Too Hot to Handle – iPod Explodes

It’s not new news that the battery in iPhones and iPods tend to get hot when left on for a decent amount of time. But hot enough to explode?!? There have been a few reports that have surfaced recently that have exposed how dangerous it can be to own an iPod or iPhone.

A week ago, an iPhone 3G caught fire while sitting on the passenger seat of a person’s car. The owner of the iPhone reportedly returned to his car after leaving it unattended for a few minutes to discover that his iPhone had caught fire and completely destroyed his passenger’s seat.

Another incident involving a girl’s iPod Touch was posted in the International Business Times. Her father was quoted as saying, “It [the iPod Touch] made a hissing noise. I could feel it getting hotter in my hand, and I thought I could see vapor”. He threw the iPod out his back door, where “within 30 seconds there was a pop, a big puff of smoke and it went 10ft in the air”.

Is this cause for concern for iPod and iPhone users or are these isolated incidents? The International Business Times article goes on to say how Apple attempted to silence the father and daughter with a gag order as the family sought a refund from Apple. This definitely throws an interesting twist into the “too hot to handle” battery saga.

Are you a current iPod or iPhone user? Has your device’s battery been under performing or do you have concerns with you battery over heating. Send in your iPod or iPhone to www.pdasmart.com for a free diagnosis.

Zune… Microsoft’s answer to the iPod… really?

Microsoft introduced the Zune in late 2006 as an answer to Apple’s iPod, but has struggled to chip away at iPod’s dominance. Microsoft has plans to release a new Zune model this fall featuring a touch screen, web browser and high-def quality video. All of these features should sound awfully familiar to iPod and iPhone owners. It seems as if Microsoft continues the habit of remaining one (or more) steps behind Apple as they continue to reinvent the portable media player market.

“The market reception for Zune is so disappointing that many retailers have even stopped selling it altogether,” said George Kurlan, a vice president at Tradition Capital Management, which owns Microsoft shares. Kurlan went on to say, “Microsoft should abandon Zune and follow Apple’s strategy to try to make its presence felt in the high-growth smart-phone sector.” He recommended purchasing Palm since the Palm Pre has been touted as the rival to the iPhone.

Whether Microsoft takes heed and entertains the idea of a Palm purchase, only time will tell. In the meantime, the new Zune is scheduled to be released within the next few months and new photos show it to be sleeker and edgier than its bulkier predecessors.

PCMag.com recommends iPod Touch Owners Bypass OS 3.0 Upgrade

PC Mag.com recently ran the iPod Touch through a battery performance test documenting the performance of OS 2.2 versus  OS 3.0 equipped versions. They also compared the results with those for the iPhone 3G and 3GS. See the results here.

The performance test shows the main performance difference to be in JavaScript performance with the OS 3.0 iPod Touch tripling the speed of the OS 2.2 version. However, despite the much faster JavaScript performance, web pages loaded slightly slower in OS 3.0 than in 2.2. Also, the new OS added a good chunk of time to startup. With this information, PC Mag.com recommends that iPod Touch users who want faster performance should bypass the OS 3.0 upgrade.

As interesting as the PC Mag testing and recommendation are, what is almost as interesting are the comments from users who think the recommendation to hold off on the upgrade is absurd.  Check out a few comments below:

“Bluetooth, copy/paste, & a tripled javascript performance and you’re worried about 10 seconds of boot up, here’s a tip don’t restart your ipod touch until you have 29 seconds of free time.” – commenlogic

“With differences as little as a second, how did you measure this? I don’t see how the difference can’t be summed up by human error if not done by some sort of software review. I rarely boot up my iPod. The last time I did was to install the 3.0 upgrade and before that it was almost 2 or 3 months. One feature that speeds things up on my end that isn’t discussed is the autofill feature. That makes surfing much faster and well worth the money.” – MarcZero

Wish List for Next Gen iPod Touch

Now that people have had time to get acclimated with the new features offered with the iPhone 3GS, attention has been shifted to the next generation iPod touch and what is expected in the next upgrade to keep Apple king of the MP3 players.

Mirror.co.uk has provided their wish list as “must-haves” for the next gen iPod touch.

1) Super fast processor and graphics – The iPod touch is quickly becoming as much a portable games console as it is an MP3 player. A “turbo charged” processor similar to that in the iPhone 3GS will help keep the iPod touch fun.

2) Camera – It just makes sense.

3) Compass – Including a compass will avoid further split in which Apps will run on which new hardware

4) Increased Storage – The iPod touch has always been a step ahead of the iPhone when it comes to storage. At the very least, Apple should outfit it with a 64GB hard drive.

5) High def – The screen would be too small to see the full benefits of the extra pixels in a high def signal, but Zune is already stretching out to HD, so Apple should have plans to keep up. Maybe they could add an HDMI out as well to make the iPod touch a true portable pocket cinema.

Do you own an iPod touch?  How’s it working for you?  Contact PDASmart.com with any repair needs.

Apple in talks with Verizon

Apple is in talks with Verizon, but iPhone users need not get too excited. The two companies are actually in talks to develop two iPhone-like handhelds that could be unveiled as early as this year. One handheld device is a smaller, less expensive calling device described as an “iPhone lite.” The other device is a media pad that would allow users to view photos, watch hi-def videos, listen to music and place calls over a WiFi connection.

What do these talks between Apple and Verizon mean for AT&T?  The partnership between Apple and AT&T are due to end next year and it has been reported that the two have been in talks to extend the partnership. If Apple and Verizon end up not striking a deal, the talks between them should, at the least, increase pressure on AT&T to enter into an agreement that is more favorable for Apple.

