Can't Hold Out Anymore...

[hanson]

This is almost comical...

Some folks here have followed my love/hate relationship with cellphones over the years.

Shack... are you reading? LOL!

Got the Blackberry Storm 3 years ago... loved it for awhile... then really just grew sick of constantly being attached to the dang thing. When my contract was up... hello Flip Phone!! Was really an interesting trip to the Verizon store. You want a what?? Gotta say, I sure liked that phone bill for the last year.

iPhone 4 came today courtesy of the company so I can't hold out anymore.

Which also means work e-mail which is what annoyed me before. Oh well...

With what little I've played around with it, I sure like it.

Getting the important things on it like Facebook, hsolist, working on Navionics right now.

Any iPhone tips are welcome. I know with my Blackberry, there were critical things like Battery Pull and stuff like that that were necessary.

[Steve Foss]

Chris, when I got my wife the iPhone for her birthday this summer, we made sure to get a phone cover that also added battery power/charge to the phone. There are a couple brands, and any place that sells iPhones or their accessories should have them. Makes a BIG difference when using those battery-sucking apps.

[muc33]

I too join the iphone world next week, when my new 4s shows up. I have been a fan of the Droid x until lately when it has become very sluggish and busy all the time. Plus it is garbling my contacts, so when Steve Foss calls me it says Susan Johnson is calling ect. So if I call you Susan, Steve, I'm sorry! hehehe, I can't wait. I too, hope my Navionics and apps all work the same. Nervous, anxious, scared all at once, I rely greatly on my phone for business so it does matter to me.

[hanson]

So I've taken care of the important stuff... Navionics is loaded. LOL!

Heading up to Mille Lacs tonight for trolling so I'll play with it a bit.

Really no reason to since I've got Lakemaster on my Humminbird but for comparison sake,

why not.

[DTro]

Good choice, you'll love that IPhone, and wonder how you managed without it.

[Jim Almquist]

A good weather app is My-Cast. It will show the weather radar just like NOAA. I have found it very helpful when out on Lake Superior fishing.

[Shack]

LOL Hanson's Storm was so futuristic in its day and considering when he had his Storm and the smart-phone timeline, Hanson was one of the first "Smart-Phone" guys here at HSO.

Hanson had the Storm scene down pretty tight so he should have no problem with the iPhone. Just post in here if you have questions Chris.

[hanson]

I haven't had this thing a week yet and its amazing.

Although, it almost ended up in Mille Lacs on Saturday and was dropped on the garage floor on Sunday. Doh!

The speed with which the entire device operates over a Blackberry is crazy!

I have Wi-Fi in my house and its tap, tap, tap and stuff pops up like nobody's business.

And now this is a bit embarrassing but I've never had an iPod or anything like that before. No iTunes. Nope. So the iPhone is an iPod and you have to use iTunes so I've been uploading all my CDs now to iTunes. Now I gotta figure out the best thing for my pickup, whether its just installing a new receiver or getting an FM thingie for the iPhone.

[LMITOUT]

The glass didn't break when you dropped it? Lucky! I saw a video of a drop test and it wasn't pretty. Don't quite understand why they would put glass on the front and back of a cell phone. Looks glossy? Sure, but the wrong fall and it ain't too glossy anymore.

[hanson]

The glass didn't break when you dropped it? Lucky!

No it didn't... and I don't have any protection around it yet either, just a bare phone. 'Airjer' saw it happen too so I have a witness. Bit of a wake-up call to be more careful.

It was close to going in the lake though... if it bounced the other way, it was gone.

[muc33]

I got my 4s yesterday, today will be an exploration day and I bought the case right away for mine!

[Scott K]

Chris, i have dropped my a hundred times already, and mine has never broke. No case on mine either.

[LMITOUT]

[Nick Kuhn]

I see they followed UL and ASTM standards for that drop test. Not that I don't have a machine and "calibrated" impact surfaces for that or anything. It would have been so much easier to put both on the drop machine and hit them both exactly the same and see what happens. I believe most phone manufacturers though use an impact test more than a drop test. They take steel ball bearing in a tube over the phone and drop them from increasing height until the screen breaks to determine the durability.

[delcecchi]

I use one of those things that looks like a cassette with a tail. If you don't have a cassette drive, maybe you have a aux input that you can plug into. the FM thingy would by my third choice.

[LMITOUT]

I see they followed UL and ASTM standards for that drop test.

