Hasta La Gadget!

Apple’s got a brand new camera lens inside of the new iPhone 5 so all you photo snappers and Instagram lovers can prepare for some goodness. Apple’s just detailed their all new 8 megapixel camera, as well as the 720p capable Facetime front shooter although nothing is extremely new.

Essentially what we have is a near identical camera as what we saw with last years iPhone 4S. The difference here is of course quality will be slightly improved, but they’ve also made it thinner, much thinner. The iPhone 5 is being touted as the world’s thinnest smartphone and this plays a big role. How big exactly? 25% thinner while still managing to improve the specs and features.

As you can see from the image above, the 8 megapixel camera has a 3,264 x 2,448 backside-illuminated sensor, f/2.4 aperture and more. This is the same as the previous generation only thinner. This helps the device reach that ultra thin level it couldn’t achieve before. The new camera being smaller helps them pack everything in here. I’m excited about that new and improved dynamic low light mode! More details coming up shortly and once again, follow along at live.slashgear.com

Apple details iPhone 5 and its thinner 8 megapixel camera is written by Cory Gunther & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

A while back thanks to a screenshot taken, it seems that AT&T could be interested in charging their customers for using Apple’s FaceTime feature over their cellular network. Well the good news is that as it turns out, AT&T will not be charging you for FaceTime usage, although the catch is that you will be required to be on the carrier’s new MobileShare data plans. The MobileShare data plans will be launching on the 23^rd of August and will basically allow users to share their data quota over a variety of devices. While this might save you from getting an additional plan, there are charges for monthly data allotment and per-device charge, so depending on what kind of user you are, this may or may not be a good thing. According to the official statement released by AT&T:

“AT&T will offer FaceTime over Cellular as an added benefit of our new Mobile Share data plans, which were created to meet customers’ growing data needs at a great value. With Mobile Share, the more data you use, the more you save. FaceTime will continue to be available over Wi-Fi for all our customers.”

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: AT&T looking to charge for FaceTime over cellular calls?, T-Mobile pokes fun at AT&T over the iPhone 4’s Wi-Fi FaceTime limitation,

Over the past few days there has been some commotion over the possibility of carriers charging its customers for using FaceTime over 3G. AT&T was rumored to be implementing such a plan while Verizon claimed that it was too early to talk about it. However, one carrier has come forward to confirm that it won’t be doing such a thing when iOS 6 arrives. According to a Sprint spokeswoman, the carrier has no plans for charging any additional fees when using FaceTime over its mobile network.

With carriers not even batting an eyelid when consumers use other apps like Skype or Tango to make video calls with mobile data, it makes you wonder why FaceTime gets such special treatment. And if people are going to be charged additional fees for using it, they’ll probably turn to alternative apps instead. Sprint is definitely on the right track by not charging customers for how they use their data.

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: iPhones bring “best ever day of sales for a device family” on Sprint, Sprint iPhone 5 spotted in Radio Shack inventory list?,

AT&T has done itself no favors with its fudged response to rumors of an extra fee in order to use FaceTime over 3G connections on devices running iOS 6. Talk that the carrier would levy extra data charges if users wanted to take advantage of Apple’s increased FaceTime flexibility – so far limited to WiFi connections – prompted an uproar of pre-emptive complaints that AT&T might put a financial block in the way of iPhone and iPad functionality. But are we really on the precipice of a groundswell of video calling, or are we simply taking this opportunity to be angry at a carrier for daring to charge us money?

Apple’s handling of FaceTime has been shoddy, it has to be said. The company originally promised to open the system up to third-parties, making it a cross-platform service rather than limiting it solely to its own iOS and Mac clients. That hasn’t happened, and beyond revealing 3G support in the upcoming iOS 6 back at WWDC 2012, Apple has been quiet on where, exactly, FaceTime is going.

Leaving out carrier-specific details at the WWDC keynote is a good example of that, though Apple isn’t done any favors by AT&T’s famed reluctance to commit to anything until the last minute. Going by the error messages popping up on devices already running the iOS 6 beta, it’s looking very likely that AT&T will be demanding another tithe for those wanting to use the data they’ve already paid for to make FaceTime 3G calls – on top of mandatory data package fees and, if required, tethering add-ons.

Exactly how much that will cost – if, indeed, it happens at all – remains to be seen. AT&T could go for a pay-per-use fee, either on a per-call basis (say, $0.50 per FaceTime 3G call you make, regardless of length) or based on data consumption. Or, it could opt for a set fee each month for blanket FaceTime 3G calling; say, $10 more on top of your existing data package.

“How much is “too much”?”

Is $10 too much to ask for the convenience of not using, say, Skype and instead relying on Apple’s streamlined alternative? Would $5 be acceptable? What if AT&T said you could make as many FaceTime calls over 3G as you like, as long as you also upgrade to a tethering package? How much is “too much”?

Listen to the current crop of complaints, and you’d be forgiven for thinking that Apple gadget users have been crying out for a video calling, but that the prospect of AT&T fees is going to yank the rug out from under it. Apple hasn’t released usage figures for FaceTime – perhaps indicative that it hasn’t exactly set the world alight, given Apple loves nothing more than loudly proclaiming the numerical evidence of its successes – but is the current lack of 3G support really the blockade, or is it the fact that video calling really just doesn’t rate highly on the priority list of most?

What does rate strongly is the suspicion that fat-cat carriers are preparing to squeeze yet more fees out of us every month. Even if we don’t want to use a feature, nothing enrages us like the possibility that someone might want to charge us for it. So, don’t conflate anger over the possibility of AT&T plan changes with a real appetite for video calling services. Sometimes, subscribers just like an opportunity to blow off steam.

Do we really want FaceTime 3G or do we just resent paying for things? is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

It was revealed yesterday that AT&T was mulling the idea of charging for FaceTime access over 3G and LTE cellular networks. The prompt in the latest iOS 6 beta was discovered by 9to5Mac, asking customers to call AT&T to use FaceTime over cellular networks, presumably so that the carrier could charge additional fees for the service. When asked about the feature at Fortune’s Brainstorm Tech conference, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson said that it was “too early” to know what the company’s final plans will be.

That doesn’t mean the CEO has completely ruled out the idea of charged FaceTime cellular access, however. Stephenson was non-committal in his answer, saying that he had heard “the same rumor.” As you may have already gathered from reactions across the internet, the idea hasn’t exactly gone down well. Users are rightly pointing out that data is already bought and paid for, so applying additional charges for services that use that data simply comes across as a way to siphon more money from customers.

Carriers in the United States and Europe have tried to build a business model around video calls in the past, although high prices and lack of phones to take advantage of the technology resulted in the service’s failure to take off. There are millions of iPhone 4S’ out there capable of using FaceTime over cellular, but we’re pretty sure that consumers will balk at the idea of paying extra for the privilege. Hopefully AT&T will get the message that charging for FaceTime over cellular will go down like a lead balloon before the company finalizes its plans.

[via TechCrunch]

AT&T: “Too early” to comment on FaceTime 3G fees is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.