11 Reasons to Buy an iPhone 4

Sébastien Page ∙ June 26, 2010

A couple days ago I wrote an article explaining why the iPhone 4 sucks. To be fair, I thought I'd write another article to give you several reasons to buy an iPhone 4.

It's beautiful

You know it. It's an absolutely beautiful product. It's clean, shiny, and classy. You can't argue about this.

It's cool

You know it too. Owning an iPhone is the ultimate gadget. You gotta give il all away to Apple's brilliant (evil?) marketing.

FaceTime

Sure the FaceTime concept is not new but it's just plain awesome. I just did a 30 minute FaceTime conversation with my cousin in France. Seriously, have you ever done that on any other phone? No!

230,000+ apps

There are now over 230,000 apps in the App Store and thousands more are added each day. Whatever you want to do, chances are there's an app for that.

Jailbreak

If you can't find an app in the App Store, you will most likely find it in Cydia, the app store for jailbreak apps. I love my iPhone and I sure love my jailbreak. Check out all these cool jailbreak apps for iPhone. At the time I am writing this there is no  jailbreak for the iPhone 4 yet but it should be released in the  next few days.

5 MP camera + LED Flash + front-facing camera

Me and many others have been talking smack about the camera of the iPhone for the last 3 years. No more complaining now with the nice 5MP camera. Coupled with the LED flash and the front-facing camera, the iPhone can now match the "basic" features that all the other smartphones already have.

HD video recording

You can now record high definition 720p videos at 30fps. Not too bad, huh?

The screen

With the iPhone 4, Apple introduced a new Retina Display screen that boasts 4 times more pixels than the previous iPhone. The result: a crystal clear screen that can perfectly render the sharpest details.

It's fast

With the new A4 processor and twice the RAM of the iPhone 3GS, the new iPhone 4 is fast fast fast.

Gyroscope

Along with 4 other sensors, (light, proximity, accelerometer, and compass), the gyroscope will bring the Wii experience to the iPhone. Expect some great games that will take full advantage of this new feature soon.

Price

If you're a new AT&T customer, the iPhone is not that expensive. Starting at $199 for the 16GB, it will go up to $299 for the 32GB version with a 2-year contract.

Can you think of any other reason to buy an iPhone 4? If so, please let us know by leaving a comment.

Read More

How to Opt Out of iPhone Targeted iAds

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated February 22, 2017

One of the big features of iOS 4 is iAd, a new advertising platform created by Apple, supposedly so developers can make more money and keep their app prices on the cheap.

Like anyone who enters the ad business, Apple had to update their privacy policy, which you agreed to by installing iOS 4.

Gizmodo were the first this morning to bring light on this part of Apple's privacy policy:

To provide location-based services on Apple products, Apple and our partners and licensees may collect, use, and share precise location data, including the real-time geographic location of your Apple computer or device. This location data is collected anonymously in a form that does not personally identify you and is used by Apple and our partners and licensees to provide and improve location-based products and services. For example, we may share geographic location with application providers when you opt in to their location services.

Unfortunately there is no way to opt out of this tracking. No matter what, Apple will still track what you do and where you. Yes, that sucks!

However, you can opt out of Apple's targeted ads by navigating to https://oo.apple.com/ from your iOS device and voila. I guess Apple could have made this more obvious.

Read More

iOS 4.01 to Come on Monday to Fix the iPhone 4 Antenna Issue

Sébastien Page ∙ June 25, 2010

By now you probably have heard of the death grip of the iPhone 4 antenna that causes reception issues on the new device. Apparently, the problem is more of a software issue that might be fixed this monday with a software update to iOS 4.01.

It took me a day to realize I had the same issue as thousands of new iPhone owners had reported. When I hold my iPhone a certain way, I lose a few bars of reception. Sometimes, it goes as far as completely dropping the signal.

Apple issued a somewhat official and idiotic statement via an email sent by Steve Jobs himself to an unhappy customer. Steve Jobs recommended we hold the iPhone in a different way or that we should buy a Bumper case, which avoids the issue. Krapps wrote a funny article about it should you want to learn more.

iPhone 3GS owners who have upgraded to iOS 4 have a similar issue, which might prove that the problem comes from the software and not from the hardware.

According to Apple Insider, a fix is in the works and should ship on Monday:

Readers report that Apple's tech support forums originally confirmed that a iOS 4.0.1 software fix addressing the issue would ship early next week (as early as Monday), before the comments were subsequently taken down along with all the other related discussion about the matter.

The fix is expected to address a issue in iOS 4 related to radio frequency calibration of the baseband. Readers who saw the original forum discussions say that the issue is believed to occur when switching frequencies; because the lag is allegedly not calibrated correctly, it results in the device reporting "no service" rather than switching to the frequency with the best signal to noise ratio.

I just hope Apple will not "hide" this issue with a software update but will actually fix it. Thoughts?

Read More

iPhone 4 User Guide

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated September 21, 2011

Just got a new iPhone 4 and you're not sure how to use it? That's why Apple created an iPhone 4 user guide. From setting up your email to adding contacts, this 244 page PDF will walk you through every single step of the iPhone set up.

Obviously this iPhone 4 user guide was not designed for people who already own an iPhone but I'm sure it will help first-time iPhone owners.

You can download the iPhone 4 user guide in PDF from here, or just go to help.apple.com/iphone/ from your iPhone.

If you have a specific question about the use of your iPhone, please DO NOT ask it here. Instead, go to our forums where other users will be able to help you.

Read More

App Store Now Features an iOS 4 Category

Sébastien Page ∙ June 25, 2010

Up until now it wasn't convenient finding those apps that are optimized for iOS 4, which is why Apple created a new category in the App Store called iOS 4.0.

