iPhone - page 414

Surely by now you’ve heard, the iPhone 4 is coming to Verizon. Now, I’m not planning on leaving AT&T, but I was still very happy to hear that bit of news. Why? Because sending millions of iPhone users to Verizon may be the only way to get the AT&T network working better.

AT&T has had over 3 years to fix their network problems, but for whatever reason, they’re still having major issues. If fact in seems things have gotten so bad, anytime a lot of iPhone users gather in one place, the network starts to buckle (were you able to use 3G at CES for anything this year?).

But now, my hope is renewed. Instead of one over-burdened network dropping carrying all the iPhone data, we have two. The iPhone will now have access to twice the towers, twice the switches, twice the trucks—twice the everything that makes the data flow. Users will now have a choice to test the Verizon waters, and I hope they go in masses.

Here’s what I’m thinking: if enough users (millions?) head to Verizon, maybe the reduction in traffic will ease the strain on AT&T’s network. Maybe then, those of us who stay behind will be able to use our iPhones the way Steve Jobs probably always imagined—with nary a dropped call or lost byte. Hey, it could happen.

So tell your friends. Tell them all the great things you’ve ever heard about Verizon. Make a few things up if you have to. And make a lot of eye contact, it’ll make you more believable. It’ll all be worth it. If enough people defect to Verizon, AT&T could become the always-ready always-reliable network we’ve been waiting for.

Audyssey have already built a strong reputation in the field of high-end audio calibration. This is their first self released product. In a world of crappy plastic housings and terrible sound quality, finding a good quality iPhone/iPod dock is a rare occurrence. Audyssey’s South of the Market dock is a breath of fresh air in this over saturated, low quality arena.

Though not perfect, this dock is hands down the best I have reviewed and outdoes similar offerings on both build quality and sound by far. Read on to find out why.

Details may remain sketchy on the special event T-Mobile has scheduled for sometime in the coming weeks but the #4 carrier in the US wasted no time cranking up a new ad that riffs on the old “upstarts are cool – Big Guys are stodgy” meme that Apple has used for years to poke fun at Microsoft.

The ad should start running on US television networks next week, according to a report at TechCrunch.

Although there’s still many things we don’t know about about the Verizon iPhone — namely, in the details of their pricing and the generosity of their data plans — one immediate advantage Verizon has over AT&T is that you can tether up to five different devices to the handset’s 3G connection over WiFi, when AT&T only offers one.

For road warriors, that’s a big perk to the Verizon iPhone compared to the AT&T one: you can drive an entire mobile office with just one Verizon device. Another benefit is that AT&T tethering service only works via Bluetooth or USB.

So will AT&T cave and match Verizon’s offer? AppleInsider asked the question, and was told by an AT&T representative that they would not “speculate” on their own plans.

If you saw our previous posts about light painting using an iPhone or iPad, you’ll enjoy this brief video demonstration of how to make a very cool New Year greeting.

The lightpainting was done using Penki, an app developed by the people who sparked off this idea in the first place, Dentsu London/BERG.

All that’s needed in addition is a ruler, a camera with a flash (for the portraits), and a shiny table. And perhaps a few rehearsals to get the timing right. There’s a pile more lightpainting images in the Penki Flickr pool, if you feel the need for some further inspiration.

EDIT: Video embedding didn’t work – go here to see the video in full.

Come launch day on February 10, Verizon’s iPhone customers needn’t worry about the 3rd party accessory market being ready to wrest a few dollars more from them in the name of style and security.

iLuv a premier provider of accessories for the Apple smartphone, is all set to launch a new line of stylish cases and protective films for the CDMA iPhone 4, the dearest of which will set consumers back almost $50. Nine cases and two kinds of protective films should be available at leading retailers and iLuv’s online store by late January.

And if you can’t wait that long, be sure to check out the Impactband from BaseOneLabs. They were prescient enough to design their case with 3mm of extra room above and below the volume and rocker switch, which allows plenty of room for access to the CDMA version’s moved left-side buttons.

Comedy Central’s Jon Stewart devoted seven minutes of his show Tuesday night to putting his team’s indelible spin on the Verizon iPhone announcement. The second half is actually pretty funny.

It remains to be seen whether 1/11/11 will heretofore be known as VZ Day, but it’s a thought.

The day millions have waited for finally arrived Tuesday when Verizon announced it would begin offering customers Apple’s iPhone.

Well, perhaps more accurately, the day millions have waited for will finally arrive on February 10, when Apple iPhone users in the US get their first opportunity to sample the services of a network other than at&t, which has enjoyed the longest reign of exclusivity on the planet as the sole US carrier for iPhone since its launch in the summer of 2007.

Some say pent-up demand for iPhone on Verizon could “demolish” at&t’s business.

“I can tell you that the number one question I’ve gotten is ‘when will the iPhone work on Verizon’,” Apple COO Tim Cook said Tuesday at the launch announcement in New York — and some have predicted the boon to Verizon’s bottom line from iPhone sales will be massive.

