Updating My iPhone Software

Apple sent me a request on Friday asking me to update the operating system on my iPhone. It said before doing the update I would need to make more room on the device as I didn't have enough free space. That surprised me as I had over 10 GB available. Fortunately it brought up a utility to help me remove large files from the phone.

I take a lot of pictures and movies with my phone that I use on my YouTube channel. That requires me to copy the files from my phone to my desktop computer. I don't need the copy on my phone and so I spent some time making sure I had copies on my computer before deleting them from my phone. I did keep several photos on my phone as sometimes I like to show some of my pictures to friends and family. There is a balance though as keeping too many pictures makes them difficult to find and deleting to many means I can't share some of my adventures.

I went through my phone and freed up quite a bit of space. Apple's utility then showed me my largest text message attachments. My daughter-in-law often sends me large videos of my grandchildren being cute. I made sure I had copies and then deleted the ones on my phone. That freed up even more space to the point I felt I could install the operating system update.

I made sure to plug my phone into a stable power source and started the update. It ran smoothly and half an hour later, I had a phone with the latest operating system. My hope is that Apple doesn't continue to make more large updates. If they do, then I may need to upgrade my phone simply to have more memory so I don't have to worry about these updates in the future.

Sending Text Messages from your Computer with Android Phones

Apple recently released information about their latest phones and I don't see the need to spend $1000 or so to upgrade the one I have. Sure I will get a credit for trading in my iPhone 12 mini but it won't be a straight swap and so I am keeping my current iPhone for now. 

One of the reasons I have stuck with an iPhone for as long as I have is because I can stay on top of my text messages using my Mac computer. While I am not too slow texting using the smartphone's tiny keyboard, I am lightning quick using a full-sized one. Furthermore I sit in front of my computer all day and if I get an important text, I can see the message immediately without having to pull out my phone. My oldest son feels the same way but has grown tired of constantly being tethered to Apple's overpriced phones.

My son has been looking at Android phones just to compare specs and also did some research on if it is possible to use a desktop computer to send and receive messages for Android devices. He found a CNet article that shows how to do it. This actually opens up a few possibilities for smartphone options.

One of the advantages of working for Sony is that I have access to great discounts on Sony products. Now Sony isn't a big player in the United States when it comes to Smartphones. However they do have some great products that are technically superior to Apple's. Right now there is a special for a phone that retails for $1800 and I can get it for $400 as a Sony employee. It is tempting now that one hurdle that keeps me on iOS is gone. Perhaps when my current phone's battery needs replacing, I can just replace it with an inexpensive Android.

A New Mobile Phone

 A few weeks ago I wrote about trying to decide if I should get a new mobile phone and use it as a dedicated work phone. As luck would have it, the mobile phone I use as our house phone stopped holding a charge. While it used to go a week or so between charges, it could only go 24 hours. It was time to replace the device. Fortunately I had already done a lot of research and had some good ideas on what to replace it with.

The phone that stopped holding a charge was a very robust demo unit given to me by Sony. I loved that phone as it had one of the best cameras at the time. I took it with me to Fiji and captured some amazing photos that no other phone at the time could match. As that trip took place a year before COVID, phones have improved a lot since then. I also have not taken many photos with that phone since I relegated it to home-phone duty. In fact, I hardly ever answer that phone as the only people that call it are scam artists or telemarketers. It is nice to keep the phone number though as it is the one tied to countless accounts and we do receive important calls on it about twice a year.

I decided to list out all of the features I need in a phone and it wasn't that long. I need the phone to be able make calls, text, work with 5G, and be as cheap as possible. While my carrier offers free phones, that comes with the catch of a service contract for several years. While I doubt I will change wireless companies, I do want to keep that option open. Besides I knew I could find a pretty cheap phone based on previous research.

Next I did an Internet search on cheap Android phones. There is only one option if I needed an iPhone and that is the SE which costs more than I wanted to spend. The search string I used was, "Cheapest smartphones for 2023." I got a nice list and looked a bit more into each of them. Ultimately I decided on the Motorola Moto G Stylus 5G 256GB (Unlocked). Best Buy had them on sale for $200 and that is an amazing deal for what you get. It has a very fast processor, 256GB of storage, and a stylus for those times when your finger is just too fat.

So what are the downsides? The phone is massive. It is not quite large enough to be a tablet but it sure isn't small enough to fit in my pants pocket without being uncomfortable when I go to sit down. That is fine though as it technically is our home phone and will stay at the house.

I have had the phone for a couple of weeks now and it is working as expected. There are a number of software updates and they installed flawlessly. I've experimented with the phone to see if I should install my work e-mail and it would work perfectly for that. Now all I need to do is see about loading it with movies and bringing it on a plane so I don't have to rely on the seat-back screen in front of me.

Getting AirDrop to Work

My iPhone is getting full of pictures and I need to pull some off to store somewhere else. I could store them in iCloud but am not a fan of filling up my online space only to have to eventually figure out where to put the photos. It is much easier to transfer them to one of my computers instead.

