Is your iPhone tracking you?

Is your smartphone tracking you? Yes it is, and there has been a lot of news about it last week. Both Android and Apple phones do this, and it is the location services and GPS that actually make them smartphones. You can turn off all or some location services in your settings if concerned.


If you have an iPhone go to Settings/Location Services and you will see the screen below. You can either disable location services entirely, which stops any tracking information being recorded, or you can disable it by app. For instance, if you have it turned off on the camera setting, geotags are not recorded with pictures etc. Click here to watch this story on Good Morning America.

Use Your iPhone as a PA System or FM Transmitter!

I wanted to play my songs and podcasts through my car radio from my iPhone, and found that this FM Transmitter, which is digital, does it much better than any other. Once you set the frequency on the FM Transmitter and match it to your car radio, it works perfectly. It also works with any stereo system with an FM Tuner.

As a nice bonus, you can buy a microphone app for the iPhone (from the App Store) which lets you use your iPhone as a wireless mike for any PA system that accepts FM signals. I use portable CD Player (Boom Box) which has a good volume range, and most people have one of these. 

For anyone who runs small meetings, this is fantastic as you don't have to hire expensive PA equipment from the venue. The small remote works well and I think this is a top product. I’m very happy with it!

Here is the link to buy the FM Transmitter which is less then $15 - FM Transmitter and Remote

This is the iTunes Link to buy the $2 app that lets you use it as a microphone for a PA System  - Apple Microphone App

Are you having reception problems?

A lot of my friends with iPhone 4's are having reception problems. This is caused by two things, one of which can be changed easily. When Apple designed the iPhone 4, it put part of the antennae in the metal strip at the side of the phone. When you hold it with your bare hand, touching this strip weakens the signal. Apple have recognised this problem, and should fix it in the next model.

For those of you with the current model 4, and this doesn't apply to the 3 series, you need a case which in some way covers the metal strip and stops the signal dropping out. I know some people like the design exactly as it is, and may even considerer it a fashion accessory, but you do need a case. There are many terrific designs out there to suit all tastes, available either in stores or on eBay.

The second problem is caused by some carriers who are having network and/or software problems. The easy solution is to change carriers, but if you're locked into a contract, this isn't that easy. If you're having real problems, you may be able to get out of your contract. Contact you carrier firstly, then if that doesn't help contact the telecommunications ombudsman, and finally you may wish to take legal advice. Nobody should have to put up with poor reception and these are your current options.

How to check a broken remote control with your camera phone.

We all have remote controls for TV's, DVD's and other electronic devices. Most work on infra-red and send an invisible signal from the remote control to the device to change channels etc. If the remote control stops working, the first thing to do is to change the batteries. Most times, that's all it is.

But what if changing the batteries doesn't work? How do you test it? The first thing to check is that the infra-red signal is actually being sent. Now you can't see this with the naked eye, but the camera in the iPhone and I would suggest most other smartphones has electronics in it's sensor that will pick up that signal visibly by pressing any buttons on the remote while viewing it through the camera.

I've made a little video that explains it easier than words, and it's a good way to see if the remote is not working at all before you take it in for repair. Sometimes, as was the case with mine, it will stick at the on position. In either case, provided your have installed fresh batteries, you'll be able to check the working status of your remote. Thanks to the techs at Clive Anthony's for teaching me this trick.

iPhone 5 Release Date

A reader asked what the new iPhone 5 would be like and when it was due for release.

The tech specs of the iPhone 5 are a closely guarded secret, but I do know that it will be fixing the antennae issues of the Model 4. They have caused a lot of problems. I don’t think it will be revolutionary, but I can tell you that it will have a faster processor, possibly a metal back incorporating the antennae, and even an increased screen size to 3.7” which may be achieved using edge-to-edge construction so that the overall phone size stays the same.

Best information is  that It’s due for release in September, so hold off till then. Some journos are speculating at a July release which is possible. Whatever happens, my personal suggestion is not to get an iPhone 4 if your contract runs out, most of my friends have all experienced too many reception hassles with it. I personally am glad I stuck with the 3GS model and will wait for the Model 5.

Reports also suggest that we most likely won’t see NFC (near field communication) support on the iPhone until 2012, by which time Jupiter Research projects a NFC Mobile Payments volume exceeding $30bn annually. NFC is the technology that lets you use a phone to swipe a terminal in a store and make small credit card payments. It will be interesting to see if Apple does go ahead and incorporate NFC after all. The picture below is a mock-up of how it would work.  It is already incorporated in the latest credit cards from Vis and MasterCard.

If you must buy an iPhone 4, make sure you get a case. This stops you from touching the metal antennae on the side and improves reception and lessens call dropouts. Given that the back of the iPhone 4 is made of heavy duty special glass, this makes good sense from a protection point of view anyway.

Internet Tethering

Just had a question from Jason Murray who asked why Internet Tethering (using the iPhone as a modem on a laptop) didn't work anymore, and hadn't since an operating system update a few days ago.

The answer is that it's still very much available, but the option is now called a Personal Hotspot, and when you turn this option on, it not only connects to the internet, but lets several devices share the connection. It's a nice new feature and if you have upgraded your iPhone to OS 4.3 you find it under Settings, as in the picture below, and you just need to select the Personal Hotspot option and turn it on. It supports both USB and Bluetooth connections.

Another thing to check in some areas is your data roaming settings.