Hasta La Gadget!

Your iPhone’s passcode entry can’t block everything, it seems — at least not with iOS 4.1. We’re hearing various reports that simply inputting a random number in the emergency call field, pressing call, and then promptly hitting the hardware lock button will take you to the Phone app, thereby granting you access to the call history, voicemail, and address book. We’ve tried this with iPhone 3G, 3GS, and 4, all with the same result. We can’t get out of the field without trying to place a call, and after that we’re still stuck back at the passcode screen. Additionally, selecting “share contact” and then the camera icon will give you access to the photo album. Pay mind that your particularly paranoid pals could probably use this to see if you really did stop calling your ex and delete all his or her pictures. We won’t judge, but they will. Video proof of concept after the break.

Update: Feel free to hold down the menu button to access voice control and play some locally-stored tunes while you’re at it. And if you’ve got 4.2 beta like some of our staffers do, this “trick” should work just the same.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading iOS 4.1 glitch lets you bypass lock screen to access Phone app, photo album (video)

iOS 4.1 glitch lets you bypass lock screen to access Phone app, photo album (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 25 Oct 2010 21:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continue reading Mophie Juice Packs for iPhone 4, iPad en route to Apple Store

Mophie Juice Packs for iPhone 4, iPad en route to Apple Store originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 15:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone 4, EVO 4G Powermats arrive at Best Buy originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 15 Oct 2010 16:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know what we always say: never enough battery life. Energizer‘s new AP1201 case for the iPhone 4 should come as a welcome addition to your Apple gadget family. As a slim, protective case of silicone rubber it’s not completely offensive looking (if fact, it’s pretty attractive), and it charges your phone while it’s wearing it. It’s got two charging options — a high speed charging mode which charges the phone first, then the case, while the other option provides simultaneous pass-through charging. The case promises to about double the life of your iPhone, and it’s available now for $69.99.

Energizer AP1201 case for iPhone 4 charges while it protects originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 09 Oct 2010 01:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple weathered that Antennagate storm surprisingly well, but now there’s another potential cloudburst on the horizon, and it’s been pre-named for your convenience: “Glassgate.” Or maybe “Glass-That-Shatters-If-Scratched-By-A-Casegate.” Ryan Block has just posted a story on gdgt citing sources “inside and outside Apple” claiming that Apple has discovered a different flaw — or weakness, shall we say — in its iPhone 4 design. The basic problem seems to be with non-bumper cases, specifically ones that slide on to the phone, and the danger of trapped particles scratching the back of the phone while taking the case on and off. Case-caused scratches are nothing new (though still annoying), but the big problem seems to be that these scratches can lead to cracking and even full-on shattering of the back panel. Apparently this lead to Apple severely limiting its reselling efforts of third party cases for a time (which you might have noticed), and while Apple currently has some third party cases online and in its stores, none of the hard cases are of the slide-on variety. Apple also purportedly has a new test program set up to understand this specific issue.

Of course, plenty of questions are raised by all this: is this a widespread problem with folks that have managed to acquire a slide-on case? We haven’t really heard of such a correlation so far. Do the snap-on folks, many of whom received their cases free of charge from Apple, have anything to worry about? And does Apple have any intention of warning its consumers about this potential danger? Apple didn’t respond to Ryan’s request for comment, and we doubt they’ll respond to our own until they’re good and ready to talk — let’s just hope there’s not another faux hat-in-hand press conference in our future!

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Apple afraid of a shattering followup to its Antennagate woes? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Oct 2010 15:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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