Tuesday, 27 September 2011

Nice: Preordering the iPhone 5; cutting the cable TV cord (Ask Maggie) - CNET (iPhone 5 Latest Article)

The countdown to the new
iPhone 5 has begun, as well as antsy Apple fans wish to have sure they have been in between the initial to get the phone.

Last week, All Things Digital reported which the Apple iPhone 5 would be voiced on Oct 4 during a special eventuality during Apple’s domicile in Cupertino, Calif. Sales of the hotly approaching device have been approaching to follow a integrate of weeks later. Analysts contend there is a lot of restrained direct for the latest
iPhone. And sales have been approaching to go by the roof. This has finished a little iPhone fans shaken which they might have to wait for for for even longer if register sells out quickly.

In this week’s Ask Maggie a discontented AT&T iPhone subscriber wants to know possibly he will be equates to to preorder a new iPhone 5 on Verizon Wireless’s network. we additionally suggest an additional reader a little recommendation on slicing the wire TV connective tissue with a special hide look during how I’ve set up my own online TV viewing.

Ask Maggie is an recommendation mainstay which answers readers’ wireless as well as broadband questions. The mainstay right away appears twice a week on CNET, charity readers a stand in dose of Ask Maggie’s advice. If we have a question, I’d adore to listen to from you. Please send me an e-mail during maggie dot reardon during cbs dot com. And greatfully put “Ask Maggie” in the theme header.

Verizon iPhone 5 preorders

Dear Maggie,
I have an
iPhone 3GS on AT&T. I’m unequivocally unfortunate with my service. So when the iPhone 5 shows up I’m switching to Verizon Wireless. My theme is will we be equates to to preorder the iPhone 5, presumption which Verizon takes preorders, even nonetheless we am not an existent customer?

Thanks for your help!
Sahil

Dear Sahil,
It’s formidable to answer your theme given Apple hasn’t nonetheless voiced the iPhone 5. But according to assorted reports as well as rumors, it’s approaching to be voiced subsequent week on Oct 4. And if these reports have been accurate, it should be in stores by mid-October.

Because it hasn’t been voiced yet, Verizon Wireless hasn’t discussed possibly it will suggest preorders for the iPhone 5. But if story is any denote of how Verizon will hoop things, the release of the iPhone 4 in Feb might suggest a little suspicion of what to expect.

Then Apple had voiced the new Verizon iPhone in mid-January. And the device went on sale Feb 10. Verizon began receiving preorders for the phone on Feb 3, a week prior to the central launch. All alternative non-Verizon business who longed for the iPhone on Verizon were equates to to proceed grouping the phone on Feb 9, the night prior to it went on sale in stores.

I can’t contend for sure what Verizon will do this time around. Demand for the new iPhone 5 is approaching to be high. But it will additionally be accessible on AT&T. And there have been rumors which Sprint Nextel might be removing the own chronicle of the iPhone 5. So even nonetheless direct will be high, it will be widespread in between opposite carriers, which might relieve concerns about shortages.

To answer your specific question, my theory is which if Verizon takes preorders, it will give priority to the existent customers, given which is what it’s finished in the past with the iPhone as well as additionally with alternative renouned new devices. This equates to which as a patron switching to Verizon Wireless from AT&T, you’ll expected have to wait for for for until it goes on sale to everyone.

If we unequivocally contingency have the iPhone 5 when it comes out, as well as we have been disturbed which possibly Apple or Verizon will run out of the device in stores or online on the day it’s launched, we could sign-up for a Verizon Wireless operate right away as well as spin a customer. This way, you’d be authorised for the preorder sale of the iPhone when it’s announced. Of course, you’d have to buy as well as pointer a stipulate for a opposite smartphone. Then once the iPhone is on sale, we could sell the phone we only bought.

Of course, this plan is a bit of a con as well as it has risks. Since we do not know for sure when the new iPhone will be sold, we could get stranded with a phone we do not wish as well as no funding to buy the new iPhone. But if we time it right, it could work out for you. Verizon has a 14-day lapse policy, which equates to we can lapse any phone inside of fourteen days no questions asked. But we will have to compensate a $ 35 restocking fee.

Once the 14-day sell duration is over, Verizon is no longer thankful to let we lapse your phone as well as to give we a new phone during a ignored price. But the association might have exceptions. When the iPhone initial launched on Verizon’s network in February, it authorised a little subscribers to sell not long ago paid for smartphones even after the 14-day lapse duration ended. For business who had upgraded to a Verizon smartphone in between Nov 26, 2010, as well as Jan 10, 2011, Verizon authorised people to lapse their upgraded inclination as well as afterwards get the iPhone for the subsidized price.

But given Apple hasn’t voiced the iPhone 5 yet, as well as Verizon hasn’t finished any announcements per the device, it’s unfit to know for sure what Verizon will concede this time.

My recommendation to we is to lay parsimonious as well as wait for for for until the iPhone 5 is strictly announced. Apple and/or Verizon might make known a little kind of online advance booking complement for filing orders. You additionally have the choice of station in line during an Apple store or during a Verizon Wireless place to get the phone when it initial goes on sale. Even Best Buy might get a collection of iPhones. The worst-case unfolding is which we do not get the device on the day it launches. But judging from past iPhone launches, I’d design we will be equates to to get your hands on a single inside of the initial integrate of weeks it’s on the market.

