Walk me through using old iphone like an ipod
November 7, 2022 7:00 AM Subscribe
I'm giving my dad my old iphone 8 so he can put music from his computer on this device and listen to it in the car or on walks. He has windows 10 with itunes. I will wipe my old phone and make sure itunes is on it. Do you need apple music to play downloaded songs these days? How (with a cable) do you get downloaded stuff from your computer to your iphone? I use spotify these days and haven't had to do this in like a decade.
Really, most basic write up would be helpful of both how to set up the iphone for this use, get the music to the iphone (via cable would be better than wifi, because their wifi is rural and slooooooooooooow). I don't have apple music and haven't used itunes in a very long time. I want this to Just Work when i give it to him.
Really, most basic write up would be helpful of both how to set up the iphone for this use, get the music to the iphone (via cable would be better than wifi, because their wifi is rural and slooooooooooooow). I don't have apple music and haven't used itunes in a very long time. I want this to Just Work when i give it to him.
You don't need an Apple Music subscription, but the app itself is called Apple Music. When you load mp3s on the phone, this is where they will show up. You do not need iTunes on the phone, just on the computer, so you are all ready.
Open iTunes and change the settings so it does not manage your music files for you. Next add the folder(s) with the files to your library. Then plug in the phone. Open the phone in iTunes by finding the rectangular icon in the top left of the window. Then you can add songs by track and press the sync button. I find it will sometimes fail the first time but keep trying to sync and it will usually work eventually.
posted by soelo at 7:14 AM on November 7, 2022
Open iTunes and change the settings so it does not manage your music files for you. Next add the folder(s) with the files to your library. Then plug in the phone. Open the phone in iTunes by finding the rectangular icon in the top left of the window. Then you can add songs by track and press the sync button. I find it will sometimes fail the first time but keep trying to sync and it will usually work eventually.
posted by soelo at 7:14 AM on November 7, 2022
To start with, Apple Music and the Music app are two different things - the former is the paid-for subscription and the latter is the Mac app you use to get at your music library (kudos to Apple for making this super not confusing</sarcasm>). For a Windows computer, and for now at least, you still use iTunes on a Windows system. (It's not called Music yet on Windows, but it will be sometime next year, it seems.) You'll install it and connect the phone via the cable and it will sync. There's some Apple documentation here - it pretty well describes the process. (You can also sync from the computer via WiFi but the cable's probably easiest.) iPhones (and iPods afaik) have never offered sync via Explorer directly but there might be some third-party apps that can do it.. no idea what those would be, though, on a Windows system so can't recommend anything there.
You can get media into iTunes via drag and drop, or it will still rip CDs if he's got a CD drive. Or, of course, he can buy stuff off of the iTunes Store.
posted by mrg at 7:19 AM on November 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
You can get media into iTunes via drag and drop, or it will still rip CDs if he's got a CD drive. Or, of course, he can buy stuff off of the iTunes Store.
posted by mrg at 7:19 AM on November 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
I have used CopyTrans Manager for years and years. This is as simple as a drag and drop operation, the way it should be. :) The only requirement is that Itunes be installed on your computer. You don't even need to open it, however. It just needs to be there. Parts of CopyTrans are paid apps but the music part is free. It doesn't install malware or bloatware.
posted by ashbury at 7:24 AM on November 7, 2022 [2 favorites]
posted by ashbury at 7:24 AM on November 7, 2022 [2 favorites]
trying to get data off my old iPad to my windows 10 PC to my newer iPad with a cable it wouldn't work
This is the opposite of what the OP is trying to do. Getting files from an iOS device to a PC has never been easy (well photos used to be). Going from PC to iOS/iPadOS still works the same way it always has.
To start with, Apple Music and the Music app are two different things
Not on my iPhone 13. The phone app is just called Apple Music and holds all of my mp3 files that I have transferred from my PC to my phone. I do not have the Apple Music subscription but still use the app.
posted by soelo at 7:27 AM on November 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
This is the opposite of what the OP is trying to do. Getting files from an iOS device to a PC has never been easy (well photos used to be). Going from PC to iOS/iPadOS still works the same way it always has.
To start with, Apple Music and the Music app are two different things
Not on my iPhone 13. The phone app is just called Apple Music and holds all of my mp3 files that I have transferred from my PC to my phone. I do not have the Apple Music subscription but still use the app.
posted by soelo at 7:27 AM on November 7, 2022 [1 favorite]
If he has a spotify subscription (or you have a spare spot of the family plan) it might be a LOT easier to install spotify and use the downloads / playlists on that app. The ability to search and download music on wifi and take with you is excellent and very user friendly.
posted by bbqturtle at 8:03 AM on November 7, 2022
posted by bbqturtle at 8:03 AM on November 7, 2022
Response by poster: nope, he doesn't have spotify. and a lot of the music is really niche that isn't on spotify.
posted by misanthropicsarah at 8:30 AM on November 7, 2022
posted by misanthropicsarah at 8:30 AM on November 7, 2022
Something I don't think I've seen mentioned is to be sure to remove the sim card from the phone if it hasn't been removed already. This will take it off the cellular network. Any apps or services that require Internet will work with wifi, if desired.
Using wifi to transfer from PC to home has nothing to do with rural Internet speeds... it's strictly a matter of the wifi network speed in the house. But cable is probably faster.
Despite what some have said here, Apple Music (the service) and Music (the app) are indeed two different things. You don't need Apple Music to use the Music app. If you have Apple Music (the service) it is accessed via Music (the app).
posted by lhauser at 5:42 PM on November 7, 2022
Using wifi to transfer from PC to home has nothing to do with rural Internet speeds... it's strictly a matter of the wifi network speed in the house. But cable is probably faster.
Despite what some have said here, Apple Music (the service) and Music (the app) are indeed two different things. You don't need Apple Music to use the Music app. If you have Apple Music (the service) it is accessed via Music (the app).
posted by lhauser at 5:42 PM on November 7, 2022
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I'd have dad put his music on an USB stick, send it to you, and then do the upload/download thing from better non-slow wifi.
This previously has some decent ideas
posted by Windopaene at 7:10 AM on November 7, 2022