Articles by Jeremy Sikora
Not that any of you AT&T customers really need the reminder. Regardless, the wait is almost over folks, AT&T is finally flipping the MMS switch for all of their iPhone customers this Friday, September 25th.
Sure, this day marked in your calendars but would any of you like to take bets on whether or not the network will buckle when you have every single iPhone owner sending picture after picture all day long? Don’t be too upset when the person you are sending the image to tells you they have not gotten it yet. That’s more than likely to happen unless AT&T really used this extra time wisely and beefed up their network like they claimed in preparation for the flood gates they are about to open…
Still, according to some of our readers, it seems as if AT&T is currently sending out text messages reminding you of this day that so many of you cherish.
“Picture &video message(MMS) will be available for iphone on 9/25. While we prepare your account for MMS capability, the current ” view my message” experience will be turned off but your ability to send and receive text messages will not be affected.”
How many of you have received this message?
[Thanks for the tip Mike!]
Porn and iPhone, it is out there and every once in a while you may even find porn in there. In an Apple Retail Store on one of the iPhone and iPod Touch demos, that is.
That’s exactly what happened just the other day as a mother found her 10 year old girl mesmerized by some X-rated content on one of the Apple Store demo devices:
“I called to complain and was told matter of factly by staff this happens a lot as people come in and download it for a laugh, I don’t find it funny and all my friends think it’s disgusting, but Apple say there is nothing they can do to stop it.”
Apple does a fantastic job of keeping smut out of iTunes and their App Store, surely they can figure something out for their real-world stores. 
[Via Cult of Mac]
Update: Engadget Mobile just got word from AT&T that the MicroCell and it’s pricing structure are only in “public trial” at the moment in Charlotte, North Carolina. So sit tight folks as AT&T has “no other announcements to make at this time”.
So you say you have horrible AT&T coverage in your home and you are about to leave your beloved carrier? Hold that thought for just one moment as AT&T’s 3G MicroCell website just went live with a launch right around the corner. We all knew this was coming when Apple released the carrier file that added MicroCell support for our iPhones. Unfortunately, unless you have AT&T internet or landline service you must pay more, rumored to be $19.99 a month for unlimited use, to have the service you should already expect to have.
This is a great option for those of you stuck with a garbage signal in your home or office but without a doubt this should be a free solution as you already pay good money for the AT&T service. Even Sprint has been known to give their MicroCell away for free to customers who have no other choice but to ditch the carrier for another because of subpar service. Is it possible for AT&T to be just as forgiving?
If you decide to give this a try please let us know how it goes!
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
Poor battery life and iPhone are a few words that get mixed together all too often it seems. While some will say it’s fine, others will say it’s pitiful. As many of you know, battery life will fluctuate greatly between users and their individual usage patterns but TiPb wants to provide you with some simple tips and tricks on conditioning your battery to provide a maximum life and squeezing as much usage out of each charge as possible.
The battery in an iPhone is a lithium-based battery which is most common in consumer portable devices. A lithium-ion battery provides 300-500 discharge/charge cycles in its lifetime and the following tips are just a few ways to efficiently gain longer battery lifespans while extending overall battery life of your iPhone.
- Be sure to go through at least one charge cycle per month (charging the battery to 100% and then completely running it down).
- Avoid heat – do not leave your iPhone in a hot car or in direct sunlight.
- Optimization of your settings. Yes, some of these are no brainers but can be effective. Simple things like:
- turning off Location Services,
- turning off Wi-Fi and Bluetooth when not in use,
- fetching new data less frequently,
- setting the brightness of your screen below 50%,
- turning of the EQ while listening to music,
- turning off 3G while not surfing the internet (Yes, we said it…)
All of these add up to better battery life.
After you’ve tried some of the above tips and you are still not happy or your battery life is just horrid all together, you may want to try restoring your iPhone and do not restore from a backup file but rather restore as a new iPhone. All too often we hear about horrible battery life striking many of you after updating your iPhone to the latest software. If this is the case, 9 times out of 10 a separate restore as a new iPhone will clear up your battery issue.
Have some battery saving tips you’d like to share? Leave them in the comments for others to take advantage of!
