# Questions about the IPhone



## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

I have decided to buy the IPhone, but before I do I wanted help with deciding if I needed 8GB, 16GB or 32GB. I am traveling a lot and want to be able to get my email on it and I like the idea of being able to use the internet on it. I also have lots of grandchildren and I'm always getting new pictures of them that I want to view on the IPhone. I doubt that I will use it for music. I may want to download a book on it occasionally, but I like to read on my Kindle.

Any help is welcome.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

To be honest, from what you're saying, you'd probably be fine with the 8GB. When you transfer photos, they're much smaller than they would be on the computer and if you're not planning to put much music on there, I wouldn't worry about a larger one. 

Then again, if you plan on using it for movies or TV shows, then you'd need the biggest you could get. Me, I have a 32GB and wish it was more. I have about 500 songs, 100 audiobooks, a few TV episodes and a movie or 2


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## telracs (Jul 12, 2009)

My philosophy about storage is buy the most you can afford.  I'd rather have space not used (which rarely happens with me, I've only got 20 gigs left on a 160 iPod), then need space and not have it.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

luvmy4brats said:


> To be honest, from what you're saying, you'd probably be fine with the 8GB. When you transfer photos, they're much smaller than they would be on the computer and if you're not planning to put much music on there, I wouldn't worry about a larger one.
> 
> Then again, if you plan on using it for movies or TV shows, then you'd need the biggest you could get. Me, I have a 32GB and wish it was more. I have about 500 songs, 100 audiobooks, a few TV episodes and a movie or 2


That was my thought. I won't be doing movies, TV or anything like that. I really just want to be able to keep in touch easier with my children and husband when on the road. With 4 children and 9 grandchildren all over the place, email is how we keep in touch. They keep me updated on the children and I love the idea of being able to store my pictures and carry them with me.



scarlet said:


> My philosophy about storage is buy the most you can afford. I'd rather have space not used (which rarely happens with me, I've only got 20 gigs left on a 160 iPod), then need space and not have it.


I agree with this in most cases. When buying my laptops I update as much as possible. With the phone, I'm just not sure I want to spend the extra money when I know I won't use it for music, movies or books. I have severe hearing loss and trying to hear even with earplugs is a struggle for me.

Thank you both for the help and advice.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Normally, I'm all for the more storage the better, too. I just had to buy a 1TB external hard drive. But in your case, I can't see paying an extra $200 for something you probably won't use. 

As for keeping in touch with the iPhone, well, I'm posting this reply from mine  I love being able to get my KB fix when I'm out running errands. (or when it's time for bed and I wasn't finished skimming the threads).  I really don't know how I lived without it. I use it for everything, although I rarely actually talk on it. My husband and oldest teen have them as well.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

That was my thought as well Heather. I just can't see spending the extra cost. I can use that money to buy books. Being able to access KindleBoards is a great reason to have one.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

If, as you said, you don't plan on putting music or tv/movies on it, you'll probably be fine with a smaller capacity iPhone. My new 3 GS is a 32 GB, and I'm glad that I bought one that size. My old iPhone was only 16 GB, and I had to be careful not to fill it up completely. That said, I have every cd that I've bought for years on my phone, as well as quite a few songs that I've bought from iTunes. I also have a number of podcasts, several tv shows (including the entire series of "Expedition Africa"), and a couple of movies. I'm going to put the 5 hr. mini-series from A&E of "Pride and Prejudice" on my iPhone, as well. I figure Mr. Darcy can get me through just about any situation that I might encounter.

You'll love the great camera (both still and video) on the new iPhone, as well as several other new features. I don't know what I did without an iPhone. I Google information many times a day, read the KindleBoards, and do a lot of other surfing.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

I would never have even thought about movies on the phone. I use closed caption on my TV when watching tv and movies. It helps me catch things that I wouldn't normally hear and saves my husband's sanity. I can keep the volume down by using the CC. I use the dvr to record programs and movies while I'm out of town and watch them when I have time. I am a reader and prefer that to anything else. I don't think I would be able to read for long periods of time on the IPhone, but will just add a book as backup to my Kindle. I can sit and read for hours at a time and prefer the quiet when reading. I doubt that I will use the phone to its true potential, but for what I want to do it will be perfect.


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## Kind (Jan 28, 2009)

I would personally go with the 16gb that's what I've been looking at recently!


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## mlewis78 (Apr 19, 2009)

I don't have an iphone, but I have several ipods.  I wouldn't spend a lot of extra money on the extra GBs.  Apple upgrades them often enough that you may never need all of that storage before you either want another upgraded one or something happens to the phone.

