Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Online Apple Store Philippines is up

Good news to all Pinoys, the Apple online store Philippines is now open for business. If you wanna start shopping check out this link http://store.apple.com/ph

They currently have all Apple product line available except for the iPhone which should be available at all Globe outlets.

Be sure though to have an AppleID ready for online shopping. I have an article in the past regarding creating one.

Thursday, October 30, 2008

AT&T: Spanish Voicemail Prompt?

It looks like AT&T (US) is down today in terms of voicemail. When you call someone and they don't answer, you'll get the prompt in Spanish instead of the regular English prompt. This is not an iPhone issue but a network problem with AT&T so better call them and ask for a turn around time for the downtime.

Thursday, September 18, 2008

I can't help but to blog about how worst Digitel is




Last January 2008, I submitted an application for a DSL connection and got it approved for the "999 Plan." The Plan is with the ISP DIGITEL which includes a 512kbps contract locked in for 30 months with Php 999.00 monthly recurring charge. The reason for the connection is because my sister left her daughter here in Taytay with us while she works halfway accross the globe in Italy. She wanna be able to see her daughter every once in awhile via cam to cam chat using Yahoo Messenger.

There was an option for the Plan 777 (Php 777.00/month with upto 384 kbps) which should be enough for the purpose we want but I chose the plan 999 because I also plan to do P2P downloading via bittorrent and thought that the faster the connection, the better and the quicker. The service was good, I get good speed better than my last ISP (Smartbro), Youtube doesnt lag, websites are fast, I can download upto 1.7 Gb of torrent data overnight and enjoy upto 10 downloaded movies during my restdays and was very happy with it. I was overwhelmed with the service and even recommended it to my friend and neighbor who then decided to get the same internet service from same ISP Digitel. She chose the plan 777 since she only wants to do YM and social networking.

2 months after the initial service, I noticed that I'm not receiving bills (statements). I thought that it was normal but people from Digitel customer service started calling my home number and reminding me to pay over 2,XXX. I told them, I havent made any payments yet because I don't even know how much to pay since I'm not getting any paper statements. The agent then asked me for my address and I told them the same address I've written on the application. She said she's gonna update the local office in Taytay. Two weeks later, I got 2 individual envelopes for February and March unpaid bills and made my first ever payment. I still experience the same issue until now, In fact I havent received my August and September statements and the last statement for June and July was left at my door and it rained that time and the envelopes got wet ( i was still able to decode the paper and figure out how much to pay). By the way, I always pay online now from bpiexpressonline.com using my ATM card.

Enough of the Introduction. I already gave you an idea now how great and lousy this ISP is here is the REAL deal.

1 month ago (August 20, 2008), I tried to log onto blogger.com (this blog) and noticed that the website for blogger.com is not loading. I tried surfing other websites and noticed how sluggish the websites are. I even lost patience in youtube since its not even loading frames. I though it was a temporary problem and let that go for the mean time and did my blog in the office and it went fine. The next day, I tried logging on my Yahoo Messenger in the same home PC but it gives me an error message that "There was a problem signing into Yahoo! Messenger. Please try again a little bit later." I really don't think that I have a problem with my Yahoo account since I can still access the Yahoo web interface using Firefox and do email and chat there. Then again I ignored it thinking it was a temporary problem. As a technician, I did troubleshoot that issue by doing some steps based on how I would troubleshoot a Mac (I'm a mac technician) such as:

1. Resetting the Modem multiple times ( I always turn off my modem together with my PC )
2. Clearing all junks and temporary files and cache by running a software that would do this (Advanced Windows Care) and even "Clear all Private data" in Firefox
3. I also tried removing all startup programs by running "msconfig" and do diagnostic startup in Windows Vista. That left my PC vulnerable to virus since it will also stop my Antivirus from opening on startup.
4. The modem can also be connected via USB port and connecting it via USB didnt make any difference.


The problem went on for 2 days. The torrent client I'm using can't even download more than 100MB of data overnight. I stopped downloading since I'm just wasting energy on downloading data less than 100Mb per night. The issue went on intermittently for Yahoo Messenger. iTunes was also experiencing issue with connecting to Apple Software Update server when i tried to update my iPod nano to version 1.1.3. It reports back a network connection issue but I was able to update my iPod in the past without any problems. Thinking that the issue was with Digitel, I then called Digitel customer service via 17-10 on the bundled landline and my journey has now begun.



And so I called 17-10 to report the issue last August 22nd, an agent answered and said they couldn't help me and that I have to call tech support by dialling 249-3282 from my landline. And so I did call. Another agent answered and I explained my situation and asked me if I restarted my modem and I replied "I always do restart my modem" They had me run speedtest based on their own speedtest website http://dslspeedtest.digitelone.com/
To give you an overview of what that website looks like, heres a shot


The button seen in the picture if clicked will test your speed of connection. Whenever I run the test, this is always the same variable range of speed that I get (see below)




I told the agent that the speed is just 20-25% of the speed that I am paying for. She then replied that I can't really get the exact 512kbps of speed. Agent said that 512kbps is the maximum theoretical speed of my connection but the actual connection that I should have shouldnt drop 80% of that speed (409.6kbps). Her explanation reminded me of Judy Anne Santos' Meralco commercial of buying an ice and some melted while on her way home which makes sense. So ok, but why am I getting this kind of speed. She then said that they will forward this issue with their technical team and gave me a case number 4369927 and we ended that call.

The next morn, A guy from Digitel called me back and said that they will reset "port" on their end and that I should standby and run the test again later during the day and check if issue was resolved. That night, I run the test again and still get the same speed. I reported and called back the next morning with the case number and the guy who took the call said. " According to the records po, you called about
a slow internet connection speed, nagtry naba kayo mag reset ng modem (check). " They always ask me what website I am using to check my speed and I always say that its their official website for speedtest. They have doubts about how other speedtest site will test their intenet speed such as latency. The agent then gave me another case number 4379313 and said theyre gonna follow up on this. That was the last case number generated for me as of this writing.

