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troubleshoot

iPhone 3G Signal Strength Problems Persist in OS 2.1

Users continue to report poor 3G signal strength under iPhone OS 2.1. To be clear, iPhone OS 2.1 does not purport to actually boost signal strength. Instead, it provides "more accurate" signal strength display, which, in most cases, means more bar bars, but not necessarily better reception or ability to make/receive cals.

Two sample reports from this Apple Discussion thread:

"the point is that the 3G did go from zero to all the bars but still dropping the calls! "I just bought my iphone yesterday and asoon as i got home the reception … Read more

Apple recalls "ultracompact" iPhone 3G power adapters

Apple has issued a recall for the "ultracompact" USB Power Adapter that ships with the iPhone 3G. A support page states:

"Apple has determined that under certain conditions the new ultracompact Apple USB power adapter's metal prongs can break off and remain in a power outlet, creating a risk of electric shock. We have received reports of detached blades involving a very small percentage of the adapters sold, but no injuries have been reported."

A warning reads:

"Users with ultracompact power adapters should immediately stop using them until they exchange them for a new, … Read more

Poor Battery Life Under iPhone OS 2.1, Fixes

According to Apple's release notes, iPhone OS 2.1 delivers "significantly better battery life for most users." "Most" appears to be the operative word in that sentence, as a number of users are reporting seriously degraded battery life after the update.

One iPhone Atlas reader, Jerry Flaby, writes:

"Since updating to 2.1 I have seen a dramatic decrease in battery life. I can make it about half a day with moderate use as opposed to a day and a half before the update. My usage meter continues to grow when I am not … Read more

iPhone OS 2.1: Mail not showing up, progress indicator spins forever

Several users have reported an issue in which the iPhone's Mail app refuses to retrieve new messages from IMAP and POP servers after the OS 2.1 update. In these cases, the progress indicator will spin indefinitely, but no new mail appears. Or, the retrieval process appears complete, but no new mail appears.

As described by one iPhone Atlas reader:

"There seems to be an issue with the new 2.1 firmware and IMAP mail connections. The IMAP account will check mail, go through the process but not update the folder you are viewing (even when there is … Read more

GPS Not Working Under iPhone OS 2.1, Fix

Several users have reported an issue in which GPS functionality and location services in general do not work properly after the update to iPhone OS 2.1. In most cases of the problem, location service crosshairs appear, but the tracking blue dot (indicative of GPS) never appears.

As described by Apple Discussions poster hitchsaid:

"Both my brother and I have iphones and we both updated to 2.1 and the GPS on both our phones were working fine prior to 2.1 Now all we get are the crosshairs- the blue dot is nowhere to be seen. I have … Read more

Apple Application Crashes in iPhone OS 2.1

While iPhone OS 2.1 has dramatically reduced the number of third-party application crashes for most users, some users have experienced an increase in crashes from Apple-supplied applications like Safari, Mail, Calendar and others.

One Apple Discussions poster writes:

"Since the 2.1 update I have experienced crashing in several areas where I have never experienced crashing before. My Calendar has crashed, Preferences has crashed several times, and Safari is almost unusable if you plan on browsing for more than 10 minutes or so. Rebooting the phone appears to solve the crashing for an hour or so, then boom … Read more

iTunes 8 Troubleshooting Roundup

iTunes 8 introduces some nifty new features for iPhone and iPod touch owners, but has also spawned some issues with synchronization, updating, music libraries and other areas of operation. Here's a roundup of the most prominent issues and associated fixes:

Error 5002 when updating mobile apps Some users receive "error 5002" when attempting to retrieve mobile (iPhone and iPod touch) app updates.

Users seem to have found a workaround for this problem that involves trashing the originally downloaded files and re-downloading the updates. To do this, in the iPhone or iPod touch look up the apps that … Read more

Apple posts fix for iTunes 8 Windows blue screen of death issue

Apple has posted an updated version of the iTunes 8 installer that purportedly resolves a previously reported issue in which connection of an iPhone or iPod touch to a Windows Vista system results in a blue screen of death (BSOD).

An Apple support note states:

"After installing iTunes 8 for Windows, some users may see a blue screen error message when connecting iPhone or iPod to a Windows Vista computer."

The fix involves uninstalling Apple Mobile Device Support then reinstalling the updated iTunes 8 package. Not coincidentally, one of our previously published workarounds involved uninstalling Apple Mobile Device … Read more

Fixing the iTunes 8/iPhone blue screen of death

Several users have reported an issue in which connection of an iPhone or iPod touch to a Windows Vista system running iTunes 8 results in a blue screen of death (BSOD).

Two potential fixes for this issue have emerged.

Apple Discussions poster marinesgt suggests:

"I was able to stop the BSOD's from happening on my Vista 32 bit desktop and keep itunes 8. If you have a machine running the latest version of iTunes 7 (on Vista), just copy the usbaapl.sys from system32\drivers to the same location on your desktop. You may have/want to rename … Read more