At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona we met with Eurotek, and Italian company that manufactures mobile phone cases and accessories. They presented their new Dolce Vita branded products, an iPhone case with an integrated battery which you can use to recharge your iPhone when your battery runs out.

We know that iPhone OS 3.2 exists and that the iPad will debut with the said firmware. There has also been evidence to support rumors of an iPhone OS 4.0 being in the works as well. So, which of the two iPhone OS versions will unify both Apple devices? According to The Loop, it might be neither.

Given the current timeline Apple is working with (iPhone OS 4.0 expected to debut this June with the release of the 4G iPhone), it’s highly likely that the particular iPhone OS which will tie-up both devices won’t be available until iPhone OS 4.1. We’ve heard a lot from iPhone OS 3.2, and it might not be made available on the iPhone given that it’s got specific features and settings that’ll only work with the iPad. Add to that the possibility of iPhone OS 4.0 becoming available as early as June, just a few months away from the release of the iPad, we’re starting to doubt it as well. With iPhone OS 4.1, on the other hand, they’ve got more than enough time to plan it out and develop it accordingly.

Anyway, this is pure speculation at the moment, and with Apple, you never really know. For what it’s worth, if ever firmware 3.2 doesn’t get released for the iPhone, I’m pretty sure there will be some resourceful folks out there who will be able to port the iPad OS to the Apple mobile phone.

[the loop via redmondpie]

No, this is not an external antenna accessory for the iPhone/iPod Touch nor is it a microphone plug-in. This is actually ThinkFlood’s latest IR accessory for the iPhone, the RedEye mini. This ultra-compact Infrared (IR) dongle easily attaches to the 3.5mm jack of any iPhone/iPod Touch (and is also compatible with the upcoming iPad), and when coupled with the free RedEye app available at the App Store, allows users to convert their iPhone/iPod Touch into a universal remote.

Interested? The RedEye mini IR dongle for the iPhone/iPod Touch isn’t available yet, but has already begun shipping to 47 countries. It’ll be ready for retail through their website this spring and will cost just $49.

[thinkflood via engadget]
Head on past the break for another snapshot of the RedEye mini IR dongle.

We are happy to announce that our own iPhone /iPod touch application is now available in the Apple App Store.

Biz News app delivers a constant stream of news from our website giving you quick access to the latest news on the smartphone industry.

The iPhone Dev Team has issued a warning against sites offering an iPhone 3.1.3 jailbreak for new devices such as the iPod Touch 3G and 05.12 baseband unlock in exchange for cash. It certainly sounds enticing for newbies who want to jailbreak their new iPhone/iPod Touch, but don’t be fooled, there is no such thing available right now. The PwnageTool 3.1.5 for iPhone OS 3.1.3 doesn’t work on those Apple devices that already have the new jailbreak-proof bootrom installed on it, and neither is a 05.12 baseband unlock in existence at the moment. It’s all just a scam.

On a good note, however, the team is proud to let everyone know that they’ve found a possible way to unlock the new 05.12 baseband. With that being said, it’s still too early to lay down a roadmap for this new iPhone unlock as they’ve yet to verify if it indeed works. Rest assured though, the iPhone Dev Team is hard at work in coming up with an appropriate unlock for the 05.12 baseband. All they request is some patience on everyone’s side so that no one will fall victim to scammers out there.

[via iphone dev team]

Two smartphone giants - iPhone and Nexus One - got a software update yesterday.

Apple released iPhone OS 3.1.3 for iPhone and iPod touch that improves accuracy of reported battery level on iPhone 3GS, resolves issue where third-party apps would not launch in some instantes and fixes some other bugs. Google added multitouch (pinch-to-zoom), on-board Google Goggles and new version of Google Maps to the Nexus One. 

Since we observe a rapid growth of 3D interactive mobile applications market, Smartphone.Biz-news.com wanted to know more about the technology behind it.

We spoke to Eric Bernard, CEO & Co-Founder of Visoglobe, the company that won the French National Contest for Innovative Companies for bringing innovative real-time solutions to 3D technology for mobile devices.

“It is a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price,” said Steve Jobs unveiling Apple’s “latest creation” yesterday in San Francisco. Although we may doubt if the iPad really brings “magic” and “revolution” to us, we have to admit the prices are unexpectedly low. Yesterday, Apple’s stocks started to climb fast only when Jobs revealed how much we’ll have to spend on the device.

Two days before the long-awaited unveiling of the company’s “latest creation”, Apple revealed financial results for its Q1 2010 (ended December 26, 2009).

Apple sold 8.7 million iPhones in the quarter, representing 100 percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter.

iVdopia, the advertising technology company, has just introduced Talk2Me ads solution and claims that for the first time, mobile advertisers can customize interactive actions in video ads that include customized social features, which allows for the sharing of ads on Facebook or Twitter.

iVdopia is an ad network and platform for the iPhone to enable both application developers and advertisers to simultaneously monetize their applications.

The latest rumor on the iPhone 4G is suggesting the Apple phone is going to have a complete design overhaul. Oh, it may retain its general shape and size but with a new touch-sensitive casing, the iPhone experience will be completely altered. Bloomberg reports:

“Apple’s going to put a lot of innovation, not just on the hardware, but also on the software of the new iPhone,” said Taipei-based Chen, a member of Asia’s top-ranked technology hardware research team. The handset will feature a new plastic casing similar to that used for Apple’s touch-panel Magic Mouse released last year, he said.

We’ve already heard the 5 megapixel camera and the new user interface, but we haven’t heard that the new iPhone OS may be related to an overhaul of the iTunes Store. The sensitive backing is comparable to the Apple Magic Mouse, adds Chen. Apple may incorporate the same technology in the iPhone 4G.

[bloomberg via wired]

Korea may get the iPhone 4G at the same time as the U.S. or at least, soon after the original release date. Telecoms Korea got the information from “internal sources” out of KT, the exclusive distributor of the iPhone in the country. Some specs have leaked out with this information:

• 4G iPhone will have almost double the battery life of the current iPhone 3G S.
• The new iPhone will also have a front-facing camera as well as a camera at the back.
• Korea will get video-calling for the iPhone, the first country to do so
• Mobile TV on the iPhone 4G
• iPhone 4G will be better in both hardware and software

That’s all for now, until the next “leak” or rumor.

[source]

Verizon iPhone rumors aren’t exactly new, but this latest one suggests that the Verizon-bound iPhone will have a different chip under the hood as opposed to the current models. Ashok Kumar, Northeast Securities analyst who first broke the news that Google will be selling a phone (Nexus One) direct to consumers, strongly believes that Apple is indeed building an iPhone for Verizon bundled with a Qualcomm chip. However, before you let your imaginations run wild with the prospect of a Snapdragon-based iPhone, the rumor goes on to mention that Apple is just opting to get a basic “3G wireless technology chip for EV-DO” connectivity. For comparison’s sake, the current iPhone ships with an Infineon chip.

Is this fact or fiction? We’ll probably find out once June arrives as this is the month when Apple is expected to announce the 4G iPhone and the iPhone’s exclusivity officially ends on AT&T. If you ask us, we find it hard to believe that Apple will be producing a different set of iPhone units just for Verizon. It just doesn’t make sense from a business standpoint, but hey, that’s just us. Apple could be looking at the situation differently.

[the street via unwiredview]

We’ve already seen how an iPhone can easily be paired to keyboard courtesy of the iPhone BTstack Keyboard app, and it looks like pairing a mouse is next in line. We’re not too sure though who would want to pair a Bluetooth mouse with the iPhone, but this proof of concept video shows that you can also get Apple’s new Magic Mouse to work on the iPhone as well. A little more useful, they also show off am infrared virtual keyboard working in tandem with Apple’s versatile mobile phone. Pretty interesting stuff, but unfortunately, neither app is available right now. Just treat this as a heads up of what app developers for jailbroken iPhones might have in store in the near future.

[btstack via engadget]

The hype of the new year will be the Apple Tablet, there’s little doubt, but with little to go by in terms of leaks (read “cone of silence” for Apple Tablet team) we are left to ponder what Apple’s intention is for the iTablet.

Let’s put it another way. What if the rumor–from no less a tech personage than Ex-Google exec Kai-fu Lee–that Apple has ordered 10 million iTablets from suppliers is true? Does Apple have a market segment in mind sizable enough to take home ten million units of a possibly $500 + device? My opinion: netbooks. That’s right, Apple and Steve Jobs may be gunning for the highly competitive netbook market. What’s a netbook for anyway but to surf the Web and maybe watch movie or two on a screen at least twice as big as the biggest phone screen. The iPhone and iPod Touch are simply too small to do surfing or movie watching with any real comfort for the user. Apple might just have the answer in their upcoming tablet. A device thinner than a netbook but with just as much viewing space with some Mac OS X magic added and you may have yourself a netbook killer. With the success of the iPhone, Apple has pretty much proven that users can do without a keyboard. The next logical step is for a bigger screen and a faster processor.

According to Lee, the Apple Tablet will be 10.1 inches and will support 3D graphics. Now just take a pause for a moment and imagine this. Then add some Apple special support for videoconferencing and e-books. Now imagine an entirely reworked virtual QWERTY keyboard that is ergonomically designed for fast typing (at least faster than before on a virtual keyboard), and you have a technology that is as much a game-changer as the iPhone… that will be on January 26th 2010.

iPhone credit card readers are as unique as they come. So far, Square is the only group that has one albeit still not being available to consumers, and even now has a website to promote their Square iPhone credit card payment system.

However, come CES next week, this may no longer be the case as we hear Mophie will also be coming out with a similar device of their own. There’s no name yet or working details about what they will be unveiling, but we do have this snazzy concept design above that definitely beats what Square hands down in the aesthetics department. Of course, if you’re familiar with Mophie who’s more popularly known for their battery backs and cases for the iPhone, iPod Touch and other iPod models, this shouldn’t come as a surprise anymore. We’ll have more on this once the festivities at CES begins.

[engadget via cellphones etc]

We’ve seen some iPhone keyboard hacks in the past, but this latest one, looks to be the most convenient and readily available one right now.

The BTstack Keyboard app which is now available at the Cydia store and retailing for $5 allows you to connect your iPhone to a wireless Bluetooth keyboard for some physical full QWERTY keyboard fun on your Apple touchscreen mobile phone. Needless to say since this app is only available at Cydia, you need to have a jailbroken iPhone get this app and make this work.

To jailbreak your iPhone, just pick your iPhone 3.1.2 jailbreak of choice – Geohot’s blackra1n iPhone jailbreak or the iPhone Dev Team’s PwnageTool.

[btstack keyboard via engadget]

Unlike in the US where the iPhone is still exclusively available on AT&T, those in the UK have a variety of options as to where they can get the iPhone. There’s O2, Orange, and you can even find Apple’s dear little mobile phone at Tesco Mobile, and now, you can add Vodafone to that slowly growing list. Vodafone UK will begin selling both the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3G S in the UK on January 14th and will be free on all tariffs over £35 and £45 respectively on a 2-yr contract. For those who’d like to take advantage of the iPhone tethering feature introduced in iPhone OS 3.0, you’ll have to add an extra £5 to avail of the Vodafone’s 500MB data tethering plan. It’s really becoming quite a competitive scene over in the UK, and who knows, maybe the iPhone will also finally be announced on T-Mobile this coming June in the US.

[via bgr]

The online version of CNN Money call the Android phones, among other iPhone competitors like BlackBerry Storm and Palm Pre, iPhone copycats. David Goldman seems to think every smartphone with a touchscreen is an iPhone clone, and he may have a point. The problem is that he also exaggerates. These are iPhone clones:

• C-002 HiPhone
• SciPhone i68
• Meizu M8
• and many more

Motorola Droid, Palm Pre and Various HTC Android phones that has come out this year are iPhone competitors produced by the most well-known manufacturers of cellphone to combat the iPhone’s popularity.  Now Google is coming into the fray with Nexus One. These phones do not want to be iPhone (which would justify CNN calling them clones) but phones that want to beat the iPhone, and to a modest degree they are suceeding.

