Connecting Older Car Speakers with iPhone and Bluetooth FM Transmitter for Older Cars

I am back from traveling the world. My blog for tips and helps is now resuming ...

I have plans for some road trips in the USA.   My preferred road trip car is an older convertible, but unfortunately it doesn't have all the bells and whistles of most newer cars.  It does, however, have a nice set of speakers which I plan to utilize. I want to avoid replacing the original radio system.  I am investigating some of the tech devices available for older cars. One device, the Nulaxy KM29 Bluetooth FM Transmitter, looks like a promising solution.


My iPhone is equipped with Bluetooth and has adequate voice navigation apps and streaming music capabilities for an enjoyable journey.  So, I want to use the Bluetooth feature on my iPhone with a device that will connect to my speakers/radio.  The KM29 Nulaxy Bluetooth FM Transmitter has Bluetooth that can easily connect to my iPhone, as well as several other modes of input that allow for listening to music.

The Nulaxy device has:

• A TF card slot ( a TF card is smaller version of a SD microchip card) (It uses an adapter, so it can be inserted into a SD card reader to load on music from a laptop or computer.  I had to purchase one of these cards separately, as it was not included in package.
• An auxiliary input.  The package does include an auxiliary cable to hook up transmitter to a device like an iPod or even your iPhone.
• A USB memory stick connector.  (USB stick is not included in package)

All of these inputs can be used to play music files or audio books stored on either the card, stick or a device like an iPod connected to the audio in jack.

The FM transmitter is easily plugged into a cigarette lighter in your car and has a swivel type arm and nice 1.8" screen for viewing information like song titles, battery info, switching songs, scanning for FM station, volume control etc. It comes with 2 USB ports which can be conveniently used to keep your iPhone, iPad and/or other devices charged. The device has various buttons for searching thru folders, scanning channels, skipping back and forth thru songs, selecting folders, songs, and equalizer modes.

There is a brief instruction sheet that comes with the product.  It takes some definite practice to figure out the buttons and modes.  A short press on the middle button in center allows for selecting the input modes: USB Stick, Bluetooth, or TF Card.  How long you press the button determines various options.  For instance, you can accept an incoming phone call by pressing the center button once.  Holding it for 3 seconds, rejects the call.  Pressing the same button twice, redials the last phone number. 
 

When plugged in, the transmitter can be used to connect to any unused FM radio station. First  select the unused FM station on the radio and then using the 'scan or CH button' capability on the KM29 select that same unused station on the device.  The transmitter will also connect to your Bluetooth device.  You will need to open Bluetooth settings on your iPhone and select the Nulaxy Transmitter initially, but after that it auto connects when you get in the car the next time.  When you play songs on your Bluetooth connected iPhone from your Music app or Pandora, you will hear the music through your car speakers. 

I have also tested playing from the TF card slot and USB memory stick port - both worked fine.  I did have to figure out the best way to put songs on the card and stick in a format that was easily read and navigated by the buttons on the KM29.  Both card and stick supported folders.  Key to file structure was to make sure that I used only mp3 music files.  I made folders of artists and nested albums for the artists and songs inside the artist folders.  I didn't test, but I would suspect you could have a genre folder too.  "Wav" format is also acceptable according to the instruction manual, but I didn't test.

Notes:  Basically to setup the USB stick and/or TF/microSD card, I used only mp3 files.  I used a USB hub to connect to my Mac laptop and to transfer files from my user directory's media files (Music folder) to each device using drag/drop.  I also ran a software application on my laptop called HiM  (Hidden Cleaner Improved by Fernando Iazeollo) to strip hidden files from the stick and the TF card.   I used artist> album> song file structure.  I also deleted and emptied trash or all mp4 songs and albums with  only one song inside.  The TF card is limited to 32GB.  Scrolling through the screens took time.  I could use the button in center by turning it to go thru a list on the screen or I could use the forward/back buttons to move through the list. 

