After initially saying that the iPhone 4’s reception issues were no big deal, Consumer Reports has changed its tune, recognizing that the software fix won’t help things, and retracting their recommendation. They just got around to testing it, you see. More »
Is this the honest-to-goodness iPhone 4 jailbreak we’ve been waiting for, or just another userland JB? It’s hard to say from here… but either way, don’t expect Geohot to release it into the wild. In a mildly jaded blog post, the original iPhone hacker makes it clear that whatever he did here was for his own amusement, and judging by the title of that entry (“Meh”) the whole breaking-and-entering bit isn’t giving him quite the same chuckles it used to. That’s a shame, but we hear the iPhone Dev Team is making progress apace, so let’s leave Geohot to tackle one of his other promised hacks, mmmkay?
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Geohot teases iPhone 4 jailbreak, no plans for release originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 10 Jul 2010 11:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Critix has been touting its “Nirvana phone” concept — a handheld device that can be paired with a monitor / keyboard for remote desktop use — for quite some time now. Back in February, the minimum hardware specs were nothing to challenging, and as it turns out, Apple’s iPhone 4 pretty much exceeds ’em by a long shot. And it has VGA out capabilities and Bluetooth keyboard support. So, you can imagine where this is going. The company is back in what looks like the same depressing cubicle space to show off what looks to be a mature demo of the Receiver 4.0 virtual desktop client on an iDevice, pushing 1024 x 768 resolution and some gesture integration as a mouse replacement. There’s definitely some noticeable lag, but hey, you gotta start somewhere. Video after the break.
Citrix enlists iPhone 4 in its quest for ‘Nirvana phone’ portable desktop client (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 10 Jul 2010 08:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | Comments
We guess this is a “good” thing in a roundabout way, but Fring has just dropped the knowledge that its video calling update for the iPhone 4 has been so wildly successful that they’ve been forced to temporarily restrict Skype access to “free up capacity” for direct Fring-to-Fring calls. Hopefully the company is hard at work beefing up its infrastructure to bring everything back to normal — but in the meantime, at least you’ve got an easy way to look your EVO-toting friends square in the face without having to actually see them in the flesh. Perish the thought!
[Thanks, Roy]
Fring bends under the pressure of iPhone video calling, Skype temporarily locked down originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 19:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | 
Fring | Email this | Comments
Find out what happens when consumer electronics news stops being polite and starts getting real: the Engadget Podcasters take your questions. Find out the real story behind Kin‘s failure (hint: it was Josh’s fault), why the Engadget staff is Mac-based (hint: it has to do with nested stock options), and why Paul Miller is still playing Chrono Trigger.
Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Nilay Patel, Paul Miller
Guest: Michael Gartenberg
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Music: Alejandro
Hear the podcast
Subscribe to the podcast
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (enhanced AAC).
[RSS MP3] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in MP3) to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically.
[RSS AAC] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in enhanced AAC) to your RSS aggregator.
[Zune] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in the Zune Marketplace
Download the podcast
LISTEN (MP3)
LISTEN (AAC)
LISTEN (OGG)
Contact the podcast
1-888-ENGADGET or podcast (at) engadget (dot) com.
Twitter: @joshuatopolsky @futurepaul @reckless @engadget
Filed under: Podcasts
Engadget Podcast 204: Q&A Bonanza – 07.09.2010 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 15:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Past Apple patent applications have already offered some evidence that the company is at least thinking about NFC-enhanced apps on the iPhone, and a recently published application has now tossed out one more possible application: instant product research. That would apparently be done using either NFC (or near field communication) or a simple barcode scan, which would let you easily access product reviews, user manuals and other information about products before you purchase them — the application even includes the example of an NFC-enabled restaurant menu that would let you check nutritional information before you order. Somewhat interestingly, both this and Apple’s previous NFC-related patent application use “+” in the app’s names (Products+ and Concert Tickets+), although that could simply be the work of one patent attorney, and not evidence of an overarching Apple strategy.
