iPhone 4 Questions

Design Discussions general design discussion
1

I got my new iPhone. So far, I love it. WAY better than my Blackberry Pearl.

I have a handful of questions as thy may pertain to a designer/business person:

  1. Carrying case or rubber bumpers?
    I carried my Blackberry on my hip in one of those leather pouches. I also dropped the thing ALL THE TIME. I’m a bit of a clutz that way. Are there any good hip pouches for the iPhone? Do you prefer wrapping the bumpers around it? Or do you go nekkid?

  2. Business contact managment?
    I use Microsoft Business Contact Manager. I am looking for something that is seemless with my handheld. Are there good apps for this? Or online solutions that tie all my email, contacts, and sales management into one solution with the iPhone?

  3. The discussion board app?
    There appears to be a discussion board app for $2.99. Is it worth getting or do you just surf discussion boards in Safari?

  4. Designer hints, tips, tricks?
    Anything that you highly recommend? Guilty Pleasures? etc.?

2

Like most designers, I’m never happy with the stock version…

(Bumper + 3rd party brushed aluminum back from HK replacing the glass back)

3

Doesn’t that aluminum destroy your reception?

4

No.

The antenna is around the outer edges - hence the need for the free bumper during “Antenna-gate”.

5

I don’t have a smartphone, but I hear tap-a-talk is pretty cool. As long as you don’t have the “posted from my iPhone using tapatalk” crap after every post.

6

I don’t use a bumper or a case.

I surf the boards with Safari on the iPhone. In fact I would say most of my posts are via iPhone these days, between meetings, waiting on something, etc. On the iPhone right now coincidentally. I usually surf and post in landscape mode. I can type a lot faster and more accurately that way.

The sketchbook pro app is a fun toy. I’ve gotten decent with it, a good party trick. :wink:

I also use shazam a lot. And iWant. Both free.

Welcome to the darkside IP!

7

I own an iPod and iPad, and similar to Michael, I browse the boards with Safari. I have a silicone case for my iPod that helps me grip it well in the cold weather in Pittsburgh.

Flud is an interesting news app, and I’m bound to Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr via their respective apps. I use TeuxDeux to manage my to-dos (nice web interface/iOS app sync) and looks nice. The Skyfire browser is fantastic for browsing the regular versions of websites (not mobile) and allows you to watch flash videos (take that, Apple!).

Might wanna read this: Just got an iPhone? The best apps, accessories, and tips | Engadget

8

Evernote is a must, for me
as is Goodreader. It’ll read many file formats and once open in goodreader will become part of its “filing sytem” which you can organize readable files into - quite nice if you deal with PDF’s you’d love to keep - you now can.

Also check:
Apple Remote - control itunes from the iphone via wifi in your bed!
Mobile Mouse - iphone becomes a trackpad+keyboard
Design Observer - lists recent articles
TED Mobile - philantropic/tech/design speeches
MoMa - haven’t used much
Adobe Ideas- sketch+writing pad
WhatTheFont - you should know this, but… identifies a font from a picture.
iBooks - Apple’s attempt at a book reader
Kindle,
Air Video - play movies located on your pc from your iphon
QuickMark - QRCode+DataMatrix/etc Decoder
Midomi/SoundHound - alternate to Shazam, I think it works better but this kind if thing starts flamwars :wink: both probably cover blind spots of the other.

… and Angry Birds…


My case is an InCase solid plastic case. Adds 1-3mm per side but I’ve dropped it to concrete a dozen times and only a small crack on the plastic case and some dents to show for it, the iphone itself is mint. It has a rubbery paint on it for a nice grip.

9

The O’S is definitely feeling dated these days, and I’m frustrated by how locked down Apple keeps it, but for my money the iPhone 4 is still the best phone out there. For apps, these are my essentials:

Dialvetica - dialer replacement
Calvetica - calendar replacement
Beejive - IM
Navigon - turn-by-turn nav
Dropbox/Goodreader - files
m48 - HP48g emulator
Facebook
Sketchbook
Light - free flashlight app
Logmein - vnc to my desktop
Pandora - Internet radio
OneTap - movie listings
Crop - free app to crop pics
360 - awesome panoramas
Daily Log - awesome journal app

gary

10

Sigh. Those lists really make me want to move to the darkside…

11

I’ve had 3 generations of iPhones and have jailbroken all of them. There are a few great tweaks available only after jailbreaking:

  • Haptic Pro - you feel a small vibration (sensory feedback) after hitting a key or button on the screen.
  • MyWi - Your iPhone becomes a wifi hotspot using 3G data. It’s great for a traveler.
  • SB Settings - A drop down menu appears by swiping the top task bar. You have full control to turn on/off system settings that require digging through multiple Settings menus (wifi, bluetooth, airplane mode, etc.).

