iPhone 8

dirtynine

Member
SoSH Member
Dec 17, 2002
8,394
Philly
I was particularly excited that iOS 11 was dropping the gigantic volume indicator (HUD) that constantly obscured videos. But after updating I still have it, sometimes in addition to the new layout with the smaller volume bar at top. Kind of frustrating.
 

NortheasternPJ

Member
SoSH Member
Nov 16, 2004
19,271
I bought a wireless charging pad for my desk at work. It's been working out well. The only thing I keep forgetting is that I can't just plug my headphones into my work computer if I want to listen to audio from that. Six of one, half dozen of another.
I have the Slim credit card case (which I love), which seems to limit me from wireless charging which I was excited for.
 

cgori

Member
SoSH Member
Oct 2, 2004
4,003
SF, CA
I’d love to get AirPods but I’d lose them in like 3 days. I’m really struggling with no headphone jack since I’m on my phone hours a day in the car. I bought a splitter but forgot it at home today. It’s just so inconvenient. I’d love a second lightning port if were going this route.
You should look into some thing like this:

Jumbl Bluetooth 4.0 Hands-Free Calling & A2DP Audio Streaming Adapter/Receiver - Black
Clips to a shirt/jacket/whatever and plug in the headphones. Lasts a couple days before recharging. There are fancier/higher quality ones out there but this one works and is small.

I'm about to pull the trigger on the 8, I was worried about the headphones situation but had forgotten I had the Jumbl, pretty much sealed the deal for me.
 

SoxFanInPdx

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
3,246
Portland, OR
What did they do with the Podcast app with this iOS upgrade? It's awful. What are you guys using instead of the default app? Can't seem to find a way to revert back to the older Podcast app settings.
 

luckiestman

Son of the Harpy
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
32,620
What did they do with the Podcast app with this iOS upgrade? It's awful. What are you guys using instead of the default app? Can't seem to find a way to revert back to the older Podcast app settings.

I'm a pocket casts user
 

IpswichSox

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 14, 2005
2,792
Suburbs of Washington, DC
Agree the that update to the Podcast app makes it virtually unusable. I've switched to Overcast and like it though it started crashing. Not sure how much of that is the app or the new iOS on my 6s as a lot of things have been laggy.
 

wibi

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
11,839
Do any of those apps allow you to transfer podcasts over from the native iphone app?
 

88 MVP

Member
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Dec 25, 2007
534
WNY
Has anyone using the Apple upgrade program (i.e financing the phone through Apple) dealt with turning in a damaged phone at the next upgrade cycle? I dropped my 7 today and cracked the screen. I would just live with the crack until I can buy an X in November, but if I'll have to eventually eat the cost of the damage anyways, then I'll replace the screen now.
 

Seven Costanza

Fred Astaire of SoSH
SoSH Member
Apr 11, 2007
3,016
I personally have not, but am a member of the upgrade program. It's contingent on turning in a non damaged device. I think you may be able to just pay the repair cost and turn in the damaged phone at the same time, but don't quote me on that.

All the fine print is here.
 

Oil Can Dan

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
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Jul 31, 2003
8,014
0-3 to 4-3
Has anyone using the Apple upgrade program (i.e financing the phone through Apple) dealt with turning in a damaged phone at the next upgrade cycle? I dropped my 7 today and cracked the screen. I would just live with the crack until I can buy an X in November, but if I'll have to eventually eat the cost of the damage anyways, then I'll replace the screen now.
So the answer I got s that in order to swap out your damaged phone you’re going to have to pay the fee. If you don’t have Apple Care that’s the full freight of $399 (I think), but if you have Apple Care and haven’t used your two ‘free’ fixes then it’s just the$29 fee. You won’t have to actually get the screen replaced, but you will have to pony up the fee.

Assuming you don’t have Apple Care you might want to look in to a cheaper third party repair option. Seemed to me that they don’t give your trade-in phone much of a look over when trading it in.

Good luck!
 

uncannymanny

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 12, 2007
9,080
Just got my 7+ screen repaired in 20 minutes for $150 in prep for turning it in. Apple wanted to charge me $349 (I think this is the correct amount that OCD was referencing at $399) because the water thing was tripped.
 

Seven Costanza

Fred Astaire of SoSH
SoSH Member
Apr 11, 2007
3,016
So the answer I got s that in order to swap out your damaged phone you’re going to have to pay the fee. If you don’t have Apple Care that’s the full freight of $399 (I think), but if you have Apple Care and haven’t used your two ‘free’ fixes then it’s just the$29 fee. You won’t have to actually get the screen replaced, but you will have to pony up the fee.