I then made several calls every other 2 or 3 days and dealt with the same questions from each agent during the last week of August.
>> Did you reset your modem?
>> What speedtest website are you using and whats the speed result from 1st to 4th lapse?
I really started getting very irritated with the agents since all of them are saying the same thing that they will make a follow up but nobody is really calling me on the landline now. My parents are always at home and that nobody from Digitel called since then.

September 4th, 2008. I called Tech Support again and this time, I proactively written down and remember the name of the Agent who assisted me. her name is Erika. Then again, as part of their call flow, she asked me all the question above and that she will make a technical report and asked about anything else I can help her with. She sounded like she wants to end the call immediately based on her tone when she asked me "would there be anything else for today?" so I became really irate. I then asked for a specific turn around time for this since the issue has been happening for 2 weeks and its really ruining my life. I feel like an idiot everytime I call them and they're like a bunch of robots to tell me the same thing over and over again. They always make follow ups but all I really need is an action and correct this. I hangup on Erika and dialled 1710 for customer service and to my surprise, she was the same agent who answered the call. Erika again, Huh! a multi-split agent! I then asked her how much I owe then and to finalize it and that I will not have plans on paying for any early termination fee. She then asked me why I am cancelling the account, I then told her how impaired my internet connection is and she asked me for my case number like I never gave it to her a moment back. As a part of their callflow, she will make a technical report and submit it (again?). I then explained that I will still give them a chance to fix my issue for 1 more week and ask for a rebate. She said I cant get a rebate because I still have internet. That made me alot angrier and I decided to hangup on that useless call.

I then made calls every other 2 days just for the heck of calling them and letting them know that there is a customer waiting, making an effort to get attention and get the issue fix. It was a week of another bill since its September but I have no plans of making any payments until this issue is cleared up and that a rebate is applied for the inconvinience and time plus effort I spent dealing with them every other day.

September 17th. I am still experiencing same unresolved issue. I was thinking about completely forgetting about Digitel, pullout every wires they attached to my wall and burn the modem and telephone they gave me. I also noticed that I am getting no sleep and feel really stress thinking about this situation for the past week. I am really getting annoyed everytime I think about the situation and getting ignored by this company. This is the vey first time I felt this way to anyone or anybody. I feel like I am really stupid believing that my issue will be resolve.
I made another call to tech support. The agent who assisted me sounded nice and apologetic and his name is Vincent. He was more knowledgeable I guess because he has more workaround that we tried. He suggested about putting preferred DNS (Domain name Server). I then told him I'm on Vista and he has to walk me through how to do it. He put me on hold and came back telling me he doesnt know how to do it in Vista. I told him that if this issue continues until september 22nd which is the monthsary for the first call I made, I will just terminate the service without paying any termination fee and get something else. We ended the call and I google about changing the DNS and figure it out, I called back and got the DNS which is 202.138.128.50 - 54. I'm still using that DNS but it didnt make any difference.

Today is September 18th 2008 Friday. I'll be updating as soon as this issue progresses.



P.S.
I'm sure its not my PC causing the issue because I can tether using my Nokia phone and get 280kbps from Globe. I'm sure its not my PC because I brought this computer to my neighbor's modem (digitel) and it can get 340kbps of speed. I also can use wifi and get full speed. By the way my PC is a portable notebook. HP/Compaq V5000 is the brand.

I would love to read any comments from readers.




Monday, September 15, 2008

iPhone Takes Screenshots of Everything You Do


Did you know that when you press the home button of your iPhone to go back to the home screen, it captures the previous app opened and animates that image to zoom out and show you the back the home screen? Why should you be concern as an iPhone user?...Security.

Read on...

from Wired.com

Your iPhone is watching you.
If you've got an iPhone, pretty much everything you have done on your handset has been temporarily stored as a screenshot that hackers or forensics experts could eventually recover, according to a renowned iPhone hacker who exposed the security flaw in a webcast Thursday.

While demonstrating how to break the iPhone's passcode lock in a webcast, iPhone hacker and data-forensics expert Jonathan Zdziarski explained that the popular handset snaps a screenshot of your most recent action -- regardless of whether it's sending a text message, e-mailing or browsing a web page -- in order to cache it. This is purely for aesthetic purposes: When an iPhone user taps the Home button, the window of the application you have open shrinks and disappears. In order to create that shrinking effect, the iPhone snaps a screenshot, Zdziarski said.

The phone presumably deletes the image after you close the application. But anyone who understands data is aware that in most cases, deletion does not permanently remove files from a storage device. Therefore, forensics experts have used this security flaw to gather evidence against criminals convicted of rape, murder or drug deals, Zdziarski said.
"There's no way to prevent it," Zdziarski said during the webcast. "I'm kind of divided on it. I hope Apple fixes it because it's a significant privacy leak, but at the same time it's been useful for investigating criminals."
And though the handset only snaps screenshots when users press the Home button, Zdziarski said this is only one way forensics experts collect evidence. Other methods include taking data from the iPhone's keyboard cache, Safari cache, Google Maps lookups and so on. Experts and hackers can also recover deleted photos or e-mails from months ago.
In addition to exposing the privacy leaks, Zdziarski walked webcast attendees through the steps required to bypass an iPhone's passcode in order to gain full access to it.

The method didn't look all that easy, but Zdziarski said it could take as little as 60 seconds to break the iPhone's security. To make a long story short, the process involved using Pwnage to create a custom firmware bundle and tweaking it with rather arcane methods to delete the iPhone's passcode protection. Once set up, the technique can be used over and over on different iPhones, Zdziarski added.
Despite the intricacy of the method, Zdziarski stressed that anybody with the time and digital sophistication has the ability to break the iPhone's security.