The auxiliary in line allowed me to use an old iPod full of music to play thru my speakers and worked great. The auxiliary in line plays continually even while you might be playing another mode such as TF card or USB Stick. When I was playing music using the auxiliary input mode, the music continued to play when a phone call came in, but sound was lowered somewhat. This would not be optimal if you were listening to an audio book.  You would probably prefer a pause if a call came in at the same time. 

If you have connected your  iPhone via Bluetooth to the transmitter,  you merely need to press the center button to answer any incoming phone call.  This is a great hands off method of talking on your phone through the speakers in your car.  The music from your iPhone which might be playing is paused and resumes later after you hangup the call via the same button.

So for about $20, I can use my iPhone over existing car speakers with current radio system, stream my music playlists and songs or play Pandora, or use MP3 Books app to listen to an audio book.  I can also run Apple Maps or Google Maps to get voice navigation which also comes over the speakers.

This device is a great, inexpensive way to provide you with voice navigation, streaming music from your favorite road trip playlist, while having the ability to talk on your phone hands-free.  Just what I was looking for!

If you have any problems or questions about this particular device, don't hesitate to comment below.  I will try to answer any questions or concerns you might have.

Stay tuned for another blog in future -  How to use the "Shortcuts" app on iPhone to setup your road trip apps from one home screen button. When I get in my convertible and cruise down the road, I will be able to hit one button on my iPhone that will load in my music list - start playing the first song,  load in my mileage record app, text someone that I'm on my way, load in the directions and map to my destination, activate voice navigation and check the weather of my destination. 

Note:  For more info on HiM (Hidden Cleaner iMproved) -- a simple drag-and-drop utility that cleans and ejects USB devices like MP3 players, USB sticks... (and also local folders).

 go to https://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/52076/him 

















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Get Rid of Gmail ALL folder

Without a doubt organizing and keeping emails can be a can of worms. Gmail accounts store all our incoming mail by archiving it in an ALL folder on our Apple devices and in a similar folder in our Mail app on our Mac computers. In essence, the mail we want to keep and the mail we don't want to keep gets stored in this folder whether we want it or not.

Since I'm trying to organize and minimize my mail on all my devices, I have decided to find a way to get rid of some unnecessary folders stored in the mail apps and programs I use on my devices and my laptop.


There is a way to control what folders are visible in Gmail account(s) that are setup as IMAP accounts for use with Apple Mail.


To turn off the visibility of the Gmail All Mail folder in Apple Mail on your computer, perform the following steps:

Step 1: Log into your Gmail account using your Browser (Safari, Firefox, Chrome, ... whatever you use).

Step 2: Click on the "gear icon" located on the far right-handside of the browser window and click on the Settings option from the pop-down choices.

Step 3: Select the Labels tab.

UNCHECK the box to the right - "Show in IMAP" for the ALL MAIL folder.


Not only will this remove the superfluous folder from your Mail app, it will also keep Mail from downloading every single message twice.

I choose to have my Spam folder unchecked as well.

You can also keep Gmail from archiving all your messages on your mobile devices (iPad, iPhone, etc.) and allow you to delete messages from your the devices.


After setting up your Gmail account on your iPhone, select the Settings icon. Select Mail, Contacts, Calendars. Then select (youraccount@gmail.com) and change the Archive Messages setting to OFF.

Now when you delete Gmail messages on your iOS devices (iPads, iPhones, etc) they will be permanently deleted and not archived.

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iOS 5 Tip: Creating Your Own Keyboard Shortcut on iPhone, iPad

You can create your own keyboard shortcuts by going to the Settings on your iPhone or iPad that has been updated to iOS 5.

Select the Add Shortcut, enter some keys and the corresponding message or phrase that will replace that text shortcut when you type a message or note.

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Just returned from a great trip to Europe visiting Germany, The Netherlands, Belgium and France.  The weather started out rainy in Germany and The Netherlands, but eventually the sun did come out and the temperatures during the entire trip were pleasant and tolerable for summertime.