Assuming you don’t have Apple Care you might want to look in to a cheaper third party repair option. Seemed to me that they don’t give your trade-in phone much of a look over when trading it in.

Good luck!
Please forgive me for the forthcoming "well, actually" - If you're already on the Apple upgrade program, you have Apple Care by default. If you're joining the Apple upgrade program (ignoring any bastardized carrier version) for the first time, you don't need to turn any phone in to Apple.
 

uncannymanny

Member
SoSH Member
Jan 12, 2007
9,080
There are other upgrade programs, such as carriers, that don’t necessarily include full boat AppleCare. I’m on AT&Ts and the yearly upgrade plan comes with AppleCare Plus , which would’ve gotten me a free/low-cost screen replacement, but I’m on the semi-yearly which only includes the basic.
 

88 MVP

Member
SoSH Member
Dec 25, 2007
534
WNY
So the answer I got s that in order to swap out your damaged phone you’re going to have to pay the fee. If you don’t have Apple Care that’s the full freight of $399 (I think), but if you have Apple Care and haven’t used your two ‘free’ fixes then it’s just the$29 fee. You won’t have to actually get the screen replaced, but you will have to pony up the fee.

Assuming you don’t have Apple Care you might want to look in to a cheaper third party repair option. Seemed to me that they don’t give your trade-in phone much of a look over when trading it in.

Good luck!
Thanks for asking, I was expecting that would be the case but I couldn't find any info on it.
 

mt8thsw9th

anti-SoSHal
SoSH Member
Jul 17, 2005
17,120
Brooklyn
My phone had a fried gyroscope and accelerometer, and they gave me $200 for it (6S 128GB). As long as it turns on and your screen isn't broken, they'll give you money for it. I wasn't on their upgrade plan.
 

BC1994

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 16, 2001
747
Anyone know what credit report is pulled through the Apple store when going to get a new phone (service through Verizon)? Froze all our accounts when the Equifax thing happened, now realizing that will need to check my credit, I would think. Did some googling, but thought someone else might have faced the same issue recently....
 

johnmd20

mad dog
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 30, 2003
61,996
New York City
Anyone know what credit report is pulled through the Apple store when going to get a new phone (service through Verizon)? Froze all our accounts when the Equifax thing happened, now realizing that will need to check my credit, I would think. Did some googling, but thought someone else might have faced the same issue recently....
I assume they pull all your credit reports. And it'll be a hard pull.
 

Marceline

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Sep 9, 2002
6,441
Canton, MA
If it's an existing account they probably won't do another credit pull.

If they did it wouldn't be all of them.
 

johnmd20

mad dog
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 30, 2003
61,996
New York City
I'm sorry, I assumed it was a new account. If it's just a phone upgrade, they definitely won't do a credit pull.
 

Leskanic's Thread

lost underscore
Silver Supporter
SoSH Member
Jul 16, 2005
2,774
Los Angeles
Hey crew -- I am thinking it's about time to upgrade my iPhone 6 and get either a cheap 7 or a brand-spankin' 8. I have not upgraded since the whole changeover from the "have a phone for two years and then turn it in for a discount" plan. Does anyone know a good primer on the new upgrade methods and what the recommended/best avenues are? I probably also need to dig into my current Verizon plan to see if I really need all the features I'm paying for, so I'm not really committed to being grandfathered into my current plan.

Don't feel like you need to do my homework for me, but if anyone has a handy guide they trust to give to tech simpletons, I would greatly appreciate it.
 

soxhop411

news aggravator
SoSH Member
Dec 4, 2009
46,276
Hey crew -- I am thinking it's about time to upgrade my iPhone 6 and get either a cheap 7 or a brand-spankin' 8. I have not upgraded since the whole changeover from the "have a phone for two years and then turn it in for a discount" plan. Does anyone know a good primer on the new upgrade methods and what the recommended/best avenues are? I probably also need to dig into my current Verizon plan to see if I really need all the features I'm paying for, so I'm not really committed to being grandfathered into my current plan.

Don't feel like you need to do my homework for me, but if anyone has a handy guide they trust to give to tech simpletons, I would greatly appreciate it.
Apple has a good comparison chart

https://www.apple.com/shop/buy-iphone/iphone-8/4.7-inch-display-64gb-space-gray-verizon-wireless#00,13,32,40


 

Leskanic's Thread

lost underscore
Silver Supporter
SoSH Member
Jul 16, 2005
2,774
Los Angeles
Cool, thanks. Guess I'll have to dig into my Verizon contract to see how the alternate payments plan (whether via Apple or Verizon) change my monthly bill. I fear change.
 