"This flaw can only be exploited by somebody with physical access to a device, but your phone could get into the hands of someone with more malicious intent," he said. "Obviously, you don't want to trust any of your data to a passcode."
A full recording of the webcast, hosted by O'Reilly, will be available shortly. We'll post a link as soon as it's available.
Those interested in learning how to break iPhone security can pre-order Zdziarski's book iPhone Forensics: Recovering Evidence, Personal Data, and Corporate Assets.
Apple did not return phone calls for comment. 


Source: Wired

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Fwd: USB ports and your iPhone 101





I prefer more connecting my iPhone directly to a local USB port on the back of my computer. Why? Thats because USB ports directly connected on the motherboard are more powerful. Using USB hubs will surely extend charging time and will prolong syncing or backing-up time. That's because all the devices connected to that hub share all the power and divides the speed to all peripherals connected into it.


0A


How do you determine if you are using a hub?

It will be obvious if you are using a USB hub. A USB hub is a device that connects to another USB port. A USB port found in front of your PC tower could possibly be a USB hub. A USB hub can also be embedded on your peripherals. One good example of a USB hub is the wired Apple keyboard. Although it is a keyboard, it also functions as a USB hub. A monitor or display may also have a USB port on it. Typically, the USB port on this devices are only good for flash drives and self powered devices.



What are examples of self-powered devices?

Common examples of self-powered devices are printer, scanner, and other USB devices that doesnt work without plugging into the wall or AC outlet. These devices will work on low power USB port because they only use the data path on the USB connection. Although the iPhone is self-powered by its battery, but it is programmed to charge when connected to a USB port. So to maximize the time while connected to a USB port, better plug it into a local USB port.




What are the devices that may require high power USB port?

Portable Hard Disk Drives. Multi-slot memory card reader, TV Tuner, Bluetooth/Wireless Adapter, A USB20Hub, and other devices that operates only in battery such as your iPhone, iPod touch, iPod Classic, iPod nano, iPod shuffle and other media players.




How do I locate a high power USB port?

Its on the back of your PC or Mac for sure. 


Are there any different USB speeds?

Yes.! As of this m oment the fastest is the USB 2.0 with a maximum data transfer speed of 480Mbps. The older speed is USB 1.1 with maximum transfer of 12Mbps. The upcoming USB 3.0 will have 4800Mbps. I'm just puzzled if the iPhone 3G will support that max speed since USB 3.0 was introduced before the iPhone 3G. (USB 3.0 will be backwards compatible with all USB version so it will be20compatible with the iPhone)


Posted by Rouge

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Genius: The new iTunes 8 feature

I haven't really had a luck in trying the Genius feature in iTunes 8 because of my crappy internet connection with Digitel that really sucks the hell out of me. In case you need guidance on how these feature work, you can always visit the knowledge base article from Apple from the link below.

iPhone 2.1 Software Update Available on Friday

Rejoice, long-suffering iPhone users -- Apple on Tuesday announced an update to the software that operate their iPhone and iPod touch. A free upgrade from 2.0, iPhone 2.1 software is expected to be released on Friday, September 12, 2008.
Also available with the newly updated iPod touch that Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced at Apple's "Let's Rock" event in San Francisco, the new 2.1 software is a free update to iPhone and iPod touch users who have 2.0 installed. If your iPod touch is still running 1.x software, it will cost US$9.95 to get the 2.1 upgrade.
The 2.1 update fixes bugs, and reduces the number of dropped calls experienced by iPhone users with the 2.0 software. It also provides "significantly improved" battery life, crashes less, and provides "dramatically faster" backups to iTunes. New performance enhancements have also been made.

Then again for all pinoys who own an iPod touch with OS 1.x, for you to purchase the software update 2.1 iTunes, you can always use an iTunes Gift Card. Gift cards are available at all Power Mac Centers. Update is always free for all iPhone 3G users who legitimately purchase their iPhone 3G at Globe. Jailbreakers may need to wait until 2.1 is bricked.

Source: PCWorld.com

iPhone 3rd party applications quitting finally explained

Issue: All of a sudden, all third party applications I downloaded from the App store will just show up for 2 seconds when I open them and goes back to the home screen. I tried rebooting the iPhone, deleted the app and redownload it, it doesn't seem to help. I even tried to "reset all settings" and redownload them all, nothing seems to help. I already restored the iPhone in iTunes and that doesn't make any difference. Do I have a bad iPhone?
 
Answer:
No. You don't have a bad iPhone. You are having problem account authorization with the applications.
 
Is this a bug?
I would say it is. I hope Apple will address this in the future software updates either in 2.0.3 or 2.1.
 
What do you mean I'm having authorization Problems? I did the download directly from the App Store and used my AppleID and Password, is there something wrong with that?
 
No. That's the most convenient way of getting an App thru the App Store. It's really hard to explain how this happened because it doesn't seem to be logical. But there's a fix for this issue you are experiencing.
 
So What's the Fix?
=0 A
 
Simple. You just need to deauthorize  your computer and authorize it back. Then resync your applications. That should work for everybody.
 
Delete all the 3rd party  applications from your iPhone.
 
1. Open up iTunes in your PC/Mac. Connect your iPhone in your computer. Make sure you are signed in the iTunes Store. To sign in, click Store on the top menu bar, then Sign in…Use your AppleID and Password.
2. On the top menu bar, click on Store>Deauthorize Computer. Enter your AppleID and Password.
3. Authorize your computer again by clicking on  Store>Authorize Computer. Enter your AppleID and Password one more time.
4. Sync the applications from your iTunes Applications Library back to your iPhone. If you don't have it on your iTunes,=2 0you can redownload them from iTunes for free.
 
Once syncing is finish. Your applications should be working fine.
 
What do you think may have caused this issue.
 