I used the iPad 2 to keep track of all my documents, itineraries, maps, phone numbers and travel plans.  I also had my iPhone along, but found the handy iPad screen to be easier to see and zoom in on the various city maps.  I kept my iPhone in airplane mode and used only with wifi connections to avoid any large data download fees that would be associated with 3Gs network mode.  I felt confident that if needed for that emergency call, that it could be retrieved from my pocket and used.  My son also reminded me that I could always use a hotel or restaurant to call a cab when needed.

My husband had purchased the maps for Europe for his handheld GPS unit.  On the occasions when I didn't go along with him and my daughter, they managed to get lost.  Once he forgot to turn off the GPS unit while they were out exploring Amsterdam's many museums. They walked in the wrong direction when leaving the museum only to realize that my daughter had dropped her paper map somewhere along the walk, and he had no power left to consult his GPS.  When I was along, I was able to wake up my iPad, run GoodReader app where I had conveniently downloaded the city maps in pdf form for offline viewing.  We were always able to find our way.

I find that the best way to travel is to pre-plan by finding city maps, travel ideas and such from the internet sites and uploading these to Google Docs.  I am then able to download these to my devices as needed for the cities that we visit using wifi or pre-load all of them prior to leaving the US.   I also kept my other itineraries for accommodations and travel loaded for easy access.  All the important confirmation numbers an such were very easy to access online or offline from my iPad or iPhone.   If you have the mobile me email account, you can also email any pdf files to yourself before you leave and have access to those documents offline as well from your iPhone or iPad.   I would have liked to use my iPhone with some of the travel apps I had downloaded while out and about, but didn't want to take a chance on incurring large fees on my phone bill, so I studied suggestions while using wifi in advance of the days outings.

We all downloaded an mp3 guide to the Louvre Museum and tried using our headsets to listen to the tour while exploring the museum.  The Louvre is a great museum to see and we saw Mona and Venus, the two attractions that draw the most crowds.  Everyone was crowded around the Mona Lisa trying to take an iPhone photo alongside.  The number of iPhones I saw on this trip was astounding.

Here is a photo, my granddaughter took while in The Louvre Museum with my iPhone - she called it - "Baby World."

And of course, on the ten hour flight from the US to Europe and back, the granddaughters were easily entertained with Talking Tom, coloring apps and some favorite games.  They also texted messages from the ship to their family while using wifi and the TextFree app.  The ship we were on had excellent wifi coverage, so we were always connected via iPad, iPhones and MacBook Airs.  

As I sit here today, I am longing for the new iOS 5 that will allow me more features for my future travels.  I am envisioning that life abroad can be entirely possible if I am able to stay connected to family, friends and the internet.  

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International Charges on iPhone

I've decided to outline some of the things I learned today, about using your iPhone abroad.

If you wish to use your iPhone for voice, text messaging, email, surfing the web or using apps that access the internet, while you are in Edge or 3G mode, then you will be charged.

• If you receive a VoiceMail, you will be billed per minute and if you listen to that voicemail, you will be billed per minute.  Note: You can have this Voicemail disabled by calling AT&T.  It is nice to have this feature, assuming you don't have a lot of friends calling and leaving you messages all the time.  A good reason to consider leaving this option enabled would be if you need to hear from someone back home. 
• Any calls you make overseas to overseas or the US will incur a charge per minute for each call based on the roaming fees associated with that country.  To receive discounted per minute roaming rates, you can take out a World Traveler Plan costing $5.99 per month or you can be charged the standard rates for that country which a generally higher rate for the countries without taking out this plan.  Therefore, if you just plan to make a few calls or only for emergency, it might not benefit you to also have the additional $5.99 monthly plan.
• Text messages are received and billed as well.  Check the ATT site for international costs and plans.  Usually text message options will offer a cheaper alternative to incurring costs for lengthy voice calls.
• When using email, surfing the web, streaming movies, or using apps that rely on data transmission you can rack up some pretty hefty charges.  If you do not use these services on your iPhone while in the voice mode and only while using wifi, you can avoid these added costs.  You should try to take advantage of free hotspots and inexpensive wifi services in cafes, hotels and restaurants during your trip.  If you plan to access these services while under Edge or 3G, then it is advisable to get a plan offered for international usage which currently includes:  

