When Apple unveiled its new iPad yesterday, the Cupertino company labeled its 5-megapixel rear-facing camera an “iSight camera.” The iSight name has been used for years to label the cameras built into the Mac, but the new iPad is the first time we’d heard it used for an iOS device.
Apple has now extended that name to the iPhone 4 and the iPhone 4S, updating its website to advertise iSight cameras for both.
Apple introduced its new A5X processor in the third-generation iPad yesterday, and based on the company’s previous moves, we’re expecting the chip to appear in its next iPhone. However, that may not be the case. According to analysts, the chip requires too much power to be used in the iPhone, and Apple will need to create a more power-efficient chip with a new manufacturing process for its next smartphone.
As one of the most beloved features in the iPhone 4S, Siri gets plenty of attention from the media on a daily basis. The digital assistant is spunky, clever and sometimes surprising. Have you ever wondered what Siri would look like as a 3D face protruding from the front of your iPhone?
We haven’t either. But the designers at SaGa Design apparently have, as they’ve come up with some iRobot-esque renderings of Siri as a 3D head emerging from an iPhone case.
Apple is yet to strike a deal with China Mobile over the iPhone, but that hasn’t stopped the Cupertino company from supporting China Mobile customers who want to use its latest smartphone with the carrier unofficially. Just a month after Apple confirmed that the iPhone 4S has issues with China Mobile SIM cards, it has fixed the device to eliminate signal issues.
A new Mac app called Reflection allows you to wirelessly mirror your iPhone 4S or iPad 2 screen on your Mac. Using the magic of AirPlay and OS X Lion, Reflection will allow you to view your iOS device’s screen in real time on your Mac display, no setup required. Screen activity can be recorded and saved to your desktop. You can even kick back and play your favorite iOS game on your giant iMac! Now that’s awesome.
While Siri seems to get all the attention when it comes to voice actions, Motorola wants to remind people that Android not only does voice actions, but does them extremely well, if not better. At least that’s the message we’re getting out of Motorola’s latest campaign pitting Android’s voice actions against its top contender Siri. Motorola runs through a slew of voice action challenges using three different Motorola phones and the results are impressive. I’m blown away by how fast both OS’s perform the tasks given and it’s an excellent reminder of the fact that Android has been perfecting voice actions for quite some time. I’m betting there are a lot of you that didn’t even realize your phone could do the things your about to see. Check out the videos after the break.
Remember when we told you about Evi, a Siri clone in the App Store? While the iPhone app mimicked much of the features found in Apple’s digital assistant, there seemed to be enough differences to keep it safe from the watchdogs in Cupertino. For instance, you can ask “Where’s a good place to eat Mexican?” and Evi will use Yelp’s API to provide you results in-app.
According to new reports, Apple has threatened to yank Evi from the App Store. The app has been downloaded over 200,000 times and costs $0.99 in the App Store.
Continuing the trend of luxury cars integrating with luxury smartphones, Mercedes-Benz is set to unveil its new A-Class at the Geneva Motor Show next month. While it’s certainly not the German automaker’s most expensive option (priced at £16,045, or $21,453), the A-Class will be the first to let you use Siri from the comfort of your steering wheel.
The vehicle’s updated COMAND ‘infotainment’ system will revolve around the iPhone 4S and Siri. Wunderbar!
Apple has aired a new commercial for the iPhone 4S. Simply called “iCloud Harmony,” the 30-second TV spot highlights iCloud’s ability to sync your media and apps between devices. “Automatic. Everywhere. iCloud.“
T-Mobile has announced its earnings for the 2011 holiday quarter, and the GSM carrier lost over 800,000 subscribers. Being the only major U.S. carrier left not carrying the iPhone, T-Mobile saw a 3.3% decrease in revenue to $20.6 billion.
Although the network’s growth has been on the decline for awhile, the fourth quarter of 2011 resulted in an exponentially greater loss following the launch of the iPhone 4S.
Sources for Cult of Mac have discovered yet another security flaw in Apple’s iOS 5 operating system that provides unauthorized access to your iPhone’s camera roll without the need to enter your passcode. It has been tested on the iPhone 4, but could also affect other iOS devices.
GEVEY has announced the Ultra S unlock for the GSM iPhone 4S. Unlike an unlocked iPhone you have to buy at full price from your carrier, GEVEY’s $55 solution turns your iPhone 4S into a plug-and-play device for any GSM network around the world.