Here are 2 possible reasons
  1. You " reset all settings" on your iPhone and then downloaded an App from app store using a different Apple ID and Password. Just stick to one AppleId and Password to avoid this problem.
  2. You sync the iPhone from a different computer that is not authorized for your purchases. If you have multiple computers, make sure that each is authorized. To authorize the computer, follow the steps described above. Remember that you can only authorize=2 0up to 5 different machines using your AppleID.
 
 
An Original Post by: Rouge

iTunes 8 is out for download

iTunes 8, the new version of the program we all love is now out for Download at the Apple Website
Download it here.


Sunday, September 7, 2008

Just Stand Up 2 Cancer

Just Stand Up to cancer performace by Various artist is now available as an Mp4 download for your iPhone. You need to download it to your computer first via rapidshare and sync to your iPhone as Movie.

Link to the video is here
http://tinyurl.com/standup2cancer


Exclusive Single from iTunes is available for download here
http://ax.phobos.apple.com.edgesuite.net/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?id=289089106&s=143441

Saturday, September 6, 2008

Amazing Star Collection

A few days back, I blogged about the "Just Stand Up" song by the artist as featured above.
The artist performed the song at the
Fifth Annual Fashion Rocks in Radio City Music Hall on September 5, 2008 in New York City.

This week is a lame week for the iPhone, I couldn't think of anything else to post. Lets see if there's something interesting in the coming days.

iPhone Laugh 2


Steve Wozniak - Apple co-founder and a Jailbreaker


Having reportedly cut in line to buy the iPhone 3G on the device's launch day, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak has now apparently gone one better and "pwned" his iPhone . Pwning allows full read/write filesystem access and installation of unofficial third party applications the iPhone 3G.

read more from source...




iPhone Laugh 1




Bill Gates has an iPhone too...

Friday, September 5, 2008

Thursday, September 4, 2008

No Service


If you ever encounter a situation where your iPhone 3G says "No Service" but other phones nearby has, your iPhone is probably in for some trouble. Bad Infineon 3G chipset? Nyahhh! 

Luckily, there are some troubleshooting steps that you can try first before calling AppleCare or your wireless carrier. The 6R's by Apple is still the best method of troubleshooting almost all issues but not all iPhone users doesnt know what it is. This entry will discuss the 6R's troubleshooting step you may want to stick to your mind as an iPhone user. This will save you a lot of time dealing with tech support 'cause they will ask you to do some steps included in the 6R's and all you need to say is "I've done that already." After completing the 6R's of troubleshooting and you are still experiencing the same issue, your iPhone may need service or is in hardware trouble.

The 6 R's of troubleshooting are: Recharge, Restart, Reset iPhone, Remove, Reset Settings, Restore.

On the next scenario, we will use the issue "No Service" as a classic example. We also need to use our troubleshooting intuition because not all of the 6R's are applicable in this scenario.

1. Recharge - May not applicable on this issue. This may be used if you're getting "No service" and low battery both at the same time.

2. Restart - A highly recommended first step. This should have been the first in Apples 6R's. You're iPhone could probably be frozen that's why it doesnt get service. Turn off and on the iPhone to restart. 

3. Reset - If your iPhone is totally frozen and not getting service, Try pressing and holding the Home button and sleep/wake button for several seconds 'til you see the Apple logo. This step is sometimes called force reset or hard reset.

4. Remove - Totally not applicable step. I borrowed from Apple the next paragragp to explain what remove means. 

If iPhone is not working as expected, it may be due to some of the content synced to it. Try selectively removing certain content that may be causing unexpected behavior such as contacts, calendars, songs, photos, videos, or podcasts.

To remove content, connect iPhone via USB and use iTunes to change the sync settings. Click on iPhone in the Source list, and select each tab to change what content is synced then click apply.

5. Reset Settings - The next paragraph is also borrowed from Apple.

Tap Settings > General > Reset > Reset All Settings

Note: This will reset all settings. No data or media will be deleted.

If that does not resolve your issue, try erasing all content and settings.

Tap Settings > General > Reset > Erase All Contents and Settings

Note: This will delete all media and data. All settings will be reset as well.

6. Restore - Your last resort for troubleshooting. The ultimate step that will tell if you need iPhone replacement. If issue still existaftera restore, you really need a new iPhone. Try restoring iPhone using the latest version of iTunes. Connect iPhone. When it appears in the Source list, click on Restore in the Summary tab.



Posted by Rouge

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Just Stand Up to Cancer



Apple has announced that "Just Stand Up" a new star-studded charitable single has been released exclusively on all 22 iTunes Stores worldwide (Philippines not included).

The single features fifteen female vocalists - Mariah Carey, Beyonce, Mary J Blige, Rihanna, Fergie, Sheryl Crow, Miley Cyrus, Melissa Etheridge, Ashanti, Natasha Bedingfield, Keyshia Cole, Ciara, Leona Lewis, LeAnn Rimes, and Carrie Underwood.

All proceeds from the sale of the single will go to the cancer charity Stand Up To Cancer that funds cutting-edge cancer research that hopes to bring rapid advances in the treatment of patients and the prevention of cancer in those individuals who are at risk.

You can still buy this song through iTunes US store by purchasing an iTunes Gift Card sold in dollar value at Power Mac Centers.

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Tips on backing up your iPhone's Contacts


Here is a list of things you can try in order for you to backup your most precious contacts that you've collected over the months and didn't have any copy of it anywhere else except your iPhone.
Better backup than sorry in case you ended messing up your iPhone.

1. Use Outlook. If you have Microsoft Word installed on your PC, chances are you have Outlook too. iTunes support synchronizing your iPhone with Outlook version 2003 and 2007. Mac users should always have Address book present on their systems. For steps on how to sync your iPhone with Outlook, click here. I don't use Outlook because I'm always not at home. I want my information to be always on the go and online.