• 50 MB for $24.99 Monthly Charge
• 125 MB for $49.99 Monthly Charge
• 225 MB for $99.99 Monthly Charge
• 800 MB for 199.99 Monthly Charge.  
• Once you exceed the data by 1MB, you will be billed $10 for an additional 10MB 

• Note:  The only way to keep your iPhone from automatically transmitting data is to keep both the "Data Roaming" and the "Fetch New Data" settings to OFF. Even if you change these settings to the OFF position, you will still be able to use your phone for voice and text. You also have the option of using wifi when available. To turn off data roaming please select Settings-General-Network-Data Roaming. To turn off data fetch Settings, Mail-Contacts-Calenders, Fetch New Data, Change push to off and select to Fetch Manually. 
  
  Note:  The monthly plans for discounted rates per minute on voice calls and plans for data downloads can be added or removed at any time and do not involve a cancellation fee.  
     
  You are able to add and remove international features by accessing your online account or calling AT&T International Care at 1-800-335-4685. or if you are out of country you can dial 001-916-843-4685. 
  
  Note: 
  
  If you need to speak to an International Care Representative you can always chat with one online at the AT&T site. You can also send us an email by logging onto your online account at att.com/mywireless>contact us. Or you can reach a representative by dialing +1-916-843-4685 while you are outside of the country.
  
  
  To reduce costs while overseas consider using wifi when available, using Skype or FaceTime type apps when wifi is available to make your calls, emailing or texting while using wifi.  If you need navigation, see if your current handheld GPS devices are up-to-date with maps of the regions you plan to visit and use instead of incurring charges for downloading maps while using 3G or edge connection on your iPhone.  Yes, Google Maps can be expensive to use while on data roaming charges are incurring for large data downloads of maps.  I often download maps and use with GoodReader in the form of pdf file.  That way, I can zoom in on city maps much like we did when we used paper maps.  This can also be done by storing your pdf maps in your iBooks and can be accessed without using wifi or expensive data roaming plans.
  
  
  Happy traveling.  Remember with a little pre-planning you can enjoy your trip and avoid any unexpected expenses or surprises when you get home.
  
  
  
  
  
  

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Remembering the PRINT "HELLO" Days - Exploring Basic! App

Last night I downloaded the iPad app called Basic! from the iTunes store to our iPad.  It brought back so many memories of the days I spent standing in line at the University of Texas, waiting to submit keypunch cards for an assignment.  My husband and I explored this app, inputting and running some simple BASIC programs on the iPad, tapping RUN and watching the results as they appeared on the iPad screen.

We were able to recall some of the early basic commands like IF THEN, FOR NEXT and we even played with some of the more sophisticated commands like COLOR, PLOT and LINE.  The app also supplies a list of commands by type.  The Editor  and Terminal mode are easy to use.  The app has several coding examples built in and also allows you to save quite a few of your own programs within the app itself.  There demo programs are pretty good and by jarring our memory we were able to do some pretty nifty stuff on the iPad screen.   I'm sure there are quite a few 35 to 40 year old men and women that remember writing some of their first code to PRINT "Hello" on their first Apple or Radio Shack or Commodore or Amiga desktop computers.   

As we programmed we couldn't help but remember that we had lived in a marvelous time, experiencing almost the entire computer revolution from the huge mainframes at UT to the Macs of today.   We recalled
... the keypunch days - the agony of waiting in line to submit keypunch cards that took days to get back.
...  the times that we had a keypunch typo and standing in line to resubmit the cards
...  the stress of not having our program assignment finished by Friday, because the mainframe went down.  Such agony and stress.
...  our first Apple II, equipped with a tape input device
... to the evolution to today's methods of wireless transfer of data,  cloud technology
... and now iPads that you can use while lounging in bed or traveling the world.