Apple should really think about including a version of these in a future version of iOS.

Jailbreaking isn’t for the feign of heart, especially now that Apple has stepped up the cat-and-mouse game with the hackers. You really need to stay on top of things like baseband updates & firmware upgrade compatibility.

12

Apple offers one hour long business consultation for their products. It’s free for business consumers to jump start productivity. Go online and set an appointment with your Apple store. I did this and Apple business genius imported all my Palm OS and Microsoft Entourage info into the Apple applications, like email, calendar and address book. I bought Mobile Me which syncs all your apps on cloud for iPhone, Desktop, Laptop and Tablet.

13

I’ve had that same one for the past few months but be aware that it’s made with plastic, not metal, screw retainers -mine broke off after having it a week and the whole cover would just slide off which is cool when you wanna show your friends what’s inside. And the lettering with logo will wear-off as you can see from the photo. The aluminum and large bevel did make the iPhone feel a little more substantial for the first few weeks. Also be aware that with this particular cover the iPhone would not fit as snugly into docks because it is makes the phone a tad thicker. This was a fix to my shattered back glass after 2 weeks of having it last summer that I had covered with a customized GelaSkins sticker (http://www.gelaskins.com/) . I just replaced the back glass with a new at the Apple store for $30 bucks… I soo wish they would offer a white rear cover! I use my iPhone without a bumper, too.
photo (12).JPG

14

I think the bumper around the aluminum back must be helping to keep it in place. It’s a very snug fit around the edge.

Having a bumper on the iPhone 4 limits the type of docks it will fit into. I’ve been lucky so far.

I keep my phone in my pants pocket and never have coins or keys in the same pocket. I did that before installing the aluminum back and will be even more diligent after seeing the photo of the scratched-up graphics. Thanks!

15

Jailbroken here too, it’s not so hard if you do your homework

For jb’ed phones:
Lockinfo
You can also get a VNC server onto your phone, and log in from the PC.
Typophone is another one. It replaces the lockscreen clock.
WiFiFoFum - best wifi scanner I’ve used, can record gps+rssi of seen points, and you could email yourself the list it creates.

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16

That’s funny, I use the same lockscreen (slightly more minimalistic). I use an invisible “tap to unlock” instead of a slider. It’s easy to use.

17

It has now been about a week playing in the Darkside. Call me evil, but I love it.

While I understand anti-fanboy sentiment, I don’t understand how people can go around bashing the phone in general.

I imagine it falls under a category convergence thread. The iPhone, for me, is good enough. Yes, syncing everything through iTunes is a bit flawed, but the access to all those apps where the developers can actually get paid makes up for it.

The clarity of the screen is unbelievable. It is truly easy to use (if my wife can figure stuff out, anyone can).

My only real complaint so far is its limited ability to tweak the notification settings. On my Blackberry, I was able to adjust all my notification settings. Vibrate vs Sound. How many times it vibrates for each event (e.g. email vs IM). I don’t want to see every time I log on who texted me. I want access to all my notifications on my terms, not pushed to me every time it happens or when I unlock my device. I’m hoping I just haven’t found the right knobs yet.

I can see myself turning into a total Apphole. I love the access to the appStore and what stuff it offers. Yes, others are doing apps too, and yes, you can argue opensource vs closed. But the basic idea that everything works AND the developers get paid (something) works for me.

What I have been playing with so far that I really like:

Shazam - Yo…this was a great suggestion!
AccuRadio - although I haven’t played too much with it yet
SketchBook - Absolutely amazing that u can do this on a phone. My daughter can’t stop drawing on my phone.
Craigslist - I actually find the iPhone experience to be better than the online experience
oneTap - good…but for some reason my local theater has trouble filling out all its movies
YouTube - The clarity of the iPhone LCD makes the YouTube experience pretty phenomenal
HootSuite - used it on PC, now use it on my iphone…just as good
Kindle - meh…I definitely prefer reading on my Kindle
Evernote - Just downloaded it. Haven’t tinkered, but like the idea of it
Facebook - again, I think it is better on the iPhone than on the PC
Starwalk - simply amazing
angry birds - too fun

on my list:
Teux Deux - looks good…there are a bunch of others that I want to review first
Salesforce - just signed up for the 1 month trial and will pay the $25/mo if it works anywhere near I hope it will

18

thanks everyone for sharing, I’ve been enjoying some of your suggestions after my recent update from the OG - G1 iPhone.

Loving 360 Panorama

One that I bought when I first got my old iPhone and think is pretty awesome although I’ve never really worked it to its potential
Beatmaker
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/beatmaker/id285512415?mt=8
It’s now down to $10 which is half what I bought it for, which is still little pricey for a buy it and try it, but very cool.

Photoshop Express is also pretty nice for quick cropping and levels adjustment.