Images from the web as iPhone wallpaper
Last week, we pointed out the good news that The Iconfactory had resized their entire collection of desktop images for use with the iPhone (how cool does Nibbler look on my iPhone at right? Very cool). The problem is that it's kind of a pain to get them onto your iPhone.The method I came up with is the same process that's described on Gedblog:
- Download the image to your desktop computer
- Drop it into iPhoto
- Sync your iPhone, making sure that it's going to synchronize pictures, including your new desktops
- On the iPhone, go to Settings > Wallpaper. Select your library of images
- Navigate to the image you're after and select "Set as wallpaper."
Update - Reader Michael writes, "...right click on the image in Safari and then select 'Add image to iPhoto library.'" Thanks, Michael!
Now that you know how, why not check out the iPhone Wallpapers Flickr group?


Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Michael Curtis said 2:23PM on 7-02-2007
If you're really clever you could just right click on the image in safari and then select "Add image to iPhoto library"
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dave said 2:28PM on 7-02-2007
Michael: Wow. I use Firefox exclusively, so I didn't know that was an option. Thanks so much!
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Justin said 2:29PM on 7-02-2007
I will admit that I was a bit disappointed when playing with an iPhone at the Apple store (I was denied a purchase since they appear completely sold out in Austin), and no amount of tapping, dragging, flipping, or pressing would allow me to download a picture of Katherine Heigl to use as that display iPhone's wallpaper. At least now I know my devious plot was foiled by a software limitation and not my own technical limitations.
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univac said 2:38PM on 7-02-2007
Here's my wallpaper on my iPhone. Unhappy Mac!!
http://flickr.com/photos/82098553@N00/696864955/
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Pedro Carvalho said 2:51PM on 7-02-2007
Very interesting:
http://www.theiphoneblog.com/2007/07/01/iphone-unlocked-accidently/
http://blog.iphoneunlocking.com/
http://www.iphoneunlocking.com/
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Mike said 2:52PM on 7-02-2007
I'd suggest making a special "iPhone Wallpapers" album in your iPhoto, so you don't have to sync all your photos.
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James said 3:05PM on 7-02-2007
The fact that the iPhone doesn't have a file manager (and thus doesn't allow you to download random files, like pictures, from the web) seems to me to make the iPhone a very secure phone. Yet IT deptartments are refusing to support them due to vague "security concerns". Sounds fishy.
Anyway, I think a a contextual menu that allows just picutres to be saved to the photo manager would be a nice compromise. Software update!
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Aron Trimble said 3:18PM on 7-02-2007
Does anybody hear that...? It sounds like a slow news day...
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Billy K said 3:24PM on 7-02-2007
One of the biggest disappointments with the iPhone so far for me has been how married it is to iTunes and iPhoto. I really don't want iTunes to launch every time I dock it. And I really, REALLY don't want to be stuck with using iPhoto to get an image on my phone (yes, I know that's how it's been done on the iPod for years. I don't like that either.)
I'm just not a big iPhoto fan. You might even say I detest it.
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thomas said 3:30PM on 7-02-2007
A 600$ phone, which supposedly offers "the internet. on your phone." And it can't even download images from the browser. A little weird, even my 3 year old k700 running opera mini can do that.
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James said 3:38PM on 7-02-2007
The iPhone will also sync with Aperture or a random pictures folder of your choosing. The only 100% mandatory tie is iTunes... iPhoto is optional.
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holo said 3:39PM on 7-02-2007
you guys do know that you can sync the phone to a folder full of images instead right? Just like an ipod...
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MUTE MATT said 4:00PM on 7-02-2007
You can also set the wallpaper while browsing your photo albums on the iPhone by clicking the icon in the lower left hand corner.
And I second the idea of making an iPhone album in iPhoto or Aperature so you're not having to sync all your photos.
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Billy K said 4:04PM on 7-02-2007
@13 holo -
I don't believe that's true. If so, I haven't seen that option. I'll check again when I get home, because that would great.
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ryan said 5:36PM on 7-02-2007
where can i find that nibbler picture?
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JeffDM said 9:19PM on 7-02-2007
Billy K, I think you can set iTunes to not launch on docking. I don't have an iPhone, but there is a checkbox to turn off "open iTunes when this iPod is connected" for my iPods.
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ketsugi said 10:38PM on 7-02-2007
Wait, so I can't send a file to the iPhone via Bluetooth? I'm very happy with my iPod being tied to iTunes, but a phone really needs to be seen as a standalone device and not something that needs to be tethered to a desktop. Not everyone who has a phone uses a computer as well...
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Sam Katz said 11:52PM on 7-02-2007
I am not understanding what the problem is. E-mail the photos.
--Sam
P.S CNET confirms it does support bluetooth file transfer.
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thememyphone said 5:30PM on 7-09-2007
Below is another great site which offers the most iPhone wallpapers so far:
ThemeMyPhone -- Free iPhone Wallpapers
Cheers!
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sandy said 9:06AM on 7-11-2007
more great iPhone wallpapers at InterfaceLIFT
http://iphone.interfacelift.com/
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