Hasta La Gadget!

Most cell phone manufacturers have charging standards these days, even if they can’t always agree on which version of USB to use, but as the hair-tearing message above shows, third-party renditions of Apple’s proprietary dock connector haven’t always been universal solutions for iPods and iPhones. Now we know another important reason why — secret resistors placed on the data lines in connectors for each iDevice. Minty Boost creator ladyada recently reverse-engineered the chargers for a variety of Apple gadgets, and discovered that iPhones in particular don’t draw electricity until they detect 2.8V and 2V signals when they attempt to charge. At that voltage, the handsets suck down about one amp, leading to a rapid filling of your device’s Li-ion belly, but by adding additional resistance to drop the voltage further, the iPhone can be coerced into accepting 500mA instead — perfect for the set of AAA batteries you stashed away in that Altoids tin. Video after the break, full explanation at our source link.

Continue reading Hacker reveals how Apple artificially restricts iPhone chargers (video)

Hacker reveals how Apple artificially restricts iPhone chargers (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Aug 2010 21:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Library of Congress made it legal, MuscleNerd showed us it was a go, and now Comex and company have delivered the long-awaited jailbreak to the fourth rendition of iPhone. According to their new page JailbreakMe, the hack works right on the iPhone 4 (or 3GS, or 3G, or iPad, or…) itself, using via the handset’s Safari browser to reportedly break into most any iOS device. The servers are getting slammed pretty badly, and only a few Engadget editors have so much as seen the page pictured above so far, but rest assured we’re testing this as we speak and will have more details up soon.

Update: Sorry folks, we’ve tried repeatedly, but apparently the servers just can’t handle the load — Comex tweets that the purple screens we’re seeing are evidence of server fail. Here’s hoping for a Cydia celebration when the stampede is over.

Update 2: Comex says you might want to reboot if you got stuck staring at that purple screen, and you could also try their backup server (click our second source link) to help the Dev Team divide the load.

Update 3: We successfully got the jailbreak to start working, but it crashed Safari. Upon reboot of our phone we’ve got… nothing but the Apple logo. Take note, this can brick your phone, so proceed with caution! Video of the experience after the break. After a reset, our phone is giving us nothing but the Apple logo. (Update to the update, the phone has been restored).

Update 4: Our intern Sam has successfully jailbroken his iPhone 4 according to this pic, so it can be done!

Update 5: Comex reports that iPads running iOS 3.2.1 aren’t presently working properly, and that MMS problems after jailbreak are a known issue.

Update 6: Good news? Saurik (of Cydia fame) has pitched in to secure JailbreakMe some better hosting. Bad news? Reports indicate that FaceTime doesn’t work after jailbreak, either.

Update 7: Seven updates? You bet, because it’s looking like there’s already a fix for the missing FaceTime and MMS features. Head on over to Redmond Pie (in more coverage below) for instructions to install the Cydia package that brought video chat back to two of our iPhone 4 handsets. If you’re just downloading JailbreakMe for the first time though, you shouldn’t need to do a thing, as Comex claims both have been fixed in a new version of the hack that just went live.

Continue reading Official: iPhone 4 jailbreak hits from iPhone Dev Team (updated with video)

Official: iPhone 4 jailbreak hits from iPhone Dev Team (updated with video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 01 Aug 2010 17:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With the iControlPad seemingly slipping further and further from reality, iPhone gamers with an affinity for buttons have fewer reasons to get out of bed in the morning and face the world. If that’s you then it’s time to wake up, Sunshine, because the iPhone Game Pad is here to bring a little light to your life. It’s a somewhat chubby slip-on case that, as of now, works only with the original model iPhone. (There’s a 3G/3GS model to come.) On the face it offers four primary control buttons plus a D-pad, what appears to be Select and Start buttons, plus a pair of shoulder buttons atop. This combination should make it perfect for emulation hounds or any ‘ol heathen who values tactility over design purity. As of now it’s just a prototype, but if you have the resources to bring this thing to production the folks at CP Design who crafted it would surely love to hear from you.

Continue reading CP Design’s iPhone Game Pad prototype does Donkey Kong Country right (video)

CP Design’s iPhone Game Pad prototype does Donkey Kong Country right (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 26 Jul 2010 08:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well, there’s nothing like masking bad news with good news, right Apple? Just moments after quietly announcing that the white iPhone 4 is now scheduled to ship sometime between tomorrow and your New Year’s Eve party, the company has also fired up its iPhone 4 Case Program. Just as Jobs promised last week at an emergency press event, this program will ensure that anyone who purchases an iPhone 4 prior to September 30th will be able to receive an iPhone 4 Bumper or select third-party case from the company at no charge. ‘Course, you need to be located in a country or territory that Apple actually ships to, but if that’s all squared away, feel free to hit up the App Store to download the iPhone 4 Case Program app. Once there, you’ll need to sign into your iTunes Store account, select your Bumper or case and wait oh-so-patiently (read: “3 to 5 weeks”). Better hurry — wouldn’t want the servers to get overloaded, now would we?

Oh, and if you happened to have already purchased a Bumper, the company should be hitting your credit card with a full refund (including any applicable taxes and shipping) momentarily. As for the case / Bumper choices? Every single option is available in any color you like… so long as it’s black, of course. There’s a black Apple Bumper option, an Incase Snap Case, Belkin Shield Micra, Griffin Motif, Griffin Reveal, Speck Fitted and Speck PixelSkin HD, but again, don’t go in hoping to select your favorite hue. Yeah, you’re free to bicker about free things — we won’t judge.

Update: If you’re one of those wise guys who purchased an iPhone 4 right away just to sell it, you can forget about getting a free case for the handset you no longer own. Apple has arranged this so that only one case can be ordered per iPhone 4, so even if you ordered two under your account name, you’ll need two phones to place both of those orders. Check out the error message below if you still don’t believe us.

Apple begins iPhone 4 Case Program: apply for your free case or Bumper now originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Jul 2010 08:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Not sold on those iPhone Antenna-aid bandages? Fret not, as we’ve got a whole ‘nother round of laughs coming your way. What started as a concept has landed on Etsy as a buyable product: the ‘End Call’ vinyl sticker. As you’d expect, you simply place this guy over the iPhone 4’s “weak spot” and then press it whenever you’d like to conveniently drop whatever call you’re on. The only problem? This $4 add-on actually won’t accomplish what it says in plain English.

iPhone ‘End Call’ sticker is an ironic solution to your reception problem originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Jul 2010 18:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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