Starting today AT&T has flipped the switch on their A-List unlimited calling feature. The complete details are as follows:
- Individual plans 900+ minutes ($59.99 and over) per month, and FamilyTalk plans 1400+ minutes ($89.99 and over) per month qualify for A-List
- No extra charge with your qualifying plan
- Add up to 5 numbers on your individual plan
- Add up to 10 numbers on your FamilyTalk plan
- Add any domestic number, on any network – including landline numbers
- Update your list online as often as you want, right from your myWireless Account
For those of you who do meet these requirements, you can now log into your online account and set up your A-List! For those of us who are less fortunate and do not meet AT&T’s required plans, would you pay a few extra bucks a month to get A-List?
[Thanks for the tip Gregg!]
It’s time for some good old forum action. Reading From the Forums is a great way to see what all of the current hot topics are on the TiPb forums. In order to create any new threads of your own or reply to any of the existing threads, you must be a registered member. Becoming a member is a simple process that will only take a few minutes out of your day, so if you have not already already done so, head on over and register now.
Rene has started an excellent thread for those of you who want to know more about iPhone 3.1 along with iTunes 9 – TiPb’s iPhone 3.1 Software Walkthrough is the place to go if you’d like to know what has changed in the software and/or need a link to send to some of your friends who have similar questions.
This next thread was started by xtremeyouth1 and he poses an interesting question – Will there be a new design for 4th generation iPhone? It’s never to early to start speculating!
Last up for today we’d like to remind everyone who is in search for cool wallpaper and ringtones to please visit our dedicated forum – iPhone Wallpapers and Ringtones. That thread is the place to be for the latest and greatest to customize your iPhone.
See you on the forums!
The BlueAnt V1 Bluetooth Headset for iPhone 3G/3GS [$68.92 - TiPb Store Link] has been a pleasant surprise as I did not think I’d find another Bluetooth headset that I would prefer over the highly regarded Jawbone PRIME.
For the full scoop follow us after the break! Read the rest of this entry »
The Dev Team have updated their blog to let the jailbreakers of the world know how to go about jailbreaking iPhone 3.1. It seems as if Apple has really thrown a monkey wrench into jailbreaking the 3.1 software, however, so sit tight as this may be a bit confusing…
First and foremost they have released the PwnageTool 3.1 for Mac OS X that should only be used with the original iPhone and iPhone 3G. Sorry 3GS owners, you’ll have to wait. Be sure to heed some of the Dev Teams warnings before attempting to jailbreak your device.
- If you are using a 3G iPhone with ultrasn0w and rely on ultrasn0w to obtain cellular service, then you should only upgrade to 3.1 with a PwnageTool created .ipsw. – Stay away from Apple’s direct updates.
- If you have an original iPhone (1st generation) then 3.1 unlock works with this PwnageTool release. iPhone 3G users upgrading to 3.1 will need to continue using ultrasn0w with a PwnageTool created 3.1 .ipsw
- PwnageTool WILL work for Original iPhone (1st Generation), Original iPod touch (1st Generation) and the iPhone 3G.
For the full rundown please visit the Dev Teams blog and make sure you fully understand what you are getting yourself into before attempting to jailbreak iPhone 3.1.
If you don’t understand it, don’t do it, and TiPb takes no responsibility for the outcome either way. Need more? Check out TiPb’s Forums.
On tap for today’s TiPb Top 5, we thought we’d cater to all of our iPhone and iPod touch wielding readers who enjoy action games. Just like our TiPb’s top 5 must-have board games, all of these games are available in the App Store, this time under categories – games – action. And even better, all of them are very reasonably priced. For the full run down, follow us after the break!
According to Macrumors we may just start seeing iPhone dedicated activation areas as well as designated iPhone staff in our local Apple retail stores starting today.
These new staff members, rumored to be called “iPhone Experts”, will obviously be there to help streamline the sales of iPhones along with providing a dedicated “expert” that can accommodate all of your iPhone needs. The whole concept behind this new layout sounds ideal for those of you who are first time Apple shoppers.
So if you happen to pass by your local Apple store within the next few days, stop in and say hello to your very own “iPhone Expert”.
