Hasta La Gadget!

Now that Apple has shut everybody up about the iPhone 4 antenna with free cases, it faces another potential problem: Those cases could potentially cause damage to the handset’s glass body, according to Ryan Block of GDGT.

Block, a well-sourced tech journalist who was formerly chief of Engadget, claims sources both inside and outside Apple told him that Apple retail stores have stopped selling third-party iPhone cases that slide on to the iPhone 4. These cases are prone to particulate matter getting stuck between the case and the rear of the phone, causing unexpected scratching that can lead to cracking of the glass, Block said.

“To put it another way: Apple is afraid you might buy a standard slide-on iPhone case, put it on your phone, and then discover the next time you take it off that the entire back of your device has been shattered by no fault of your own,” Block wrote in a post Thursday afternoon.

Defusing conspiracy theorists, Block added that halting third-party iPhone case sales is not in Apple’s best interest: Accessories that have been approved by Apple’s “Made for iPhone” program (a requirement for their gear to be sold in Apple retail stores) give 10 percent to 15 percent of their sales to Apple.

Despite its hot sales and glowing reviews, the iPhone 4 has seen its share of problems. Shortly after the handset’s July release, many consumers independently reported that covering the gap in the lower-left corner of the device caused significant signal loss. The media piled on this phenomenon, and in response, Apple’s Steve Jobs held a press conference to address concerns by offering free third-party cases to alleviate the issue. (That offer has since expired.) The episode has been dubbed “Antennagate.”

Separately, the white model of the iPhone 4 still has not shipped, and Apple has not provided an explanation for the delay.

Weeks after the Antennagate press conference, The New York Times reported the departure of Mark Papermaster, the Apple executive in charge of the iPhone’s hardware. Multiple publications independently heard his departure was a firing over hardware issues related to the iPhone 4, which seems plausible, when you consider the mysterious delay of the white iPhone 4, the Antennagate fiasco and the new potential problem with the iPhone 4’s glass.

Apple did not immediately return a request for comment.

See Also:

• Apple’s Answer to Antennagate: Free iPhone 4 Cases
• Photo Gallery: Hands-On With the iPhone 4
• iPhone 4 Has More RAM Than iPad
• Showdown: iPhone 4 vs. HTC Evo 4G

Photo: Jim Merithew/Wired.com

Good morning Gadget Lab readers. It’s time for today’s overzealous iPad speculation. In this episode we take a look at the “new” iPad case, which will apparently sport two dock-connectors, with a second port on the side to enable landscape docking.

The “evidence” comes from the Mission Repair blog, a somewhat suspect source as we shall see. Mission repair appears to have gotten its hands on spare parts for the next-gen iPad. The aluminum shell has a second slot on the long side.

I call bluff. Apple has indeed filed for a patent showing two ports of some kind, but duplication of function like this seems distinctly un-Apple. Take a second look at that slot, though, and you’ll see it is just the right size for an SD-card slot, something Apple already builds in to the iMac and MacBook Pro (I held my iPad up to the iMac for comparison and the size is just right).

Also, doesn’t it seem a little odd that a repair company would already have spares for an as-yet unreleased iPad? Apple has a history of making small revisions in the first year of a new product (a memory increase on the original iPhone, for example) but major revisions on mobile devices come one year apart, like clockwork.

We have seen Mission Repair’s work before. Back in February, before the iPad shipped, the company posted a picture of the internal frame of an iPad which turned out to be real. The site claimed that it had space for a front-facing camera, but this turned out to be the gap for the ambient light sensor. Sure, they got ahold of the parts before launch, but weeks, not months before.

Double dock iPad? Nah. I don’t see it. An SD card slot? Along with a FaceTime camera in a new, February/April iPad release, I’d put money on it.

[UPDATE: Engadget boss Joshua Topolsky has it from a “trusted source” that the “image actually shows is a rejected concept from the current generation iPad.”

iPad Landscape docking? You decide! [Mission Repair]

Photos: Mission Repair

See Also:

• Apple iPad May Ship With Webcam

Follow us for real-time tech news: Charlie Sorrel and Gadget Lab on Twitter.

In the market for a MacBook Air? Well, now may not be the best time. Apple Insider is reporting indirect sales channels (read: non-Apple stores) are running out of the thin-and-light with no indication of a replenishment. Indeed, we just checked Amazon, Best Buy, and a few other online retailers and were consistently greeted by limited- and out-of-stock notices. So, you know what the means — new hardware rumors. Or rather, old ones resurfacing, such as the 11.6-inch display from late September. Compounding the community’s curiosity would be vague tweets from famed company insider John Gruber, who casually mentioned “the imminent” new MacBook Air as a possible reason for the recent Apple Store downtime. Of course, that didn’t turn out to be the case, and for all we know it could just mean some refreshed specs — if even that, really.

AI reminds us that October has been historically the month of refreshed Mac hardware in the lead-up to holiday shopping… but that doesn’t mean it’s the case now. All we really know now is that third-party outlets aren’t currently stocking the Air and it’s unknown if they’re getting anymore shipments of this particular model — which, we know, isn’t nearly as exciting as the imagination. Sorry about that.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

MacBook Air supply dwindling for online retailers, rumor mill raises an eyebrow originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 06 Oct 2010 20:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Thought you knew all there was to know about Microsoft’s October 11 event already? Maybe you do, but it’s always good to pepper some good old fashioned rumors atop well established facts for that extra bit of spice. Neowin cites insider sources in reporting that Microsoft intends to use its Windows Phone 7 launch as a platform for revealing its plans for the tablet realm as well. Specifically, Steve Ballmer and crew are expected to “announce Slate devices which will be available for the crucial holiday season.” We can’t think of anything that would make the Redmond CEO happier, but let’s not go building our hopes up too high. Just one revolution from Microsoft will be enough for us.

[Thanks, George]

Microsoft’s October 11 event could involve slate device announcements, unicorn sightings originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 05 Oct 2010 07:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well well, Mr. Bradley — hast thou said too much? During an analyst call today the outspoken head of HP’s Personal System Group confirmed that it’s sent more than 200 employees to work at Palm…. and then casually mentioned that HP will have “a webOS-powered PalmPad that will be set for release early in 2011.” If you’ll recall, HP filed for a trademark on PalmPad back in July, and it’s been talking about tablets since it bought Palm in May, so we’re thinking ol’ Todd just let one slip. Now let’s just hope all this “early 2011” talk means really early… like, say, CES.

HP’s Todd Bradley slips ‘PalmPad’ tablet name during analyst call originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 19:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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