Hasta La Gadget!

Look, we all know that the new iPhone 3G S is supposed to be wicked fast–certainly faster than all previous iPhone generations. Apple even put an “s” in the name for speed, for heaven’s sake. But the thing that has me excited is the new oleophobic membrane on the iPhone 3G S screen.

This new technology actually repels oils and smudges that you usually get when you use a shiny new phone. At least that’s the claim. I met with Apple VP Greg Joswiak earlier today and he quickly demonstrated the oil-repelling properties with his fingers. He rubbed the iPhone 3G S screen and there were no smudges. He did it again and it smudged a tiny bit. Then he rubbed it once on his jeans and that itty bitty smudge was gone. “That’s nice,” I thought, but I had a better, more rigorous test in mind.

Ever since I started using these big-screen smartphones, I’ve been appalled to notice just how much ear-grease I leave on the screens. It’s disgusting. I decided to bring in all three iPhone generations to put this oleophobic covering to the ultimate test. Could it repel my ever-present ear-grease? The first two failed miserably. The new 3G S?

The video tells the astounding tale, but in a nutshell, my ear smudges are no match for the iPhone 3G S’s oleophobic covering.

SAN FRANCISCO — The line to purchase an iPhone 3GS was short and sweet this morning at the downtown Apple store. When the doors opened at 7am, the queue stretched down the block and was maybe 150 humans deep, far fewer than the hundreds who showed up for the launch of the iPhone 3G in 2008.

And unlike previous years, there were relatively few Apple acolytes camped out overnight — the first person in line arrived at 9pm the previous evening.

But just like previous years there was a fair number of folks hawking various wares. Honest Tea, a handful of app store developers and maclife.com were dishing out free schwag to line-waiters. Apple even managed to cart out Starbucks coffee for fatigued line dwellers, as they’d done before.

One reason lines may have been shorter is that Apple made it easy for people to pre-order the iPhone 3GS online, promising to deliver preorders on the same day that it appeared in Apple’s and AT&T’s retail stories. There have been widespread reports of confusion and order mixups, however, so the line-waiters may have the last laugh.

Apple employees divided up the line between people who had reserved an iPhone and those who had not. Interestingly enough, they kept track of everyone who pre-ordered a 3GS on a stack of decidedly low tech printed paper. One line waiter commented, “What is that, papyrus? I thought Apple was a forward thinking tech company.”

Photo by Daniel Dumas/ Wired.com

See Also:

• iPhone Teardown Reveals Underclocked 833MHz CPU

• Video: AT&T’s Distribution Center Gets Busy Packaging iPhone 3GS

• Breaking: iPhone 3G S Camera Doesn’t Suck

We’ve already reviewed the iPhone 3.0 firmware, nitpicking the features one by one. But in case you still haven’t studied the update closely enough, here are the 10 things you should know about iPhone 3.0.

The Upgrade Rush Seems to Be Over
Before we begin with our tips, a note: Yesterday, we received countless emails about trouble downloading the 3.0 update. Today, we haven’t received a single one. It seems like it’s as safe as it will ever be to plug into iTunes and update the firmware—or just to call your mom and tell her the coast is clear now.

Tethering and MMS Aren’t Supported Yet, But Both Are Technically Possible
Proceed at your own risk, but tethering and MMS are both possible on your AT&T-based iPhone right now, even though neither is formally available to consumers. The good news is that jailbreaking your iPhone isn’t a requirement. That bad news is that you may screw up Visual Voicemail (probably a fair trade-off). More on these hacks here.

You Can Turn Off Shake to Shuffle
If you are a jogger, jump roper or even nervous twitcher, you’ll find that the iPhone’s new Shake to Shuffle feature may inadvertently change your track. This feature can be deactivated in the settings menu. But unfortunately, the similar Shake to Undo cannot be deactivated at this time.

Autofill Is Turned Off By Default
It’s a minor point, but Autofill (which allows you to paste in name, address and phone number on webpages quickly) is by no means auto. Go into Settings -> Safari -> Autofill to activate the handy function. And if you aren’t stored as a contact on your phone already, you’ll need to create a personal entry from which Autofill can pull your personal information.

Download Movies, But Over Wi-Fi Only
On one hand, it’s pretty neat to be able to download video through iTunes. On the other, this option isn’t available over 3G (as it is with music). So it’s still best to grab the last season of 30 Rock before leaving for the airport.

IMAP Mail Search Doesn’t Look Beyond Subject Line
It’s very convenient to search your Gmail without going to the actual website through Safari. And while that search works for To, From and Subject lines, the search “All” tab is still doesn’t seem to search beyond the subject line—instead, it’s probably meant to signify searching “To, From AND Subject.” Maybe you were wise enough to figure that one out on your own. It took us a minute.

Push Notifications Are Supported; Push Apps Are Still Rare
While the iPhone can’t multitask, Push Notifications get us halfway there. Apps like the new AIM will allow for IMs to pop up without actually being inside the AIM app. Games will allow player to player invites. But as of now, there’s virtually nothing in the App Store that takes advantage of Push Notifications. So hang in there. The feature is officially here, but content hasn’t arrived yet.

CalDAV May Sound Weird, But It’s Useful
Maybe you don’t even know/care what that the CalDAV protocol is. No problem. Basically, it’s a way you can sync calendars like GCal with your iPhone calendar. And it’s super easy. Go to Settings -> Mail, Contacts, Calendar -> Add Account… -> Other -> Add CalDAV Account. You’ll need to enter the proper information (Google lists theirs here), but it’s just a URL and your login info. Then open the Calendar app, which will sync in near real time with your cloud calendar.

It’s Possible to Search Music In Spotlight, Or iTunes Itself
It’s hard to miss the iPhone’s new Spotlight Search that allows you to dig through a lot of your phone’s content (Contacts, Emails, Apps and Media) instantly. But what if you’re in iTunes? don’t go back to the mainscreen because there’s a new search bar that’s a bit hidden within the music player. Just scroll up in any iTunes list (portrait mode) and the bar will be revealed.

You Need an iPhone 3GS to Get Every New Feature
Here’s how you enable, Video recording, Tap to Focus photography, Compass, Nike+, Voice Control: buy an iPhone 3GS. Older handsets will not be able to check out these nifty tricks. Sorry, we didn’t make the rules. Or the iPhone.

The above video provides a behind-the-scenes look at AT&T’s distribution center in Ft. Worth, Texas, where workers are packaging the iPhone 3GS handset due in stores Friday. Pretty neat! Now, if only someone would video tape the factory where the iPhones are made, starring the famous iPhone Girl. Perhaps the iPhone 3GS’s video camera will help with that?

AT&T YouTube Channel [via Gizmodo]

It’s time for another roundup of pundits espousing heartfelt admiration and none-too-bloody criticism of a pretty hot Apple product. How did they—I mean “it”—do this time around? Have a look-see…

As usual, this matrix is just the tip of the molehill—if you want to really get in deep with these colorful characters, here’s where to look:

• NYT – David Pogue

• WSJ – Walt Mossberg

• USA Today – Ed Baig

• Wired – Steven Levy

• Cnet – Kent German

• Engadget – Josh Topolsky

• Ars Technica

• Laptop

• Crunchgear

• Gear Live

• Gizmodo – Jason Chen

And if we’ve missed your review, send it in: we’ll add it to the list.