I am so excited about this app, that I am going to try to find some old programs to run on my iPad.   If you ever wrote software or dabbled on some of the first computers running BASIC, I suggest trying out this fun app!  iTunes Link Here. Tweet

Addictive Game of Quotes Phrase Phrenzy - Fun iPad App

Just got back from short trip to test drive the new car and to play some Black Jack. While on my trip, I had the opportunity to try out a new app, Phase Phrenzy for iPad, by New Wave Digital.

Phase Phrenzy is a clever new game that tests your ability to remember some famous quotes and phrases from authors, books, movies, politicians and TV shows. It has a well-designed interface that allows you to drag little word magnets on the notepad on the refrigerator background. You have to place the word magnets in the correct order to form the well-known phrase or quote. You are given more words than are needed. There are three levels for challenging puzzle types: Easy, Medium and Hard. You are also timed. To go to the next quote, you must beat the timer. The timer also has hints. Each time you use a hint, you suffer a time penalty - losing valuable time to complete the quote.

The Easy and Medium level offers some words of the phrase.  The Hard level does not; you have to fill in the phrase from the word magnets without any context provided. The punctuation is provided in the phrase, but none of the words are capitalized thus making it a little more challenging to pick the right words. Once you have the word magnet in the right spot in the phrase, it sticks to that spot.

The only recommendation I would have since this is an iPad game is to use a larger font size for the word magnets. The overall game play is fun and addictive and challenging.

I would recommend this exciting new type word game for some great addictive fun.   It is a great game for kids as well and not only provides fun, but also introduces them to some great quotes. The game has over 1000 quotes and can provide hours of fun.

I loved playing this game!

You can download the app from the iTunes App Store by clicking here.

To visit the website, click here. Tweet

Using iPhone with LandRover LR4

We just received delivery of our new LandRover LR4.  It is our second LandRover and has a few new bells and whistles that weren't available on the LR3 that we had for a few years.   I love the ease to which one can connect their iPhone(s) via bluetooth and the new touch audio system that allows for access of music from my iPod or iPhone.

The LandRover LR4 allows mulitiple iPhone connection via bluetooth.  I believe that they allow up to 6 or 8 iPhones to be connected via the bluetooth.  One merely turns on their bluetooth feature on their iPhone, select 'Phone' on the dashboard or from the Main Menu on the dash display.  It takes a few seconds and once you see LandRover in the list of devices that you can connect to on your iPhone, select that LandRover.  Once it is connected the name of your network (AT&T) and your iPhone name will appear on the dash display.  It automatically downloads your contacts from your Address book into the memory of the LandRover.  In fact, all the contacts from each of the iPhones that you choose to connect via bluetooth will have their own PhoneBook available on the dash display.

You can answer a call by touching the green phone icon on the dash display or on your steering wheel.  You can type in a phone number on the keypad on the display screen or access a phone number by scrolling the Phonebook on the dash display and then clicking on the green phone icon.  To hang up you merely touch the red phone icon on the dash or steering wheel. 

The LandRover will automatically display the last phone connected if it is still within range.  Once you get out of range, it will then recognize another phone that has been connected via bluetooth in the car and load in the Phonebook that corresponds to that phone.   This is a great improvement over the bluetooth system that was present with the LR3 model.  This allows both my husband and I to use our phones when the other one is not in range.  So when I am out and about my phone is connected and vice versa.  There is no need to turn off bluetooth and reconnect the iPhones each time we enter the car.  It remembers each iPhone.  

The LandRover LR4 also has an audio touch system and special connectors in the center console.  One of the connectors is made by LandRover and with the special LandRover cable we can directly connect an iPod or iPhone.  This connection shows up in the Auxillary Audio Section of the Main Menu as an option for audio.  The really neat thing is that it automatically loads your entire iPod music library of mp3's into the LandRover dash display.  You can browse your iPod/iPhone music library by playlist, artist, song and play in various modes with functions like: random, repeat, etc.  The name of the song that is playing is displayed on the audio screen.  Next the song is a right arrow key and you can touch this to display - artist, album title, genre, etc.   Below is a photo of the songlist display on the dash:

Another connector in the center console is for a direct connection for a memory stick.  We have one on order and I will let you know in a future blog or comment on this blog how that works out for storing music and using with the dash display.

