What I love and hate of iTunes and iOS
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Ok... It's been 9 days after receiving my first Apple product, an iPod Touch 64GB. I have never ever had anything to do with Apple, but the features of the Touch were just too tempting.
Apple hardware is fantastic, but their software limits freedom. You MUST connect the thing to iTunes the first time you turn it on. You can't even see the home screen before this step. So I had to install iTunes...
iTunes and my iOS device exchanged some greetings and everything seemed to be fine. But after unplugging and replugging, it won't sync again. And so began a long cycle of restoring the iPod, re-installing iTunes, again and again. To make things worse, every time you restore / update the OS in the thing, you must turn off your Windows firewall and your Antivirus software or else iTunes' connection with Apple's servers will time out.
After many tries, I still could not get the thing to consistently connect to iTunes. So I gave up and just bought apps directly from the iPod, but my Music and Video apps were kept empty. You can't download podcasts from an iPod using the URL of an RSS feed unless you purchase a third party app called "Podcaster", so I bought it. (This app was previously banned by Apple... I'm glad it's now available)
You also can't load videos or music to the iPod via WiFi... Unless you buy any app that features a "WiFi server", giving you http and FTP access to the files contained in the app, bypassing the buggy iTunes. I bought AVPlayer for this.
There's also no way to browse and download PDFs directly from iBooks. There's a paid app that does that called Fast PDF.
But after a week of buying apps directly from the iOS thingy, I decided to solve the syncing problem and went to an Apple Store this morning. They gave me the address of an authorized Apple Service Center, so I went there. The thing connected without problem to one of their Macs, but back at home the problems begin again. I guess Apple coders don't do proper tests with Windows machines. Already tried everything in Apple's troubleshooting database. I was told to update the iOS yet again... Downloading now. Grrrr...
While the iOS 4.3.3 download proceeds, I'll summarize what I love and what I hate of my first Apple purchase:
Love:
-The App Store. Downloading and installing apps is quite straightforward.
-Making Skype calls with video anywhere in my home and also in places with free WiFi, and being able to use any of the two cameras. I'm so in love with this that I would give iPods to all my family and friends if I had the money. Skype for iPod is more stable and reliable than any version I have used in Windows.
-Games. I'm pretty impressed with Real Racing 2 and the "Epic Citadel" demo. Guitar Rock 2 keeps me up until late night, and ABBA Singbox amuses one of my female friends.
-Ability to sync to Google Calendar and to Google Contacts. Having Google Calendar in a portable device makes it actually usable.
-Maps: I still can't get out of my amazement seeing how it quickly locates me, just by triangulating the intensity of nearby WiFi signals. And I can't believe they have such a complete database of WiFi routers' locations. I live in a small country, after all. It's scary and wonderful at the same time.
-Having so much functionality in such a small package. My mother calls this a "pocket computer", and I must agree.
-Two cameras: They might be low resolution and have trouble with low light, but hey, now I have a camera always in my pocket.
-No contract, as I would have if I had chosen an iPhone instead of an iPod.Hate:
-The App Store. Some apps are not available in my country (including Guitar Hero and Google Earth... snif); thankfully they're only a few. Also, some cool apps were rejected by Apple and that means you have to jailbreak your device and get them through Cydia, which I'm not gonna do. Rejected apps include one that allows syncing with iTunes via WiFi, one that provides a numeric reading of WiFi signal intensity (very useful to check for best positioning of your router), and one that frees up RAM by forcing other apps to quit.
-No direct downloads of music and video, including podcasts, unless they're in the iTunes Store. Sure, there are apps for that, but I wish I could do it natively. By the way, "Podcaster", an apps that provides direct download of any podcast via RSS, [url]used to be banned[/url] from the App Store, but is now available. As you see, developers are pretty much at Apple's mercy here.
-No native wireless sync. This would solve all problems with Windows drivers and such. There's an app for that but it requires jailbreaking.
-No "Ć" in the Spanish keyboard... Unless you jailbreak it. Apple considers the Ć to be simply a variation of the N, accesible after holding the N for a moment, but it's actually a full-fledged letter in our language. For example, aƱo (year) written with an N instead of a Ć becomes ano (anus).