2. Use Yahoo! Address book. Most of us are using Yahoo for their email accounts. Click if you do. Yahoo address book is one of the choices for syncing your iPhone's contact alongside with Outlook. I definitely recommend and personally use this one because the information is stored online. I can make/create changes on my Yahoo contacts online and on the next sync, boom its there on my iPhone. It also works the other way around, make addition on your iPhone, sync it and its there online.

3. Use Mobileme. Mobileme is an online service by Apple and is a perfect companion alongside with your iPhone, Mac or your PC. This service is the most convinient method to use because it requires no additional syncing with iTunes as everything happens over-the-air. Mobileme is not a free service, it costs $99 a year. You can try mobileme free for 60 days here. You can also buy mobileme in a box for 1 year subscription at select authorized Apple resellers in the Philippines in case you don't have a credit card yet.

Posted by: Rouge

Monday, September 1, 2008

iTunes won't activate an iPhone that has IMEI: 004999010640000



The IMEI: 004999010640000 indicates a useless iPhone. That is the default IMEI for every iPhone and if restoring the iPhone doesn't fix your issue, return your iPhone back to the place of purchase.

To determine if you have this problem and your iPhone wont activate. Try to "slide for emergency" and then dial *#06# to get the IMEI, if the number displayed matches the number above, you are affected by this issue.

Friday, August 29, 2008

iPhone 3G Hardware specifications remains undisclosed




Are you curious about the iPhones hardware specifications? Like a computer, the iPhone 3G also has processor, memory (RAM), and storage capacity. The iPhone is a miniature Mac running on "iPhone OS" operating system. That's the reason why Apple claim its 5 years way ahead of all other phones in the market. Until now, if you visit the iPhone's specifications page, you won't be able to see the iPhone's processor speed or the amount of RAM installed. Only the storage capacity is used to describe your iPhone as 8GB or 16GB version.

The
wikipedia entry for the iPhone has information about the iPhone's hardware components listed as below. Take note that these specifications came from other websites based on their skills in disassembling the device.

Processor: 620 MHz
ARM 1176,underclocked to 412 MHz
RAM (
Memory): 128MB DRAM
Storage: 8GB and 16GB

If only the iPhone's screen is large enough given the specs above, it can definitely run Mac OS X 10.4 or Windows XP with additional software tweaking. But you don't need to have that as the iPhone OS alone is terrific.






Posted by: Rouge





Thursday, August 28, 2008

iPhone 2.0.2 update may result in iPhone not receiving emails


Mail in trouble
by: Rouge

Most iPhone users from the around the world are having several issues with their iPhones after a software update. It almost seems like it didn't fix anything but rather it adds another issue. Its kind of unexplainable but its definitely fixable. One of the top issues after a successful software update is trouble with receiving emails which I'm going to discuss on this entry.

To resolve e-mail receiving issue try the following in sequence

1. Reboot your iPhone and try accessing the Mail app. If that doesn't resolve your issue please continue

2. Reset all settings. From the home screen, go to Settings, Tap General , scroll down to find and go to Reset > Reset All Settings. This step will reboot your iPhone, try again accessing your Mail, if issue exist go to step 3

3. Re-setup the entire email account. Go to General > Mail Contacts Calendars, choose your email address and tap "Delete Account." That will also delete your emails but this will definitely fix any receiving email issue.

The problem is pretty much isolated to happen on POP accounts. Other emails such as Gmail, Yahoo and AOL are working fine after the update. Example of POP accounts are those emails provided by your ISP like Road Runner, Bellsouth (US Only).

Posted by: Rouge

How to completely clean reinstall iTunes (Mac/Windows)


Often times you may experience issues with your iPhone 3G and iTunes. If you sync your iPhone, iTunes may indicate its syncing by displaying a little spinning arrow but your actual iPhone is idle and doesn't say that a sync is in progress. For this kind of issue, you may need to try reinstalling iTunes completely altogether with its subcomponents.

For Windows users

1. Completely close every program running on your PC including iTunes. Make sure that all USB devices like iPhone and iPod are not connected.

2. Open Control Panel > Add or Remove Programs... wait for the list to populate all the Programs on your computer. You should be able to find "iTunes" as one of the programs listed, select it and click on the remove button on the lower right corner. The process of uninstalling should begin immediately.

3. You will also need to uninstall the following programs. They are all included in the iTunes installation package.
* Apple Software Updater
* Apple Mobile Device Support
* Bonjour
* Quicktime

4. Restart your computer as requested.

5. To reinstall the latest version of iTunes, go to www.apple.com/itunes/download/
Save the file on your desktop for easy access.

6. The name of the iTunes installation file is "iTunesSetup.exe" just double click and run the program and wait until Installation finishes.

For All Mac Users

1. Quit all applications running
2. Open the Applications folder, put iTunes.app in the trash
3. Remove com.apple.itunes.plist located at Home folder\Library\Preferences\
4. Download the installer from apple.com/itunes/download and install

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Top 10 things you need to know about the iPhone

by: Rouge


10. It doesn’t have MMS, (multimedia messaging service) – a messaging capability to send or receive videos and photos over the phone. Has long been present to older phones but not on your iPhone 3G that is 5 years ahead of other phone technology.

9. No video recording capability. You can only snap a picture. Your lucky enough if you can capture sharp picture, it’s crappy most of the time so I don’t even bother use my iPhone for snapping pics.

8. No option for sending business card like what your Nokia phone does.

7. Bluetooth file transfer are not available. Sorry, Bluetooth here is only for integration with your mono Bluetooth headset or car kit.

6. Three percent (3%) of those who downloaded either 2.0.1 or 2.0.2 update are having issues receiving email after an update. A small 1-3% of those who updated to 2.0.2 has resulted in their iPhone to only show the Apple logo of death or stay in recovery mode.

5. Another 1-3% of iPhone 3G users are experiencing “No Service” issue whilst on 3G but will get reception when 3G is disabled. Rumor has it that Apple chose a bad 3G chipset for their iPhones.