I had the more storage the better philosophy when I bought my first white 40GB ipod.  It was almost $400 and the hard drive died 15 months later.  I was sorry that I had invested so much into it.  The ipods I've bought since then are still fine, but I usually use a nano with flash drive.

Hope you enjoy your iphone.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

I have the 16 gig, I don't feel a need for the 32 gig. I already have the 160 gig ipod classic which is now retired and that holds all my music and most of my video just for back ups or for watching on my tv through the ipod. On my 16 gig iphone I have 100 apps and some music and video and have about 5 gigs left.


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## Bren S. (May 10, 2009)

I don't own an iPhone nor do I want one, however I do have 2 iPod Touch's that both have the newest 3.0 software capabilities the same as the newest iPhones, 1 for exclusively home use, and the other goes with me everywhere,as I am always listening to it in the vehicles.

The new one has 32gb , and the other is a 16gb , the price difference was $100 and to me that made it worthwhile to double the memory/capacity.

If you can afford to get the 32gb I would go for it.

Don't forget a Square Trade warranty


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## geko29 (Dec 23, 2008)

Either get the 16GB now or wait a couple of months for the 8GB to get replaced by a 3GS of the same capacity (it's the sole 3G in the lineup now).  It's a LOT faster, and hence less frustrating.


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## meljackson (Nov 19, 2008)

Kathy, are you on the TAP plan? I have severe hearing loss also and just switched to the TAP plan which is data/sms only for 50.00 a month (plus tax of course). No voice is included but I can't hear on the phone anyway so that doesn't bother me lol. 

Melissa


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

meljackson said:


> Kathy, are you on the TAP plan? I have severe hearing loss also and just switched to the TAP plan which is data/sms only for 50.00 a month (plus tax of course). No voice is included but I can't hear on the phone anyway so that doesn't bother me lol.
> 
> Melissa


No, I have never heard about it. I can hear on the phone OK right now. I'm sure that in the next 5 to 10 years it may become a problem. I've had hearing loss so many years I really don't notice it. Very few people even know about it unless I tell them. If someone is hard for me to understand I will let them know and so far everyone has been wonderful.



geko29 said:


> Either get the 16GB now or wait a couple of months for the 8GB to get replaced by a 3GS of the same capacity (it's the sole 3G in the lineup now). It's a LOT faster, and hence less frustrating.


I am going to get the 16GB just to make sure I don't have to turn around and upgrade in 6 months. I don't think I will ever need 32GB, but who knows. I think the 16GB will be more than I need.


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## Cuechick (Oct 28, 2008)

Well, I bought the 4G which was only offered briefly when it first came out and I can say that it has been more the enough for my needs. I have a lot of photos on it, music, and books. No movies but I am sure I could fit a few, I have not even hit the half way point on my storage. Plus it is very easy to add and remove content...

Enjoy, whatever you get!


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Octochick said:


> Well, I bought the 4G which was only offered briefly when it first came out and I can say that it has been more the enough for my needs. I have a lot of photos on it, music, and books. No movies but I am sure I could fit a few, I have not even hit the half way point on my storage. Plus it is very easy to add and remove content...
> 
> Enjoy, whatever you get!


That is exactly what I needed to know. If I can put plenty of photos and a few books on it, as well as my email with the 8GB then I can't see any reason to spend the extra money. I am going to get it this weekend while I'm home. Thanks for the info.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

You really must not have a whole bunch on there if you have plenty of room left on only 8 gigs. I have the 16 gigs and have 5 gigs left. I have 100 apps on mine plus quite a few playlists for listening in the car.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Rasputina said:


> You really must not have a whole bunch on there if you have plenty of room left on only 8 gigs. I have the 16 gigs and have 5 gigs left. I have 100 apps on mine plus quite a few playlists for listening in the car.


I won't be putting music or movies on mine, but can you tell me what kind of apps you have on yours? I have just started looking at them and I'm not that knowledgeable about it. I may have to wait another week before deciding. Any information is appreciated.


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## Cuechick (Oct 28, 2008)

Rasputina said:


> You really must not have a whole bunch on there if you have plenty of room left on only 8 gigs. I have the 16 gigs and have 5 gigs left. I have 100 apps on mine plus quite a few playlists for listening in the car.


Actually it is a 4G and I bet those apps are taking up a lot of space! I have 33 apps and plenty of music but I have separate iPod
which stores most of my music... I just checked and actually I have 1.2 gig of space left... still fine for my needs... 8G seems to be plenty imo.


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

Octochick said:


> Actually it is a 4G and I bet those apps are taking up a lot of space! I have 33 apps and plenty of music but I have separate iPod
> which stores most of my music... I just checked and actually I have 1.2 gig of space left... still fine for my needs... 8G seems to be plenty imo.