“According to the report, 17% of consumers who are shopping for a smartphone intend to buy a phone that runs Google’s (GOOG, Fortune 500) Android operating system, compared with 20% who plan to buy an iPhone. That gap is much narrower than the last study, which showed only 7% were going to buy an Android-powered phone, with 21% planning to buy an iPhone.”

Though it is quite plain the competition has gotten better, analysts has forgotten one thing: the iPhone is currently locked to one carrier, AT&T, which has made a reputation of being a problematic provider. Sure;y once Apple decides to distribute the iPhone to other U.S. carriers, the numbers above will shift significantly to Cupertino.

[read]

If ever the iPhone does become available on Verizon, data usage will definitely be up. That’s one thing that AT&T apparently wasn’t prepared for when they began selling the iPhone, and they’ve been widely criticized for it. Anthony Melone, Verizon Wireless Chief Technology Officer, didn’t confirm if the Apple iPhone will indeed be part of their 2010 line-up, but did go on to say that: “We have put things in place already. We are prepared to support that traffic.” Of course, this does nothing to strengthen or weaken the Verizon iPhone rumor, but if Apple’s little cash cow of a mobile phone does become available on AT&T’s rival, you could look back and say that this is the first concrete evidence lining out the future of the iPhone in the US. With Verizon headed down the LTE route, this likewise supports the rumor that an LTE-capable 4G iPhone will be debuting next year.

At the end of the day, sad to say, nothing’s still confirmed. For what it’s worth, this latest news bit does help fan up Verizon iPhone rumors anew.

[businessweek via bgr]

VeriFone announced PAYware Mobile, a payment solution for the iPhone that brings card processing capabilities to small businesses.

PAYware Mobile includes a PA-DSS approved payment app and a card reader that slips over the iPhone to accommodate card swipes. It utilizes a secure magnetic stripe read-head and firmware certified to the Federal Information Processing Standard FIPS 140-2. Card details are immediately encrypted during the card swipe process, meaning no sensitive data ever reaches the payment app.

We all know that Fring allows you to connect to various IM services and also does VoIP on the iPhone, but did you know that you can now also do video calls as well? That’s right folks! The latest version of Fring for the iPhone and iPod Touch now comes with video calls albeit just being one way of course since the iPhone doesn’t have a front-facing camera. Could this possibly be one of the new features included in the upcoming 4G iPhone (aka iPhone 3,1)? Maybe, but as far as the present is concerned, you can now enjoy chatting with your Fring buddies on your iPhone while on the road face-to-face. Well, not exactly, but at least something close to that effect.

[fring via unwiredview]

Despite facing stiff competition from veteran local players such as Samsung and LG, KT is still very optimistic about their newest offering, the iPhone, as they expect to sell around 100,000 to 500,000 units once its releases in Korea. They still haven’t announced their official pricing for it, but analysts predicts that the Korea iPhone should be priced somewhere in the 350,000 to 400,000 KRW ($300 to $345) range bundled with a contract. Given that the iPhone didn’t fare so well in Japan (only 200,000 units sold since 2008), a market somewhat similar to Korea, we’re not too sure where KT is drawing their optimism from. Anyway, with the iPhone scheduled to be released by November 28th in Korea, we’ll soon find out whether the Korean iPhone can truly be a hit for KT or not.

[yonhap news via unwiredview]

The second iPhone worm of the week carries with it a lot more risk than the first one. According to Intego Security, this new iPhone worm that is known as iPhone/Privacy.A uses the same hole that ikeeex found a few days ago to change the hacked iPhones’ background image into Rick Astley’s photo. The new iPhone worm, however, is a more serious one because it allows the hacker to install software without going through iTunes.

The new worm bypasses iTunes in jailbroken iPhones and iPod Touches and copy private data. These data include e-mail, contacts, SMSs, photos, music files, videos, calendar entries and saved data from apps. Intego explains:

Hackers using this tool will install it on a computer – Mac, PC, Unix or Linux – then let it work. It scans the network accessible to it, and when it finds a jailbroken iPhone, breaks into it, then steals data and records it.

This hacker tool could easily be installed, for example, on a computer on display in a retail store, which could then scan all iPhones that pass within the reach of its network. Or, a hacker could sit in an Internet café and let his computer scan all iPhones that come within the range of the wifi network in search of data. Hackers could even install this tool on their own iPhones, and use it to scan for jailbroken phones as they go about their daily business.

Intego recommends its own VirusBarrier X5 for the iPhone/Privacy.A malware. Also, you can simply change the SSH password. iPhone jailbreak is common to six to eight per cent of iPhone users.

[intego via mobilecrunch]

UK’s largest mobile TV service is now available for iPhone and iPod touch.

Sky announced the availability of the Sky Mobile TV App on the App Store. The company has created a dedicated app for the service specifically for iPhone and iPod touch. The app allows users to stream live TV via WiFi and the channels available include all Sky Sports channels, Sky Sports News, Sky News, ESPN and At The Races.

Geohot followers rejoice as your ever reliable hacker has just unleashed his latest iPhone offerings: the blacksn0w iPhone unlock and blackra1n RC3 iPhone jailbreak.

The great thing about blacksn0w is that it works on the new 05.11.07 baseband bundled with iPhone 3.1.2 firmware which the iPhone Dev Team has still yet to crack. For those who already have a jailbroken iPhone, just add blackra1n.com as a repo in Cydia to get some blacksn0w goodness. Once unlocked and you want to enable tethering, you can head on over here using your iPhone to select your carrier so that an appropriate MobileConfig file will be sent to your iPhone. Blackra1n RC3, for its part, is an improved version of his blackra1n iPhone 3.1.2 jailbreak which still works on both Windows and Mac systems.

As usual, proceed with caution in attempting this, but if you’ve been aching to jailbreak and unlock your new iPhone 3G S for the longest time, then be our guest and try this all new blackra1n RC 3 iPhone jailbreak and blacksn0w iPhone unlock out.

[blackrain, iphonejtag via engadget]

Both the iPhone 3G and iPhone 3G S will officially be available in China by the end of this month courtesy of China Unicom. However, it seems that they’re not quite content in just nabbing new iPhone owners in the country, but are also keen on cashing in on those who already own an iPhone in China despite being purchased from the grey market and jailbroken. Shanghai Unicom, a subsidiary of China Unicom, has in fact already kicked off their amnesty program that permits grey market iPhone owners to sign up with them which will, in effect, allow them to avail of all the services provided for “legal” iPhone owners such as firmware updates and access to the official App Store without having to purchase a new and more expensive iPhone . This is a pretty bold move and the first we’ve heard of from an exclusive carrier of the iPhone, and while this may directly affect their initial iPhone sales, this will definitely help drive up plan subscriptions.

How about you guys? What do you think of this iPhone amnesty program? If the official carrier in your country offers up a similar iPhone amnesty program, will you sign up for it?

[china business times via unwiredview]

Nokia announced that it has today filed a complaint against Apple with the Federal District Court in Delaware, alleging that Apple's iPhone infringes Nokia patents for GSM, UMTS and wireless LAN (WLAN) standards.

Nokia says the ten patents in suit relate to technologies “fundamental” to making devices which are compatible with one or more of the GSM, UMTS (3G WCDMA) and wireless LAN standards.

INTERVIEW. Web2Mobile is a company that specializes in making your content mobile ready for ease of use for your customers on the go.

In the last 12 months we seen a lot change in the mobile market with a huge transition of users putting their mobile devices ahead of their laptops and desktop computers.

Deb Hall notes that even on a personal level, using mobile devices create a difference in behavior in how we use and read content and how we interact with our devices. In the last ten months she notes that this transition has become more apparent as the iPhone, specifically, has immersed itself into the general populace.

Overall satisfaction among smartphone owners has increased considerably over time as manufacturers continue to improve styling, feature sets, usability and software, according to the J.D. Power and Associates studies.

Apple ranks highest among manufacturers of smartphones used primarily for personal reasons, with a score of 811, and performs particularly well in ease of operation, operating system, features and physical design. LG (776) and RIM BlackBerry (759) follow Apple in the rankings.

VIDEO. Biz.News.com reporters navigated to TomTom’s stand at IFA 2009, where Sarah Schweiger, PR Manager for TomTom, gave them a brief introduction to the company: their main markets, competitors and challenges as well as newly released products, including long-expected car kit for iPhone scheduled to ship in the U.S. in October.

The actual iPhone 3G/3GS unlock here at iPhone Unlocking Solutions.

The current generation phone, iPhone, has the features of a PC, an iPod, a digital camera and a mobile phone. It is one of the most preferred phones having features of networking and browsing. But it gets expensive to buy an iPhone because it comes with a contract of limited use and you cannot run your iPhone after some time as mentioned in the contract of its provider. Unlocking helps you to run iPhone on any carrier of your choice and it releases an iPhone from Apple’s network. It simply means you are not bound to any network to run your iPhone and your iPhone is usable even after the end of the contract. Benefits of unlocking an iPhone are that it helps you to run third party applications and play retro-games.

The Apple iPhone 3GS is one of the fastest iPhones available on the market including the 3GS 3.1, 3.0.1, and 3.0. According to them, the services of Unlock iPhone has served many customers across the globe, helps you to individualize your iPhone and it in turns enables you to run many applications on the iPhone. The website provides detailed information about unlocking an iPhone. You can get extensive information related to iPhones on the website.

The methods mentioned in the resources provided by the website ensure that all the previous features of iPhone are retained and extra features enabled. The solution of Unlock iPhones comes with a money back guarantee of 15 days. In case you find any difficulty in unlocking iPhone you can contact the support staff to get a satisfactory help. You can even read the various clients’ reviews and ensure the credibility of the procedure followed by the website.

Above is a Guest Article: PMP Today has not tested the unlocking software mentioned. It is not a jailbreak solution but an unlock solution.

You probably know by now that the iPhone now comes with a ‘Find My iPhone’ feature (courtesy of iPhone 3.0), and if you’re still skeptical about its usefulness in the real world setting, this story might change your mind. An unnamed victim who was robbed of his wallet and iPhone was actually able to use this neat little iPhone feature, and more importantly, helped the cops apprehend the suspects behind the crime. Of course, if you own an iPhone, you also probably know that this doesn’t work right off the bat and that a MobileMe subscription is actually required to take advantage of this service, but as you can, even though this isn’t really free, there are some substantial benefits you can reap from it.

[full story via bgr]

The theoretical iPhone virus has just gotten very real. Researchers Charles Miller and Collin Mulliner said the iPhone virus could be sent throught text messages. If your iPhone receives an SMS message with one character, turn off your iPhone immediately. On an infected iPhone, the sender of the virus takes total control remotely and can make calls, surf and send SMS through the infected iPhone.

“This is serious. The only thing you can do to prevent it is turn off your phone. Someone could pretty quickly take over every iPhone in the world with this.”

The iPhone text virus is not a typical virus but a vulnerability in the iPhone OS. The hack is possible because of the way the iPhone does texting. There’s no word from Apple about a possible patch.

Miller and Mulliner demonstrated how to hijack the iPhone via texting to CNET. They said they have notified Apple six weeks ago…

For the attack to work, an attacker must send hundreds of SMS control messages, which are different from regular SMS messages, according to Miller. Only the initial SMS may be seen, he said.

Asked what an iPhone user can do when attacked, Miller replied: “Rebooting wouldn’t be a bad idea. It would stop all but the most sophisticated attacker. However, it doesn’t take but a second to grab all your personal info from the device, and as soon as you turn it back on, the bad guy could attack you again. That’s why I think this is so serious.”

[source]photo: cnet

INTERVIEW: Scott Belsky, founder and CEO of Behance, tells smartphone.biz-news about his company's Action Method iPhone application - a free and innovative app aimed at increasing users' productivity.
He said that people focus too much on deadlines instead of what matters most - action and delegating.

Apple has released an iTunes update that prevents Palm's Pre smartphone from appearing to be an iPod when connected to a Mac or PC.
According to Apple, iTunes 8.2.1 is a free software update that provides a number of important bug fixes.

