Smart Phone Tips Archives - Rick's Daily Tips

7 great uses for an old unused smartphone

Posted on October 19, 2020

If you’re like most folks these days, you probably buy a new phone at least every other year or so, and more often than not your old phone is still working just fine when you move on to the new one.

You could always sell your old phone or simply place it in a drawer and forget about it, but you also have the option of giving it a second life by installing an app that turns it into something that’s actually quite useful.

Here are seven great uses for your old, but working smartphone (or tablet for that matter): [Read more…]

Q&A: Do you think I should Jailbreak my iPhone?

Posted on October 7, 2020

Question from Jamie: My mom recently bought me my first iPhone. It took me a while to get used to it but now that I have, I really like it.

My question is should I jailbreak it?

I don’t really understand what it means to jailbreak a phone but my brother says I need to do it because it’ll let me install apps that a normal iPhone can’t run.

He said he would do it for me when he comes home on leave (he’s in the Army) but I thought I might be able to do it myself so I searched the Internet for instructions.

While I was looking for instructions I found several articles saying it’s a bad idea to jailbreak a phone.

What’s your opinion about that? Should do it or not?

Rick’s answer: [Read more…]

You won’t believe Apple’s “fix” for iOS 14 update related issues

Posted on October 6, 2020

Did you update your iPhone to iOS 14 and immediately start having issues with the device?

Numerous iPhone users are complaining that the update to iOS 14 has resulted in shorter battery life and some apps failing to work as they should.

Even worse, a few users have reported that their phones are getting hotter than normal while using a wide range of resource-intensive apps.

Well, Apple has released this Support article explaining what you need to do to fix these iOS 14-related issues. And to be sure, you probably won’t like it.

In a nutshell, Apple is advising you to do the following: [Read more…]

Join Apple’s “iPhone Upgrade Program” and get a brand new iPhone every year

Posted on October 3, 2020

Did you know that Apple has an iPhone Upgrade Program?

Well, they do, and if you’re the type of person who always wants to have the most recent iPhone (and you’re willing to make continuous monthly payments) this plan could well be for you.

Once you’re enrolled in the iPhone Upgrade Program you’ll make a monthly installment payment every month for a year and then you’ll receive a brand new iPhone after you’ve made the last payment.

Remain in the program and keep making the payments and you’ll receive a new phone each and every year.

The monthly payments begin at approximately $35 and go up from there depending on how much storage you want your new iPhone to have. That means you’ll never again own a phone that’s more than a year old!

There are a couple of bonuses thrown in with this plan as well: [Read more…]

How to disable ‘In-App Purchases’ in your iPhone’s apps and games

Posted on October 2, 2020

We hear stories every once in a while about folks who have received a whopping bill for “In-App Purchases” made from within iPhone apps and games. And those huge bills are almost always unexpected!

In a nutshell, “In-App Purchases” allow the folks who create “free” apps to make money off of them by offering extra features and capabilities for a fee.

You can indeed use the app for free as promised, but if you want to use the extra features you’ll have to fork over some cash.

Sometimes a phone’s owner will make one of these optional purchases by accident, but far too often they’re made by kids, either on their own iPhone or one owned by a parent.

If you want to make sure this never happens to you, simply disable all “In-App Purchases” on your own iPhone and/or on your child’s phone. Here’s how: [Read more…]