilot. The first to come out with a color screen I was going to jump on their bandwagon. HP was the first with the behemoth 620lx. Sharp followed suit with the Mobilon. Not to long after I got tired of lugging such a large device and jumped to the Palm IIIC. I loved having the color screen in a small package! I was still not satisfied as I wanted expansion abilities to add more memory. Hence, my switch to the Handspring Prism. I loved the springboard modules and beautiful color screen. I still have a few springboards lying around. I soon moved back to Microsoft's palm devices, the HP 420. It was a purple, color screened clunky device. I enjoyed it, but not enough. Then came the Casio Cassiopeia E-100 and E-200 palm pc. I briefly moved back to Palm with the Palm VII. The easy connection for web clippings was cool. Again, I was dissapointed in the meager memory. Compaq took things to another level with it's iPAQ series and their expansion modules. I have always had an affinity towards devices with keyboards so I bought 2 devices, the HP Jornada 680 and the Sony PEG Clie UX-50. To this day, that Sony device is one of my all-time favorites! Unfortunately, I had to move on when the phone devces came out. Since then, I have had the original HTC XDA pocket pc phone, Treo 600, XDAii, I-Mate JAM, HP 6515, Motorola mpx300, Motorola mpx200, I-Mate JasJar, Cingular 8125 and 8525 and now the Apple iPhone. Through it all, the incremental improvements have always left me wanting more. There are few devices on the horizon that may satisfy my lust. Time will tell. Until then, I enjoy using my iPhone, but miss many programs that I used on my Palm and Pocket PC's. Thankfully, I do not have the same criteria for my wife whom I love completely as she is! Will one device finally do it all? I doubt it, but it is fun being on the edge as technology advances.
My iPhone Camera Catches a Uninvited Guest
Over the weekend, my wife and I had some friends visiting. We had normal activities planned. BBQ. Have a few drinks. Play a game and maybe watch a movie. That all changed temporarily as I was in the house when I heard a cascade of shrill screams eminating from my backyard. When I arrived on the scene, the 2 ladies and my friend were all standing on a chair. "What," I asked, "is going on?" They all pointed in unison, as if they practiced for days, to a bush not far away. Again I asked, what? Again, in unison they all said, "a lizard." I started laughing and went to investigate. Sure enough, there was a rather large lizard looking at me through the bushes. Before I took any action to save my wife and friends, I pulled out my trusty iPhone and snapped some photos, not just of the lizard but of the 3 stranded on the chairs(great bribe photos!) I was able to get the lizard into a box and relocate it to a more conducive area. It made a regular saturday rather interesting. I love having a decent camera ready to snap a quick photo.
How I Used My iPhone Today
Today was fairly typical. My iPhone woke me up early this morning and I also checked my email. While working, I listen to audiobooks and music as well as answer calls. I had to use my calculator for adding-up all the money I was making on my invoices. About mid-day, my partner came running to me telling me tha he was unable to log-in to ticketmaster from his laptop as he wanted to get some concert tickets that was just released. I told him to take a deep breath and calm down. I pulled out my iPhone and easily logged in and purchased the tickets. He was amazed and is now wanting to get a smartphone. He is considering a blackberry or a Palm. I love to make converts to smartphones.
My Other Wife
My wife, who does not use a smartphone or handheld, frequently teases me and complains about how much time I spend with my mobile device. As a result she has coined the name "other wife" for my device. I must admit that since switching to the iPhone, my usage patterns have increased! My wife tells me, "the first thing in the morning you say hello to you other wife." That is me turning off or snoozing my alarm. and she reminds me that I am usually fiddling with it before I fall asleep. I have now quipped that "my other wife does everything I tell it to do. It turns on when I want. It turns off when I want. It makes me laugh and feel good when I am down. It helps me in my business..." This does not go over to well with my wife. I have had to do many little extras so I can use my "other wife" without receiving any comments from my wife. For now, I am maintaining the staus quo.
Showing Off With My iPhone
My daughter, who happens to be 9 years old plays the piano, sings and also plays soccer. I love to record video and snap shots of her various performances. This past friday, she sang a solo at a church function. Of course I recorded it. As soon as I got home, I transferred it to my computer, my iPhone and also my father's iPod. He has me putting his granddaughters photos and videos on there for him to show off. I love just browsing the photos or re-living the performance with my iPhone when the mood strikes me. Or, I torture some unsuspecting friend or stranger with my daughter's photos and video. I am very proud and I thank her for giving me another reason to pull out my trusty iPhone or whatever mobile device I happen to be carrying.
PocketPC Repairs by PPC Techs
I have been using my iPhone exclusively now for many months. I have been extremely satisfied with what it does! I have unlocked and jailbroken my iPhone and have added quite a few programs. However, about a month ago I began missing all the great programs I used on my Palm and Pocket PC’s. When I attempted to use my HTC TyTN, it malfunctioned. I put my out of warranty unit aside for a little while longer until I remembered PPC Techs. I had used their services a few times over the past few years. My first experience with PPC Techs was to upgrade my Compaq iPaq’s memory. I subsequently did another upgrade with a newer unit. I have also purchased some of their accessories like, PPC Techs great screen protectors and lil’ sync charge cable. On Thursday, this past week, I ordered their diagnostic service to repair my malfunctioning TyTN. PPC Techs then sent me an email giving me instructions and options on how to deliver the unit. Fortunately for me, PPC Techs is located close to where I live. I was able to deliver my TyTN directly instead of mailing it in. Fifteen minutes after dropping off my TyTN, I received an email on my iPhone telling me my unit is now in the repair process and they will let me know when it is complete. I have been very happy with the service and products of PPC Techs in the past and my current experience has not changed that perception. I hope to be using my TyTN again this week. If you are in the market for accessories or need repairs for your Palm or Pocket PC, check out PPC Techs.