Month: August 2010

iPhone Proximity Sensor & Other Features in iOS 4.1 Update?

Earlier this Month the 3rd round of Beta was handed out to developers and the list of fixes doesn't technically include some of the biggest issues people have had with the iPhone's operating system. The proximity sensor or Bluetooth Connectivity don't make the list, but I have beliefs that Apple is working on them secretly to keep the issues asleep.

Neil Hughes from Apple Insider mentions increased performance in both of these important areas and points out a few obscure fixes as well. Steve Jobs said in July that the proximity sensor issue would be dealt with in an update but hasn't said a word about the topic since. Again I say to keep the issue quiet.

Why Would Apple Want to Remotely Access Your iPhone?

As usual Apple has been patent happy. Just as usual is the breakdown of what sometimes may be considered by outsiders as minimal or trivial. This isn't one of those times.

If you're the paranoid type, you just might want to check your peep-hole twice tonight. Mac Life has the entry and it reads:

How to Send SMS from Your iPad

Want to send SMS from your iPad? There is an app for that, assuming you have a jailbroken iPad 3G. SwirlyMessage is a new jailbreak application by the developer of SwirlyMMS that allows you to send and receive real SMS and MMS on your iPad 3G.

In order to use SwirlyMessage, you need a jailbroken iPad 3G, and make sure that your carrier data plan allows for sending sending SMS and/or MMS. I don't have an iPad 3G so I wasn't able to try this application but from what I understand, SwirlyMessage simply provides an interface to send SMS through your carrier. If that's the case, extra cost for each SMS sent/received might apply.

You can download SwirlyMessage from Cydia for $12. Please let us know what you think of this application should you decide to give it a try.

Replace Your iPhone “Slide to Unlock” by the Volume Button

Are you tired of using the "Slide to Unlock" thingy on your iPhone to get access to its homescreen? Then VUnlock might the jailbreak app you've been waiting for. VUnlock allows you to use the volume button of your iPhone to unlock the screen.

Using the volume key to access your phone might be a faster way than turning on the screen and swiping your finger across. The downside is you might accidentally unlock your iPhone more often now it's just one push of a button away.

Slow iPhone 3G? Apple Will Release a Software Update Soon

Some of you with iPhone 3G who updated to iOS 4 and up have noticed how performances have been degraded. The most common symptom is how slow you iPhone 3G becomes. Apple recently said they are looking into it, and in the meanwhile, we provided you with a quick fix that works for many of you.

A frustrated iPhone 3G user asked Steve Jobs about it:

What Would a Non-Exclusive iPhone Cost?

As iDB covers the possibility of a Verizon iPhone, most everyone thinks having a choice of carriers would be good for the consumers. However it's that very exclusivity that makes the awesome device more affordable than other smartphones in its class, says 9 to 5 Mac. They have a point.

AT&T's position as sole carrier in the U.S. doesn't come without a hefty price. By being lone wolf they have to fork over subsidies that make the iPhone cost just $200-$300. In fact the mobile provider pays out more in subsidies for the iPhone than any other phone they offer. Don't feel too bad for them because in reality it has been AT&T's personal cash cow.

Prototype Physical Keyboard Accessory For Your iPhone 4

Do you remember last year when Mobile Mechatronics released a physical keyboard that attached to the iPhone 3G and 3GS called the iTwinge? It turns out that it was a big enough hit for another company to put the click button feel to the iPhone 4.

A designer by the name of Altamash Jiwani has created a prototype that is a bit more complex than the previous accessories. The design resembles the Apple Bumper with the keyboard on rails that make the home button clearable with a slide. It would disable the functionality of the keyboard by way of its dock connect-ability. Not stopping there, the bottom would serve as a female dock port which would allow syncing without removing the keyboard.

Behind the Places That Facebook’s iPhone App Goes [Rant]

Continuing in my short lived residency here at iDB is my Friday rant that is usually based off a particular story in the week that rubbed me the wrong way. When we reported about Facebook adding GPS check in capabilities I knew my topic had been sealed. I will preface my outburst by informing you all that I am one of the few individuals I know who doesn't have a profile in the world's biggest social platform. I had one for less than a month and every lousy expectation I envisioned came to life.

I have no bones to pick with users who have Facebook accounts. If I did I would have almost no one to talk to. My beef comes from the irresponsible undertones involved with the new Places feature embedded within the iPhone app. I have yet to hear a responsible or even reasonable explanation for desiring to participate in sharing your location with your "friends". The whole memories still not being captured song and dance that Facebook cites as motivation is as corny as a field in Iowa.

FolderCloser Jailbreak App Automatically Closes Your iPhone Folders

If like me you get annoyed by folders staying opened after you launch and close an application from within this folder, then FolderCloser should be the right mod for you. Available for free in Cydia, FolderCloser will automatically close the opened folder at app launch. There are no settings or icon for this app. Just install it and your folders should now close by themselves.

Five Icon Switcher Tweak for iPhone

Five Icon Switcher is a new mod by Chpwn that, just like the name suggests, brings an additional icon to your iPhone multitasking switcher. Not groundbreaking but simple and very convenient. That's the kind of mods I like!

The iPad is Shipping Faster and Faster

About a month ago we reported that there was production delays for the iPad, pushing the shipping time to about 7-10 days. Apple's website now shows shipping times of about 3-5 days, which is basically twice as fast as it used to be. In the meantime, it looks like the iPhone 4 production is accelerating too as shortages are expected to be a thing of the past soon.

Are you still waiting for an iPad or an iPhone 4?

[TUAW]

Apple CEO Steve Jobs Can Finally Bring The House Down

Poor Steve. All he's wanted to do since 2004 is tear down his old mansion in Woodside, California. The Jackling House as it's called has been owned by Jobs since 1984 and apparently has historical significance that local preservationists wanted to keep around. I say that in past tense because as it seems is the case with everything Steve wants, Steve gets.

The house was designed and manufactured in 1925 for copper mining magnate Daniel Cowan Jackling. The architect behind the mastery was drafted by a celebrated Californian named George Washington Smith. Apparently that means something to a certain amount of someones.

9 to 5 Mac reports that back in '04, Jobs was given permission to tear down and renovate the structure but a group called Uphold Our Heritage sued the city and the Apple CEO. The courts finally backed down if no appeal against the demolishing permit was filed. The dedicated members of Uphold Our Heritage dropped their last appeal on July 19th after Steve tactfully didn't move on the tear down requested by a couple of local residents.

I say tactfully because now that appeal against such procedure has been abandoned, his lawyer Howard Ellman states "we're going forward". Not without an inventory though. A Quote from the Almanac News Report reads:

The town has hired architectural historian Michael R. Corbett to conduct an inventory of historically significant parts of the house. Preserving these items for posterity is a key condition of the demolition permit issued by the town in 2009.

All this seems insane really. I'm typically not for the destruction of historical landmarks but since this is technically a man's house, he should be able to paint it bright magenta and put a Richard Simmons statue in his bathroom. It would be different if he was trying to buy an already marked landmark. Do you think the Jobs should have just left this alone and allowed the house to be used for historical reasons? Let us know in the never to be demolished comment box below.