[OT] Q's About I-Phone

[Taro T]

I've got a Droid and am thinking about switching to I-Phone (I-Phone 4?). I'm on Verizon. The Q's I have are:

 

1. Can the I-Phone 4 sync w/ Outlook 2010? I've seen on some forums that it can, but it sounds like there are a few hoops to jump through to make it happen. I was curious if anyone here has synced them and how easy / successful they've been. This would be the deal breaker if I can't sync the 2.

 

1a. How easy is it to pull contact info out of e-mails? The Crackberry was great at that. I'm not a big fan of how the Droid handles that sort of stuff.

 

2. Can you create your own ringtones, or do you have to buy ringtones from the I-phone store? I've made some ringtones of my own and want to continue to use them if I switch phones. Does anyone know if I'll be able to do that and how much of a pain it is to load them if it can be done?

 

3. Can I transfer music from my own CD's to the I-phone or does everything loaded onto the phone have to come from I-tunes? I've got a fairly extensive CD collection and most everything has been burned to my laptop. I usually like to keep about 10 albums on my phone and really don't want to pay for stuff I've already bought.

 

4. I've seen comments that the I-phone doesn't support flash. How much does that limit what you view on the phone?

 

Any general comments about customizability &/or pros / cons would be appreciated.

 

I had a Crackberry Storm for about 3 years. Loved it, but when the battery died I decided to upgrade to the Droid X. It's a nice phone and really slick for internet stuff, but I don't go through G-mail and don't like its business apps. (Which is what I have a smart phone for.) I'm not going to go for the Storm 2, didn't like the reviews it got and there's something to be said for staying away from products manufactured by companies that are undergoing major layoffs.

 

Like I mentioned, the go/no go decision will probably be the answers to Q1, but I'd like to know before I get the phone what I'll be 'living with'. I use my laptop far more often for surfing & the like, so some minor inconveniences aren't that big of a deal.

 

Thanks in advance.

[BetweenThePipes00]

I switched from a Blackberry to the iPhone on Verizon a few months ago ... I admittedly do not use it to its full capability as you probably will but ... since you said #1 would be the deal breaker ...

 

1. I have had ZERO problems with my Outlook sync ... granted, I work for a very very very large internet/media company, so the steps to do it were spelled out for me and even I could not screw it up ... but it has worked great. Again, our mail servers are constantly maintained and monitored and such, so my experience may me somewhat exceptional, but it's been painless.

 

as for the rest, take these with a grain of salt as I have not explored fully probably ...

 

2. I believe you need to make the ringtones into mp3s, put them in itunes and then you can use them

3. If you have all that music on your machine, when you download iTunes (which you will have to do to activate your phone regardless if you ever use it again) it will ask you if you want to load your music into itunes ... if you say yes, it will import it all automatically and you can then move whatever you want to your phone as if it was an ipod. It's pretty easy.

4. True, no flash. I have found that most major sites that normally have something major in flash also have an iphone app for it ... like for instance gamechannel or gamecast on sports sites ... you woudl just use the free app, which is more convenient than going to it through a browser anyway.

[Taro T]

I switched from a Blackberry to the iPhone on Verizon a few months ago ... I admittedly do not use it to its full capability as you probably will but ... since you said #1 would be the deal breaker ...

 

1. I have had ZERO problems with my Outlook sync ... granted, I work for a very very very large internet/media company, so the steps to do it were spelled out for me and even I could not screw it up ... but it has worked great. Again, our mail servers are constantly maintained and monitored and such, so my experience may me somewhat exceptional, but it's been painless.

 

as for the rest, take these with a grain of salt as I have not explored fully probably ...

 

2. I believe you need to make the ringtones into mp3s, put them in itunes and then you can use them

3. If you have all that music on your machine, when you download iTunes (which you will have to do to activate your phone regardless if you ever use it again) it will ask you if you want to load your music into itunes ... if you say yes, it will import it all automatically and you can then move whatever you want to your phone as if it was an ipod. It's pretty easy.