BC1994

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 16, 2001
747
Thanks for the responses. I have had a few iPhones through Verizon over the years, so this is just a phone upgrade, not a whole new account...
 

ScubaSteveAvery

Master of the Senate
SoSH Member
Jul 29, 2007
8,329
Everywhere
So 11.0.1 kills my battery, only 3 hours use (10 standby) and dead.
iOS 11 is hot garbage. There are numerous issues with Safari just straight freezing and needing to be hard closed and re-opened. The status bar at the top with the signal strength, time, battery, etc., sometimes overlays onto the maps app or Safari and is only fixed by hard closing the app. The lock screen sometimes pulls the wrong song or podcast (from Overcast, so that could be app developer), which means the lock screen is useless for stopping and starting shit. The App Store no longer automatically tells you when you have apps to update. You now have to physically go into the store, into the "updates" tab and swipe down to load them. I also thought they automatically updated when the phone was plugged in, locked, and connected to Wifi, but that is no longer happening too. I've been using iOS devices since 2009 and cannot remember a more buggy release than this.

iCloud is also noticeably worse at syncing photos. A solid 40% of photos taken on my phone since the upgrade do not show up on my computer (which I haven't upgraded to High Sierra because of a widespread iMessage syncing issue too). How this company can't get cloud computing and syncing correctly just kills me since they've made it selling point of their software since what, iOS 9 and whatever iteration of MacOS came out then?
 

DukeSox

absence hasn't made the heart grow fonder
SoSH Member
Dec 22, 2005
11,742
Planning on getting the X tonight. AT&T guy not super helpful at explaining their plans, but as i understand it:

AT&T Next: Basically a 2.5 year lease-to-own (the $X cost of phone is divided over 30 monthly installments), but after 2 years you can trade it in for a new phone (i.e. last 6 months are "waived" as you roll into a new lease)

AT&T Next Every Year: Basically a 2 year lease-to-own (the $X cost of phone is divided over 24 monthly installments), but after 1 year you can trade it in for a new phone (i.e. last 12 months are "waived" as you roll into a new lease)

I haven't bought a new phone in 3+ years (current is iPhone 6, which was with the old "$200 every 2 years for the new phone" regime that doesn't exist anymore).

For the iPhone 8, as an example, the Next option is $23/mo, the Next Every Year is $29/mo. So for $6/mo (or $72 for the year), you get to get the new phone next year instead of waiting 2 years. Is that the right way to think about this? It's been so long since I've got a new phone, the annual renewal used to be a much higher expense than every 2 years, but it seems that differential has narrowed?

I have no huge reason to get the iPhone X+1 next year (presuming the X actually works well), but to get it for only $72 (functionally, and rolling into a new lease), that seems like a pretty good deal? It will be more than $72 given the pricing above is for the 8 not the X, but thoughts?

edit: I should do this through the AT&T site tonight, right, not the Apple site?
 

FenwayFrenzy

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 16, 2005
2,141
NYC
Planning on getting the X tonight. AT&T guy not super helpful at explaining their plans, but as i understand it:

AT&T Next: Basically a 2.5 year lease-to-own (the $X cost of phone is divided over 30 monthly installments), but after 2 years you can trade it in for a new phone (i.e. last 6 months are "waived" as you roll into a new lease)

AT&T Next Every Year: Basically a 2 year lease-to-own (the $X cost of phone is divided over 24 monthly installments), but after 1 year you can trade it in for a new phone (i.e. last 12 months are "waived" as you roll into a new lease)

I haven't bought a new phone in 3+ years (current is iPhone 6, which was with the old "$200 every 2 years for the new phone" regime that doesn't exist anymore).

For the iPhone 8, as an example, the Next option is $23/mo, the Next Every Year is $29/mo. So for $6/mo (or $72 for the year), you get to get the new phone next year instead of waiting 2 years. Is that the right way to think about this? It's been so long since I've got a new phone, the annual renewal used to be a much higher expense than every 2 years, but it seems that differential has narrowed?

I have no huge reason to get the iPhone X+1 next year (presuming the X actually works well), but to get it for only $72 (functionally, and rolling into a new lease), that seems like a pretty good deal? It will be more than $72 given the pricing above is for the 8 not the X, but thoughts?

edit: I should do this through the AT&T site tonight, right, not the Apple site?
I’m ordering in a couple of minutes. The Apple store app is always the easiest to use. Will post my results shortly.
 

