Category Archives: iPhone

Enabling the Google Advanced Protection Program with iOS

Required

Setup

  1. Plug the Bluetooth bridge into your computer. Wait for the Yellow LED to stop blinking. If it does not stop blinking (indicating a problem installing the drivers), try a different computer
  2. In Chrome, add the DIGIPASS SecureClick Manager app to Chrome
  3. Launch DIGIPASS SecureClick Manager and click "Add SecureClick"
  4. Follow the instructions and enter PIN "000000" when prompted
  5. Enable the Advanced Protection Program and pair your U2F tokens. The initial setup only allows the configuration of two tokens, but additional tokens can be added the normal way (My Account → Sign-in & security → 2-Step Verification → ADD SECURITY KEY)
  6. On your iOS device, launch the Smart Lock App
  7. Login to your Google account
  8. When prompted to pair your security key, hold down the on the SecureClick until the LEDs flash red, select SClick U2F in Smart Lock, and enter PIN "000000".
  9. Your iOS device is now authenticated and your SecureClick is now paired as a BLE device
  10. Open your Google apps, and enable the account you authenticated in Smart Lock

Notes

You do not need to install the DIGIPASS Secure Click Manager app on your iOS devices. The Google Smart Lock app will handle the pairing.

Enabling Advanced Proteciton clears you 2 Step Verificaiotn methods, so you must re-enroll andy additional security keys.

The only feature I miss is contact syncing.

I had problems using the Bluetooth bridge on my macOS computers for initial setup, but it has started working on High Sierra (10.13.2) and El Capitan (10.11.6).

Disabling the iOS Cellular Data Plan Popup

iOS Cellular Data Plan DialogDisabling the iOS Cellular Data Plan popup that asks if you would like to sign up for a data plan can be disabled by turning on Airplane Mode. Just remember to turn your Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth back on.

Story

My wife and I both have iPad Mini 3s. Since we are usually connected to Wi-Fi, we share a T-Mobile SIM that we keep in the iPad is traveling and likely to utilize the cellular data. I got fed up with iOS constantly asking about a cellular data plan, so I figured out that Airplane Mode stops this.

Customizing Pebble Time Notifications on iOS

This was tested on Pebble Time HW 8.12 (snowy22), Pebble Time FW v3.2, Pebble Time app v3.1, iOS 8.4, and an iPhone 6.

The latest Pebble guide I could fine for setting up notifications on iOS (May 13, 2015) is not accurate, making it a trial and error exercise to customize notifications that get pushed to the watch.

Notifications are not dependent on the "Show on Lock Screen" setting or the "Alert Style" settings stated in the article. Alerts on the Pebble Time are actually tied to what appears in the Notification Center.

To disable notifications from a particular app, go to Settings → Notifications → <app> → Show in Notification Center → No Recent Items. When this is set to 1, 5, or 10, notifications will show up on your Pebble.

Security Note: If you’ve turned off the "Show Previews" option so text messages an email contents are not displayed on the Lock Screen, the message contents will still be displayed on the Pebble Time since it pulls content directly from the Notification Center.

Pebble Time with iOS Review

7/22/15 Update: Items addressed in FW version 3.2 (released July 22, 2015) have been struck out.

This applies to Pebble Time HW 8.12 (snowy22), Pebble Time FW v3.1, Pebble Time app v3.1, iOS 8.4, and an iPhone 6.

I’ve been using my Pebble Time for about two weeks. It works great as a convenient notification/reminder device. Even though it is marketed as a "smartwatch" it is by no means, a smartphone replacement.

Pros

  • Long battery life – I still charge my watch every night, but it has never reported under 90% charge.
  • Subtle notifications – I find the small vibrations more noticeable than a phone.
  • Convenient Calendar Access – pressing down quickly shows me the next appointment on my calendar.
  • Lightweight (1.4 oz. with band, 0.8 oz. without band)
  • Good range – I reliably receive notifications when I am at the at or beyond the "typical" Bluetooth range of 10m.

Cons

  • Dim Backlight – the backlight provides minimal illumination
  • Reflective Glass – glare on the glass makes the screen difficult to read at many angles
  • Dependence on the built in iOS Calendar app

Areas for Improvement

These are items that Pebble could improve with a simple Firmware update.

  • Customizable Backlight Timer – the backlight only stays on for about 3 seconds.
  • On Demand Do Not Disturb Activation – when going into a movie or important meeting, I’d like a simple option to turn off all notifications
  • Snooze on calendar notifications

Other Thoughts

I have not had any connectivity problems between my Pebble Time and my phone. I have not had to re-pair it or had any issues due to walking out of range of my phone.

iOS Captive Portal Problems

Every once in a while, my iPhone 6 running iOS 8.2, refuses to automatically bring up a captive portal authentication page. Bringing up a browser didn’t help, because my phone would automatically route data over the cellular network.

The workaround is as simple as disabling "Auto-Login" for the specified network.

  1. Go to Settings → Wi-Fi → <Network> Info
  2. Disable "Auto-Login"
  3. Open Safari or any other web browser
  4. Go to http://captive.apple.com or other unencrypted page (e.g. http://www.msftncsi.com, http://nist.gov)

If you use LastPass, this also allows you to use the LastPass extension to auto fill captive portal authentication fields.