A few days ago I tried to set up AirDrop from my phone to my Mac laptop. It should be really simple and I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. A quick Internet search says there are only 2 or 3 steps. It took a bit of digging on my part but I eventually figured it out.

Problem 1: Make sure you are logged into your Apple ID account
I recently updated the operating system on my laptop and it automatically logged me out of my Apple ID account. This account is what allows you to access iCloud and iTunes. It is required to tie all of your devices together. Once I logged in, things started working.

Unfortunately all of the instructions you will pull up on an Internet search assume you are already logged in with your Apple ID. I think I stumbled around for quite awhile until I came upon the solution. If you are having any problems, check this first.

Problem 2: Make sure your devices are on the same network
Every morning I go into my home office and log into my office's virtual private network or VPN so I can get at the company network. Remember that I am writing this during COVID-19 and have started my 6th week of working from home. I keep forgetting that when I am on the VPN, I lose access to some of my home devices. I can't log into my Linux server nor can I print to my color laser printer. The moment I disconnect from the VPN, my laptop can see all of those devices again. The same holds true for my iPhone.

I had a picture I wanted to put on my laptop this morning and couldn't figure out what was wrong. I had Bluetooth enabled for both devices and they could see each other but wouldn't connect. Then I remembered all of the problems I have trying to connect to my other home devices and I disconnected the VPN. Then everything started working correctly.

Typical Solutions
My 2 problems are very unique to me and so these may not be an issue for you. If you find yourself having trouble using AirDrop, you will want to try the usual solutions that can be found in any Internet search:

1. Make sure Bluetooth is turned on for both devices.
2. Click on the AirDrop link found on the left side of your finder window and set the "Allow me to be discovered by" to "Everyone". 
3. Make sure AirDrop is set up on your other device as well.

Hopefully one of the typical solutions will work for you and you don't have the same problems I do. However if you do, this list could be very helpful.

A New Phone

Yesterday I sort of got a new phone. The actual phone is the same one I have had for a few months. I just had a new OS put on it and that completely wiped everything I had on the phone previously. Knowing that I periodically would be wiping the phone for such updates, I don't keep anything important on the phone without having an online backup first. Both Android and iOS allow you to keep things like contacts backed-up online or "in the cloud." However there are a number of things that don't get backed up and I am discovering those things today.

I am at the San Francisco airport this evening and realized I am headed back to Utah where I plan to work from home tomorrow. While my virtual private network (VPN) program reappeared on my reset phone, all of my account information got wiped from it. That required a call to the company's IT desk to get it reconfigured. Fortunately that only involved clicking on a link that showed up on the phone in the form of a text message.

While all of my old programs magically reappeared on the phone, none of the shortcuts on the home page remained. About 30 seconds later, they were back where they belonged. Again, I don't keep too many apps on this phone. Had the same thing happened to my personal phone, it would have taken a bit longer.

The final configuration task was entering account information. While my Pandora and Spotify apps could be found on the phone, I still had to enter my e-mail address and appropriate passwords. Now everything is working nicely and the phone is back to the same state as before the complete reset.

Remembering all of the steps required to set up a new phone helps to keep me from constantly updating it to newer and later versions. Perhaps that is why there are not lines around the block at the Apple store with people hoping to get the latest iPhone. I am perfectly happy with my current iPhone and don't plan to upgrade it any time soon.

Pandora vs. Spotify

My kids introduced me to Pandora streaming music several years ago and I have to say that I like the service. Recently another service has been gaining in popularity called Spotify and so I thought I would give it a shot. Once again it was my kids that told me I was behind the times and should move to Spotify. When I asked them why, they gave a number of reasons and so I thought I would check it out for myself.

My primary usage for streaming music is during my daily workout session. It makes getting on an indoor bicycle much easier when there is something upbeat to listen to. I never listen to music unless it is on a stationary bike inside a building. That means I always have a WiFi connection to the Internet. Riding outdoors with earphones on is a good way to get hit by a car or another cyclist. My preferred platform is my Android phone.

A second reason for listening to streaming music isn't really for music but for comedy. This is generally done as I travel to and from the airport using public transportation. It also means there isn't any WiFi and I use my phone's LTE Internet connection. For this, I will alternate between my iPhone and my Android phone. It just depends on which one is more easily reachable.

Finally, when I am working from home I like to listen to music and so I will have some sort of streaming music during mundane tasks that don't require much thought like doing expense reports. This is generally run on my Linux computer as I have a really nice sound system connected to it.

Given this background, here are my simple and initial observations:

I started listening to Pandora first and so I have the most experience with it. My memory of it initially is that it is very easy to set up. I created one station called "A Little Bit of Everything" where I entered a number of artists that I like and Pandora plays music from those artists as well as similar bands. After a while I found that my taste in music is so varied that I often end up listening to a lot of stuff I don't really like. Instead of constantly rating songs with the "thumbs down" button, I created a new station for just one artist: Angels and Airwaves. Pandora streams me music from Blink 182, Boxcar Racer, +44 as well as Angels and Airwaves along with other similar bands like Simple Plan. It is great music to listen to while working out.

