iPhone Quattro4 Case Does it All

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There are a lot of useful iPhone cases out there–ones that wind your cords and others that charge your phone. Few if any do half as much as the Quattro4. The back of the case slides off, so you can plug in an Ivy Skin battery pack, business card holder, or belt clip.
When you just want a slim case, pull of the accessories and pop the original back onto the device. The case also features Xylo Glass, to ensure touchscreen sensitivity. The whole system is a bit pricey, however. The base case will run you $44.99

Fingerist: Turn Your iPhone Into a Guitar

Does your iPhone have guitar envy? Good news, Evenno’s new peripheral can kind of, sort of turn it into one. This wooden, guitar shaped device has a slot for your iPhone or iPod touch and a built-in speaker. Load up an iPhone guitar app, and presto, you’ve got yourself an iGuitar.

The Fingerist runs on three AAA batteries, which should give you about two hours of sound. There’s also a line out, so you can play the thing through a guitar amp, if you’re so inclined. There’s also built-in volume control and pegs for your strap.

Eat your heart out, Guitar Hero.

Mophie iPhone credit card reader coming to a CES near you

iPhone accessory maker and recession antidote regular Mophie is about to make the most buzzworthy move of its short history by offering a credit card reader and accompanying transaction app for the Apple handset. Positioned as a direct competitor to Jack Dorsey’s Square iPhone Payment System, Mophie’s solution looks to be integrated into an iPhone case — making it possible to keep the reader on permanently, albeit at a slight cost to your device’s aesthetics. The decidedly cube-shaped Square system has a less ergonomic design, but we suspect that the winner (if either of these two succeeds) will be primarily determined by the usability of the app and affordability of the service. Look out for more info to emerge at some point during the maelstrom that will be CES 2010.

Mophie iPhone credit card reader coming to a CES near you originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 04:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourcePocket-lint  | Email this | Comments

Engadget for iPhone / iPod touch: available now!

Good news, everyone! Our very own iPhone / iPod touch app is finally really available in Apple’s much talked about and critically acclaimed App Store! That’s right, all the excitement and info you’ve come to know and love from Engadget is now bottled in an easy to digest and delicious iPhone form. The application — easily downloadable from your device or iTunes — features a whole bunch of useful features such as offline viewing, built in streaming for The Engadget Show, in-app tipping (you know, for when you see the next iPhone), and all kinds of customization options. You can download the app right here, or click on the image above.

Even better than this? We’ve got more apps on the way! Before CES (fingers crossed), you should see both a BlackBerry and webOS version of the Engadget application, and plans for the Android version are already in motion.

Lastly, a big, big, big thanks to the team at AOL that actually made this thing a reality: Sun Sachs, Andy Averbuch, Hareesh P, Anibal Rosado, Rajesh Kumar, Rich Foster, Claudeland Louis, Mike Wolstat, Eric Wedge, Vikas B R, Milissa Tarquini, Asha Indira and Bob Gurwin. You guys rule.

Engadget for iPhone / iPod touch: available now! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Dec 2009 22:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PosiMotion Announces Helix Gaming Grip for the iPhone

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If you do a lot of gaming on your iPhone or iPod Touch, you know it can be a little tricky to hold your iPhone or iPod Touch just right so you don’t wind up accidentally touching the screen while you’re steering a car or navigating an asteroid field. 
The iPhone isn’t designed to be a steering wheel or flight control stick, so PosiMotion developed the Helix Gaming Grip for your iPhone or iPod Touch. The grip has two solid handles on either side and is designed to make it easier to twist and turn your iPhone while gaming without worrying that it’s going to slip out of your hand. 

iPhone reception issues plague O2… too (updated with AT&T’s response)

It would appear that AT&T isn’t the only carrier in the world suffering from a horrible and nagging case of the iPhones. In an interview with the Financial Times, O2 head Ronan Dunne apologized to customers for the poor performance the network has been experiencing since the introduction of the iPhone 3GS to its airwaves this summer. Just as US customers (particularly those in dense, urban areas) have learned to struggle through dropped calls, the inability to make or receive calls, or weak data connections, our brethren on the other side of the pond have felt a similar sting. Says Dunne, “Where we haven’t met our own high standards then there’s no question, we apologise to customers for that fact,” adding that the carrier had fixes at the ready and that the issues would be “more than addressed” shortly. Unlike the widespread problems here, the O2 mess seems to be relegated largely to London, though it’s curious to know that AT&T isn’t alone in being hamstrung by a network clearly not prepared for the onslaught of data being pushed up and down its virtual pipes. Also unlike the AT&T situation is the fact that O2 has solutions in mind (including the installation of 200 additional mobile base stations in London), and they’re clearly taking ownership of the situation. Ahem, Ralph.

