iPhone: some questions...

[VJ]

Hello,

I am looking at a mobile phone, and have some questions about the iPhone 3G.

Is it possible to "share" the internet connection with e.g. a laptop?
(I know there has been a program for this, but last I heard it was pulled)

Does it support wpa2 ?
Can you stream audio over wifi from a PC to the iPhone?

Is there support for stereo bluetooth headsets (A2DP)?
Does it support bluetooth networks?
Can one set up an internet profile that uses a bluetooth modem?

Thanks!


Jörg

[az]

I think no internet sharing, though rumor has it this is to be announced soonTM.

WPA2: yes

Stream: Dunno. You can control your Squeezeboxes and iTunes (and Mac) with it, though.

No A2DP, I think.

[VJ]

I have seen there is a software called Orb, which could allow streaming...

OTOH, I have also found it can be incompatible with a large number of existing iPod accessories (as I understand it, there has been a change to pin-out on the dock connector causing some devices to still work, others to have become incompatible).

Difficult...
I like the built/feel of it (I have an iPod 5G), and the userfriendlyness, but it just feels it might be coming short on some other aspects (crippled bluetooth, ...). Due to the high price here in Belgium (it is unlocked!) it becomes a difficult choice... I might have to rethink what I really need in a phone.

[az]

It is indeed incompatible to many accessories.

BTW, I'd get a bundled and locked version over an unlocked one: The phone plan might be more expensive than what you are using now, but the TCO will likely be lower than expensive unlocked device plus cheper plan.

[VJ]

There is a law here forbidding companies and stores to sell items which force the buyer to buy something else he might not want (I believe it is something similar in Switserland). As a result, phones may not be locked, as this forces a user to be with a certain network.

It explains why ALL mobile phones are more expensive here (even models that have an operator logo on it are unlocked). We actually made the world news with the price of the iPhone when it was launched here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25607908/ (was also on cnn, but that link is dead now).

[lowlifecat]

ugh iphoney

Hello,

I am looking at a mobile phone, and have some questions about the iPhone 3G.

Is it possible to "share" the internet connection with e.g. a laptop?
(I know there has been a program for this, but last I heard it was pulled)

No tethering with the Iphone 3g (currently)

Does it support wpa2 ?
Can you stream audio over wifi from a PC to the iPhone?

Supports WPA2.
For streaming, i think it might be possible as new software was released recently at CES and before.

Is there support for stereo bluetooth headsets (A2DP)?
Does it support bluetooth networks?
Can one set up an internet profile that uses a bluetooth modem?

No A2DP support.
blue tooth is extremely limited, can connect to head set or car kit. that's about it.
No tethering with the Iphone 3g (via cabled or bluetooth)

Thanks!


Jörg

if you want a smartphone, get a new blackberry. if you want mobile entertainment get the Ipod touch.

[VJ]

Meh... Blackberry... I currently have a HTC TyTN, but need two devices (mobile internet / voice ). I passed my previous secondary phone (I used it as a modem, but it only supported up to gprs) to my dad, and now need a new one. Still deciding on what I'd use which phone for though. I liked the way I used it before, as the TyTN allows me to use another phone as bluetooth modem; but then again, the TyTN is a bit cumbersome, counterintuitive and unstable to use.

I'm actually deciding between a Nokia N85 (no touch screen), a Nokia 5800 (not yet available here) or an iPhone 3G...
I like the Symbian system, and I feel the 5800 might be the best price/performance for my purpose. But I do like my iPod (feel, UI) as well, which made me start to consider the iPhone.

[Jammrock]

A Blackberry??? I think I vomited in my mouth a little I hate Crackberry's. But that may be because I'm in IT and 99% of IT people hate them. Sure you can buy the phone cheap, but if you need to use it for any business function be prepared to take it up the pooper in extra charges in fees every month. And if you're thinking about setting up an Exchange redirector, forget about it! $4000 just for !20! device licenses and the software.

The best all around business/entertainment phones are the Windows Mobile phones. WM 6.1 Professional is actually a very solid product. I've been using it since shortly after its release and I like it very much. It doesn't cost you a dime to connect with POP3 or Exchange. All of them have removable SD cards (I picked up an 8 GB microSDHC card on NewEgg.com for $14 with no shipping), touch screens, many have slide out QWERTY keyboards, you can watch movies, play music, it has built in A2DP support (full Bluetooth 2.0 stack), WPA2 (even the enterprise version), you use it as a laptop/desktop modem via Bluetooth PAN or with a USB modem share, and I believe you can stream music to it as well (I've never done it before but I've seen apps and streamed off the internet before). That and there are a ton of apps for the phone (games too). The newer HTC phones even have gyros/motion sensors in them for the same feel as an iPhone.

Just my opinion though.

[lowlifecat]

Meh... Blackberry... I currently have a HTC TyTN, but need two devices (mobile internet / voice ). I passed my previous secondary phone (I used it as a modem, but it only supported up to gprs) to my dad, and now need a new one. Still deciding on what I'd use which phone for though. I liked the way I used it before, as the TyTN allows me to use another phone as bluetooth modem; but then again, the TyTN is a bit cumbersome, counterintuitive and unstable to use.

I'm actually deciding between a Nokia N85 (no touch screen), a Nokia 5800 (not yet available here) or an iPhone 3G...
I like the Symbian system, and I feel the 5800 might be the best price/performance for my purpose. But I do like my iPod (feel, UI) as well, which made me start to consider the iPhone.

for mobile internet you might want to get something like this. basically a little USB dongle that can go onto the cellphone 3g network.

seriously; if you want a smart phone dont get an iphoney. it's great for kids and apple nut swingers but that is about it. an ipod touch + a real smart phone would be better for you.

this review should help you out as well: http://roundrobin.smartphoneexperts.com/2008/

A Blackberry??? I think I vomited in my mouth a little I hate Crackberry's. But that may be because I'm in IT and 99% of IT people hate them. Sure you can buy the phone cheap, but if you need to use it for any business function be prepared to take it up the pooper in extra charges in fees every month. And if you're thinking about setting up an Exchange redirector, forget about it! $4000 just for !20! device licenses and the software.

