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Macworld's Jason Snell says what we're all thinking about iTunes
Those of you who remember iTunes when it was new, when it was merely a revamped version of SoundJam MP, will sympathize the most here. iTunes used to be a great tool for playing music and ripping CD's. Then the iTunes music store came along and it was good. Then apps came along and iTunes went bananas. Jason Snell, Macworld's editorial director, argues iTunes needs an overhaul, and I couldn't agree more. In fact, I had a post on this subject (likening iTunes to Vista, in fact) waiting in the wings for two years now, but I think Snell has hit upon the salient points in his article. Namely: Sync is terrible (and slowly being outdated by pure cloud goodness) and iTunes has become a bloated monster of an application. On a Mac, anyway -- it was always a pretty lousy experience on Windows. Anyone who has tried to manage more than 50 or so apps will tell you what a pain that experience is, let alone the myriad other eccentricities and failures of interface iTunes provides. One of my personal bugaboos are modal dialog boxes. These are pop up windows that usually feature a choice like OK and Cancel and report something went wrong, but the main thing is they require you to click on them before you can do something else. iTunes is chock full of these! From errors galore (I don't know that any Apple software I've used in the 30 years I've been using Apple products has ever thrown as many error messages as iTunes) to just stupid things like warning that some apps couldn't be installed (ad nauseam), iTunes is Apple's most modal window-crazy software maybe EVER. It's a huge impediment to progress, in my opinion, and makes for a horrible user experience. I'd dare say iTunes is the one app consumers simply "put up with" because the rest of the Apple experience is quite good. Also, if you never have errors in iTunes or manage a tiny library, you may never experience too much pain with it. What do you think? Do you wake up each day happy to click in iTunes, or do you dread it like a tooth pulling?
Looking back at the iPhone 4S pre-order launch
The iPhone 4S online pre-order went live last night, and the experience was hectic for me. Sales started about 40 minutes past the original estimate and customers vented their frustration on Twitter. Once live, Apple's store site was quickly overwhelmed by customers as was the Apple Store app. Most problems appear to have been had by US AT&T customers -- Verizon customers, for example, and customers outside the United States seem to have made their purchases rather quickly and moved on. Starting at about 5AM, Apple temporarily switched to a reservation system instead of a purchase system. Apple promised, "We will email you at this address when it's time to complete your order. At that time, you will return to the Apple Store to confirm pricing and plan selection." Unfortunately, many of those reservation orders encountered snags this morning and customers were directed to complete their purchases at retail Apple stores. After that, things seem to have smoothed out as many previously-frustrated customers were funneled out of the Apple system. By the time TUAW's Steve Sande woke up a bit after 5AM, everything was, in his words, "roses and unicorn smiles." For me, personally, my shopping ordeal went on for a couple of hours. Although my heart was set on a 64-GB unlocked GSM world phone, those won't be on sale until November. I settled (though it's hardly settling) for a 32-GB AT&T model, which should provide a good balance of what I need for work vs enough storage space for lots of music, apps and photographs. Did you participate in the shopping frenzy last night? Share your experience in the comments, and let us know what you bought. %Gallery-136046%
Join us tomorrow: Apple's iPhone 4 Press Conference
Apple Press Event Please join us tomorrow at 10AM Pacific (1PM Eastern) for a live TUAW blogging event as Apple addresses the press over its controversial iPhone 4 device. CEO Steve Jobs is expected to lead the event. The question on everyone's mind is, of course, will Apple be holding the event in the right place? Your guess is as good as ours. As the reception from the press might turn out to be a little cheeky in the proximity of such a big announcement, expect a bumper crop of interest from Apple enthusiasts. You can signal your interest by signing up for an e-mail reminder of the event from CoverItLive. What: Apple iPhone 4 Press Event Where: Here on TUAW! Except in the bottom-left-hand corner of the site. When: 10AM Pacific, 1PM Eastern
iPhone 4 Bluetooth issues reported
While testing out the Jawbone Icon wireless Bluetooth headset recently, the parties I called complained of diminished sound quality on their end. They talked about overly compressed muffled sound, with decreased dynamic range. Over at the Jawbone end-user forums several threads have been discussing exactly that. Plantronics forums are reporting issues as well. Informal testing here at TUAW central with a couple of Jawbone units on both an iPhone 3GS as well as the iPhone 4 showed that the 3GS displayed none of the problems that the iPhone 4 is demonstrating.
