iPhone | At Home with Tech

October 18, 2015

Why Do PCs Display iPhone Photos Upside Down?

If this is how your PC displays a photo snapped with your iPhone, you know it’s time to determine the culprit. And you may be surprised what you find….

At work, I often snap an iPhone photo or two at video shoots. It takes two seconds, and then I quickly email them to an offsite colleague or client for immediate feedback on the set or background.
(I often forget that the smartphone is such an incredible work collaboration tool that didn’t exist so long ago.)

Unfortunately, a problem I often run into is my pictures inexplicably show up upside down on computer screens. More specifically… PCs.

They always display correctly on Macs… just not PCs running Windows.

Your World is Topsy-Turvy
So you’ve got to imagine the response I sometimes get when my pictures play their little dance.
(How easy would it be to evaluate an image if you had to stand on your head?!)

I’ve always taken the privileged position that the problem is somehow caused by the evil PC.
(It couldn’t possibly be the fault of the perfect iPhone!)

The reality is most folks are going to also assume that you’re somehow the culprit. That you’ve made a mistake and you don’t know how to use your own iPhone.

Guess what…
Up until now, I didn’t!

Which Way is Up?
What I didn’t know is there is actually a right side up to the iPhone when you hold it horizontally.
(I assume we all understand how to hold it vertically, since the ‘home’ button is always there on the bottom to orient you.)

Horizontally, I’ve always gripped my iPhone 6 Plus with the two side volume buttons facing up. That’s because I often like to press either of the two volume buttons to take the photo instead of the white circle on the screen.
(If I’m holding my iPhone with only one hand, it’s more effective to press down on a button.)

As it turns out, positioning your iPhone that way is upside down!

It seems counter intuitive to grasp your iPhone the other way when snapping a pic… and then ‘squeeze’ the button from underneath…. But that’s the correct orientation according to Apple’s engineers.

Clever Apple
But even if you’re accidentally documenting your life upside down, how do Macs know to correctly display your picture?

That’s because your iPhone includes an EXIF tag with each photo that says which way is up. According to iPhone Photography School, every Apple device that displays your photo is going to know how to read that metadata.

The problem is lots of software in PCs can’t.

That’s the huge rub.
It’s simply a compatibility problem.

Well, technically, it’s still your fault if you’re holding your iPhone incorrectly. Apple just fixes the problem for you, and many PCs won’t.

How to Correctly Hold Your iPhone
So what’s the fix?

Well, first off… this problem has actually been around since the iPhone 5.
(Wake up, Rip Van Lester!)

There are various PC methods to manually adjust the orientation of pictures, but do you seriously expect anyone to take additional steps to flip around your mistake after experiencing the annoyance of trying to view your inverted photo?

Own the problem!
When you want to snap and send a photo to a PC, just turn your iPhone so the buttons are on the bottom… and then proceed.

Yogi Barrett?
Yes, I could blame Apple for a design flaw.
(It’s more natural to push the button down like with any camera in the known universe!)

But the truth is, I didn’t know which way was up.
(An important lesson that Apple has been so considerate to remind me of.)

I am not the center of my known universe.

Maybe I’ve begun a journey to a higher plane…
…or the story of my gaff has no place other than perhaps a fortune cookie:

“Wise man holds iPhone with volume buttons down.”

No?

September 27, 2015

Pocket Lint Can Destroy Your iPhone

You may not know it, but this dusty mess is growing in your iPhone right now! It’s time to get rid of it…

Recently, I noticed my year-old iPhone 6 Plus was acting quirky.
(Maybe it’s cranky that it’s no longer the latest and greatest with the new 6S line just released.)

I first started having problems a couple weeks back while using the EarPods. First, the onboard volume buttons on the cable stopped working. Then, the microphone started wigging out. So I figured the earphones had simply gone bad.

I pulled out my backup pair of EarPods.
Same problem.
Hmmm…

Cupertino, We Have a Problem
Then I considered a separate iPhone issue that was simultaneously annoying me. It had to do with my nightly ritual of charging up my trusty iPhone before I went to bed. I began to notice that inserting my Lighting charging cable didn’t create that confident ‘clicking’ sound anymore. The cable went in, but it felt like the connection wasn’t firm. On occasion, I had to push in the cable a second time to activate the charge. It was as if… the connection was failing. As if something was blocking it.

And in fact there was…

A Dusty Blob
I grabbed a flashlight and took a look inside the small opening of the Lightning connector port. I peered closer…

Perhaps not so surprisingly, the hole was partially filled up with pocket link and dust from the right front pocket in all of my pants. I guess it’s been building up over the past 11 months, and it finally grew to a large enough mini-mass, which had been crammed to the back end of the jack hole through my daily charging cycle. Would this prevent the connector from seating properly?

You betcha!

It was time for some emergency surgery.

Calling Dr. Lester!
So I took a pin and carefully extracted portions of the dusty mass until all was clear again.

Bingo!

A toothpick would work too, and I imagine occasionally blowing in some compressed air would be a deterrent to prevent dusty build up.
(I don’t know how durable the inside of the lightning port is to be… so I would tread lightly.)

The Operation Continues
Then I peered into the EarPod jack. Same issue?

It was harder to tell by visual inspection. It just appeared to be a bottomless black hole. So I took the pin and carefully dropped it down like I was a kid again playing my Milton Bradley game of ‘Operation.’

And then I felt it. The spongy muck.
Yep….identical problem… not a surprise.

