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Cricket lowers unlimited iPhone plan to $50

Cricket, a subsidiary of Leap Wireless, started offering the iPhone last year. Initially, it was the only prepaid carrier offering the popular smartphone, but it has since been joined by Straight Talk and other low-cost competitors.

So it's no surprise that the wireless provider announced today that it's revamping its iPhone plans, bringing them more inline with its Android plans and the competition. The service now starts at $50 for unlimited everything...

Alleged golden and gray iPhone 5S Nano SIM trays

Apple's iPhone 5 is now almost seven months old so fans are expectedly setting their sights on a next-gen model, the iPhone 5S. And as we're heading toward summer, new evidence indicates Apple is now lining up its Asian suppliers to source parts ahead of the actual manufacturing phase.

This could explain why we're increasingly seeing supposedly genuine parts cropping up all over Asia, such as this Home buttons and vibrator motors. Today's leak by Japanese parts shop Moumantai is thought to represent a SIM tray for the iPhone 5S.

It's exactly the same in shape and size to the Nano SIM trays used on the current iPhone 5, with one exception: the leaked ones are in gray and gold colors. This matches up nicely with reports of a colorized iPhone 5S, mostly sourced from analyst reports and supply chain people...

Netflix 4.0 is out with new episode selector for iPad and more

Netflix users will be happy to hear that there's a new version of the iOS client available for download today. The update, which brings the app to version 4.0, includes a handful of new features, as well as the usual bug fixes and improvements.

Perhaps the most notable change in today's release is the new episode selector in the iPad app. Netflix says this will make finding new TV show episodes, and discovering old favorites, much easier. You'll find the full change log after the fold...

Volkswagen unveils new ‘iBeetle’ with integrated iPhone dock

This is kind of interesting. Following a press release this weekend, Volkswagen has just unveiled the 'iBeetle' at the Shanghai Motor Show in the city's Pudong district. The vehicle is expected to launch early next year, and will come in both coupe and convertible models.

Why is it called the iBeetle? The car will feature a custom built-in iPhone docking station, as well as a companion app, that will allow you to sync your iPhone with its entertainment system for making phone calls, streaming music and more. More details after the fold...

Reuters: iPhone 5S delayed as coating material interferes with fingerprint sensor

Apple's perfectionism is legendary. Good enough just doesn't cut it for a company whose exacting demands often drive its suppliers and manufacturing partners crazy. This even includes construction companies tasked with building Apple's upcoming iSpaceship campus with four times narrower gaps between surfaces versus the U.S. construction standard.

We learned earlier this morning that Apple may have returned up to eight million iPhones to Foxconn, apparently because the unites were not fit for sale, potentially costing the contract manufacturer north of $1 billion to make replacements. In fact, Apple's hard-to-meet standard and various manufacturing challenges could reportedly delay the next wave of iDevice upgrades until Fall.

And today comes another confirmation that Apple won't launch the iPhone 5S this summer because it is still trying out various coating materials in the hope of finding one that won't interfere with the handset's fingerprint sensor...

Apple reportedly returned 5-8M iPhones to Foxconn due to quality issues

When Apple introduced the iPhone 5 last fall, it made sure to mention its complex manufacturing process. "Never before have we built a product with this extraordinary level of fit and finish," Jony Ive said during a video on the handset.

The extra effort has obviously paid off, as the iPhone 5 has been very popular with consumers. But it's also causing problems for Foxconn, Apple's manufacturing partner, who continues to struggle with the device's intricate production methods...

Google launches new ‘Places for Business’ app for managing business listings

Good news for all of you local business owners out there today. Google has just released a new application called 'Google Places for Business' that should make managing business listings through its different services much easier.

The app allows business owners to update their business information (hours, address, contact info, description, etc.), as well as post pictures to their Google+ page and track web traffic for their listings right from their iPhone...

Gemini Rue makes its way to iOS, and it feels like old times

Point-and-click adventures are beginning to make a dent in the gaming community. There have been some well-made releases within the past few months that have certainly sparked my interest. Abyss: the Wraiths of Eden HD, for example, had me sweaty palmed and stiff necked from hours of gameplay. The more often developers port desktop games to iOS, the better it is for me because I like being able to pick up and play epic adventures anywhere.

You may have already heard of Gemini Rue. It was originally created for Windows in 2011 and was just ported to iOS a week ago. The game may only be a few years old, but it has a retro design that will put you in pixilated heaven from the first beat.

Gemini Rue, for the iPhone and iPad, takes players on a noir-like adventure set on a mining planet in a future where citizens must prove their residency or be deported off world. The game’s plot develops slowly and deliberately. One false move and you’ll be pushing up daisies...

Pre-orders for Nomad 3-inch USB-to-Lightning cable open, shipping in June

The three-inch Nomad Lightning cable made waves when it was announced back in November 2012. This handy little USB-to-Lighting accessory fits your key ring and comes to the rescue when you find yourself out and about with a dying iPhone and no charger in sight.

Originally a Kickstarter project, creators Kegan & Roberto developed the Nomad according to Apple's strict requirements in order to earn the sought-after Lightning accessory certification. The Nomad cable is available for pre-order now, priced at $24.99 a pop (no shipments expected until June)...

China app store features pirated iOS apps

It wasn't long ago that Apple was being labeled a pirate in China. Now comes word of a pirate version of Apple's App Store, selling iOS apps that let iPhone or iPad owners skirt iTunes and install apps, no jailbreak required. However, there's one major catch: the website is available only within China, likely to dissuade Apple lawyers coming down like a ton of bricks.

Ironically, the service is called KuaiYong, which means "use quickly" in Chinese. We're unsure whether this refers to ease of use or "hurry before we are shut down." ...

Dubious budget iPhone plastic shell leaks

Apple's rumored less-pricey iPhone is thought to minimize manufacturing costs by abandoning the pricey two-tone aluminum body, replacing it with a less expensive polycarbonate shell akin to the white G3 iMac - or similar to the plastic body of the iPhone 3G/3GS, if you will. Now, rumor-mills, but also big media such as WSJ and Bloomberg, have repeated this particular data point numerous times, but we have never seen any physical evidence supporting the plastic body theory.

That changed Wednesday as case manufacturer Tactus, which recently leaked purported iPad 5 shell, posted an image that allegedly represents the back shell of the budget iPhone. We couldn't confirm its authenticity at press time so take this one with a pinch of salt, even more so knowing accessory makers often pull such stunts to get free press...

Verizon in Q1 activated 4M iPhones out of 7.2M smartphones

Verizon just posted its calendar 2013 first quarter earnings. The nation's top wireless carrier activated four million iPhones on its network throughout the quarter, half of which were the iPhone 5. The figure beats the 3.5 million unit consensus and represents a 25 percent increase over the 3.2 million iPhones Verizon activated a year ago. Representing just over 55 percent of all smartphone activations for the quarter, the iPhone during Q4 2012 represented nearly two-thirds of activations, which isn't surprising given the holiday rush, iPhone 4/4S price cuts and the iPhone 5 launch hype.

The company added 720,000 net new subscribers, including 677,000 people who signed two-year contracts, up 35 percent year-over-year. Turnover rate increased slightly to 1.01 percent from 0.96 percent a year ago. Smartphones represented 61 percent of contract subscribers, a record smartphone penetration. Shares climbed 1.94 percent during Thursday’s pre-market session...