Category: Articles

I’m off to download iTunes, the first thing I notice is that Apple wants to send me special offers and updates via email.

No thanks, I wonder if they really need my email address or if a dummy one would suffice. I toss in my actual one and click the button.

Eighty eight frieken megs? I could fit an entire operating system in there. I’m already worried about bloat and I’m wondering if I’m getting more then I bargined for.

It takes awhile to download. While it does I play with the four buttons on my phone. I still don’t know what the up/down button on the side does.

Finally the download finishes and I click on the installer. I learn that I also will be installing quicktime.

I start reading the EULA, but really.. who reads them. I quickly click accept. On the next page it wants to put icons on my desktop to which I choose ok. It also wants to take over my audio files, which is certaintly not ok and it wants to auto-update. Which I choose no because I have no idea what the mechanism is. Will it install a program in the background constantly looking, or will it just check for updates when I load iTunes. Better safe then sorry. I should be able to turn back on the auto-update if the program is written well.

It also asks for a location to install and a language. I keep these at their defaults and click next. I’m greeted with a slideshow of features while the installer writes out eighty eight megs of software. So far I’m not impressed with anything in the slideshow. I was already able to import CD’s play my library and enjoy my collection without iTunes.

The installer seemed to get stuck. And only after a little hunting did I find that there was a second windows authentication to click yes on. Soon it’s finished. Sure I’ll open it up.

Once again I’m greeted with a software agreement. Maybe I should actually read this thing. After agreeing a wizard pops up to prepare me for my journey. I hate wizards.

It states it’s going to check my “My Music” folder for files. I don’t keep anything in there so I deselect those options. Next iTunes asks me if it should rename my files. Hell no. I’ve spent countless hours orginizing my collection. Don’t touch my files.

It mentions creating a store account so it can download artwork. All my music already has artwork. No thanks.

Next it asks to sync up with various applications. Nothing about Firefox in there.

Suddenly my phone actually works. Or so it seems.

——–

It did actually work, and for the last few days I’ve been playing around a lot. Still not completely happy with it’s marriage with iTunes but the ipod itself has been a wet dream.

• Absolutely need a computer + iTunes to ‘unbrick’ the phone so to speak. This leaves linux users in the dust. Also what if you don’t have a computer and just want a cool phone?
• App store EULA stated I could use paypal for payment, yet the signup asked for a credit card and had no way to enter paypal information. I found later I could go through iTunes and set this up but still a disapointment that I couldn’t do it via the phone. And to be honest I’m not sure it worked because it still displays my credit card under payment information.
• No easy way to delete default apps. Follow the previous link to learn to do it the hard way.
• Touch pad sometimes doesn’t work at all! Wait, that’s because my fingers are big and are triggering the pad at the sides when I normally hold the phone.
• My refurbished iPhone did not come with any instruction manual. Not sure if there even is an instruction manual for the iPhone.
• Did a search, and nope can’t get a bluetooth keyboard to work for the iPhone. In fact apparently you can’t get anything but mono headsets to work.
• In order for me to program my own apps, I need to pay $99 at least to sign up with the iPhone Developer Program.
• My flubby fingers hate hitting the M button on the keyboard. Keeps thinking I hit the delete key.
• Sometimes the keyboard is smart, displaying a .com button for web addresses and defaulting to they numerical keyboard when you need to insert numbers. Sometimes it’s dumb, just giving you the standard keyboard.
• iPhone does not import contacts from SIM cards. I had to manually type in every phone number.
• I’ve been able to find tutorials to do most everything above and much much more. All these tutorials seems to start with… ‘I’m assuming your iPhone is jailbreaked.’

Don’t get me wrong. I’m loving my iPhone and it’s miles above my Nokia brick phone I had previously. But there do seem to be some gotchas.