MicroSIM adapter moves your service back to an earlier iPhone
Yesterday, I went to lunch with a dozen or so Apple enthusiasts, all of us with our new iPhone 4's. And, yes, the topic of conversation was (as you would expect) the awfulness of the signal issues. There were various bumpers and other cases at the table, along with empirical testing. It was very clear that while the bumper added some protection against signal degradation in weak signal areas, the iPhone 4 would not perform well when held with the left-hand kung-fu grip of doom, even with the bumper. With earlier models of the iPhone, it was easy to switch service from one phone to another. Starting with the 3G, you could pop in any AT&T SIM and expect it to work. But the iPhone 4 changed the rules. Its smaller form-factor MicroSIM doesn't fit earlier models, making it more difficult to move your service. Enter the Micro-SIM adapter. Sold by the MicroSIM Shop, the €5.99 adapter (it is sold from Vienna, Austria) allows you to pop your iPhone 4 or iPad 3G SIM into a plastic shell that lets you use it in the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS. It works in the first generation iPhone as well, but requires a jailbreak hacktivation to use the SIM without activating through iTunes. You can also pop that same SIM into many other AT&T phones or into an unlocked third party phone. Read on for more of TUAW's review.
BGR posts AppleCare reception troubleshooter for iPhone 4
As Erica demonstrates in the video above, for some iPhone 4 users it's not that hard to show how the phone's reception is affected by holding it 'wrong.' BoyGeniusReport has a copy of what they claim is AppleCare's internal troubleshooting procedure for iPhone 4, which boils down to "the iPhone 4's antenna is great; avoid holding it that way; and no, you aren't getting a free bumper." BGR also points out that if this is the official line, notably absent is any hint of a software fix coming (counter to what AppleInsider suggested last week). Of course, if there isn't a problem, then why would Apple be planning to fix it? To an extent, Apple (and Steve Jobs who was widely reported to have told a user not to hold their iPhone a certain way) is right. All cell phones have this issue. Yes, Nokia, even yours. But Apple's blasé response to this issue is going to give it legs, especially when Apple's solution is to buy a $30 bumper that they just happened to have started selling to coincide with the iPhone 4 release. Speaking as someone who remembers when iPhones used to come with a dock in the box, and who assumes that the actual production cost of a bumper is probably closer to $5 than $30, I'm surprised Apple isn't trying to avoid the seemingly inevitable class action lawsuit by throwing in a bumper to anyone who has the problem and brings their iPhone 4 into an Apple Store. After all, Nintendo put a wrist strap on the Wii Remote but still gave away plastic grips to help people who were losing control of them. And the story died. There's no doubt that this issue is clouding the iPhone 4's release, even if the issue is only affecting a small percentage of iPhone 4 users (and we don't know what that percentage is). My friend Richard Gaywood posted a detailed explanation of the issue and why it is more likely to be discernible in areas of weak coverage (which AT&T customers refer to as "just about everywhere"). AnandTech posted a detailed explanation as well. MacRumors reported the experience of one user who resolved reception problems with a reseating of the iPhone's MicroSIM, which is easy enough to try on your own. So our question to you iPhone 4 owners is: have you seen it? %Poll-48827%
Found Footage: Apple pulls iSlam Muhammad app
In what is sure to raise a ruckus, comedian / filmmaker / app developer Emery Emery recorded a phone call with an Apple App Store rep when his iSlam Muhammad app was pulled from the App Store after one day. The highly entertaining conversation in its entirety can be heard by watching the "video" above. iSlam Muhammad apparently depicted images of the prophet Muhammad (forbidden by Islam) and outlined disturbing passages from the Qur'an. It's surprisingly similar to BibleThumper, a Christian-bashing app that remains in the App Store. This act of Apple censorship coincides with International Draw Muhammad Day, an Internet event designed to demonstrate how radical Islamic factions are causing traditional news outlets to self-censor themselves in fear of violent retaliation. This event has resulted in the country of Pakistan banning Facebook and YouTube, both of which have a number of pages that are touting the event. What's disappointing is that this points out Apple's lack of consistency in approval of apps, as well as their inability to provide recourse to developers who have had apps rejected for seemingly weak reasons. Now, let the comments begin! Be civil.