When my kids had me look into Spotify, I set up an account on my Linux box and was immediately turned off as I was told to download the Spotify computer program. With Pandora I can just use my browser and don't have to install anything. Both streaming music applications require apps for smartphones and provide them for both Android and iOS. I assume they are also both available for Windows Mobile devices but don't really care. I don't have one of those, nor will I ever.

The first platform I loaded Spotify onto was my Android phone and it was a painless process. I typed in "Angels and Airwaves" into the artist section and saw a listing for a number of songs from that band and only that band. I assume that if I wanted to add Blink 182, I could do so but have not played around with the app enough to figure out how to do it. I did notice that there are a lot more Angels and Airwaves songs than I have heard on Pandora and so I believe there is a lot more music to choose from with Spotify, it just takes more effort to set things up the way you want them.

My son claims that Spotify has higher quality music than Pandora. At first I thought that meant more music song choices. Then my son explained that Spotify uses a higher sampling rate for their music and so the same song on Spotify will sound better than on Pandora. I'm not sure about that as they both sound pretty good to me. Perhaps I need a better set of earphones to tell the difference.

Currently my Spotify experience is rather rudimentary and so I still need to spend more time setting up the service. My initial impression is that if I take the time, it will be a lot better than Pandora, I just haven't done so yet. Until then it is easier to continue listening to Pandora and occasionally switch to Spotify when I want a more concentrated "Angels and Airwaves" experience.

A Step Backwards for iOS

I will admit that sometimes I don't like change. When Windows XP first came out, I thought the colors were ugly and that it was a step back for the Windows operating system look and feel. Then I got used to it and felt it was better than previous versions of Windows. When I upgraded my iPhone to version 8 of iOS, I hated the look and feel. I thought it would be like Windows XP and it would grow on me. Unfortunately after using it for several months, I still hate it. The designer that came up with it should be fired from Apple and never be able to find work in the computer software industry again. Furthermore, I think the managers that approved it should also be systematically fired. Who let this design happen?

There are a number of new features that Apple seems to think users will find important. I don't contend that some of those features are unneeded. I just think they did a horrible job with the user interface. The colors are bland and they have over-simplified things to the point that the dial pad for making calls is just plain ugly.

Sometimes we change things to make them better and other times we change things to just make it different. The latest version of iOS has changes to the UI to just be different and that is not a good thing. Fortunately there are other options out there. By contrast, the latest changes to Android are much more visually appealing. They did simplify a lot of the window dressing which makes for a cleaner experience. However they did make it visually appealing and much more fun to use. Hopefully someone at Apple notices and fixes the iOS user interface. Until then I may use my Android phone more and more.

Android Phone vs iPhone

I have been carrying both an Android phone and my iPhone 5 for a week now and I have to say it is kind of a pain having 2 phones. I am constantly afraid I am going to leave my Android phone somewhere because I don't have a dedicated carrying case for it yet. To be honest, I am afraid to get a case because then I will have 2 phone cases on my belt and will look like an uber-nerd. Well we may be past that point right now.

My first week has taught me a lot. My Android phone is significantly larger (5.70 x 2.79 inches) than my iPhone (4.90 x 2.33 inches). That has its advantages and disadvantages. Some long-time iPhone users think the Android phone is too big while others are tired of the iPhone's size and want a bigger screen. I actually prefer to read my e-mail on the Anroid phone, something I rarely do on my iPhone. It sure is tough to put in my pocket though.

I have always said that the user interface for Android is not quite done. I still believe that to be true. There are also a lot more "hidden" or non-intuitive elements with Android. The funny thing is that in learning about Android, I am also learning more about iOS as there are things it does now that I have never thought about.

It has only been a week with my Android phone and so I am still more comfortable with my iPhone. However I am liking some of the Android features more and more each day. I'll try to remember to provide more feedback after the new year. Perhaps I might be a bit less biased and be able to give an objective comparison of both phones.

Apple Going Downhill

Today I needed to update the operating system on my wife's Apple MacBook computer. The last time I needed to update the OS for another computer, I just bought a copy of Snow Leopard from the local store and loaded it onto the computer my kids use. It was a busy day being New Year's Eve, but my wife really wanted to get her computer fixed. So we braved the local Apple store on a holiday only to discover they don't carry it in the stores any more. The salesperson told me to order it online and they would send it to me. That wasn't going to help me today.

This is just one example of Apple not continuing to think about its customers. Another example is the iPhone 5. While some people love the phone, there are a number of unlucky customers that got a substandard product that doesn't work very well. My brother-in-law was one such user and is now trying to figure out how to unload his iPhone 5 for something that is usable. This has me holding onto my old iPhone a bit longer as I try to figure out what to replace it with. If only Google would polish the Android operating system so that it was at least close to the level of iOS.

Steve Jobs understood the importance of the customer and now it seems as if the new CEO is letting Apple start the downhill slide that eventually happens to all companies at the top of their industry. Sure that slide can be stopped, but Apple should wake up now before it is too late. As for me, I am starting to look at other options.