FenwayFrenzy

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 16, 2005
2,141
NYC
Is the app working for anyone?
It took about 50 tries of closing and re opening, then I finally went to the Apple website, selected he phone I wanted, authenticated and clicked on ‘open this in the app’ when it popped up on my phone.

I was pre approved for an upgrade so it was just two easy clicks after that.

Getting the phone on November 3rd!
 
Last edited:

jtn46

Member
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Oct 10, 2004
9,757
Norwalk, CT
One perk of working an overnight is I was on the first second I could be. I bought it through AT&T’s site and was also promised a Nov 3rd delivery. Buddy at work actually was able to order a few minutes before 3am on Verizon’s site. Curious to see if people start getting later delivery dates.
 

IpswichSox

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 14, 2005
2,792
Suburbs of Washington, DC
Grrrr...the Apple Store app couldn't confirm my account with my carrier (Verizon), and I kept getting an error message. Finally, at 3:30 am, I had to go back to bed. When I completed the process when I woke up at about 6 am ET, I got an estimated delivery date of Dec. 11-18.

Well, at least I'll have an opportunity to gauge others' reactions to the Face ID before mine comes in, and I could cancel it and get an 8 while waiting for the next version if reviews are bad. (By the way, delivery dates in November and December kind of messes up the regular upgrade schedules if Apple sticks to its usual September announcements beginning next year.)

EDIT from CNET: "Preorders for Apple's newest phone began at 12:01 a.m. PT Friday. A few models of the device were still available online for a Nov. 3 ship date, the day it hits stores, for the first 10 minutes. After that, delays started creeping in. AT&T, for instance, wouldn't ship for two to three weeks after the launch date. At the half-hour mark, all models from all US carriers had ship times of four to five weeks."
 

B H Kim

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Oct 24, 2003
5,719
Washington, DC
At 6:30 this morning, there were still 11/3 in-store pick ups available for both sizes of the grey Verizon and Sprint phones, but now every carrier/color/size combination shows 5-6 weeks for delivery. That’s actually not as bad as I was expecting, given all of the warnings about limited supplies.

I’m just happy to have skipped the hassle this time around (having bought an 8+, which I love). Neither the size of the plus, nor the bezels, bother me at all and I just don’t feel like there’s enough of a benefit in the X to offset the disappearance of the home button or the ugly notch placement.
 

DukeSox

absence hasn't made the heart grow fonder
SoSH Member
Dec 22, 2005
11,742
I ended up walking into AT&T store near work at 10am and they signed me up for a new phone that would be delivered to the store next week.
 

soxhop411

news aggravator
SoSH Member
Dec 4, 2009
46,276
Apple has the best customer service of any company I have dealt with

Background on my issue:

I originally ordered an iPhone around 12:15 and was guaranteed an delivery date around the middle of November. However I got a message from Apple stating that it was taking a little longer to verify my information and that I would receive and email from apple within 6 hours. It also told me to not place another order until I received that email. I called citizens one in the meantime and was told that my original loan was APPROVED and that it was processing. Around 4:30 AM I received an email from apple that said I needed to re-order my iPhone because my original loan was unable to process. By this time my new ship date was now the middle of December. (and my loan was approved right away this time).


Then:
Apple Sending Emails to iPhone Upgrade Program Customers Who Had iPhone X Pre-Order Failures

Just checked my shipment date and now it has been upgraded from Middle of december to my original date (middle of November)
 

Sportsbstn

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 8, 2004
8,794
If you received a date after Nov 3rd for the X, keeping check back. Apple is actually moving delivery dates up but it seems they don't tell you until its ready to ship. Mine went from Nov10-17 to November 3rd and ready to ship. I imagine the later dates will be pushed up too.
 

IpswichSox

Member
SoSH Member
Jul 14, 2005
2,792
Suburbs of Washington, DC
Initial reviews of the X are coming in. Here's CNET's review, here's CNBC's review, and here's Wired's review.

Biggest takeaway for me so far is that Face ID is solid but that Face ID itself doesn't unlock the phone. Even after Face ID recognizes you, you still need to swipe up on the screen to activate the phone.I guess I can see that as a battery saver if you just want to look at your locked screen for the time or to look at notifications of incoming emails or texts without fully activating it. Maybe also there's a setting that allows Face ID only to activate the phone.

Apple Pay is now double-clicking a button on the right side to activate Face ID.

Both reviews were positive overall, and the CNBC review was raving about virtually everything ("best smartphone money can buy"). FYI
 

TFP

Moderator
Moderator
SoSH Member
Dec 10, 2007
20,380
Initial reviews of the X are coming in. Here's CNET's review, here's CNBC's review, and here's Wired's review.