Just like AT&T’s iPhone 4, the Verizon iPhone 4 will feature a Retina display, a front-facing camera, an Apple A4 chip, and HD video recording. Other than the CDMA chip in the Verizon device and the redesigned antenna, the hardware is exactly the same. So, how do you choose the best device for you?

We’ve created a handy comparison chart that will help you identify the difference between the two options. If you’re looking to purchase Apple’s latest iPhone, the chart below will help you choose the best carrier for your device based on price, data allowances, and additional features exclusive to each. Check it out after the break!

AT&T lost its iPhone monopoly, and may soon lose a million or two customers, to Verizon. But I think Verizon’s freshly announced support for the iPhone is on balance a very good thing for AT&T.

Estimates for how many current AT&T customers will switch to Verizon range from half a million (Barclays Capital analyst James Ratcliffe) to 6 million (Davenport & Company analyst Drake Johnstone). The likely number is probably somewhere between 1 and 2 million customers. (Full disclosure: My wife works for AT&T Interactive, a division of AT&T.)

AT&T Mobility currently has more than 93 million customers, and often gains somewhere between 2 and 3 million customers per quarter. So the loss of say, 2 million customers is significant but by no means catastrophic.

But what does AT&T gain?

Feast your eyes on the new Verizon iPhone 4. Apple’s iPhone 4 has finally hit the largest CDMA network in the U.S.  so now my Verizon friends can stop coveting my iPhone 4 and get their own!

Click the read link to see more images.

[via Engadget]

So now that Verizon has announced that they’re selling shiny new iPhone 4’s you’re chomping at the bit to get off of AT&T or T-Mobile and join the ranks of Big Red right? Of course one of the biggest draw backs to doing this is that your Early Termination Fee could cost as much as $325. While it’s not the easiest thing to do, there are multiple ways to get out of having to pay the ETF, and we’re going to show you a couple of ways to avoid the fees.

It’s time for yet another Monday iPhone App Giveaway brought to you by Appular! This time we’ll be posting delicious app codes on the Cult of Mac Facebook and Twitter pages and it’s up to you to grab them first. We’ll be dropping codes throughout the day so it’s best to Like us on Facebook or Follow us on Twitter so that the codes are immediately delivered to your desktop.

Special Thanks to Appular for helping us put together these app code giveaways! If you’ve got a mobile app that you’d like marketed effectively, contact the good folks at Appular!

Here’s a look at the apps we’re giving away:

The Verizon iPhone might not be official yet, but AT&T’s already firing an opening salvo in the war of words. Things are about to get nasty folks.

Speaking to Business Insider, AT&T PR head Larry Solomon couldn’t resist commenting upon the prospect of a Verizon iPhone by saying that he wasn’t “sure iPhone users are ready for life in the slow lane,” while noting that AT&T’s GSM-based network is faster than Verizon’s for 3G speeds.

That’s actually not debatable, but for most users, the speed advantages of AT&T’s 3G network are negligible… and my guess is that many customers would be more than happy to give up a few kb/s downstream if they could trade them for Verizon’s coverage and reliability. What do you guys think?

Now that the festive period is out of the way and we begin to settle in to the new year, Apple has returned to reviewing App Store submissions and games and apps are starting to trickle in again. Here’s our pick of the best iOS apps to enter the App Store over the past week.

8mm Vintage Camera is a great new video application that shoots old-fashioned 8mm movies in real-time. It was recently reviewed by the Cult’s own David Martin, who was very impressed with the app’s effects and awarded it 4 out of 5 stars.

Trimensional is a ground-breaking photography app and the world’s first 3D scanner for the iPhone. It cleverly uses both the screen and the front-facing camera on your device, detecting patterns of light reflected off your face to create a true 3D model. The results are extraordinary and you can check out some screenshots after the break.

If you’ve made any New Year’s resolutions for 2011, Zendre for your iPhone is the app you need to keep track of your goals and achievements. Reward yourself progress points every time you do something towards meeting your resolution, and get the motivation you need to keep your resolutions going.

Find out more about the applications above and check out the rest of this week’s must-have iOS apps, including Awesome Files HD and Symphony Pro, after the break!

Now that the festive period is out of the way and we begin to settle in to the new year, Apple has returned to reviewing App Store submissions and games and apps are starting to trickle in again. Here’s our pick of the best iOS games to enter the App Store over the past week.

Grimm is the first I’ve discovered, and probably the first you’ll play, in which your aim is to navigate a lost baby’s carriage and successfully deliver the child home to its mother. This side-scrolling adventure is set in a dark and stylized world and delivers something a little different that iOS gamers are sure to love.

Block Rogue claims to be the biggest mobile puzzle adventure ever made, and the game in which each solution brings you one step closer to the truth. Problem-solvers will love the hundreds of mind-bending puzzles and dark mysteries that Block Rogue has to offer.

The latest highly addictive iPhone game features a big, colorful elephant named Clumsy Bob, who’s about to set off on an adventure around the world. Bounce Bob across the vibrant cartoon environments as far as you can for your highest score, then challenge your friends to beat it.

Find out more about the games above and check out the rest of this week’s must-haves, including Ascendancy and Flying Hamster, after the break!

The Wall Street Journal reported today that the Verizon iPhone will be announced Tuesday, January 11.