Update: AT&T responded and let us know they had fixes underway too. Here’s an outline of forthcoming changes the carrier says it’s making.

  • We are nearly doubling the wireless spectrum serving 3G customers in hundreds of markets across the country, using high-quality 850 MHz spectrum. This additional spectrum expands overall network capacity and improves in-building reception.
  • We are adding about 2,000 new cell sites, expanding service to new cities and improving coverage in other areas.
  • We’re adding about 100,000 new backhaul connections, which add critical capacity between cell sites and the global IP backbone network.
  • We’re enabling widespread access to our Wi-Fi network – the largest in the country with more than 20,000 hotspots in all 50 states – allowing them to take advantage of the best available AT&T mobile broadband connection.
  • We’re rolling out even faster 3G speeds with deployment of HSPA 7.2 technology, with initial availability in six markets planned by the end of the year.

iPhone reception issues plague O2… too (updated with AT&T’s response) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Dec 2009 09:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink All Things D  |  sourceFinancial Times  | Email this | Comments

ATT Nixes Online iPhone Sales in NYC

iphone-3gs-price.jpgAT&T today stopped selling iPhones online to New York metro-area customers through their att.com Web site because of “increased fraudulent activity in that area when ordering the iphone,” an online customer support representative named Timothy told me this evening in an online chat.

Now, that’s not what online customer support rep Daphne told the blog The Consumerist, but it’s what Timothy told me. According to a Consumerist post, Daphne told their writer “New York is not ready for the iPhone” because the city doesn’t “have enough towers.”

Although AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega has previously admitted that the company needs to “do better” with their network in New York City, I suspect Daphne’s career with AT&T may be short lived from here on out.

Timothy told us that iPhones are still available at AT&T stores in the New York metro area. Apple’s Web site had no problem selling me an iPhone for use in New York City online, so if you want to buy online, try apple.com.

I’ve asked AT&T for further clarification.

iPhone and Vodafone UK set the date: January 14

Vodafone has decided if it can’t give us the iPhone for the holidays, it’ll do the next best thing and spill details of its launch and pricing of Apple’s finest. Available from January 14, the iPhone will be yours for £30 ($48) per month on two-year contracts, though up-front charges will set you back £239 ($386) for the 32GB 3GS variety. A monthly 1GB of 3G data is permitted, alongside unlimited WiFi, but what might be most interesting here is that Vodafone will allow you to use the iPhone as a modem. Such use will not be covered by your allowance of course, and will cost £5 ($8) for each 500MB downloaded, but we’re happy to see a carrier offering the option. Furthermore, though Vodafone’s agreement to carry the iPhone seemed a rushed defensive move, the company now claims it has been preparing its network for over a year to handle the increased traffic it expects.

iPhone and Vodafone UK set the date: January 14 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Dec 2009 06:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone nabs 46 percent of Japanese smartphone market, the tiny Japanese smartphone market

So you read a headline like “iPhone grabs 46 percent of the Japanese smartphone market” and the first thing you’re likely to think is, “wow, Apple is really doing well for itself.” Well, it is and it isn’t. While it has made some considerable gains in the smartphone market at the expense of phones like Sharp’s W-ZERO3 and the Willcom 03, it still hasn’t gained nearly the same total mindshare or market share that it has over here. That’s because “smartphones” as we know them are still a relatively small market in Japan, where carriers’ lineups consist of a whole range of offerings including everything from mobile TV-equipped phones to true camera phones to perfume holders. For a bit more context, check out the pie chart after the break courtesy of IDC Japan, which shows cellphone vendors’ market share in Japan as of October of this year. The leaders by a wide margin are Sharp, Panasonic, Fujitsu and NEC with a combined 72.8% of the market, while Apple is lumped in with “Others,” which add up to 22.6%. It’s making inroads, to be sure, but just that at the moment.

Continue reading iPhone nabs 46 percent of Japanese smartphone market, the tiny Japanese smartphone market

iPhone nabs 46 percent of Japanese smartphone market, the tiny Japanese smartphone market originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 Dec 2009 12:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Electronista  |  sourceImpress R&D, IDC Japan  | Email this | Comments

iPhone Captures Nearly Half of Japanese Smartphone Market

So, just how big is the iPhone’s growth in the Japanese market? According to recent numbers for Tokyo-based research group, Impress, the iPhone now controls roughly 26 percent of the Japanese smartphone market, having moved more than three million handsets in just over a year.

The numbers run counter to early reports that the Apple phone was a flop in the country.