4. True, no flash. I have found that most major sites that normally have something major in flash also have an iphone app for it ... like for instance gamechannel or gamecast on sports sites ... you woudl just use the free app, which is more convenient than going to it through a browser anyway.

:thumbsup:

 

Looks like I'll be getting an I-phone. Thanks for the feedback.

[FolignosJock]

Never had a problem with not having flash which surprised me greatly. I also jail broke my iphone so it kind of changes all of this and makes ringtones and personalization a lot easier. However you shouldnt even need to do that for the abilities you are asking about and BTP is right on. Let us know if you need any troubleshooting the friends of mine that convinced me to upgrade to the iphone know all the tricks to use it the way you want to.

[TM8-PL16]

I will add to some of the questions you have, I can't speak to Outlook but I think that was covered.

 

Ringtones: yes you can turn your own songs into ringtones but you do have to jump thru some hoops to do it, it's not as simple as putting an mp3 on your phone and setting it as a ringtone. You actually have to "create" the 40 seconds of the song you want using iTunes and then load it to your phone as a ringtone file, then set it... steps to do this are all over the internet, just do a search. So yes it can be done, but it is kind of a pain.

 

Your own CDs for music, like mentioned anything you already own can be imported into iTunes with no problem or questions. And you can add CDs at any point in the future, you don't ever have to buy anything from iTunes if you don't want to. One cool thing is that you can add movies to your iPhone, either using a "digital copy" that came with a purchased DVD or just buy the movie from iTunes...

 

as with all big screen phones/devices, the battery gets sucked when the screen is on but if you adjust your brightness you can save some battery life... Also, turn off the option for most of your apps to "notify" you with things like "new posts/emails/updates/scores" etc... and turn off "location" for most apps and it won't use as much battery either. You can always do these things manually when you want them and won't be wasting battery life when sitting in your pocket.

[Taro T]

Never had a problem with not having flash which surprised me greatly. I also jail broke my iphone so it kind of changes all of this and makes ringtones and personalization a lot easier. However you shouldnt even need to do that for the abilities you are asking about and BTP is right on. Let us know if you need any troubleshooting the friends of mine that convinced me to upgrade to the iphone know all the tricks to use it the way you want to.

Appreciate the offer. I expect I'll take you up on it.

 

I will add to some of the questions you have, I can't speak to Outlook but I think that was covered.

 

Ringtones: yes you can turn your own songs into ringtones but you do have to jump thru some hoops to do it, it's not as simple as putting an mp3 on your phone and setting it as a ringtone. You actually have to "create" the 40 seconds of the song you want using iTunes and then load it to your phone as a ringtone file, then set it... steps to do this are all over the internet, just do a search. So yes it can be done, but it is kind of a pain.

 

Your own CDs for music, like mentioned anything you already own can be imported into iTunes with no problem or questions. And you can add CDs at any point in the future, you don't ever have to buy anything from iTunes if you don't want to. One cool thing is that you can add movies to your iPhone, either using a "digital copy" that came with a purchased DVD or just buy the movie from iTunes...

 

as with all big screen phones/devices, the battery gets sucked when the screen is on but if you adjust your brightness you can save some battery life... Also, turn off the option for most of your apps to "notify" you with things like "new posts/emails/updates/scores" etc... and turn off "location" for most apps and it won't use as much battery either. You can always do these things manually when you want them and won't be wasting battery life when sitting in your pocket.

Jumping through a few hoops for ringtones isn't too big of a deal. I've managed to figure out how to put 'em on 3 different phones (w/ some help from this site for 1 of them), so I expect to be able to get them to work. It's good to know that it is possible to create and add my own.

 

The turning off notifications is a good idea. I probably wouldn't have thought of that (but I do make most updating be manual on my devices - I tend to like to know what/when an update is installed). Turning off the phone locater is one of the 1st things I normally do w/ a new phone - it drains battery and I usually don't care whether the phone knows where it is. (If I don't know, it shouldn't get to know either. ;) ) It can always be turned back on if using an app that needs it.