-Very limited interoperability between apps. Each one has its own data and can't read data from other apps. -
Two words
Jailbreak
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Once you have installed itunes on your pc, even after you have deleted it, and unselected it from your systems configuration, apple will continue to plague you in different ways. Sigh!!!!! I do not want to reformat my disk. Maybe even that won't work:(
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I agree, Windows sucks.
Do you really need all of that anti virus stuff on MSW 7? My understanding is its no longer needed with the included MS system. Or is that not true?
Most of those I know who use iTunes on a MSW machine don't have any trouble, perhaps its due their settings for the firewall versus yours.
I do agree it will be nice to be able to sync using a wireless connection but I doubt it will fix your sync problems as it seems to be more the interaction of iTunes and the MSW system.
Glad you enjoy the Touch, I have had a first generation unit since shortly after they came out and my son has two which are great machines. It is amazing how much power is packed into them.
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so i guess you're saying i should quit sending out ecards which say 'feliz ano nuevo'
?
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Ha ha ha ha... Thanks, Jeff. That really made me laugh out loud.
I have both Windows 7 and XP on my machine. I tried both. I also tried a netbook with Windows 7. Still the same problems. Tonight I talked to a friend who uses an iPod Shuffle with Windows and she says sometimes it syncs, sometimes it doesn't.
Mine now has iOS 4.3.3, but still can't sync. The tech support guy said if it's a hardware problem they can replace it at no cost. I have to give credit to Apple for giving world-wide warranty. I'm uninstalling and re-installing iTunes and all associated software for the last time before resorting to that. iTunes totals 6 different applications that must be uninstalled in a specific order. It's ironic how intuitive iOS is, and at the same time how incredibly bloated the software you need to install in your PC is.
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what I hate about iphone/ipod/itunes: people who buy iphones in my country often have a very hazy understanding of how it works, and this results in late night calls to me, because I am the tech guy (ironic, being an architect) to call in those cases in which the syncronization deleted all the contacts from these people's phone...
This is why I for one, do not own an Iphone, and probably never will
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Syncing problem:
You need to go into iTunes and select your device on the left pane, then there will be a menu at the top of the main window that says "Summary", "Info", "Apps"...etc. You'll need to select these and look for boxes that need to be checked that say (i.e.) "Sync Apps" or "Sync Movies" for everything that you want to sync regularly. It will then check for and sync any changes whenever you hook up your device.
If that isn't the issue, see if your windows is set up to turn the device off to save power in the USB settings.
Don't blame Windows for your issues, I'm running Win 7 and it has as few issues as my friend's Mac and all the freedom a Windows system allows, from software to hardware. I'd turn off Windows firewall, it's useless; it blocks stuff it shouldn't and lets things through that you don't want. Install Zonealarm, it's not perfect but it's way better than Windows Firewall. If you're using Norton or McAfee AV programs I've found them to be the most frustrating and annoying AV apps out there. Just like Windows firewall they block things they're not supposed to. Especially Norton, it get's it's tentacles into your system and it requires surgery to root out all of the junk it leaves behind even after uninstalling. I use Avast! anti-virus. No problems at all. Both Avast! and Zonealarm are free, and there are other free AV and firewall apps out there if you don't want to use these two. I've never had any problems between these two programs and iTunes.
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Jeff, it doesn't even display that menu. The thing just can't sync.
I tried everything in Apple's troubleshooting list. I tried with both Win 7 and XP in my PC. I tried in a different PC. Tried turning off firewall, antivirus, re-installing different versions of iTunes, restoring iOS to latest version, etc. The thing just won't talk to iTunes.
I just returned from Apple Tech Support. I copied all the screen captures with error messages to the device. (Sent them to myself via email). The guy was friendly and said if everything goes smoothly I should have a new one in 8-15 days.
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Wow. Sorry it didn't work out, good luck with tech support!
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Haven't had any of those problems with my iPod Touch (either version). Sounds like the problem was with your device. When they replace it, and assuming it works fine, I'll bet you love it. You were smart to get the 64GB instead of a smaller one.