The best all around business/entertainment phones are the Windows Mobile phones. WM 6.1 Professional is actually a very solid product. I've been using it since shortly after its release and I like it very much. It doesn't cost you a dime to connect with POP3 or Exchange. All of them have removable SD cards (I picked up an 8 GB microSDHC card on NewEgg.com for $14 with no shipping), touch screens, many have slide out QWERTY keyboards, you can watch movies, play music, it has built in A2DP support (full Bluetooth 2.0 stack), WPA2 (even the enterprise version), you use it as a laptop/desktop modem via Bluetooth PAN or with a USB modem share, and I believe you can stream music to it as well (I've never done it before but I've seen apps and streamed off the internet before). That and there are a ton of apps for the phone (games too). The newer HTC phones even have gyros/motion sensors in them for the same feel as an iPhone.

Just my opinion though.

The problem with Windows Mobile phones is Windows.

if you have a good data plan for blackberries, they will cost a lot less than other phones. as a comparison of bandwidth use between a Blackberry Bold (3G) and an Iphoney (3G); the iphoney can use up to 20x more data for the same websites. AT&T had a big problem with this when they released the iphoney 3g. to compensate they are switching all thier 2G towers to 3G.

Personally i have a 30$ 6GB/month data plan on my Blackberry. That doesn't qualify as taking it up the pooper for me.

I've done tech support for Blackberries before and let me tell you; most of the IT people i know love the blackberry. 95% of issues with blackberries can be resolved with a simple battery pull. take that iphoney!

[VJ]

Ok...

Well: I have a WM6 device, and it does a fine job. I used a second mobile phone which could be addressed as bluetooth modem (by the WM6 device!), allowing for quite a good portability. Getting a USB dongle would not allow me to do this, nor could I even have internet access on the go (without a laptop). Getting a second mobile allow internet access on the go without a laptop (either on the device itself, or if I choose it right even on the WM6 device).
If I were to use my current WM6 device for my internet connection, the issue becomes less (tethering from another phone *may* be less of requirement), and opens up my choice of phones.

Solution 1: current WM6 for data, new phone for talk
should have wifi
should synchronize contacts and calenders
would be nice if it were to allow easy typing of messages and mails
would be nice if it could connect to the WM6 directly (but is not imperative)

Solution 2: current WM6 as phone, new phone for data
should have wifi
should synchronize contacts and calendars
should have proper internet-tools (mail, web, ...)
WM6 device should be able to connect to it directly to make an internet connection

Getting a second WM6 device also would not allow me to connect them directly (they don't show up as bluetooth modems, and can't join a bluetooth PAN). Sure there are tools like icscontrol or wmwifirouter, which allow one to share the internet connection over wifi, but this drains batteries (even when plugged in!!!!). It would be OK for solution 1, but I've had it with the issues; having used the WM device for well over a year, I have noticed a significant number annoying little quirks (contacts list browsing, alarms that get messed up or simply don't go off, totally stupid calender suggestions, memory hungry applications, ...) and haven't found a decent solution to my gripes. This made me consider a non WM6 phone.

Getting an iPhone would also not allow me to do it, but would be OK in solution 1 (and it would be nice to have a userfriendly device for a change).

Getting a Symbian based phone would allow me to still keep both solution open, with the Nokia 5800 edging out the Nokia N85 when it comes to message typing (I don't want to go back to T9). The userinterface looks nice, but the 5800 is the very first Symbian S60 touchscreen device (few softwares out, possible bugs, ...).

That sort of sums it all up...


Jörg

[VJ]

Oh, on the blackberry: I need access to my own mailboxes, which may not work with blackberries.

[lowlifecat]

Oh, on the blackberry: I need access to my own mailboxes, which may not work with blackberries.

Blackberries are hands down, the best mobile email device there is. Nothing even comes close. why wouldn't you mailboxes work?

[VJ]

I may have misinterpreted things (mailbozes are IMAp4 over SSL, not IMAPS!), but don't like them...
WM6 does a nice job with the mailbox, but just can't access the other folders (lists them, but shows no messages) and makes it difficult to use multiple SMTP servers. My prevous phone was a Symbian S60 2nd edition, and it did a very nice job (even multiple SMTP servers), but just couldn't access all folders. Strictly featurewise, the N85 or the 5800 seem the best option... but I like the iPhone concept and user interface... (dunno why, just a feeling)

[Sasq]

Do a little googling on iphone and jailbreak VJ

Love my iPhone, love it even more being jailbroken

[VJ]

From my posted solutions, I feel more for solution 1 (use WM6 for data, new phone for talk)... One reason is that the WM6 battery is not giving me that much time anymore (depending on use: 3 hours to 2 days), the other is the userfriendlyness.

I feel an iPhone would suffice for my talk-phone use, but so would most phones.
But I'm still a bit weary of hacking/jailbreaking stuff... I know people have good experiences with it, but if it goes wrong... Dunno, if I get an iPhone, I think I'll just keep it as it is.
My main gripe is the price: it still costs 525 euro (8GB) and 615 euro (16 GB). What is the memory used for (does it impact working memory, or is it just storage)?

edit: In a quick google, I found solutions to some minor "issues": custom ringtones, MMS (other third party applications already allow sending), voice dialing, ...