8G is definitely plenty for me - my husband on the other hand just got himself the 32G one. To be honest, I only got be iPhone because of the $99 price - last time he upgraded he offered me his first iPhone and I turned it down. But $99 was an offer I couldn't refuse...

The apps are written to be pretty tight & not eat up a lot of memory. I just counted, think I've downloaded 54 in addition to the ones that come with it - they're taking up just a tiny bit of space overall - 334 MB. I haven't downloaded many pics yet - keep thinking I will but if I want to show people pics I usually pull up Facebook and use that to show the grandkids, etc. I thought about trying to just dump all our music on the iPhone but that was too much.

As far as apps, just have fun poking around in the app store - I've only paid for one app so far (1001 ringtones for 99 cents) - other than that they've all been free. I've got several of the book apps - Kindle, Wattpad, Stanza, a couple of classic book apps including a childrens' classics app. I figure anything free I can delete if I don't like it (and have deleted some already).

My husband is highly amused - I went from making sure I could return the iPhone if I didn't like it to his now threatening an intervention to try to pry it from my hands. It's not quite that bad, but I do really, really enjoy it.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Ok. I went to the Apple website to investigate apps. I see several that I would use in the Managing Your Money, Traveling or Getting Things Done selections. How much space does an app use? I can't seem to find that information. Very confusing.


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

Kathy said:


> Ok. I went to the Apple website to investigate apps. I see several that I would use in the Managing Your Money, Traveling or Getting Things Done selections. How much space does an app use? I can't seem to find that information. Very confusing.


Very little for the most part - like I said I've got over 50 apps, some of them games, some books, and others. My phone's charging via the computer right now - I can see how much room the music/photos/videos/apps are taking and the 54 apps I've got are taking a tiny bit of space - they're written to be as small a file as possible.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Thanks Meemo. I think that I will be one of those that doesn't use it to its potential, but the things I want it for will be such a help while on the road. I like the idea of being able to access my bank account and the flight tracker will be so helpful. Right now if my flight is late and I'm having to wait in an airport I have to take out my laptop to get email and look for flight information. Sometimes there is a free internet service at airports, but a lot of them charge a fee which I hate paying. I really think the 8GB will be enough for me. I hope to get it this weekend so that I will quit obsessing about it. LOL


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## VictoriaP (Mar 1, 2009)

Kathy, DH is actually the heavier iPhone user of the two of us in the house, and he has the original 4 GB version. He's got tons of everything on his, including more apps than I swear anyone needs! He also uses the camera more frequently than I do. He's had that phone since they first came out, and he's just *now* getting to the point where it's time to upgrade due to space limitations. He simply manages his music and movies well enough that he hasn't had an issue, only keeping on there what he actually needs.

Now his next iPhone will be much bigger, probably the 32 GB, strictly because he wants to use the video capture & editing features.

I have the original 8 GB, and I'm at just over 4 GB on it now. I haven't bothered with movies at all and have around 500 songs on mine, 180 photos, plus 17 apps (both paid & free). My next one will probably be the 16 GB; I cannot imagine needing more than that for another couple of years, and I'm only considering a new one because my old one is having multiple issues.

I suspect you won't need more than an 8 GB.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

Kathy said:


> I won't be putting music or movies on mine, but can you tell me what kind of apps you have on yours? I have just started looking at them and I'm not that knowledgeable about it. I may have to wait another week before deciding. Any information is appreciated.


we had a thread on favorite apps here, I'll see if I can find it and post a link.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,10352.0.html


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

My iPhone might as well be glued to my hand. There are so many amazing apps for it.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

Kathy said:


> Ok. I went to the Apple website to investigate apps. I see several that I would use in the Managing Your Money, Traveling or Getting Things Done selections. How much space does an app use? I can't seem to find that information. Very confusing.


The amount of space an app takes is listed right in the app description on itunes. Look in the area next to the icon for the app. Most apps are small although some like the new GPS navigator are over 1 gig.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

luvmy4brats said:


> My iPhone might as well be glued to my hand. There are so many amazing apps for it.


I totally agree.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Rasputina said:


> http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,10352.0.html


This was great. I really have to get it this weekend. Thanks for the tip on where to find the size of the apps.



luvmy4brats said:


> My iPhone might as well be glued to my hand. There are so many amazing apps for it.


