Hasta La Gadget!

Last week, we told you that the iPhone 5 comes with a special little bonus if you’re buying from Verizon. The massive carrier’s version of the iPhone 5 is GSM unlocked, meaning that users could potentially pop in a SIM card from another carrier, say AT&T for example, and use the phone on its network. This feature will definitely be appreciated by travelers, and today we have even more good news to share: Verizon says that it has no plans to lock down its iPhone 5.

Verizon’s version of the iPhone 5 can work on many carriers other than AT&T, and ABC News points out that offering an unlocked iPhone 5 is a win for consumers in more ways than one. For instance, once your contract expires, you could potentially take your iPhone 5 to another carrier and sign up for service there. In doing so, you can net service without having to be tied down by a contract, which is always a major plus if you can swing it.

Indeed, it seems that consumers are very happy with the fact that Verizon’s iPhone 5 is GSM unlocked, and Verizon may just be able to score a few more iPhone 5 sales as a result. Still, at the moment, there isn’t much reason to look for iPhone 5 service from anywhere but Verizon if you’re planning to use the handset’s 4G LTE capabilities often. While AT&T offers “4G” service, it definitely isn’t as fast as Verizon’s network, so for now, the only big reason to take your Verizon iPhone 5 to a different carrier is to get a less expensive monthly bill. That’s bound to change soon though, as a number of major carriers will be boosting their 4G networks in major ways during the coming months.

Unlocking phones is nothing new for Verizon, as the company has done so in the past for those who are traveling to other countries. Selling a phone, especially one as big as the iPhone 5, that’s unlocked from the get go is a first for the company, however. Perhaps this is a little experiment on Verizon’s part to see if selling a phone that comes GSM unlocked ultimately leads to more sales? If it is, the experiment seems to be working, at least as far as consumer disposition toward Verizon goes. Stay tuned.

iPhone 5 to remain GSM unlocked at Verizon is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Every Apple launch has a sting in the tail, and for iPhone 5 and iOS 6 it’s Maps. Ditching Google Maps and instead turning to a self-made alternative makes sense in terms of longevity, but it meant hitting reset on what had come to be relied upon as a solid and predictable user experience. Apple was going to have to take a PR hit at some point, there was no escaping it. The step back in detail from Google Maps, which has had years of refinement, to the first-gen Maps app of iOS 6, is unavoidably obvious, particularly to those outside of US cities.

Sites such as “The Amazing iOS 6 Maps” highlight the more extreme examples; for everyday users, it’s more likely to be a case of a few confusing directions or mis-labeled locations that introduce a hiccup into their navigation. Turn-by-turn navigation assuages some of the pain, but it only takes one or two bad experiences with moldy data to leave users unconvinced that an app can do the job.

Obviously Apple has to address its patchy data and poor merging of map, satellite, and points-of-interest. What will be interesting is how it chooses to do that. Google has been relatively self-sufficient in its map development, sending out a fleet of Street View cars for instance, but Apple could easily augment its own data gathering with its army of iPhone owners.

Don’t underestimate the loyalty of iOS users and the potential for crowd-sourced data to flood Apple’s servers – if, that is, the company can make it easy enough. There’s already the ability to report errors in Maps’ data from within the app, flagging up wrong street labeling or missing locations, but Apple could build on that with more proactive location-gathering tools. Meanwhile, Apple’s new Panorama feature in the camera app – pumping out high-resolution, seamlessly-joined scenes – could, if suitably geotagged, be repurposed to create Google Street View-rivaling sidewalk level imagery. It would take a huge quantity of data to actually fill in all the gaps, but there are a whole lot of iOS users out there.

“Apple could rely on platform zealots and mercenary interest”

OpenStreetMap is an example of how crowd-sourcing data can come to rival “traditional” business plans. Apple, meanwhile, is in a position to rely not only on enthusiastic platform zealots but somewhat more mercenary interest too: free iTunes credit, perhaps, for those who submit the most new Maps data, or who make the most accurate edits, or who generally contribute the greatest value to the product each week or month.

There’s a lot you can do by passively watching how people move about with their smartphones. Figuring out the most popular routes, for instance, or identifying points where the physical road doesn’t quite match up with where your map data thinks the road is. Conversely, you can spot where that map data might have confused a road with, say, a train track – something iOS 6 Maps has been accused of – based on infrequency of use. Bake in some location ID – checking-in with FourSquare, for instance, or similar services – and you’ve got point-of-interest refinement too.

Apple is playing catch-up. That’s not a position the company is unused to, however, and it has a track record of learning from rivals and delivering a solid and appealing alternative in its own right. What could make the difference from existing mapping services is how much Apple leverages the dedication and ubiquity of its own users, harnessing them into a cellularly-obsessed workforce both contributing to, and benefiting from, a crowd-sourced location system that Apple alone controls.

The iPhone 5 crowd could help Apple Maps find its way is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Sure, we tested the iPhone 5‘s camera in the well-lit streets of New York City, but if you’re wondering how Apple’s latest functions when used primarily as a shooter, TREK has a pretty remarkable look. Photog Austin Mann and a few of his closest pals took a pair of iPhone 5s to Iceland following launch weekend in a bid to test the unit’s durability, capability and image quality next to the 4S. After two days of geyser spray and admitted “drops in mud,” the uncovered 5 seemed to be a-okay, and when it comes to output from the sensor, that’s worthy of praise as well.

The low-light capabilities of the 5 are perhaps the most impressive upgrade compared to the 4S, with much less noise seen in shots from the former. He also gushed over the panorama mode, which admittedly churned out some pretty seamless results of the Icelandic countryside. As for shutter speed? That too has been “significantly” improved over the 4S. He interestingly noted that Snapseed was acting a bit wonky with iOS 6, but one has to wonder how much smoothing will be done by the Nik team now that Google’s calling the shots. Hit the source link below for the full rundown, comparisons included, and a video that shows how the iPhone 5 reacts after sunset.

Filed under: Cellphones, Cameras, Mobile

iPhone 5 camera gets tested in Iceland, panorama and low-light comparison with iPhone 4S included originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Sep 2012 13:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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RepairsUniverse claim that they have in stock replacement parts for the newly released iPhone 5, not to mention are capable of performing repairs on this particular smartphone as well. In addition, they released an iPhone 5 repair guide video that showcases the full nudity of the iPhone 5, stripped and all, including instructions on replacing the iPhone 5 display. Needless to say, that would be of interest to many people considering how the display of most smartphones is the most common part to be damaged.

You need not fork out a single cent for the repair guide video, as it is free not only on their website, but over at YouTube as you can view above. According to Paul Weatherley, founder of RepairsUniverse.com, “It’s great that the design of the iPhone 5 makes it easy to repair. Following our free video instructions people will be able to save themselves a lot of money if they ever have the misfortune of damaging their phone”.

Some say that the iPhone 5 is in its own way, easier to repair compared to the iPhone 4S since it opens up from the front, giving you instant access to the innards, while letting you swap out the screen in a jiffy. [Press Release]

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: iPhone 5 sells 5 million units in three days, iPhone 5 back too susceptible to scratches?,

The iPhone 5 has been the most anticipated mobile device of 2012 together with its cousin the iPad Mini, which we expect to be seeing shortly. Apple has made displays their most prominent marketing feature because it determines the quality of the visual experience for everything on a smartphone or tablet—including apps, web content, photos, videos, and its camera. The retina displays on the iPhone 4 and the new iPad were significant advancements—not just in sharpness but in picture quality and color accuracy, which is what provides the display’s real wow factor. More »