GSM

Permanent Unlock CutYourSim Discontinues Service

Last week we told you about a new unlock service called CutYourSim that offered a remote, permanent unlock for the iPhone. Instead of the classic method of jailbreaking and installing UltraSn0w, CutYourSim claimed to permanently unlock your iPhone's baseband remotely for any GSM carrier.

For $169.99, the folks at CutYourSim would be able to unlock your iPhone's baseband and keep it unlocked forever. Sounds like a dream come true, right?

The dream didn't last long. CutYourSim has already announced that it is discontinuing its unlock service...

Verizon CFO Says that iPhone 5 Will Be GSM + CDMA “Global Device”

The iPhone 5 will be a dual-baseband device that operates on both GSM and CDMA networks. According to comments made by Verizon CFO Fran Shammo in the company's last quarterly earnings call, Apple's next iPhone will be a "global device" compatible with all carriers.

Shammo was the one that leaked the information that Verizon would be getting the iPad 2, so there's reason to believe his claim is true.

What the AT&T and T-Mobile Merger Means for the iPhone

Well, no one saw that coming. Out of nowhere, AT&T has bought T-Mobile and become the largest wireless provider in the U.S.

It was originally thought that Sprint and T-Mobile would merge, but network incompatibilities made that idea look less and less attractive. Instead, AT&T and T-Mobile have shacked up to become the big kid on the block. Combined, AT&T and T-Mobile account for 130 million wireless customers in the United States, blowing by Verizon's 90 million users.

The question on our mind is: What does this all mean for the iPhone? LTE? What if we actually start getting reception in our own homes...

iOS 4.3 Will Not Be Compatible With All iDevices

We've gotten questions from readers asking if iOS 4.3 will be compatible with all iDevices. Sadly, the answer is no. The public release of iOS 4.3 that Apple announced at their iPad 2 event will only work on certain iDevice generations.

Most notably, 4.3 will not be installable on the Verizon iPhone. Because the Verizon iPhone runs on a different baseband and has different bugs to fix, Apple has to release a separate 4.3 build for that device. (Which they haven't announced yet.)

Hopefully your iDevice isn't on the 4.3 incompatibility list...

Apple Seeds iOS 4.3 GM to Develepors

Apple has seeded the iOS 4.3 Golden Master to develepors. This timely release paves the way for 4.3's public release next Friday.

Whenever a GM version of iOS is released, it means that it is nearly ready for deployment. This version of iOS will be made available for all iDevices, except for the CDMA iPhone 4.

More Details From Today’s Apple Event: Steve Jobs, iOS, and MobileMe

It's been a busy day for Apple. The iPad 2 has been announced, and Apple is set to take the tablet market by storm again.

During Apple's keynote this morning, lot's of great announcements were made. There were some expected details, some curveballs, and several rumors were left unanswered.

Let's take a look at some components of today's keynote. Perhaps even more interesting are the topics left unaddressed by Apple...

Consumer Reports Doesn’t Recommend the Verizon iPhone Due to Antenna Issues

Proving that they do have something against Apple, the fine folks at Consumer Reports have refused to give the Verizon iPhone their official recommendation. After testing the Verizon iPhone for antenna issues, Consumer Reports determined that the same "antennagate" issue that plagued the original iPhone 4 on AT&T also plagues the CDMA version of the iPhone.

Despite the Verizon iPhone being generally well received by the public and press, the stubbornness of Consumer Reports prevails with their verdict of judgement.

Apple Posts Differences Between CDMA and GSM iPhone 4

Yesterday, we posted a data speed comparison, comparing AT&T and Verizon networks. While Verizon seemed to do better than AT&T in every way (in the San Francisco area, at least), it looks like the Verizon iPhone has some shortcomings as well.

Although we missed it, it seems that Apple had posted a comparison chart last week, detailing the differences between the GSM and CDMA versions of the iPhone. This comparison chart solely focuses on how the GSM and CDMA versions of the iPhone handle calls...

New Verizon iPhone Has Antenna Issues Too

Just when you thought we were done with the antennagate, a new video from iLounge surfaced, showing that the Verizon iPhone is also affected by an antenna issue. When held in the prior "death grip" position, the Verizon iPhone loses substantial cellular signal, just like we previously saw with GSM iPhone 4.

Additionally, the CDMA iPhone 4 seems to be affected by a loss of wifi signal when held snugly in landscape mode. Both issues seem to be taken care of with the use of a case...

Verizon iPhone Chipset Supports Both GSM and CDMA

The guys over at iFixit already got their hands on a Verizon iPhone and took it apart to compare its guts to those of the "original" iPhone 4. Most of what they found wasn't very surprising, but they did make one interesting discovery.

The Verizon iPhone sports a Qualcomm MDM6600 baseband chipset similar to the Droid Pro World Phone's, which brings support for both CDMA and GSM...

New Photos May Provide Clues About the Verizon iPhone

Are these the latest photos of the Verizon iPhone? Quite possibly. The fact that these skeletal snapshots are devoid of any drastic changes just may be indicative that we're looking at the real deal here.

Inside, we examine three additional photos that highlight the subtle changes between the current iPhone 4, and what may possibly be Apple's first foray into Verizon land...

Apple is Rumored to Ship 21 Million iPhones Next Quarter, 5 Million of Which Will Be CDMA

Digitimes reports that 21 million iPhones will be shipped in Q1 of 2011. In case you didn't know, "Q1" is an industry term for "quarter one;" each business year is composed of four quarters, with each quarter representing three months out of the year.

This scoop from Digitimes indicates that Apple will most likely be doing some sort of revamp to the iPhone before March of 2011. It's not that much of a stretch to think that Apple could have a fantastic first quarter and pull off selling 14-15 million regular iPhone 4 units, but what really makes this rumor interesting is that Digitimes says that 5-6 million of these devices will be CDMA iPhones.

Contacts with Taiwan-based component suppliers say that the CDMA iPhone will be launched in North America and Asia Pacific in the first quarter of 2011. Digitimes says, "Currently, Foxconn is the only maker of WCDMA iPhones, while Foxconn and Pegatron Technology have equally shared the production volume for the CDMA version, the sources noted..."