Vlad Hrybok's Tech Notes

Today I downloaded both iTunes 8.2 and iPhone OS 3.0. After installing everything, syncing the iPhone with my 64-bit Vista failed at the end of the process with this message "The iPhone cannot be synced. An unknown error occurred (13019)." I had to read through several pages of Apple forums to find the solution, which turned out to be unsyncing the music and then re-syncing it back again.

If you are hosting your business email with Google and access it using an email client like Outlook, chances are Google will freak out once in a while and put your Outlook in the endless loop of asking for your username and password, and rejecting them even if they are correct. It seems to happen after credentials provided by your email client fail to get you authenticated. I used to have this problem a lot when I checked my business email using Windows Mobile (Cingular 3125) smartphone. Since I switched to iPhone the problem went away, or so I thought. Since the information on how to fix this issue is not that easy to find, I made a simple page where you just enter your domain name and it will take you to the Google credentials unlock page, specific to your site.

Twice I tried to update iPhone 3G firmware using iTunes 7.7 running on 64-bit Windows Vista, and both times I was getting cryptic error with code (-1) somewhere in the middle of the process. Oddly, firmware would seemingly get upgraded before the crash, but I would still have to restore the iPhone from the backup - a process (was buggy on its own) that would not restore the applications I installed from Apple app store.

Thankfully, after I got iTunes 8, my latest upgrade to 2.1 version of iPhone software went without a problem. 2.1 was worthy upgrade: the most obvious change was improved battery life.

By default iPhone 3G is configured to check emails only manually. To make it check email regularly the change in the settings needs to be made. Since I spent more time than I expected finding out how to make iPhone 3G check email periodically, I decided that it's worthy a post. I was looking all over Settings | Email, Calendar and Contacts, where I thought the setting would be, and could not find it. Instead it turned out to be Settings | Fetch New Data. That what drives frequency of email checks:

It used to be this way: you commit to a two-year contract with a wireless service and get locked, but deeply discounted or even free phone. With iPhone situation is beyond pale:

• You get what seems to be a full-price, but locked phone (from $300 to $600 depending on the model and the time you bought it);
• You get locked into two-year contract;
• And Apples feels free to brick your iPhone if you have installed 3rd party software or unlocked it.

While all this might be legal, this looks like one big mass-screwing of Apple/AT&T customers. I feel lucky iTunes refused to sync my iPhone with 64 bit Windows and I could return iPhone for the full refund. I was planning on unlocking the phone, but after I learned about modified iPhones turned into "iBricks" after the latest firmware upgrade, iPhone deal looks like one big sucker.

Update: This issue may have been fixed as of April 2008: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1426.

I spent approximately a week researching iPhone and everything related to it. Not a single time did I see anything that would suggest that iPhone does not sync with 64 bit version of Windows - not even on the back of the iPhone box, where system requirements are spelled out. So all the anticipation of playing with iPhone came down crashing when I put it in the cradle and got "Please connect iPhone to a computer running a 32-bit version of Windows XP (SP2) or Windows Vista." message:


This was the first Apple product I ever bought, and what a wonderful F-U I got. Apple is indeed not an engineering company, but a designer shop making cool-looking accessories - a Luis Vuitton of IT. The only thing remaining for Apple is to figure out that technology thing.

Quick Internet search established without a doubt that iPhone won't sync with x64 Windows systems and tech support rep confirmed that there is absolutely nothing they can do other that suggesting to install 32 bit operating system.

Anyway, the iPhone is going back. To be fair, Apple customer support was fast and helpful, and the rep who processed my return request waived restocking fee on the unit (I bought it from Apple online) and they promised to send prepaid FedEx shipping label.