This category includes all apps than can work in the background and/or apps whose graphics have been improved for the new iPhone 4 Retina Display.

You can access the new iOS 4.0 category in the App Store from here.

[Thanks Justin for the tip]

Read More

FaceTime: Apple Lets You Try It With Them

Sébastien Page ∙ June 25, 2010

If you just got an iPhone 4 and non of your friends did, you probably couldn't try the new FaceTime feature. Apple thought about you and now lets you try FaceTime with a few Apple reps.

Although I had tried FaceTime before, I wanted to give Apple a call and have some FaceTime with a random employee for a few minutes.

This is what you need to do if you want to try FaceTime with an Apple rep:

1. Call 1-888-32238463 from your iPhone

2. An Apple rep will pickup the phone and ask you a few questions about your iPhone setup (FaceTime ON, wifi ON, and caller ID ON)

3. The rep will transfer the call to his iPhone to start FaceTime and will go with you over the few features of FaceTime

The whole experience took about 5 minutes. I FaceTimed with a very fun and friendly girl. I asked her if she had already had some awkward ChatRoulette-style moments today and she confirmed that no one had showed her his penis yet... I guess it's just a matter of time.

FaceTime works great. It takes a few seconds to connect but once you're on, the sound is crystal clear and the video is of a very good quality.

Try it on!

Read More

Infographics: The Real Cost of iPhone 4 Ownership Compared to Other Smartphones

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated January 23, 2016

Are you curious to see how much the iPhone 4 stacks up against the other major smartphones in term of cost of ownership?

This nice infographics created by Bill Shrink puts the iPhone 4 side by side 3 Android phones and compares the cost of ownership over a 2 year period.

This shows that the iPhone is doing ok on the unlimited data plan, and it's actually the cheapest of them all in the Minimum Plan Total Cost category. It's worth noting that AT&T's minimum data plan will cap you at 200MB while other carriers still offer unlimited data plans.

Read More

7 Reasons the iPhone 4 Sucks

Sébastien Page ∙ Updated June 13, 2016

Every time Apple comes with a new iPhone, I try to write a post about why their latest device sucks. It's stronger than me. I like to be the devil's advocate. Just like I wrote an article about why the iPad sucks a few months ago, I wanted to write an article about why the iPhone 4 sucks.

This time though it was slightly different because I don't really think the iPhone 4 sux. Sure it has a few issues, but does it make it a sucky device? Absolutely not. I guess this article will cater to all the iPhone haters out there.

It has screen problems

If you've read just a little bit about the new iPhone 4, you probably came across articles mentioning the yellow spots on the screen. My iPhone 4 screen is completely yellowish, which is pretty annoying for a $742.69 device... Apparently, this is just a temporary issue though.

The screen breaks easily

There has been videos going around the web showing how the iPhone 4 screen, supposedly 20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic, can be easily scratched or even broken. So much for the NASA technology that was used to build these screens...

The battery sucks

Every year Apple claims the battery is better than the previous iPhone's. Every year I find the same crappy battery life on my iPhone. My iPhone 4 battery sucks! It died after just about 24 hours of normal usage: no gaming, no video, just some light internet browsing and tweeting.

The antenna sucks

I haven't had this issue but apparently the iPhone 4 antenna loses signal when then antenna band is touched. This is an isolated issue that has been reported by a few people. That's still pretty inconvenient for a new device...

The carrier sucks

Unlike every iPhone blogger out there, I don't have anything against AT&T. The coverage in my hometown (Encinitas, CA) is excellent, except on the beach where no carrier has coverage anyway. However, it sucks that we are locked to only one carrier in the US. I am pro-choice. I don't care who gets the iPhone next, I just want to have the option to choose my carrier.

Apple's multitasking sucks

Apple's "fake multitasking" sucks for 2 reasons. For one, it's not real multitasking because not all apps can take advantage of it. Sure you can argue that multitasking drains the battery, but that's not the point here. Second reason why multitasking on the iPhone 4 sucks is because it quickly gets ugly in your app switching dock since Apple doesn't kill apps until the OS deems it necessary. At any time I have between 10 and 20 apps in my app switcher, making it very busy.

Storage limitation sucks

One of the big let downs of iPhone 4 is the storage limitation. Although Apple could have put 64GB of storage in there, they claim they didn't have the room for it. I think they just want to sell you a 64GB iPhone next year. That sucks because marketing is taking over customer needs.

Do you think the iPhone 4 sucks? Why? Please share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.

Read More

Breaking News: The iPhone 4 is Not Unbreakable

Sébastien Page ∙ June 24, 2010

After yesterday's report that the iPhone 4 is indeed not as scratch resistant as Apple would like you to believe, here is a new proof that the iPhone 4 screen can break.

Well, duh! Of course the screen can break if you deliberately drop it 4 times in a row. Does it really take a genius to figure this one out?

This doesn't really prove anything to me. Like any other cellphone, the iPhone screen is subject to scratches and shattering.

What do you think?

Read More

iMovie for iPhone 4 Now Available for Download

Sébastien Page ∙ June 24, 2010

iMovie, Apple's own video editing app for iPhone 4 is now available for download in the App Store. With the new iPhone 4 bringing HD recording in our hands, iMovie for iPhone becomes a must-have.

iMovie lets you create video postcards, movies, and more right from your iPhone. The app also lets you use preset themes and you can even add music from your iTunes library. After creating your movie, you can decide to share on YouTube, via email, MMS, or simply sync it with your computer.

The downside? iMovie is only available for iPhone 4. You can download iMovie from the App Store for $4.99.

Read More