Really, it all comes down to what kind of phone and what kind of speakers you have. Essentially, the speakers that buzz the most have the least amount of shielding — that is, shielding from any type of radio frequencies. Many times manufacturers will bring down the cost of speakers by limiting the shielding they have. So unless you have rather expensive speakers, the ones you have are more susceptible to all sorts of interference.

It also depends on the kind of phone you have. In most cases the speaker buzz will be caused by a phone running on a GSM network, such as AT&T or T-Mobile in the US (and almost every carrier outside the US).

Whenever GSM phones are in use they will pulsate radio transmissions; ie. the radio turns on/off at a fast rate, causing them to pulse. This pulsing is what you are hearing when the speakers buzz. This typically happens when a call or text message is coming in, or in the car when your phone is transferring from one tower to another. But it can even happen when the phone is sitting still and not doing anything.

You’ll also notice that the volume of the speaker buzz changes, especially car speakers. This is because interference increases as your distance from the tower increases, causing the phone to transmit at a higher power just to be able to communicate with that tower. It can also be simply because your phone is so close to the speaker.

What can be done about the annoying buzzing? Unfortunately, not a whole lot. I’ve found a couple things that work — firstly, make sure your phone is not right next to the speaker. In my car, the interference dies as I move my phone farther away. If that doesn’t work, try pointing the phone away from the speaker. If the antenna is pointing a different direction that may help limit the amount of interference pointed in the direction of the speakers. Lastly, get a CDMA phone (one that works on Verizon or Sprint). While this is not the worldwide standard, they transmit in a completely different fashion that does not cause your speakers to buzz.

Visit this website to go even further in detail.

Check out this article about how using magnets will stop the buzz.

So I have embarked on a new adventure — to beta test new iPhone applications.

Sounds interesting, doesn’t it? For some, yes. Others may be wondering what the heck I’m talking about. With thousands of new iPhone applications being introduced to the App Store on a regular basis, it’s hard to know which ones are total junk and which ones have real promise, and I’m tired of downloading a new app, only to be let down by bad quality, bugs, crashes, or just bad implementation. Beta testing is a great way for developers to improve their app and make sure it can be of actual use to iPhone users.

And frankly, I feel that I can make an excellent contribution to developers by giving them publicity on my blog in addition to helping them find ways to improve the product. And it’s just neat to play with a product that’s not publicly available yet.

Now, while the idea sounds quite glamorous, betas are not public for a very good reason — they have a LOT of bugs that need to get worked out before the final product gets submitted and hopefully accepted. The last thing any developer wants is to sell a buggy app that everyone has issues with and nobody likes. It certainly wouldn’t help their reputation, either. So while I enjoy testing out and previewing apps that nobody else has been able to play around with, it’s no pleasure trip. There are certainly some responsibilities that go along with the privilege.

I know most of you would like to know about the latest and greatest apps coming out, and I want to continue raising the bar of expectations for iPhone apps. In the 3 months since the App Store came out, the bar of expectations has been raised significantly, and there’s no reason why it can’t keep going up. I have doubled the productivity of my iPhone in the last 2 weeks alone due to several new apps.

How does one become a beta tester? A little mixture of luck, associations, prior experience, digging, and asking around. My new adventure is all about learning what it takes to become one. So far I have been able to test two, and am eager to add more to my list.

So my plan is to use my blog as a vehicle of publicity for developers, and to give myself something else to do late at night that doesn’t involve TV.

Tell me — are you interested in knowing what to be on the lookout for? Would you like to know how to get the most out of your phone?

My mission is to help you get the most out of your phone, and to keep an eye on the newest trends in wireless. And I love playing with new stuff. So that is why I beta test iPhone apps.

Written by Brad Molen

While millions of consumers have purchased the iPhone, and overall is a pretty good device, by no means is it perfect. In order to fix bugs and come out with new features Apple has instituted several updates to the iPhone OS and continues to develop more updates.

I am concerned, however, that these updates do not follow a logical path. Obviously the 2.0 update was the largest update with the introduction of the App Store amongst a large number of other things, while 2.1 attempted to fix bugs as well as boost battery life and phone reception. Recently apple developers received a beta version of OS 2.2, which does…Google Street View?

Street Maps is neat, sure. But it’s not copy/paste. It’s not email in landscape mode. No picture messaging still. Take a look at this website and you’ll see thousands of iPhone users voting for the features they want the most. But the pleas remain ignored.

It makes no sense to me that Apple would come out with an update solely to include Google Street View. There HAS to be something else to it. There just has to be! And why wouldn’t they add more? I don’t think it would be that hard to include some of these much-desired features. I wonder if Google is paying Apple quite a bit just to have their features included in a Apple software update.

But if you’re going to come out with a software update and go through the process of redoing OS X code, sending out betas for developers to test, and spending a couple months to do all this, wouldn’t it be more cost and time efficient to involve a few extra programmers and include some of these features that would appease millions of loyal fanboys?

After 2.0 and the iPhone 3G came out, I read that Apple decided not to include copy and paste because it just wasn’t a high enough priority at the time. That’s okay, I can accept that. But some of these minor updates are the perfect time to introduce features that weren’t high enough priority to make it into the major update.

So, I’m starting to think that Apple doesn’t have a planned path for the iPhone updates; and if it does have a plan, it doesn’t make any logical sense. To me it looks as though Apple got done with 2.1 and said “okay, what should we do next for 2.2?” and decided Street View was the next big focus. Have they planned 2.3 yet? 2.4?

Millions of phones are being sold, yes, but there are still many people who won’t get the iPhone because it doesn’t have certain features. Maybe it’s worth investing a few extra bucks to get these features added, and perhaps another million or so could be sold already.

I could be completely wrong; the real version of 2.2 could include a lot more than the devs have leaked to us. But, so far it doesn’t look all that spectacular.

What do you think? Am I completely off on this? Or do you see a natural progression in the updates that I just am not seeing? Please sound off.

Before I tell you, go ahead and take a guess. The answer may come as a complete surprise to you.

AT&T had its quarterly earnings call yesterday morning in which it announced how many iPhones were activated, how many new customers were added and the total revenues and profits for the wireless segment. While I am not currently a stockholder, I am certainly interested to see how beneficial the iPhone is to AT&T.

First, a few facts. When a new customer or eligible current customer purchases the iPhone 3G, AT&T subsidizes $375 off each one. In other words, AT&T pays Apple $575 for a 8 GB iPhone 3G, yet only charges the new customer $199 with two-year contract. The normal subsidy for AT&T phones is roughly $150-200 at the most. The big moneymaker, in this case, is Apple.

Because of this large subsidy, AT&T didn’t expect to start profiting from the iPhone until around 2010. In fact, it was announced yesterday that AT&T suffered a $900 million drop in overall income due to the iPhone. But that was something the company was willing to do because it contributed to an additional 1.7 million customers, bringing the total to 74.9 million (still the leader — at least, until Verizon’s acquisition of Alltel is final).

Now to answer my first question: how much did AT&T make off of each customer?

Overall income was $2.322 billion for the quarter. Divide that by the 74.9 million customers, and it comes out to $31.001 per customer per quarter. That means per month, AT&T made an average of $10.30 from each customer.

I always thought these big companies made more than that, but I guess all those dumb fees they make you pay don’t actually go toward padding the stockholders’ wallets. I would love to see a more detailed list of exactly what kinds of costs are involved in maintaining the network, adding new customers, etc. It would certainly be an interesting look into where that $10 per month is coming from.

Questions:

What was your guess on how much AT&T makes?

Does this come as a shock?

Today I spoke with a T-Mobile employee and asked how many they would be getting in stock. To my surprise, the answer was 0. Zilch. Upon further inquiry, I found out that this was because we do not live in a market that has 3G yet; and since it is a 3G phone, not as much emphasis would be placed on it in this area yet.

The employee did go on to tell me that the G1 would still be available to anyone who orders online. My first thought was of concern for the employee who gets paid on commission, yet cannot take advantage of the launch of one of the biggest devices ever to hit T-Mo. Coming from a salesperson’s point of view, that would be reason enough to be plenty frustrated.

My second, more lingering thought is: if a customer from a non-3G market can order a G1 online, how is it any different from purchasing it in the store? I don’t see any difference at all. They’re still enjoying the same exact phone in the same exact non-3G area. Is it that there’s less of a risk if it’s sold online?

The thing is, 3G phones are backwards compatible. If you are not in 3G coverage, you can still get GPRS/EDGE. While it may not be as fast, it still works quite well. It still makes calls, still accesses internet (especially with WiFi). Um, am I missing something here?

I don’t pretend to know anything about inventory control. Perhaps there’s some underlying truth I just haven’t been told about. But this seems to be a no-brainer. If it’s going to be a national launch, make it available in every store, not just online. Those customers in non-3G markets shouldn’t be punished for something that’s not their fault.

Would you buy a phone because its camera is better than 5 megapixels?

It’s crazy to think that we are even asking this question, but some phones already have 5 MP cameras in them. Time is rapidly approaching when many phones will have 5 MP cameras in them, if not better. New phones in the planning or rumor stages are said to have 8 MP.

For many people, it would be nice to have a phone with a really good quality camera included. But would it really replace your existing digital camera? How many people would start using their phones for professional photography?

I find myself already using the 2 MP camera in my iPhone more than I do the 8 MP digital camera we own. Granted, my digital camera will at least take video whereas my iPhone won’t, but otherwise it is simply more convenient to pull the camera phone out of my pocket than it is to carry around a second camera just in case my daughter does something cute.

It’s been a long time coming. In the US, the best camera you can buy in a phone is 3.2 MP.

Questions:

1. Will the cameras in our phones catch up with our digital ones in quality, features, and MP?

2. Why are phone manufacturers so slow to come out with better cameras?

Please answer these questions in the comments section!

courtesy www.gulfnews.com

The Boy Genius has some good inside sources. We are just getting into Bold and Storm territory and already we are hearing rumblings from Canada that RIM is getting the next two sequels of the Storm ready to go.

In particular, some of the rumors indicate that there is a super-phone on the way — ie. 5 MP camera, 1 GB of RAM, and near-HD quality screen amongst other specs. Apparently this will be a Bold-Storm marriage of sorts; touchscreen with physical keyboard? Not a bad idea in my books.

Questions:

1. How would you like a touchscreen with physical keyboard?

2. Isn’t it about time that RIM came out with a Blackberry super-phone?

The Adventure meets military specs for dust, shock and moisture (not water) resistance, which means it can handle a lot of bad stuff. Not invincible by any means — no phone is — but it will definitely perform better than most normal phones.

This phone features a 2 MP camera, PTT capability, music, high-speed internet, and email.

Now, the reviews.

CNet Editor Review – 7.6 out of 10

- Call and music quality were excellent
- Photo/Video quality were average
- PTT could be improved
- Speakerphone, meh
- Lacks Motorola’s CrystalTalk feature
- Could only read email via web browser

PhoneScoop User Reviews – 4.05 out of 5

- Meets military specs, but not water resistant by any stretch of the imagination
- New VZW menu is easy
- PTT didn’t experience any drag or delay
- Plastic flush battery cover is nice
- Capable of 8 gb MicroSDHC

So overall, seems like a great phone with some nice features thrown in besides the military specs. As always, I encourage any comments you may have on this device – whether you have tried it or want to try it, let me know what you think.

For most of the original iPhone’s existence, clever accessories didn’t seem to be important nor essential to the phone’s success. Fortunately that has all changed with the launch of the 3G version — obviously, manufacturers have realized there is definitely a cash cow at stake now.

So, here are some accessories that we’ve all wanted for a very long time but did not have as options.

FM Transmitter

This will be essential for every iPhone owner that uses it as an iPod and has been frustrated because they could not listen to it in their cars. Finally, Belkin announced a iPhone FM transmitter certified by Apple.

This transmitter, when attached to the phone, turns into its own limited-range FM station that you can tune your car radio to and listen to your music. Just make sure you choose a frequency that is not currently occupied by any other stations to avoid interference.

These transmitters will also double as car chargers. They can be found as low as $50.

Stereo Bluetooth Headphones

Yes! You heard me correctly. This does not mean the iPhone 3G magically got an update with A2DP (stereo bluetooth) support, just that an adapter has been made specifically for the iPhone to enable stereo bluetooth headphones to work with it.