Biggest takeaway for me so far is that Face ID is solid but that Face ID itself doesn't unlock the phone. Even after Face ID recognizes you, you still need to swipe up on the screen to activate the phone.I guess I can see that as a battery saver if you just want to look at your locked screen for the time or to look at notifications of incoming emails or texts without fully activating it. Maybe also there's a setting that allows Face ID only to activate the phone.

Apple Pay is now double-clicking a button on the right side to activate Face ID.

Both reviews were positive overall, and the CNBC review was raving about virtually everything ("best smartphone money can buy"). FYI
I can't get over that notch at the top though. I think the lack of bezels is great...but that just sticks out like a sore thumb and I can't unsee it.

I got the 8 Plus a few weeks ago since I'm on the ATT Next 12 month plan and it's...fine. It's basically the 7+ (which I had before) with better battery life and a little bit faster. Although I do like the glass back way better than the metal back of the 7+.
 

TFP

Moderator
Moderator
SoSH Member
Dec 10, 2007
20,380
Planning on getting the X tonight. AT&T guy not super helpful at explaining their plans, but as i understand it:

AT&T Next: Basically a 2.5 year lease-to-own (the $X cost of phone is divided over 30 monthly installments), but after 2 years you can trade it in for a new phone (i.e. last 6 months are "waived" as you roll into a new lease)

AT&T Next Every Year: Basically a 2 year lease-to-own (the $X cost of phone is divided over 24 monthly installments), but after 1 year you can trade it in for a new phone (i.e. last 12 months are "waived" as you roll into a new lease)

I haven't bought a new phone in 3+ years (current is iPhone 6, which was with the old "$200 every 2 years for the new phone" regime that doesn't exist anymore).

For the iPhone 8, as an example, the Next option is $23/mo, the Next Every Year is $29/mo. So for $6/mo (or $72 for the year), you get to get the new phone next year instead of waiting 2 years. Is that the right way to think about this? It's been so long since I've got a new phone, the annual renewal used to be a much higher expense than every 2 years, but it seems that differential has narrowed?

I have no huge reason to get the iPhone X+1 next year (presuming the X actually works well), but to get it for only $72 (functionally, and rolling into a new lease), that seems like a pretty good deal? It will be more than $72 given the pricing above is for the 8 not the X, but thoughts?
I know this is late and you've already gotten your phone, but yes this is the way to think about it. The difference is now you're leasing the phone instead of buying it outright, so if you're someone who would sell their old phones when upgrading, you can't do that. I never did and ended up keeping mine, so this is functionally the same to me. The catch of course is you're locked into their lease, but as long as that's something you planned to do anyway, it makes sense to go this route.
 

NortheasternPJ

Member
SoSH Member
Nov 16, 2004
19,271
I can't get over that notch at the top though. I think the lack of bezels is great...but that just sticks out like a sore thumb and I can't unsee it.

I got the 8 Plus a few weeks ago since I'm on the ATT Next 12 month plan and it's...fine. It's basically the 7+ (which I had before) with better battery life and a little bit faster. Although I do like the glass back way better than the metal back of the 7+.
I was on the fence and got the 8. Granted I was on a 6 before hand but I’m glad I got the 8. I have no need for FaceID at this time, I love TouchID. The notch wasn’t a deal breaker but was annoying based on videos etc.

I wish they would just reduce the bezels on the 8/8+ a bit and have something in between which they never will. I don’t regret one bit not getting the X. I will definitely go to whatever the new version is called next time though.

I have zero complaints about this phone.
 

mt8thsw9th

anti-SoSHal
SoSH Member
Jul 17, 2005
17,120
Brooklyn
One thing I love about iOS 11 is that the Wifi widget in the control center doesn't completely disable wifi. 99.9% of the time I shut off wifi it's to lose a weak connection, or connect to a site that is blocked by the network I'm connected to, and inevitably I completely forget that I've had wifi off for hours, when I only needed it disconnected at a specific time and place.

I still wish there was an option in wifi settings to allow connecting to disable when you're walking (so I stop getting connected to weak xfinity wifi signals that basically jam my signal), or by altitude (might be a rare issue, but for me I have two wifi networks in my building, I live on the third floor, but always get stuck on the first floor network which is both weak and doesn't not connect to any devices I operate via my phone). For the first issue, I know that Apple's designers mostly drive to work, so they have designed the phone for themselves, so this isn't really something they'll encounter or will address, but for people in the city with the proliferation of wifi networks of scale, it kind of sucks.