Bad news for folks hoping a pre-order would save them from that yearly camp out in front of their local Apple Store: iPhone 3G S pre-orders have sold out, and folks who are making new pre-orders are being told that they’ll have to wait up to two weeks to get a phone. AT&T customers who do already have pre-orders in still have to line up at 7AM to nab a phone, but at least they’ve got a guaranteed slot if they show up, while the rest of the world will have to battle over remaining stock when Apple Stores open at 8AM and AT&T stores open to general customers at the same time. Looks like we might get a good riot or two out of this. Update: AT&T just pinged us to clarify that it’s still accepting pre-orders, but not for delivery on the 19th, and online pre-orders will be shipped directly to your home, so you actually don’t have to hit up a store at all. But what fun is that?
You’d think — starting from the moment you saw the glossy sheen of the iPhone 3G S to the waning seconds of this year’s WWDC keynote when you realized that there would be no magical second model announced — that the near-constant drone of matte iPhone rumors leading up to this week’s festivities were all fake. But were they really? It’s been astutely noted by @cabel (yes, we just threw out a Twitter handle there) that the matte black backing seen last month has totally matching information — model number and FCC ID alike — with the actual device. We suppose it could just be an unfinished component, but as Daring Fireball notes, this could mean that Apple toyed with a matte finish early in the 3G S’ design but ultimately abandoned it — or even more intriguingly, it could’ve been a unique one-off trap designed to identify leakers who’d otherwise tried to hide their identities. It sounds like a pretty far-fetched conspiracy theory at first, yes — but we’re aware of at least one wireless carrier that actively puts out bogus information to achieve the same effect, and you might remember that Microsoft was rumored to have done the same thing with prototype Zunes back in the day. Either way, it’s a crying shame, because that glossless finish has left an indelible mark on our hearts that won’t soon heal.
Apple’s being pretty cagey with the hard specs of the iPhone 3G S, but apparently T-Mobile Netherlands didn’t get the message — it’s just posted up a specs page listing 256MB of RAM and a 600MHz CPU. That’s up from 128MB and 412MHz in the first-gen and the 3G, and it’s basically exactly what was rumored. Of course, the 3G S also has that new PowerVR SGX graphics chip that supports OpenGL ES 2.0, so the total speed boost is probably more than just pure clock speed, but we’ll find out for sure when we get our hands on one.
In a bid to attract more business users to the iPhone, Apple introduced several security enhancements on Monday for its popular handset. However, there are still a number of weaknesses that need addressing before the company can climb into the business market.
At its 26th Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple demonstrated an emergency feature that remotely erased an iPhone’s data in the event that the handset is lost or stolen. Additionally, a new tool called “Find My iPhone” will enable users to view the location of their lost or stolen iPhone on a map. Third, for the next-generation iPhone 3GS, Apple implemented encryption to prevent thieves from retrieving confidential, sensitive information.
While these new features do increase security, they still fall short of Research In Motion’s BlackBerry, said Jonathan Zdziarski, forensics expert and author of the book iPhone Forensics: Recovering Evidence, Personal Data, and Corporate Assets.
“I don’t think some of the features were as big of a solution as Apple made them sound,” Zdziarski said. “The remote wipe is useful, but for someone who’s targeting an enterprise phone specifically, that remote wipe can only take place if the iPhone is on a network. If I steal someone’s phone and I have the goal of stealing information on that phone, the first thing I’m going to do is pop the SIM card out.”
Historically, Apple has aimed its products at consumers, and thus the popular iPhone has received criticism for its relatively lackadaisical security. In September, for example, Zdziarski revealed a security flaw in Cupertino’s wonder device: The handset snaps a cached screenshot of your most recent action whenever the Home button is pressed. A tech-savvy thief could potentially access a pilfered iPhone’s cache and see previously written text messages, password entries and so forth.
Despite this, Apple recently began heavily marketing the iPhone as a business device. A recent iPhone ad (above) demonstrates business apps available for the iPhone. Apple even launched an entire web page hoping to pitch the iPhone’s suitability in this area.
But as intriguing as business applications can be, the security of the iPhone still isn’t on par with BlackBerry smartphones, Zdziarski said. For remote-wiping on a BlackBerry, customers can opt for an emergency feature where their phone automatically erases all of its data if it’s been off the network for a set amount of time — think of it as the cellular equivalent of the nuclear option. Even if the SIM is removed, the phone would still wipe itself, Zdziarski said.
As for encryption for iPhone 3GS, security experts have yet to put the smartphone through any thorough testing. Thus, employees and business users eager for new iPhones should wait to see just what level of encryption has been deployed before putting in orders, he said.
“Any kind of encryption is an improvement … and Apple is heading in the right direction. But BlackBerry still has the upper hand in their technology,” Zdziarski said.
Nonetheless, Apple is just beginning to tap the business market with these new announcements. And tech strategist Mike Gartenberg says to expect Apple to shake up the OS space, as the company continues to roll our additional enterprise-centric features for Mac OS X Snow Leopard and future iPhones iterations.
“The OS wars have finally begun,” Gartenberg said. “Apple is very well positioned in the PC space for consumers, and we can expect Apple to begin its first major onslaught in the business market.”
We have a hard time believing that the FCC’s documentation system is efficient and well-coordinated enough to actually reveal documents at the exact date and time that filers want them to — so who knows, maybe the feds are in bed with Apple on keeping its most prized launches under lock and key until just the right moment. We kid, we kid — maybe — but at any rate, you can now peruse hundreds of pages of specific absorption rate plots for GSM, UMTS / HSDPA, WiFi, and Bluetooth in both 16 and 32GB flavors of the iPhone 3G S. It’s not likely going to tell you anything you didn’t already know or care about, especially since there aren’t any external photos or user’s manuals accessible yet — but if you get really, amazingly bored this evening, it might be worth a look-see.
Current iPhone 3G owners on the AT&T network will have to pay a higher price if they wish to upgrade to the next-generation iPhone.
The fine print in Apple’s iPhone comparison web page states the following:
For non-qualified customers, including existing AT&T customers who want to upgrade from another phone or replace an iPhone 3G, the price with a new two-year agreement is $499 (8GB), $599 (16GB), or $699 (32GB).
However, AT&T told Wired.com that current iPhone 3G owners wishing to purchase the iPhone 3GS will have to shell out $400 or $500, respectively, for an “early upgrade.” Not quite as pricey as what’s stated in the fine print, but still, $200 extra is a pretty big chunk. AT&T’s press kit displays the chart below for the pricing structure.
On the other hand, owners of the original iPhone will be able to upgrade to the handset for the advertised cost. I know I’m getting one, since mine drowned about six weeks ago.
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