4. An unknown percentage of iPhone users have dropped their iPhones and crack their screens because of playing games that requires tilting and shaking the device.

3. Most of the people getting error message “Unknown error ” after a failed update or restore are Windows XP users.

2. The iPhone 3G in the Philippines is still overpriced.

1. Your warranty will not be honored by AppleCare if your iPhone is purchased in somewhere else. Most of the iphones in Greenhills (Virramall) either came from US, Europe or Australia. Apples record will show the country of origin attached to your serial number. In the Philippines, support for the iPhone is only with Globe, the official wireless carrier.

Monday, August 25, 2008

The iPhone 3G is here: Is it worth the wait?


From: Philippine Daily Inquirer
article dates back August 21st, 2008

MANILA, Philippines—A mobile phone, an iPod music and video player, and an Internet device in your pocket: That about sums up what Apple Corp.’s iPhone is. This Friday, the latest incarnation of Apple’s mobile device—the iPhone 3G—becomes available in the Philippines through local carrier Globe Telecom Inc.

Will it be a hit in this text-crazy part of the world?

Representatives from Apple Computer South East Asia Ltd. in Singapore who flew in to Manila last week believe so. In fact, they invited a handful of local journalists to test-drive the iPhone 3G for a week prior to the Aug. 22 official launch.

The iPhone 3G comes in two models—an 8-GB (in black only) and 16-GB (in black and white). The test unit is the 16-GB black model (top of the line, so far).

Straight out of the box, one is easily struck by the elegance in its simplicity—a smooth glass surface with one—yes, just one—button, the Home key. The sculpted design of the iPhone 3G fits more comfortably in one’s hand than the first-generation iPhone (which has a rather slippery silver aluminum back and is a bit heavier). It sports real metal buttons (plastic in the first-generation iPhone), hard and glossy plastic back and a generous 3.5-inch wide multi-touch screen. At 4.5 inches long, 2.4 inches wide, less than half an inch thick and weighing just 4.7 ounces (133 grams), the iPhone 3G is simply sleek.

On the left side are the volume up and down button and the ring/silent switch that easily puts the phone in silent mode. On the top are the sleep/wake button and the flush headset jack that now allows the use of any standard 3.5 mm headphones. (The first-generation iPhone uses a proprietary headphone jack, so with the earlier iPods). At the back are the 2-megapixel camera and the trademark Apple logo.

After almost a week tinkering with the iPhone 3G (browsing, downloading pictures, listening to music, watching movies, playing games, calling and texting), there are just so many things to like about it.

A major come-on of the iPhone 3G is that it is so easy to use. All applications (phone, SMS, contacts, Safari web browser, calendar, mail, iPod, iTunes Store, photos, camera, settings, YouTube, calculator and others) are just a tap away on the Home screen, no need to look for them in folders, subfolders and sub-subfolders.

The multi-touch screen is an other cutting-edge feature of the iPhone 3G that will please just about anyone. Apple’s innovative software lets the user control everything with the touch of a finger. Tap a contact to make a phone call, flick through albums and even pinch (or double tap) to zoom in or out on photos, e-mail or a section of a web page. Slide a finger to scroll up or down the contacts list or browse through the photo gallery. It’s simply cool.

The built-in Qwerty keyboard is also smart, appearing only when needed, to give more room for viewing whole web pages, seeing more e-mails, looking at Google maps or watching a movie. The best way to use it though is to use the thumbs (and trust the intelligence of the keyboard, which makes use of a built-in dictionary that automatically adds the names in the contacts list to the dictionary, and new words—including Filipino words—into a dynamic library.)

Did I mention an autocorrection, autocapitalization, the phone’s ability to add punctuation marks, like apostrophes to words, and putting a period and a space to begin a new sentence by double-tapping the spacebar?

The built-in accelerometer is another amazing feature of the iPhone 3G. When surfing the Net or viewing picture galleries, the accelerometer detects when the phone is rotated from portrait to landscape and automatically changes the contents of the display to see the entire width of a web page or a photo in its proper landscape aspect ratio. The built-in accelerometer also allows moving and tilting the phone to control the action in many game applications.

The iPhone 3G also has a proximity sensor that detects when the phone is near the ear when on a call and immediately turns off the display to save power and prevent inadvertent touches until the phone is moved away.

Students will also like the iPhone 3G’s calculator. Tap numbers and functions just as you would with a standard calculator. When the add, subtract, multiply or divide button is tapped, a white ring appears around the button to let the user know the operation to be carried out. True, almost all mobile phones have this. But rotate the iPhone 3G and the ordinary calculator is transformed into an expanded scientific calculator.

Syncing and managing content on the iPhone 3G is also a breeze. Anybody who has an iPod already knows how to sync an iPhone 3G—it works exactly the same way. iTunes is the hub of all digital content of the iPhone 3G. When the phone is connected to a computer, it shows up in the iTunes source list and is ready to sync. It can sync calendar events from iCal or Entourage on a Mac or Outlook on a PC. It works with the most popular e-mail systems—including Yahoo! Mail, Google, Gmail AOL, and most POP3 and IMAP e-mail system. It works out of the box with Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync to allow access to one’s personal and work e-mail. It also displays multiple e-mail accounts.

E-mail on the iPhone 3G is equally impressive, offering a viewing experience unlike any other mobile device. With its rich HTML format, e-mail looks and acts like e-mail on a computer. The phone also has built-in readers for viewing attachments such as PDF, JPEG, Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint files. It can also receive push e-mail directly from Microsoft Exchange.

