One More Tap

TechCrunch reported a varying number of iPhone 3G S devices sold over the launch week, starting June 19. Original news by Piper Jaffray’s Gene Munster claimed the number to be around 750,000 iPhone 3G S devices sold.

Apple, on the other hand, sent out a press release, adding an additional 1/3 to the original number, claiming to have officially sold over 1 million iPhone 3G S devices. This is also backed by word from Apple CEO himself, Steve Jobs who (reportedly) recently had a liver transplant.

Customers are voting and the iPhone is winning. With over 50,000 applications available from Apple’s revolutionary App Store, iPhone momentum is stronger than ever.

Apple also reported that over six million customers have downloaded the new iPhone OS 3.0 software update in the first five days since its release on June 17, 2009.

Well, definitely unbelievable numbers, but it’s true!

written by xcool \\ tags: 3.0, iPhone, News

After much anticipation, including rumored (yes, rumors!) delays – Apple’s iPhone OS 3.0 finally sees the day with its release for both iPhone and iPod touch. Build number for this release is 3.0/7A341 – it seems to match the GM seed version that I have for my iPod touch.

Users can get the download straight from iTunes by clicking on the Check for Updates button. iPhone owners get the update for free, while iPod touch owners will need to purchase the update for only $9.95 – this is due to Apple’s accounting practice.

Most of the features are already quite familiar with those of us who swarm Apple news and rumor sites daily. Here’s a list of changes listed by Apple – they cover both the iPhone and iPod touch:

• Cut, Copy & Paste – self-explanatory, one of the most requested feature debuts with this new update
• Landscape keyboard – built-in apps now have this feature, something which should be there since day 1, if you ask me
• MMS – iPhone only, not many people sends MMS, but since you asked for it, please go ahead and make full use of it
• Spotlight Search – find what you’re looking for across the device from one convenient place
• Voice Memo – capture a memo, meeting or any audio recording, iPod touch owners will need to attach a microphone
• Internet Tethering – iPhone only, now you can share your internet connection with your laptop via Bluetooth or USB
• Peer-to-Peer Gaming – now you could waste more time, with a friend, provided the game supports it
• Push Notifications – apps can now receive information and let you know its there, even then the app is not running
• Movies, TV Shows and Audiobooks purchase via Wi-Fi – get the best entertainment titles from iTunes directly on your device

And many more. Head on over to Apple’s site for more details on the update. iPhone users. iPod touch users.

One more thing. If you device has been unlocked somehow using one of the (ahem) available utilities, I’d suggest that you wait for an official unlocker to be released.

written by xcool \\ tags: 3.0, Firmware, iPhone, iPod touch, OS

If you’ve been trying out a lot of apps (free or paid) on your iPhone or iPod touch, then you would have most likely encountered an app or two that doesn’t behave as intended. It’s quite common to have some badly programmed apps to freeze or stop responding. Here’s when a tip like this falls in.

The iPhone OS, just like its big brother, Mac OS X, allows an application to be quit, forcefully – hence the name force quit. On the Mac OS X, you’ll simply press Command+Option+Escape key combinations. On the iPhone however, things seem to have gone into muddy waters, now that iPhone OS 3.0 as well as the iPhone 3G S was announced.

During the keynote presentation on Monday, June 8, 2009 – we were all told about a new function for the iPhone 3G S, and that is the Voice Control features. Activating Voice Control on the iPhone 3G S can be done by simply holding the Home button. As you can see, the Home button used to be the magic button that force quits an application when held for about 5 seconds. You’ll notice that when the application exits and the home screen reappears. Here’s a video I did some time back, demonstrating how to force quit the Safari application.

The function is now missing in iPhone OS 3.0 – or shall I say, enhanced. Force quitting an app in iPhone OS 3.0 can still be done, with an extra step.

If you are one of the lucky Lukes (or Leia, so to speak) to have iPhone OS 3.0 installed, try this the next time you want to force quit a misbehaving application. Hold the power button for a few seconds until you see the “slide to power off” prompt. Let go of the power button and hold the Home button until you see the application disappear and the home screen reappears.

Force quitting can be good avenues, not only to exit a misbehaving or frozen app. It’s also a good practice to quit background apps like Safari and Mail, which take up precious memory, especially before starting a game. Also, since most games save its state when you quit, you could actually force quit it if you want to prevent the game state from being saved. That’s what I did most of the time to somehow ‘cheat’ in certain games. Try it!

written by xcool \\ tags: Apps, iPhone, iPod touch, Tips

Phil Schiller’s keynote brought to us new products, ranging from new (and now cheaper) MacBook Pro family of notebooks, Snow Leopard features preview as well as what everyone’s been waiting for, the iPhone.

After many months of rumors across the internet, Apple has finally let the cat out of the bag yesterday, with the announcement of a new revised iPhone, dubbed the iPhone 3G S.

Just one year after the original iPhone 3G was announced and then released, the new updated iPhone 3G S boasts new features like larger storage capacity (32GB option), faster CPU translating to faster everything, 7.2 Mbps HSDPA modem for faster data over the network, digital compass that provides a much-welcomed assistance when using mapping applications, as well as an upgraded 3 mega pixel camera capable of recording video.

Some neat little additions worth mentioning include an auto-focus feature for the camera that works across both still and video modes – exactly like what the rumors speculated. Also, iPhone 3G S is your mobile iMovie in action. Any video clips taken can be edited right from the iPhone itself and then shared across email, MMS or even for uploading to YouTube. Both the auto-focus and video-editing feature set was not seen in any other smartphones so far.

Check out the specs for the new iPhone 3G S here: http://www.apple.com/iphone/specs.html. One nifty little feature I noticed is that the iPhone 3G S has got a fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating for the multi-touch display, something that the original iPhone and iPhone 3G doesn’t have.

The new iPhone 3G S will start to be available this coming June 19. It will gradually roll out across the other countries where iPhones are available, starting July 9. Pricing for the iPhone 3G S starts at $199 for the 16GB model, and $299 for the 32GB model. Apple decided to maintain the original iPhone 3G at $99 for the 8GB model, thus opening up for a much higher adoption rate. Note that these prices are valid in the USA and comes with a contract with (urgh!) AT&T.

Apple has put up a 15-minute guided tour video of the new iPhone 3G S, spelling out its new features. Follow this link to whet your appetite: http://www.apple.com/iphone/guidedtour/.

You might also want to check out the WWDC 2009 Keynote Address, available in both standard and high-definition format streams here: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/qtv/keynote/.

written by xcool \\ tags: Apple, iPhone, MacBook Pro, Snow Leopard, WWDC

Yeah, the WWDC keynote by Phil Schiller starts in about 10 minutes.
If you came here looking for some updates, here are some sites that you could visit – many of which are ‘live’.

MacRumorsLive – http://www.macrumorslive.com
gdgt live – http://live.gdgt.com/2009/06/08/live-wwdc-2009-keynote-coverage/
The Apple Blog – http://theappleblog.com/live/
Engadget – http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/08/phil-schiller-keynote-live-from-wwdc-2009/

Also some Twitter feeds:

TUAW – http://twitter.com/tuaw_wwdc
Ars Technica @ WWDC – http://twitter.com/arswwdc

And if you must, old-style IRC chatrooms!

MacRumors – irc://irc2.teknohost.com/macrumors
MacRumorsChat – irc://irc2.teknohost.com/macrumorschat

Rumors has it that Steve Jobs may be making an appearance. Keep your eyes peeled!

written by xcool \\ tags: Apple, iPhone, iPod touch, Rumors, WWDC