[nfreeman]

I've been using the iphone for work for a couple of years and 100% recommend it. (BTW we use Outlook 2010 and the sync is flawless.) In addition to email and other work items, the other apps/uses -- camera, maps, internet, games, weather -- are just outstanding, seamless and work individually and together extremely well.

 

I'm with AT&T, so I can't speak as to the Verizon version, but my understanding is that there are very few OS differences.

[SDS]

Don't forget, whether your location setting is on or off, iPhone still records your location (stamped with date and time) and stores it in an unencrypted file. Uncle Steve can know everyplace you go if he wants. I've always thought Apple was a little shady anyway. They have legions of Stepford wife-style fans who think that the company can do no wrong. I've worked with both Apples and PCs (and Droids, Blackberries and iPhones) and I stay far away from anything Apple makes.

Droid phones are not all created equal - the OS is the same but different phone manufacturers approach using the OS a little differently. I have an HTC Evo Shift (on Sprint, but HTC makes something similar for Verizon). It is the best smart phone I have owned to date. It may not have the storage capacity of an iPhone, but I don't have it loaded up with a bunch of flashy apps that in the end do nothing but waste my time (and money - an example: a friend of mine has an iPhone app where he enters the time he goes to bed and the time he wakes up and it tells him how long he slept. I kid you not.)

Just my 2 cents....

 

Please take your flame bait to engadget or cnet.

[darksabre]

Please take your flame bait to engadget or cnet.

 

I didn't see anything wrong with that post. He was just providing his opinion.

[SDS]

I didn't see anything wrong with that post. He was just providing his opinion.

 

"Uncle Steve"... "legions of Stepford wife-style fans"... [bunch of irrational garbage about flashy apps, time, and money...]

 

There was not a single constructive thing to say that doesn't invite a flame war.

 

I'm not letting a request by a respected member turn into an Apple/Droid pissing match.

[nfreeman]

Don't forget, whether your location setting is on or off, iPhone still records your location (stamped with date and time) and stores it in an unencrypted file. Uncle Steve can know everyplace you go if he wants. I've always thought Apple was a little shady anyway. They have legions of Stepford wife-style fans who think that the company can do no wrong. I've worked with both Apples and PCs (and Droids, Blackberries and iPhones) and I stay far away from anything Apple makes.

Droid phones are not all created equal - the OS is the same but different phone manufacturers approach using the OS a little differently. I have an HTC Evo Shift (on Sprint, but HTC makes something similar for Verizon). It is the best smart phone I have owned to date. It may not have the storage capacity of an iPhone, but I don't have it loaded up with a bunch of flashy apps that in the end do nothing but waste my time (and money - an example: a friend of mine has an iPhone app where he enters the time he goes to bed and the time he wakes up and it tells him how long he slept. I kid you not.)

Just my 2 cents....

Leaving aside the Apple rant, I owned 2 HTC smartphones and was highly disappointed in both of them. They were poorly constructed and just stopped working after way too short a time given how pricey they were. The iphone has been far superior in my experience, both in functionality and in build quality.

[korab rules]

I've got a Droid and am thinking about switching to I-Phone (I-Phone 4?). I'm on Verizon. The Q's I have are:

 

1. Can the I-Phone 4 sync w/ Outlook 2010? I've seen on some forums that it can, but it sounds like there are a few hoops to jump through to make it happen. I was curious if anyone here has synced them and how easy / successful they've been. This would be the deal breaker if I can't sync the 2.

 

1a. How easy is it to pull contact info out of e-mails? The Crackberry was great at that. I'm not a big fan of how the Droid handles that sort of stuff.

 

2. Can you create your own ringtones, or do you have to buy ringtones from the I-phone store? I've made some ringtones of my own and want to continue to use them if I switch phones. Does anyone know if I'll be able to do that and how much of a pain it is to load them if it can be done?

 

3. Can I transfer music from my own CD's to the I-phone or does everything loaded onto the phone have to come from I-tunes? I've got a fairly extensive CD collection and most everything has been burned to my laptop. I usually like to keep about 10 albums on my phone and really don't want to pay for stuff I've already bought.

