Rumor: New iPhone 4 handset at the end of September
Honestly, I don’t even believe this one, but it’s our responsibility as an Apple news site to keep you updated on the latest rumors, so here you go: A Mexican tech site is reporting that a Telcel executive says there will be a new version of the iPhone 4’s handset released as soon as the end of September.
Marco Quatorze, Telcel’s Director of Value Added Services, says that the iPhone 4 will soon go on sale in Mexico with the same hardware as everywhere else, but that as of September 30th (which is purportedly when the free case deal ends), Apple will be releasing brand new hardware for the phone that will fix the seam in the outer band that causes reception issues.
Anyone who’s been paying attention to the issue knows that story’s full of holes — not only does Apple already consider the whole “Antennagate” issue solved, but it’s extremely improbable that they’ll update the hardware so soon and for that reason. It’s much more likely that the company would just extend the free case program rather than update the hardware before the planned cycle. Plus, as we heard from Apple specificially, “Apple has not made an announcement regarding iPhone 4 pricing or availability in Mexico.” Let’s get the phone on sale before we start talking about updates.*
It’s possible that this is just an error in translation. If you want to get a little paranoid, we might even guess that Mr. Quatorze is trying to keep Mexican customers from buying another cellphone, hinting that there are better phones coming just around the corner. Either way, we’re only posting this rumor here for due diligence — it’s extremely unlikely we’ll see a new iPhone 4 in just over a month.
*As noted in the comments here, on the iPhone 4 Mexico post and on Apple’s own site, the iPhone 4 is available in Mexico, but Apple has yet to provide us with an actual statement to that effect.
[via MacRumors]
Rumor: New iPhone 4 handset at the end of September originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Rumor: New iPhone 4 handset at the end of September originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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In Brief: Hurricane for iPhone on sale
As the Atlantic storm season heats up and US East Coast residents warily eye Hurricane Earl’s projected path, the team at Kitty Code has put their flagship iPhone app — Hurricane 3.3 — on sale for US$1.99 through September 5. The separate iPad version, Hurricane HD, remains priced at $3.99. We’ve checked out both the mini and mega versions previously.
There are scores of hurricane-related apps on the store, so if the Big Kahuna isn’t to your liking you have some other options too. Stay safe!
In Brief: Hurricane for iPhone on sale originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
In Brief: Hurricane for iPhone on sale originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Mooncharge solar charger for iPhone 4 won’t charge via moonlight
For many people on the go, a full charge on their iPhone just isn’t enough to get them by. Oh sure, they could hunt around for a standard wall outlet or plug into their laptop, but that’s not always possible. So, they might carry a portable battery pack, like the splash Intense. But for green-minded folks, maybe something more sustainable?
The Frostfire Mooncharge is a solar-powered, portable charger for your iPhone 4 that attaches directly to the back of your device. Fully loaded up with the power of the sun (or via USB), it will power your iPhone for an extra 315 hours on standby and provide up to 27 additional hours of music, 10 hours of video, and five hours of talk time. From no charge at all, 20 minutes of sunlight will fill its battery pack to provide five extra minutes of calling or 50 minutes of standby power.
A few negatives for this device, right from the start, are: 1) it appears extremely bulky, and there’s no reported weight for the device, 2) its name is sadly misleading, and therefore 3) we have to leave our caves and brave daytime sunlight to take advantage of its full potential.
[via MacStories]
Mooncharge solar charger for iPhone 4 won’t charge via moonlight originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Mooncharge solar charger for iPhone 4 won’t charge via moonlight originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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The silly season: No Comment on The iBottleopener
Now I’ve seen everything. To give lie to the meme that there’s an app for that, perhaps a new and upcoming meme will be that there’s a case for that.
The iBottleopener (US $19.99) is a case for an iPhone 3G or 3GS that has a bottle opener on the back. The video, that you’ve probably just seen, sets a new standard for cheesy adverts. The tagline of the ad campaign is “a party in your pocket.” At least they didn’t use “a party in your pants,” which shows that the manufacturers do have a modicum of restraint.
I’m sure that The iBottleopener is the perfect back to school gift for any college student. And iPhone 4 owners won’t be left out of the party, or the pants for that matter, since a case to fit the newest iPhone is on its way.
For adding a beery note to your iDevice lifestyle, this case deserves a hearty No Comment.
Thanks Zack (I think) for sending this in.
The silly season: No Comment on The iBottleopener originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
The silly season: No Comment on The iBottleopener originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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TUAW’s Daily App: Plex
Plex’s big tease last week turned out to not be an Apple acquisition, but instead a big release, of both a rewritten Mac client to keep all of your media together in one place, and also a brand new iOS app, available now on the App Store for $4.99. Sure, the app’s a little pricey, but if you use the new Plex as your media center, it’s actually a must buy — not only does it work as a remote control, but you can actually stream media from your Plex library directly to your iPhone or iPad from wherever you are.
And with a little more tweaking (you need to have the server running and know how to set up port forwarding on your router), you can even stream Plex content out over 3G, so no matter where you are with your iOS device, you can watch anything stored on your Plex install. Now that’s pretty cool.
The latest version of Plex is available as a free download from the website, and the app itself is available in iTunes for US $4.99. We Mac users have always been spoiled with terrific media management software, and Plex is another great solution.