Apple's App Store has hit the 1.5 billion download mark just a few days after celebrating its first anniversary.
iTunes now has more than 65,000 apps available in 77 countries, with over 100,000 developers registered with the iPhone Developer Program.

INTERVIEW: Mobile operators are searching for new and innovative ways to generate revenues beyond service plans.
Julien Oudart, sales and marketing director for French mobile advertising company Sofialys, tells smartphone.biz-news about the opportunities open to carriers from opt-in subscriber databases.

It’s now the iPhone Dev Team’s turn to release an iPhone 3G S jailbreak via redsnow v0.8. Aside from jailbreaking the iPhone 3G, 1G/2G iPod Touch, and unlocking the 1G iPhone, redsnow is now also capable of jailbreaking the iPhone 3G S. This latest redsnow release is also the first version that works on Linux platform. You are, however, still advised to stay away from upgrading to firmware 3.1, if the temptation arises, as this will render ultrasnow incapable of unlocking your iPhone.

On the good side, though, iPhone 3G S owners won’t have a problem jailbrekaing their phone in the future regardless of any new updates Apple might release just as long as they have their personalized (signed) dfu/img3 files. Detailed instructions on how to go about getting this can be found here. We’re not exactly sure if this is better than purplera1n so if you do get a chance to try this out, do share with us your experience with this new redsnow iPhone 3G S jailbreak.

[redsnow torrents; via iphone dev-team blog]

INTERVIEW: Rick Breslin, Principal of Hello Vino, tells smartphone.biz-news how the food pairing and wine suggestion tool came about - and the team's plans for both monetising it and capitalising on location-based data.
The California-based company launched an iPhone app in June but it offers a multi-platform delivery - mobile web, Web and SMS.

O2 has beaten rival operator Orange to secure the exclusive rights to the Palm Pre when it is released in the UK.
Palm and O2 are expected to make the announcement next week almost a month after the launch of the handset in the US.

Palm's new CEO Jon Rubinstein believes there is sufficient growth in the smartphone market to profitably sustain "three to five players".
He was speaking after announcing "strong and growing" sales of the company's new Pre handset - with download applications now numbering more than 1 million three weeks after it launched.

Truphone has announced that its VoIP and call-through services now support an additional 11 Nokia handsets.
The mobile VoIP operator first offered its VoIP-only services on Nokia devices but went on to include the iPhone and Android platforms.

Though a 'wave' of Android phones has not overwhelmed the US Smartphone marketplace as many have predicted, a small splash will be made next month (July 8th, to be specific) when T-Mobile releases the second HTC-built, Android powered device, the myTouch (or Magic abroad). And the key feature that makes this device, and any entering the marketplace, have great potential is ActiveSync availability.

Costing $199 (with 2-year contract) and lacking a physical keyboard, this new device will offer direct competition to the iPhone in price, features, design and more. The Android Marketplace, the Google equivalent to the Apple App Store, puts the device in almost complete parity with Apple's iPhone. One advantage the Marketplace will offer is the ability to bill the application purchases directly to your T-Mobile phone bill (coming by end of year), a feature Google is hoping to offer on all carrier billing systems in the future (rather than using Google Checkout, as you currently need to). And one significant deficiency is the fact there is no equivalant to Apple's iTunes on your computer to manage and purchase content. Google only offers the device based store as of today.

It will be interesting to see the first month numbers on this device. T-Mobile is the smallest of the big four carriers in the US, sitting behind VerizonWireless, AT&T and Sprint (and not too far ahead of US Cellular and MetroPCS), and it needs to grow a strong smartphone business to stay relevant (and it does a decent job with its WinMo and Blackberry selections). Additionally, there are a lot of Google lovers and open source devotees out there that want a better device than the original GPhone, the HTC G1. That device left a lot to be desired, especially in terms of form. This new device is sleek, cool, and keyboard-less, just like the iPhone.

The key feature of this phone: it has Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync integration (provided by HTC, this is not an Android built in feature). This is important because business users are the largest buying segment of smartphones, and if they are going to move from Treos, Blackberrys and WinMo phones (or iPhone?) to the Google devices, this is the most key element. Certainly a large group of non business users are buying smartphones (hello, iPhone), but the 'wealthiest' group of buyers for smartphones are business users. And almost all of them use Microsoft Exchange for corporate email, contacts and calendars. Not having this on a smartphone is the ultimate non-starter.

I have ActiveSync running on my iPhone now, and it is wonderful. One device for personal and business needs, and a device that does it all.

Palm Pre, Apple iPhone and Google myTouch. Three sweet smartphones that could be pacing the marketplace over the next 6-12 months. What does Blackberry have in store? Nokia? Anything powered by Windows Mobile?

Apple has launched its new iPhone 3GS with demand expected to be strong for the handset in the US and seven other initial launch countries.
However, with a smartphone market also offering new handsets from Palm, RIM and Nokia, to name but a few, the landscape has changed considerably since the original iPhone hit the market two years ago.

The Docs 2 Go iPhone app maybe affordable, but its editing features are only limited to Word files. The new Quickoffice Mobile Office Suite, however, takes things further by including Excel editing as well. Complete with cut/copy/paste, redo/undo, highlighting, and a host of font customization (style, size, color, etc), this iPhone office suite will certainly help you get more done on your itsy-bitsy Apple mobile phone.

[itunes; engadget via cellphones etc]
More after the break.

You can also work in landscape mode, and also provides emailing options. However, everything starts from a computer first, not on the iPhone. With either a Mac or PC, you first need to connect to the iPhone through Wifi using a desktop client, and create a folder wherein all your mobile documents will be stored. This will appear in the iPhone in just a matter of seconds. After which, you can simply click and drag files into the folder if you wish to take it on the road with you. Likewise, thanks to automatic 2-way syncing, any new files you create on your iPhone will also appear on your computer as well.

It’s really a very capable mobile office suite for the iPhone, but be warned, this doesn’t come cheap. The Quickoffice suite for the iPhone retails for $19.99. Nonetheless, if you’re looking for a truly versatile productivity app for the iPhone that doesn’t skimp out on features, then this is the one for you.

Palm must be hoping it can quickly build on estimated opening weekend sales of 60,000 Pre smartphones - not least because Apple has cranked up the pressure with the launch of a new iPhone 3Gs.
While Palm's Saturday launch has largely been judged a success, it was hampered by supply constraints which saw most Sprint Nextel stores get less than 50 phones to sell.

Apple has unveiled a new version of the iPhone - the iPhone 3Gs - at WWDC 2009.
Among the key improvements are a 3 megapixel camera with autofocus and VGA video capture at 30fps, improved battery life, voice control, a faster processor and 7.2Mbps HSDPA-compatible radio.

I guess spending $350 for the lowest-capacity Meizu M8 can put too much strain on on our bank accounts in this economic environment, which is what the good people of MeiLi must be thinking when they made their own version of the M8 Apple iPhone clone. The MeiLi M8 is undeniably a lookalike of the Meizu M8, a phone generally acknowledged as the finest iPhone clone there ever was. The question is if the MeiLi M8 is a Meizu M8 clone and the latter is a clone of the iPhone, then theoretically Apple can sue MeiLi for copyright infringement, too. Right?

Specs after the break. More cheap phones like the $100 touchscreen MeiLi M8 at our cheap electronics page.

[store]

MeiLi M8 specs:

• Quadband GSM/ GPRS/ WAP
• 2.8-inch touchscreen
• SMS, MMS
• Bluetooth, JAVA, MP3 and MP4 support
• camera (unspecified pixel count)
• 1200mAh battery
• Price: $99.99 (includes two batteries)

Apple's next-gen iPhone could be unchanged in physical design but include changes relating to speed, memory and the camera.
At least that's according an unnamed employee at Apple's manufacturing partner Foxconn, who claims to have used prototypes of the handset.

Every Filipino is proud of Manny Pacquiao?s convincing victory over the British Hitman Ricky Hatton, and if you’re one of the millions of Filipinos across the globe who want to further show your nationalistic side, then why don?t you bling out your iPhone and other portable gadgets with some Jeepney skins? This set of skins follow in the same tradition as the local jeepneys found in Metro Manila where every vehicle is adorned with lavish decorations to make it stand out from the rest of the pack. Jeepney skins does the same thing with your iPhone and PMP, but with a little Filipino flare. They even have many Pacquiao skins in their collection as well. Average price of these skins are $15. So, if you want to give your aging iPhone, PSP, PMP or mobile phone a new look, then give Jeepney skins a try and be proud that you?re a Filipino.

[via music-skins]

If you?re looking to score one of the latest and coolest games for the iPhone, we highly recommend you watch out for Gameloft?s Terminator: Salvation game for the iPhone. The video above is a sample of what you?ll be getting in their latest iPhone game, and even though we?re not exactly sure how game play will actually work on the iPhone, one thing?s for certain, it definitely doesn’t fail to impress in the graphics department. The release date as well as its price isn?t known yet, but we’re guessing it’ll probably be released in conjunction with the premier of the movie of the same name. For now, let?s all just enjoy this video demo of the Terminator: Salvation game for the iPhone until it finally goes live in the App Store.

[terminator: salvation; bgr via gizmodo]

With a launch date for Palm's much anticipated Pre still to be announced along comes news that Palm is preparing a second Pre-like handset for release this year.
The smaller and slimmer device will be pitched at a different part of the smartphone market, according to Techcrunch.

Zoho has extended mobile support for its free web applications to all the major smartphone platforms.
Initially only available for the iPhone and Windows Mobile, Zoho Mobile now supports Android, BlackBerry and Symbian mobile platforms as well.

If you?re an aspiring DJ and own an iPhone, you?ll be interested to know that renowned DJ Paul van Dyk is coming out with an iPhone app of his own aptly named the PvD DJ app. It comes with a set of handy tools for DJs such as Frequency Analyzer, Decibel Meter, BPM Counter, Seismic Reader, and some fun stuff such as a Virtual Glow Stick just to name a few. Paul himself shows you the various treats his app has to offer in this video, but if you?re not into hardcore music mixing and partying, the seismic reader function looks to be quite a handy tool in detecting earthquakes and the torch features is certainly useful during blackouts at night. No word though when it?ll be released in the App Store, but rumor is that it will debut sometime in late May.

[via gizmodo]

iPhone sales have boosted Apple's quarterly profit by 15 per cent - despite economic woes and a new handset expected later this year.
The company also said co-founder Steve Jobs intends to return from his medical leave as scheduled at the end of June.

Don’t panic yet. Though the hacker was able to run shellcode he says one will need a working iPhone exploit. ?For now, this is more of a warning than anything else,? he says. The hacker, Charlie Miller or Safari Charlie for his previous work on Apple’s Safari browser. He assures us the current iPhone OS is pretty invulnerable.

When shellcode is enabled and successfully exploited it “would enable an attacker to run whatever code they wanted on the phone… ” Again he assures us, the iPhone exploit must be found first. ?Mac OS X can run shellcode — in fact, many trojan horses exploit this ability — but this is an inherent part of the operating system. The real issue is exploits that may be able to launch this code on an iPhone, and we’re waiting for those to arise.? OK, got it.

[via arstechnica, cellular-news]

If you?re a Pogoplug user and own an iPhone, you?ll be happy to know that a Pogoplug app is now available at the App Store for your little Apple mobile phone. It lets you access your internet-connected home network drive and view its contents while on the go using your iPhone, and likewise let?s save photos from your iPhone to your drive as well. Best of all, it?s free! Of course, you do need to own a Pogoplug first to take advantage of this, but hey, if you already own one, you can go ahead and download this new iPhone app so that you can virtually take all your files with you wherever you may be going. If not, you might want to consider getting one to enjoy the added convenience of the Pogoplug.

[app store via engadget]

INTERVIEW: Anders Norström, managing director of MobiTV Europe, talks to smartphone.biz-news about the company's expansion plans and the growing consumer appetite for mobile TV.
The California-based operation now offers content and primetime channels to over 6 million subscribers on more than 350 handset models on its managed mobile media service.

Nokia's Q1 sales are expected to be down when accounced tomorrow - despite the success of its 5800 XpressMusic smartphone launched last year.
Analysts estimate 2.5 million 5800s may have been sold in the first three months of the year - helped by repeated sell-outs in the UK and roll-outs into new markets.