Jailbreakers have been able to unlock their iPhones with a software tool called UltraSn0w, but an unlock for the iPhone 4S has yet to be provided until now. The GEVEY Ultra S does not require a jailbreak, and it’s definitely the easiest way to get your iPhone unlocked for cheap.
25 iPhones worth over $16,000 have been stolen from an Apple Store in Northlake Mall in Charlotte, North Carolina. Unlike the familiar attacks in which thieves smash in Apple’s trademark glass doors, the suspect in this case was an Apple store employee and had easy access to the store’s stock room.
We’re huge fans of the MyAssistant tweak here at Cult of Mac, so much so that it recently featured in our guide to supercharging Siri on your iPhone. And its latest update makes it even more of a must-have for jailbreakers. In addition to some handy bug fixes, it also gets new features like ability to download content, open apps, turn on your flash, and more using Siri.
China Telecom and Apple have officially confirmed that the carrier will get the iPhone 4S on March 9th. China Telecom’s 130 million subscribers will have access to Apple’s latest handset for $0 RMB with select carrier contracts. The device will be sold in 16GB, 32GB and 64GB flavors.
Today’s painfully obvious report comes from Japanese site Macotakara. Citing a “reliable source,” the report claims that Apple’s sixth-generation iPhone will be released in either September or October of this year.
Apple broke its typical 12-month release pattern with the iPhone 4S, and it looks like the trend will continue in 2012.
If you’ve jailbroken your iPhone 4S, you have access to some great tweaks for adding functionality to Apple’s digital assistant, Siri. You can turn Siri into your personal translator, launch apps and toggle system settings, tweet, and and even change the look of the Siri UI.
We’ve collected the best tweaks in Cydia to help you supercharge Siri on your jailbroken iPhone 4S.
Yet another rear panel for Apple’s iPad 3 has surfaced, refueling rumors that claim the third-generation tablet will feature a new camera and a slightly modified design to accommodate its new components.
The world is mad for smartphones. Everyone wants the latest and greatest smartphone that blows their mind with its ability to tell you where your friends are at, what they’re eating, their opinions on Rick Santorum’s sweatervests, and their favorite cat videos. But phones become outdated so quickly that we quickly toss out last year’s trend and pickup the next great mobile device more frequently than we change our car’s oil. It should come as no surprise, then, that pretty soon there will be more smartphones on the planet that humans. In fact, it will happen by the end of the year.
While registered developers have already been testing iOS 5.1 betas for some time, it seems the firmware holds several new features that Apple is yet to release to developers. A leaked “pre-GM” build has reportedly been obtained by a Brazilian iPhone blog, which reveals a new camera slider for the lock screen, and support for the Japanese language within Siri.
AirPlay Mirroring is one of the iOS features that Apple is bringing to the Mac in Mountain Lion. It’s a feature that offers a lot of potential for mobile professionals and educators in addition to being a great supplement to a family’s living room.
AirPlay Mirroring works the second generation Apple TV. The Apple TV itself as a small and easy to carry device that can plug into any HDTV or modern projector. That simple setup combined with a Mac running Mountain Lion makes for a perfect portable presentation solution.
A new jailbreak app called AssistantConnect claims to bring Siri to non-4S iOS devices without needing a proxy. Unlike previous ports, AssistantConnect lets you email your Siri data between jailbroken iOS devices to enable the digital assistant. It’s a much simpler process than having to setup your own network voodoo and rely on a server that may not even work anymore.
Sound too good to be true? There’s one catch…
Jailbreakers have the ability to run a homegrown version of Siri on unsupported iOS devices, and it appears that Apple doesn’t like it. According to mixed reports, a large amount of unsupported Siri users are now unable to use Siri. Has Apple stepped up its game, or is this merely a routine update to the spunky digital assistant?
As Google’s proposed acquisition of Motorola Mobility waits for approval from the courts, Apple has fired back at Motorola in the U.S. over a licensing agreement with chipset-maker Qualcomm.
Motorola recently sued Apple over wireless technology in its iOS devices with a patent that Apple is now using to cite the licensing violation with Qualcomm. The retaliation from Apple is meant to suffocate any patent violation claims that Motorola was asserting before to the courts.
Apple has aired two new TV commercials for the iPhone 4S called “Road Trip” and “Rock God.” Both ads highlight Siri, the staple feature of the iPhone 4S. In classic Apple fashion, both spots are poignant and touching. The first ad features a couple on a trip, while the second tells the story of a teenager learning how to play guitar. Siri is used to find directions, send text messages, search Wolfram Alpha, and more.