I love gadgets and I'm afraid this is going to happen to me. I think it is going to be one of my all time favorite. Of course Gidget will always be my favorite.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

I went this weekend to get my IPhone, but found out that I don't qualify for a full upgrade discount until Oct. 16th. Bummer.  I was also told that the 8GB is not a 3Gs phone, only the 16GB and 32GB phones are. The 3Gs phones will allow you to shoot high resolution video. I don't think I would use this often, but when visiting my grandchildren this would be a nice feature. After talking to the sales person on the differences, the 8GB would serve my purposes, but being me I have to have the latest version so I will be getting the 16GB phone. I'm trying to get AT&T to waive the waiting period but if they won't I'll wait until Oct to get it. It would cost me $200 more to get it now. I hate waiting, but just can't justify spending an extra $200.


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## Cindy416 (May 2, 2009)

Kathy said:


> I went this weekend to get my IPhone, but found out that I don't qualify for a full upgrade discount until Oct. 16th. Bummer.  I was also told that the 8GB is not a 3Gs phone, only the 16GB and 32GB phones are. The 3Gs phones will allow you to shoot high resolution video. I don't think I would use this often, but when visiting my grandchildren this would be a nice feature. After talking to the sales person on the differences, the 8GB would serve my purposes, but being me I have to have the latest version so I will be getting the 16GB phone. I'm trying to get AT&T to waive the waiting period but if they won't I'll wait until Oct to get it. It would cost me $200 more to get it now. I hate waiting, but just can't justify spending an extra $200.


I hope you don't have to wait, as the 3 GS is awesome. (I had the iPhone that preceded the 3G.) I love the video as well as the camera. Both take great pictures, and you'll love having something so handy to capture your grandkids in action. There are a lot of great features with the 3 GS, and I imagine you'll be glad you got it.


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

I think you ought to wait.... September is almost here, it will be October before you know it!


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

pidgeon92 said:


> I think you ought to wait.... September is almost here, it will be October before you know it!


I will definitely wait if they won't waive the waiting period. There is no way I'll spend an additional $200 for it now. After all, that is my book money.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Do you have another line on your account?

My line didn't qualify for the discount, but my husband's did. We upgraded his line and then switched the sim cards. AT&T did it for me. Saved me the $200.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

luvmy4brats said:


> Do you have another line on your account?
> 
> My line didn't qualify for the discount, but my husband's did. We upgraded his line and then switched the sim cards. AT&T did it for me. Saved me the $200.


Yes, but they have the same upgrade date. We all upgraded our phones last year in October. The sales person told me that they have been waiving the time period for customers that have been with them for a long time. We have had their cell service for 8 years, so I think they will waive it.


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## Rasputina (May 6, 2009)

I'd wait. But then I'm sticking with my 3g for now because I don't qualify for an upgrade either so I'm waiting for next iphone incarnation after the 3gs.  They seem to come out yearly.


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## geko29 (Dec 23, 2008)

Kathy said:


> I went this weekend to get my IPhone, but found out that I don't qualify for a full upgrade discount until Oct. 16th. Bummer.  I was also told that the 8GB is not a 3Gs phone, only the 16GB and 32GB phones are


That's why I said earlier to wait until the 8GB 3G gets replaced with a 3GS of the same capacity later this year, or buy the 16GB now. The S models are WAY faster and have a few extra features (some useful, some pointless).

If you have to wait until October, you may be able to get an 8GB 3GS.


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## Meemo (Oct 27, 2008)

Kathy said:


> I went this weekend to get my IPhone, but found out that I don't qualify for a full upgrade discount until Oct. 16th. Bummer.  I was also told that the 8GB is not a 3Gs phone, only the 16GB and 32GB phones are. The 3Gs phones will allow you to shoot high resolution video. I don't think I would use this often, but when visiting my grandchildren this would be a nice feature. After talking to the sales person on the differences, the 8GB would serve my purposes, but being me I have to have the latest version so I will be getting the 16GB phone. I'm trying to get AT&T to waive the waiting period but if they won't I'll wait until Oct to get it. It would cost me $200 more to get it now. I hate waiting, but just can't justify spending an extra $200.


I barely remember to take pictures with my phone, much less video! But my husband likes the capability (he got the 3GS a couple of weeks ago).


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

OK, here is the scoop. I talked to AT&T and they would have been happy to waive the upgrade date, but Apple won't allow it. If I wait until Oct 16th I will get the reduced price, so that is what I'll do. I'm so busy right now the time will pass quickly. I'm now shopping apps to see exactly what I want and will have my wish list created by the time I get it. This is almost as bad as waiting for my Kindle.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Sorry you have to wait. It will be worth it though. 

I keep forgetting about the video recorder. I actually uploaded my first video to YouTube today.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

Waiting is hard, but I don't think I should just throw money away. I am sure it will be worth the wait. I really want the video ability. I'm going to go see my grandchildren for Thanksgiving and my youngest grandson has just started walking. I really want to get videos of that. You would think being number nine I wouldn't be excited about walking, but they are so cute when they are that age.


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