The people at Elan Microelectronics, maker of the eFinger Transparent Touchpad, are saying their invention is so good even Apple copied it for the multitouch iPhone. The infringement is not on one patent but on two by Elan Microelectronics. They have filed an injunction against the sales of iPhone, iPod Touch and the MacBook. According to the New York Times what may seem like a desperate move from a company with a dwindling revenues has actually won one related lawsuit against a rival. They actually have a stronger than expected case, if one asks analyst Jessica Chang:

?From their previous victory in the case with Synaptics, I think they should be quite confident,? she said, referring to Elan. ?Elan believes they have a unique edge with this patent, and they want to send a signal to the market? and set an example for others.

If you take a look at how eFinger Transparent Touchpad works, on Android this time, it might actually make you think twice next time you get the urge to call the iPhone the multitouch king.

[via engadget]

Quickoffice for iPhone enables robust editing of Microsoft Word and Excel documents, cut and paste and file transfer.

Quickoffice, Inc., provider of mobile office productivity software, announced at CTIA WIRELESS 2009 in Las Vegas, it will unveil the first complete Office suite to provide native Microsoft Word and Excel editing for the iPhone.

T-Mobile G1 customers have downloaded on average more than 40 applications from Android Market.
With one million G1s sold that adds up to 40 million downloads in total since the first Android handset was launched six months ago.

An analyst at the Lazard Capital Markets is now saying there will be two new iPhones soon: the 32GB iPhone we’ve mentioned before and then a low-end version that will be headed for third world countries like Brazil and China. Cheaper doesn’t mean 3G-less, because according to the analyst Daniel Amir it will be 3G, though perhaps with less features than the current iPhone. Too bad the low-cost iPhone will probably ditch WiFi, which sounds strange (wouldn’t you rather have WiFi than 3G if you live in an emergin market?). I wouldn’t be surprised if they dubbed this non-WiFi iPhone Nano.

The analyst includes the NAND market outlook in his study, which gives 20% of production capacity to Apple. With the new models, both with 32GB, NAND producers will feel a renewed strain in meeting orders. We’ll see soon enough.

[via iphonebuzz]

Dilemma: I have an iPhone, which I sync with my Macbook Pro and Address Book, that I need to also sync with my work contacts that rest on the exchange server of my company. I am NOT going to sync my iPhone full time with my new work PC running windows. I will keep it synced with personal MBP. But, I really need all the contacts from my new job on my phone.


So, how do you sync iPhone with both Address Book and Outlook (using Exchange)? And, more importantly, how do I do it with the least amount of manual processing?

Solution found, and in less than 10 minutes of searching Google.

1. Keep my existing setup on MBP/iPhone
   
2. Create a new contact group for company contacts in Address Book
   
3. Sign up for Funambol, my.funambol.com
4. Set up account at Funambol
   
5. Download Funambol Outlook plug in
6. Configure plug in to ONLY sync contacts (waiting on calendar support)
   
7. Sync Outlook to Funambol plug in (One Way)
   
8. Download and install Funambol iPhone app
9. Sync using Funambol app on iPhone
10. One way does not function, so I had to do a full sync. It took me 2 tries with over 700 contacts
    
11. Sync iPhone contacts to MBP (via USB or MobileMe)
12. Open Address Book on MBP
13. Add your new company contacts to new company group (I simply searched for domain name used in the email address of my company contacts)
14. Done.

My iPhone now has all my company contacts on the phone, and can sync new/edited contacts from Outlook at any time, with no manual processing

Email me if you have questions.

Overall, pretty slick.

Problems:
The current version of the the Funambol iPhone app 'should' allow you to sync one way, so that in theory you could : sync Outlook to Funambol server (one way), then sync Funambol server to iPhone (one way), then sync iPhone contacts normally and you are done.

But, the one way on the iPhone is broken... so, I had to sync all 700+ contacts from iPhone BACK to Funambol server BEFORE I could snag the Outlook contacts from Funambol. Oh well. Its all FREE!!!

And it served my needs, as my company contacts are on my iPhone without forcing my iPhone to sync with iTunes on my work PC. Im happy.

Now, waiting on Calendar syncing, that will be excellent as well.

INTERVIEW: Isik Uman, general manager of leading Turkish service provider Retromedya, talks to smartphone-biz.news about the rapidly changing mobile market in Turkey.
With 3G going live this summer, the nation's 66 million mobile subscribers are expected to take full advantage of new services - making it an appealing prospect for operators and service providers.

Filed under: O2, Vodafone, GSM, EDGE, HSDPA, Misc, Apple, OS X

At Apple's iPhone OS 3.0 preview event last Tuesday, Sir Scott explained that it was "working with carriers around the world" to build tethering support in. We can't say for sure what that means, but it certainly sounds like it'll be up to the operator to activate (or not) iPhone tethering when OS 3.0 is launched to the masses. Pocket-lint took the opportunity to ping both O2 and Vodafone over in the UK, though neither company seemed particularly interested in giving a solid answer. The former simply stated that it was "working [with Apple] to ensure new features, including tethering, are fully supported on O2's network," but wasn't "making any announcements yet." The latter simply proclaimed that it was "discussing the situation" but didn't have anything to confirm. To us, it sounds like both carriers will eventually allow it, but we aren't too sure they'll be doing so with no extra fees woven in.

O2 and Vodafone relatively mum on future iPhone tethering originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Sat, 21 Mar 2009 19:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you want the iPhone 3G but don’t want to sign up to AT&T, you can buy one now for $599 for the 8GB iPhone 3G and $699 for the 16GB version. There is no mention whether these iPhones can work on any GSM network, but there’s no point selling locked iPhones without a contract, especially for $400 more the iPhone with contracts. You can buy one starting March 26.

Update: all the reports we’ve read indicate an AT&T-only iPhone, so this isn’t exciting news at all. Only existing customers of AT&T will be able to use the iPhone anyway. This could work, though, in countries where iPhone carriers have cheaper plans compared to available iPhone plans but at any rate other countries have pre-paid iPhones already. And doesn’t AT&T already have a contractless iPhone plan?

[yahoonews]

Apple has flagged up March 17 for a special event to preview its new iPhone 3.0 software.
One issue that could be addressed with the new OS is allowing for background tasks from third party applications.

American Idol fans who happen to own an iPhone or iPod Touch will be happy to know that FreemantleMedia in collaboration with Zumobi Networks has come out with the American Idol Season 8 Exclusive app. This nifty little app is your one-top-shop for your daily fix of American Idol goodies ranging from news, photos, bios, and even videos. There?s also a My Rankings features that allows you to keep track of the performance of your AI picks. This is definitely something for the AI fanatics. The American Idol Season 8 Exclusive app is retailing for $1.99, but before you purchase this app, here?s something to think about; why is it called American Idol Season 8 Exclusive and not American Idol Exclusive? We?ll probably get the answer to that question when season 8 of American Idol finally comes to a close and season 9 begins.

[ai season 8 exclusive app; unwiredview via cellphones etc]

BMW has come up with a novel - and legal - way to drive its new Z4 Roadster while using the iPhone.
No, it's not some ingenious hands-free device designed by engineering geniuses at the German car-maker.

Filed under: Handsets, Apple

It's hard to call two incidents of some occurrence around the world a trend, but, when those incidents both involve an electrical device catching fire spontaneously, it creates a situation that's hard to ignore -- especially when that device is the iPhone. On Saturday, Italian blogger Tim Colbourne was charging his 3G handset and, after three hours, it sparked and caught fire at the base. Tim did a little investigation and found a case of a Swedish handset doing the same thing back in 2008, making us a little concerned that there could be more melted chargers out there. Apple replaced that earlier phone after something of a fight, and while we're hoping they'll be a little friendlier here, we're also hoping this gives Cupertino another bit of incentive to go ahead and switch over to micro-USB already. All the cool kids are doing it, and you don't see their cables catching fire -- usually.

[Via Cult of Mac]

Is the iPhone hotter than we think? originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Wed, 04 Mar 2009 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In the old days, an indication that you are playing an addictive game was literally rubbing your fingers raw and getting thumb cramps. On the iPhone, a sure indication is that your screen is so dirty from your finger grease that you cannot make out the game itself.

Tiki Towers gets very high marks for its addictive-ness; though is does not score so high for difficulty. I could not put the game down from the minute I got, but I cruised through all the levels without a big hiccup. At most, it took me no more than 2-3 tries to get a level solved. As an example of a game that is very difficult, and thus more challenging, look at Fieldrunners. It is very difficult to finish the levels with a perfect score, and has had me playing for months

The graphics are excellent, the physics of the game play are fantastic, and the game provides a great new twist on puzzle solving.

From the official iTunes entry:
Travel between five tropical islands leading your tribe of monkeys to safety by building bridges and towers out of bamboo, coconuts, and vines. If you're not careful, your structures will collapse and your monkeys will perish. Clear all the levels to acquire the ceremonial masks of an ancient tribe and discover their mythical lost treasure.

Google's Android Market is expected to begin accepting paid applications this week for the first time.
The move could provide a much-needed boost to the platform, which currently has around 800 applications.

Very exciting rumor this one: there will not be a new iPhone but three new iPhones, says analyst at Canaccord Adams. There will be an iPhone Nano, a 32GB iPhone with color choices and a cheaper non-3G version, perhaps of a totally different aesthetic appeal than than the original. Will all these iPhones tethered to exclusive providers. I’m thinking not.

There has also been suggestions that the 4GB version should be re-released with an under-$100 price tag. Frankly, Apple needs to refresh the curves and thickness of the iPhone, and screen dimension seems to be a little bland to me after two years in the market. I expect more imagination from Apple compared to the iPhone clone companies.

[via slashphone]

While the jailbreak only alternative iMobileCinema app has been available for quite sometime now, nothing beats full Flash support in Safari. There?s still no definite date on when this feature will hit the iPhone, but Adobe confirms that they are working with Apple on this one as it is turning out to be quite a challenge. Flash Lite, which is the common version used in phones, isn?t up to par with Apple’s standards which basically means that Adobe needs to create a new version of Flash which isn’t too demanding for the small processor of the iPhone to handle, but is equally capable as the full version. Sure, it?s good to hear that the two are working on it, but what we really want to know is when it?ll become available. Hopefully, that?ll be sooner than later as we hear Mobile Internet Explorer 6 already comes with full Flash support.

[appleinsider via cellphones etc]

The addition of 1.9 million 3G iPhone accounts helped AT&T to post USD $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the fourth quarter.
Apple's handset made up the bulk of the 2.1 million net new customers that the telecom company gained in the period.

AdMob has announced that it has launched its first advertising unit for Android applications.
The move by the world's largest mobile advertising marketplace will give developers an option for monetizing their applications on the open source device platform.

Aside from lacking flash support, the iPhone doesn?t also do Bluetooth filetransfer. Well, thanks again to jailbreak and the hardworking developers out there, this sorely missing feature may soon be available on the iPhone as developer MeDevil is currently working on one. The video above shows its potential, and once it?s done and ready, it?ll be available as part of the iSpazio repo. I guess its apps like these that make jailbreaking totally indispensable. Great work guys, keep them coming!

If you want to learn how to a jailbreak on your new 3G iPhone, visit our most iPhone 2.2 jailbreak page.

[gizmodo via crunchgear]

Check out all the deets on the Pre here (Palm website).

The intro:
The new Palm® Pre? phone is always thinking ahead to make your life easier. Pre pulls your different online calendars into one view, bringing you the information you want without having to search for it. Pre links your contacts from different sources, giving you one place to find what you need. And Pre delivers incoming messages¹ and notifications in an intuitively subtle way, letting you react or respond however you want. People, events, information that matters. With Palm Pre, it?ll come to you.

~ in short, Palm is saying: we make life easier, we care about calendars, contacts, messaging and easy search. Just like the old Pilots (messaging not withstanding).

And from Apple, about the 3G iPhone:
Introducing iPhone 3G. With fast 3G wireless technology, GPS mapping, support for enterprise features like Microsoft Exchange, and the new App Store, iPhone 3G puts even more features at your fingertips. And like the original iPhone, it combines three products in one ? a revolutionary phone, a widescreen iPod, and a breakthrough Internet device with rich HTML email and a desktop-class web browser. iPhone 3G. It redefines what a mobile phone can do ? again.

~ as for Apple: fast, GPS (ie, location based services), enterprise support, apps, apps, apps, and of course, its an iPod too, people.

I, for one, feel like this is the REAL deal in terms of true iPhone competition. Should be an interesting year.

---

Demand for GPS-enabled mobile phones will slow in 2009 but will avoid the fall in shipments expected to affect handsets generally.
At least that's what ABI Research is predicting. It forecasts that feature-rich smartphones will post year-to-year unit growth through the current economic downturn.

More than 150 million mobile phone subscribers worldwide will carry out banking transactions on their handsets within three years.
That's the prediction of a Juniper Research report, which also expects that much of the growth in this area to come from mature markets.

Nokia will see its share of the global smartphone market halved from 40 to 20 per cent by 2013, according to Generator Research.
And who is going to be gobbling up Nokia's lost business? Why Apple, of course.

Apple and LG Display have agreed a deal that will see the South Korean electronics manufacturer supply flat panel displays for Macs and handheld products over the next five years.
In exchange for a guaranteed supply of LCD screens until 2013, Apple will prepay USD $ 500 million to LG later this month.

A non-exhaustive list of resources for those seeking to start a career as an iPhone coder (or anyone who wants a list of resources and already knows they have a career as a coder)

A blog post was brought to my attention today that led me off into a journey I had been putting off for a while: studying the process of jailbreaking your iPhone. The post is here, and it chronicles an iPhone application developers conversation with an iPhone application cracker. Fascinating read, especially the comments section.

I have been an AT&T customer for a long time, many years before the iPhone came out, so I never had the desire to crack my iPhone (nor spend the time to do it). In the past, I have wiled away hours and hours hacking my TiVo (which was an extremely worthwhile endeavor) and I have a lot of respect for all the folks who contributed to the community of TiVo hackers, especially the ones who wrote up all the 'how-to' articles I utilized.

Needless to say, I have no issue with jailbreaking an iPhone, and in fact would argue for its propigation. The blog post above brings up the issue of pirated software, and in particular pirated iPhone applications. And what it led me to was Appulo.us, Hackulo.us and Installulo.us.

And that led me to reading all about Jailbreaking your iPhone in depth for the first time. Good stuff.

Update: the above instructions for jailbreaking your iPhone are for the 3G version. Check out these instructions for Jailbreaking your 2G iPhone (the original iPhone)

Apple is to start selling digital songs without copy protection software from iTunes along with over-the-air download songs for the iPhone.
Announcing the changes at the Macworld Expo trade show in San Francisco, Apple marketing exec Phil Schiller also detailed plans to roll out variable pricing on digital songs at iTunes with songs priced between USD $0.69 cents and $1.29.

The Macworld trade show in San Francisco is to get a glimpse of SlingPlayer Mobile for the iPhone.
SlingPlayer Mobile enables users to watch any program normally viewed on a home TV set on the iPhone using a standard broadband network connection.
It will also allow iPhone users to control their home digital video recorder (DVR) to watch recorded shows, pause, rewind, and fast forward live TV, or even queue new recordings while away from home.

Details are emerging about Palm’s expected launch of its latest smartphone and operating system at this week’s Consumer Electronics Show.
The new handset is to have a full QWERTY keyboard that will slide down under a portrait-oriented touchscreen.

Rumors are flying, as usual, leading up to the next Apple product lineup announcements. And the big one this time is the idea of an iPhone Nano. In part fueled by new case design specs, and equally by the fact that Apple most likely will expand its iPhone lineup one day as it has the iPod lineup, this rumor feels just like what it is: pure speculation. And others agree with me, like the fine folks at Gizmodo.

The iPod was well suited to various sizes so that it fit the needs of hte person listening to music (or watching video). It was never meant to be heavily interacted with in terms of its touch face UI. The iPod Nano was a fantastic idea, as one could tuck it away easily, or attach it to an armband while running.

The iPhone works so well because of its size; a smaller form factor would defeat a lot of its usability.

Having said all that, if a smaller form factor does indeed come out, I would not expect it to support all (or any) of the current apps. In fact, it might just be a phone and MP3 player.

Now, bring on the Mac tablet. That is a rumor I can never get enough of.

Motorola is to discontinue making phones for Symbian and will instead concentrate on two new platforms: Windows Mobile and Android.
Sanjay Jha, CEO of the Mobile Devices group at Motorola, confirmed what had until now been rumors to Michael Oryl of MobileBurn.

Palm has secured a USD $100 million equity lifeline from Elevation Partners just a few weeks before it unveils its new Nova operating system.
Faced with mounting losses and weak smartphone sales, the success of the new operating system could very well decide the company's fate.

Devoteam is to release a Blackberry version of its VoIP client OnePhone that runs on mobile platforms enabling voice calls over an IP network.
smartphone.biz-news spoke to Christoph Wernli, business development manager at Devoteam, about the convergence market and the opportunities offered by open-source operating systems.

iPhone owners are the single largest source of mobile WiFi data traffic worldwide, particularly in the US and UK, according to AdMob.
In the US, the Apple handset represents 50.6 per cent of all requests from handhelds of any kind, followed by the iPod touch, which accounts for 28 per cent of the requests.
The best non-Apple device, Sony's PSP, only manages 13.1 per cent of this traffic.

Microsoft's Live Labs has released its first application for the iPhone.
Seadragon Mobile is an experimental image viewer that aims to make high-resolution images easier to handle on a small screen.
It allows users to view enormous photo collections and high-resolution imagery using the iPhone's multi-touch intuitive interface.

Predictions about Apple's intentions for the upcoming Macworld Expo are ripe - with the latest being the launch of a netbook that works like an iPhone.
Technology Business Research analyst Ezra Gottheil believes that as with the iPhone, users will download mobile applications for the netbook from Apple's App Store.

While almost everybody?s lusting after cut, copy & paste functionality for the iPhone, not every work around that promises to deliver such a feature can live up to its word especially if its not available through the App Store. One good example of this is Pastebud. It works by using Java-based bookmarks that enables you to copy text from websites and places it on an online clipboard for pasting on another website or use in an email. Likewise, you can send text that you want to copy & paste to a specific email address so that you can be sent a link to a specific site where you can access your text online for later usage. No need to download an app or to jailbreak your iPhone. Pretty good, right? Unfortunately, there have been incidents reported that emails were being sent to the wrong persons including some personal information (read: email address and other details included in an email header).

According to Jed Schmidt, the creator of Pastebud, the directions weren?t clear enough which led to people copying text to the wrong email address for later deliver to random individuals. I?m not too sure how one can make such a mistake, but this just goes to show that if you don?t read the instructions carefully, you could be compromising your own personal security.

[product via gizmodo]

The lack of copy and paste on the iPhone could soon be a thing of the past if a new web service called Pastebud is as good as it appears.
Although still to be launched Pastebud's creators have put a demonstration of their service on YouTube showing how iPhone users can copy and paste text from Safari into Mail and between web pages.

Games publishers and developers will give up on Java unless operators follow Apple's lead in offering more appealing revenue shares.
That's according to a report by analyst Windsor Holden, of Juniper Research, who warns that as well as being a lost opportunity for developers it would seriously reduce the variety of games for players.

It’s official, as confirmed by Bloomberg, the iPhone 3G will be available at Walmart beginning next month.

The iPhone 3Gs will be $199 and $299 for the 8Gb and 16GB respectively, though some rumors say the 8GB Walmart iPhone will be cheaper by $2.

We don’t know about the $99 iPhone 3G, though, if indeed Apple will let Walmart sell iPhone 3Gs this cheap (the 4GB model only). Apple really should, if only to solidify their leadership in the smartphone category.

[source via arstechnica]

Growth in the global smartphone market dipped to 11.5 per cent in the third quarter year-on-year, the slowest rate of growth since it started tracking smartphone sales, according to research firm Gartner.
Some 36.5 million smartphones were sold globally in the July-September quarter.

What an amazing deal if it goes through. A Walmart iPhone is not far off, but it gets better if they make the old 4GB version available at a big discount during the holidays. The $99 iPhone will no doubt create another wave of iPhone queue. For our loyal readers, you might remember that I have been hoping for a cheap iPhone Nano at about the same price range. A full-pledged iPhone, however, is not too bad either. Cross our fingers.

[via bgr]

The open-source OS Linux has been ported to the iPhone and iPod for the first time.
A member of the iPhone Dev Team - going by the screen name Planetbeing - has managed to load Linux 2.6's kernel to the 2G and 3G iPhone, as well as the first generation iPod Touch.

If you?ve been wishing that the iPhone would become available in another form factor such as a clamshell, then you?re in luck. Some dudes over in China have come out with their a new iPhone clone now showcasing Apple’s little darling in an all-new clamshell, brushed aluminum finish complete with an illuminated Apple logo design. Ok, so maybe it doesn?t look like an iPhone at first glance. Heck, it doesn’t even come with a touchscreen display, but once you flip it open, the oh so familiar iPhone UI will great you on the 2.6-inch 240×320 display. This iPhone wannabe also comes with a 3-megapixel camera and weighs about 110 grams.

[phone magazine via engadgetmobile]
More pictures after the break.

If there was a contest for the most out-of-the-box rendition of the iPhone, this one definitely ranks as one of the top contenders.

A security issue could lead to shortages of Verizon's Blackberry Storm on its US launch day today.
The last minute hitch has forced both maker RIM and exclusive operator Verizon to update the firmware and reduce supplies of phones, according to a report on BGR.

DeFi Mobile is to make its Global Access VoIP service available to  iPhone owners - possibly by the new year.
Users will have access to unlimited global calling, roaming, and long distance for a monthly subscription fee.
While calls will require a WiFi connection, DeFi says it has struck global partnerships that ensure an extensive network of private and commercial connections.

Mobile game sales are "flatlining" across North America and Western Europe despite increased interest from consumers, according to a report from Juniper Research.
It says that unless more operators adopt an Apple-like approach to rewarding games publishers, they will be driven away from the sector - and the number and variety of games available will decline.

External battery packs have always been the bane of the iPhone?s beauty. It adds an unflattering accessory to the plush, sophisticated look of Apple?s slender mobile phone. Thank God someone finally come out with a battery pack that won?t exactly make the iPhone look ridiculous while attached to it. What looks like a protective case at first glance is actually the Power Slide battery pack. It provides protection and extends battery life as well as sync/charger capabilities all in one stylishly designed product. It has a 1330mAh 4.2V rechargeable battery that?s roughly equivalent to up to 330 hour standby time, 26 hours audio playback, 5 hours talk time on 3G,10 hours on 2G and internet usage of up to 5 hours on 3G and 6 hours on WiFi. Now this is one accessory I wouldn?t mind being seen attached to the iPhone anytime of the day. Look for it to become available starting November 28.

[product via engadgetmobile]

PhoneTopp has announced an online conference and collaboration tool for use with smartphones - initially only for the iPhone and the Blackberry Bold.
Gartner estimates that in 2010, web conferencing will be available to 75 per cent of corporate users as standard facility alongside email, presence and calendaring.

Apple's iPhone has overtaken Motorola's Razr to become the best-selling consumer cellphone in the US in the third quarter of 2008.
The iPhone's success is all the more impressive considering it costs upwards of USD $199, while the RAZR has been virtually free with a signed contract for the past few years.

Show most non-gamers an iPhone running the 3D fighting game Kroll and the reaction is usually some variation of "wow".
What surprises them is that a game of such quality and with such stunning graphics is on a handheld device.

It may lack some vital business tools - no cut-and-paste, for starters - but it seems that Apple's 3G handset is gaining followers who see it as more than just a fun device.
The iPhone has received the highest customer satisfaction marks in the most recent JD Power & Associates customer satisfaction survey of business smartphone users.

While for the most part the onscreen keyboard is efficient enough to write short e-mails and jot down notes, there are times that you just wish there was a way to hook up a real keyboard to the iPhone. Well, that?s what some ingenious dude managed to do. After jailbreaking the 3G iPhone and hacking the software to support a Palm external keyboard, he now enjoys the luxury of being able to type long biographies on his iPhone without having to touch the screen. Now, if this isn?t proof of concept that a keyboard can be connected to the iPhone, I don?t not what is. So, any of you developers out there want to start working on a Bluetooth driver to support some of the more modern keyboards out in the market today? Don’t hesitate to give us a holler, we?ll gladly appreciate it if there’s one made available for use.

[source via bgr]

Meizu is planning to launch its M8 smartphone in various markets around the world before Christmas.
The Chinese-made touchscreen handset bears a striking resemblance to the iPhone.
Quite what Apple's response will be is uncertain.

Passing your contact entry to other iPhone users just got a whole lot easier thanks to a new app called Handshake.
The free app, which also runs on the iPod Touch, allows contact information and photos to be exchanged with another user nearby.

So who exactly was Nokia's Kai Öistämö referring to as a "dictator" when he addressed the recent Symbian Smartphone Show in London?
No names were named by the executive vice president of devices but his speech made it clear the Finnish giant isn't resting on its laurels.

The iPhone may be made in China but Apple still hasn't launched its game-changing handset there yet.
That hasn't stopped the 3G smartphone having a huge impact on China's estimated 700 million cell phone market, according to the latest report from Research and Markets.

While I personally would have appreciated WiFi 802.11n support in future iterations of the iPhone or iPod Touch, it seems like WiMAX has been thrown into the picture thanks to a Memorandum of Understanding signed by Korean Telecom and Apple. So far, only iPods and Macbooks are confirmed to be included in the said memorandum, but it is also likely that the iPhone will be part of it as well. Why WiMAX? It?s because Korea has one of the most developed WiMAX networks in the world, and they want their consumers to take advantage of it. I like the sound of a WiMAX-enabled iPhone, but the prospects of me purchasing one is next to never simple because there?s still no WiMAX network from where I live. Nevertheless, who knows, maybe if Apple comes out with WiMAX support for their devices, this might be an incentive for telecoms to ramp up progress in the deployment of WiMAX networks around the globe.

[via mobilewhack]

Suggestions that a Norweigan developer produced software that allowed Windows Mobile to be run on the iPhone look like being a hoax.
A demonstration shown by iphonefreakz.com of an application that gave users a choice of OS when the iPhone is booted up was part of a viral marketing campaign.

Whether the Blackberry Storm unveiled today lives up to its much-hyped “iPhone killer” title remains to be seen.
What’s certain is that RIM – the champion of corporate emailers – appears to have delivered excellent new touchscreen technology in its first handset not equipped with a physical keyboard.

Thirty per cent of US consumers who purchased Apple’s new iPhone 3G from June through August 2008 switched from other mobile carriers to join AT&T, according to a survey by the NPD Group.
Unsurprisingly, the new iPhone was the top selling smartphone between June-August, pipping RIM’s Blackberry Curve and Pearl to the top slot.

The smartphone camera race roars on with news that Sony Ericsson is shaping up a 12 megapixel camera on a CyberShot phone.
Currently codenamed the Kokura, it will apparently also feature a touchscreen and iPhone-like interface, according to Mobilementalism.

Hewlett-Packard is seeking to capitalise on the success of the iPhone by launching a smartphone that gives it a stronger footing beyond the enterprise market.
The new device will fall into the HP iPAQ line that has been developed around Windows Mobile for business use.

Nokia has finally unveiled its touchscreen 5800 XpressMusic.
Aimed at a mainstream market, the Finnish phone giant is hoping to attract users put off by the price of Apple’s iPhone.
To coincide with the announcement of its the mid-range music-focussed phone Nokia launched its’ free music package Comes with Music.

Adobe Systems is preparing a version of its Flash Player that could be used on Apple’s iPhone.
Whether the software is actually accepted by Apple is another matter.

An announcement is expected from Nokia today about the launch of a touch-screen device.
Dubbed the “Tube”, the handset could be unveiled at a media and analyst event in London.
It would be Nokia’s first touch-screen since Apple launched the iPhone last year.

While the iPhone and Google’s HTC-made G1 may be introducing a more consumer-oriented market to the smartphone, it is still very much a business tool.
The high-end handsets are being used to carry increasing amounts of confidential data, yet only 35 per cent of companies have a mobile device security strategy in place.
Smartphone.biz-news.com spoke to Larry Ketchersid, chairman and CEO of Media Sourcery, about how it’s helping enterprises with mobile workforces securely distribute confidential information.

T-Mobile has introduced the first Google Phone, the HTC-made G1, which the company hopes will rival Apple’s iPhone.
Inevitably, comparisons with Apple’s 3G handset were going to be made and the price – both of the smartphone and monthly contract charges – was going to be an area of key interest.

Microsoft is not expected to complete a final build of its Windows Mobile 7 operating system until the second half of 2009.
The delay is a significant blow for the software giant, which has been counting on the next version of WinMo to enable devices that better rival Apple's iPhone.

Apple is to block developers' abilities to distribute iPhone applications outside of its iTunes App Store.
The move is certain to add to the growing disquiet from application developers already unhappy with Apple’s unclear and seemingly arbitrary approvals policy.

While Apple may have released a bunch of iPods including the new 4G iPod Nanos, the recently concluded Let?s Rock event had very little to say or give to iPhone fans. So, it?s not at all surprising that rumors are circling around that Apple might be readying a bigger capacity model to replace the top-of-the-line 16GB iPhone; a 32GB perhaps in early 2009? After all, if you look at the trend of the iPhone, it won?t exactly be against their philosophy since it was just earlier this year when they made the 16GB version available to the public.

Likewise, there?s also talk of at-home activation for the iPhone which everyone will gladly accept if and when they decide to bring it back. Anyway, all of these are just rumors and hear-say for now. Let?s all just wait and see in the next couple of months and who knows, maybe all of this will happen before 2008 ends.

[appleinsider via engadget]

Those looking for a comparison between the 3G iPhone, Samsung Omnia and the latest HTC Touch HD need look any further as we’ve found a video pitting each one against each other. The only downside to it is that it’s in French, but the performance of the Touch HD can more or less speak for itself. Personally, I think that the HTC Touch HD is phenomenal as far as Windows Mobile 6.1 devices are concerned, but if you’re the type who puts a premium on looks, the 3G iPhone is still the best all-in package. Anyway, that’s just my opinion, watch the video and tell us what you think about it.

[bgr via cellphones.ca]

Mobile TV will soon become as accepted a feature of mobile handsets as the camera.
That is the prediction of David Srodzinski, founder and chief executive of Elonics, who spoke about his expectations for the future of mobile TV in an interview with Smartphone.biz-news.com.

The increasing numbers of smartphones on flat-rate data plans, coupled with ever-improving handsets, is leading to a surge in mobile search, according to comScore.
It has published the results of a survey which show that searching the internet from a mobile phone is gaining in popularity in the United States and Western Europe.

Touted as Google's answer to the iPhone, the first cell phone powered by the feverishly anticipated Android software is to be unveiled on 23 September.
The Android launch will heighten competition in a market increasingly dominated by Apple's 3G handset and RIM's BlackBerries.

More than 100 million applications have been downloaded from the App Store since the launch of Apple’s 3G iPhone two months ago.
This landmark was announced today to a chorus of iPhone programmers voicing their displeasure towards Apple’s unclear and seemingly arbitrary “approval” policy.

Smartphones accounted for 25.8 per cent of worldwide mobile ad traffic in August, up 3.4 per cent since May 2008, according to AdMob’s August 2008 Mobile Metrics Report.
Nokia dominates globally, with a 62.4 per cent slice of the traffic in August and more than 50 per cent in every region except North America.

Apple’s iPhone has done much to thrust touch screens firmly into the public’s consciousness – a place they seem certain to increasingly inhabit.
A report from ABI Research forecasts that revenue from the global touch screen market for smartphones and other handheld devices such as MIDs, UMPCs, and PNDs will reach USD $5 billion in 2009.

The launch by Samsung in the UK this week of what it claims is Europe's first 8 megapixel camera phone is being seen as an attempt to highlight shortcomings in the iPhone.
A number of other handset vendors are preparing to launch similar high-end camera phones in time for the Christmas period.

UK customers are to be offered a pay-as-you-go 3G iPhone from later this month starting at GBP 349.99 (around US$630) for the 8GB model.
O2 , which has the exclusive handset franchise for the UK, will also be selling the 16GB model for GBP 399.99 (around US$720).

Microsoft is to create an online software store for its Windows Mobile platform.
To be called Skymarket, the online store for mobile software follows Apple’s iPhone App Store and Google’s plans for an App Market for its Android smartphone platform.

Google is to offer an applications “market” for its Android open mobile platform but has sought to distance itself from Apple’s iPhone app store.
A member of the Android team has said it is to be “an open content distribution system that will help end users find, purchase, download and install various types of content on their Android-powered devices”.

Filed under: Handsets, Software, GSM, EDGE, Apple, OS X

Hey, hackers! Now that we've got the attention of millions upon millions of incredibly talented individuals, here's your next challenge. India's Airtel -- which is offering Apple's iPhone 3G at a near-stratospheric price -- has claimed that "even the most deadly hackers on the planet won't be able to crack the codes that support the iPhone's Airtel applications with rival company SIMs." Just so you know, it appears that Airtel worked with Apple to develop "operator-specific iPhone applications," which is an interesting tidbit in and of itself. But let's focus on the task at hand here, and that's proving that making ridiculous claims about impenetrability always comes back to bite ya.

[Image courtesy of Zedomax, thanks Akshay]

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This little app is by far one of the coolest things we?ve seen done for the iPhone, but aside from drawing those jaw-dropping reactions from your friends, it pretty much belongs to the not-so-productive bunch of the group. Created by David OReilly, the illusion is created using a technique called anomorphosis which basically fools you into seeing 3D objects instead of 2D drawings. A constant 35-45 degree viewing angle is key for this to work and when paired with the iPhone?s accelerometer, it does just that by adjusting the image accordingly whenever you tilt or move the device.

Too bad it isn?t available yet in both the App Store and Cydia/Installer.app as this looks destined to be a hit. It?s simply amazing what a little imagination and some technical expertise can do when you put the iPhone into the picture.

[via gizmodo]

The success of Apple’s App Store is making smartphone software developers increasingly attractive to venture capitalists and phonemakers with millions to invest.
The head of one US$100m fund that invests in smartphone application start-ups has told the New York Times he expects to tap into the iPhone’s success.

Tech-Ex reports in his blog that Alabama resident Jessica Alena Smith has filed a complaint against Apple.
The attorney representing Smith said the 3G iPhone hadn’t lived up to Apple’s promise that it was twice as fast as the pre-existing phones and would function properly on the 3G network.

A college student has developed an open source framework that allows cross-application Copy and Paste on the iPhone.
Zac White says his Open Clip framework uses a shared space on the iPhone that can be accessed by applications to enable Copy and Paste – without falling foul of the iPhone SDK agreement.

Telecom providers in Turkey and Kenya are the latest to announce they will be bringing the 3G iPhone to their markets as the international rollout of the handset continues.
On August 22nd, the current list of 22 nations where the iPhone has already been launched will be extended to give another 20 countries access to Apple’s latest product.

Smartphone sales in the EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa) market reached 12.57 million units in the second quarter of 2008, representing a 28.2 per cent on-year growth, according to market research firm Canalys.
While the results signal the second biggest quarter ever in volume terms for “converged” devices, the growth was the lowest level recorded in the past 18 months.

T-Mobile is to be the first carrier to offer a mobile phone powered by Google's Android software.
The phone will be made by HTC, one of the largest makers of mobile phones in the world, and is expected to go on sale in the United States before Christmas, according to reports.

Tethering may still be an unofficial no-no on the iPhone but US telecom company Sprint seem determined to encourage it on their own handsets.
Sprint are understood to be considering dropping the price of Phone As Modem (PAM) add-ons on new plans to US$15, down from the previous US$40 per month paid by current plan holders.

Questions remain about battery life, security and email options but it would seem Apple’s 3G iPhone is attracting increasing interest from the business world.
HSBC is considering equipping its employees with some 200,000 iPhones, according to HSBC’s Australia and New Zealand chief information officer Brenton Hush.

Yeah, the new iPhone now has 3G connectivity, but it still doesn?t support live video streaming from the built-in camera. This is where Qik comes in. Qik is an app that allows you to do what is currently impossible to the iPhone: make it a live streaming video camera. It?s not available in the App Store, which means you?ll have to have a jailbroken iPhone to download and it make it work. The latest version now supports even 1.1.4 running iPhone, but it won?t stream over an EDGE network.

Just sign up at Qik?s website to receive an SMS to activate it. Installation of the app itself is as easy as going to Multimedia Section in Cydia and clicking Qik, and you?re done.

[via TechCrunch]

The US smartphone market grew 67.3 per cent in the first half of 2008 with RIM’s Blackberry the firm leader with nearly half of all sales.
However, even with Q2 shipments dropping in anticipation of the new 3G iPhone, Apple retained the second place spot for the first half of the year with Motorola a close third.

The GPS maker Garmin has delayed plans to launch its Nuvifone smartphone in the fourth quarter of 2008 until the first half of 2009.
Obstacles in dealing with the various individual needs of each cell phone carrier were cited as the reason for the delay.

Touchscreen handset could have a potentially revolutionary impact on mobile gaming, according to a report by Screen Digest.
In particular, Apple’s iPhone 3G is expected to drive the growth of the North American market raising it to the leading global market by revenue next year.

The media analyst’s study says that the world’s top four games publishers are taking an ever bigger share of the market for mobile games.
EA Mobile, Gameloft, Glu and THQ Wireless have seen their global market shares increase from 11 per cent to 22 per cent in 2007 and the figure is rising, particularly in Western Europe.

 

It appears that iPhone jailbreak and unlock methods will continue to be a popular up until 2010 in the U.S. AT&T will be enjoying a longer iPhone exclusivity thanks to the new $199 pricing of the iPhone 3G, which may have forced Apple to extend AT&T’s contract. That would mean, AT&T would benefit from at least two more iPhone iterations and no one can stop them but the iPhone unlockers/jailbreakers.

[via engadget]

An application by Nullriver that turns an iPhone into a portable WiFi hotspot disappeared from Apple’s App Store 20 minutes after being made available - only to re-appear hours later.
Once operating the app is designed to give Wi-Fi-enabled devices internet access wherever a mobile signal is available.

Filed under: Handsets, Apple, OS X

We're not sure how this one got past Apple's App Store censors, but the clever kids at Nullriver have released what appears to be the first tethering solution for the iPhone. The $10 NetShare app is just a SOCKS proxy that links an ad-hoc WiFi network to the iPhone's 3G or EDGE connection -- and if we could get it to work, we'd probably think it was a fine, if hacky, solution to a major limitation of Steve's baby. As it stands, though, the instructions are pretty sparse, and while we can get the app to recognize a connection, we're not able to actually load anything. We're not sure how long this one's going to last -- anyone else willing to give it a shot before it gets yanked?

[Thanks, Zoli; Warning, link opens iTunes]

Update: Aaaaand it's offline. Shocking.

Update 2: We've added our own video hands-on after the break.

Continue reading Tether your iPhone, wirelessly. Maybe. (updated with video)

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Global demand for mobile devices is expected to reach 1.3 billion units in 2008 despite financial uncertainties, according to ABI Research
As the recent launch of the 3G iPhone demonstrated, the public appetite for the latest, most sophisticated smartphones is strong.

Filed under: Messaging, ATT, Apple

Just like the original, AT&T now has a so-called TAP (Text Accessibility Plan) all set up for the iPhone 3G that'll offer unlimited messaging and data to folks with disabilities. Interested parties do need to fill out a qualification form, meaning that your average able-bodied customer isn't going to be able to get in on the service -- and unfortunately, it's undergone the same $10 facelift that the regular plans have suffered, meaning subscribers will now be paying $50 a month ($65 for enterprise use) instead of the $40 that was being charged previously. By the way, we're shaking our fists at the heavens right now, cursing inflation, market forces, and corporate greed.

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The popularity of touchscreens in smartphones and their influence in driving data revenues will cause the technology to rapidly spread to other handsets.
A report from IMS Research credits the original iPhone for sparking interest in touchscreen phones.
But its says what is currently a steady growth in sales of touchscreen-equipped mobile handsets will become even stronger.

Verizon Wireless has exceeded analysts’s predictions and posted impressive second quarter earnings of US$1.88 billion.
A key factor in the results was increased smartphone sales, which now account for 30 per cent of the US carrier’s device sales.
Denny Strigl, Verizon’s president and COO, even went as far as to give the build up of interest for the 3G iPhone’s launch earlier this month some of the credit for his company’s results.

A fortnight after the iPhone 3G was launched many Apple retail stores have no handsets in stock and lengthy queues form outside those that do.
Now AT&T has provided frustrated buyers with further evidence that Apple’s latest handset is popular – the carrier has sold twice as many Apple iPhone 3G units upon launch as they did a year ago with the first generation iPhone.

 

Now you can jailbreak your iPhone 2.0 for free with iPhone Dev Team’s PwnageTool 2.0. It jailbreaks and unlock and jailbreak iPhone, jailbreak iPhone 3G and the iPod Touch if they are running the iPhone 2.0 software. Only the 2.0 software is supported by this jailbreak. THIS IS NOT AN UNLOCK SOFTWARE FOR iPHONE 3G… yet.

Update 1: Just to clear up some confusion over what this actually does: yes, it jailbreaks and unlocks older iPhones, and jailbreaks iPhone 3Gs and iPod Touches. We only support the 2.0 firmwares.

Update 2: It looks like there aren?t enough TCP ports on that server, so _BigBoss_ has generously offered to mirror it.

Update 3: If you get Error 1600 from iTunes (or if you see in your log a failure to prepare x12220000_4_Recovery.ipsw), try: mkdir ?~/Library/iTunes/Device Support? ; if that directory already exists, remove any files in it. Then re-run PwnageTool.

[source]

Filed under: Handsets, Apple

iPhone unlocking is a little more cash-intensive now that Apple and AT&T are all contract-happy with the 3G, but it looks like would-be unlockers will have a little more time to save up those pennies -- the erstwhile hackers on the iPhone Dev Team say that while a forthcoming version of the sadly-named Pwnage tool will activate and jailbreak the iPhone 3G, unlocking is taking a little longer than expected, and they don't want to release the code until it's exactly right. The tool still unlocks first-gen iPhones running 2.0 and allows jailbreak apps to co-exist with the App Store, so if you're desperate to unlock right away, we'd say a first-gen unit is your best bet.

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If you’re looking for an unlocked iPhone 3G and can’t seem to find one in your area, maybe Hong Kong’s Union Camera, Ltd. can help you out. They are selling iPhone 3G, the original and all brand new, not refurbs, to interested buyers. Minimum order is 1,000 units. It’s available in 8GB and 16GB. If you don’t believe me, go to their Alibaba page and wait for costumer service to go online and you can ask Union Camera yourself if they do have unlocked 3G iPhones in stock. Ships a day after receipt of payment.

[product]

Some impressive mobile phone product launches between now and the year-end will help the world’s mobile handset markets finish 2008 with strong sales, according to ABI Research.
Spurred on by the launch of Apple’s second-generation iPhone, rival handset vendors such as RIM, Nokia and Samsung are also expected to debut new models in the second half of 2008.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1lQWH24hv4

The first-gen iPhone was unlocked for the first time by Turbo SIM. It’s not a software jailbreak but it’s a simple method for those users willing to shell out $80 for a blank SIM. It took the unlockers four days after the iPhone was released, doing exactly what was done on the original iPhone, using a SIM adapter to fool the new iPhone. I wonder why this wasn’t done any sooner, because with over a million iPhone 3Gs in users hands now, the majority of whom may not think getting tied to one network, esepecially when traveling and having to pay roaming fees, is not such a good idea.

Our procedure consist in using one SIM adapter to simulate a fake IMSI test card. Instead of the AT&T IMSI like in the universals.

The unlock method is not posted online yet, and honestly we are not sure it will become available for free.

[via gizmodo]

Filed under: Handsets, GSM, EDGE, HSDPA, UMTS, Apple

Craziest thing, Apple apparently launched some sort of device being loosely coined as a "cellular telephone" last Friday. The darned thing makes calls, keeps track of contacts, and even receives messages -- all right from your pocket! Wild, sci-fi caliber stuff, that. We're catching up on the latest iPhone 3G buzz, and here's what we've got going on at the moment:

• Jonny Gladwell, better known as the first iPhone 3G owner in the world thanks to his perfect storm of location (New Zealand) and line position (first), has been outed as a plant for New Zealand's Yellow Pages. Turns out the guy was hired by the directory service to see if he could "survive" the brutal multi-day sitting experience using nothing but -- you guessed it -- the Yellow Pages to get by. Ironic that you don't need a friggin' Yellow Pages when you have an iPhone, isn't it? Hmm, Jonny?
• Portelligent has sacrificed an iPhone 3G to conduct perhaps the most thorough teardown thus far, finding some incremental improvements, largely to accomodate 3G and bring the design in line with the iPod touch, while carrying over a good deal of componentry that had no reason to be upgraded. Infineon and Toshiba had big wins here in the radio and flash memory departments, respectively.
• AIM acts as a conduit for sending text messages by allowing users to add phone numbers as "buddies." The iPhone has an AIM client. See where we're going with this? Yep, it's a cheesy way to avoid shelling out for a text messaging plan, if you want to go to the trouble of using AIM in place of the native SMS app.
• The plot thickens in the yellow screen issue. As we'd mentioned yesterday, Apple claims the warmer color temperature seen in the iPhone 3G was a purposeful attempt to make things prettier and sharper -- but now, Ars Technica reports that forcing an update in iTunes from the 3G's shipping firmware of 5A345 to the ever-so-slightly newer 5A347 pushes things a little bit back toward the blue end of the spectrum. So what's it gonna be, Apple?

[Thanks to everyone who sent these in!]

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As the iPhone notches up one million sales Palm and HP launch their latest smartphones with a little less fanfare.
With hardly a whimper Palm’s Treo 800w and Hewlett-Packard’s iPaQ 910 have been released on to a smartphone market still largely focussed on Friday’s iPhone launch.
They will be held up against Apple’s latest handset, which is now available in 21 countries and will go on sale in France on July 17.

Filed under: Handsets, GSM, EDGE, HSDPA, UMTS, Apple

So many of you are probably still in your jammies, reveling in the afterglow of yesterday's purchase, repeatedly opening Maps on your glossy new iPhone 3G and watching in exaggerated wonderment as your location is determined with frightening speed and accuracy. Others might be standing in a line snaking hundreds of bodies long into your friendly local Apple Store, reading this post from the comfort of your Motorola RAZR V3 and realizing that these are some of the last moments you'll be using a physical keypad. Still others are bemused by the fuss -- but whatever your stance on the phone, it's pretty hard to ignore the buzz that's floating around in the aftermath of day zero. Here are some of the goings-on we're tracking:

• The masses of humanity continue to collect. Massive stock shortages don't seem to be an issue (yet), but patience is not a virtue we hold dear to our hearts, so we really can't blame these people.
• Some buyers are reporting a yellow tint to their screens -- probably not enough to notice without another unit side-by-side for comparison, but real nonetheless. Of course, the first iPhone suffered from the occasional crappy backlight, bum touchscreen, or negative black, so we wouldn't be surprised if a few lame displays made it out of the factory floor for this model as well; we're following up with Apple on this and we should have more for you later today.
• We took the iPhone 3G on a decent drive around New York, and found its tracking to be impeccable. In a situation where we might have veered off the path following Google Maps directions, the blue blip kept us right on track. Despite what you've read (we're looking at you, Mr. Pogue), we see no technical reason that the aGPS can't provide turn-by-turn directions, provided there's software to take advantage of it.
• There are some complaints floating around about 3G reception, but it's been just fine on our review units around the world so far. How's it treating you out in [your location here]?
• iphone-dev has a video up of BootNeuter going about its business on a first-gen iPhone that's been upgraded to firmware 2.0, and the process is looking as slick and painless as ever. Unlockers who haven't shelled out for the 3G, commence your salivating.
• MobileMe seems like it's up for the moment, but don't breathe too hard lest you bring the whole thing down again.