So, whether this is all just a strategic effort to give Apple the upper hand in their talks with AT&T or if a true partnership with Verizon is on the horizon, time will only tell. For more information on the media pad and “iPhone lite”, click here.

How Good is the iPhone 3GS Video Camera?

One of the new features of the iPhone 3GS is the built-in video camera. Apple’s website promotes the video capability of the new iPhone by saying, “Shoot and edit a mini-masterpiece right on [your] iPhone 3GS”. A mini-masterpiece? How good is the video capability on the 3GS anyways? The technical specifications read: 3 megapixels, autofocus, VGA up to 30 fps with audio and ability to record in widescreen format. Sounds promising… for a cell phone video camera.

A few creative musicians have recently popped up on youtube.com touting their “first professional music video shot entirely on an iPhone 3GS”. I’m not sure it will ever be clear who came out with the “first” 3GS music video, but each video is impressive nonetheless. For your viewing pleasure, we’ve placed the three “first” videos below. Granted the music may not be your cup of tea, but focus on the video quality and you’ll have to admit the 3Gs video camera has made a good first impression.

Simple Guidelines to Prevent iPhone Overheating

The iPhone 3GS continues to be a hot commodity despite customer complaints that have surfaced since its release in June. One of the biggest gripes has been overheating issues with the 3GS. Apple has done little to acknowledge any such issues as anything out of the ordinary, but have decided to publish a set of guidelines to help iPhone users ensure that their device remains at proper operating temperatures.

From Apple:

• iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS should be used in environments where temperatures remain between 32 degrees and 95 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures outside of this range could decrease battery life temporarily or effect performance.
• iPhone 3G and iPhone 3GS should be stored in locations where temperatures remain between -4 degrees and 113 degrees Fahrenheit. Note: Temperatures within sealed motor vehicles can exceed 113 degrees Fahrenheit.

• Don’t leave your iPhone in a vehicle during a hot day.
• Don’t leave your iPhone in direct sunlight for any extended period of time – Avoid using data intensive applications, like GPS or streaming-media apps, for extended periods of time on hot days or while in direct sunlight.

iPhone owners who don’t follow these suggested best-practices could experience any of the following “symptoms:”

- iPhone could randomly cease charging
- iPhone display could become less bright
- iPhone cellular connection could weaken or diminish
- iPhone temperature warning screen could appear, rendering your device useless

Is this Apple advice acceptable enough to silence the rumblings over the overheating issues?  Only time will tell.

Difference between iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3G – the details

Hold the iPhone 3GS next to the iPhone 3G and you won’t see a difference. It’s inside where all the changes have taken place. There’s a “beefed-up” CPU, new internal compass, larger hard drives, improved optics for its camera and new video camera. Coinciding with the release of the 3GS was the launch of the iPhone OS 3.0 which is a major jump from previous versions of the system software.

Early in the year as people were anticipating the new iPhone release, there were hopes of 4G network speeds and expectations of a “new look” to distinguish it from its predecessor. The “newness” of the 3GS is all on the inside. Apple used this model not to reinvent the wheel, but to bolster the capabilities of the iPhone that initially drew people to the iPhone in the first place.

Joshua Topolsky, a writer for engadget.com, has written a very good article breaking down the new features of the iPhone 3GS and what differentiates it from the 3G. Check out the article here.

iPhone 3GS Battery Life Not Meeting Expectations

Brand new phone… not so brand new issues. Everyone who owns a cell phone knows that the battery life promoted by a cell phone manufacturer is rarely accurate. And not even Apple, the leader in cell phone manufacturers, can avoid this issue. The new iPhone 3GS was released last month and there has been an increasing number of users posting across the internet that the iPhone 3GS’ battery is just not living up to expectation

“My charge did not last from morning to evening with a very moderate usage of checking mails just 5 times in a day and 10 minutes of YouTube video. All this was on WiFi with 3G turned off,” says npshenoy2 on Apple’s support forums.

However, unlike the 3GS overheating issues recently reported last month, this lack of battery holding power does not appear to be a hardware issue. Daniel Nation, a writer for the Examiner, believes the issue is related to the 3.0 software update. Reports of overly short battery life surfaced when the 3.0 software update was released for iPhone 3G users two days prior to the iPhone 3GS launch. The culprit in the 3.0 update seems to be the Push Notifications feature which keeps an internet connection open at all times, draining the battery. To conserve energy, Push Notifications can be turned off from the Setting menu.

Apple is currently testing a 3.1 software update for the iPhone, so hopefully the battery life issues will be corrected with that update.

For those who are dealing with iPhone or iPod battery life issues, consider buying an extended life battery.

PDASmart.com – Your Source for iPod Parts & Repair Services

It’s summertime… the time of year for long road trips and vacations at the beach. Getting to your destination is always great when going on vacation, but enjoying the trip there and back is a close second. And many of us have come to rely on our iPods to help pass the time. Now with the expanded capabilities of many of the iPod models…music, movies and games, an iPod would surely be missed on long trips. As you make your final plans for your trip to Disneyworld or your drive up the coast, make sure your iPod is working at its best. Does your battery not hold a charge like it used to? Or, maybe your audio port needs tweaking because your music cuts in and out 50 times during a 3:00 minute song. Visit pdasmart.com for reliable iPod parts and professional iPod repair services at an affordable price.