The announcement will happen at an event at New York’s Lincoln Center and will be headlined by Verizon President and COO Lowell McAdam, according to the story.

Journalists were sent invitations by Verizon today, but those invitations did not specify what the announcement would be. The Journal says the iPhone announcement was confirmed by “a person familiar with the matter.”

There can only be so many good reasons as to why someone would feel compelled to do this, but apparently, some ingenuitive hackers have managed to get Android 2.3 Gingerbread ported to an iPhone 3G.

After several weeks of work, Nick Pack and others have found a way to install the Android OS on an iPhone 3G, using the OpeniBoot software that has been used on previous ports. OpeniBoot is an open source implementation of iBoot for iOS devices, which allows booting of unsigned code, such as Linux kernels, on the device.

Video of the action can be viewed HERE.

LAS VEGAS, CES 2011 — Mophie’s newest case, launched yesterday, incorporates a credit-card reader and allows business owners to process physical credit card transactions through the iPhone. To interface with the case’s reader, Mophie recruited Intuit’s free GoPayment app, which is compatible with Inuit’s flagship QuickBooks small business accounting package.

Even considering Mophie’s reputation for cutting-edge iPhone cases, this one is pretty remarkable — and a challenge to products like Square’s credit card reader for iPhone. The case is available now, and sells for $180.

LAS VEGAS, CES 2011 — The very next time I hear the term “iPhone-killer,”  I will go absolutely Looney-Tunes nuts. I will tear up telephone books, gargle with raw eggs and Marmite, the whole bit. Seriously.

On the other hand, Samsung really does seem to be taking precise aim at the iPhone 4 with their new Infuse 4G Android smartphone announced yesterday. They’re claiming that, when (if) released, it’ll be the lightest, thinnest phone on the market, and it’ll be equipped with oodles of goodies: a 4.5-inch, “next-generation” Super AMOLED screen (which they say will have better readability in bright sunlight) and a snappy 1.2 ghz processor. And get this — it’ll sit exclusively in the AT&T stable.

LAS VEGAS, CES 2011 — I guess a strange product collaboration with Yao Ming was somewhat entertaining to hear about (don’t you want Yao Ming headphones??), but my ears didn’t really perk up until Monster brought out their Tron inspired iPhone dock and headphones.

LAS VEGAS, CES 2011 — Pioneer launched its SmartCradle for the iPhone at its CES presser today, further proving that the aftermarket auto industry seems to be embracing the iPhone with rapidly increasing gusto.

They really pulled out the stops on this one, hardware-wise: a dedicated GPS receiver with an external antenna, which they said will give even newer iPod Touch models GPS capability; an accelerometer and gyro sensor for better location awareness; hands-free calling an integrated amplified speaker with the ability to vary volume based on ambient noise; and audio/video output. Of course, it’ll also charge the iPhone; Ted Cardenas, Pioneer’s director of marketing, made of point of this — but since the iPhone won’t last long with location services going, any dock even remotely similar already includes charging ability. Nary a whiff on price or availability yet.

Apple has been granted its first patent related to Liquidmetal, a space-age metal alloy. But the patent isn’t for a new iPad enclosure or iPhone antenna, as experts have predicted. Instead Apple’s Liquidmetal patent is for an internal component of a fuel cell.

Apple’s new patent describes “amorphous alloy” collector plates for fuel cells, an electrochemical battery that uses hydrogen to generate electricity. Although the patent doesn’t reference the Liquidmetal trademark, the material is an amorphous alloy or “metallic glass.”

Last year, Apple signed an exclusive agreement to use the Liquidmetal Technologies’ IP in consumer electronic products. But of course, the ever-secretive company hasn’t hinted at its plans for the material. The possibilites are endless. Liquidmetal is a super lightweight, high-strength, scratch-proof metal that NASA says is “poised to redefine materials science as we know it in the 21st century.”

Scientists who helped develop Liquidmetal have previously predicted that Apple will use it to build the next iPhone. So why is Apple interested in fuel cells?

LAS VEGAS — Griffin revealed something really cool today: a sensor that hooks up to your car’s diagnostic computer and feeds all kinds of info to your iPhone. Griffin calls it the CarTrip, and it attaches to your car’s OBD-II sensor (the thing car mechanics uses to diagnose problems), collects and stores the data, then sends it to your iPhone (we’re not sure how, because the press release doesn’t say), which then displays the data in realtime with the help its free partner app, CleanDrive.

The app/hardware package will reveal all kinds of information, like fuel consumption rates, acceleration, and it’ll interpret diagnostic codes. It’ll also display a “Carbon Score,” so you can figure out how much you’re befouling the planet by driving around.

CarTrip should be available in early 2011 for $90.

Update: CarTrip is equipped with Bluetooth for relaying the data to an iPhone. Thanks Levi!

LAS VEGAS — After hours of driving through the cow-infested flatness of California’s Central Valley, CultofMac Editor Leander Kahney and I have finally arrived in Vegas, primed to report from this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. The doors only officially open on Thursday, but here’s some of the sparkly new stuff we saw released today that we’re mega-pumped to get our hands on at this year’s show: