Canadian iPhone User - iPhoneUser.ca

We are up and running at the new site

2008-06-05T11:29:00.000-07:00

We are back and working again at http://www.iphoneuser.ca. I finally got the site up and running. Still working on a few minor details but everything looks good. This site here will remain for the time being and as a test site. Thanks for checking us out.

Changing hosts

2008-06-04T00:14:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone. I'm in the process of changing webhosts so the site may be down temporarily some time later today or tomorrow. Please check back later if we are down as I hope to have everything set up ASAP. The mirror address for the site is - http://iphoneuserca.blogspot.com.
Visit us there in the meantime if the main address isn't working. We will have a nice new set up and hopefully you will find it more user friendly - much like the iPhone is.

Thanks.

iPhone Video Recorder

2008-06-03T20:50:00.000-07:00

I found an interesting app today in installer. I'm not sure when it came out but once I saw it, I had to try it out. It's the iPhone video recorder. It's available in the featured section right when you open up installer.

The video quality actually seems quite decent. The one you download is basically a trial version and will let you record up to 30 second clips and will let you record 30 times. You have to buy a registration code to do more than that. I guess the 30 tries will last me a little while. To buy the full version it costs $19.95. Just a little expensive for an iPhone app. I wonder how much apps will be in the official Apple App Store once it opens.

Overall, this is a good program. But I wouldn't pay 20 bucks to use it. I'm not going to be recording stuff everyday so that doesn't really seem worth it to me. Enjoy your free trial version.

Old people use the iPhone too

2008-06-03T01:04:00.000-07:00

One thing that I've noticed over the past couple of months is that the iPhone is not just for us younger generation. Lots of older people have iPhones too.

I've met a guy who is over 50 who has an iPhone and I asked him a few things about it. He said he loves his iPhone and that it is the best phone he has ever had. He also said that his son who is only 10 taught him how to use everything on it. He also said that he had bought a lot of Apple products like a mac and Apple TV and his son set it all up too. He said that he loves the technology of the iPhone and is glad he got it. His son unlocked it for him.

About two months ago I saw a lady in her 40's who had an iPhone. I also asked her about it. She too said it was the best phone she's ever had, maybe even the best thing she's ever owned. A couple weeks ago I also saw an older man taking photos with his iPhone. Today even, I heard the signature Apple iPhone ringtone, I knew it was an iPhone, but guess who answered, a man who is at least 50, maybe even 60.

This just goes to show that anyone can get excited about the iPhone and cool gadgets in particular. The iPhone really bridges the generation gap. Once the iPhone is available in Canada, I'm sure I will see ever more older folks using an iPhone. I bet not all older people know the ins and outs of unlocking and hacking some of the younger tech savvy generation. Do you know anyone over the age of 40 with an iPhone? Do your parents have one? Let me know!

How to really get SNES roms on your iPhone

2008-06-02T00:01:00.000-07:00

I finally got the Super Nintendo roms working on my iPhone. It is pretty cool actually. I guess the graphics are a little better than the regular Nintendo roms. The games tend to lag a bit once in a while but I found that they are still playable.

Here's how I did it.

1. The programs you need on your iPhone from installer are as follows:
- snes4iPhone
- zottd required library
- bsd subsystem
- openssh

2. Download the roms you want from http://www.theoldcomputer.com

3. Use cyberduck on mac or winscp to transfer the roms onto your iPhone to the directory
private/var/mobile/Media/ROMs/SNES

4. Right click the rom and click 'info', now change the permissions to 644.

5. Now it will work

For info on how to ssh into the iPhone click here
For info on installer source of snes4iphone click here

I actually made my first youtube video of this process. The video isn't great but will show you what I'm doing to get the roms going on your iPhone (or iPod touch). Hopefully you like it. I plan to make more in the future on other iPhone related stuff and hopefully my video making skills will improve over time. Check it out.

Will there ever be a CDMA iPhone?

2008-06-01T00:15:00.000-07:00

I know there is a lot of people with Telus and Bell or even Verizon and Sprint that want to get their hands on the iPhone. The main thing holding them back is the early cancellation fee or special retention plans or other plans that are keep them tied or loyal to their current carriers. I wasn't afraid of being charged the ECF and I got lucky in my situation but to pay anywhere from $100-700 plus tax just to switch carriers seems unacceptable.

The answer is probably no. There will never be a CDMA iPhone. One reason is that it is just not enough of a popular technology to make it worthwhile. CDMA holds about 50% of North American market share but less than 1% worldwide. That probably just isn't good enough according to Apple standards. The other reason that we wont see a CDMA iPhone is that Apple signed a 5 year exclusive deal with AT&T for the iPhone in the USA. Apple is not going to make a CDMA version just for Telus or Bell. The agreement prevents them for making one for the only viable carriers of Verizon or Sprint.

I know you guys on Telus and Bell want to join us in iPhone-land. My recommendation is to jump ship once your contract expires, and if you really can't wait, pay your ECF and jump ship once the iPhone is released here in Canada by Rogers. At this point, it probably wouldn't be a good idea to switch until Rogers does have the iPhone.

3G iPhone physically present in Canada or delayed globally?

2008-05-30T03:59:00.000-07:00

There have been conflicting reports over the past couple days on whether or not the 3G iPhone is physically present in North America and Canada specifically or if it is delayed globally.

First of all Import Genius claims that Apple received a shipment of 188 ocean containers of potentially the 3G iPhone. The customs declaration declared the items as 'electric computers'. This is something that Apple has never declared to customs before. Additonally 44 containers were destined for Vancouver, BC. Yay! That's exciting stuff. I wish I knew someone working at the port who had access to these types of things or could collect that box that fell off the truck.

On the flip side, there are now rumors that the 3G iPhone could be delayed? Oh no! Why? Analysts are saying so because the supposed maker of the 3G iPhone chip has forecasted a decline in profits due to less than anticipated HSDPA chip sales. People determined that maker Infineon would supply the 3G iPhone chip because a code for their chip was buried deep with the iPhone SDK coding. If the 3G iPhone is in fact delayed, it will be a little disappointing as we are all excited and very anxious to see what we will be able to officially get our hands on here in Canada. However, it may not make much difference because I don't think Rogers will be releasing it right away as it becomes available. I think Rogers is going to wait a couple months.

I'm almost getting tired of hearing so many rumors. June 9th isn't that far away but it seems like an eternity where there is a new rumor everyday.

The joy of free wifi

2008-05-29T11:42:00.000-07:00

One of the great things about the iPhone is that can connect to wifi networks. This was generally unheard of on cells phones until recently. The iPhone is the leader in cell phones that can connect to wifi. The iPhone's ease of use with safari and other applications make the wifi ability really stand out.

One of the problems of currently not having an adequate data plan on my iPhone is that I have to use wifi more. Now using wifi isn't the problem, just finding free wifi seems to be the problem. In all Starbucks locations they have hotspots. One problem, they aren't free. They aren't even reasonably priced. I'm not going to pay 10 bucks to connect to a wifi network for an hour. I'm also not going to pay 25 bucks a month to get hotspot access all the time because I'm not usually at a hotspot.

One of the funniest things is finding peoples private wifi networks which are open. Come on, who doesn't encrypt their home wifi or business network? It's actually surprising that there are tons of open networks everywhere. I can't believe people actually leave them open but I'm not complaining. At my work, I can get free wifi in a few of the corners. I have to be close to the window but at least I can connect and use the internet. I usually only have 1 wifi bar but it still works. There is about 1 out of 10 wifi networks that are open. I'm sure if you just walk down the street you will find them everywhere. Take advantage of it!

More wishes for the 3G iPhone

2008-05-28T23:37:00.000-07:00

The list keeps growing and growing. It's not that I'm unhappy with the iPhone, I just believe there is some features they could add that would basically kill all other phones.

1. A better camera
A 5 mega pixel camera would be great. The Nokia N95 and the Sony Ericsson K850i both have 5mp cameras. Lets put one in the iPhone with zoom, that way you can basically get rid of your camera that you already have.

2. Decent video recording
Even my Moto Razr could record video. It wasn't that good but it still had it. I probably wouldn't use it that much but I would once in a while. The only thing I recorded on my Moto Razr was parts of a concert but it was still fun. You never know when you want to take a video of something.

3. iTunes store access over 3G
You can't access the Wifi iTunes store now over Edge, well basically because you aren't on wifi. Plus Edge would be to slow to download songs from the iTunes store. Once in a while I hear a song on the radio that I want right away. By the time I get home, I have forgotten it. It happens.

Here's my other wishes for the 3G iPhone

Canadian wireless spectrum auction

2008-05-28T00:10:00.000-07:00

What will the Canadian wireless spectrum auction mean for Canadian iPhone users? I actually think it wont mean much. It may mean something for unlocked iPhone users in the future but really I don't think it will have much effect.

Why? Well it has been reported that the iPhone when released on Rogers may be a Rogers vision phone so that it could be used with the $7 unlimited data plan. How can it get any cheaper than that? Not by much. The basic iPhone plan on AT&T is $59.99. That is not miles cheaper than plans here in Canada.

Telus and Bell are offering real $30 unlimited data plans for Blackerry's/Smartphones. The current trend seems to be that rates are dropping anyway. Koodo Mobile is offering plans for $25 without the system access fee. How much cheaper can it get?

Hopefully the spectrum auction forces Rogers and the others to rethink the system access fee and real data rates. But if you do get an iPhone from Rogers, I doubt this will end up having any impact.

If you are still using an unlocked iPhone on Fido or some new carrier next year, then their may be better data rates in the future for those people. I doubt that a new major wireless countrywide GSM carrier will set up shop and make any significant impact.

InvisibleShield - 3 months later

2008-05-27T00:03:00.000-07:00

I've had the InvisibleShield on my iPhone now for about 3 months. How has it stood up? Well it is actually performing just like it is supposed to. I don't have any scratches on my iPhone. It maintains the great look of the iPhone.

I have noticed a couple problems though:

- It has started to discolor a bit.
The back of the iPhone is a sharp looking metallic grey. The back of the InvisibleShield has taken on a very slight beige color. It's not noticeable unless you look very closely but it has gotten a little dirty. I guess I will try and clean it. Not sure what I will use but I will give it a try.

- It is getting a little rough around the edges.
I guess this comes with normal use. There is a little bit of dust gathering around the edges and getting underneath. I guess it is attaching itself to the sticky underside. You also can only notice this when you look closely.

Overall the InvisibleShield is working just fine. I decided not to put the top and bottom bezel pieces on because it seemed like too much of a hassle so the exposed metal portion at the top and bottom is getting a little scratched up. This is from the iPhone being in my pocket all the time.

I think I'm getting a little tired of having the InvisibleShield on my iPhone but I think I will just leave it on for now. I was thinking of getting the white Incase slider to replace the InvisibleShield but it wouldn't fit with it on. I don't really feel like peeling it off right now because I don't want to potentially damage the paint and I don't want to pay another $25 bucks for a new one if I decide I want it again. I will just leave it as is right now and then make a decision when the next iPhone comes out.

Potential look of the 3G iPhone

2008-05-26T00:44:00.000-07:00

With the anticipated release of the iPhone coming up so soon, there has been a lot of speculation as to what the new iPhone will look like. The trend for Apple seems to be that they release the first generation of a product that comes in one color. When they move on to the second generation, they usually add color. This is true with the iPod. The first generation of the iPod came out in 2001, second gen in 2002, third gen in 2003, then the iPod mini was finally released in 2004. These were available in 4 colors. In 2005, the iPod nano was released and came in black and white. In 2006, the second gen of the iPod nano was released and was available in 6 colors. It seems very likely that the second gen iPhone (also knows as 3G iPhone - not 3rd gen) will come in more than one color. The color variety of Apple products have been very popular.

Here was the first potential look of the 3G iPhone. However this rumor was quashed a while ago as just being a case.

The newest 'rumored look' of the 3G iPhone comes from iphonehellas.gr. These pics are supposed to be leaked 3G iPhone photos. They actually look like Apple ads. I looked at the pics extremely close up and they did not look retouched. If they are fakes, whoever made them has to be a photoshop pro. I really like the look of the white iPhone. If there is a white one, I'm definitely getting that one. The red one looks a little odd. You would think though that Apple would release a blue or green iPhone if they were in fact going to do colors.

What do you think of these colors? Are these just more fakes?

Vancouver Apple Store Grand Opening

2008-05-25T01:18:00.000-07:00

The Apple Store opened at Pacific Centre in Vancouver yesterday. I was one of the lucky ones to make it there. I was even one of the first 1000 people to get a free t-shirt. It's not the best of t-shirts, but it was free, you can't complain. I wanted to make it there for the 10am opening, but I tend to sleep in usually. I ended up making it down there at 10:45 and there was still a massive line up. I took some photos at first and then jumped in the line which was outside the door more than 100 metres away. About 20 minutes later I finally got it.

What was it like? Well, not much different compared to other Apple stores I've been to. I usually frequent the one in Bellevue, Washington and this one wasn't much different. There was on major thing missing from it though, the iPhone. There was nothing iPhone related in the store. When I asked one of the clerks if they sold iPhone cases, the response was, "We don't support the iPhone here". Nice response. I was hoping for some enthusiasm like "It's coming soon!" or something like that. Oh well. But it was pretty cool to be there anyway.

It seemed like most people were just there to look and get the free shirt but I saw a couple Macbook, Macbook Air, and Apple TV boxes leaving the store. Since I have everything Apple that I could possibly need right now, I didn't buy anything. Another good thing about the Apple store is that it is right next to the new H&M store which just opened a couple days ago. They have great clothes at low prices.

I am really looking forward to lining up at the new Apple store overnight when the iPhone is released here. That should be an adventure. The last time I lined up overnight for something was on boxing day a couple years ago at best buy when I bought a TV.

Here is the line up:

Here is the free Apple t-shirt:

Here are some random shots of the store:

Huge Bills!

2008-05-23T00:01:00.000-07:00

It was only a matter of time before the huge bills started to come in for people using the $7 unlimited browsing plan on their iPhones and other non-fido phones. They haven't been charging since February until now. Tons of people are on this plan are were saying how it works just fine and that everyone should get it. Well I'm glad I didn't because I don't want to take out a loan or re-mortgage my house to pay my cell phone bill. I have no idea whats going to happen to some of these people. It aint pretty. Hopefully Fido will credit them some if not all of their money back and maybe just give them a slap on the wrist. Getting a bill like these would be devastating. These big bills have been confirm on Fido, I haven't heard of any on Rogers yet. Glad I'm not on this plan.

1. The biggest of them all. Someone using a non-fido phone, not an iPhone. Grand total - $22,256.05. Thats sick. Don't have a picture of this one

2. $20,551.73 - this was also not on an iPhone but a non-fido phone with 3rd party apps being used. Here's proof:
3. $3000 - This one was on an iPhone. In the pic you can see there is 4 digits to the total. Hard to see but it's there.
That's not all. There is more. Someone has a bill for $580. Someone has one for $1900. Someone who works for fido said he saw one that is over $50,000. This is nuts man. Call in and see if you have any overage charges immediately. Unfortunately, the saying is - told you so!

You can read more about the discussion here

Anyone here get a huge bill?

N95 Confusion

2008-05-22T12:19:00.001-07:00

It seems as if owners of the Rogers Nokia N95 8gb phone are running into some difficulty and confusion. Apparently Rogers can't even decide if and how you can use the unlimited browsing vision pack on this phone. People are saying that you have to use the Rogers built in browser and not the built in Nokia S60 browser. CSR's are telling people that you can only view wap sites and not html sites.

We better not have these kinds of problems when they have to start answering questions about the iPhone. First of all, it better not have restrictions. No data cap would be nice, but more importantly, there better be no app restriction. For example, you can use safari and mail all you want but if you use youtube, it's 5 cents per kb. That would be ridiculous.

Next, the CSR's need to learn the difference between wap and html. Html is just a normal website. Wap is a site optimized for mobile phones basically. Now you can view both types of sites thorugh the wap portal (goam.com and wap.fido.ca) but it just depends on how well you phone can display html sites. The iPhone probably wont be using the wap portal anyway on rogers.

Everytime Rogers gets a decent phone, they don't seem to know how to handle it. I wish they would train their CSR's properly. If they can't release a phone and let it be used the way it's meant, don't pretend to release it by limiting it. People will just continue to complain. What the point of having an awesome phone but then worrying about it all day and whether or not you will be charged for doing basic things. Loading one web page is not worth $10, I'm not sure how Rogers can justify that.

You can read more about this N95 problem here

My wishes for the 3G iPhone

2008-05-22T00:06:00.000-07:00

We know the 3G iPhone is coming soon. We aren't quite sure what kind of features it's going to have though. The most important feature will be the 3Gness so we can surf the internet on it at speeds we are used to. I don't know of any confirmed new features for it but I've made a small list of features I would like to see.

1. iChat for the iPhone - It would be cool to have a program where you could chat back and forth with someone or a few people that included video as iChat does. Fido and Rogers do have video calling on some 3G phones already which I've never tested. As long as it doesn't cost extra to use, I think it would be something that I would use often.

2. Copy and paste - Now I'm not sure what I would use this for and when exactly, but it seems like a good tool to have if needed.

3. Saving images from the internet - I wish we could do this now. I would not use it all the time but once in a while I want to save pictures I find on websites. If only I could save them to my iPhone photos and then email them and stuff.

4. GPS - it would be nice to have a full GPS system in the iPhone. Well I don't think we would get one that talks. The google maps feature is pretty cool with the directions now, but a live GPS would be great.

5. If I can think of more I'll update this.

Now the iPhone 2.0 firmware that should come out at the same time as the 3G iPhone seems like a step up with the exchange support and the app store. Maybe there will be a few new features which we haven't heard about already. I'm not sure if my wishes could just be implemented into a firmware update or would be built into the 3G iPhone.

What features do you want?

Vancouver Apple Store

2008-05-21T00:03:00.000-07:00

It's about time. Vancouver finally gets an Apple Store. The grand opening is set for Saturday May 24th at 10am. It's located in the Pacific Centre Mall downtown. I can't wait for this to open. To bad they won't be launching the iPhone in Canada there just yet. Every time I travel, I make a point to go to the Apple Store in whatever city I'm in that has it. In the past month I've been to the Apple Store in San Francisco and Bellevue. Every time I go to one, I usually walk out with something.

The first 1000 customers in the door on Saturday get a free T-Shirt. I still haven't decided if I'm gonna make it there for that. 10am is pretty early for me. However, I think I will try and get down there sometime on Saturday. There will probably be a huge crowd and it will be buzzing. I don't think there is anything I really need to buy right now but I will go anyway. I doubt that they will be selling any iPhone accessories. The iPhone isn't officially available in Canada yet so they probably aren't allowed to even there are thousands of iPhone owners here. You can't buy anything iPhone from the Apple.ca store. Futureshop and Best Buy do sell iPhone cases though.

I can't wait till the day the iPhone is officially released in Canada because I will definitely be lined up there. I will probably line up overnight as if it was boxing day. Who else is heading down there on Saturday?

Address:
Apple Store, Pacific Centre
701 West Georgia Street
Vancouver, British Columbia V7Y 1G5
(778) 373-1800

Hours:
Mon - Tues: 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Wed - Fri: 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Sat: 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Sun: 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

View Larger Map

Canadians: How to set up a US iTunes Store Account

2008-05-20T00:02:00.000-07:00

The iTunes store for US residents is 10 times better than the Canada one. The US one has a huge selection of TV shows and you can't rent movies from it. They aren't available in Canada due to some licensing issues. I don't think I really want to rent movies on my iPhone, but storing some TV shows on it to watch on it or my Apple TV would be cool.

Here is how you get an US iTunes account:
1. Buy an iTunes gift card in the USA or buy a code from ebay
I bought a $15 card at a gas station in the states. There is lots available on ebay though.

2. Open iTunes. Sign out of your current account if you are logged in. You will have to create a new iTunes store account with a different email address.
3. Enter the gift card redemption code.
4. Make up an address. I made up an address in Oregon since they have no state tax there and the US iTunes store will charge you state tax. At the bottom where it says optional then lists different credit card types, select none as you wont be able to use a credit card. You will have to refill your account with gift cards.
5. You are done. Enjoy. The TV shows are usually $1.99 and include shows like The Office, Lost, CSI, CSI Miami, etc. All of my favorite shows. It's a big step up from the Canadian store which only sells Degrassi and Corner Gas bascially.

SNES Roms for the iPhone

2008-05-19T00:03:00.000-07:00

Update - I've posted on how to get the SNES roms working properly here. Instructions and video included.

Since the NES roms are so easy to add your iPhone (or iPod touch) I was excited to learn that there is a Super Nintendo (SNES) emulator available for the iPhone. Super Nintendo was awesome and it would be fun to play again. I installed the Super Nintendo emulator on my mac and it's great. Now I wanted to play the roms on my iPhone.

Here's how to get the emulator on your iPhone

1. In installer, go to sources, edit, add, and add this source
http://zodttd.com/repo/

2. Press the home button, then go back into installer, then games, then install snes4iphone.

There was a source to add the roms automatically but that doesn't seem to work anymore. It was s.apfelphone.net.

Looks like we will have to SSH the roms into the iPhone.

If you don't know how to SSH into your iPhone, go here.

The directory for the SNES roms is:
/var/mobile/Media/ROMs/SNES

You can download the roms from
http://www.theoldcomputer.com

Once you have added them to the iPhone through SSH, open the program snes4iphone and play the games. The roms that have the file extension of .smc are added to your game list. The roms with the extension of .fig aren't added to your game list.

I added the follwing games :
- NHL 98
- NBA Live 98
- Super Mario Kart
- Street Fighter 2 Turbo
- Aladdin

One problem:
None of them worked!

Every time I loaded one in the app, it said "loading rom, failed".
WTF.

I've read online that not all roms work, but I tried 5, none of them worked. Does anyone else have this problem? Does anyone else have a better way of added SNES roms to your iPhone that actually works? I would like to know. Super Mario Kart is one of the best games and I would like to play it more, LOL. Please let me know.

Update: 2008/05/23
I tried putting the ROMs in this directory:
private/var/mobile/Media/ROMs/SNES
and I keep getting the..Loading Rom...Failed showing up. Who has gotten these to work and for what games?

Incase Slider White for the iPhone

2008-05-17T22:55:00.000-07:00

Here's a cool accessory. It's the Incase white slider for the iPhone. It looks great on your iPhone. I find that it is a much better case than Agent 18 cases.

One of the best things about it is that it has little rubber bumpers on the inside to ensure it fits snug on the iPhone. This also prevents scratches. It fits your iPhone far better than the Agent 18 shield does. I like the bottom part and how it just slides out so you can easily dock your phone. I think my favorite part about it is that it looks like my favorite Colorware iPhone. The white is so sleek on the iPhone. If the new versions of the iPhone include a white one, thats the one I'm getting. It looks awesome next to my macbook. I even like the little indentation at the bottom of the back of the case to match how the iPhone looks normally.

The case does add bulk, but I think the style makes up for it. I tested it out on my sister in law's iPhone for a couple days. She really likes it. I really like it to. I went to the Apple store to pick one up, but I did try it out first before buying it. There was one problem which caused me not to buy it. Since I have the InvisibleShield on my iPhone right now, the Incase slider wouldn't fit. Damn. I didn't want to take the InvisibleShield off of my iPhone just to get this case. If I got tired of the case, then I would have no InvisibleShield and I love InvisibleShield. I decided that it was best to wait. It's a pricey item if I'm not going to use it. The case doesn't protect the screen so it's best to get a screen protector too if you don't already have one.

The Incase slider is sold in Apple stores and from the Apple Store online. You can also get it directly from the manufacturer. It costs $35. That is probably the major downside of it. $35 (plus tax) is a lot for a plastic case. I have an Incase sleeve for my Macbook and that was only $35 so it seems like a lot to pay.

Overall, it's a good case and I do recommend it. Canadians, you will have to get it at the Apple Store in the States or from ebay or somewhere else online. The Canada Apple online store doesn't sell it and Incase doesn't ship to Canada.

Here's the link to it on Apple's website
Here's the link to the manufacturers website

3G iPhone to launch in Canada in June

2008-05-16T22:10:00.000-07:00

Here is some exciting news. Sources have reported that the iPhone could launch in Canada next month. It will be the 3G version. The other exciting claim is that the iPhone could be a Rogers vision phone which means that it can be used on the $7 unlimited browsing plan. That would be awesome.

It seems that $7 for unlimited data on the iPhone is too cheap although most people have been using the same plan to date. The Nokia N95 and the LG Vu are both Rogers Vision phones and can be used on this plan.

There is no pricing details available yet but it will probably cost $20-40 more than what the US version costs based on the prices of iPod's and Macs. The Nokia N95 costs $400 from Rogers and the LG Vu costs $180.

I still can't decide if I want to buy a new iPhone right away. Not sure if I can afford it right now but it will be 3G with unlimited data and thats almost too hard to resist.

All I have to say is that it is about time!

Full article from Electronista here

EPP again

2008-05-16T17:51:00.000-07:00

Fido and Rogers have a new EPP plan

It is definitely not nearly as good as the last one, but still better than what is available normally.

Here it is:
$20 a month
150 Daytime minutes
Unlimited Eve/Weekends @ 9PM
Unlimited Network Calling
System Access Fee $6.95
E911 Fee $0.50

The good part is the unlimited calling within the Rogers and Fido network which works for both. Remember you need to be a member of Aeroplan, Airmiles, Esso Extra, Petro Points, CAA, or something like those. Call in or go to the store to get it. You must be on a 3 year term.

Recent Roaming Trip

2008-05-15T22:26:00.001-07:00

I was on a recent trip to the States again. This time I went to San Francisco. Of course I took my T-Mobile To Go sim card with me. Before I left, I put a $10 credit on my account which I bought from ebay. I ended up using the phone a fair amount and only used up $6 worth of time. If I had just been roaming, that would have amounted to 3 calls and 2 texts.

On this trip, I noticed so many people who had iPhones. I saw a few while I was in Seattle for a couple hours and then I saw a ton of people in San Fran with them. On all my previous trips to the States, I hadn't seen anyone with an iPhone. It was pretty cool to see others enjoying their iPhones as much as I do. Most people I saw with them were browsing the internet on them. Something that I currently miss a lot right now. Most people didn't have any case on them.

Along the way I ran into 2 different carriers that I hadn't heard of. They are Unicel and Edge Wireless. I think I caught on to them somewhere in Southern Washington or Oregon. Unicel is a small carrier and Edge Wireless is an affiliate of AT&T. I guess these are other options for unlocked iPhones. It's always cool to see a different carrier name pop up.

What would be a trip to the States without a visit to the Apple Store. Of course I had to go. I checked out the beautiful one in San Fran. It's two floors of Apple heaven. I Didn't get any iPhone accessories, but did pick up a couple mac things. I don't usually leave empty handed when I go to the Apple store. I'm really looking forward to visiting the Las Vegas Apple store when I heard down there in a couple months.

Switching from Telus

2008-05-15T19:49:00.000-07:00

I switched to Fido from Telus after being with them for 8 years. One reason was I signed a 3 yr contract with telus and got the Moto Q. I didn't really like the phone. Their website says they have a 30 day return policy, but doesn't say that isn't on data phones. So I was stuck with the phone. They also wanted to charge me to go back to using my moto razr. At the time Telus offered 4mb per month for data. That was useless. The other reason I wanted to switch is because I had just discovered the iPhone and became obsessed with it.

So I cancelled the contract, paid the $700 ecf, complained to some organization related to the CRTC I think. A month or two later, Telus calls and offers to refund the $700 out of good will. So I got the $700 refunded after I had already switched to fido and got an iPhone. That was nice of Telus. Also cancelled home phone with telus because of their $5 long distance admin fee. Looks like Telus will have to pay that back to their customers too, LOL.

Text Message Madness

2008-05-14T11:53:00.000-07:00

This post has two parts. First, since I've stopped using data, my texting usage has gone through the roof. I almost feel like a teen girl who texts all day. Last month I sent nearly 600 texts, this month it is almost 800. It has got to be the ease of use and the msn/ichat'ness of the sms app that causes me to send so many. One important thing that goes along with sending texts, I do receive almost as many as I send so its not like I'm just sending them for the sake of sending them. Oh yeah, it's also the awesome keyboard. I must say the keyboard on the iPhone is miles better than the keyboard on any blackberry or other smartphone. I'm not just saying that, I've tried them.

On another note, Fido and Rogers will start charging more for sending texts to the USA now. Currently it is 15 cents to send a text to a USA number. That will go up to 25 cents. It doesn't cost any extra to send a text to a USA number if you have a text message option with your plan. That is going to change too. This sucks for me because I do send texts to USA numbers, quite frequently actually. A few months ago they raised the cost of sending a text from the States to 60 cents a message from 40 cents. Why are they nickle and diming us so bad? I almost feel like I'm on Telus again.

Another way to avoid roaming charges in the USA

2008-05-13T13:41:00.001-07:00

I use T-Mobile To Go for my iPhone when I'm in the States. It works well and is inexpensive. But there is another way to avoid roaming charges. It is by using AT&T go phone. You have an unlocked iPhone. It had to have come with the AT&T sim card. If you still have it lying around, you can activate it.

Here are the details on AT&T Go Phone:
- 25 cents a minute anytime
- 15 cents extra per minute to call Canada
- 15 cents to send or receive texts
- 25 cents to send texts to Canada
Here's how to activate it:
1. Purchase an activation code on ebay - Costs $2 and gives you $10 of airtime

2. Go to the AT&T Go Phone Activation page

3. Enter the sim card #

4. Enter a zip code of the area code you want and your iPhone's IMEI #. You can enter the actual IMEI # of your iPhone or you can just make up a 15 digit code, it doesn't matter.

5. Pick you plan - the regular pay as you go is best for Canadian Roamers

6. Enter Personal Info - Just make up an address

7. Enter activation code - I didn't get this far in the process because I made up a fake sim card # but this should be the next step. Once you enter it, you should be activated, it will give you a new # and will send a text to that #. You will have $10 in your account. Then you can just refill the account by purchasing refills on ebay.

I choose to use T-Mobile To Go because the refills last 90 days and the smallest amount you can buy is $10. The smallest from AT&T is $15 and lasts only 30 days. Pick whatever works best for you.

Looks like Canada will get the 3G iPhone

2008-05-13T02:33:00.001-07:00

Some interesting news has come up. The online Apple Store currently lists the iPhone as unavailable. What does this mean? I don't think it means that they are out of stock. If they were short on stock it would say ships in 1-2 weeks or something like that. This probably means that Apple is preparing for the release of the 3G iPhone. Now is Apple waiting until June 9th at the WWDC to unveil the 3G iPhone? We all think that is when they will announce it but it just doesn't make sense for Apple to not sell any iPhones for a month. I think this means that they could be announcing it sooner than expected. The UK Apple store also lists it as unavailable.

So if Apple releases the 3G iPhone before the iPhone is officially available in Canada, we wont be seeing the first generation of the iPhone available from Rogers. It would make no sense for them to release the 1st gen here. This means that are current iPhone owners in Canada will probably have the itch to buy a brand new one. I know I will be lining up at Rogers the night before it comes out. Even if it means shelling out another 400-500 bucks.

I found another hint at the 3G iPhone, as if there isn't enough already. This screenshot shows a 3G on/off slider to enable 3G.

source - iPhoneinCanada.ca

More than 1 month without data

2008-05-12T20:51:00.001-07:00

I haven't been using edge data on my iPhone now for over a month. I must admit that it sucks not using data and not using the iPhone to its full potential. My unlimited data from the Fido $18 value pack ran out on April 8th. Since then I've been texting a lot more and using other features more often like notes, calendar, etc. But it still isn't as much fun as having the internet where ever you go.

Maybe I should have added the Fido $7 unlimited surfing pack back then because it still seems as if they are not charging anyone for using it on their iPhone. It's probably too late now to add it even if it does work. I still get 12 mb on my data plan and that should be ok to use for email based on my calculations of data use. I think I will input the edge settings again (fido.internet.ca) and give it a go.

I guess I am just waiting for the iPhone to be released on Rogers now to get their data plan. One of the best things about the iPhone is using safari where ever you are so I'm missing out on one of it's main functions. The Rogers iPhone data plan should come with enough data to make it worthwhile to switch.

Rogers and Fido Data Alerts

2008-05-10T00:08:00.000-07:00

There is a new feature from Fido and Rogers that is available now to all subscribers. The system will automatically send you a text message to alert you when you are using pay per use data. This is especially important for people using an iPhone.

This is even more important for those who are using the $7 unlimited surfing plan. The system will tell you if you are incurring pay per use data charges. If you don't get a text, you should be fine. If you do, watch out and stop using data.

You will receive a warning text at thresholds such as:
- $10, 20, 50, 75, 100

This is available right now for people who are not on any sort of data plan. It will begin working on May 18th for those on a data plan such as the $7 plan.

I'm interested to see if their billing system actually works and people do get charged for using the $7 plan on the iPhone. Rogers and Fido say you can't use an iPhone on the plan but they haven't charged anyone a cent now for the past 4 months on this plan. The billing system was supposed to start billing people according to their rules on April 15th. I haven't heard of anyone being charged yet. If people were being charged, we would know.

http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1367631

The Fido/Rogers EPP plan is available again

2008-05-09T22:34:00.000-07:00

If you have an iPhone (or any phone really) on Fido or Rogers, you have to get the EPP (Employee price plan)

it includes:
- 200 daytime minutes
- Unlimited evenings and weekends starting at 5pm

Cost - $17.50 per month

To get this plan just go to an actual Fido or Rogers store, or call in, and ask for it. It is a hidden or unadvertised plan. It is similar to the Telus or Bell EPP plan except the unlimited evenings and weekends start earlier.

To get on this plan, you have to be a member of one of the following:
- Aeroplan, Airmiles, Petro Points, Esso Extra, CAA...etc.
There is a long list.

This is only available until May 12 apparently so get it quick.

The Nokia N95 8gb is available from Rogers

2008-05-08T01:31:00.000-07:00

The Nokia N95 8gb phone has been released by Rogers. This isn't exactly iPhone news but it does relate in some aspects so I thought I would talk about it. This is big news for Rogers because no other carrier in Canada or the United States carries the Nokia N95. Lots of people have it but it still isn't officially available from a carrier. This funny thing is, Rogers hasn't made a big deal about this. I haven't seen any TV or newspaper ads on it. I think the N95 is probably the most sought after phone out there besides the iPhone.

The best part about the N95 is that it has a 5 mp camera and is 3G. The bad thing is that it doesn't have a full keyboard so texting and typing in web addresses is painfully slow.

What does this have to do with the iPhone?

The big news behind this is that the N95 is a Rogers Vision phone. This means that you can use it on the $7 unlimited browsing plan. That is especially important because the N95 has a full html browser. The key is that it is unlimited browsing. Which means using the phones s60 built in browser. It doesn't mean unlimited data. 3rd party applications will be charged at 5 cents a kb. It is a little limiting but I guess it will do.

This means that when Rogers releases the iPhone, there has to be a decent data plan to go along with it. If they can offer unlimited browsing on the N95 for $7, things shouldn't be much different for the iPhone. The iPhone does have a lot of data capabilities too though. I don't think we will be charged for using the Weather, Stocks, YouTube, etc. The iPhone data plan should be a little more than $7 then.

I wonder what will happen though for App Store applications when they are available and if you have a jailbroken phone. I'm sure that Rogers wont charged us for using those programs because it is the iPhone, but then again, you never know.

The Rogers N95 is branded Rogers. It has the Rogers logo on it and the firmware is branded. This kinda sucks. I doubt Apple will let Rogers brand the iPhone.

The N95 is available from Rogers right now for $399 on a 3 year contract. That includes a $100 mail in rebate. This means that the iPhone probably wont be subsidized heavily and will probably cost about the same. It is a little pricey but definitely worth it.

I recommend that you don't get the N95 and wait for the iPhone to be released from Rogers if you don't have one already. If you can afford it, then I would get both.

Here are some related links:
N95 discussion on the Rogers section of Howard Forums
Nokia N Series Website
The Nokia N95 on the Rogers website

el iPhone

2008-05-07T23:07:00.000-07:00

For the second straight day, there has been a major announcement regarding the iPhone's availability. Today it was announced that Latin America's largest carrier America Movil, would be releasing the iPhone in the near future. It will be available in
- Mexico
- Argentina
- Brazil
- Chile
- Colombia

Here is the full article from the associated press

The iPhone Goes Global

2008-05-06T22:17:00.000-07:00

Vodafone made a big announcement today. The iPhone will be released in the following countries shortly:

- Australia
- New Zealand
- India
- Czech Republic
- Egypt
- Greece
- Portugal
- Italy
- Turkey
- South Africa

Maybe they should change their name to VodiPhone or Vodifone

This is big news. Apple will easily reach their target of 10 million iPhone sales now. I'm glad it has already been announced for Canada because it might look bad on Rogers if some of these countries announced it before them. It's common knowledge that cellular service is better and cheaper in Africa than it is in Canada. At least we are getting it here. Hopefully there will be a worldwide release the iPhone 2.0 or 3G iPhone. Apple should be building up their stockpiles of iPhones, there will be a lot of new happy iPhoners soon.

http://blog.wired.com/gadgets/2008/05/vodafone-announ.html

iPhone in Canada Availability Date

2008-05-06T03:51:00.000-07:00

We are all still wondering when the iPhone will be released in Canada by Rogers. We know it's coming, the question remains when it will be here. I hope Steve Jobs makes that announcement on June 9th at the WWDC. Hopefully he announces the 3G iPhone then too.

I saw an Article from the National Post which gives a speculation of a date range, not a specific date. It's quotes RBC Capital Analyst Mike Abramsky as saying the iPhone should be released in the 3rd quarter of this year here in Canada. That would be sometime between July and September. This guy has made predictions in the past about the iPhone, including saying that it could be announced for Canada at the Macworld Conference in January. He has also made predictions about how many iPhones will be sold this year and about the SDK and how blackberry maker RIM will be affected.

Here's a quote from the article:

"As to exactly when the iPhone will be available in Canada, Mr. Abramsky estimates it will arrive in the third quarter of this year. At 10% the size of the U.S. market, more than 300,000 iPhones could be sold in Canada later when they become available."

Here's the full article

The waiting games continues...

The Best Boxes

2008-05-05T00:49:00.000-07:00

One of the coolest things about Apple is their packaging. All of their products come in such slick boxes. My iPhone box is proudly displayed beside my computer at all times. I love the thing. The products are amazing, especially the iPhone but the packaging only makes them that much better.
You can even buy an iPhone box on ebay. I'm not sure why anyone would want to buy the box only. Maybe just to pretend they have an iPhone, or to put it on display like I have mine. Or someone might want to buy just a box to sell a refurbished iPhone as if it were new because the refurbs come in a basic white box.

Anyway, I love the iPhone box and it will always be on display in my house, or just until I get a new iPhone. What are you doing with your iPhone box?

Other carrier options

2008-05-02T03:27:00.000-07:00

Rogers and Fido aren't the only options for carriers for your iPhone in Canada. The other options are Petro Canada Mobility and 7 eleven Speakout Wireless. They are both GSM prepaid cell carriers that offer great rates. Their rates are far better than what Rogers or Fido offers for prepaid service. I just picked up a Petro Canada Mobile phone and sim for my sister in law to use on her iPhone when she is in Canada. Almost went with Rogers or Fido, but their service is pretty expensive and the options are limited for light phone users.

Here are the details on Petro Canada Mobility:
- 20 cents per minute anytime
- 5 cents to send or receive texts
- 10 cents extra per minute to call the USA
- Includes - caller ID, voicemail, call waiting, three way calling
- Airtime refills can be purchased in either $20, $50, or $100 denominations and expire 180 days later or 365 days later for the $100 option

Here are the details for 7 eleven speak out wireless:
- 20 cents per minute anytime
- 5 cents to send or receive texts
- 10 cents extra per minute to call the USA
- Includes - caller ID, voicemail, call waiting, three way calling
- Airtime refills can be purchases in either $10, $25, $50, or $100 denominations and all expire 365 dater later.

The problem with Petro or Speakout is that there is no data options so you will just have to use wifi. The other problem is that you cannot just buy a sim card from either carrier, you have to buy a phone. The cheapest phone from Petro Canada is $59 and is the Nokia 2610. The cheapest phone from Speakout is $75 and is the Nokia 1600. Both of these phones are terrible.

The good thing is that they are unlocked and you can sell them on ebay to recover your costs. Both of these carrier run on the Rogers network so there is no difference is coverage or service. Rogers charges 40 cents a minute for prepaid and Fido charges 30 cents. All of their refill cards expire in 30 days unless you buy a $100 card.

Petro or speakout will save you a lot of money in the long run. There probably isn't a lot of people using an iPhone on either one of these, but it is a good option. I hadn't even heard of either until a few days ago.

http://retail.petro-canada.ca/en/mobility/2303.aspx
http://www.speakoutwireless.ca/

Thank you!

2008-05-02T00:27:00.000-07:00

Hi,
I just wanted to say thank you for visiting 'Canadian iPhone User'. The site has been around for two months now and we have had over 10,000 visitors and 16,000 page views. I enjoy posting my thoughts and info about using an iPhone in Canada. I love the iPhone and I hope you come back to read more about it. I try to post as often as I can about relevant stuff. This site is meant to be based on my personal experience with the iPhone but does also include news and such. Thanks again for checking us out. Don't forget to subscribe to our RSS feed.

Fun with Ringtones

2008-05-01T01:13:00.000-07:00

Since we live in Canada, iTunes gives us some restrictions. We can't change songs into ringtones. This is because all the songs that iTunes sells are protected. In the US, people can convert iTunes songs into ringtones because the right licenses are in place in the US. So how can I add my own ringtones to the iPhone? It isn't that difficult to do but it is a 'workaround' type solution.

Here's how to do it:
1. Download your MP3's for whatever songs you want to turn into ringtones.
2. Add them to your iTunes library.
3. Click on file - get info.
4. Select the portion of the song (up to 30 seconds) that you want to make into a ringtone.
5. Select that file, click advanced - convert selection to AAC. This will create a new file in your iTunes library.
6. The next step is broken down into 3 parts - Windows XP, Windows Vista, Mac

Windows XP
- find the new file on your hard drive, rename the file extention to m4r.

Windows Vista
- find the new file on your hard drive, right click it, select add file to WinRAR archive. You will need WinRAR to convert the file extension. When the file is in WinRAR, rename the file extension to m4r. Extract the file back onto your hard drive.

Mac
- find the new file on your hard drive, rename the file extention to m4r.

7. Import this new .m4r ringtone file into your iTunes library. It should appear in the ringtones section.
8. Sync your iPhone to add the ringtone.
9. Enjoy.

What ringtone do I have?

My favorite ringtone of all time it is Motorola signature ringtone - "Hello Moto....". I found the MP3 on a website. I didn't have to selection the portion of the song I wanted to hear because the file is only 16 seconds long. All I had to do was convert the file to AAC, rename the file extension to m4r, add it to my iTunes library, sync it to my iPhone. Now when my phone rings I hear 'Hello Moto'. It's pretty funny. That is the funniest ringtone to hear when you are in a room with a lot of people and it's quiet then all of a sudden 'Hello Moto' breaks the silence. I'm sure many people have heard it before. If you don't know the ringtone that I'm talking about, you can hear it and download it here.

Rogers iPhone Data plan - 100-200mb?

2008-05-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

Here's an interesting article from the National Post. They are suggesting that the Rogers iPhone data plan may include 100-200 mb's a month. What a joke that would be. 100 mb lasts one week if that. I think they should at least offer us 1 gb if not unlimited.

Here's piece from the article:

"Apple may agree to a “virtually unlimited” plan with Rogers for $35 a month (excluding voice) with data usage of 100 or 200 megabytes per month, the analyst suggested, adding that this should be more than sufficient. Apple could also insist that an “all-in” voice and data plan include things like free call features. Combined plans such as this, with 250 to 500 anytime minutes and unlimited evenings/weekend calls after 9 p.m., may cost $80 to $100 per month, Mr. Allen suggested."
Read the full article here

Obviously this guy does not know what he is talking about or hasn't used an iPhone. Apple will not agree to 100 - 200 mb a month. In Ireland, there is a cap on the iPhone data use, but it is 1 gig. 200 mb is silly and would be an insult to us as consumers - like everything else they offer in regards to data isn't an insult though.

Here's what I want from the Rogers iPhone plan
- Unlimited data
- 250 daytime mins
- Unlimited evenings and weekend
- Caller ID and visual voicemail included.
- Unlimited texts

Will there be Rogers visual voicemail? Better be.

How much would I pay for that? I'd pay $80 a month. Maybe a little more. Anything higher is ridiculous and would be pushing customers away.

What do you think Rogers will offer us for the iPhone plan and how much would you pay?

How to switch from Fido to Rogers

2008-04-30T02:47:00.000-07:00

Since the iPhone is in fact coming to Canada, many people who have one currently, or don't have one, will want to switch to Rogers from Fido or another carrier. I think that Fido won't release the iPhone. I think only Rogers will. Plus, I don't think Fido will offer the 'iPhone data plan' which Rogers will have to. So what are my options? Stay with Fido and don't use data, or switch to Rogers and use the iPhone properly. I'm going to switch to Rogers. I also doubt that Rogers will let unlocked iPhones use their special iPhone plan.

How can I avoid the early cancellation fee (ECF) when switching from Fido to Rogers?

It is possible to have it waived, but there is a few regulations that you must meet.

1. You must have been with Fido for at least 1 year.

2. You must be under a contract.

3. You new contract must be a 3 year.

4. Activation fees may be applicable on Rogers.

This kind of sucks for me since I have only been with Fido for 5 months. I'll see what I can do when the time comes. I don't really want to pay $400 to switch to Rogers.

If you are switching from Telus or Bell, you must pay the early cancellation fee if you are terminating a contract early.

Bell will charge - $20/month to a maximum of $400. Minimum of $100.

Telus will charge - $20/month to a maximum of $700. Minimum of $100.

Honestly, if you are on Telus or Bell and you really want an iPhone, I would just pay the fee and cut your losses. The iPhone is that spectacular which makes it worth it. Dump that HTC Touch and get a real touchscreen phone.

The iPhone is coming to Canada!

2008-04-29T11:54:00.000-07:00

This is the news we have all been waiting for, the iPhone will be released in Canada later this year. This is coming straight from the man Ted Rogers himself. No official launch date, pricing, plan details are available at this time. But it's coming! That's what is most important.
Here is the full article from the Canadian Press:

"29/04/2008 10:14:00 AM

THE CANADIAN PRESS
TORONTO - Improvements in fundamentals across the board helped major telecom firm Rogers Communications Inc. (TSX:RCI.B) more than double first-quarter profits and the company said it's finally bringing Apple's long-awaited iPhone to Canada, though it didn't say when.

Rogers reported Tuesday net earnings of $344 million or 54 cents per share on a diluted basis, compared with a profit of $170 million, 26 cents per share in the year-earlier period.

That was well above an average analyst forecast for earnings of 43 cents per share in the period, according to Thomson Financial.

But perhaps the most eye-catching announcement included alongside its quarterly earnings was news of an agreement with Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to bring its high-tech, touch-screen smartphone to Canada.

"We're thrilled to announce that we have a deal with Apple to bring the iPhone to Canada later this year," president and chief executive Ted Rogers said in a release.

"We can't tell you any more about it right now, but stay tuned."

The company said its revenue grew 14 per cent to $2.6 billion, while the key wireless division saw postpaid net subscriber additions grow to 97,000 for the period.

Operating revenue at the wireless segment for the period ended March 31 was $1.43 billion, up 16 per cent from $1.23 billion in the prior-year period.

"While many challenges lie ahead in the coming quarters, we are well on track to deliver another year of strong growth in both subscribers and profitability, " Ted Rogers said.

"Our focus as 2008 continues to unfold remains solidly upon disciplined execution, excellence in customer service and unparalleled innovation that adds value to our customers' lives."

Shares in Rogers were up 90 cents, a little over two per cent, to $42.90 in morning trading at the Toronto Stock Exchange."

Here's some links to other articles to prove I'm not making this up:
http://gizmodo.com/385095/iphone-finally-announced-in-canada
http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9931208-7.html
http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2008/04/29/tech-iphone.html

This is pretty big news. I wonder when it will be available. I'm thinking July, just in line with the possible release of the 3G iPhone. Wouldn't it be fantastic to use a 3G iPhone with unlimited data on Rogers? I can't wait. I will probably have to switch to Rogers since I doubt that they will release it for fido. I'm still amazed that this is actually happening. I believe this is more than just a rumor since Mr. Rogers said it himself. The only thing we need now is a decent data and voice plan. Hopefully they offer something similar to AT&T. One thing is for sure, I will be lined up at the store the night before the iPhone drops in Canada.

Canadian icons for your iPhone

2008-04-29T00:57:00.001-07:00

I've found some interesting icons that you can add you your iPhone. These icons are specifically for iPhone users in Canada. There is a Canadian maps icon and some Canadian weather icons. These look fantastic on your iPhone. The maps icon is cool. It features the Trans Canada Highway #1 instead of the Interstate Icon that is on normally. There is a variety of different weather icons available. They aren't specifically Canadian icons but they can easily be tied to Canada. Some of the ones available are rain, snow, etc. I chose to use the one with rain since it seems to rain a lot here. The icons are available for download from modmyifone.com - http://www.modmyifone.com/forums/downloads.php. Click on the icons only category to find these specific icons. You have to be a member of modmyifone to download them. They also have good forums there for more iPhone discussion.

Here are the Canadian icons I have:

I also found another cool looking icon on that site. It is a replacement youtube icon. The standard youtube icon on the iPhone isn't that great. I downloaded these two. I tried both of them but I am using the black one because I think it loks better.

Here's how to add them to your iPhone:
1. You need BSD subsystem and OpenSSH installed on your iPhone from installer
2. I used cyberduck to SSH into my iPhone because I'm using a mac. If you are using a pc and want to know how to SHH, go here.
3. In cyberduck, open the connection, select SSH from the drop down menu, enter your iPhone IP address, user name - root, password - alpine.
4. Hit the up arrow button until you see the applications directory. Find whatever application you want to change the specific icon. The stock icons for each application are named - icon.png. Back up these icons before you change them.
5. Rename each new icon to icon.png and copy them over to each application folder.
6. If you want to change the weather icon, download weather icon fix from installer. The icon wont change unless you install this.
7. Restart you iPhone and the new icons will appear.

This is how my homescreen looks now:

If you know of any other good Canadian type icons, let me know. There may be an easier way to do this but I haven't found it yet. Will post about it when I do find it.

Free Hotmail on your iPhone

2008-04-27T23:02:00.001-07:00

I posted before about using hotmail on your iPhone. That method used izymail as the pop e-mail host. The other problem that some people have with izymail is that you have to pay for it. It costs about $20 a year. If you don't mind paying the 20 bucks, then I highly recommend using izymail. If you don't want to drop anymore cash then I recommend using TouchMail.

TouchMail is not as good as using izymail because it doesn't not use the mail app on your iPhone but it is the next best thing. TouchMail is much more convenient then going to hotmail.com in safari and doing it that way. TouchMail almost looks like you are using the mail app but it is through safari. Best of all, it's free.

Here's how to set it up:
1. Go to http://www.tm.comvalid.com in safari on your iPhone.
2. Bookmark the site for easy access. Add it to your homescreen for even easier access.
3. Click on create account. To set up a new account - enter your hotmail email address for the user name, your hotmail password, and then enter your hotmail email again. Then click confirm.

4. You will be taken to your hotmail inbox and you are done.

They've really done a nice job with the set up and formatting of this web app. It is also good because you can turn the phone sideways and type in landscape mode which is a little easier. Personally, I prefer to use the mail app with izymail, and I'm not going to switch since I have already paid for izymail. But this is a great alternative. Give it a try.

Get the posts on your iGoogle homepage so you don't miss a thing

Probable cause of the delay for the iPhone in Canada

2008-04-26T17:12:00.001-07:00

I keep asking myself everyday...why is the iPhone not available in Canada yet? or when will the iPhone be in Canada? There has been tons of speculation, rumors, thoughts etc. on why it is not available in Canada yet.

The first thought is that Rogers is greedy and doesn't want to offer such a fabulous device which would require them to offer unlimited data to users. If they had to offer unlimited data on a pda or smartphone, whatever you want to call it, then why would they do the same for their other phones like blackberry's or windows mobile phones. I guess that is a good argument for them, however, AT&T has seen a large increase in data revenues since they released the iPhone. So it's not such a great argument anymore. There has to be more it that they don't want to offer unlimited data plans. But if you look into it some more, why is the Nokia N95 not available on Rogers then? We are still waiting to find out what kind of data plan the LG Vu will get too once available from Rogers.

The next factor which is delaying the iPhone from being available in Canada is the fact that comwave has trademarked the word 'iPhone' in Canada. Here are my thoughts on comwave. To me they seem like an internet domain registrar who snaps up all decent domain names in hopes of selling them back to the rightful person who should be using that name. If you go to iphone.com, it takes to to apple's official iPhone page. If you go to iphone.ca, there is no page as the name is owned by some domain name hosting company. The same is true with Comwave. Once the iPod was released and became enormously popular, companies started puting a 'i' in front of random product names in hopes to generate buzz and free marketing off apple's success. This is exactly what Comwave is doing and I think they need to give up the word 'iPhone' immediately. Comwave does have an iPhone home VOIP service and even an iPhone mobile VOIP service. Their iPhone looks a little more like those old Nokia cell phones everyone had 10 years ago. Sadly, it will product take a million bucks or more from apple to get them to give it up. More info on the dispute here.

The latest trend from Apple seems to be that they may be leaning away from signing exclusive contracts with cell carriers. This is what we have learned from the rumors about the iPhone being released in Italy. That also seems to be what will happen if the iPhone is released in China. I don't think Apple will be able to reach their goal of selling 10 million iPhones this year if they hold all providers to exclusive contracts.

So where does this leave us? Nowhere really. There is no new news or facts that suggest the iPhone is coming to Canada anytime soon. So what is the real cause of the delay? I don't really know. It's probably a combination of all factors. If Apple really wanted to release the iPhone in Canada ASAP, they would have paid out Comwave a long time ago. Rogers doesn't seem to be totally on board, especially when their senior executives say 'we're not fans of unlimited plans'. We'll see what happens if an when the 3G iPhone is released. Maybe that is what Rogers is waiting for.

The Toronto Star put an article out recently on the whole situation on the iPhone coming to Canada. What did it feature? Not much of anything, just more stuff we have heard already. They seems to say that the iPhone could be coming to Canada sooner than later but it just doesn't seem likely right now. I hope I am wrong.

If you still don't have one, I wouldn't wait.

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Colorware iPhone Awesome: Still not available in Canada

2008-04-26T03:14:00.000-07:00

If you haven't seen these iPhones, you gotta check this out. Colorware is a company that customs paints iPhones among other gadgets. They look absolutely fantastic. The only problem is that it is only available for Americans, not Canadians as well.

The base price is $150 for the custom paint jobs. The price goes up for for each customization. You can either send them your iPhone for them to work on or you can buy a brand new one from them. The price for a new iPhone starts at $550 for the 8gb and $650 for the iPhone. You can get the back painted, the apple logo painted, the sides, and the home button. You can even the the headphones or the dock painted to match the phone.

I wish these were available in Canada. But they don't ship here and it doesn't look like their policy is going to change. I guess the best way for us to get one is to get someone we know from the USA to order it for us. I searched on ebay but none were available for sale. I have family in the States so I could get them to order me one if I really wanted. Maybe when the 3G iPhone comes our and Colorware starts selling it, I may get it. Will have a decision to make when the time comes.

My favorite color they have is the white back with the bright green apple logo and green at the bottom part of the back like the photo up top. I would leave the front the same. I think it looks a little weird to have the metal sides painted. Which combination do you like? Does anyone in Canada have one of these? The all black back with the silver apple logo looks pretty good too.

Check out their website and design your own iPhone here:
http://www.colorwarepc.com/p-103-iphone.aspx

I will end up switching to Rogers

2008-04-24T22:51:00.000-07:00

The way it looks, I will eventually switch to Rogers and leave my beloved Fido. Not right now of course but it looks that way in the future. From what I can see and what I've noticed, when the iPhone is finally available in Canada, it more than likely will only be available on Rogers and not Fido.

Why? Because Fido is not really geared towards data use and their stock phones are pretty lacking. They do have the Samsung Jack and the Moto Q9 but looks at the data plans they have available for those. The most data is 8mb with unlimited emails for $40 extra per month. All of their other phones are pretty lame. Fido seems to be geared more towards the phone use only type person or even the emergency call type cell user only.

Rogers is going to be releasing the LG Vu and a big maybe on the Nokia N95. Rogers seems to be getting the good phones while Fido does not. Rogers has better data plans available for their phones. Do you call 500mb for $80 a good plan? I don't know. It's definitely not great but it's a much better value than what Fido offers. So once the iPhone is released here in Canada it will most likely be only on Rogers and will come with a decent data plan. I sure hope they include voice minutes in the plan and have an iPhone only plan like AT&T does.

I will probably have to sign another 3 year contract but the good thing about porting from Fido to Rogers is that you don't have to pay the early cancellation fee (ECF). It will probably be another $400 bucks or so but I'm willing to pay that to get a decent data plan. I will miss the per second billing though.

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What phone did you have before the iPhone?

2008-04-23T03:26:00.000-07:00

Here's an interesting question...What phone did you have before the iPhone? I believe that the iPhone is the best phone on the market. Even though it isn't available in Canada it's still fairly easy for us to get.
The last phone that I had was the Moto KRZR K1 Red from Fido. I only got this phone because I had just joined Fido and signed a 3 year contract to get a sim card and a plan. The phone was basically free with the contract. I used the phone for about a month until I got my iPhone. I then sold the KRZR on ebay to help offset the iPhone cost. The KRZR was a good phone, no where near the greatness of the iPhone but it was still cool. Definitely the smallest size phone I have ever owned. Of course it was filled with Fido/Rogers branded junk. I was happy with it for the month I had it. I guess part of the reason I liked it was because I like when I get new gadgets.

The phone I had before that was the Moto Q from Telus. I also only had that phone for about a month. It was the first smartphone I ever had. Basically I hated the Moto Q. The interface was terrible. I had to hack into it to have my nickname show on it instead of 'Home Service' which always appeared as the carrier name. It is a Windows Mobile phone. I was able to get hotmail on the Moto Q a little easier then it was to get it on the iPhone but that's not a big deal. One of the reasons I hated it was the fact that Telus gave me 4mb of data. What a joke that is. Although Telus does have a decent unlimited data plan now and I don't have a decent plan on my iPhone, thats a different story. I also got this phone for free on a new 3 year contract with Telus. How did I only have it for one month? Thats also a another story that I will discuss later.

The phone I had before that was...the Moto RAZR...what a surprise. I actually had it for about 2 years. But who cares about the RAZR, it's old news.

So what phone did you have before the iPhone?

Red dot or no red dot?

2008-04-22T03:18:00.000-07:00

OR?

This has been bugging me for a little while. Does the red dot voicemail notification work for you on your iPhone? It is very strange. On my iPhone there is never a red dot indicating that I have voicemail. On my wife's iPhone, the red dot is always there, even if there is no voicemail. I really want the red dot voicemail indicator to work since it is a neat little feature. The SMS texts indicating I have a voicemail work fine and should work fine for all 1.1.2 users and above. Pre 1.1.2 firmware you need to install a fix to receive the SMS voicemail alerts but I don't think to many people are left on pre 1.1.2 or on 1.1.2 for that matter. Almost everyone is on 1.1.3 or 1.1.4 now. We are both on Fido. So the SMS alerts work fine, why not the red dot or red badge, whatever you want to call it.

On Fido:

Apparently Fido only sends out SMS voicemail notifications to handsets. Fido does not send out GSM voicemail notifications like many carriers do. What does this mean? The red dot will never work properly on fido or until the start sending GSM voicemail notifications. What about using a 3G.1 fido sim card? Still wont work as the network doesn't send out the proper notification.

On Rogers:

Rogers does send out SMS voicemail notifications as well as GSM voicemail notifications. This means it will work. What you need is a 4000 series sim card from Rogers. The 4000 is in the 9th through 12th digits in the sim card serial number. If you do not have this you can buy a new one from Rogers for $35 or one on ebay for $10-15. If you get one on ebay, make sure you are getting a 4000 series.

I wish it would work on Fido but sadly it does not. I don't think I will switch to Rogers over a red dot. The red dot does work fine though when I'm using my T-Mobile sim card. I guess the standard response from Fido would be, when you are using an unsupported handset, not all features will work.

iPhone coming to Canada May 21st

2008-04-21T23:50:00.001-07:00

It's just another rumor but it's an interesting read anyway. Not much truth to it from what I can see though. Supposedly it is coming May 21st and it's coming from a Rogers employee. The waiting game continues...

http://www.touchpodium.com/2008/04/19/conversation-with-rogers
-wireless-employee-reveals-iphone-coming-to-canada-in-may/

Not a fan of most 3rd party apps

2008-04-21T01:40:00.000-07:00

I'm not really a fan of most third party applications that are available for jailbroken iPhones through installer. There are a lot of neat applications out there, but not too many that really appeal to me. I've had a lot of 3rd party apps on my iPhone but they generally only last a day or two before I uninstall them due to lack of usage or necessity. One more that I don't like about them is the fact that you usually have to have your home screen on at least 2 pages. I don't like how the screen starts scrolling to the next when you put your finger anywhere on it.

I have found a few applications (out of the hundreds) that I actually like and have on my iPhone.

The first application I like is Capture. It allows me to take all of these wonderful screenshots of the whole iPhone screen and post them here on this blog. Before I had this app I would take pictures of the screen with my camera, it was a little hard to focus up close and didn't take good pics.

The next program that I like is the NES emulator and the roms that go with it. It is pretty cool how you can have old school Nintendo on your iPhone. The games are still a little difficult to play and the controls are tiny so it takes getting used to. But it is still playable. I've been playing punchout quite frequently recently.

The next program which most iPhone users in Canada probably have and most jailbroken iPhoners have is Summerboard. Now I really like the look of the iPhone in the way it is supposed to look but I just installed the Mac OS X Leopard default wallpaper and put it as the background on my homescreen and it looks fantastic. I plan to play around with other themes when I get a chance.

The next program that I just installed and plan to keep for a little while is Fring. Fring was just released for the iPhone last week sometime. Fring allows you to go on MSN, ICQ, Skype, Google Talk, Twitter, Yahoo, or AIM. You can make VOIP calls through skype and stuff with it. Pretty neat stuff. I have only tried MSN messenger on it and it worked flawlessly the first time I logged in. Apollo IM was more of a hit and miss app (mostly miss) when it came to using MSN messenger on the iPhone. Fring is pretty cool and I recommend you get it. To do so, add http://fring.com/iphone.xml to your sources in installer then download and install it. http://www.fring.com

So the only 3rd party apps I have on my iPhone right now are NES, Capture, Fring, and Summerboard. I'm not happy that my homescreen is on 2 pages but I will have to live with it for now. I installed a lot of games on my iPhone like blackjack, solitare and others but they got boring fast so I removed them. If you know of any other good programs, let me know.

More and more people have an iPhone

2008-04-20T14:35:00.000-07:00

I was at the mall yesterday just to look around. What did I notice? More people with iPhones. I think the iPhone is the hottest gadget to have in Canada right now. Besides maybe Nintendo DS. I saw 4 people who had their iPhones out either texting or just playing around with them. I guess everyone likes to show them off. I've also started to notice people listening to music on their iPhones. You can tell they have an iPhone by the headphones with the little mic on the right side.

My sister in law just got an iPhone too. She lives in the states. She was thinking about unlocking it and just using it on T-Mobile to go prepaid service, but decided to go the legit route and activate it with AT&T. Their plan is pretty good compared to Canadian standards. For $59.99 a month you get 450 daytime minutes, 5000 evening and weekend minutes, unlimited data, and 200 texts.

So many people have iPhones now....at least it isn't like all the RAZR's out there. Once it is finally released in Canada, the iPhone may become the next RAZR since I'm sure even more people will get one and then you wont be able to go out for 10 minutes without seeing one.

I was charged for edge data

2008-04-19T03:06:00.001-07:00

No, I wasn't charged for using the $7 plan or or mistakenly charged for overage on my 4 months on unlimited browsing on the $18 value pack from Fido. I posted a little while ago about being careful with edge settings. On my wife's iPhone, I entered the edge settings to test to see if the network was down because I couldn't get edge on my iPhone. I was worried because I had just upgraded to 1.1.4 and re-unlocked with Ziphone. After realizing that it was in fact a network problem and not a Ziphone problem, I manually deleted the edge settings in her iPhone. She only uses wifi to check her email and stuff.

The next day, she went back into her email to read some stuff over again, to her surprise, it downloaded a bunch of new messages. The total amount of data used was 546kb. I hoped that we wouldn't get charged but I figured we probably would. Well the bill came and the charge was there. 546kb X 5 cents/kb = $27.30. Kind of expensive for receiving a few emails.

The iPhone can burn through data pretty fast. Good thing I paid extra towards my bill last month. We were charged for this data because there is no data plan on that iPhone. I reset the network settings on the phone to properly remove the edge settings. Fido collected almost the exact amount of data usuage that the iPhone did. Using an iPhone in Canada can get pretty expensive if you aren't careful. If you use a bit of discretion, using the iPhone will bring you great pleasure.

The Joy of Texting

2008-04-18T04:55:00.000-07:00

My favorite thing about the iPhone is probably texting. It is so easy to send texts. I love the keyboard and the speed that you are able to type in it. No more hitting one key 3 or 4 times to get the right letter. Also, none of the T9 input BS. It's also cool how it has 2 way text messaging. I thought that was pretty cool when the Hiptop and Sidekick came out a long time ago. Texting on the iPhone is even better though. The only problem that I have found is that sometimes if you are having a conversation with someone and going back and forth very fast, you might get an error message and a text wont go through. This seems to happen only when you send one and the very same moment you receive one. Not a big deal.

Basically when I had a regular cell phone, I might have sent 50 texts a month. At 15 cents a message, thats $7.50. Then I added the 100 text messages plan for $5 a month. I still probably sent about 50. Now that I have the iPhone, I am armed with 2500 texts a month with my Fido value pack. Not that I would ever send 2500 in month and I can't believe people actually do, but I do send way more now. I've been sending an average of 500-600 a month since I got my iPhone. Here's what was on my bill: 558 sent, 496 received!

How many do you send each month?

iPhone + Mac = sick setup!

2008-04-17T01:28:00.001-07:00

I recently got a Macbook and I love it as much as my iPhone. Ever since I got an iPhone, I have become totally interested in Apple and all of their products. Apple products are so user friendly and look great. My iPhone looks very nice standing beside my Macbook. Syncing the two is also so easy. Syncing your music, contacts, events in iCal, and photos in iPhoto is quick and smooth. I am so happy with my Macbook that I am almost ready to give up my PC's completely. The next plan is to get an iMac. Just waiting until I have the cash. Anyone wanna buy a Dell Laptop or Desktop? LOL.

The other recent Apple additions to my family is the Apple TV and the Airport Extreme base station. Apple TV is great too. If you don't know much about Apple TV, check out Apple's site to learn more. With Apple TV, you can watch youtube, watch video podcasts, listen to regular podcasts, and watch movies from your iTunes library on your iPhone. You can either store the movie or music files directly on your Apple TV or stream them from your computer over your wireless network. It is seamless.

Anyone else out there in Canada or anywhere who switched to Mac from PC once getting the iPhone?

Let me know.

The LG Vu is coming to Rogers, what does this mean for iPhone users?

2008-04-16T00:13:00.001-07:00

Rogers has officially announced that they will be carrying the LG Vu. The big question now is what does this mean for iPhone users in Canada. The LG Vu is an iPhone looking phone with touch screen controls. It is as good as the iPhone, of course not.

The reason this becomes a question is that the LG Vu has a full html browser, not a WAP browser like the $7 unlimited browsing option includes. Will Rogers have to create a new data plan to support this phone? Or will it be compatible with the with the $7 plan? If it is compatible, why can't we just use the iPhone legitimately on the $7 plan without having to worry if we are going to get charged extra every month. If Rogers creates a new data plan to be used on this phone, can we use it on the iPhone? I sure hope so if it is decent.

Here is the article regarding the unveiling of the LG Vu on Rogers:
http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/March2008/27/c7397.html

The article states that the LG Vu will have access to Rogers Vision services. Rogers Vision services are separate from actual browsing though which include Radio on Demand, Video on Demand, Mobile TV, and the Rogers MusicStore. Of course you have to pay more for these services since the Vision Value Pack is $25 a month. Good thing iPhone users don't pay extra for that junk.

Rogers really likes to lock phones down to their own services. We will see what happens when the LG Vu is released in May.

Will a Telus Mike Sim Card work on the iPhone?

2008-04-15T02:18:00.000-07:00

Want an iPhone but you your cellular provider is Telus? Lets see if a Telus Mike Sim will work on the iPhone in Canada.

First, I will show you the Telus phone to show you that it is on Telus and has a sim card to prove it is a Mike phone.

Next I will insert the Telus sim into my iPhone.

Does it work?

No of course it doesn't work because Telus Mike is a iDEN CDMA phone and sim card. The iPhone only works on GSM. There is no CDMA version of the iPhone and probably will never be. If Apple had reached an agreement with Verizon Wireless back when they were searching around for a home for the iPhone, there is a very strong chance that the iPhone would have already made it to Canada on Telus, or possibly Bell. But Apple made the right choice in making the iPhone a GSM cell phone since 80% of the world uses GSM. If the iPhone did come to Telus, I wouldn't have switched to Fido. But I am happy with Fido now and even happier that I have an iPhone. Hopefully I don't have to switch to Rogers when the iPhone is finally released in Canada.

It was fun to try at least.

The classic Dope Wars game on your iPhone

2008-04-14T23:36:00.001-07:00

Remember this DOS-like game? It's called DopeWars and I'm sure many people have played in it the past. Now it's available for the iPhone. The graphics are a little better but it follows the same theme. It is very entrepreneur like. The object of the game is to buy low and sell high, just like most business. You can buy, sell, or jet. Just remember to watch our for the police and other thieves. It is available in installer under the games section. The program is called iDope. It is a good way to spend or waste some time when you need to. It can get quite fun and interesting especially when you are on a roll and your debts are paid off.

Here are some screenshots:

Get your iPhone working on the $7 unlimited WAP browsing plan

2008-04-14T02:46:00.000-07:00

Here's a tip for advanced iPhone users in Canada. I was searching Howard Forums and came across this. Apparently if you install the T-Mobile T-Zones hack file from installer and change some settings on one of the iPhone's files via SSH, you can use the $7 unlimited wap browsing pack on Rogers (or $20 communicate pack) and not be charged. You would probably want to change your IMEI too if you want to go this far. I have no idea if this actually works but these people are saying it does. However, if you do this, the mail app may not work and youtube may not work. Also, you are editing system files on the iPhone which is not for the newbies or the people who were afraid to unlock their iPhone themselves in fear of bricking it (myself included). My suggestion, don't do this but go ahead if you know what you are doing.

Here are the details:

1. Install the T-Mobile T-Zones 1.1.3 hack from the installer

2. Change your edge settings via the settings app.
APN = goam.com
Username = wapuser1
Password = wap

3. Edit the /var/preferences/proxy.pac file

function FindProxyForURL(url, host)
{
if (isInNet(myIpAddress(), "172.0.0.0", "255.0.0.0"))
return "PROXY 10.128.1.69:80";
else
return "DIRECT";
}

This was posted by Nutbar on HoFo

Here is a link to the thread:

http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?p=10940580

Here is another interesting link:
http://www.downloads.rogers.com/wireless/Network_Specifications_GPRS_EDGE.pdf

It is the Network specs for Rogers for edge and stuff, it's an interesting read if you have time.

Buy a Jailbroken iPod Touch at the Store

2008-04-13T13:30:00.001-07:00

Here's a funny article, apparently Radio Shack and Circut City in the States have printed flyers and circulated them showing a picture of an iPod touch that is jailbroken! LOL, someone is going to get in trouble. You can see the installer.app icon on the screen as well as some IM program. Too bad Rogers couldn't sell us an iPhone that is jailbroken and unlocked already.

Here is the article from endgaget. http://www.engadget.com/2008/04/13/weekend-circulars-show-jailbroken-ipod-touch-with-installer-on-b/

Unlock your iPhone in Canada: The only info you need

2008-04-12T21:42:00.001-07:00

Unlocking your iPhone to use in Canada on Rogers or Fido is easy. Since firmware 1.1.3 and 1.1.4 have been cracked, there are many programs available to unlock your iPhone. The best part is, it's all free. I don't understand why people out there are still paying to have someone unlock their iPhone or are paying for free information. It's all right here. Also, if you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or email me.

There are 3 main ways to unlock your iPhone

1. Ziphone - http://www.ziphone.org/

Ziphone was revolutionary when it came out. It is what I used and what most people have used. It will bypass activation, jailbreak, and software unlock your iPhone. It downgrades the bootloader to 3.9 from 4.6. This will basically void the warranty on your iPhone. But, good luck trying to get warranty service on it anyway if your iPhone is not activated on AT&T. I used Ziphone on both of my iPhones and they both work great on Fido. The second time using Ziphone, my mail app wasn't working properly, so I had to restore and do it again. Now it's fine. A few people have had problems with Ziphone, such as youtube not working, mail not working, etc, but that is suspossed to be all fixed with Ziphone 3.0. I have to recommend using Ziphone since it worked for me and I haven't used the other methods.

2. pwnage tool - http://iphone-dev.org/

This program comes from the iPhone Dev Team. They have spent quite a while working on it and it does look exciting. They also made an exciting video on it. Basically it creates a custom firmware for your iPhone. People on the forums are saying that it works and is the safest method to unlock your iPhone now. However, the is no pwnage tool for windows xp/vista users just yet, it should be released soon though.

3.
iLiberty+ http://www.ipluspwns.com/

This new program is a combination of two previous programs called iPlus and iLiberty. The claim to fame of this one is that it doesn't downgrade your bootloader. What it does do is create a 'fakeblank' bootloader which can be reversed in you need warranty service from your iPhone. Basically Apple would not be able to tell that you were messing around with it if you had to take it in. I've heard of people having problems with this program such as that it doesn't work, but I have also heard success stories. I haven't used it myself so I don't know.

There you have it. This is the only info you need to have your iPhone unlocked in Canada. Just watch the videos and see how it works for yourself, it's better than just typing out steps. Let me know how it goes for you.

Installing the back of Invisible Shield

2008-04-12T13:48:00.001-07:00

I only have the back piece of InvisibleShield on my iPhone. I recently installed it on the second iPhone we have so I decided to take some pics and show you what it's like to install it on your iPhone.

First you have to carefully peel the film off it's backing. Then you spray the film generously with the on the sticky side.
Next you line up the film with the camera hole and place it down carefully. The camera hole is the easiest way to line up the film, you don't want it to go on crooked.

Carefully smooth the film out and start pressing the sides down. The sides should be easy to stick.
Once the sides on stuck nicely, and everything is lined up, give it a couple minutes to set. After that use the squeegee to remove the bubbles.

Now we gotta do the corners, these are the hardest part but just be patient and it wont be that difficult. Make sure the film is fully stretched out over the corners, then hold it firmly in places for about 2 mintues. After that it it starts to come off slightly, just leave it. Do the rest of the corners. Now let the iPhone sit and rest overnight, in the morning you will have a nicely protected phone. If the corners are still up slightly, press them down now and they will stick.

Installing InvisibleShield the second time on the iPhone only took me maybe 15 minutes. The first time took me 45. You don't get a practice film with it so be careful and patient. Just take your time and you will be fine. This is probably the best case you are going to find for you iPhone. Nothing else compares. This is a must for all iPhone owners in Canada.

See my other post on the InvisibleShield here:
http://www.iphoneuser.ca/2008/03/my-case-invisibleshield.html

When the 3G iPhone Comes to Canada

2008-04-11T23:03:00.000-07:00

The 3G iPhone should be coming to Canada soon. Well I hope so at least. Since there are so many people who already own an iPhone in Canada and are using it on Rogers or Fido. I think it is clear by now that Rogers is not going to release the first generation model of the iPhone.

So what is everyone in Canada going to do with their iPhones once their is a 3G version available. The first question is whether or not it will be out in Canada at that time. I have thought of two scenarios of what I would do when the 3G iPhone is available. There is also no way to tell when exactly it will be here in Canada since Apple keeps these things pretty quiet.

Scenario # 1

The 3G iPhone is out and there is still no clear timeframe of when it will be available in Canada

If this is the case, I will have a decision to make. I always love to buy the latest gadget, as I'm sure many iPhone users in Canada also do. If there is still this monkey business going on with data plans and what phone is eligible and how much data you can use, there is a good chance I may not get it right away. I'm getting a little tired of this constant battle of what data plan you can use and can't use. There is no real answer to what data plan you can and can't use yet. If the features are totally amazing, the speed of it is amazing, then I may get it. There is still the unlocking issue though.

Scenario #2

The 3G iPhone is available in Canada

If this is the case, I will probably be lined up overnight to get it. When it does come out in Canada, there will be an actual iPhone plan that you can use without worrying about using too much data or if they will bill you extra or not. I hope it comes out on Fido because I love the per second billing, but I am willing to switch to Rogers need be. What will I do with my current iPhone then? I will probably keep it as the resale value will decline significantly. But not only that, if it is a Rogers branded iPhone, you will probably have difficulty if in fact you do unlock it. So I will keep my current one and use it when I travel to the US and A and other places. Having an unlocked GSM phone is the best. I wonder what the cost of the plan will be. Probably in the $60-70 a month range, but I can live with that. It's not much more than I pay now.

Attention $7 unlimited users!

2008-04-10T22:58:00.000-07:00

Attention all people who are using their iPhone in Canada on the $7 unlimited browsing ($20 communicate) pack. Apparently Rogers/Fido is going to start cracking down on ineligible phone users starting April 15th!

It has been reported on Howard Forums that the billing system will begin charging those who are not using eligible phones at the 5 cent per kb rate starting April 15.

Here is the link to the thread:

http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1356022

This means that all people who are on this plan better be careful. You definitely don't want a surprise bill next month. However, many people using this plan think that they wont know and wont be charged. When they are charged, the cliche phrase will apply "told you so".

The other bad news is that is possible that the Windows Mobile plans wont work on the iPhone either. Rogers has a $80 500mb Windows Mobile plan, it would be a shame if it no longer works on the iPhone.

What if you changed your IMEI?

You are still out of luck. Fido and Rogers will be able to tell what you are using the data for. If you are not using the Fido or Rogers browser and are not specifically WAP browsing, you will be charged.

Unfortunately there is no way around this which is sad for the the iPhone users in Canada. I wish that they came out with some kind of decent plan or a plan that was meant for non-branded or unlocked phones. I don't know what Rogers and Fido are thinking, there must be hundreds of thousands of people on their network using unlocked phones, why are they forgetting about us?

2 days without data

2008-04-10T02:55:00.000-07:00

It's been 2 days now since my unlimited data on my plan expired. It's kind of depressing that I can't use my iPhone for what it is meant anywhere I am but I am learning to live with it for the time being. What have I done with it instead? I've been sending a ton of texts. I usually send a lot anyway but I think I've sent even more since. I've used the notes app a lot more. I usually put down stuff I need to do or what I want to talk about on here. I've added more things to my calendar. I've played my nes roms a lot more. I've also made a few calls. It's still a damn good phone without the interweb in your pocket no matter where you are.

I still hope that Rogers/Fido comes out with a decent plan soon. I don't know how much longer I can go without using data. I mainly use data while on the bus or on my breaks at work. I love being able to check my hotmail because it is blocked on my work computers. I've already said that I wont add the $7 unlimited plan. Fido doesn't have a good windows mobile plan (which will work for the iPhone) like Rogers does. We will see how this goes. Too bad Rogers hasn't released their tier data plans like they were rumored to by actual Rogers employees. Come on Rogers, give Canada a good data plan!

Rogers/Fido $7 unlimited WAP browsing likely to end soon for iPhone users in Canada

2008-04-09T02:01:00.001-07:00

Ever since the $7 unlimited WAP surfing/browsing plan or $20 communicate/value pack came out, people have been using it on their iPhone. Since people haven't been charged for 2 months now, people are starting to think that they can get away with it. The simple fact is that you cannot use this plan on your iPhone. If you have been using it with no extra charges so far, then you are lucky.

Here's what I've heard from actual Rogers and Fido CSR's.

1. You cannot use this plan on an iPhone.

2. Rogers will begin IMEI tracking in the very near future (probably before the end of this month)

3. People who have been using this plan on phones that aren't eligible will get billed accordingly at the 5 cents per kb usage rate.

Facts:

1. The iPhone doesn't have a WAP browser.

2. The plan is meant for WAP browsing.

3. The edge settings you need to input in order for safari to work are not WAP settings.

4. Rogers will be IMEI tracking.

5. Safari is likely considered a 3rd party application according to Rogers. This means you cannot use it on this plan. Weather would also be considered a 3rd party application.

6. WAP browsing accumulates little data usage. When your iPhone racks up 100+ mb of data per month, Rogers will think something is up.

7. The disclaimer for the plan clearly states you cannot use it.

What if I change my iPhone's IMEI using Ziphone or some other method to my Moto Razr or another Rogers/Fido phone?

- First of all, changing a phones IMEI isn't exactly legal. But I wouldn't consider it illegal or something that can get you into serious trouble. Ok so your IMEI has been changed. But the iPhone still is not a WAP browsing phone. Rogers will know and charge you accordingly. I wouldn't change the IMEI.

What if the Rogers/Fido CSR told me to use this plan on my iPhone and they put a note on my account?

- That's nice but the CSR clearly doesn't know what they are talking about then or they think it will be funny once $5k bills start being sent out. No matter what kind of note is put on your account, the disclaimer states you cannot use a non-Rogers phone. They might be able to give you some kind of credit but likely not the whole amount and it will be a big hassle to get.

Just don't use this plan. It is too good to be true. Even in the States where the data rates are 10 times cheaper in Canada, the iPhone data plan still costs $20 a month.

I hope that people don't get gigantic bills and they have to fight with Rogers. Hopefully Rogers will give iPhone users in Canada some kind of warning if they are on this plan, but I highly doubt that.

How much data does the iPhone use?

2008-04-08T01:32:00.000-07:00

Since my 4 months of unlimited data on my fido $18 value pack has expired, I thought it would be a good idea to find out actually how much edge data does the iPhone use. This is important because I only have 12mb of data per month now. Not a whole lot.

First of all, I decided to refresh the network settings which removes the edge settings. This way I don't accidentally use up any data. I want to go a few days without using edge to see how I can cope. I also reset the usage statistics so I can keep better track of how much data I do use when I decide to input the edge settings again. I don't want to add the $7 unlimited surfing plan because I don't want to get a surprise bill.

Here is what I found:

Note, these are not cumulative totals, I checked the usage for each item separately.

Check email - No new messages

Data Sent - 5kb

Data Received - 0kb

Receiving 2 text emails

Data Sent - 4kb

Data Received - 14kb

Reading those 2 emails:

Data Sent - 2 kb

Data Received - 5kb

Sending 1 text email:

Data Sent - 3kb

Data Received - 5kb

Loading iPhoneUser.ca in Safari:

Data Sent - 57kb

Data Received - 460kb

Checking the weather:

Data Sent - 3kb

Data Received - 3kb

Checking stocks:

Data Sent - 2kb

Data Received - 5kb

Using the locate feature in google maps (map was already loaded):

Data Sent - 5kb

Data Received - 7kb

Searching for 1 address in Google Maps:

Data Sent - 15kb

Data Received - 57kb

Zooming in and out, dragging around in Google Maps for 30 seconds:

Data Sent - 60kb

Data Received - 680kb

Now that I think of it, I should have checked for YouTube data usage too, but it's too late now. Well I hope that gives you a good idea of how much data the iPhone uses. Hopefully Rogers and Fido come out with a decent plan for iPhone users in Canada soon. Using data is one of the features that makes the iPhone so great. Although, it still is the best phone of all time if you aren't using edge data.

I will try and use wifi more but it is still hard to find random free wifi access. Anyways, if you don't have a data plan or you have a lame one like I do now, either do not input the edge settings, or be careful with the amount of data you use. I think I can get by with using my email on my 12mb plan, can only do a few minutes of surfing with it though.

iphone canada

Rogers/Fido EPP Plan Cancelled

2008-04-06T18:56:00.000-07:00

Apparently this plan is cancelled. People have been posting on the forums saying they have tried to get it but were told it was cancelled. This plan was great while it lasted. I have 2 iPhones on it. It's too bad that they cancelled it because Telus still has their EPP plan available. Too bad for those Telus users who can't use an iPhone.

Here was the plan details:
Rogers/Fido Employee price plan (EPP)
$17.50 per month
included:
- 200 daytime minutes
- Unlimited evenings and weekends starting at 5pm

This was a great plan for the iPhone. It's good when the voice portion of your plan is so cheap so that it is easier to afford the expensive data part. Since this awesome plan is gone, I don't have any recommendations for a good voice plan for the iPhone. Basically they are all the same. However, if you go into an authorized dealer for Rogers or Fido (not the company stores) ask if they have any hidden plans available. Sometimes there is hidden plans (not advertised) and they can save you a lot of money.

Still don't have one?

2008-04-06T15:29:00.001-07:00

Not everyone is Canada has an iPhone yet. Many people who don't have one are interested in buying one but are having a hard time doing so. The reason, either they aren't able to go to the States themselves to buy one or they don't want to pay an extra $100-200 for one that is already unlocked.

I got my iPhone in January when unlocking wasn't so easy. It was 1.1.2 firmware. I had to use turbosim for the first month until Ziphone came out. Once Ziphone was out, I restored my iPhone and updated to 1.1.3 and then 1.1.4. I paid $600 for it and met the guy at Starbucks to pick it up. I was willing to pay that because I was iPhone crazy and wanted one right away. I guess I could have bought one in the States because I go often but just decided to get one immediately.

Here is the best way to get one if you don't have one already.
1. Go to the States and buy it yourself at the Apple Store.
Since they are only suspossed to be selling them to USA residents, keep this information handy if they ask any questions. Know the zip code of the hotel you are staying at. If they ask who it's for, just say it's a gift for someone. Usually you wont have any problems when buying it yourself in the States.

2. Buy it on craigslist. The prices seems to be a little better. You can pick it up in person. You can inspect it and test it out before you give the cash. This is how I got mine. There are lots available.
Here are some searches on Craigslist
- iPhones for sale in Vancouver
- iPhones for sale in Toronto
- iPhones for sale in Montréal
- iPhones for sale in Calgary
- iPhones for sale in Edmonton
and so on...

3. Buy it on ebay. There are hundreds available on ebay, the only problem is the cost. Then you have to pay shipping as well. The going rate for unlocked 8gb iPhones seems to be about $500-550 unlocked. The cost for unlocked 16gb iPhones seems to be about $625 to $675. Pretty damn expensive. Shipping is usually around $30-$40 to Canada because almost all sellers are in the States. For new in box iPhones, the prices are a little cheaper.

4. Wait until it's available in Canada: I don't think so.

Here is a search on ebay for iPhones - most for sale are unlocked but there is some that are sealed in the box.

Once you have yours, if it is unlocked already, enjoy, if not don't pay to have it unlocked, do it yourself. It's easy.

Read my guide/info on unlocking here and then you are set to go.

iphone canada

Futureshop is supporting us

2008-04-04T12:26:00.000-07:00

Futureshop is supporting the many people who have an unlocked iPhone in Canada. They are selling a case for it. It's a roots leather case for $29.99. Now I probably wont be getting one, it's nice to know that Canadian companies are supporting the iPhone. They don't have to sell it, especially since it is not available in Canada, but one of their marketing geniuses must have realized that there is thousands of iPhones in Canada and there is a market. Hopefully more products will become available in the near future since Apple.ca doesn't sell iPhone accessories.

Here is the link to the Futureshop item

Using AT&T in Canada

2008-04-03T19:51:00.001-07:00

I've heard people talk before about signing up with AT&T and using an iPhone legitimately with them instead of unlocking it and using it on Fido or Rogers. That may seem like an ok idea until you realize the costs assosciated with doing that. It is definitely not a good idea.

Here are the costs:

-iPhone monthly plan -$59.99

- Roaming package for Canada:

-- AT&T Canada $3.99 per monthWith AT&T Canada, get our lowest rates when you travel to or call Canada.

--59¢ per minute while roaming in Canada

--19¢ per minute when calling from the U.S.

--Outside this destination, standard rates apply.

- Pay per use data roaming rate - $0.0195 cents per KB (almost $20 a mb)

- Or you could get a data roaming plan:

-- $24.99/month: 20MB Data Global Plan gives you 20MB
-- $59.99/month: 50MB Data Global Plan gives you 50MB

-- Overage rate of $0.005 cents a kb

The new NES ROMs - totally easy to install and playable

2008-04-02T17:26:00.000-07:00

I posted before about the easiest way to add NES ROMs to your iPhone. Well now there is a much easier way. The best part about it is that you don't have to SSH into the phone to install them.

It is totally easy.

1. Go to settings, general, auto-lock, and set it to never

2. Open installer

3. Install "NES" (version 2.0.5-1)

4. Go to sources, edit, add - http://123locker.com, refresh sources

5. Go back to games, install "NES Roms" (version 1.20)

6. Start playing

Once the NES Roms package is installed, it gives you about 50 of the most popular Nintendo games that were made. Including Super Mario Bros, Tetris, Zelda, Contra, Mega Man, etc.

Now are they playable?

Yes. This version seems to be a lot more playable than the last version I had on my iPhone. I ended up uninstalling the NES and the roms from my iPhone because the controls were terrible and it didn't make for a fun game.

How can you tell?

Open up Contra or Punchout, if you can play either one without too much difficulty, you can tell the controls are better than before. Contra is a tough game to begin with but was absolutely impossible on the previous NES emulator version. Now you at least stand a chance.

I think I am going to keep these on my iPhone. There is always times where you have nothing to do and need to pass the time (like when you are at work). This is when I'm going to play these. The logo on the homescreen button also looks kinda cool. From my experience on the iPhone, this is one of the few 3rd party apps that I actually like.

Installing these through SSH seems like a joke now since this is so easy.

New Layout

2008-04-02T16:46:00.000-07:00

I decided to change the layout of the site. Mainly because the other template was having hosted image problems and looked terrible. However, I think it looks better now. I am still thinking of trying to import the whole site into iWeb but it looks like that could be a lot of work. I've also played around with wordpress a little but I still think blogger works well for me. If you have any ideas for the site let me know, especially if you have any post ideas.

Thanks

Hotmail on your iPhone

2008-04-01T22:14:00.000-07:00

How do you get hotmail on the iPhone? The most commonly used email on the internet, Hotmail, is not available on the iPhone. However there is a way to get it on your iPhone without messing around with forwarding it to gmail or something.

The solution is Izymail. You can check out their site at http://www.izymail.com/

How it works:

Since hotmail is only a web based email (unless you use the windows live mail program) it won't wont on the iPhone because its not a pop email (i think).

Anyways, izymail acts as the server between the web based-ness of hotmail and your iPhone.

A slight downside to it is that it costs about $20 per year to use. Not bad considering what it will do but not everyone always wants to keep shelling out money here and there for random computer things. There is no lag in sending or receiving messages.

It is worth it to me because I have always used hotmail. I don't want to have the hassle of having all my emails forwarded to gmail. It is also a plus for me because I am using it to have hotmail in the mail app on my new macbook.

So if you only use hotmail or mainly use it, this is a must have.

How to set it up:

- Go to izymail.com and sign up for an account

- You will have a trial account which only allows you to send/receive a fixed amount of messages

- Pay them the $20 to have a full account (you could set it up first to try then pay them too)

- On your iPhone select settings, mail, add account

- On the page, tap pop and start entering the settings.

- Put your name however you want

- address - you@hotmail.com

- description - blank

- Incoming Mail Server

host name - in.izymail.com

user name - you@hotmail.com

password - yourhotmailpassword

- Outgoing Mail Server

host name - out.izymail.com

user name - you@hotmail.com

password - yourhotmailpassword

It will take about 5 minutes to set up, when the ssl errors pop up, just hit yes. You can arrange stuff in your izymail profile on their site to your preferences about saving, receiving, sending your email etc.

There you have it.

iphone canada

iPhone family

2008-04-01T00:21:00.000-07:00

Here is a cool picture, it's of an iPhone family. Recently some friends came over and I put the anti-glare screen protector on their phones. They are going to come over again once the invisibleSHIELD's I ordered from them come in. So many people have iPhones now, it's crazy. It's good to see so many others enjoying the best phone on the world.

Also, went out for dinner this saturday with some other friends, turns out 3 of them have iPhones now too. They got theirs by having friends buy it for them in the States. So 5 out of 12 people at the table had an iPhone. Pretty good ratio. They all had the silicone case on theirs, I told them to get invisibleSHIELD. I know I've said a lot about it, but it works that well and looks that good.

One more thing, another one of my friends who just got an iPhone is using the Rogers $7 unlimited package with no problems so far.

Anyways, remember to keep an eye out and see how many people are actually using an iPhone, your friends might be and you don't even know it. I still there there is about 100,000 iPhone users in Canada.

Ziphone 3.0

2008-03-30T16:18:00.001-07:00

Just a quick note, Ziphone 3.0 has been released. Here are the updates according to Zibri:

New Features:

- No more need of fix nvram!

- Solution for GREYED wifi!

- No need for YouTube Fixes!

- Embedded apps installer!

- Customized plugins !

Ziphone is by far the easiest way for Canadians to unlock their iPhone for use on Fido or Rogers. Don't waste your money paying someone to unlock it for you or paying for a guide on how to unlock it off ebay. Just download Ziphone here, read the instructions, and 5 minutes later your iPhone will be working.

A Rogers Data Plan that will meet iPhone data needs

2008-03-29T00:16:00.001-07:00

Here is a data plan from Rogers that will meet the needs of most iPhone users in Canada. It comes with 500mb of surfing and unlimited e-mails from the most popular domains (ie - gmail, hotmail, etc.)

The only problem?

The cost!

It's $80 a month.

Now 500 mb would be perfect for most Canadian iPhone users. I personally used 300 mb last month. Good thing I'm still on unlimited for another few weeks.

Am I going to get this plan? No way it's 80 bucks a month, plus Fido isn't offering it right now, only Rogers.

Does it work on the iPhone? Yes

I've heard from a Rogers rep saying that this is probably the best plan you can get for an iPhone right now which is usable. I've also read on the forums that someone is using this plan without any problems.

So if you don't mind paying an extra $80 a month, go ahead and get this plan. If it was $40-50 a month, I would have it by now.

I still don't know why Rogers can't give us a reasonably priced unlimited or 500mb+ data plan. Data is so cheap in the states, why can't we get something half reasonable here?

What about the $65 1 gig plan?

If you got this plan a few months ago, you are lucky. Because if you sign up for it now, it is strictly for pc card usage only, not iPhone usage.

What about the $7 unlimited plan or the $20 communicate pack?

See my thoughts on that here.

The Great Canadian iPhone petition

2008-03-28T23:55:00.000-07:00

Sign The Great Canadian iPhone petition and help bring the iPhone to Canada. We all want to get the iPhone to Canada legitimately and this may help. Thanks to iPhoneinCanada.ca and iPhoneWorld.ca for setting this up.

Sign the Petition Here!

Rumor - 3G iPhone on it's way?

2008-03-26T23:19:00.000-07:00

Here's an exciting rumor. Apple has apparently ordered 10 million 3G iPhones. It is predicted to debut in either May/June or the holiday season. Either way it's interesting stuff. Here's the articles:

http://blog.wired.com/business/2008/03/rumor-apple-ord.html

http://www.mobilemag.com/content/100/355/C14918/

What does this mean for Canada?

As it stands now, not much. However, some say that Rogers is waiting for a 3G version of the iPhone before it fully gets on board with the idea of launching it. This could be one of the last hurdles the iPhone faces over coming to Canada. We all want the iPhone in Canada, I hope this means we get it. I will definitely upgrade to the 3G version. I hope fido releases it too otherwise I will probably be moving over to Rogers. Another factor in my decision will be if you will be able to unlock it and still use the iPhone Rogers data plan then. We'll have to wait yet again to see what happens. If it still isn't coming to Canada anytime soon, I will be happy with reasonable data rates.

image courtesy of mobilemag.com

iphone canada

invisibleSHIELD - half price

2008-03-26T23:15:00.000-07:00

If you have got an invisibleSHIELD yet, now is the time. They are half price right now from the manufacturer, Zagg. Click here to read my review of invisibleSHIELD. It works out to about $12.50 for one. Free shipping takes about 3 weeks to arrive, if you pay, a little sooner.

Here is the link to order:
http://www.zagg.com/showspecial

$7 Unlimited browsing working for now

2008-03-26T11:37:00.000-07:00

It seems as if people are getting by using the $7 unlimited WAP browsing plan from Rogers or Fido. You can also be on the $20 communicate pack which includes the unlimited WAP browsing. People on the forums have been saying that they have not received any extra charges on their bills for data. Two of my friends who are with Rogers say the same thing. I haven't heard of anyone using it on Fido without any problems but I assume it is the same case for them.

Will I get it?

Honestly, I don't think I will. Since the disclaimer on the website for the plan says it cannot be used on non Rogers/Fido phones, it means they can charge you the 5 cents per kb ($50 a mb). They are suspossed to be IMEI tracking too. Since your IMEI on your iPhone is not recognized by Rogers/Fido, they can charge you the 5 cents per kb. Maybe I am just scared. I don't know. I just don't want to get a surprise $1000 bill and have to argue my way out of it or try get it reduced.

But I think that Rogers will close this loophole in the near future so I don't want to bother getting it right now. The people at HoFo say it will only work for a short period of time. Personally I have also met two Rogers CSR's and they both said that the iPhone could not be used on this plan. Is this browsing plan working for you? Leave a comment and let us know

Rogers disclaimer for the $7 plan
"Important: This plan includes unlimited on-device mobile browsing only. Plan is available on select phones only (PDAs such as Blackberry or Windows Mobile devices, PC cards and non-Rogers certified devices are not eligible). Data usage incurred on ineligible devices, incurred while tethering (using device as wireless modem for laptop) or incurred using non-Rogers (3rd party) applications downloaded to your device will be subject to pay-per-use charges of 5 cents/KB."

If you were wondering what the Rogers EDGE settings are for this plan, or any other plan they are:

APN: internet.com
Username: wapuser1
Password: wap

Visit us on your iPhone

2008-03-25T23:56:00.000-07:00

This blog is designed to be optimized for viewing on your iPhone. Bookmark us on your iPhone and check us out while you are on the go. Here are some pics of what the site looks like on the iPhone.

Using T-Mobile instead of paying roaming charges really works

2008-03-25T00:32:00.001-07:00

So I was in the States this past weekend and I had made a post before about How to Avoid Roaming Charges while in the USA. I said how much better it was, so of course I was going to test it out for myself. Once I was at the border and waiting in line obviously, I popped out my Fido sim card and put my T-Mobile sim in. Now I was set to go and make as many calls and texts that I wanted.

Here is the summary of usage on my T-Mobile To Go prepaid account:

Texts sent - 30 @ $.10 each

Texts received - 10 @ $.05 each

Calls made/received - 22 for about 30 minutes @ about $.25 a minute.

Total Cost - $10.80

Here's what Fido/Rogers would have charged:

Texts sent - 30 at $.60 each - $18

Texts received - 10 - I believe it is still free to receive texts while roaming, if not it will just cost that much more.

Calls made/received - 22 for about 35 minutes. This is a little hard to calculate but here are the rates Fido will charge:

Calls received - $.95 roaming plus $.25 long distance - $1.20 a minute

Calls made to your home area code - $.95 roaming plus $.75 long distance - $1.70 a minute. All calls are charged on a per minute basis not per second. Lets just say I received half as much calls as calls I made.

Calls made - 15 minutes @ $1.70 per minute - $25.50

Calls received - 15 minutes @ $1.20 per minute - $18

Total cost roaming with Fido - A ridiculous - $61.50

Summary:

I could have paid Fido $61.50 for my phone usage over 3 days while in the States but I decided to be smart and get a prepaid T-Mobile account and only paid $10.80. Before I left the States, I bought a $10 refill card and now my account wont expire for another 90 days. Not bad.

I strongly suggest that you sign up for T-Mobile to go. If you go to the States often, get your own account. If you don't go too often, just buy a T-Mobile sim off ebay that is already activated a couple weeks before you go. It really works. Don't give Rogers anymore of your hard earned cash.

As you can see in the picture above, one iPhone is on T-Mobile, the other is roaming on AT&T, needless to say we didn't use the one that was roaming on AT&T.

Stocking up at the Apple Store

2008-03-24T14:35:00.000-07:00

This weekend I was down in the States. One of the things that was a must for the weekend was go to the Apple Store to check out iPhone accessories and look at Macbook Air's. The Macbook Air is amazing but just a little pricey. It is always exciting to go to the Apple Store for me since there isn't one in Vancouver. I wish they would open one here, you guys are lucky in Toronto and Montréal.

At the Apple Store I bought 2 packs of the Anti-Glare film. A spare set for myself and one for a friend. I went to another store called The Mac Store and bought another invisibleSHIELD for my wife's iPhone and another set of headphones. She needed a new set because we didn't get them with her iPhone.

Next time you go to the USA, don't just go to the outlet malls, go to the Apple Store!

iPhone Canada

More iPhone users in Canada than in the USA?

2008-03-23T02:09:00.000-07:00

Well, obviously not. But here's an interesting observation. I have been to the USA about 10 times since the iPhone's debut last June. Every single time I've been down there, I have not seen one person with an iPhone. Not a single one! I've seen lots in the Apple store and lots of people playing with them in the Apple store. But still, haven't seen one is about 10 trips. I see lots of people with their T-Mobile sidekicks or Verizon Voyagers, but no iPhones. At home in Canada, I see people with iPhones on practically a daily basis. Maybe it's because people who have an iPhone in Canada are just obsessed with it. I am thats for sure. Next time you are in the States keep a look out for other iPhone users and make sure you take a T-Mobile prepaid card.

Should I lock it back to Rogers?

2008-03-22T00:47:00.001-07:00

A common question people tend to have is if I buy an iPhone now and then Rogers comes out with it, should I lock it back to Rogers?

Well there isn't a correct answer but here are my thoughts on that situation. First of all, if Rogers ever does come out with the iPhone, this won't be such a bad problem to have. There will be a few questions to answer though right off the bat.

The first is, can I use a 'Rogers iPhone Plan' on my unlocked iPhone? The simple answer is probably no. Rogers seems to like to control these types of things and will probably want everyone to buy a new iPhone from them.

The next question is should I lock it back to Rogers?
My response is, why would you want to? Unlocked phones rule! I love having an unlocked phone that I can use any sim with. I have a t-mobile sim for when I'm in the Statess.

I have an idea about how you would lock it back to Rogers. The Canadian version of iTunes will probably be updated and will want to activate your iPhone to Rogers instead of AT&T.

This brings up another important question/scenario. Say you restore your unlocked iPhone in iTunes and then it wants to activate on Rogers. The first message that will come up will be "You are using an unauthorized sim". You will basically have to get a 'Rogers iPhone sim card'. Where would I get one? No idea since they wouldn't be widely available like 1 million AT&T iPhone sims that aren't in use.

What will I do? Good question.

There are 3 situations that will make me buy a new iPhone from Rogers/Fido. The first situation is if once they finally release it, it is a 3G model. I will definitley be lined up to get the 3G model.

The second situation is if Rogers has Visual Voicemail that only works on locked Rogers iPhones. Visual Voicemail is awesome and I want it ASAP.

The third situation would be if they don't let me use the 'Rogers iPhone' plan on my unlocked iPhone. However, if they do come out with the iPhone, I'm sure data rates will be much more reasonable and they are in the USA no matter what phone you are using.

iPhone Canada

Rogers Tier Data Plans Delayed

2008-03-20T12:46:00.000-07:00

Apparently the Rogers Tier data plans which were supposed to be released March 18th, and then March 25th have been postponed with no release date scheduled.

This is what the data plan was supposed to be like that could be used on iPhones:

$15 - 20MB ~ Tier 1
$30 - 20MB to 60MB ~ Tier 2
$50 - 60MB to 500MB ~ Tier 3
$65 - 500MB to 1GB ~ Tier 4
$75 - 1GB to 2GB ~ Tier 5
$85 - 2GB to 3GB ~ Tier 6
$100 - 3GB to 5GB ~ Tier 7
$0.03 per additional MB
Everyone starts off at the $15 plan and based on usage, you move up the tiers

HoFo member O_ssie who announced this plan is now saying that it is being delayed and he cannot release any further information about it. It wasn't just a rumor post because everything that this guy has announced before has come true. He works for some special team at Rogers.

Now what?

Well this is terrible news. I was hoping that these would come out and Fido would adopt them too. If it is not out by the time my unlimited data runs out, I will just have to use no data. There is not one decent plan right now that I would be able to use. I do use a lot of data and I'm not really happy with this but you never know, we will have to wait and see what happens. I will get 12mb a month when my unlimited expires but I usually use that in a day and don't want to risk any ridiculous bill.

Places to discuss the iPhone

2008-03-19T12:34:00.000-07:00

I have 3 favorite forum sites where I like to go to discuss the iPhone

here they are

Howard Forums

ehMac.ca

iPhoneinCanada.ca Forums

I love to sift through the forums and look for interesting new info that I may not have know or try to help people with their problems. Forums can get pretty addicting. You also have to follow a strict set of unofficial rules too - like search before you post, etc. otherwise people will get mad. It's kinda funny actually. Anyway, you should check out the iPhoneinCanada forums as they are new and we want to talk about the iPhone.

My Case: InvisibleSHIELD

2008-03-19T00:52:00.000-07:00

I have been talking about a few cases that I have used. Now I am going to talk about the one I actually like and use. It is the invisibleSHIELD. I love it and it works very well. It is a plastic film which covers the entire iPhone. It protects against scratches mainly. I think it offers some protection against dropping the iPhone, but probably not as much as other 'regular' cases do. Similar products are BodyGuardz and BestSkinsEver.

Whats in the box?

1. The front screen shield
2. The back shield
3. Small pieces for the home button, and the top and bottom metal rounded edges.
4. Solution application spray
5. Air bubble squegee.

Installation is a little tricky. It took me about 45 minutes. Installation stpes:

1. Remove the film from it's backing.
2. Spray the sticky side of the film liberally with the solution spray.
3. Line up film with iPhone and apply.
4. Hold each corner down for about 5 minutes to ensure it sticks. If it doesn't stick, spray some more solution on it and hold again.
5. Do the same for the front piece.
6. Use the squeegee to get rid of any air bubbles.
7. Let sit for 12-24 hrs - or so. Seemed fine after a couple hours.

Here is a video on its 'features' and installation

Why do I like it?

The main reason I like the invisibleSHIELD is that the protects the phone and maintains the sleek look of the iPhone. All other cases ruin the look of the iPhone. If you use a different case, what you have is an ugly phone with awesome features. The shield totally protects against all scratches. It also gives you a little better grip on the phone when you are holding it. I have to recommend this to everyone that doesn't have it.

My setup:

I am using the back shield on my iPhone and the Anti-Glare Screen protector. I don't use the invisibSHIELD front screen protector because I like how the one I already have reduces glare and fingerprints.

Cost:

It's $24.95 for the front and back protector. You can also find it on ebay for about the same price including shipping. I ordered mine from the manufacturer. I paid $1.80 for shipping and it took about 2 weeks. They also have a free shipping option but their website says it could take up to 4 weeks if using the free shipping. They also ship by fedex and ups I think, but why pay $20 for shipping. If you live in Vancouver and plan on going the States soon, I know they sell it at a apple authorized reseller called 'The Mac Store' in Redmond Town Centre.

Here are some photos of my iPhone with the invisibleSHIELD on. Look closely, it's hard to tell that it's on. You can see the how it holds onto the corner. You can also see how it looks a little shiney with it on.

iPhone 1.2 Firmware Video

2008-03-19T00:37:00.000-07:00

You may or may not have seen this already. If you haven't, it's a must see. Looks pretty cool. This is what Steve Jobs and company introduced when they talked about the SDK and Enterprise features. It is suspossed to be released in June and contains the 'App Store' and Microsoft exchange support.

Check it out.

Battery Update

2008-03-18T03:34:00.000-07:00

My battery life on 1.1.4 seems to be getting better and better after every charge. Here are the current stats:

iPhone #1 :
Usage - 4 hours, 35 minutes
Standby - 3 days, 14 hours
about 10% left

iPhone #2 :
Usage - 3 hours, 38 minutes
Standby - 3 days, 11 hours
about 20%

When I was at 1.1.2 I was thinking the battery life wasn't so good. Now I'm thinking that this battery life is better than any other cell phone I have ever owned. Especially with the things that it can do. With other cell phones I have owned in the past, it seems to me that the battery starting dying faster after about 1.5 to 2 years. I wonder how long my iPhone battery will last. I definitley don't want to open up the phone or send it in to Apple. Probably what will happen is that there will be a 3G iPhone out by then and I won't have to worry about the batteries on these current iPhones.

NHL Hockey Live Scores on your iPhone

2008-03-16T15:06:00.000-07:00

For most Canadians, the only other thing that is about as important to them besides their iPhone is Hockey. Playoffs are coming soon and everyone is excited. Here is a good way to get the scores live. You can even watch the score live and see the time tick down.

On your iPhone, bookmark the site:
http://www.nhl.com/scores/index.html

Scroll down and pick the game you want to watch live.

Click "Real Time" on the right of the page.

Turn your phone into landscape mode

Watch the game!

It will show you stuff like shots on goal, penalties, a mini play by play, etc.

It's a neat way to catch up on the scores or 'watch' the game if oyu don't have access to a TV or a radio. It will work perfectly over EDGE if you don't have a Wifi connection where you are. I am using EDGE in the picture and it didn't take long to load, and the time actually ticks down second by second. It's pretty cool. It is not a feature on NHL.com specifically designed for the iPhone but it is a nice fit to it. You can even put a button on your home screen if you want easy access to the scores.

Check out the pictues. (There wasn't any better games on)

Go Canucks Go!

Is 8gb enough?

2008-03-16T06:32:00.000-07:00

New iPhoner users in Canada may have a 16gb one but I think most in Canada have the 8gb. Is 8gb enough for you? How many 8gb owners have upgraded to a 16gb? I think some have but probably not that many. I think the 8gb is sufficient and I still have 6 gb's available on my iPhone. I have 140 songs on it which uses about 1 gb. How much do you really need on your iPhone. They have 160 gb iPod's. Who is going to use that much? I don't think I known 1000 songs or would listen to each one more than once a year. I don't need a ton of pictures on it. I won't watch movies on it. If I'm on a plane, I have my laptop and I'll watch movies on it. I like being able to watch youtube on the bus or at work on my iPhone but that doesn't use any space.

So is 8gb enough? YES.

If you already have an iPhone, it's probably not worth upgrading it. If you are planning to get one soon, it's only $100 more for the 16gb so you might as well get it.

How much space do you have left?

Does everyone have one?

2008-03-15T02:11:00.000-07:00

I'm starting to think that Rogers may have missed the boat on the iPhone. I'm thinking that may be true because so many people in Canada have one now. With over a million unlocked iPhones out there, my estimate is that there is 100,000 of them in Canada. They aren't really that hard to get. You can pay $400 dollars to get one yourself and then unlock it or you can pay $500 - $650 and get one that is unlocked already. Since unlocking has become so easy, I think more and more people are just getting one.

If Rogers were to release the iPhone tommorrow, sure it would be popular, but with all the iPhones already in use, they are losing out on tons of sales. I have seen everyone from teenagers to middle aged women with iPhones. I'm seeing more and more regularly. I see someone almost everyday with an iPhone. I've seen a couple times where people meeting at Starbucks to pick up their iPhone. Not quite like how you see Moto Razr's everywhere but it's getting there. Over the past couple months, I've seen about 40 different people using an iPhone.

I believe that everyone who wants one, has one. It isn't that expensive if you think about it. $400 is the going rate for phone without a contract. Fido sells the Razr and the Krzr for $350 - $400 without a contract. Like anyone would pay that though. Rogers won't sell the iPhone any cheaper than $400 with a 3 year contract, so what are you waiting for?

The only consolation Rogers has is the 3G iPhone. I'm sure current iPhone owners will upgrade. Probably not all current iPhone owners but quite a few. Most of us want to have the latest toy. I hope Fido also gets it if Rogers does. I also hope we get Visual Voicemail in Canada too. Are you going to upgrade once it is officially released in Canada?

Necessary Accessory

2008-03-14T02:03:00.001-07:00

Here is an accessory for the iPhone that I love and everyone should get. It is the Power Support Anti-Glare Film Set for the iPhone. It is a small film that covers your iPhone screen. One of the best things about it is that it reduces fingerprints on the screen so that you don't always have to wipe the phone down to keep it looking sharp. It also reduces glare from the phone and the screen actually looks quite good with it on. It doesn't not affect the sensitivity of the screen whatsoever.

Installation is fairly easy. Just wash your hands before applying and make sure you are sitting on a table that doesn't have any dust. Remove the film from the backing and line it up with the home button. Carefully set it down inch by inch. If you mess up, just pull it back and start again. If dust happens to get underneath the film, use a small piece of scotch tape to remove it. The film is easy to remove if you have to, as long as u have nails. The film does not damage the iPhone screen.

The price is $14.95 from apple and includes two films. A little pricey for 2 pieces of film but trust me it works. There are some available on ebay if you are not heading down to the States anytime soon since it's not sold on apple.ca.

I don't recommend getting the regular film for the iPhone screen. It does protect but can increase the appearance of fingerprints.

Check it out on Apple's Website here

T-Mobile Canada

2008-03-13T13:03:00.001-07:00

Saw an interesting article today. It was about the possibility of T-Mobile coming to Canada. This would be exciting because it would create more competition within the Canadian Wireless Industry and specifically for the GSM carriers. If this would have happened sooner, we may have seen the iPhone in Canada already because it would have forced Rogers to have reasonable data rates. But if they do set up shop in Canada, expect more reasonable data rates in the future. Anyways check out the article, let me know what you think.
T-Mobile Canada - from - electronista.com

I also just set up my T-Mobile to go account so that I don't have to pay $1.70 a minute to fido for roaming in long distance in the USA. I now have the Seattle area code I wanted. If you don't want to pay such high roaming charges, check out my post on how to avoid them:
How to Avoid Roaming Charges in the USA

Careful with EDGE settings

2008-03-12T21:49:00.000-07:00

This post is coming right from my iPhone. I made a bit of a mistake today with the edge settings on my wife's iPhone. Last night I noticed that the edge network was down. I wanted to make sure that it wasn't just my phone since I had just updated it and re-unlocked it. I put my sim card in and entered the edge settings for fido.
If you are wondering they are:
internet.fido.ca
fido
fido

So I realized that it was probably the edge network was down when it wouldn't work on her iPhone. After that I deleted the settings. What happened today though was that her phone was still connected to edge and she used data today by mistake. I didn't realize that the iPhone would save the edge settings.

She ended up using 550 kb of data. Now at 5 cents a kb that equals $27.50. A bit of a costly mistake but at least it wasn't 5 or 10 megs. That would have been a disaster. Not sure if we will get charged yet but we will find out once the bill comes. I'm pretty sure we will get charged since we don't have any kind of data plan on that phone.

So if you don't want to use edge anymore go to settings, general, reset, reset network settings. This will remove the edge settings from your iPhone.

Updating to 1.1.4

2008-03-12T04:12:00.000-07:00

So I decided to update my iPhone to 1.1.4. Ran into a bit of a problem while doing so but everything seems to be ok now. I decided to update because my texts seem to be arranged out of order. The times shown on texts received was 4 hours earlier than what they actually were. So I updated. But that didn't fix the problem. I restored in iTunes to 1.1.4 and ran Ziphone 2.5c again. After doing so, the mail program kept crashing. So I put the iPhone into DFU mode with Ziphone, restored again, ran Ziphone again and it's working fine now.

The problem I think is with the fido time not being adjusted to DST. When I set the time to automatically update, it shows 1 hour earlier than what the time is. I searched online and found that texts could be out of order when not using auto update time.

Right now though EDGE doesn't seem to be working. It's not just my iPhone, I tested it on my wife's too and I didn't do anything to her iPhone. Also tested it with my sim in her iPhone and still no EDGE. Oh well, we'll see what happens in the morning.

iPhone Clear Silicone Case

2008-03-11T01:18:00.001-07:00

Here is a very common case out there. It's cheap and it protects the iPhone reasonably well if you drop the phone.

How does it look?

- Not so good

How does it feel?

- Ok

Am I using it any longer?

- No

I got mine on ebay for about $8 including shipping. Basically I think this case takes away from the sleek look of the iPhone. If you want to protect your iPhone, it is a reasonable case for the price. There are better ones out there but they cost around $30 and don't look much better. This case is fairly cheap and it will collect dust inside which can cause scratches on the phone. Over time the silicone will stretch and be loose on the phone and then it will collect even more dust. If you are going for protection and a cheap cost this is the answer. If you want something that looks nice, this is not the answer. When paying $400 + for the the phone, and $8 protection solution is not so good. In fact, I haven't seen one case out there that protects the iPhone well and still looks good. Oh well.

My data plan

2008-03-09T23:02:00.000-07:00

I know some people are worried about getting an iPhone because they've heard rumors about people getting $1000 + bills from data usage on the EDGE network. Well, it's true, people have gotten bills like that but it is mainly because they were not being smart. For example, using data when roaming in the US or abroad. Those charges add up quickly. Other cases have been from using data on an iPhone when being on a WAP browser plan.

My current data plan is the fido $18 value pack. This included 12mb of surfing and 4 months unlimited surfing. I still have 1 month left of my unlimited surfing. So once my unlimited is done, I can either restrict myself to 12mb a month or pick one of the following options. Since I use about 12mb a day, that wont work for me.

There are a number of ways to avoid ridiculous bills:

1. Simply don't have a data plan. If you don't need to use the internet or e-mail while you are out, on the bus, at work, etc, why have one? Just use wifi. If you have wifi at work or at some place you hang out, take advantage of it. Here is a listing of some free wifi spots in Canada http://www.wififreespot.com/can.html. Most people have a wifi connection at home so use it there. Why would I use my iPhone for internet purposes at home instead of my computer? I don't know? because iPhone is awesome?

2. New Rogers/Fido data plans coming March 18 or 25. Now these haven't been 100% confirmed, but it seems like they are coming to me. Here's the details:

Non-Rogers & WM Data & Tethering - 3 yr term with DECF

$15 - 20MB - Tier 1

$30 - 20MB to 60MB - Tier 2

$50 - 60MB to 500MB - Tier 3

$65 - 500MB to 1GB - Tier 4

$75 - 1GB to 2GB - Tier 5

$85 - 2GB to 3GB - Tier 6

$100 - 3GB to 5GB - Tier 7

$0.03 per additional MB

*Note: Everyone starts off at the $15 plan and based on usage, you move up the tiers

more info here: http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1330048\

3. Change the IMEI on you iPhone with Ziphone, hack the iPhone so that you can browse WAP sites and use the Fido or Rogers $7 unlimited WAP browsing or the $20 communicate pack. More info on that here: http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?t=1323932

Personally, I am going to go with #2 since I love using my iPhone at work on my breaks (and when I'm suspossed to be working). I also use it on the bus on my way to work. I think that the rates for #2 are resonable and I don't mind paying $80-100 a month total to use the best phone in the world. Not everyone wants to pay that much a month for a cell phone so then I would recommend using option 1. I do not recommened using, or even trying option 3 as WAP browsing sucks, it is not proven that it actually works, and you don't really want to be messing around with the code of your iPhone unless you are a professional. One more tip, if you are outside of Canada, get a prepaid sim card so that you can use data. See my post on avoiding USA roaming charges. http://www.iphoneuser.ca/2008/03/how-to-avoid-roaming-charges-while-in.html

Battery Life?

2008-03-08T15:56:00.001-08:00

We all know that the iPhone battery life isn't the greatest but it is good enough that I don't think it is a major issue.

My Current battery stats:
Usage - 5 Hours, 49 Minutes
Standby - 2 Days, 2 Hours

with about 25% left

I actually think that is quite good. Probably better than what I have seen previously with my iPhone. I used it for a lot of texts, some browsing, some calls, some music. Not bad since I haven't plugged it in for over two days now.

There are many ways to save your battery life as well. One major way is to turn down the screen brightness. Another way is to turn of the 'Ask to Join Networks' in Wifi settings. Of course using Wifi, Bluetooth, watching youtube etc, will all drain your battery faster.

There was a rumor going around that turbosim, stealth sim, etc. caused your battery to drain faster. Since I have had first hand experience with it, I would say that it does make a difference without it. I was getting less usage and standby time before when I did have the turbosim in.

The averages were:
Usage - 3 to 4 hrs
Standby - 1.5 days

Obviously I am doing better than that now.

One more tip: I've noticed that the battery tends to last a little longer when I leave it plugged in beyond when it appears to be full on the screen. I usually leave it plugged in overnight and get more usage and standby than when I charge it for a couple hours during the day even though it does look fully charged.

Overall I think the iPhone battery is sufficient. It is not unreasonable to have to charge your phone once every 2 days. What are the stats on your battery life? Leave a comment and let me know.