 

4. I've seen comments that the I-phone doesn't support flash. How much does that limit what you view on the phone?

 

Any general comments about customizability &/or pros / cons would be appreciated.

 

I had a Crackberry Storm for about 3 years. Loved it, but when the battery died I decided to upgrade to the Droid X. It's a nice phone and really slick for internet stuff, but I don't go through G-mail and don't like its business apps. (Which is what I have a smart phone for.) I'm not going to go for the Storm 2, didn't like the reviews it got and there's something to be said for staying away from products manufactured by companies that are undergoing major layoffs.

 

Like I mentioned, the go/no go decision will probably be the answers to Q1, but I'd like to know before I get the phone what I'll be 'living with'. I use my laptop far more often for surfing & the like, so some minor inconveniences aren't that big of a deal.

 

Thanks in advance.

I had the iphone 3G, and have now had the iphone 4 for a year on ATT.

 

As to question #1, It works absolutely seamlessly with Outlook 2005 - not sure about 2010, but I can't imagine it would be an issue. If you have a dedicated outlook server it is simple as pie and you get push notification. with the dedicated server, I actually get email a second or two faster on my iphone than I do on my networked office computer.

 

creating new contacts from emails is actually a pain in the ass - it will create the new contact based on the email address, but there is no good way to get name, address and phone numbers into the contact - you have to cut and paste each category individually or enter it manually. Unless they use a vcard - those fill the fields automatically when you open them.

 

Just get it - you will love it. There are a couple things it doesn't do as well as other phones on the market, but there are usually apps to work around them.

[BuffalOhio]

:thumbsup:

 

Looks like I'll be getting an I-phone. Thanks for the feedback.

 

Get the TuneIn Radio app. Works WAAAAAY better than WGR550's app. I switched from BB about 3-4 months ago. Love it! Hell, I can't put it down!

[korab rules]

Get the TuneIn Radio app. Works WAAAAAY better than WGR550's app. I switched from BB about 3-4 months ago. Love it! Hell, I can't put it down!

Tune in is a must have app if you want to listen to GR55 on your phone. the GR app is useless. crashes constantly.

[biodork]

Ringtones: yes you can turn your own songs into ringtones but you do have to jump thru some hoops to do it, it's not as simple as putting an mp3 on your phone and setting it as a ringtone. You actually have to "create" the 40 seconds of the song you want using iTunes and then load it to your phone as a ringtone file, then set it... steps to do this are all over the internet, just do a search. So yes it can be done, but it is kind of a pain.

 

Jumping through a few hoops for ringtones isn't too big of a deal. I've managed to figure out how to put 'em on 3 different phones (w/ some help from this site for 1 of them), so I expect to be able to get them to work. It's good to know that it is possible to create and add my own.

 

As far as ringtones, one possibility might be for you to make your own while you still have the Droid using the Ringdroid app, and then I think you should be able to use those mp3 files on the iPhone. That app is sweet... I was really disappointed in the standard ringtones on my Android phone until I found it. I've never used the iTunes version described above, but I'd imagine it's something similar (open the mp3 of your song, then select which portion of the song to create into a ringtone).

[BuffaloSoldier2010]

"Uncle Steve"... "legions of Stepford wife-style fans"... [bunch of irrational garbage about flashy apps, time, and money...]

 

There was not a single constructive thing to say that doesn't invite a flame war.

 

I'm not letting a request by a respected member turn into an Apple/Droid pissing match.

What happened to self moderating?

 

He didn't say all people who buy apple products are this way, few of them are. But they do exist. And apple DOES collect all this information. I don't want to make it sound like droid platforms are the end all, best mobile platform on the market, and i don't think it was his intention either. Each platform has it's own advantages, and so it really does come down to personal preference.

 

I also own an HTC Evo from sprint, it's a wonderful phone, and I'll challenge anyone who thinks the iphone 4 is a better product, but that's just my opinion.

 

I know many people who own the iPhone4 and are extremely happy with it.