The tech guys probably didn't tell you, but best to get an adapter to plug the iPod directly into the wall for recharging, rather than using the USB connector with your computer. Also, if you buy a dock/speaker for it, make sure it supports the current generation of iPod Touch. I bought a speaker dock for my 2nd generation device, but when I got my 4th generation device and plugged it in, discovered it would play the music, but wouldn't charge the device.
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Miguel, have you the iTunes 64bit installed?
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Sure, Rich, I'm using the 64-bit version. The 32-bit version won't even install under my Windows 7 64-bit. I also tried the 32-bit version of iTunes under XP and Win 7 Home in another machine, but no dice.
Thanks, Daniel, I'm waiting for a wall charger to arrive in 2 weeks.
I'll be listening to podcasts with my 5-year-old Creative ZEN Nano Plus until I receive the new iPod. The ZEN uses simple drag & drop for file transfer and AAA batteries. I reckon an iPod Touch can't be that simple, but I wish it was.
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By chance, are you running Soluto? Or some other 3rd party startup manager?
I had similar problems with iPad on Win7. But found Soluto was causing problem.
BTW, the next iOS is supposed to sync via wifi. That'll be big advantage. As well as multi gesture.
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No, no startup manager. Even if I had one, that does not explain having the same problem on another PC with only one OS.
Big thumbs up for WiFi sync.
Man, I already feel bored without my iPod.
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I'd been toying with the idea of getting an ipod touch. I like the idea of having a phone and an ipod in one but don't see myself using any of the 3g (or whatever) functionality (I would rather get apps at home and never feel interested in checking the internet when I'm traveling) -- especially when it means paying for the data plan. I seem to belong to such a niche market, though, that there isn't an option to buy a "smart phone" with no data plan.
Anyways, the ipod touch looked as close as I could find to what I wanted but then I stumbled across archos' tablets.
It seems to be the android version of an ipod touch. No itunes.
Did you look into these before getting the ipod touch? is there some reason I'm not seeing that makes them inferior? -
dsarchs, I have a old smartphone with the data features that I don't want turned off. You should be able to do the same with the newer models. Btw, IMO, you may find 4G essential at some point in time.
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I had an iPod Touch 2nd gen that I loved. I got it for many of the reasons people are talking about: all the features of a touch smartphone minus the phone, no data plan.
Well, a few months ago I decided to look into a real smartphone again. I'm on T-Mobile, which has a $10/month, 200MB data plan and they have the Samsung Vibrant (Galaxy S), an Android phone. It's awesome! All the freedom in the world: I plug it into ANY computer, PC or Apple, and it comes up as just another storage device. (There is a desktop app if you want to automate syncing and management.) All the apps on it take care of keeping things in order. Media player finds all the music, video player finds all the videos. I used to carry around a phone and my iPod Touch, and every now and then would have to look on both for a contact. Now I have only one device. It syncs beautifully with my Google account, so all my contacts and my calendar are all the same everywhere. Oh, did I mention that T-Mobile gave it to me for free?!
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Sometimes the selection of a phone is subject to location. On Oahu IMO, Verizon provides the best coverage, AT&T next, T-Mobile last. The difference between Verizon and At&T is a lot, so if you need the best coverage, you have to go with Verizon. I loved Cingular until they sold my account to AT&T, discontinuing the kind of service that gave them the best coverage. At first only AT&T had iPhone, but now Verizon has it. Don't know the details of the data plans, so I can't judge. I also have 4G with ClearWire for roving Internet coverage. Not bad, but 4G will not penetrate steel buildings as well as 3G. Many of my business clients love BlackBerry. So sometimes the criteria isn't the hardware, but the service provider. And as we know, each service provider has different phones, systems, and coverage. At least where I live.
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dsarchs: I didn't know about the archos. Seems pretty good spec-wise.
The idea of getting an iPod Touch became fixed in my mind after I learned it could be used for Skype calls, as I had been checking out WiFi Skype phones for some time now but none seemed to "get it". The inclusion of two webcams in the latest iteration sealed the deal for me. Before the iPod Touch, I had considered getting a Sony PSP for the same purposes: Games, Music, Video, and Skype.Ledis, sadly the mobile phone market in my country is a duopoly, and there are no such amazing offerings. Local providers don't even carry the iPhone 4. sigh.
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