Archive for August, 2008
That was a short honeymoon, Apple
If you recently purchased a new iPhone 3G or upgraded your iPhone 1.0 to the new 2.0 firmware, you’ve probably already put it through its paces. In fact, chances are good that you’re not only over the “honeymoon phase,” you’re considering divorce.
It would appear that the new firmware is suffering from some sort of bug (maybe a memory leak?) that’s bringing everyday utilities like text messaging and calling to a crawl. Frustrated users can be spotted at every turn on the web, including here, here, over here, and here.
I’ve been experiencing the same problem, though I’ve found some temporary relief by resetting the phone (hold down power and home buttons) when the lag gets really bad. When this situation shows up, you’ll know it almost immediately: opening SMS takes 5-6 seconds, text entry lag in SMS is unbearable (we’re talking 3-4 seconds between presses), scrolling through contacts takes 10 seconds or more, and selecting a contact to call can take at least as long.
This is undoubtedly one of those “early adopter” bugs that us geeks have grown so accustomed to, and one that I’d expect Apple to have ironed out through a firmware update in fairly short order.
Now, let’s just hope that the updated firmware doesn’t destroy our ability to unlock 2.0.
Tags: 2.0, Apple, contacts, iPhone, iphone 3g, lag, sms
Get EVDO, and stop being taken
I was having a fascinating chat with my traveling buddy, Walt, yesterday. We were sitting in the restaurant of the Hilton North Greenpoint in Houston, and he asked me how the internet access in the hotel was working out.
T (Me): Well, the speed’s fine.
W (Walt): Is the wireless pretty good?
T: I suppose. It transmits data, if that’s what you mean.
W: No, I’m just wondering if it’s any better than what I went through to use on of their desktops in the “business center.”
T: I’d guess that using my MacBook is better than using a PC in any room, on any internet connection. /me grins.
W: Yah, especially at $1.50/minute.
…and this is where the rant begins. $1.50/minute? I was already paying [correction: the company was paying] $10.77/day for a connection, wireless or wired, on each device that needed one. In my case, that was three - MacBook, Dell laptop for work, and the iPhone…which made for a grand total of $64.62 in internet charges for two days. [Note: this is about $5 more than what I pay for my Sprint EVDO card/month]