Filed under: Hacks, How-tos, Tips and tricks, Odds and ends
Use a Red Bull can as a radio interference shield
Yes, someone has fashioned a "shield" out of an emptied and carved up Red Bull can, and supposedly it works like a charm -- just fashion it around the dock that came with the iPhone, use a little doublestick tape to make sure it stays on there (and I would maybe put some around the edges, too, so you don't slice your fingers open every time you pull the iPhone off the dock), and no more buzzing sound.
The maker does wonder if it would affect the actual signal of the iPhone at all, but it hasn't so far. If you've got a Red Bull can around to cut up and are driven as nuts as I am by that buzzing noise, here's your makeshift solution. The other option is to buy speakers that don't buzz, of course, but this seems a lot cheaper.
![TUAW [Cafepress]](http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.tuaw.com/media/tuaw-cafepress-promo.png)
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
jay said 9:07AM on 6-26-2008
this is great! now i just need to break down and drink a red bull.
i wonder if this will work in my car? i have an ipod connection but when i hook the iphone up it interferes with the car stereo...if i can shape one to fit the outside of the iphone case it sits in while plugged into the car it just might work!
Reply
SlaunchaMan said 9:24AM on 6-26-2008
Or, use a magnet in a USB cable:
http://lifehacker.com/397013/magnets-kill-the-cell-phone-speaker-buzz
Reply
Aaron said 9:29AM on 6-26-2008
You can get the same effect by using a static bag that a harddrive or any computer part comes in. My EZ Pass bag works great for blocking the interference and still lets the phone take calls. All you need is a small piece near the black plastic area on the back.
Reply
Kevin said 9:40AM on 6-26-2008
Does it work with a Diet Red Bull can ?
I really don't like it when it's not.
Hm.
Reply
Georg said 9:52AM on 6-26-2008
You americans are funny: leaving my iPhone AND Mac on, while I sleep to check email every 15 minutes.
Did you ever thing of your CO2-footprint?
Because of guys like you, we need more nuclear power plants.
My 2 cents. Shut the stuff of, while you sleep!
Your utilities bill must be way to low.
Reply
Kev Orng said 10:50AM on 6-26-2008
Speakers, monitors, television sets all suck power even when turned off. I usually turn off the power bar to keep my power usage as low as possible. Old CRT monitors are the worst; at work, I endure the scorn of my coworkers by turning off monitors every night. I'm usually the last to leave, and I shut off 16 monitors every night. Drives them crazy because they turn on their computers in the morning and then sit there wondering why the computer isn't coming on. (that's 16 monitors for 5 people, by the way)
That being said, I used to get crazy interference on my computer speakers from a local CB or Ham radio operator (not sure which), even if I turned the speakers off. If this guy was trying to talk to the truckers, I could sometimes hear it plain as day. Freaked me out the first few times to hear a voice coming through my speakers in the middle of the night.
brian said 12:53PM on 6-26-2008
Georg. Your statement is so idiotic on so many levels.
FIRST:
Were does this say anything about leaving stuff on while sleeping? This is used to prevent interference during my work day, at my desk.
SECOND:
Let me quote you: "Because of guys like you"
Let me tell you about: "guys like me"
Carbon Foot Print:
I do my part. I work from a home office which is 10x12 feet and needs no climate control unless it gets really cold--at which point I only heat the small room I am in. I have one compact florescent light which is only turned on as it gets dark. I do nearly all my meeting via video conference or conference call. I ride my bike for all errands I need to do and I am a vegetarian (yes, raising livestock for humans is a leader in greenhouse gas emissions). I had to make a lot of lifestyles changes to do all this but it is worth it. By not commuting in a car, flying airplanes, or working in a huge inefficient office high-rise I can safely say my Carbon footprint is pretty low aside from me not existing at all.
During the evening, if the house it too hot or cold, we confine ourselves to one room in the basement of the house that requires no air conditioning and very little heat because it is under ground at a steady 68 degrees.
Yes, as a whole, americans consume way too much power per person but some of us do what we can. Let's not stereotype.
And, yes, actually my energy bills are low. In a given day the only things that use electricity are my computer, iphone, network (all required for my job) and a refrigerator in the kitchen. THAT's IT!
THIRD:
I have nothing against kids, don't know if you have them, but if you do have them consider that for each one you have your increasing your overall carbon footprint. You made the choice of bringing another life that needs all the earth resources you need. So by having just one kid your doubling your footprint.