TUAW’s Daily App: Plex originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
TUAW’s Daily App: Plex originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Researchers create pixels eight times smaller than the Retina Display
You might be pretty proud of your iPhone 4’s Retina Display, and those teensy pixels 4x smaller than the already good-looking usual Apple displays. Or maybe you’re looking forward to seeing the Retina installed in some of Apple’s other products at the event later this week. But like most consumer electronics these days, that display isn’t quite state-of-the-art. Researchers at the University of Michigan have created a display with nanometer-thin sheets of metal (called nanoresonators) that use slits to create pixels eight times smaller than the pixels currently on the iPhone 4. To show off their work, the University of Michigan researchers created their school’s logo on a display only 9 microns tall (a strand of human hair is about 100 microns wide, so the display itself could fit inside the period at the end of this sentence).
Crazy. You have to wonder what an iPhone-sized display would look like with a resolution like that (or if we’d even tell the difference, given that our eyes have a limit on the amount of detail they can discern). Obviously, this is strictly a research project at this point — creating all of the “nanoresonators” required to make a fullsize display would probably cost a lot more than the iPhone 4 actually does. Maybe it’s something to look forward to for the iPhone 5, 6 or 7.
Researchers create pixels eight times smaller than the Retina Display originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Researchers create pixels eight times smaller than the Retina Display originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Resort uses augmented reality to pair virtual girls with actual nerds
You’ve heard of this Love Plus thing, right? This Nintendo DS-based “dating simulator” is apparently a big deal in Japan, giving Otaku the opportunity to chat up (and kiss) girls the only way they know how: on a hand-held game console, with a stylus. To promote the latest version of the game (Love Plus +), Konami has developed an Augmented Reality iPhone app that players can take to the coastal city of Atami, allowing them to interact with their virtual girlfriends at any of thirteen romantic spots. One can even book a room at the Ohnoya hotel which, according to Discovery News, offers futon beds and a “barcode panel that allows the men to visualize their girlfriends in a flattering summer kimono.” Over 2,000 virtual lotharios visited the resort town during the campaign, which began on July 10 and ends today. Check out the trailer for the game (in Japanese, which doesn’t diminish the enjoyment for our English readers one bit) after the break.
Continue reading Resort uses augmented reality to pair virtual girls with actual nerds
Resort uses augmented reality to pair virtual girls with actual nerds originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Aug 2010 16:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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China Unicom offering in-store jailbreaking
Chinese customers who want a jailbroken iPhone but lack the nerve or time to do it now have a reliable option, as distributor China Unicom (CU) is offering jailbreaking as a service in their retail stores.
Chinese language site WeiPhone notes (here’s the English translation) that customers can have their iPhones jailbroken by the store’s staff, who will also trim SIM cards to fit the iPhone 4’s micro-SIM tray. Additionally, some are even advertising that they’ll install apps for their customers after the jailbreak is complete.
Note that the iPhone 4 is not yet officially available for sale in China, so we assume that CU staff are jailbreaking older models.
As The Mac Observer notes, Apple has not yet commented on the practice. Any comment from the company should be a good one.
[Via The Mac Observer]
China Unicom offering in-store jailbreaking originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
China Unicom offering in-store jailbreaking originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Show Time may be the mother of all alarm clock apps
There’s no shortage of apps to wake you up in the morning. Show Time may be the most extensive, and it has a wicked sense of humor as well.
The app handles multiple alarms and has 25 ambient noise selections to put you to sleep, or you can choose something from your iTunes collection. There are 58 versions of clock faces, all in horizontal or vertical layouts. The alarm clock goes off even if your phone is set to silent, and you can shake the clock to change the color of the display or to snooze the alarm.
Some of the sound choices are a bit weird, like a dishwasher, a hair dryer, or a prison(!). One weak point is that you can’t easily preview the sounds before you choose them. Other than that, I like Show Time. It’s US$0.99 on the App Store. If you want to give it a test drive, there is a lite version, but the selection of sounds is limited, and there aren’t nearly as many clock styles.There isn’t an iPad version, but there should be. Check out the gallery for a peek under the hood.
Gallery: Show Time screen grabs
Show Time may be the mother of all alarm clock apps originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Show Time may be the mother of all alarm clock apps originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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TUAW’s Daily App: No, Human
No, Human is an intriguing little morsel of gameplay for both the iPhone and the iPad. The clever premise is that humans are planning to go out and explore the Universe, and the Universe, in turn, has decided that’s not a good idea. So, you’re actually playing against humans, lobbing fiery meteors out into space to destroy human-created objects like space stations and rockets.
The gameplay is simple but fun, and the graphics are minimalistic but quite stylish. There are 50 levels to go through, and while they’re pretty quick plays, there is a high score board element. The developer also promises that there are more levels on the way. (Knowing humans as I do, I’m guessing that they won’t get the lesson.) All in all, No, Human is an inventive title that’s worth the US$1.99 on the App Store. It’s not really innovative in any specific way, but as a whole package, it’s a pleasure to play through and figure out.
TUAW’s Daily App: No, Human originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
TUAW’s Daily App: No, Human originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Mon, 30 Aug 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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