Hasta La Gadget!

As Thanksgiving and Black Friday approach, we have started hearing more and more about the Black Friday 2013 deals we can expect from retailers, carriers and just about anyone trying to cash in on the hype. This is the first we’re hearing of a T-Mobile Black Friday 2013 deal, according to a screenshot received by the folks at T-Mobile, for three days Magenta is going to offer both the iPhone 5s and the iPhone 5c for $0 down on its equipment installment plan or EIP.

As previously mentioned, this offer is said to last three days, between November 29th to December 1st. If customers want to purchase the iPhone 5s from T-Mobile right now on EIP they have to put $149 down and $49 down for the iPhone 5c. So if this Black Friday 2013 deal turns out to be true, that would mean that T-Mobile’s offering a flat $149 and $49 discount on the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c respectively. The report claims that a select number of T-Mobile retail stores will start accepting orders on these discounted prices from Thursday evening. The carrier is said to have instructed retail store stall to place the new price cards in stores prior to the opening on November 29th. The screenshot also reveals that iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c on EIP will cost $49.99 or $9.99 on Cyber Monday, respectively. It is not known at this time if the change in upfront cost is going to increase the monthly installments, T-Mobile should clarify that if and when it makes this Black Friday 2013 deal official.

T-Mobile Black Friday 2013 Deal: $0 Down For iPhone 5s And iPhone 5c [Rumor] original content from Ubergizmo.

Over the past few months it has consistently been rumored that China Mobile is finally going to launch the iPhone. The world’s largest mobile carrier having more than 700 million subscribers has never officially carried the iPhones, even though its rivals in China have do so for quite some time now. With the launch of its new 4G network, China Mobile will finally offer its subscribers the luxury to purchase an Apple iPhone 5s or iPhone 5c directly from it. The launch takes place on December 18th, the date was initially rumored last week but it has now been confirmed by Xinhua, China’s official state news agency.

Initially, subscribers in Beijing, Guangzhou and Chongqing will be able to use the new 4G service, which will be launched in Shanghai a little later. Given China’s reputation for creating cheap smartphone, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see low-cost 4G smartphones catering to the intense demand. Li Yue, president of China Mobile, believes that 4G phones priced around $160 will be available in the second half of 2014. Xinhua also says that China Mobile is going to finally launch the iPhones on December 18th, ending months of speculation about the launch. Pricing information will be available on the aforementioned date, it is not known at this point in time.

China Mobile 4G And iPhone Launch Confirmed By State News Agency original content from Ubergizmo.

Supposing you saw the opportunity in the iPhone 5c to change out the back of the smartphone for a custom cover, you’ll be glad to know that Japan’s customization shops are now in full swing. While the images before you may seem to be bringing on the next Gold and Silver generation of the iPhone […]

As the leaves turn to gold and flutter from the trees, the Engadget team digs out their scarves and mittens to get ready for the mad rush of phone launches that take place ahead of the holiday season. We’ve seen big devices (both large and high-profile ones) enter the world over the last few months, including new heavyweights from Apple and Google. Then there’s Samsung, Nokia and HTC, which are all following the philosophy that bigger is better.

But it’s not just on the hardware side that things are getting exciting. T-Mobile’s eliminated roaming charges and Verizon is doubling its LTE speeds to a whopping 80 Mbps. AT&T is offering customers a $5 daily pass for internet and is making mobile share plans the standard rather than the exception. Of course, if you’d prefer unlimited data, Sprint is promising that its Spark LTE will beat the field — but it’s currently only available in NYC, LA, Chicago, Tampa and Miami. Whether you’re looking for a smartphone right now, or if you’re contract is about to expire, this is your guide to the best ones on the market.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Apple, Samsung, HTC, Nokia, Google, Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, LG, Blackberry, T-Mobile

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A new patent application published by the USPTO (via MacRumors) shows some more detail around Apple’s use of Touch ID and the fingerprint sensor in the iPhone 5s. Apple has been mostly quiet about the specifics of how the tech works, while generally asserting that the fingerprint information never goes to a server, and only remains on the phone itself in a “secure enclave” which isn’t accessible by the rest of the system or third-party devs.

The patent describes a system that not only siloes data on the Touch ID “enclave” section of the A7 processor, but that also encrypts the fingerprint maps registered on the device to make it that much more difficult for any thieves to even attempt to pull the data off in any kind of usable form. The enclave is a one-way street, too: the system can check new fingerprints against the stored ones, but there’s no way to check or call up the stored fingerprints at all for external examination once they’re registered.

Otherwise, the system works likely as you’d expect it to, checking against stored profiles for possible matches (and using stored lower resolution templates based on variables like different angles to make it more likely to correctly ID your finger). But another patent also published this week shows a breakdown of all the components within the Touch ID hardware, and explains how the actual sensor hardware can be hidden behind an opaque lens that’s been printed with an “ink assembly.” It’s likely this needs to be uniform to read correctly, however, as Apple notably left off its small rounded square icon on the 5s home button, after that has graced each since the iPhone’s initial introduction.

These patents provide a little more clarity on what exactly is going on when you rest your finger or thumb on that 5s home screen and have it magically unlock, and it’s reassuring to see just how much thought Apple has put into making sure the info truly is secure.