Sorry for the rant but my little iPhone being on all night, even though it's not, would make little difference it terms of the energy savings I make in other places.
Georg said 2:08AM on 6-27-2008
I guess I own an apology! Sorry for my comment and my stereotyp thinking! I'm impressed by your carbon footprint.
I traveled to the US couple of times and all offices I've seen left there Mac and Monitors on all night. I don't know why. They were just to lazy to turn em off.
So I assumed you are the same kind of user.
You said "it sits on your desk every night" so I was assuming that the phone does that while you sleep. Sorry about misinterpreting that.
Enjoy your red-bulled-iPhone & have a great week-end! :-)
Adam Williams said 9:51AM on 6-26-2008
Why do you keep your speakers on in the first place? That's just a waste of electricity.
Reply
stainboy said 9:57AM on 6-26-2008
i'm part of the setup crew at the local flat track roller derby. on bout nights someone's iPhone will inevitably emit the buzzing through the PA system. it's loud and freaks everyone out. i've considered putting a sign on the door to tell iPhone users to put their phone in airplane mode (or better yet, turn it off) when entering the arena.
Reply
Tony said 10:37AM on 6-26-2008
Makes me wonder how the iphone got licensed with all the various RF emmissions laws about.
I've had a lot of phones and only the iphone actually interferes with electrical equipment in that manner.. it's really annoying.
Skeuomorph said 12:39PM on 6-26-2008
The "GSM buzz" was an issue long before the iPhone. It affected users of GSM-based carriers Cingular and T-Mobile, but not Verizon, Sprint, and Nextel, because those are not GSM systems. So many users switched from those to the iPhone, that the newcomers associated the buzz with iPhone rather than GSM. But, Nokia, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson GSM phones, especially in a marginal signal area (where the phone has to pump more power to talk GSM) all introduce this buzz in particular with computer speakers from a few years ago.
This article, for example, pre-dates the iPhone:
http://www.smartdevicecentral.com/article/that+crazy+gsm+buzz/199379_1.aspx
Why does this buzz particularly affect older computer speakers? Because unlike home stereo speakers, older design computer speakers have a long non-amplified run of wire from your sound card that acts as an antenna going to the speaker, then that interference is amplified by the amp in the speaker itself. Home stereos have very short input level runs between components, and the long speaker run is already amplified.
Kev Orng said 10:25AM on 6-26-2008
Did Red Bull pay for this advertising, or is there something about Red Bull cans that's different than other cans?
If it's the former, then I would look at it like one of those recipes that lists specific brands of margarine; some people might run out to the store to get the type listed, but I'll use the non-name margarine in the fridge, thanks.
If it's the latter, have these modified cans been duly tested by the appropriate food safety agencies to ensure they aren't leaching carcinogens?
Reply
Matt said 10:37AM on 6-26-2008
I think it's the size. Red Bull cans are tall (meaning they'd cover the whole length of the iPhone) and skinny (meaning you wouldn't have to cut the can to size).
badtzmaru said 11:53AM on 6-26-2008
Hey it's not size that counts, it's the .. oh nevermind.
jan said 10:54AM on 6-26-2008
why would you want to leave the speakers on in the first place? do you use them as an alarm?
Reply
brian said 11:56AM on 6-26-2008
You leave speakers on so you can hear sound come out of them like music or video, or interface sounds form the computer. The buzzing happens while if sounds is coming out of not. Also, my cisco phone speaker is on all the time and the iPhone makes it freak out.
jan said 12:20PM on 6-26-2008
i guess i knew that you'd leave the speakers on to hear sound... ;-)
my point was the same that adam williams made above (didn't see that before i posted) - given that the speakers draw power the whole night, if you can switch them off, then why leave them on in the first place (when you don't want to hear sound that is).
Bryan Walls said 11:28AM on 6-26-2008
I recently dropped a coffee travel mug with metal lining over my iPhone to act as a Faraday cage and cut out the obnoxious noise on my speakers. It worked for the noise, but the iPhone got really hot! Of course, it was killing reception as well as noise, and the poor phone was trying to talk to the towers with all its might.
I may try a half shield.
Reply
Lars Hoel said 11:42AM on 6-26-2008
For heaven's sake just use Airplane Mode. End of problem, end of discussion.
Reply