Our iPhone Decision

Apple will start accepting pre-orders for its new iPhone 11 this coming Friday, and for the Rosenthal family, this meant going right up until last night to decide who – besides me – would get a new phone and what features would be on it, and who would get an older phone. I’m getting all the bells and whistles, but how did we divide up the rest of our purchases and recycling? Here’s our thought process.

I decided to get the iPhone 11 Pro because I wanted the camera. Danit is undecided, but she is leaning toward the iPhone 11 because she likes the purple case that’s available. Charlie will keep the iPhone XR he got earlier this year, and Leah will get Danit’s iPhone X.

To me, the 11 Pro’s camera is the killer technology. As we travel more, I’m less inclined to drag along my DSLR camera unless we’re going on a major, major trip – where I’ll want high-quality photos that only that type of camera can provide. Using the phone’s camera, I can store pictures directly to my electronic library – my iCloud account – instead of having to download them from the camera’s card.

The big factor on the new phone’s camera is the ultrawide lens option. It’s a triple-camera system with new Ultra Wide, Wide and Telephoto cameras that Apple touts as a pro-level camera experience designed for everyone. The Telephoto camera features a larger ƒ/2.0 aperture to capture 40 percent more light compared to iPhone Xs for better photos and videos. For video, each camera in the triple-camera system records 4K video with extended dynamic range and cinematic video stabilization. With a wider field of view and large focal plane, the Ultra Wide camera should be great for shooting action videos. That’s what Apple says; we’ll see if it’s true.

Audio Zoom is supposed to match the audio to the video framing for more dynamic sound. With iOS 13, we’re supposed to get better video editing tools.

If you have any questions about whether to move to the iPhone 11 or which model to select, we’re happy to discuss your needs vs. the features. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us, and we’ll chat about it.

Avoiding Apple Store Snafus

What drives employees crazy at the Apple Store’s Genius Bar? In short, it’s all the un-genius things customers do or don’t do before they come in for help. You can get better service if you prepare your phone and account before you walk in.

A recent article in Yahoo News surveyed current and former Apple Store employees about their biggest complaints when people visit the Genius Bar at stores. The complaints involve a number of time wasters, and they revolve around all the things that customers can and should do before their visits for problems or repairs with iPhones – and likely their iPads, too.

Here’s their advice that can make you a genius in their eyes:

  • Know your Apple id (hint: it’s usually your email address) and your password for your Apple and iCloud accounts. If you and Apple can’t access your data, Apple won’t do any work on your phone or device because they won’t take any responsibility for losing your data (unless it’s entirely their fault). If your device is totally inoperable, you can reset your password at home from a computer. Apple Store personnel can sometimes help you reset it, but more often than not, they’ll ask you to come back when you’ve resolved your password issue.
  • Have all your data backed up to iCloud. That includes your Contacts, photos and videos and anything else that can be possibly stored on your phone. As with all computing, we recommend regular backups to protect your data. Backing up to iCloud is simple: Go into your Settings and tap your name. Then tap iCloud and scroll to iCloud Backup. Make sure it’s turned on and tap it. Then tap Back Up Now. You can also back up your device to your iTunes account. It’s a little more complicated, but Apple has a support page to walk you through the process. The reason this is critical is because once Apple opens your phone or device, all data stored within is wiped clean. If Apple (or any other seller) provides a new phone or device, they’ll transfer your iCloud (or iTunes) data to your new device.
  • Make sure your device is fully charged. If it’s DOA when you get to the store, so’s your appointment. You can probably charge it there, but you’ll probably have to go the back of the line for getting help.
  • Be honest about what happened to your device. On a technical level, the wrong information you provide can delay Apple employees from getting to the right diagnosis.
  • Don’t ask them for help with your Gmail or Facebook password. If they have time, Apple people can usually help you out, but it’s not their job. And technically, they are not trained to solve these problems. Any organization that requires a password usually has a recovery process, and that process usually offers you an option to verify or authenticate your identity via a text message or email.

We sometimes encounter the same problems with our clients when it comes to dealing with data and password recovery or computers or devices that are “dead as doornails.” We can take the time to help resolve issues, and with devices that aren’t operating properly, we can sometimes fix software problems or help you determine the right questions to ask at the Genius Bar.

If you’re having trouble getting your Apple products ready for a visit to the Apple Store, contact us by phone – 973-433-6646 – or email for help. We might be able to solve your problem and find a solution to prevent it from happening again. Or, we may be able to help you maximize your time at the Genius Bar.

Streaming in the Cord-Cutting Era

A lot of people have been cutting the cord from cable TV and satellite providers to get more flexibility in choosing their content and not having to pay for content they’ll never watch. But the plethora of streaming content providers could create an environment that’s not a whole lot different from the cable/satellite experience. And, you might even wind up paying just as much money, if not more.

We came away from a recent Disney conference with the distinct feeling that Netflix is destined to go the way of Blockbuster, at least in terms of being the only source for content. Remember them? They’re the company that basically had a lock on the videocassette rental market until the worlds of Netflix and On Demand made video rentals as easy as pushing a few buttons on your remote. If you want to rent a DVD, you can order it from Netflix or find a Redbox machine.

Most people, however, prefer to get their video content via the internet, cable or satellite, and those who hold the rights to that content are getting ready to scale up an access war. Netflix, in addition to producing its own content, has also provided feature films and old TV shows to its own base of subscribers. They pretty much had the market to themselves, but that’s changing.

In case you weren’t paying close attention, Disney, which makes films, owns the ABC network and provides sports programming through ESPN, recently bought Fox’s movie studio and many of its non-news TV assets. That means Disney now has a huge library of content, and they’ve already started to move some of into “+” Channels, such as Disney+ and ESPN+. This allows them to stream selected content for a few bucks a month more, and you can’t get it anywhere else.

Disney is not alone. Netflix, Amazon and Hulu all have exclusive content in addition to hours upon hours of movies of all ages and genres. And each has its own subscription fees. HBO, Showtime and a few others still offer movies and original programming, and YouTube and Sling offer packages of TV content now found over the air (remember broadcasting?) or offered by various cable and satellite companies.

Finally, the field is getting more crowded with the entry of Apple TV+ and its original shows and movies.

Regardless of whether your content is delivered through a cable box or streaming internet or both, there will be a lot of hands out there for your money. And in all likelihood, you’ll pay for more content than you want unless somebody decides to offer single events, single movies or a single series of programming.

You’ll have to decide whether to cut the cord based on what you perceive will be your best value. The cable companies have an incentive to keep you because they can sell advertising. They also provide your internet access in most cases, and that gives them leverage in controlling what you pay for it.

The Triple Play packages (TV, internet and phone) are a staple of their business, and many subscribers find their balance of TV content and internet speed. One selling point for the packages is that you don’t use any data to watch the content delivered over the cable. The cable also provides better quality in most cases than high-def content streamed over a Wi-Fi network, though you can build a network to handle almost any need.

Cutting the cord but keeping the internet service could raise costs in two ways. First, if you need more bandwidth for streaming, it will cost more as a stand-alone service. Second, you’ll likely face data caps, which could limit how much streaming video you can watch or the speed at which you can watch it. Of course, more money can mitigate the cap issue, but don’t forget, the content providers are looking for more money for what they bill as premium content.

If you’re highly selective in the premium content you watch, cutting the cord and finding the right internet service may pay for you. But if you need the wider range of choices, you just might want to keep that cord connected.

We can help you make a decision by looking at your Wi-Fi network and the internet capacity you’ll need to support your viewing. Call us – 973-433-6676 – or email us to discuss your needs and set up an evaluation.