Apple support is perhaps the most significant attraction of the newest iPhone. On the phone’s home screen is an icon called “App Store.” One tap and out comes a list of applications in every category imaginable—from games to business, education to entertainment, finance to health and fitness, productivity to social networking. The applications in the App Store have been designed to take advantage of iPhone 3G features such as the multi-touch screen, the accelerometer, wireless connectivity, GPS and real-time 3D graphics. There are now more than a thousand applications ready to download from the App Store, and many of them are free. The multitude of applications (which are also available for the first-generation iPhone and the iPod Touch) are simply unlike anything ever seen on a mobile device.

The browsing capability of the iPhone 3G is similarly impressive. However, browsing speed of the iPhone 3G (Apple says it’s twice as fast as the first-generation iPhone) really depends on 3G and Wi-Fi coverage: The stronger the signal, obviously the faster the web pages are loaded. On Edsa, loading pages on the go can be as fast as 20-25 seconds, though certain spots (most probably with weak 3G coverage) take an eternity to load. Browsing using Wi-Fi at home (with 3G off) was faster and more consistent, and most web pages loaded in about 10 seconds.

This is no publicity for Apple and the iPhone 3G. The new mobile phone is truly sleek and fantastic, but it is not perfect.

There are still little things that many Filipino mobile users will find lacking in the iPhone 3G. For one, it does not accept business cards nor can contacts from other handsets be sent through Bluetooth. It also does not have a text-forwarding function. Heavy phone users cannot just bring a spare battery to replace a drained one. (The iPhone 3G does not have an accessible battery compartment for easy replacement of a drained battery.) The battery life of the iPhone 3G is also shorter than that of the first iPhone, especially when 3G is turned on. (A full charge lasted about six hours of surfing using 3G/EDGE).

In the end, all these shortcomings, if one can call them that, will be overwhelmed by the multitude of functions that the iPhone 3G can do.

If there is one word to describe the iPhone 3G, “amazing” should be it.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

More iPhone Launch News


As the international date line marched across the globe late last night, iPhones began going on sale in the Philippines and 21 other countries. TUAW reports that there was a sold-out party counting down until iPhones went on sale in the Philippines, the first of the latest batch of countries to launch the iPhone 3G. iPhones are reportedly selling well in India, despite high prices and lack of 3G networking. Unlocked iPhones are on sale in Greece, as is the law, starting at a hefty €459 (US$679), though opting for iPhone 500 super plus plan can shave off €176 (US$260).
iPhone 3G went on sale today in 22 additional countries, adding some 300 million potential customers.

Orange Poland, however, wasn't quite as optimistic. To "warm up the atmosphere around the launch of the iPhone," Orange marketers in that country apparently hired actors to pretend to be iPhone customers wanting in line, hoping to generate significant buzz. I'm no expert on the mobile market in Poland, so I can't vouch if such a move was necessary, but my gut tells me it wasn't. There certainly has been a buzz, though—about how lame of Orange it was to pull such a stunt.

Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster noted this morning that Apple has nearly doubled its potential market base with the addition of 22 countries, to a total of 660 million potential subscribers. Odds are good that if even a small percentage of that base opts for an iPhone, Apple will easily exceed even its own sales expectations. For his part, Munster remains bullish on iPhone sales projections, adding that "we believe shares of AAPL will trade on iPhone unit volumes for the next several quarters, so we expect the iPhone unit upside to be a positive catalyst for the stock."


Source: arstechnica.com

The iPhone Launch Party

Globe's iPhone Launch Party

Globe kicked off the iPhone 3G Launch Party with thousands of people counting down to 12 midnight with free flowing beer, food and lots more. No other mobile phone ever enjoyed this same treatment as the Apple iPhone.
According to one of the managers at the floor, Globe was able to activate and distribute over 600+ 3G iPhone in less than 3 hours.

A lady from Bulacan was the very first Globe iPhone customer, waiting in line at the open grounds of the Makati Stock Exchange as early as 3PM that afternoon.

Thousands more have reserved their iPhone 3G online and thru Globe hotlines and they’re expecting people lining up on all business centers around Metro Manila today. From what I heard, the most popular unit so far is the Black 16GB iPhone 3G. Majority of those who got an iPhone were customers claiming them as loyalty rewards.

Could this be the largest iPhone customer line in the world?

Source: TechBlog.com

Friday, August 22, 2008

It's Finally here



It's Finally Here...

The long wait is over. It's finally here. The iPhone 3G. Please review my previous post on how you can get started with the iPhone. I will post more articles in the coming days.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

3G Connection Problems with iPhone may be Hardware related


In the US, more and more iPhone users are complaining about dropping calls, poor 3G reception, switching between 3G to EDGE while standing still, dropped calls when on 3G, and "no service" at all while on 3G. An analyst says that the problem could be the 3G chipset built on the iPhone and that no software update can fix it since the issue is the hardware itself. Apple has no comment or made any official statement about this issue.

If the issue is software, then a software or firmware update can eventually fix this problem. If the issue is about an immature 3G chipset then a product recall will solve this issue.

Overall the iPhone 3G works fine without 3G. You will love everything about the iPhone. Its a handy piece of Mac OS X and I love the idea that you can play games and download them for free. Forget about 3G. All we do here is to talk and text on the phone and 3G doesn't play an essential role on doing that.

For all the people waiting for Friday August 22nd. Go ahead and buy the phone. Although Apple is silent about this issue, I'm sure that Apple will stay behind its products and is dedicated to customer's satisfaction.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

iPhone Software Update 2.0.2 now available

Software Update for the iPhone 2.0.2 is now available in iTunes.

Looks like you've got an update to do right after purchasing your iPhone 3G coming August 22nd.

Apple did not enumerate any specific issues that the software update will fix except for "Bug fixes." 

This update will definitely make the iPhone Hackers "Dev team" who just released their own patch August 10 to jailbreak 2.0.1 but it looks like they got more work to do now that the genuine 2.0.2 update is released monday night (August 18th, 2008) thats tuesday morning Manila time.