Like iPad, blistering in the sun: Temperature issues reported
With all deference to the Violent Femmes, there's nothing upbeat about the cases of overheating that some iPad users are facing in the early days with the device. We've heard directly from two readers about the dreaded 'iPad needs to cool down before you can use it' message; Henry in Colorado and John in Tampa Bay both reported that their units went into thermal standby after being used outside. John noted that his iPad was in the (black, heat-collecting) Apple case... perhaps there's a market for reflective or liquid-cooled models. Both Cult of Mac and Next Web cite similar stories from users who have, in some cases, resorted to popping their iPads into the fridge to chill them out. Of course, the iPhone has sometimes suffered from similar thermal challenges, but there's a difference between roasting your phone in the glove compartment (bad idea) and reading a book on the porch or at the beach (perfectly reasonable activity). iPads that can't take the heat are likely to tick off outdoorsy users. Apple's thermal guidelines for the iPad cite a maximum operating temperature of 35º C / 95º F, but they also note that you might see the temperature warning with "some conditions and activities" like leaving the iPad in direct sunlight for extended amounts of time, or "[u]sing certain applications in hot conditions or direct sunlight for long periods of time, such as GPS tracking in a car on a sunny day or listening to music while in direct sunlight." A few predictions: Apple's first firmware update or hardware revision for the iPad will address overheating issues. Some clever accessory makers will make a pretty penny on sunshades and chill packs (too bad the iBrella name is already taken). And it won't be long before Amazon's ads are set in the actual Amazon rain forest. We'll see spiking thermometers and intrepid explorers frantically looking up remedies for anaconda bites on their burnt-out iPads, before turning to their cool-as-a-cucumber Kindles. Note to Amazon's ad agency: Call me. [Image from Amazon.com]
TUAW How To: Downgrading your 3.1.3 iPhone to 3.1.2
Last week I downloaded (but did not install) the iPhone OS 3.1.3 firmware for my 3GS. I wanted to have a copy of the firmware on hand, but didn't want to upgrade right away. I checked "Do not ask me again" and clicked Download Only. I thought that was the end of the matter. Unfortunately, this Sunday, I plugged in my iPhone and left the room to grab some tea. When I returned, the iPhone was 50% of the way through the 3.1.3 firmware upgrade procedure. It did something I had no idea that it would do: it upgraded me without asking. How frustrating! What's more, I didn't have a copy of 3.1.2 on-hand to downgrade to because iTunes automatically deleted the old firmware files and I was using default Time Machine settings; Time Machine does not normally back up ~/Library, the folder that contains the iTunes ipsw files. Fortunately, I had several resources. First, because I had jailbroken my phone and registered my device signature with Jay Freeman's caching service, I knew I could downgrade my phone. As Jay and I discussed in this LiveChat from a few months back, Apple no longer allows you to freely downgrade your iPhone software. All firmware installations must be verified with Apple's signature servers. By jailbreaking your phone and registering your device signature with Jay's system, you'll be able to bypass Apple's verification system and return to the firmware you prefer -- or at least to the earliest firmware whose signature you have stored on the caching site. To make this happen, you must both register your device and update your /etc/hosts file. Jay's site has complete instructions on how to comply. Second, I could grab a copy of old firmware from sites like Felix Bruns' http://www.felixbruns.de/iPod/firmware/ and iClarified's http://www.iclarified.com/entry/index.php?enid=750. These sites provide Apple download links for old firmware releases. I downloaded a fresh copy of the 3.1.2 ipsw (iPhone software archive) and installed it onto my system. Using a standard option-restore trick, I was able to put that firmware onto my iPhone. iTunes verified the upgrade with Jay's server and installed it onto the device. Note: If you receive the "The iPhone could not be restored. An unknown error occurred (3004)." error, make sure to quit iTunes and flush caches at the command line: sudo dscacheutil -flushcache. If your device updates properly, you will receive a 1015 error and your unit will now enter a semi-permanent recovery mode, the mode in which your device shows an iTunes logo and will not boot further. To proceed, you'll need to use iRecovery. Download a copy from this site. (It requires libusb, so read the entire post before running.) Run iRecovery from the command line and supply the -s flag. Wait for the "]" prompt, and do not type anything until you see that prompt appear. Enter the following commands: ] setenv auto-boot true ] saveenv ] /exit After, you will return to the command line. Reboot your phone by pressing the home and sleep buttons for 10 seconds, per the instructions on the site, and your iPhone should boot back to standard 3.1.2. Note: Be aware that this method does not downgrade your baseband. It remains at the 3.1.3 setting. Thanks Jay Freeman, Sjoerd (aka WiFone), and Paul "PhoenixDev" Griffin
Enough already with the draconian NDAs, Apple
