Swedes test iPhone 3G’s 3G service

On the news wires there have been complaints about the iPhone 3G not getting good 3G signal. Sweedish engineers took the 3G as well as the Nokia 73 and Sony Ericsson P1 into their test chambers.

Noise.io [an App I'm actually anticipating]

One of the lesser known facts about SpecialKolin is that he actually enjoys making music. Of course, my talent is quite questionable, but yes, it’s true, I play music. My instrument of choice, is the keyboard or the synth.

Enter: Noise.io. Noise.io is the first iPhone synth to come to the App Store. Basically, what they’ve done is jammed a whole software synth into Cocoa Touch. Naturally it’s not going to be exactly the same experience that a musician could get from, say, Logic Pro, or a real synth, but the main idea is that it would be portable, and just as good as any other software synth.

I’m anticipating Noise.io since I’m always looking for new ways to make music. When I download my copy, I’ll be able to play something from the comfort of…well…anywhere!

Noise.io is expected to be released sometime in September, and will cost $6.99.

- Noise.io

AT&T’s Response

A couple days ago, on my blog, I posted an open letter to AT&T Wireless regarding their expansion of the 3G networks. I had seen absolutely no progress, so I felt that the letter was needed, especially with no coverage in the closest metropolitan area, Ocala, FL. I wanted the letter to get around, so I Dugg it and I even added the Twitter for AT&T News.

The next day around 2pm, I was contacted via e-mail by a Seth Bloom of AT&T Corporate Communications. He wanted to know when and how I could be contacted. I gave him my info and began the wait [I've gotten good at it].

Soon after making contact, I loaded up Twinkle, and to my surprise someone was tweeting that they had 3G in my area. My first thought was that they had just bought it, and they were excited. Being a sceptic, I turned my 3G on, and to my surprise, my favorite little icon was smiling back up at me. Luckily, I had some driving to do that day, so I was able to see if I had gone insane or not. Verdict I wasn’t [although, according to my Qik viewers last night, I am anyway].

Today, I was called. My iPhone sang Jared’s tune for me, and I immediately muted everything and tweeted it. Through the earpiece, I heard a woman saying to me “Hello Colin, this is — from the AT&T Mobility President’s office” [I honestly forget her name...I'm really sorry]. She and I had a really nice talk. The main question was “how do you like your new 3G service?” which I loved the sound of, since it gave me the feeling of responsibility for it.

The other question was the 3G coverage in Ocala. Sad to say, there is none, nor is the new towers even planned, according to her. She did tell me though, that if you’re ever wondering about the expansion of 3G in your area, check with your local AT&T reseller or call customer service [611] and they’ll be able to tell you.

This post was originally intended for DailyTechTalk.com, but it appears to not be working.

Open Letter to AT&T Wireless

Dearest AT&T Wireless~

You and I have been great friends for a long time now. I’ve been with BellSouth/AT&T/Cingular ever since I knew what a cellphone was. I’ve always thought that you’ve been on the cutting edge of wireless technology, and you really have been, but it would seem as though you have no intention to expand your 3G network any time soon. Your flagship phones all are 3G capable, but the network is definitely not there.

Before owning an iPhone [as in the iPhone EDGE] I had a Samsung Blackjack. That’s right, I actually owned a Windows Mobile device. I remember the first time I went onto the 3G network in Jacksonville. Wow, what a feeling. I didn’t have a data plan at the time, so I didn’t download anything, but, I made a couple phone calls, and really, wow, the quality was amazing! At least it was in comparison to the EDGE network back home.

Then, after getting the iPhone 3G [you know, AT&T's big deal] I was able to experience the “blazing the f*ck fast” speeds in Tampa. Although, not really, cause I hadn’t slept in over 24 hours by the time I had gotten it, but I was consious that maps was loading really really fast, especially since I was driving fast with GPS on.

Here’s where I’m going to sound a bit harsh: You’ve got me locked in for another 2 years paying for 3G data…$10 more than what I was paying before. I would like to hear about some damn progress in expanding 3G. There are Metropolitan areas that you aren’t covering[eg:Ocala, FL]. There are also areas that are just an intersection on a highway [eg: Wildwood, FL] that ARE being covered. I know I’m not alone when I say “what the fuck?”

What is it going to take to set up the 3G here? You guys revamped EDGE after the iPhone release pretty quickly. I’m seriously willing to help in any way possible. So please get back to me on that someone at AT&T Wireless.

Thanks

With love,

SpecialKolin [aka: the dude that was first in line at Tampa]

First Day Back to School

It’s been a whole summer, and most of us are back to school. I’m going to be making the very most of this school year. I’m going to try not to talk all school, but this was my first day back.