Apple patent application details instant product research via iPhone, more NFC possibilities originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 13:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Myriam Joire (tnkgrl) was born wearing combat boots and holding a keyboard; moments later she picked up a soldering iron. She’s been stomping, typing and hacking ever since. In her regular series, she’ll share her tips, tricks, and mods on everything from phones to netbooks — and be sure to catch her weekly on the Engadget Mobile podcast.
Things used to be simple: you either had a CDMA device with no SIM, or a GSM device with a SIM. If your GSM device was unlocked you could swap SIMs between carriers, and if was locked, you could swap SIMs between accounts on the same carrier. Basically, an unlocked phone meant mobile freedom. At first, the only complication was the different frequencies used for GSM in different parts of the world, which was remedied with quadband radios. Then 3G was introduced, with different frequencies used by different carriers in the same geographic area, like North America. Today, this proliferation of bands makes it difficult to build universal radios, and makes it less appealing to switch carriers. In fact, the only phone that currently supports all 3G frequencies used in North America is the upcoming pentaband Nokia N8.
The second obstacle was the introduction of special data plans, either requiring additional service layers (such as BlackBerry or Sidekick plans) or restricting the types of devices permitted as the iPhone and iPad plans do. What used to be as simple as changing APNs is now a Kafkaesque nightmare, complete with nasty “you are using the wrong data plan and we are going to send you a bill” text messages from carriers. Strike three was the micro SIM (also known as the 3FF SIM), popularized by Apple’s iPad and the iPhone 4. This smaller form-factor SIM is electrically compatible with the standard SIM we all know and love — and as such, it’s easy to convert a standard SIM into a micro SIM and vice-versa (but still, it’s one more hurdle standing in the way of happiness).
Let’s dive in and take a look at how it’s done.
How-to: resize your SIM, change your APN, and drink the sweet nectar of mobile freedom originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Jul 2010 12:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | Comments
We weren’t exactly sure whether Apple was going to approve third-party video calling apps using the front camera on the iPhone 4, but good news: the answer is “yes.” Fring just slid in a new version of its longstanding iPhone app today featuring support for video calling, which is pretty awesome in and of itself — but the real news is that it works just fine over 3G, as you can see in our quick test above between Chicago and London. This opens the door for services that could have potentially broader implications than FaceTime itself, since Apple’s service is limited to WiFi and currently only works between iPhone 4s. Just make sure you’re wearing clothes when you call, alright?
Fring update approved for iPhone, does video calling with front cam over 3G originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Jul 2010 17:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | iTunes, Fring | Email this | Comments
Nah, your sarcasm detector isn’t busted — we genuinely are surprised that Apple has lifted the iron fist and allowed a piece of hardware on its handset to be used for something other than Jobs himself intended. It may seem trivial to those who haven’t witnessed Apple block the most sensible of programs in the past, but allowing applications that enable end-user control of the LED camera flash is a pretty big deal. It’s one of those “sad, but true” moments, you know? As of now, the affordable (£0.59) Flashlight – For iPhone 4 and even more affordable (zilch) LED Light for iPhone 4 can be downloaded directly from the App Store and used to activate the LED whenever you darn well please, and for reasons that we needn’t mention, we’d suggest you go ahead and grab one… pronto.
Update: Another free option — Power Light — just splashed down into the App Store.
Update 2: Lookie there, another free option with LED-Flashlight! Woo!
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Shocker! Apple approves apps for using LED on iPhone 4 as flashlight originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Jul 2010 15:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | iTunes [Flashlight], iTunes [LED Light] | Email this | Comments
Sure, the iPhone 4 may have a pretty great camera as far as phones go, but there’s always room for improvement — right? Continuing the great tradition of iPhones awkwardly outfitted with camera lenses, one intrepid individual has now come up with a contraption that will let you “attach” a full-size SLR lens to your iPhone 4. While complete details are a bit light, Technabob notes that the camera mount at the bottom of the rig is a Manfrotto pocket tripod — so you at least have a place to start for building your own.
[Thanks, Demetri]
iPhone 4 gets outfitted with vintage SLR lens originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 07 Jul 2010 21:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