Yo, Apple. February's coming, and likely with it, the iPhone OS 4.0 SDK. And you know what? We're totally over this infuriating ducking NDA thing when it comes to the iPhone software development kit. NDAs refer to nondisclosure agreements. They are contracts -- in this case, between Apple and would-be developers -- that prevent those who have been granted beta access to early releases of Apple's software development kits from discussing any aspect of the SDK in public forums. Apple has pulled this NDA on us a few times before, for iPhone SDKs that anyone and their brother could download and look at freely. I'll say it for the record: NDAs on new iPhone OS SDKs are a bad, bad thing. These NDAs provide no protection against competitors discovering Apple's proprietary secrets. Apple places no restrictions on who may sign up and access those materials. At the same time, they limit developer discourse outside of Apple's rather minimal members-only developer forums. Under past NDAs, TUAW could not publish how-to articles or code samples, which was frustrating. The fundamental problem is not limited to this site, though. Developers couldn't tweet about their experiences, write about them on developer e-mail lists or otherwise engage in the kind of productive peer support that makes a development community thrive. Limiting discussion to a vendor-approved site where posts can be modded and/or deleted at the vendor's whim does not exactly cultivate open discourse. Of course, we're talking about Apple. As avowed "Gearhead" Aleksandr Milewski puts it, "It's Apple. They'd NDA their customers if they could." So you can take it as likely that once again Apple is going to slam down an NDA on our collective selves. At least unless enough people proactively stand up and say: "We're mad as hell about NDAs and we're not going to take it any more." So what can you do? Add your voice to this post. Leave a comment and express exactly how you would feel about Apple NDA'ing the upcoming iPhone OS 4.0 SDK. Tweet it. Status wall it. E-mail it to your friends and to Apple. File a bug report at bugreport.apple.com. Give some unofficial feedback. Post about it on your own blog and leave a link in the comments. It's time to be heard. We're tired of REDACTED and we want change.
Baby Shaker further exposes App Store flaws
Update: According to news.com.au, Apple has issued an official apology for letting this app onto the store. Sometimes, you really have to question the App Store approval process. Sure, this isn't the first time that Apple has made an unwise decision regarding the approval (or lack thereof) of applications to the App Store. But, this one takes the cake. For the span of a few hours on Wednesday, Apple allowed the release of "Baby Shaker," an app from Slkalosoft (ironically, the company no longer has the app listed on its site). The application displayed an image of a crying infant. You had to shake the iPhone or iPod touch repeatedly in order to get the child to stop crying -- literally shaking the baby to death. When the crying ceased and two red Xs appeared over the baby's eyes, you succeeded. There's plenty of criticism over App Store standards. You can find a plethora of fart-simulating apps and other programs designed just to be a sheer nuisance, yet legitimate apps such as Tweetie get caught up in the pipeline because of potentially offensive language. "Baby Shaker" quickly hit a lot of news sites, and it didn't bode too well for an Apple doing its best to spotlight its second quarter earnings. App Store approval is already something that is cumbersome and vague at best -- often leaving developers in limbo as to the status of their product. "Baby Shaker" certainly isn't the first dubious piece of software released into the App Store, but it is by far the worst. Even though Apple did yank "Baby Shaker" within a couple of hours, it does leave a nasty taste in people's mouths. It means that somewhere, somehow, there was a failure to communicate to employees that releasing an application promoting infanticide is a moronically stupid move. I do wonder how long "Baby Shaker" would have remained in the App Store if the media suddenly hadn't jumped on the story. What do you think this latest situation says about the App Store process? Let us know in the comments. [Via CNet] UPDATE: Apple has apologized for the app's release. [thanks to Paul for the tip]
iPhone users reporting reboots due to high App count
Recently, TUAW has received numerous tips about near random iPhone boot loops that force users to restore their units. This forum thread suggests that these reboots may be due to the iPhone's onboard watchdog system. The iPhone has to create a new Application Map whenever you load or unload apps to the system. Should the time to create that map exceed two minutes, the phone enters an endless boot cycle. The solution proposed on the thread isn't of much general use -- it requires jailbroken shell access. You may want to limit the number and scope of Apps you load to your phone (i.e. cut down on those tip calculators and sudoku apps that we know you're secretly addicted to) to achieve the same, stable results. Fewer apps mean a shorter time to generate that map and a better likelihood that your phone will work with greater reliability. Thanks, Goran
The NetShare debacle: Apple, explain yourself
Put yourselves in Nullriver's shoes for a minute: you create an app (NetShare - see TUAW passim), which as far as you can tell does not break any of the App Store rules. You submit it to Apple for inclusion. It passes the vetting procedure (so it must be OK, right?) and goes live online, for sale to real people. Then it disappears, with no warning. No explanation is given. Then it returns. For a while. Again, no explanation. Then it goes offline again. (I've now lost count how many times NetShare has been online, then offline, rinse and repeat.) And throughout all this, you get nothing from Apple. No explanation. No reason. No polite email asking you to wait. Not even an impolite email. Nothing.