Nah, I think what they used is what is referred to as "real world conditions". In other words, why is a phone covered in glass (all the way to the edge and not recessed to boot) that may be carried above surfaces that don't always offer a soft landing? Don't recall many experiences where I had ball bearings dropping on my screen.

Looks good though...

I'd definitely be getting a case for a phone like that.

Anybody see the new HTC RAZR that has a kevlar case and a Gorilla Glass screen? Nice.

[lotsofish]

Now I gotta figure out the best thing for my pickup, whether its just installing a new receiver or getting an FM thingie for the iPhone.

If you care about good quality, install a A2DP bluetooth capable receiver. That's what I put in my truck. It's digital sound so it's perfect, and you don't have to mess around with wires. The FM Transmitters can only deliver FM quality sound. (Compare listening to a CD with a song on the radio.) Direct aux input is analog sound, but it's higher quality than FM. You probably don't have that option if you have a stock radio though. A lot of aftermarket receivers come with USB support, and that is as good as bluetooth, but then you have to mess around with wires.

[Nick Kuhn]

If you care about good quality, install a A2DP bluetooth capable receiver. That's what I put in my truck. It's digital sound so it's perfect, and you don't have to mess around with wires. The FM Transmitters can only deliver FM quality sound. (Compare listening to a CD with a song on the radio.) Direct aux input is analog sound, but it's higher quality than FM. You probably don't have that option if you have a stock radio though. A lot of aftermarket receivers come with USB support, and that is as good as bluetooth, but then you have to mess around with wires.

Or you just buy a $20 thumb drive, put every song you have on the thumb drive, and leave it in your car 24/7. I think it's foolish to mess around with anything else. No wires, no batteries to worry about draining, just several days worth of music always at the ready when you start your vehicle.

[zamboni]

It is funny, I used to only listen to CD's in my vehicle, NEVER a radio. Now with CD's, MP3s, IHEARTRADIO, Sirius/XM and a million other things I have gone to almost 99% local radio listening in my vehicle.

[lotsofish]

But a thumb drive doesn't help him use his new iphone.

I agree though, for a lot of people that makes sense. I use my phone to stream slacker radio, listen to pod casts, and talk shows that aren't on local radio, so it wouldn't work for me.

[Shack]

It is funny, I used to only listen to CD's in my vehicle, NEVER a radio. Now with CD's, MP3s, IHEARTRADIO, Sirius/XM and a million other things I have gone to almost 99% local radio listening in my vehicle.

LOL me to. I hate to even say this but the majority of listening is done, less now than just a year or two back, on AM.

I would say where my smartphone and on-line radio has made an impact is when cutting the grass or other work.

[muc33]

It is funny, I used to only listen to CD's in my vehicle, NEVER a radio. Now with CD's, MP3s, IHEARTRADIO, Sirius/XM and a million other things I have gone to almost 99% local radio listening in my vehicle.

Best quote of the year!! The only way to get local information is LOCAL radio!!! As a radio station owner, I thank you!

[LwnmwnMan2]

Best quote of the year!! The only way to get local information is LOCAL radio!!! As a radio station owner, I thank you!

Media U and Tune In Radio are two apps that have quite a few local stations that aren't Clear Channel stations.

IHeartRadio is only Clear Channel stations.

I use my Droid X2 all day every day. I'm constantly bouncing between IHeart to Slacker to Media U to Tune In to my music downloaded on my phone.

My '11 Dodge Ram will stream my phone through Bluetooth, so I don't have any wires (other than charger) bouncing in and out of the truck.

[delcecchi]

Best quote of the year!! The only way to get local information is LOCAL radio!!! As a radio station owner, I thank you!

In Rochester the local radio stations are pretty much worthless with respect to local information other than commercials. I think they are the pre-recorded voice interspersed with a satellite or computer music track, pretty much untouched by human hands. And the AM stations have gone to syndicated talk of various flavors.

Small towns might be different. In the MSP area at least they have traffic reports, but in Rochester local radio is pretty much a waste of time. KRPR and MPR are on in the car.

[muc33]

I agree with you on worthless in some cases. Corporate radio has killed the local touch. I left this world and was fortunate enough to get a door opened 3 years ago that led me to ownership. I now am a partner in 4 stations and we do it right. Local information and local focus. We rake the leaves in our own back yard! My country station is on Tune in and I know many use it on their phones. We take over the other 3 stations in December as we just purchased them. I will have them streaming soon too and I'm sure Tune In will find them as well. All I can tell you is that by supporting your locally owned and operated stations is the only way to keep that type of great community service and information available. Know where your dollars go!