 

The one issue I've always had with apple, is that they always seem to do their best to prevent you from interfacing or using their product with any outside party software. This was never a huge issue for me, as with my itouch, i use iTunes, as I'm of the opinion it's the best music interface on the market anyway. Nonetheless, for the most part, they make great products.

 

I see no problem with expressing an idea that challenges and warns of potential concerns with a product another poster is inquiring about, regardless of how minute the issues may be, and IMHO, the only person that would take offense to a statement of how a select few consumers are borderline apple worshipers, would be the same individuals in question.

[frissonic]

As far as ringtones, one possibility might be for you to make your own while you still have the Droid using the Ringdroid app, and then I think you should be able to use those mp3 files on the iPhone. That app is sweet... I was really disappointed in the standard ringtones on my Android phone until I found it. I've never used the iTunes version described above, but I'd imagine it's something similar (open the mp3 of your song, then select which portion of the song to create into a ringtone).

that is a negative, ghost rider. iphone ringtones are a different file format than straight-up mp3s. however, there are several free apps that make ringtone creation easy and fun. if i actually had my iphone with me (instead of having it LOST AND NO IDEA WHERE I PUT IT!), i could tell you which i would recommend, but regardless, the process is the same: put a song on your phone, open the app, navigate to the song, clip the portion you want to use as a ringtone, conenct to itunes, select your phone from the device list on the left, click the apps tab at the top of the screen, scroll down to [insert name of app thingy selection doohickey here], select your ringtone app, xfer files associated with ringtone app to somewhere on your desktop, load those into your library, then drag and drop ringtones from your library to your phone.

 

see?! it's not convoluted or confusing at all! ;)

 

EDIT: as the iphone's next big brother is coming out either in september or october, if it were me, i'd hold off until then. no sense buying one now, only to become ragingly jealous of the new phone when it comes out. the huge thing i'm looking forward to with the next-gen phones it the OTA iOS updates. no connecting to itunes to update! it's all done over the air, much like updating an app.

[SDS]

I've got a Droid and am thinking about switching to I-Phone (I-Phone 4?). I'm on Verizon. The Q's I have are:

 

1. Can the I-Phone 4 sync w/ Outlook 2010? I've seen on some forums that it can, but it sounds like there are a few hoops to jump through to make it happen. I was curious if anyone here has synced them and how easy / successful they've been. This would be the deal breaker if I can't sync the 2.

 

1a. How easy is it to pull contact info out of e-mails? The Crackberry was great at that. I'm not a big fan of how the Droid handles that sort of stuff.

 

2. Can you create your own ringtones, or do you have to buy ringtones from the I-phone store? I've made some ringtones of my own and want to continue to use them if I switch phones. Does anyone know if I'll be able to do that and how much of a pain it is to load them if it can be done?

 

3. Can I transfer music from my own CD's to the I-phone or does everything loaded onto the phone have to come from I-tunes? I've got a fairly extensive CD collection and most everything has been burned to my laptop. I usually like to keep about 10 albums on my phone and really don't want to pay for stuff I've already bought.

 

4. I've seen comments that the I-phone doesn't support flash. How much does that limit what you view on the phone?

 

Any general comments about customizability &/or pros / cons would be appreciated.

 

I had a Crackberry Storm for about 3 years. Loved it, but when the battery died I decided to upgrade to the Droid X. It's a nice phone and really slick for internet stuff, but I don't go through G-mail and don't like its business apps. (Which is what I have a smart phone for.) I'm not going to go for the Storm 2, didn't like the reviews it got and there's something to be said for staying away from products manufactured by companies that are undergoing major layoffs.

 

Like I mentioned, the go/no go decision will probably be the answers to Q1, but I'd like to know before I get the phone what I'll be 'living with'. I use my laptop far more often for surfing & the like, so some minor inconveniences aren't that big of a deal.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

BTW, I can send you a SabreDance ringtone and save you the trouble... :)

[Taro T]

BTW, I can send you a SabreDance ringtone and save you the trouble... :)

Well that's been my default ringtone since somebody here (or was it on the OTW?) 1st posted about 5 or 6 years ago how to text an mpg to a Motorola phone. That ringtone has gone through at least 3 different phones (maybe 4).