This in essence requires 2 accessories: the adapter and the headphones. If you are lucky you may find them together in a nice package. Grabbing the adapter by itself will cost $50.

External Battery Booster

These battery-life extenders will be crucial if you are using the internet, Wi-Fi, multimedia or any other battery drainer on a constant basis. You may not need them all the time, but it’s better to be safe, just in case.

At the moment they are only available for iPhone 2G, but the company has announced plans to release a 3G version. The current models sell for $99.

Video Projector

This is a brand new concept for cell phones that is slowly gaining support. This video projector will enable you to play movies from your iPhone directly onto any wall. This is wonderful for any movies you may own or rent from the Apple Store.

More details at Honlai’s website.

These are just a few great ideas for iPhone accessories, whether it be as gifts or if you just can’t wait until the next gift-giving holiday. All I have to say is, it’s about darn time some clever stuff came out.

Related Articles:

How did Apple underestimate iPhone demand?
Does the market desire durable phones?

In my post today I want to focus on what the market wants. Sounds like a crazy idea, I know.

With me being just one person I can’t speak for the entire market. I can, however, speak for those customers I have worked with the past three years, which is a more accurate representation of what the market wants.

When a customer comes in looking for a new phone, one of the most common inquiries is: “what is your most durable phone? I’m pretty hard on my phones.”

Everyone needs a durable phone — who doesn’t?

My first impression is – that’s because we tend to treat our phones according to the price we pay for it. We get a new phone for free or super-cheap, kick the living trash out of it, and yet expect it to survive for 2 years. And when it doesn’t, we complain that the cell phone provider sold us a piece of junk. Truth is, we get what we pay (or don’t pay) for.

Sadly, even those who are extremely careful with their phones and take good care of them are susceptible to bad things happening — putting it in the wash, being pushed into a pool with phone in pocket, children treating the phone as an action figure.

In a previous post I discussed pros and cons of insurance. Such scenarios I just described would be survivable with insurance. Without that insurance, however, we have to grit our teeth and buy a new phone for a much larger sum of money than we paid for it originally.

The market is tired of this. We want a phone that can handle the extremes. The ability is out there; in fact, two phones with such a capability just landed in Verizon stores, the G’zOne Boulder and the Motorola Adventure. We will discuss these in a later post.

Why aren’t durable phones more popular, then?

But the question becomes — are we willing to pay the extra cost of these hefty and rugged phones? The Boulder is $130 after $50 mail-in rebate, while the Adventure is $100 after rebates. These are the discount prices when signing contracts. If you want the durable phones that will last 2 years, don’t be looking in the free section.

In addition to being pricey, most of the durable phones are HUGE. Nextel phones, for instance, have the distinction of being the least stylish phones on the market. But that’s because they are made to last, not made to be pretty.

Everyone wants pretty phones, though. That’s the problem! Nobody wants the awkward-looking phones that will actually make it the 2 years (if not a lot longer). The market desires the cake and eat it too. That’s what it really boils down to.

A free, fashionable phone with great reception that will last the whole 2 years? I don’t think such a phone even exists!

So does the market it want it THAT bad?

Perhaps the market doesn’t desire it enough after all. The general population isn’t willing to make the sacrifice necessary to get it. Obviously if there were enough demand for these phones, they would be sold in more stores and provided by more carriers. Since they aren’t sold everywhere, it can then be assumed only a small group of people truly buy these types of phones.

When customers ask me to point them to the durable phones, I show them and explain why they are durable; but when the customer looks at the price tag they shudder and move on to a less expensive and more breakable phone. They decline insurance. And five months later, with broken phone in hand, they yell at me because I won’t provide them with a new phone for free. “But we’re under contract,” they say. “Why don’t you provide us with phones that will last the whole time?”

I use Dish Network and have a contract with them. If I were to poke around with my satellite dish and break it, they will not come fix it for free. They will not provide me with a new one to get through the rest of the contract unless I pay for a new one. Same concept with phones. You break it, you accept the consequences. It doesn’t matter if it was on purpose or on accident. I empathize with you because I’ve been there. But there’s nothing I can do.

Buy a durable phone. Pay the extra cost for a phone that’s more likely to last the entire term of the contract. You get what you pay for.

The market doesn’t desire a durable phone enough. But it really should.