iphones

David has an old iPod running iOS 6. Will there be a new iPod coming soon? Leo does think so. He thinks that Apple is pretty much ending development of the iPod since so many are buying iPhones now.

David could still buy an iPhone and just not activate it. Leo suggests going to Gazelle and buying a used, unactivated iPhone 5 or 5S. Then he'll be able to run iOS 8, just like an iPod. Leo says another option is T-Mobile's unlimited texting and data plan that costs $30 a month and has about 100 minutes of talk time.

Bob is going to be traveling overseas and he'll be using his iPhone 5 while he's there. Leo says it can be done, but he should turn data roaming off. That means he won't have any data while he's out and about, though. But it also means he won't have a phone bill in the thousands.

Mark has a FLIR attachment for an iPhone 5 that does thermal imaging. Can he use it on a phone without a data plan? Leo says it should work, unless it requires data in the app. But it's worth a try. Gazelle sells used iPhones. He'll probably have to have an iPhone 5 or later though.

(Disclaimer: Gazelle is a sponsor)

John is curious about the lawsuit against Apple regarding the stated storage capacity vs. the actual capacity. Leo says that while it's true that when buying an iPhone (or any smartphone) that half of the storage is used by the software and operating system, that's true of hard drives as well. Most people understand that. It is true that the 8GB iPhone users were left wanting when trying to upgrade to iOS 8, though (you need 5GB for it). But most class action lawsuits are started by law firms that get the lions share of the settlement.

Dale is thinking about waiting until the larger iPhone 6 comes out and then buying it refurbished after people return it for being too big. Leo says that's a great idea. His patience will always be rewarded and even with this, Apple will likely lower the price on the iPhone 5 or 5S after the 6 comes out. Leo says that with the size of the iPhone 6 being 5.5 inches (rumored), it may end up cannibalizing the iPad Mini.

Judy called last week about what to get for her first smart phone, and she decided on the iPhone. Leo says that's a good first choice, but Judy should wait until next month since the new models will be announced.

Mark wants to know how he can keep his daughter from losing her iPhone. It either gets lost, broken or stolen and it's breaking him. Leo says that there is the Zomm leash, which sounds an alarm when she would walk away from her phone. It works, but if the phone is stolen, the last thing he'll want is for her to chase after the person who stole it. That's where Find my iPhone comes in handy. She would just call the police and let them know where it is.

Rafael's phone dies while he still has battery life remaining. Leo says that the phone guesses how much battery life remains and often it's an inaccurate guess. So it should be taken with a grain of salt. It may have just crashed, though. Leo says to charge the phone all the way up and then run it down until it shuts down. Do this several times and he will essentially "teach" his phone how long its battery life is.

It may also be a defective phone. Leo advises documenting his experience with it, and taking it to the Apple Store.

Waxman sometimes logs into his bank with his iPhone and is concerned about malware. Apple must approve all apps in the app store, so there aren't viruses to warrant needing an antivirus program. The apps are also segregated with no data sharing between them. So it's a pretty closed system. Android, by contrast, allows for the sale of antivirus apps because it's pretty wide open. The bigger issue is the wireless networking that he's using. But the bank data is encrypted, so there's no real issue.