I also tested the ability to use my iPhone while connected to the audio connector.  It worked great - I was able to play songs, make phone calls using the dash display Phonebook and buttons to call out and to also receive a call.  The song mutes while you are on the phone and then once you hang up or disconnect then the song is resumed.  If you want to run another app or browse the internet with your iPhone while music is being played through your car speakers, you can do that too!

Additionally -  The iPhone also charges while it is connected via the audio connector cable!

The car has some other cool features like auto dimming 'your bright' headlights when other cars approach on highway, a pretty good navigation system, HD radio, satellite radio capability, single CD player and front/rear and side cameras for aids in parking and backing up.

Overall, I am pleased with the improvements and the noticeably more stable ride.  Looking forward to a journey to test all the features.  My husband is anxious to take it into rock climbing mode. Tweet

What to Do While Standing in LIne

When you are waiting in line, time can pass by quite slowly.   This is especially true when you are waiting in a line that is a bit on the long side.  But in this ever-expanding world of technology, it seems there is always something at one's fingertips.  Some of the technology you may have on hand with you at any given time, and that may help pass the time, might be: a cell phone, a PSP or other gaming device, iPod or MP3 player, Kindle, or even a camera.

Having a cell phone this day in age is like having a mini computer.  You can connect to the internet to accomplish all sorts of tasks.  While you are waiting in line, you can access the internet and check your Facebook, Twitter, or other social networking sites. One can easily update his or her status, letting everyone know that standing in line is boring, and you prefer being on Facebook.   Or you can upload those pictures you have meant to update, send out that e-mail, or finally add those people. While also online, go ahead and pay some bills, or order that item you have had your eye on.   Or, check your bank account to make sure you have the money to cover a shopping spree. You could even download ringtones, music, games, or wallpaper while you are waiting.

While also on your phone, there are several other things to help pass the time that do not involve the internet.  For instance, you can take an updated picture of yourself.  Whether we like to admit it or not, everyone is a tad bit vain, and we like to have pictures of ourselves. You remember those games that you downloaded?   Go ahead and play them.  Try to get the high score, or beat the pre-existing one. You could also text your friends. You could make sure that plans you have made are still on, or ask a question that has been on your mind.

Some people may also have a PSP (Play Station Portable) or other hand-held gaming device with them. Pop in a game, turn the sound off if you need to, and play.   Some devices even allow you to play movies on them, so you could finish that movie that you started three weeks ago.  You can always plug-in a pair of headphones, and listen to either the movie or game without disturbing those around you.

IPods and other MP3 players are also popular devices.   These allow you to listen to music or podcasts.   Some even transmit radio.   And, like the hand-held gaming device, you could even watch movies or music videos.  Some even give an option to download new items, so you can update your musical selections while you are waiting.

A Kindle is also another popular gadget one might have.  With a Kindle, one can read a book anywhere, without having to tote a heavy book around.   Waiting in line is a great opportunity to finish that chapter you are trying to finish, or even those last few pages of that book.  Most gadgets like this can connect to the internet, so you can download more books you want, or update your wish list.

Some people carry cameras around. You never know when that perfect opportunity to take a picture will be.   Sometimes, we do not delete those pictures that are of no use to us. While waiting in this long line, you could pass the time by going through the pictures on your camera, and deleting the ones that you do not need.  You can also change your settings, to make sure you are taking the best pictures and videos you can.

Cell phones, PSPs or other hand-held gaming devices, iPods and MP3 players, Kindles, and cameras are great devices to help pass the time. With all these devices, who can ever say, "I'm bored" again? These devices are the perfect size to take anywhere, even while standing in line. Tweet