So I carefully performed the same procedure.
And voilà… my EarPods suddenly worked again!

It’s Not Just Pocket Lint
Who knew pocket lint could be so destructive?

It makes sense that over the course of months, bits of dust and pocked lint will inevitably enter the holes in your iPhone. That said, I never had a problem with the earphone jacks of my older iPhones. Perhaps that’s because they weren’t located on the bottom of the iPhone next to the Lightning jack.
(And in fact, the bottom of my iPhone always touches the bottom of my pocket. So if there’s pocket link to be found, my iPhone will make contact…)

And as for the Lightning connector problem… I jumped from the 4S to the 6 Plus… so this is my first experience with a Lightning port.

Clean Up!
If your iPhone has been living in your pants or purse for a while, you might want to think about giving it a lint inspection.
(It’s probably a good idea to turn your iPhone off first before beginning the operation and don’t use any liquids.)

I guess the other choice is to vacuum your pockets…
(Hey… new tech gadget idea!)

July 19, 2015

In Search of Power

When going away on a camping trip, don’t forget to pack some portable power. Otherwise, your tech will quickly go dark…

If you haven’t figured it out yet, I crave power. Pure power. And sustainable power.
Okay… not absolute power…
I’m just talking about the energy needed to power my lowly, but hungry tech.
(What did you think I meant?)

A big part of my story to date has been figuring out how to keep my iPhone going after it runs through a full charge.

And to be fair, my iPhone 6 Plus can get through a busy day on one charge. But I’m the kind of nervous tech guy who starts to worry once my smartphone dips below 20%.

So I typically want some extra juice nearby…
…just in case.
(My son used to prefer a juice box or two.)

Power Sticks
A couple of years back, I picked up an Innergie PocketCell, which is essentially a power stick the size of a pack of gum. It has 3,000mAh of power, which isn’t bad, because an iPhone 6 Plus requires 2915mAh for a full charge.
Today, I’m partial to Anker, which makes the PowerCore 10,000, packing a really big punch.
($24.99 on Amazon Prime)

Swag Power
And if you’re not into dropping any money on a power stick right now, you might be able to find one for free. They’re popular these days as giveaways… Though usually with less power.
(I came across one recently with 2600mAh.)

iPhone Case with Built-in Battery
Another good idea is to pick up a Mophie Juice Pack Plus, which is a smartphone case with a battery baked into it.
The 2,600 mAh model that wraps around the current iPhone 6 Plus costs $99.95.
(I had a Mophie for my old iPhone 4S, but I’ve held out so far with my 6 Plus due to size concerns.)

Preparing for the Family Camping Trip
All these cool power solutions go a long way towards feeding your smartphone the necessary extra energy it might need.

But then I had a new challenge.
Go where no Barrett has gone before…

Two nights of family camping.
(Which meant three days away with my iPhone, camera, and my wife’s iPhone…and no power)

I needed to bring a more powerful and flexible solution to ensure I would stay on the grid….

Goal Zero Sherpa 50
Goal Zero makes a variety of portable, solar and battery-driven power solutions.
I came across the Sherpa 50 Power Pack at REI, a rare moment of brick and mortar shopping for me.

The Sherpa 50 carries 5200mAh of power, which isn’t quite as beefy as the newer Innergie. But the Sherpa is more flexible. And even though it’s not as slim as a stick of gum, it’s only 1.2 lbs and is smaller than your typical paperback book.

It’s got a USB port to plug in your iPhone
An onboard flashlight
A separate output to power laptops… its big selling point
(Though not for Macs)
A 12v cable that powers a tent light… the ‘Light-A-Life 350’
(Which came bundled in the REI box)
And a 100W AC inverter to charge up any other gear you may have
(Also bundled in the REI box)

It goes for $179.95 on Amazon Prime.

Field Test
On our camping trip’s second night, I proudly broke out my new Sherpa 50. After sunset, I easily illuminated our tent with the Goal Zero light.

And as my family turned in for the night, I plugged in my iPhone to the Sherpa 50 and began charging it up from 36%.

I turned off the light and felt ‘Tech Zen’ surge throughout my body.
And then I drifted off to sleep…

The next morning, I awoke and immediately turned to my iPhone.

47%.

What?!

I picked up my Sherpa 50.
(Yes, it had been fully charged.)
Perhaps it had somehow prematurely turned off.

Nope.
It was totally dead.
Well, not entirely. The universal empty-battery signal still blinked momentarily when I pushed the power button.

After a couple hours of light and an 11% boost to my iPhone, my new Sherpa 50 had promptly failed me.
(It’s rated to charge a smartphone seven times!)

Innergie to the Rescue
As I realized my ‘dire’ predicament, I took three deep breaths and turned to my back up plan… My old Innergie PowerCell.

I attached it to my iPhone, and a little over an hour later; I was back to full charge.
(The Innergie was exhausted, but it had done its job.)

Then, I assigned my ‘swag’ power stick to rescue my wife’s limping iPhone battery.

By the time breakfast at the tent was finished, we were prepared to face the day with our tech.
(Good thing I had an extra camera battery… )

REI is Your Friend
REI is well known for standing by its products. That’s important, because I’ll be certainly returning my faulty Sherpa 50.

The good news is my family camping trip was a big success…. Even if I didn’t have all the power I thought I’d need.

Perhaps that’s just Mother Nature reminding me that technology can’t always tame the wild. And also that 47% should be plenty enough to get through your day in the great outdoors…

Message received.

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