The wrong kind of 1%
MobileMe account holders trying to contact Apple's email outage chat support service have been promptly and brutally cut off if they're not on Apple's list of the "1%" of users affected -- and in one case, even if they are.Some TUAW readers have been in touch to tell us that when they tried to get chat support for MobileMe email, they were quickly given this automated (or hastily pasted-in) response:"I'm sorry, according to our records, you were not one of the members affected by the email outage that began on July 18th. MobileMe Mail 24-hour chat support is a temporary measure designed specifically for users whose accounts were affected by that outage. For help, please visit http://www.apple.com/support/mobileme/ww for access to all of our support resources. I apologize for any inconvenience."But one of our correspondents was doubly displeased, because he insisted he had been one of the 1%. But here was Apple telling him he hadn't -- and not giving him any chance to argue the matter.It's that "according to our records" bit that seems to be the problem. What if Apple's records are wrong?Thanks to Bill and Dom for the tip.
AT&T puts the kibosh on voice-free iPhone plans for the deaf
Deafmac.org reports that AT&T has withdrawn its $27.99/month no-voice plan, stating the offer was generated in error. AT&T writes that although they offer many options for the deaf community, they will not offer an iPhone plan. After Deafmac originally posted about the deal, AT&T was apparently contacted by enough hearing customers that they reconsidered their offer What this says to me is that there are people who love the EDGE connectivity the iPhone offers but who just don't need to use their iPhones as a voice device. Will Apple and AT&T step up to the plate and extend the philosophy of Universal Access to at least the hearing impaired community or is too much revenue on the line? Thanks, Nick.
Is Apple the new Microsoft?
So claimeth Mike Elgan of Computerworld in his article on PC World: "It's Official: Apple is the New Microsoft." Well, I'm certainly glad that is settled! On to the iPhone news... Wait a moment, on what grounds does Mike base his comparison? I'll break down the points and test their coherence.Mike's first assertion is a familiar one: the iPod + iTunes ecosystem is the worst kind of monopoly, where you must use iTunes with an iPod. He says, "Not fair, you might say. Any hardware device that syncs data with a PC as part of its core functionality has software to facilitate that syncing. True enough. But operating systems have browsers as part of core functionality, too. Doesn't Mac OS X come with Safari? Doesn't the iPhone?"First of all, his argument is akin to saying ATI has a monopoly because you have to install drivers to make their video cards work. Secondly, his parallel to browsers is nonsensical. What does a browser, a completely different app unwed to any external hardware device, have to do with iTunes or an iPod? I'm not really smart enough to tell which logical fallacy this is, but I know BS when I smell it. Buy CD's, they don't come from the iTunes Store.Moving on to his one-line critique of iTunes: "ITunes is the slowest, clunkiest, most nonintuitive application on my system. But I need it because I love my iPods." iTunes is clunky and unintuitive, huh? Ever try SonicStage? PC World even called IE 6 one of the worst products ever. Of course, MMC plug-ins are models of intuitive design. Let's move on, shall we?
The Retail Apple Store's voice recording lies
So, I've been eagerly banking on running out to my local Apple Store and grabbing a new Intel-based 20" iMac today, because every time I have called one of the stores over the past week, there has been this recording that is still up: "For information and product availability regarding announcements at Macworld 2006 press 9." I press 9 and then it says: "Apple made several exciting announcements at this year's Macworld 2006. The all new Intel Core Duo based imac will be available to view and purchase in stores beginning January 17th."Well, since it is the 17th, I just called the Westchester Apple Store and the Palisades Apple Store, and asked if they had the new iMacs in stock. The gentleman at the Westchester curtly said "No," and when I asked if there would be any shipments arriving later in the day, he again rather curtly, and perhaps even a bit rudely, said "No. No shipments today." This is completely different from what another sales representative from the same store told me yesterday. That person said, "We could get them in at any time, so check back regularly." Both of these statements are entirely different from what I was told last week.In any case, I called the Palisades Apple Store next, and a very nice woman answered the phone and said "Let me check." Then said, "No, but we should be getting them soon." I then asked if soon meant later on today or later on this week. She then said, "Most likely later on this week. They want to make sure the warehouses are full before we get them."What?!?! I wanted this thing today, and I'm none too pleased with the iMac not being around on the day they said it would be around. If I knew it wouldn't be available today, then I would have gone ahead and ordered it online. Grrr... Bad Apple.