My online TV set-up

Dear Maggie,
I see we posted how we cut wire as well as what we operate to watch TV now. we would identical to to know what set-up we have, as well as if we had any issues with environment up your complement to operate over-the-air TV to embrace your internal stations. Also, do we operate any device to DVR shows? Or do we only rest on streaming on direct when we wish to watch a show?

I regularly suffer your articles.

Sincerely,
Craig

Dear Craig,
Thanks for celebration of the mass Ask Maggie as well as interjection for the good compliment! we am so happy when readers write to discuss it me which they suffer my stories. So appreciate we for that.

On Friday, we answered a theme about possibly we suspicion Netflix was still value the subscription fee, notwithstanding a little of the new changes in the service. And we wrote about my own knowledge slicing the wire TV cord.

This is a subject which is nearby as well as dear to my heart. So interjection for asking about it! Ever given 2008 when we wrote about Debra James, a lady from Oakland, Calif., who ditched her heavenly body TV operate for online TV to save money, we dreamed of you do the same thing. But to be honest, when James was explaining her set-up, which enclosed shopping a new mechanism as well as investing in alternative new equipment, such as a wireless set of keys as well as mouse, we was intimidated.

Lucky for me, Roku had already proposed racking up deals with the supposed “over-the-top” calm channels: Netflix, Amazon, as well as Hulu Plus. These 3 services, which we compensate a grand sum of about $ twenty-five a month to access, have been the staples of my cord-cutting TV viewing. And as Roku signs up some-more channel partners, we will increasingly have alternative options.

What we identical to about Roku is which it’s elementary to set up. It’s easy as well as discerning to use. And it’s unequivocally cheap. we didn’t wish to buy a new mechanism privately for TV viewing. When we initial proposed deliberation slicing the cord, we attempted hooking up my Macbook to my TV. And we fast confident we didn’t have all the right cables. And when we went to the Apple store to ask what we would need to to offshoot up my laptop to my TV, the peddler was unhelpful. And we gave up.

But the categorical reason we didn’t wish to operate a mechanism as my categorical tie to TV calm was which we didn’t wish to spin my TV in to a large mechanism screen. we longed for to impersonate my existent wire TV knowledge as many as possible.

Roku finished the set-up easy. we simply plugged the device in to my TV regulating an HDMI wire as well as it was ready to go. The remote carry out finished it easy to navigate the menus. And once we strike play, there was zero else we indispensable to do. One of the large benefits of regulating the Roku box contra a mechanism is which we do not have to be concerned about formatting the video to fit the distance of my screen.

Of course, there have been times when we do operate a Personal Computer to get a little video from online. For example, we watched many of the U.S. Open tennis contest around my laptop, which we trustworthy to my TV. This worked fine, though there were dual things we didn’t identical to about this set-up. For one, we wasn’t equates to to tide the video in HD, as well as even the peculiarity of the standard-definition video was not great. This was expected given the video tide was meant for the not as large Personal Computer shade or maybe the video capabilities or my laptop aren’t which great. The alternative thing we didn’t identical to is which the video froze as well as buffered some-more mostly than when we perspective streaming video regulating the Roku box.

The alternative combined good of starting with the Roku set-up was which we didn’t have to outlay many income to get all this easy access. we consider when we got the Roku box, it was about $ 100. Now there have been versions accessible for about $ 70.

Of course, we could have simply gotten a identical set-up from a new Blu-ray player or a gaming console. But we already had a DVD player, as well as we didn’t wish to outlay the income to ascent to a new Blu-ray player. we additionally do not own a Sony PlayStation, Microsoft Xbox, or a Nintendo Wii. And we wasn’t peaceful to flare over the money to get a single of those either.

So for me, the Roku box was the simplest as well as many affordable approach to get entrance to online TV.

Now to answer the alternative tools of your question, over-the-air TV has been a plea for me. we live in an aged unit structure in New York City, so we paid for an receiver to hang in my window to see if we could get a promote TV signal. But given we live on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, as well as my unit faces north instead of south, we still can’t balance in a signal. But we am equates to to get simple over-the-air channels when we block a connective tissue from my TV in to my aged wire jack. The vigilance is not in HD, so we am presumption which we am simply drumming in to a simple analog wire TV feed which still runs around my unit building.

As for a DVR, we do not unequivocally have any need to jot down shows or movies, given roughly all we watch, with the difference of internal headlines as well as sports which air over promote TV, is on-demand already. we simply operate my Hulu Plus, Amazon, as well as Netflix subscriptions as my DVR/on-demand services.

I know which connective tissue slicing isn’t for everyone. Die-hard sports fans or cable-news junkies would substantially not be confident with what’s accessible around my Roku set-up. But we am not a large sports air blower nor do we watch wire news. we get many of my headlines online or from the radio. we comprehend as a connective tissue knife my preference might be somewhat limited. But law be told, it doesn’t make a difference which many to me, given there is still a lot of calm we can watch. And I’m many happier profitable $ twenty-five as well as removing many of what we want, than profitable some-more than $ 100 a month as well as still not being wholly satisfied.

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