 

If you've already got 1 configured to I-phone specs, I'd probably use it. But I'd still need to make 'it's the end of the world as we know it' for when my wife calls. (For some reason she didn't like the Elton John song I was using initially.)

 

I've got a real nice audio mixing program on my old desktop that does a real good job of audio format conversions. I'll have to find out what format the I-Phone uses, if the program will spit out that format, it'll probably be easier than monkeying w/ the app for file conversion.

[SDS]

Well that's been my default ringtone since somebody here (or was it on the OTW?) 1st posted about 5 or 6 years ago how to text an mpg to a Motorola phone. That ringtone has gone through at least 3 different phones (maybe 4).

 

If you've already got 1 configured to I-phone specs, I'd probably use it. But I'd still need to make 'it's the end of the world as we know it' for when my wife calls. (For some reason she didn't like the Elton John song I was using initially.)

 

I've got a real nice audio mixing program on my old desktop that does a real good job of audio format conversions. I'll have to find out what format the I-Phone uses, if the program will spit out that format, it'll probably be easier than monkeying w/ the app for file conversion.

 

That was me!

 

I can send you the ringtone. No problem.

 

(was the original EJ song The ____ is Back? haha).

[FolignosJock]

Tune in is a must have app if you want to listen to GR55 on your phone. the GR app is useless. crashes constantly.

 

 

I hate it so much it keeps telling me its playing but nothing is happening

[FolignosJock]

What happened to self moderating?

 

He didn't say all people who buy apple products are this way, few of them are. But they do exist. And apple DOES collect all this information. I don't want to make it sound like droid platforms are the end all, best mobile platform on the market, and i don't think it was his intention either. Each platform has it's own advantages, and so it really does come down to personal preference.

 

I also own an HTC Evo from sprint, it's a wonderful phone, and I'll challenge anyone who thinks the iphone 4 is a better product, but that's just my opinion.

 

I know many people who own the iPhone4 and are extremely happy with it.

 

The one issue I've always had with apple, is that they always seem to do their best to prevent you from interfacing or using their product with any outside party software. This was never a huge issue for me, as with my itouch, i use iTunes, as I'm of the opinion it's the best music interface on the market anyway. Nonetheless, for the most part, they make great products.

 

I see no problem with expressing an idea that challenges and warns of potential concerns with a product another poster is inquiring about, regardless of how minute the issues may be, and IMHO, the only person that would take offense to a statement of how a select few consumers are borderline apple worshipers, would be the same individuals in question.

 

 

Really??? :bag: :bag: :bag:

 

 

Why is everyone getting so soft-skinned?

[biodork]

that is a negative, ghost rider. iphone ringtones are a different file format than straight-up mp3s. however, there are several free apps that make ringtone creation easy and fun. if i actually had my iphone with me (instead of having it LOST AND NO IDEA WHERE I PUT IT!), i could tell you which i would recommend, but regardless, the process is the same: put a song on your phone, open the app, navigate to the song, clip the portion you want to use as a ringtone, conenct to itunes, select your phone from the device list on the left, click the apps tab at the top of the screen, scroll down to [insert name of app thingy selection doohickey here], select your ringtone app, xfer files associated with ringtone app to somewhere on your desktop, load those into your library, then drag and drop ringtones from your library to your phone.

 

Ah, good to know... sorry Taro, pay no attention to the (wo)man behind the curtain...

[dEnnis the Menace]

I hate it so much it keeps telling me its playing but nothing is happening

 

If I am not using WiFi, then the WGR app does the same thing to me. If I'm using WiFi...it's USUALLY ok...

[wjag]

If I am not using WiFi, then the WGR app does the same thing to me. If I'm using WiFi...it's USUALLY ok...

 

The GR55 App on my DROID is sort of okay. I just can't get it to shut down when I don't want to use it anymore short of killing the app with the task kill. Can't find the "nevermind, just go away button" on it.