Month: June 2009

Write Emails On Your iPhone More Quickly With FastMail

Being that I love to email out of my iPhone more than my computer, this particular little app called FastMail really caught my attention. While using it I felt more in control of my email composition creativity. Yes you already have the iPhone application for mail that comes built in and allows you to compose as you type offering optional words above the one being typed. However there are of course certain things that the mail app can't accomplish. You might struggle with having to retype the same long words over and over or if you’re like me, you might not be in favor of typing the word almost to completion before having the word offered to you.

Fastmail works similarly as the apple mail app except that you can see an entire list of words being offered for your use to the right of your current composition. Here’s the other kicker, you can set it to appear on the left side of your screen if you're left-handed! But keep in mind this has to be done at the beginning of the setup of the app. The controls and face of this app is very well put together in that there is no extras, it is very simple and easy to roam through it.

iPhone 3G S Gets 256MB of RAM And A 600MHz CPU

Apple is pretty secretive about the specs of the new iPhone 3G S but T-Mobile Netherlands posted more information about the processor and RAM: 600MHz CPU (up from 412MHz) and 256MB of RAM, which is twice what the iPhone 3G has in its guts. These numbers can't be verified until the iPhone 3G S is taken apart but it confirms all we've heard so far.

7 Reasons to Buy the New iPhone 3G S. Is That Enough?

The long expected iPhone 3G S has finally been unveiled yesterday at Apple's WWDC. While the list price is $199 to $299, it will actually cost you much more than that if you're an existing AT&T customer willing to upgrade. But is it really worth it? Compared side by side with the current iPhone 3G, what extra features does the 3G S have that would be worth the fea extra hundred bucks?

Fellow blogger Clay put up a laundry list of features that will only be available on the iPhone 3G S. Let's have a look at them and see if it's really worth it:

Faster processor Video recording Better camera Voice control Increased memory Digital compass Better battery

That's it? Yes, these are all the extra features the new iPhone 3G S will have compared to the 3G. That's not much...

If you don't have an iPhone yet, I think you shouldn't think twice about buying the new iPhone 3G S. Sure you can get the 3G for $99, but I believe the extra $100-$200 is worth it.

However, if you currently own an iPhone 3G I really think these 7 extra features are not compelling enough to justify paying up to $699 for the 3G S. I pre-ordered the 3G S for $560.16 because I'm just an iPhone douche and I have to have the latest one. I blog about it everyday so what kind of blogger would I be if I didn't even have the latest iPhone? Besides, me and my fiance are going to be traveling for a year and I really need this extra storage, video recording and the better battery.

As a side note, I told my fiance I pre ordered the new iPhone for a lot of money. She didn't even bother asking me how much I paid because I think she didn't want to start a fight over a piece of electronics. Anyways...

Unless you're an "iPhone power user", there is no reason for you to upgrade and potentially get raped by AT&T. Now if like me you can't live without the latest iPhone, pre-order now, or spend a few hours in line on June 19th.

Apple WWDC 2009 Keynote Video

Apple has posted the video of the 2009 WWDC keynote. Watch Philip Schiller and the team unveil the new iPhone 3G S, the new MacBook Pro family, and Mac OS X Snow Leopard. If you're only interested in the iPhone, jump over to around minute 45.

I Just Spent $560.16 On the New iPhone 3G S

I ragged about how AT&T is raping iPhone 3G owners who want to upgrade to the iPhone 3G S earlier today but I couldn't resist the temptation... When I first tried to pre-order this morning, it said I would have to pay $699 for the 32GB. I tried again a few minutes ago and it was saying "only" $499.

So I cracked and pre-ordered the new 32GB iPhone 3G S. Total price including taxes: $560.16. Nowhere it mentions anything about activation fee and upgrade fee although it wanted to charge me an extra $36 for this when I first tried to pre-order this morning. I assume AT&T will charge this to me at some point, in which case I will ask them not to as this bill clearly doesn't say anything about these fees.

That's an expensive purchase and I really didn't plan on spending that much but a couple things make me feel better about it. First, I will probably be able to get a couple hundred bucks from my current iPhone 3G as I will sell it unlocked. Second, my accountant will write this off of my taxes next year, so all in all, it shouldn't cost me too much.

There were several delivery options. I took the free one as it said it would be delivered by June 19th. This or waiting in line for 3 hours like I did last year at the store? It's a no brainer.

TomTom Brings Turn By Turn GPS Navigation to the iPhone

xGPS kinda pioneered the turn by turn navigation for the iPhone but you have to admit it was a little buggy.

TomTom's co-founder demonstrated TomTom’s navigation software in combination with a specially designed car kit on the iPhone earlier today at the WWDC, and it looks good!

There is no cost information or release date announced yet but according to TomTom's website, we should learn more about it in the next couple weeks:

The TomTom navigation application for iPhone will be available via the Apple iTunes App Store, following the release of Apple’s OS 3.0 operating system. Details regarding pricing and availability for both the application and the TomTom car kit for iPhone will be made available in advance of the products’ launch later this summer.

As Engadget puts it:

We can't imagine this being cheap. You think TomTom wants a $19 app undercutting its $300 navigation systems? Doubtful.

Apparently, you'll be able to get a special car kit with it.

iPhone 3G S Guided Tour Video

So you think you know everything there is to know about the new iPhone 3G S? Think again! Apple released a guided tour of the new iPhone and as usual, it's pretty amazing. Check it out over at Apple's website.

Once Again AT&T Is Screwing iPhone Users. Wants to Charge You $699 For the New iPhone 3GS

AT&T is once again showing proof of how much it sucks. The new iPhone just came out with two basic features that we've been waiting for a long time: MMS and tethering. Unfortunately, AT&T sucks so much they were not able to get their shit together on time and we'll have to wait to be able to use these features. How long do we have to wait? Well, we don't know... As Jason Kincaid from TechCrunch says:

At launch on June 17th, MMS is going to be supported by 29 carriers, and tethering will be supported by 22 of them. So when can we finally expect these stateside? MMS is apparently coming “later this summer”. And tethering? A much more nebulous (and ominous) “later”.

This is ridiculous, plain and simple. AT&T has almost certainly known about Apple’s plans for many months if not years, and was probably involved in determining when these features would be launching in the first place.

Want to hear even more ridiculous? I tried to pre-order the new iPhone 3GS on Apple's website and I can't get it for under $599... Yes, the price tag says $299 but you have to qualify for it. Here is what the fine print says:

Requires new two-year AT&T wireless service contract, sold separately to qualified customers; credit check required; must be 18 or older. 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).

This is far beyond scandalous. I switched to AT&T to get the first iPhone. I renewed a 2 year contract to get the iPhone 3G last year, and now, I have to pay full price - $699 - for the new iPhone 3GS. Are you serious? I hope this is a mistake and it will be fixed quickly.

Everything You Need to Know About the New iPhone 3GS

I didn't get to go to the WWDC this year again but I followed several liveblogging coverages as well as a live video streaming. Here is a summary of everything that was said about the new iPhone. Thanks Engadget for all the pictures. Please note that this text is really rough and I will take time to write a better sumary of what went on at the WWDC but I wanted to give you the heads up asap.

WWDC iPhone Keynotes Live Video Streaming

Here is a live streaming of the WWDC. The keynotes will start at 10am PST.

The connection is not great and it goes on and off all the time so you have to be patient... When it goes off, it will say, simply refresh the page from time to time. The connection usually comes back within a minute or so.