Update: We just spoke with Bob Borchers, senior director of product marketing for the iPhone, and he had some very interesting info regarding the "yellow screen" phenomenon we've been hearing about. According to Bob (and Apple), the screen's color temperature has been purposely altered on the new iPhone to produce warmer, more natural tones, sharper images, and deeper blacks. The company says that 1st gen iPhone screens appeared colder and less defined, and they made some adjustments for the new models. In our opinion, what he says is right on -- the screens do look better on the iPhone 3G versus the older variety. What do you guys think?

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The opening of Apple’s online App Store to coincide with the launch of the new iPhone could herald seismic changes in the mobile phone market.
At least that’s what Steve Jobs, the Apple founder, is hoping.
He sees the online applications store as an attempt to do for mobile applications - games, reference guides and other software - what Apple’s iTunes Store has done for music.
While rivals may bristle at his comments, Jobs is clear about his goal.

Rhythm NewMedia, a leader in mobile video, has announced the availability of the free vSNAX Videos native iPhone application on the Apple App Store.
vSNAX Videos promises to deliver mobile video clips to iPhone and iPod touch users from more than 20 premium media partners including AccuWeather.com, Ford Models, Ripe TV, and MTV Networks’ VH1, Spike and GameTrailers.

The Apple 3G iPhone will change the mobile behaviour of users and alter consumer expectations for phone capabilities.
That’s according to a report by analysts Nielsen Mobile which looks at the worldwide state of the mobile web.
The study says that its growth is due to a combination of increasing numbers of user friendly handsets, higher speed networks and unlimited data packages.
It then goes on to describe the mobile web as having reached a “critical mass” of users this year.
But it singles out the iPhone – despite being the second most popular device among mobile users in the US after Motorola’s RAZR – for special mention.

The function-packed Apple iPhone 3G may about to be released to the world but many consumers say they just want a mobile that’s a phone
Clint Wheelock, vice president and chief research officer for ABI Research, said: “It’s still a voice-centric world. Consumers across all mature markets still choose their mobile operator based on ‘the basics’: price, friends/family on the same network, and network coverage.”
A report from ABI Research shows that cameras, Bluetooth, and music top consumers’ lists as “must have” features on mobile phones.

South Korean regulations requiring handset applications to be based on a homegrown technology are largely why the country’s mobile phone market is dominated by Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics.
As a result of the WIPI ruling – the acronym stands for wireless internet platform for interoperability - foreign companies have found it too expensive to produce handsets tailored for South Korean consumers.
Nokia is virtually absent in the country and Motorola is a minor competitor with less than 5 per cent of the market. Apple has kept its iPhone out of the market because of the WIPI rule.
Yet international handset makers are keen to enter South Korea, one of the world’s most technologically advanced and expensive telecoms markets.
Now President Lee Myung-bak’s newly elected government has expressed a willingness to soften the WIPI rule, potentially opening the door to foreign handset makers.

As pricing details continue to emerge about the new iPhone, one analyst estimates that Apple stands to make more from each device than previously thought.
Gene Munster, of investment bank Piper Jaffray, said that AT&T’s complete official pricing for iPhone 3G units suggests Apple is making more from the reportedly abundant iPhone stock than estimated in the past.
Although the US$199 starting price is much lower for the customers themselves, the US$599 pay-as-you-go price suggests that the carrier subsidy cuts much deeper.
If so, then this hides potentially greater profits for Apple, which could be asking US$500 for each iPhone versus an earlier estimate of US$425.
“This discrepancy leads us to believe our [average selling price] is conservative,” said Munster.
The analyst said that a change of this level would boost Apple’s revenue for 2009 by eight per cent.

Nokia may still be the world’s leading mobile phone supplier but it’s been toppled from its pedestal when it comes to phone cases.
Krusell, the Swedish manufacturer of carrying cases for portable electronics, has released its “Top 10” - list for June 2008.
The list is based upon the number of pieces of model specific mobile and smartphone cases that have been ordered from the company during June 2008.
Its chart is unique, according to Krusell, due to the fact that it reflects the sales of phones on six continents and in more than 50 countries around the globe.

Apple will build at least 15 million 3G iPhones in 2008 bringing its total smartphone production to at least 17 million phones.
At least that’s what Craig Berger, semiconductor analysts with Friedman Billings Ramsey, expects production levels to run to by the year-end.
He has upgraded his figures after previously saying that Apple would build 13 million iPhones in 2008 (which, interestingly, included 2 million 2.5G Edge-only iPhones).
His rationale for the change is because he thinks iPhone production in the third quarter will be higher than expected.

We’ve heard about Negri Electronics before and their penchant for, er, exaggeration. Their over-excited online retailing techniques aside, they can be relied upon to keep an eye on the most interesting releases. It comes as no surprise to me that besides the 3G iPhone, Negri also has in stock the BlackBerry Bold, HTC Touch Diamond and the Samsung Instinct - all unlocked. You can place orders for these phones now. Negri does not take orders of 16GB “iPhone3G” at the moment but they have listed July 21 as the date when they expect they will have the phones on stock. Now, we know that Apple will be releasing the 3G iPhone in 22 territories come July 11. Has Negri made a mistake? Hm, sure doesn’t look like a typo to me since they have the information in all three 3G iPhone models and it’s posted in red. Interesting…. They have both black (16GB and 8GB) and white (16GB only) versions unlocked.

[product]

Appleinsider reports that Apple, Inc. has ordered 17 million iPhone, 2 million of these with EDGE-only. If this sounds too optimistic, you’d be doubly interested to note that the figure is for Apple phones that are still about to be shipped. It is expected Apple will sell all or most of the 17 million before the end of this year. A staggering number, but when coupled with another rumor of iPhone finally supporting MMS, it might actually make a lot of sense. The source of this rumor is an internal memo passed on to iPhoneatlas and the bloggers there immediately noted that the plans for iPhone 3G does not include text messages, or it was omitted for a very important reason: MMS rates have yet to be finalized.

[via unwired]

The new iPhone is expected to carry an initial hardware Bill Of Materials (BOM) and manufacturing cost of US$ 173, according to a preliminary “virtual teardown” analysis conducted by iSuppli Corp.
If correct, the second-generation iPhone could be even more profitable for Apple than either the original iPone or the iPod.
Dr Jagdish Rebello, director and principal analyst for iSuppli, said that at a hardware BOM and manufacturing cost of US$ 173, the new iPhone is significantly less expensive to produce than the first-generation product.
He said this was despite major improvements in the product’s functionality and unique usability, due to the addition of 3G communications.
“The original 8Gbyte iPhone carried a cost of US $226 after component price reductions, giving the new product a 23 per cent hardware cost reduction due to component price declines,” he said.
Last week, a survey revealed that nearly a quarter of US consumers questioned in a survey highlighted price as the main reason why they were not considering buying an Apple iPhone 3G.

Strong sales of Blackberry devices have helped Smartphone-maker Research in Motion Ltd (RIM) to more than double its first quarter profit and revenue.
The Canadian company earned US$482.5 million for the three months that ended May 31, up from US$223.2 million in the same period last year.
RIM’s revenue increased to US$2.24 billion from US$1.08 billion for the same period.
There was a net gain of 2.3 million BlackBerry subscribers in the quarter, six per cent higher than in the fourth quarter, to bring the total number of subscribers to more than 16 million.
Around 5.4 million new devices were shipped by the company in the first quarter of 2008.
Jim Balsillie, co-chief executive of RIM, said revenue had increased 107 per cent in the quarter, a rise he attributed to the continued popularity of the BlackBerry platform in business, government and consumer segments.

The popularity of the Apple iPhone in Germany - over 100,000 people have bought iPhones there since its launch in November 2007 - has prompted Mercedes-Benz to offer what it claims is an industry first.
The luxury car-maker has unveiled a new cradle specifically for the device which boosts reception and moves controls and display onto the steering wheel and dashboard.
A company report said the move was an acknowledgement by Mercedes of Apple’s current dominance in the mobile arena.
It said the cradle offered owners the means to seamlessly integrate the device’s music and telephone functions into their vehicles’ architecture.

The Samsung Instinct, touted as a worthy rival to the iPhone, has gone on sale in the US at a reduced price.
Wireless phone network Sprint is offering the touchscreen handset for USD$129.99.
The drop in price from the expected USD$ 199.99 is a move clearly intended to fuel rivalry with the new iPhone before it comes on the market next month.
Sprint’s an unlimited data plan (at $69.99 per month) and two year contract agreement are similar to AT&T’s iPhone options.

Nokia’s intention to compete in the Smartphone market by launching an array of devices will lead to a substantial and prolonged “upside” for the mobile giant.
Gus Papageorgiou, an analyst at Scotia Bank, said he believes Nokia is undervalued after hearing its CEO outline future growth plans.
Among the reasons for his optimism is the company’s aggressive plan to compete in the high-end Smartphone market, so far largely dominated by the rivalry between Research in Motion’s Blackberry and Apple’s iPhone.
Nokia is launching a range of new Smartphones and repositioning its image away from the hardware/”mobile phone” tag, by integrating services with its handsets to deliver web-enabled customer solutions.

The success of Research In Motion’s Blackberry Curve will ensure the company announces good first quarter 2008 results, according to analysts.
Simona Jankowski, an analyst with Goldman Sachs, said results, driven by US sales of its Curve at Verizon Wireless, were likely to be at the high end of current guidance when revealed on June 25.
“Our view is based on very strong retail checks suggesting that the Curve remains the most popular device among consumers and small and medium businesses alike, partially offset by a softer enterprise environment,” she said.

Nearly a quarter of US consumers questioned in a survey highlighted price as the main reason why they were not considering buying an Apple iPhone 3G.
Another impediment to purchase was people’s preference for a network carrier other than AT&T, Apple’s exclusive provider of the handsets in the US.
Only 4 per cent of those surveyed by PriceGrabber.com, a part of Experian, currently own an iPhone, but 42 per cent said they are considering buying one.
The study investigated purchasing trends and smartphone pricing history based on a survey of 3,066 online consumers conducted from May 20 to June 5, 2008.
Of the remaining 54 per cent who do not intend to purchase the iPhone, 41 per cent – or 22 per cent of the total - said that the mobile device costs too much.

Smaller than a notebook computer with a larger screen than a Smartphone – this is how the authors of research into Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) define them.
Consumers may still be relatively unaware of this emerging class of device, but that’s unlikely to be the case for long.
Global sales of MIDs expected to leap from 305,000 units shipped in 2008 to a projected 40 million in 2012, generating USD12 billion in revenue.
At least that’s the conclusion of a survey by semiconductor analysts Forward Concepts, which examined the market potential for MIDs and provided forecasts for both the devices and the integrated circuits that enable them.
It says that MIDs will have an unprecedented level of multimedia capabilities and typically will come in a tablet-like form factor.
“In our opinion, MIDs are not designed to replace mobile phones (or Smartphones) but to be used as companion devices,” the report states.

No one is saying this right now, but to me the 3G iPhone is already a flop. The iPhone is Apple’s iPod for the mobile phone market. The company promised 10 million iPhones in people’s hands by 2008. No doubt, it will fall short of its predictions.

Apple has sold over 170 million iPods and that’s not even its biggest achievement in the portable music player market. With the success of the iPod, Apple has also created an industry: the online music. The success of the iPod produced the most lucrative online music store to date. The iTunes industry boasts a worldwide distribution in the excess of 600 million copies with over 4 billion songs sold.

iPod = iTunes. iPhone = MobileMe. With 3G iPhone, the iPhone 2.0 software, Apple is attempting to do another iTunes (more…)