I don’t know if you know about this or not, but my school, CFCC, has about 4 campuses. This semester, I’m at the main campus, which is a first for me. This place was HUGE in comparison to the last campus. Needless to say, I was a bit nervous, and even got lost on the way to my first class.

Luckily my teacher wasn’t even available to teach the first class, so I wasn’t technically late. We were actually “taught” by the dean of the Math department.

Enough about the class, you’re here for tech, so here’s the tech part of my day:

In my first class, it was detrimental, I was lucky to get 2 bars on EDGE and the school hadn’t expanded their WiFi to that building yet. So yes, I had a horrible time in class. I then journeyed over to the Student Union building to aquire Wireless. I posted to Qik a couple time, then left due to how loud it was. OUtside, I connected my bluetooth headset, and tested that out on Qik [which btw, WORKS]. Then I went to my next class, which has FAST internet [it's all the teacher talked about, I swear].

Needless to say, my “Database Management” class is nothing but an Access 2007 class. I was actually expecting to learn, more in depth, how to use SQL, you know, the Database that companies WANT people to know. I’ve come to the conclusion that noone actually uses Access 2007, everyone just teaches it so that there’s no progress.

In short, I want 3G in my county. Call me up AT&T, please, I’ll do whatever it takes to get it here.

New Concept: the Bathroom Qik

I’ve decided to start a trend. The Bathroom Qik is similar to the Bathroom Tweet, but with Qik. There’s really not any more to it. I’ve started a Bathroom Qik group over on Qik, too. So get to it!

read more | digg story

EDIT: Disabled flash ftl…check out the video here.

I am Rich

It was only a matter of time before I did a post on this. I am Rich. Personally, I am not, but some people out there are. 8 people total to be exact. I know you’ve probably read it all over the blog of your choice, but since I know you care about my opinion, I’m going to give it to you.

The buyers were in fact stupid, and obviously rich…or were. I don’t want to seem cold hearted, but seriously, why would something in the Apple Store be a joke? Like, did they expect after they hit “buy” for it to go “Haha! jk! luv Steve”?

That’s all I really have to say…Laugh at someone if you know that they bought it.

iPhone 2.0.1

This is probably a little late, but Apple has released iPhone firmware 2.0.1. So far, I’ve seen much improvement. The only issue I really have now is that it’ll occasionally get quite laggy on me.

One thing I’ve seen that’s better is the GPS, at least in Loopt is much more accurate. Hopefully I won’t have problems with it randomly shutting off like last time. Also, iGerard’s SMS alerts seem to be fixed, although, he could be complaining silently, rather than on Twitter.

What have your experiences been with the new firmware?

My First Experience with a Dead iPhone 3G

The other day I was unfortunate to have my very first dead battery on the iPhone. It was unfortunate because I was about an hour away from home, and I was in a Barnes and Noble with my girlfriend and her friends waiting for the release of “Breaking Dawn” …quite reminiscent of my iPhone 3G camping. I had been using the iPhone all day for music in the car, and with 3 young teenage girls so, listening to the predominantly Metal music was out of the question. Needless to say, there was lots of track changing. Also, I had seemed to have left WiFi on, so it was trying to connect to 10 hotspots for most of the night.

So here was the scene: I was standing in line that the Starbucks getting me some coffee for the night (I had just got off of work, I was falling asleep) listening to The Faint (Fasciination comes out in 2 days!) and then…there was silence. It was a scary night after that. I now bring my charger in my car wherever I go.

3G? No Service! EDGE? Full Service!

As you may know by now, 3G isn’t in my area. This is slightly frustrating since I happen to OWN an iPhone 3G. Tonight, as I was driving home, I decided to turn 3G on just for giggles. The result: No Service. Not just no 3G, no GSM at all. So then, I flipped 3G off and found that I was able to be on EDGE with full service.

Thinking that it was just a hiccup, I turned the 3G back on to find, again, No Service. Being the Tweethead that I am, I turned it off, Tweeted it, and then flipped 3G on again (still No Service).

The fact that I had no service had nothing to do with my area not having 3G. I am currently sitting in my room, approximately 12 miles away from where I tweeted that I didn’t have service, and I have 3 bars with 3G on…I’m not picking up 3G of course, I’m on EDGE.

My prognosis? 3G is coming. How do I guess that? About 15 minutes away from that same spot is Wildwood, which has 3G. So, my speculation is: if you don’t have 3G in your area, thanks to the iPhone 3G, it’ll be coming soon.

ps: I did make sure that I was at a complete stop while I tweeted…TwD is dangerous, although I don’t reprimand it.