Top 10 things why Pinoys would not buy the iPhone 3G


Top 10 things why Pinoys would not buy the iPhone 3G

by Rouge

1. You cannot forward a funny joke or a quotable quote sent to you via text message. Yep! The phone doesnt have a "forward message" feature."

2. You cannot forward a text message to your Globe contacts on your distribution list. There is no option for forwarding to a group like your nokia phone does.

3. There is no video recording on the iPhone or any application that will do this function.

4. Still, the camera is a bit crappy at the same 2.0 Megapixel resolution.

5. You cannot transfer via bluetooth an Mp3 you download somewhere on the internet nor you can receive anything on bluetooth. The bluetooth is there for the purpose of pairing to a Bluetooth wireless headset (mono)

6. You cannot use any custom ringtone like you did before on your previous phone. You can only sync ringtones if you purchase it in iTunes. There's a lot of workaround you can do for this issue but it requires jailbreaking your phone.

7. No memory card expansion slots. You cannot store anything on this phone like you used to on your iPod's hard disk. But the iPhone itself has enough space for you to work with.

8. You cannot view any flash video from other sites on Safari (internet browser) except youtube. Youtube has converted millions of videos last year into mp4 format for it to be viewable on the built in app "Youtube"

9. No option to save a download file in Safari nor you can upload a file from your phone.

10. Budget. Taghirap. Poor. Ala pera. Kulang allowance. Mahal bigas, Taas gasolina, Problemang panlipunan, at iba pa.

Monday, August 18, 2008

Presyo ng iPhone 3G - bumagsak din sa wakas


MANILA, Philippines – Globe Telecom announced it will sell the iPhone 3G via prepaid at P37, 599 or around P4, 000 less than its initial introductory price, the company said Friday.

Globe said in a statement iPhone 3G prepaid kits will be available at P37, 599 and P43, 799 for the 8GB and 16GB, respectively.

Globe said the new pricing will apply to all subscribers — even to those who have made reservations. Globe earlier said Apple’s latest iPhone device will be available starting August 22.

The prepaid plans come with P1,000 load spread over 5 months, or P200 per month. Also, the first 1,000 phonekit purchases will get another P1,000 discounts off the purchase price.

Earlier this month, Globe said it will see the iPhone 3G via prepaid at P41,899 (8Gb) and P48, 899 (16Gb). The iPhone 3G is likewise available through postpaid plans ranging from P1,599 to P4,999 a month, inclusive of free WiFi via Globe Wiz.

Globe added zero-interest purchase plans in partnership with local banks still apply.

The Apple iPhone 3G, which operates on the third-generation (3G) mobile network, will also come with a built-in global positioning system (GPS) for location-based mobile services.

The iPhone 2.0 software includes support for Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync, apart from hundreds of third-party applications built with the recently released iPhone software development kit.

Beware of iPhone with Plastic Cracks


The new iPhone 3G 16GB version will be available in 2 different colors, that is black and white (Apple loves these colors on their product). I'm not sure if the white version will be available here but I hope it does. More iPhone users are reporting about their phones showing some cracks on the back part, this is most noticeable on the part where the buttons are located. The cracks are even more noticeable on the white version because of the discoloration of the hairline crack. If you happen to purchase an iPhone and notice a crack, immediately return it to the Place of Purchase and reference your return to US users who were able to exchange their phones at an Apple store and walk away happy. If you purchase it in Greenhills then goodluck.



3 more days to go and the iPhone will say hello. 

Posted by Rouge
reference: ilounge.com

Thursday, August 14, 2008

More Google fun on the iPhone...



Have you ever tried searching for your name on Google? Say your name is Dyesebel, if you try searching for that as a keyword in Google then a Wikipedia entry would come up as your top result plus thousand of other results. Try tweaking your search by adding some terms and you'll get interesting results.
Example: "si dyesebel ay" (don't forget to include the quotes)


Sample results:

1. ...si Dyesebel ay ipinadukot ito at ipinalabas sa mga karnabal.
2. ...
si Dyesebel ay nagpunta sa din lupa. Pupuntahan ni Isabel si Fredo upang ipakita rito na si Cassandra ay nagpapanggap lamang
3
. ...Si Dyesebel ay isang sirena sa nobelang komiks na nilikha ni Mars Ravelo noong dekada '50.
4. ...Si Dyesebel ay magiging ‘tuyo’ (dried fish) pero sa ngayon ay hindi pa sila hihinto at sine-savor pa rin nila ang moment nila sa telebisyon. ...

very interesting indeed...

Now, I played with the word iPhone in combination with other supporting words to make a phrase and this is what I've got...

I. "i love my iPhone because"

1. I love my iPhone because it is like a little mobile computer, iPod and phone in one. I love being able to see youtube, email, facebook and news on the fly. ...

2. I love my iphone because I use it for so much more then I thought I would with my business email account and getting directions to places on google maps. ...

3. I love my iPhone, because I am an ignorant child, female, or just want to be a poser, that's about it. Other than that it's pretty much a ...

4. I love my iPhone because it can find me starbucks faster than anyone else can and I can buy phat beats while ...

5. i love my iPhone because it has all my music and pictures EASLILY synced to them. With the blackjack I had to use Windows Media Player or another ...

Alright , lets see what this next search keyword would give us...

II. "i hate my iphone because"

1. I hate my iPhone because:. the 2 mega pixel camera s*cks; no video, i need video!!!!!! it's closed at the moment so there's no ShoZu, ...

2.
I hate my iPhone because of Telcel. The responsible for bringing the 3G to Mexico. The idiots made a mistake while migrating my plan to the iPhone's plan ...

3.
i hate my iphone because it costs sooo much and doesnt have a lot of features. also i hate it because i cant send pics and bluetooth transfers dont ...

4.
I hate my iPhone because it can’t output crappy bit-rate videos to my HD TV! ...


Chill. 1 Week more to go and the iPhone will say hello. iPhone 3G coming August 22nd.


Posted by Rouge